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The Noble Quran is filled with scientific statements and explanations that describe how Almighty Allah (SWT) describes how He created things on earth and in the Universe. Subhanallah, all of these scientific statements are in perfect agreement with our modern-day scientific discoveries. Allah Almighty Said:
"We will soon show them Our signs in the Universe and within themselves, until it becomes quite clear to them that it is the truth. Is it not sufficient as regards your Lord that He is a witness over all things?" (Quran 41:53)
The 20th century was full of discoveries regarding the celestial phenomena in the universe. Yet Muslims had all of this glorious knowledge and information at their fingertips. The following article will relate a few of the great number of scientific explanations that exist in the Holy Quran.
One of these entities, which
has only recently been
encountered, is the Black
Hole. Black Holes are
formed when a star, which
has consumed all its fuel,
collapses in on itself and
turns into a black hole with
infinite density and zero
volume with an immensely
powerful magnetic field. We
are unable to see black
holes even with the most
powerful telescope, because
their gravitational pull is so
strong that light is unable to
escape from them. However, such a collapsed star can be
perceived by means of the effect it has on the surrounding
area. Black holes reveal themselves indirectly, by the
tremendous suction which their gravitational force exerts on
other heavenly bodies. As well as depictions of the Day of
Judgement, the verse below may also be pointing to this
scientific discovery about black holes:
When the stars are extinguished. (Qur'an, 77:8)
Moreover, stars of great mass also cause warps to be perceived in space. Black holes, however, do not just cause warps in space but also tear holes in it. That is why these collapsed stars are known as black holes. This fact may be referred to in the verse about stars, and this is another important item of information demonstrating that the Qur'an is the word of Allah:
[I swear] by Heaven and the Tariq! And what will convey to you what the Tariq is? The Star Piercing [the darkness]! (Qur'an, 86:1-3)
[I swear] by Heaven and the Tariq! And what will convey to you what the Tariq is? The Star Piercing [the darkness]! (Qur'an, 86:1-3)
The word "Tariq," name of the Sura 86, comes from the root "tarq," whose basic meaning is that of striking hard enough to produce a sound, or hitting. Bearing in mind the word's possible meaning as "beating," "striking hard," our attention may be being drawn in this sura to an important scientific fact. Before analysing this information, let us look at the other words employed in the verse to describe these stars. The term "al-taariqi" in the above verse means a star that pierces the night, that pierces the darkness, born at night, piercing and moving on, beating, striking, or sharp star. Furthermore, the term "wa" draws attention to the things being sworn on-the heaven and the Tariq.
Through research carried out by Jocelyn Bell Burnell, at
Cambridge University in 1967, a regular radio signal was
identified. Until that time, however, it was not known that that
there was a heavenly
body that could be
the source of regular
pulse or beating
rather like that of the
heart. In 1967,
however, astronomers
stated that, as matter
grows denser in the
core as it revolves
around its own axis,
the star's magnetic
field also grows
stronger, and thus
gives rise to a magnetic
field at its poles
1 trillion times
stronger than that of
Earth. They realised
that a body revolving so fast and with such a powerful magnetic
field emits rays consisting of very powerful radio waves
in a conic form at every revolution. Shortly afterwards, it was
also realised that the source of these signals is the rapid
revolution of neutron stars. These newly discovered neutron
stars are known as "pulsars." These stars, which turn into
pulsars through supernova explosions, are of the greatest
mass, and are the brightest and fastest moving bodies in the
universe. Some pulsars revolve 600 times a second.
The word "pulsar" comes from the verb to pulse. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, the word means to pulsate, to beat. Encarta Dictionary defines it as to beat rhythmically, to move or throb with a strong regular rhythm. Again, according to the Encarta Dictionary, the word "pulsate," which comes from the same root, means to expand and contract with a strong regular beat. Following that discovery, it was realised that the phenomenon described in the Qur'an as "tariq," beating, bore a great similarity to the neutron stars known as pulsars.
Neutron stars form as the nuclei of super giant stars collapse. The highly compressed and dense matter, in the form of a rapidly revolving sphere, entraps and squeezes most of the star's weight and magnetic field. The powerful magnetic field created by these rapidly revolving neutron stars has been shown to cause the emission of powerful radio waves observable on Earth.
In the third verse of Surat at-Tariq the term "al-najmu al-thaaqibu," meaning piercing, moving on, or opening holes, indicates that Tariq is a bright star that pierces a hole in the darkness and moves on. The concept of the term "adraaka" in the expression "And what will convey to you what the Tariq is?" refers to comprehension. Pulsars, formed through the compression of stars several times the size of the Sun, are among those celestial bodies that are hard to comprehend. The question in the verse emphasizes how hard it is to comprehend this beating star. (Allah knows best.)
As discussed, the stars described as Tariq in the Qur'an bear a close similarity to the pulsars described in the 20th century, and may reveal to us another scientific miracle of the Qur'an.
