In the name of Allāh,
the Beneficent, the Merciful.
Peace and Blessings of Allāh on Mohammad.
DEDICATED TO
Allāh–the Glorious and the High,
Lord of the worlds
AND TO
Mohammad–who brought the world
to our feet and eternity to our arms.
*
SCIENTIFIC PRONOUNCEMENTS IN THE QUR’AN (See also Qur’an-wrong on semen production)
Three Divine aspects of the Qur’an are its Scientific Pronouncements –verified by modern research; Prophecies –that have already manifested (see Qur’an-prophecies)– events of the Doomsday –some of which have been noted by science.
(Regarding certain verses [on science] of the Qur’an, Maurice Bucaille, the learned author of The Bible, The Qur’an and Science states: “It was not until much later, at a period not far from our own, that it was possible to translate and interpret them correctly. This implies that a thorough linguistic knowledge is not in itself sufficient to understand these verses from the Qur’an. What is needed along with this is a highly diversified knowledge of science.” (p.121). For The Bible The Qur’an And Science: https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=the+bible+the+qur%27an+and+science&ref =nb_sb_noss
The following are some scientific statements in the Qur’an:
1. Every living thing is made from water: (Qur’an 21:30). It is now known that water is the basic ingredient of all living things.
2. The fetus in the womb is covered in three layers of darkness in our mother’s womb: (Qur’an 39:6). These three layers of darkness in which the fetus are enclosed are the decidua (a membrane “which lies between the wall of the uterus and the developing embryo”), the amnion (“a membrane forming a fluid-filled cavity (the amniotic sac) that encloses the embryo”) and the chorion (the outermost membrane of the embryo”) (see Ency. Britannica for full descriptions).
3. Embryology –development of the fetus: (What is to borne in mind is that the Qur’an is not a treatise on any subject; it only highlights certain truths; and does not list every detail). There is more than one verse on this topic. Verses dealing with the same topic do not give every detail in every instance. For other verses on this topic see Qur’an 40:67; 75:36-39; 82:7-8.
Qur’an 22:5 reads: “We created you from dust, then from a small life-germ, then from a clot, then from a lump of flesh, complete in make and incomplete…”
Qur’an 23:12-14 states: “Man We did create from a quintessence (of clay); then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm in a place of rest, firmly fixed; Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; Then of that clot (alaqa) We made a (foetus) lump (mudgha); then We made out of that lump (mudgha) bones and clothed the bones with flesh (lahm); then We developed out of it another creature.”
As emphasized. The sperm (and ovum) are in a state of “congealed blood” (a “clot” or somewhat jelled substance), then the “congealed blood” is transformed into another substance (not yet flesh) which looked like something chewed (“mudgha”) which would reflect Qur’an 22:5 that the “clot” is made into a “lump of flesh complete in make and incomplete” (i.e. in being “complete in make and incomplete” it is in a state between “clot” and “flesh”); then bones are developed in this “mudgha,” followed by the bone skeletal clothed with “flesh” (“lahm”) which the “mudgha” was transformed into. (The Arabic word “lahm” means “flesh”).
That Allāh did not mention “cartilage” but mentioned “bone” may be, as stated, Allāh does not give every detail on a subject.
In summary, the clot is transformed into a state between clot and flesh (mudgha), then the nucleus of the bones is formed in this state (between clot and flesh, “mudgha”) then the skeletal is clothed with flesh (“lahm”) which the clot has been fully transformed into. This Qur’anic teaching of the development of the fetus is in accordance with modern findings.
Notably, about Allāh saying: “We created you from dust, then from a small life-germ, then from a clot, then from a lump of flesh” “And certainly We create man of an extract of clay, Then We make him a small life-germ in a firm resting-place”–(Qur’an 22:5; 23:12-14). Allāh creating man from dust/clay refers to Him creating the first man/Adam, and then from Adam we, Adam’s progeny, were/are created from sperm and clot etc.
One critic claims that the Qur’an never explicitly claims that the female parent contributes genetic material.”
Allāh tells us in Qur’an 49:13: “O mankind, surely We have created you from a male AND a female.” Since we are created from a male and female then reason alone would dictate that the female also has to contribute something.
Allāh reveals in Qur’an 7:89: “He it is Who created you from a single soul, and of the same did He make his mate, that he might find comfort in her. So when he covers her she bears a light burden, then moves about with it. Then when it grows heavy…” Man can emit his seed any place he fancies outside the womb it will never cause any thing to bear a “burden” light or heavy. For it to cause the woman to bear a “burden” she has to contribute some thing.
