The Qur'an and Modern Science 2

ASTRONOMY
Whenever I describe to Westerners the details the Qur’an contains on certain
points of astronomy, it is common for someone to reply that there is nothing
unusual in this since the Arabs made important discoveries in the field of
astronomy long before the Europeans. But, this is a mistaken idea resulting from
an ignorance of history. In the first place, science developed in the Arab World at
a considerable time after the Qur’anic revelation had occurred. Secondly, the
scientific knowledge prevalent at the highpoint of Islamic civilization would have
made it impossible for any human being to have written statements on the
heavens comparable to those in the Qur’an. The material on this subject is so
vast that I can only provide a brief outline of it here.
The Sun and Moon.
Whereas the Bible talks of the sun and the moon as two lights differing only in
size, the Qur’an distinguishes between them by the use of different terms: light
(noor) for the moon, and lamp (siraaj) for the sun.
"Did you see how Allah created seven heavens, one above the
other, and made in them the moon a light and the sun a lamp?"
Qur’an, 78:12-13
The moon is an inert body which reflects light, whereas the sun is a celestial
body in a state of permanent combustion producing both light and heat.
Stars and Planets
The word ‘star’ (najm) in the Qur’an ( 86:3 ) is accompanied by the adjective
thaaqib which indicates that it burns and consumes itself as it pierces through the
shadows of the night. It was much later discovered that stars are heavenly
bodies producing their own light like the sun.
In the Qur’an, a different word, kawkab, is used to refer to the planets which are
celestial bodies that reflect light and do not produce their own light like the sun.
“We have adorned the lowest heaven with ornaments, the planets.” Qur’an,
37:6
Orbits
Today, the laws governing the celestial systems are well known. Galaxies are
balanced by the position of stars and planets in well-defined orbits, as well as the
interplay of gravitational forces produced by their masses and the speed of their
movements. But is this not what the Qur’an describes in terms which have only
become comprehensible in modern times. In chapter al-Ambiyaa we find:
“(God is) the one who created the night, the day, the sun and the moon.
Each one is traveling in an orbit with its own motion.” Qur’an,21:33
The Arabic word which expresses this movement is the verb yasbahoon which
implies the idea of motion produced by a moving body, whether it is the
movement of one’s legs running on the ground, or the action of swimming in
water. In the case of a celestial body, one is forced to translate it, according to its
original meaning, as ‘to travel with its own motion.’
In my book, The Bible, The Qur'an and Science, I have given the precise
scientific data corresponding to the motion of celestial bodies. They are well
known for the moon, but less widely known for the sun.
The Day and Night
The Qur’anic description of the sequence of day and night would, in itself, be
rather commonplace were it not for the fact that it is expressed in terms that are
today highly appropriate. The Qur’an uses the verb kawwara in chapter az-Zumar
to describe the way the night ‘winds’ or ‘coils’ itself around the day and the day
around the night.
“He coils the night upon the day and the day upon the night.”
Qur’an, 39:5
The original meaning of the verb kis to coil a turban around the head. This is a
totally valid comparison; yet at the time the Qur’an was revealed, the
astronomical data necessary to make this comparison were unknown. It is not
until man landed on the moon and observed the earth spinning on its axis, that
the dark half of the globe appeared to wind itself around the light and the light
half appeared to wind itself around the dark.
The Solar Apex
The notion of a settled place for the sun is vividly described in chapter Yaa Seen
of the Qur’an:
"The sun runs its coarse to a settled place That is the decree
of the Almighty, the All Knowing.” Qur’an, 36:38
“Settled place” is the translation of the word mustaqarr which indicates an exact
appointed place and time. Modern astronomy confirms that the solar system is
indeed moving in space at a rate of 12 miles per second towards a point situated
in the constellation of Hercules ( alpha lyrae ) whose exact location has been
precisely calculated. Astronomers have even give it a name, the solar apex.
Expansion of the Universe
Chapter ath-Thaariyaat of the Qur’an also seems to allude to one of the most
imposing discoveries of modern science, the expansion of the Universe.