We built seven firm layers above you. We installed a blazing lamp. (Qur'an, 78:12-13)
As we know, the only source of light in the Solar System is the Sun. With advances in technology, astronomers discovered that the Moon was not a source of light but that it merely reflects the light reaching it from the Sun. The expression "lamp" in the above verse is a translation of the Arabic word "siraaj," which most perfectly describes the Sun, the source of light and heat.
In the Qur'an Allah employs different words when referring to such celestial bodies as the Moon, the Sun and the stars. This is how the differences between the structures of the Sun and Moon are expressed in the Qur'an:
Don't you see how He created seven heavens in layers, and placed the Moon as a light in them and made the sun a blazing lamp? (Qur'an, 71:15-16)
In the above verse, the word "light" is used for the Moon
("noor" in Arabic) and the word "lamp" for the Sun ("siraaj" in
Arabic.) The word used for the Moon refers to a light-reflecting,
bright, motionless body. The word used for the Sun refers
to a celestial body which is always burning, a constant source
of heat and light.
On the other hand, the word "star" comes from the Arabic root "najama," meaning "appearing, emerging, visible." As in the verse below, stars are also referred to by the word "thaaqib," which is used for that which shines and pierces the darkness with light: self-consuming and burning:
It is the star that pierces through darkness! (Qur'an, 86:3)
We now know that the Moon does not emit its own light but reflects that reaching it from the Sun. We also know that the Sun and stars do emit their own light. These facts were revealed in the Qur'an in an age when mankind simply did not have the means to make scientific discoveries of their own accord. It was an age when peoples' knowledge of celestial bodies was severely restricted, to say the least. This further emphasises the miraculous nature of the book of Islam.
One of the most important reasons for the great equilibrium
in the universe is the fact that celestial bodies follow specific
paths. Stars, planets
and satellites all
rotate around their
own axes and also
rotate together with
the system of which
they are a part. The
universe functions
within a finely-tuned
order, just like the
wheels in a factory.
All these celestial
bodies follow the
most finely calculated
paths and
orbits. For millions
of years, each one
has been moving in
its own path in
flawless harmony
with all the others.
The verse which
reads "[I swear] by
Heaven with its
cyclical systems," (Qur'an, 86:11) indicates this truth. Naturally,
at the time when the Qur'an was revealed, people had
no telescopes with which to study bodies millions of
kilometres away in space, advanced observation technology or
our modern knowledge of physics and astronomy. It was
therefore impossible to establish that space had "its oscillating
orbits," (Qur'an, 51:7) as described in the verse. The
Qur'an however, revealed at that time, provided clear information
concerning that fact. This is proof that this book is
indeed Allah's word.
It is stressed in the Qur'an that the Sun and Moon follow specific trajectories:
It is He Who created night and day and the Sun and Moon, each one swimming in a sphere. (Qur'an, 21:33)
The word "swim" in the above verse is expressed in Arabic by the word "sabaha" and is used to describe the movement of the Sun in space. The word means that the Sun does not move randomly through space but that it rotates around its axis and follows a course as it does so. The fact that the Sun is not fixed in position but rather follows a specific trajectory is also stated in another verse:
And the Sun runs to its resting place. That is the decree of the Almighty, the All-Knowing. (Qur'an, 36:38)
These facts set out in the Qur'an were only discovered by means of astronomical advances in our own time. According to astronomers' calculations, the Sun moves along a path known as the Solar Apex in the path of the star Vega at an incredible speed of 720,000 kmph (447,000 mph). In rough terms, this shows that the Sun traverses some 17.28 million km (10.74 million miles) a day. As well as the Sun itself, all the planets and satellites within its gravitational field also travel the same distance.
And We have decreed set phases for the Moon, until it ends
up looking like an old date branch. It is not for the Sun to
overtake the Moon nor for the night to outstrip the day; each
one is swimming in a sphere. (Qur'an, 36:39-40)
The Moon does not follow a regular orbit like the satellites of other planets. As it orbits the Earth, it sometimes moves behind it and sometimes in front. As it also moves with the Earth around the Sun, it actually follows a constant pattern resembling the letter "S" in space. This route, traced by the Moon in space, is described in the Qur'an as resembling an old date branch and does indeed resemble the twisted form of the date tree branch. Indeed, the word "urjoon" employed in the Qur'an refers to a thin and twisted date branch and is used to describe that part left after the fruit has been picked. The way that this branch is described as "old" is also most appropriate since old date branches are thinner and more twisted.
There is no doubt that it was impossible for anyone to have any knowledge about the orbit of the Moon 1,400 years ago. The way that this pattern, identified by modern technology and accumulated knowledge, was revealed in the Book is yet another scientific miracle of the Qur'an.
Muslims people have a huge treasure in their hands, the Holy Quran. This book not only describes the way a Muslim person should lead their life, but it also is full of complex explanations of the world that we live in. Constant reading of the Quran will enable a person to better understand this world and to become a closer servant to Allah (SWT).
The Islamic Bulletin
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