Allāh reveals in Qur’an 76:2: “Verily We created man from a drop of mingled sperm” [or from “sperm mixed (with ovum)” as Muhammad Ali translated]. “Mingle” means “to bring or combine together or with something else.” So what is the sperm “mingled” with if not with the woman’s body -“genetic” material?
Allāh tells us that after He gave Mary the news of the birth of Jesus “she conceived him”–(Qur’an 19:22). And “conceive” means “to become pregnant (with young);” and “conception: is the “act of becoming pregnant,” and the state of being “pregnant” is the state of “containing unborn young in the body,” and the state of “pregnancy” requires the union of sperm and ovum. So what did the sperm unite with if not a contribution from the woman?
Again, Allāh says: “O people, keep your duty to your Lord, Who created you from a single being and created its mate of the same (kind), and spread from THESE TWO many men and women” –(Qur’an 4:1). How then the woman did not contribute genetic material?
Clearly, as we are created from a “mixture” of sperm and ovum reason would tell us that both parents provide genetic material to the child. As stated the Qur’an is not a treatise on any subject. That Allāh did not actually name the female “gamete” does not mean the female parent did not contribute genetic material.
That “the female parent contributes genetic material” is encapsulated in the expressions “mingled sperm,” that Allāh created man from a “male and a female,” that when he covers her she “bears a light burden,” and that man is multiplied from “these two”–man and woman. (The Prophet Mohammad taught: “if a man’s discharge preceded that of a woman, then the child resembles the father, and if the woman’s discharge preceded that of the man, then the child resembles the mother”–Bokhari Vol. 6, #7, Vol. 5, #275).
4. Man created from sperm: (Qur’an 75:37-38; 76:2). “Was he (man) not a small life-germ in sperm emitted? Then he was a clot; so He created (him)” “Surely We have created man from sperm mixed (with ovum).” (Also 18:37; 35:11; 36:77; 40:67; 80:19).
During the time of the Prophet no one knew about sperm which was discovered a thousand years after the Qur’an. As we are created from a “mixture” of sperm and ovum reason would tell us that both parents provide genetic material to the child.
(Regarding the critics claim that the Qur’an 86:6-7 is wrong about the production of sperm, see Qur’an-wrong on semen production and the two videos
Part 1 by Fotfoundation:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMQPkDK nOCM&feature=video_response
Part 2 by Fotfoundation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eghBcXY ddk&feature=response_watch
(More videos at end of presentation)
5. In cattle milk is produced from between the food and blood: (Qur’an 16:66). The mammary glands receive milk “by the product of food digestion brought to them via the bloodstream.” “This very precise concept is the result of the discoveries made in the chemistry and physiology of the digestive system.” (The Bible, The Qur’an And Science, pp. 196, 197).
6. Bees make honey in their bellies; and that honey has healing properties: (Qur’an 16:68-69). The nectar collected by bees are converted to honey in “sacs” in their bodies. Honey is known to have healing properties and has been used in the treatment of minor wounds.
7. The sun and moon float in orbits: (Qur’an 21:33; 36:40). It is now generally known that the sun and moon travel a regular path. And that the moon orbits the earth.
8. The moon is a reflector of the sun’s light: (Qur’an 10:5; 25:61; 71:16) That the moon is not a source of light, but that it reflects the light of the sun, is now common knowledge.
9. There are particles smaller than the atom: (Qur’an 10:61) (Science now speaks about quarks and neutrinos, which are smaller than atoms. There may yet be smaller particles to discover).
10. Rain clouds are formed by wind collecting vapors of water together: (Qur’an 30:48; 35:9). Heat from the sun causes the water of the seas to evaporate. The water vapor rises and condenses and collects into clouds.
11. The universe was formed from gaseous matter: (Qur’an 41:11). “At the earliest time it can provide us with, modern science has every reason to maintain that the Universe was formed of a gaseous mass principally composed of hydrogen and a certain amount of helium that was slowly rotating.” (Ibid; pp. 143-144).
12. Mountains are pegs/stabilizers for the earth: (Qur’an 16:15; 31:10). (The mountains mentioned here seem to refer to those at the time of creation, which were made to prevent vibrating of the earth).