“I built the heaven with power and it is I, who am expanding
it.” Qur’an,51:47
The expansion of the universe was first suggested by the general theory of
relativity and is supported by the calculations of astrophysics. The regular
movement of the galactic light towards the red section of the spectrum is
explained by the distancing of one galaxy from another. Thus, the size of the
universe appears to be progressively increasing.
Conquest of Space
Among the achievements of modern science is the “conquest” of space which
has resulted in mans journey to the moon. The prediction of this event surely
springs to mind when we read the chapter ar-Rahmaan in the Qur’an:
“O assembly of Jinns and men, if you can penetrate the
regions of the heavens and the earth, then penetrate them!
You will not penetrate them except with authority.”
Qur’an,55:33
Authority to travel in space can only come from the Creator of the laws which
govern movement and space. The whole of this Qur’anic chapter invites
humankind to recognize God’s beneficence.
GEOLOGY
Let us now return to earth to discover some of the many amazing statements
contained in Qur’anic reflections about our own planet. They deal, not only with
the physical phenomena observed here on earth, but also with details concerning
the living organisms that inhabit it.
As in the case of everything we have discussed so far, we shall see that the
Qur’an also expresses concepts in the field of geology that were way ahead of
those current at the time of its revelation.
At this point, we must ask ourselves the following question: How could an
uneducated man in the middle of the desert accurately tackle so many and such
varied subjects at a time when mythology and superstition reigned supreme?
How could he so skillfully avoid every belief that was proven to be totally
inaccurate many centuries later?
Water Cycle
The verses dealing with the earthly systems are a case in point. I have quoted a
large number of them in my book, The Bible, The Qur’an and Science, and have
paid special attention to those that deal with the water cycle in nature. This is a
topic which is well known today. Consequently, the verses in the Qur’an that refer
to the water cycle seem to express ideas that are now totally self-evident. But if
we consider the ideas prevalent at that time, they appear to be based more on
myth and philosophical speculation than on observed fact, even though useful
practical knowledge on soil irrigation was current at that period.
Let us examine, for example, the following verse in chapter az-Zumar:
“Have you not seen that Allah sent rain down from the sky and
caused it to penetrate the ground and come forth as springs,
then He caused crops of different colors to grow...”
Qur’an,39:21
Such notions seem quite natural to us today, but we should not forget that, not so
long ago, they were not prevalent. It was not until the sixteenth century, with
Bernard Palissy, that we gained the first coherent description of the water cycle.
Prior to this, people believed that the waters of the oceans, under the effect of
winds, were thrust towards the interior of the continents. They then returned to
the oceans via the great abyss, which, since Plato’s time was called the Tartarus
.In the seventeenth century, great thinkers such as Descartes still believed in this
myth. Even in the nineteenth century there were still those who believed in
Aristotle’s theory that water was condensed in cool mountain caverns and formed
underground lakes that fed springs. Today, we know that it is the infiltration of
rain water into the ground that is responsible for this. If one compares the facts of
modern hydrology with the data found in numerous verses of the Qur’an on this
subject, one cannot fail to notice the remarkable degree of agreement between
the two.
Mountains
In geology, modern science has recently discovered the phenomenon of folding
which formed the mountain ranges. The earth’s crust is like a solid shell, while
the deeper layers are hot and fluid, and thus inhospitable to any form of life. It
has also been discovered that the stability of mountains is linked to the
phenomenon of folding. The process of mountain formation by folding drove the
earth’s crust down into the lower layers and provided foundations for the
mountains.
Let us now compare modern ideas with one verse among many in the Qur’an
that deals with this subject. It is taken from chapter an-Naba’:
“Have We not made the earth an expanse and the mountains
stakes?”
Qur’an, 78:6-7
Stakes ( awtaad ), which are driven into the ground like those used to anchor a
tent, are the deep foundations of geological folds.
Here, as in the case of all the other topics presented, the objective observer
cannot fail to notice the absence of any contradiction to modern knowledge.