13. Things created in pairs:(Qur’an 13:3; 51:49; 36:36).
14. Barrier between the salt water and sweet water of the two seas: (Qur’an 25:53; 55:19-20).
15. Expansion of the Universe: (Qur’an 51:47). “The expansion of the Universe is the most imposing discovery of modern science….‘Heaven’ is the translation of the word samā’ and this is exactly the extra-terrestrial world that is meant, ‘We are expanding it’ is the translation of the plural present participle musi’ūna of the verb ausa’a meaning ‘to make wider, more spacious, to extend, to expand’”–(Maurice Bucaille, The Bible, The Qur’an And Science, pp. 166-167). MB also points that some translators unable to grasp the meaning of the verse gave erroneous translations. That there were some who sensed the true meaning but were “afraid to commit themselves”; one speaks of the expansion of heavens and space “but includes a question mark”; while there are those with “authorized scientific opinion” who give the correct meaning. And that the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Cairo, refers to the expansion of the Universe in “totally unambiguous terms.” The Bible The Qur’an And Science available at Amazon.ca : the bible the qur’an and science
16. Space Travels: (Qur’an 15:14-15; 55:33). The Qur’an hints that man would travel to outer space.
17. There is more than one world: (Qur’an 1:1; 56:77-80). It is now believed that there are more than one world in the Universe.
18. Living-beings on other planets: (Qur’an 19:93-95; 42:29). “Up to now it has been established by the scientists that inter-planetary space is permeated with stellar gases, sub-atomic particles and some forms of subtle matter. This seems to be the first step towards the acknowledgement of the truth expressed in the Holy Qur’an that there are creations of God present everywhere.”–(S. Bashir-Ud-Din Mahmood, Doomsday and Life after Death, p. 154).
And Malik Ghulam Farid notes: “Recent archaeological investigations have revealed that “Dropas” or visitors from the heaven came down upon this earth 12,000 years ago’ (The Pakistani Times, dated 13.8.67).”–(Qur’anic comm. 2656).
19 The earth is a sphere: Allāh tells us: “(He is) Lord of the two Easts, and Lord of the two Wests”–(Qur’an 55:17) Muhammad Ali explains: “The two Easts and the two Wests signify the different points of the horizon at which the sun rises and sets at the summer and winter solstice.” And these two different points can only occur if the earth is spherical. Allāh tells us in His Qur’an 70:40 that He is “Lord of the Easts and Wests.” The sun is 93 million miles away from the earth and almost 110 times the size of the earth; thus its light is diffused over a wide expanse of space.
Conduct this experiment. Place a book (flat earth) on a table. Hold a lighted flashlight (the sun) some distance away from the table and slowly raise it (simulating sunrise).You will see that light is spread over the entire top of the book (because it is a flat surface). Now place a ball (spherical earth) on top of the table and repeat the “sunrise” motion of the flashlight. You will see that only the portion of the ball facing the light is lighted (because it is a sphere). Now have someone slowly rotate the ball. You will see that, at the two extremities of the light on the ball, every point that was dark becomes lighted and correspondingly every point that was lighted becomes dark. Thus every new point that is lighted is a new “east” and every new point that becomes dark is a new “west.” Thus we have “numberless Easts and Wests,” confirming the fact that the Qur’an teaches that the earth is a sphere.
Allāh also says in Qur’an 37:5 that He is “Lord of every point at the rising of the sun.” This is a universal fact considering that the sun, being ever shining, never sets. Thus as objects rotate there is an ongoing rising and setting of the sun at “every point.
20. Allāh tells us that deep seas have internal waves: “(The state of the disbelievers) is like the darkness in the deep sea –there covers him a wave, above which is a wave, above which is cloud– (layers of) darkness one above the other –when he holds out his hand, he is almost unable to see it” –Qur’an 24:39-40).
This is another modern discovery by scientists using “special equipment and submarines”–(A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam, pp. 20-21. www.islam-guide.com).
Events of the Doomsday in the Qur’an:
1. Sun will fold up: (Qur’an 81:1). As the sun burns it-self out it “will swell up, turning into the sort of star that astronomers call a red giant”; and will end up as a “black dwarf star.” (Paul Davies, God and the New Physics, pp. 200, 201).
2. Stars will fall, become dust-colored (lose light): (Qur’an 81:2). As the sun collapses “The stars in the sky will go out one by one.” “Almost all the stars we now see would either be so dim as to be invisible or appear as faint points in a sea of blackness.” (James Trefil, The Dark Side of the Universe, p. 190).