BIOLOGY
More than anything else, I was struck by statements in the Qur’an dealing with
living things, both in the animal and vegetable kingdoms, especially with regard
to reproduction. We should really devote much more time to this subject, but, due
to the limited scope of this presentation, I can only give a few examples.
I must once again stress the fact that it is only in modern times that scientific
progress has made the hidden meaning of some Qur’anic verses
comprehensible to us. Numerous translations and commentaries on the Qur’an
have been made by learned men who had no access to modern scientific
knowledge. It is for this reason that scientists find some of their interpretations
unacceptable.
There are also other verses whose obvious meanings are easily understood, but
which conceal
scientific meanings which are startling, to say the least. This is the case of a
verse in chapter al-Ambiyaa, a part of which has already been quoted:
“Do the unbelievers not realize that the heavens and the earth
were joined together,
then I clove them asunder and I made every living thing out of
water. Will they still not believe?” Qur’an, 21:30
This is a dramatic affirmation of the modern idea that the origin of life is aquatic.
Botany
Progress in botany at the time of Muhammad (S) was not advanced enough in
any country for scientists to know that plants have both male and female parts.
Nevertheless, we may read the following in the chapter Taa Haa:
“(God is the One who) sent down rain from the sky and with it
brought forth a variety of plants in pairs.” Qur’an, 20:53
Today we know that fruit comes from plants that have sexual characteristics even
when they come from unfertilized flowers, like bananas. In the chapter ar-Ra‘d
we read the following:
“... and of all fruits (God) placed (on the earth) two pairs.”
Qur’an, 13:3
Physiology
In the field of physiology, there is one verse which appears extremely significant
to me. One thousand years before the discovery of the blood circulatory system,
and roughly thirteen centuries before it was determined that the internal organs
were nourished by the process of digestive , a verse in the Qur’an described the
source of the constituents of milk, in conformity with scientific facts.
To understand this verse, it must first be known that chemical reactions occur
between food and enzymes in the mouth, the stomach and the intestines
releasing nutrients in molecular form which are then absorbed into the circulatory
system through countless microscopic projections of the intestinal wall called villi.
Blood in the circulatory system then transports the nutrients to all the organs of
the body, among which are the milk-producing mammary glands.
This biological process must be basically understood, if we are to understand a
verse in the Qur’an which has for many centuries given rise to commentaries that
were totally incomprehensible.
Today it is not difficult to see why! This verse is taken from the chapter an-Nahl:
“Verily, in cattle there is a lesson for yon. I give you drink from
their insides, coming from a conjunction between the digested
contents ( of the intestines ) and the blood, milk pure and
pleasant for those who drink it.” Qur’an, 16:66
The constituents of milk are secreted by the mammary glands which are
nourished by the product of food digestion brought to them by the bloodstream.
The initial event which sets the whole process in motion is the conjunction of the
contents of the intestine and blood at the level of the intestinal wall itself.
This very precise concept is the result of the discoveries made in the chemistry
and physiology of the digestive system over one thousand years after the time of
Prophet Muhammad (S).
EMBRYOLOGY
There are a multitude of statements in the Qur’an on the subject of human
reproduction which constitute a challenge to the embryologist seeking a human
explanation for them. It was only after the birth of the basic sciences which
contributed to our knowledge of biology and the invention of the microscope, that
humans were able to understand the depth of those Qur’anic statements. It was
impossible for a human being living in the early seventh century to have
accurately expressed such ideas. There is nothing to indicate that people in the
Middle-East and Arabia knew anything more about this subject than people living
in Europe or anywhere else. Today, there are many Muslims, possessing a
thorough knowledge of the Qur’an and natural sciences, who have recognized
the amazing similarity between the verses of the Qur’an dealing with
reproduction and modern scientific knowledge.
I shall always remember the comment of an eighteen-year-old Muslim, brought
up in Saudi Arabia, commenting on a reference to human reproduction as
described in the Qur’an. He pointed to the Qur’an and said, “This book provides
us with all the essential information on the subject. When I was at school, my
teachers used the Qur’an to explain how children were born. Your books on sexeducation
are a bit late on the scene!”
If I were to spend as long on all the details of reproduction contained in the
Qur’an, as the subject merits, this pamphlet would become a book. The detailed
linguistic and scientific explanations I have given in The Bible, The Qur’an and
Science are sufficient for the person who does not speak Arabic nor know much
about embryology to be able to understand the meaning of such verses in the
light of modern science in more depth.
It is especially in the field of embryology that a comparison between the beliefs
present at the time of the Qur’an’s revelation and modern scientific data, leaves
us amazed at the degree of agreement between the Qur’an’s statements and
modern scientific knowledge. Not to mention the total absence of any reference
in the Qur’an to the mistaken ideas that were prevalent around the world at the
time.
Fertilization
Let us now isolate, from all these verses, precise ideas concerning the
complexity of the semen and the fact that an infinitely small quantity is required to
ensure fertilization. In chapter al-Insaan the Qur’an states:
“Verily, I created humankind from a small quantity of mingled
fluids.” Qur’an, 76:2
The Arabic word nutfah has been translated as "small quantity”. It comes from
the verb meaning ‘to dribble, to trickle’ and is used to describe what remains in
the bottom of a bucket which has been emptied. The verse correctly implies that
fertilization is performed by only a very small volume of liquid.
On the other hand, mingled fluids ( amshaaj ) has been understood by early
commentators to refer to the mixture of male and female discharges. Modern
authors have corrected this view and note that the sperm is made up of various
components.
When the Qur’an talks of a fertilizing fluid composed of different components, it
also informs us that human progeny will be formed from something extracted
from this liquid. This is the meaning of the following verse in chapter as-Sajdah:
“Then He made [ man’s ] offspring from the essence of a
despised fluid.”
Qur’an, 32:8
The Arabic word translated by the term ‘essence’ is sulaalah which means
‘something extracted, the best part of a thing’. In whatever way it is translated, it
refers to part of a whole. Under normal conditions, only one single cell,
spermatozoon, out of over 50 million ejaculated by a man during sexual
intercourse will actually penetrate the ovule.
Implantation
Once the egg has been fertilized in the fallopian tube, it descends to lodge itself
inside the uterus. This process is called the ‘implantation of the egg’. Implantation
is a result of the development of villosities, which, like roots in the soil, draw
nourishment from the wall of the uterus and make the egg literally cling to the
womb. The process of implantation is appropriately described in several verses
by the word ‘alaq, which is also the title of the chapter in which one of the verses
appears:
“God fashioned humans from a clinging entity.” Qur’an, 96:2
I do not think there is any reasonable translation of the word ‘alaq other than to
use it in its original sense. It is a mistake to speak of a ‘blood clot’ here, which is
the term Professor Hamidullah uses in his translation. It is a derivative meaning
which is not as appropriate in this context.
Embryo
The evolution of the embryo inside the maternal uterus is only briefly described,
but the description is accurate, because the simple words referring to it
correspond exactly to fundamental stages in its growth. This is what we read in a
verse from the chapter al-Mu’minoon:
“I fashioned the clinging entity into a chewed lump of flesh
and I fashioned the chewed flesh into bones and I clothed the
bones with intact flesh.” Qur’an, 23:14
The term ‘chewed flesh’ (mudghah) corresponds exactly to the appearance of the
embryo at a certain stage in its development.
It is known that the bones develop inside this mass and that they are then
covered with muscle. This is the meaning of the term ‘intact flesh’ (lahm).
The embryo passes through a stage where some parts are in proportion and
others out of proportion with what is later to become the individual. This is the
obvious meaning of a verse in the chapter al-Hajj, which reads as follows:
“I fashioned (humans) a clinging entity, then into a lump of
flesh in proportion and out of proportion.” Qur’an, 22:5.