3. The heaven will look like molten copper; red hide: (Qur’an 70:6-8; 55:37, respectively). In its final “phase” of burning itself out, “the sun’s central temperature will have risen steadily to-wards a billion degrees.”(Paul Davies, God and the New Physics, p. 201). Thus under this tremendous heat of “a billion degrees” the heavens will likely appear as liquid metal –molten copper or red hide, as the Qur’an says.
4. Ocean will boil: (Qur’an 81:6; 82:3) As the sun burns itself out, it “will appear to fill half the sky. At that time, the oceans will boil and any life left here will perish,” wrote James Trefil in his book The Dark Side of the Universe, (p. 190).
And, as the sun burns itself out it “may have become so distended that the inner planets will have been engulfed, the Earth’s atmosphere stripped away and the solid rocks melted or even vaporized,” wrote Paul Davies. (God and the New Physics, p. 200).
5. Sun and Moon will join together: (Qur’an 75:8-9). “The phenomena of Moon joining the Sun was predicted by the Holy Qur’an in its verses 75(8-9), many centuries earlier than the scientific speculations of today,” wrote Bashir-Ud-Din Mahmood, “tidal forces keep the moon drifting away from the Earth. Its orbit is now becoming wider at the rate of about 3 cm a year. Eventually the Earth will not be able to hold the Moon, and then it will fall in the Sun.”
“Thus science considers the Doomsday of the Earth as an accepted reality, though there are questions about the ways in which it will take place.” And, “As scientific knowledge builds up with rapid advancement in various fields, the extent of the wealth of knowledge contained in the Qur’an is dawning upon us.” (Doomsday and Life after Death, pp. 133, 134, 113; 19).
Mohammad could not have been the author of these scientific pronouncements.
As to the critic’s claim that the Qur’anic expressions are “putative;” it is the miracle of miracles that statements on science and history coming from the mouth of a Seventh Century unschooled desert dweller have proved accurate.
In his booklet Al-Qur’an, The Miracle of Miracles, Ahmed Deedat has quoted from the writings of Maulana Abdul Aleem Siddiqui (taken from the booklet “Cultivation of Science by the Muslims,” which was “published by the World Federation of Islamic Missions, Karachi, Pakistan”) he states:
(the Qur’an) “exhorts us to study the structure and function of the human organism, the structure, functions and distribution of animals, the form, structure, functions, classification and distribution of plants, and these are problems of BIOLOGY.
“It exhorts us to study the order of nature and the general properties of matter as affected by energy, which is the problem of modern PHYSICS.
“It exhorts us to study the properties of substances both elementary and compound and the laws of their combination and action one upon another which is the problem of modern CHEMISTRY.
“It exhorts to study the structure and mineral constitution of the globe, the different strata of which it is composed, the changes that takes place in its organic and inorganic matter, etc, etc; which are the problems of modern GEOLOGY.
“It exhorts us to study the general description of the earth, its physical divisions into seas, rivers, mountains, plains, etc; and the minerals, plants and animals in each, and its political divisions which are the problems of modern GEOGRAPHY.
“It exhorts us to study the causes which bring about the alternation of day and night, the variation of the seasons, the movements of the planets and other celestial phenomena, which are the problems of modern ASTRONOMY.
“It exhorts us to study the movement of winds, the formation and evolution of clouds and the production of rain, and other similar phenomena, which are the problems of modern METEOROLOGY.””
“For centuries, Muslims were world leaders in the field of scientific learning,” notes Ahmed Deedat. (pp. 24, 25).
Sir Isaac Newton may have formulated the laws of motion in the 17th/18th century. But a thousand years before him Hazrat Ali, the fourth Caliph of Islam, explained to Muslims that “nothing in the universe can come into motion of its own accord unless some outside agency imparts movements to it and when once moved nothing will come to rest unless some force outside this body puts a break to this motion. Similarly nothing in the universe will change its direction and speed of motion unless a foreign factor compels it.” (Nahjul Balagha, sermon 191, p. 340).
Twentieth century scientists may have discovered DNA/Gene-tics. But in the 7th century, Hazrat Ali, answering queries about “the causes of differences in features, habits and disposition of people,” replied: “In the very origin of human body lies the causes of these differences or similarities in disposition and features.” (Ibid; sermon 238, p. 413).
Ahmed Deedat quotes Maulana Abdul Aleem Siddiqui who aptly points out:
“The intellectual upheaval created by Islam was a gigantic one. There is not a single department of learning which the Muslim scholars have left untouched and which they have not carved out a high position for them-selves.