Next, we have a reference to the appearance of the senses and internal organs
in the chapter as-Sajdah:
“... and (God) gave you ears, eyes and hearts.” Qur’an, 32:9
Nothing here contradicts today’s data and, furthermore, none of the mistaken
ideas of the time have crept into the Qur’an. Throughout the Middle Ages there
were a variety of beliefs about human development based on myths and
speculations which continued for several centuries after the period. The most
fundamental stage in the history of embryology came in 1651 with Harvey’s
statement that “all life initially comes from an egg”. At that time, when science
had benefited greatly from the invention of the microscope, people were still
arguing about the respective roles of the egg and spermatozoon. Buffon, the
great naturalist, was one of those in favor of the egg theory.Bonnet, on the other
hand, supported the theory of ‘the ovaries of Eve’, which stated that Eve, the
mother of the human race, was-supposed to have had inside her the seeds of all
human beings packed together one inside the other.
BIBLE, QUR’AN AND SCIENCE
We have now come to the last subject I would like to present in this short
pamphlet: it is the
comparison between modern knowledge and passages in the Qur’an that are
also referred to in the Bible.
Creation
We have already come across some of the contradictions between scripture and
science regarding the creation of the universe. When dealing with that topic, I
stressed the perfect agreement between modern knowledge and verses in the
Qur’an, and pointed out that the Biblical narration contained statements that were
scientifically unacceptable. This is hardly surprising if we are aware that the
narration of the creation contained in the Bible was the work of priests living in
the sixth century BC, hence the term ‘sacerdotal’ ( priestly ) narration is officially
used to refer to it. The narration seems to have been conceived as the theme of
a sermon designed to exhort people to observe the Sabbath. The narration was
constructed with a definite end in view, and as Father de Vaux (a former head of
the Biblical School of Jerusalem) has noted, this end was essentially legalist in
character.
The Bible also contains a much shorter and older narration of Creation, the socalled
‘Yahvist’ version, which approaches the subject from a completely different
angle. They are both taken from Genesis, the first book of the Pentateuch or
Torah. Moses is supposed to have been its author, but the text we have today
has undergone many changes.
The sacerdotal narration of Genesis is famous for its whimsical genealogies, that
go back to Adam, and which nobody takes very seriously. Nevertheless, such
Gospel authors as Matthew and Luke have reproduced them, more or less wordfor-
word, in their genealogies of Jesus. Matthew goes back as far as Abraham,
and Luke to Adam. These writings are scientifically unacceptable, because they
set a date for the age of the world and the time humans appeared on Earth,
which most definitely contradicts what modern science has firmly established.
The Qur’an, on the other hand, is completely free of dates of this kind.
Earlier on, we noted how perfectly the Qur’an agrees with modern ideas on the
formation of the Universe. On the other hand, the Biblical narration of primordial
waters is hardly, nor is the creation of light on the first day before the creation of
the stars which produce this light; the existence of an evening and a morning
before the creation of the earth; the creation of the earth on the third day before
that of the sun on the fourth; the appearance of beasts of the earth on the sixth
day after the appearance of the birds of the air on the fifth day, although the
former came first. All these statements are the result of beliefs prevalent at the
time this text was written and do not have any other meaning.
Age of the Earth
As for the Biblical genealogies which form the basis of the Jewish calendar and
assert that today the world is 5738 years old, these are hardly admissible either.
Our solar system may well be four and a quarter billion years old, and the
appearance of human beings on earth, as we know him today, may be estimated
in tens of thousands of years, if not more. It is absolutely essential, therefore, to
note that the Qur’an does not contain any such indications as to the age of the
world, and that these are specific to the Biblical text.
The Flood
There is a second highly significant subject of comparison between the Bible and
the Qur’an; descriptions of the deluge. In actual fact, the Biblical narration is a
fusion of two descriptions in which events are related differently. The Bible
speaks of a universal flood and places it roughly 300 years before Abraham.