“In truth, Islam intends the Muslim community to be a community of intellectuals, and the cultivation of science and all other forms of learning is one of the primary aims of Islam. Had it not been for the Muslims, Europe would never have seen its way to the Renaissance and the modern scientific era would never have dawned. Those nations who have received their knowledge of science from Europe are in fact indirectly the disciples of the Islamic community of the past. Humanity owes to Islam a debt which it can never repay and gratitude which it can never forget.”
“…..Islam has laid it down as a religious duty that a Muslim should enquire into the reality of objects around him, so that his scientific enquiry may lead him to the knowledge of his Creator. Scientific enquiry in Islam is not an end but a means to the attainment of a higher end. And this is really the true end of humanity. ‘TO ALLAH WE BELONG AND TO ALLAH IS OUR RETURN’–(Holy Qur’an 2:156).” (Al-Qur’an, The Miracle of Miracles, pp. 26-27).
It seems tragic that Twentieth century intellectual(s) cannot find in Islam answers to political and economic problems; whereas the backward denizens of Seventh century Arabia found precepts and ideas that molded them into a fortress of morality and nobility, unity and sovereignty.
(See also Qur’an-wrong on semen production).
THE QUR’AN: MIRACLE OF ALL MIRACLES: by Dr. Zakir Naik: Though the two videos are similar there is additional info in one; and also in the question and answer section).
For Christians trying to trap Muslims to convert to Christianity and Muslims response: See Christians try to trap Muslims to convert
In his book Why I am not a Muslim Ibn Warraq wrote: “Was he (Mohammad) a knowing fraud or did he sincerely believe that all the “revelations” that constitute the Koran were direct communications from God?”….the least that Muhammad can get away with is self-deception, something that even Watt recognizes: “It should be clear that, even if true, the alleged fact that the revelations fitted in with Muhammad’s desires and pandered to his selfish pleasure would not prove him insincere; it would merely show him to be capable of self-deception.” In other words, if he was sincere, then he was also incredibly self-deluded, if not sincere, then he was an impostor.” (pp. 346-347)
(The charge that “revelations fitted in with Muhammad’s desires and pandered to his selfish pleasure” –Mary the Coptic, Zainab affair, and him marrying several wives– have already been debunked in our response to his book).
The Qur’an confirms past Scriptures –teaches that prophets were sent to all nations, were given rites and ceremonies, and were taught one common message: there is no god but Allāh; He is to worshipped– it points out and corrects false doctrines that are taught as Divine revelation –sonship of God, inherited sin, vicarious atonement, idolatry, God incarnate, karma and reincarnation– and it answers questions and gives guidance in matters moral, social, spiritual and intellectual. It comprises of, exceeds, and supersedes, all other Scriptures.
The materials presented are proof that the Qur’an could not have been the work of a mortal.
The verses speaking of double punishment to the wives of the Prophet–(Qur’an 33:30); the Zainab incident–(Qur’an 33:37); the command for the Prophet not to marry any more wives–(Qur’an 33:52); the revelation about the Prophet’s frowning at the blind man, Ibn Makhtum–(Qur’an ch. 80)–are proofs not only of the truthfulness and “sincerity” of Mohammad but that the Qur’an is a Revelation from God. It is beyond reason that “an impostor” would have such verses against himself and his beloved wives in a book that he wishes to exalt himself.
If Mohammad was an “impostor” it is astounding that he would have shown mercy to his captives and leave them on their thrones rather than “exterminate” them and devour their “land and possessions.”
If Mohammad was a “fraud” it is mind-boggling that he would have suffered persecution, exile, stoning (at Ta’if), warfare (and against overwhelming odds) and austerity than comfort and affluence (when he died his shield was in the possession of a “Jewish pawnbroker”).
If Mohammad was not “sincere” it must be the widest scope of incredibility in creation that this “fraud” would have suffered himself, his beloved wives and children and followers twenty-three grueling years to fabricate the Qur’an.
If the Qur’an was not all Divine revelation, it must be the “Mother” of all miracles that this Seventh-century, unschooled, “insincere” and “self-deluded” denizen of the desert taught the highest ideals in matters moral, social, spiritual and intellectual; gave accurate prophecies that manifested in his own lifetime; and made unerring scientific pronouncements that are in keeping with Twentieth-century discoveries.
We would have to be morbidly “insincere” or “incredibly self-deluded” to believe this.