According to what we know of Abraham, this would imply a universal cataclysm
around the twenty-first or twenty-second century BC This story would be
untenable, in view of presently available historical data. How can we accept the
idea that, in the twenty-first or twenty-second century BC, all civilization was
wiped off the face of the earth by a universal cataclysm, when we know that this
period corresponds, for example, to the one preceding the Middle Kingdom in
Egypt, at roughly the date of the first Intermediary period before the eleventh
dynasty? It is historically unacceptable to maintain that, at this time, humanity
was totally wiped out. None of the preceding statements is acceptable according
to modern knowledge. From this point of view, we can measure the enormous
gap separating the Bible from the Qur’an.
In contrast to the Bible, the narration contained in the Qur’an deals with a
cataclysm that is limited to Noah’s people. They were punished for their sins, as
were other ungodly peoples. The Qur’an does not fix the cataclysm in time.
There are absolutely no historical or archaeological objections to the narration in
the Qur’an.
The Pharaoh
A third point of comparison, which is extremely significant, is the story of Moses,
and especially the Exodus from Egypt of the Hebrews. Here I can only give a
highly compressed account of a study on this subject that appears in my book. I
have noted the points where the Biblical and Qur’anic narrations agree and
disagree, and I have found points where the two texts complement each other in
a very useful way.
Among the many hypotheses, concerning the historical time-frame occupied by
the Exodus in the history of the pharaohs, I have concluded that the most likely is
the theory which makes Merneptah, Ramesses II’s successor, the pharaoh of the
Exodus. The comparison of the data contained in the Scriptures with
archeological evidence strongly supports this hypothesis. I am pleased to be able
to say that the Biblical narration contributes weighty evidence leading us to
situate Moses in the history of the pharaohs. Moses was probably born during
the reign of Ramesses II. Biblical data. are therefore of considerable historical
value in the story of Moses. A medical study of the mummy of Merneptah has
yielded further useful information on the possible causes of this pharaoh’s death.
The fact that we possess the mummy of this pharaoh is one of paramount
importance. The Bible records that pharaoh was engulfed in the sea, but does
not give any details as to what subsequently became of his corpse. The Qur’an,
in chapter Yoonus, notes that the body of the pharaoh would be saved from the
waters:
“Today I will save your dead body so that you may be a sign
for those who come after you.” Qur’an, 10:92
A medical examination of this mummy, has, shown that the body could not have
stayed in the water for long, because it does not show signs of deterioration due
to prolonged submersion. Here again, the comparison between the narration in
the Qur’an and the data provided by modern knowledge does not give rise to the
slightest objection from a scientific point of view.
Such points of agreement are characteristic of the Qur’anic revelation. But, are
we throwing the Judeo-Christian revelation into discredit and depriving it of all its
intrinsic value by stressing the faults as seen from a scientific point of view? I
think not because the criticism is not aimed at the text as a whole, but only at
certain passages. There are parts of the Bible which have an undoubted
historical value. I have shown that in my book, The Bible, The Qur’an and
Science, where I discuss passages which enable us to locate Moses in time.
The main causes which brought about such differences as arise from the
comparison between the Holy Scriptures and modern knowledge is known to
modern scholars. The Old Testament constitutes a collection of literary works
produced in the course of roughly nine centuries and which has undergone many
alterations. The part played by men in the actual composition of the texts of the
Bible is quite considerable.
The Qur’anic revelation, on the other hand, has a history which is radically
different. As we have already seen, from the moment it was first commto
humans, it was learnt by heart and written down during Muhammad’s own
lifetime. It is thanks to this fact that the Qur’an does not pose any problem of
authenticity.
A totally objective examination of the Qur’an, in the light of modern knowledge,
leads us to recognize the agreement between the two, as has already been
noted on repeated occasions throughout this presentation.
It makes us deem it quite unthinkable for a man of Muhammad’s time to have
been the author of such statements, on account of the state of knowledge in his
day. Such considerations are part of what gives the Qur’anic revelation its unique
place among religious and non-religious texts, and forces the impartial scientist
to admit his inability to provide an explanation based solely upon materialistic
reasoning.
Such facts as I have had the pleasure of exposing to you here, appear to
represent a genuine challenge to human explanation leaving only one alternative:
the Qur’an is undoubtedly a revelation from God.