C) The Qur an on the Origin of the Universe:
The science of modern cosmology, observational and theoreti-
cal, clearly indicates that, at one point in time, the whole universe was nothing but a cloud of smoke (i.e. an opaque highly dense and hot gaseous composition).1 This is one of the undisputed principles of standard modern cosmology. Scientists now can observe new stars forming out of the remnants of that smoke (see figures 10 and 11). The illuminating stars we see at night were, just as was the whole universe, in that smoke material. God has said in the Qur an:
( Then He turned to the heaven when it was smoke... ) (Qur an, 41:11)
Because the earth and the heavens above (the sun, the moon,
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stars, planets, galaxies, etc.) have been formed from this same smoke, we conclude that the earth and the heavens were one connected entity. Then out of this homogeneous smoke, they formed and separated from each other. God has said in the Qur an:
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( Have not those who disbelieved known that the heavens and the earth were one connected entity, then We separated them?... ) (Qur an, 21:30)
Dr. Alfred Kroner is one of the world s renowned geologists.
He is Professor of Geology and the Chairman of the Department of Geology at the Institute of Geosciences, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany. He said: Thinking where Muham- mad came from ...Ithink it is almost impossible that he could have known about things like the common origin of the universe, because scientists have only found out within the last few years, with very complicated and advanced technological methods, that this is the case. 2 Also he said: Somebody who did not know
(1) The First Three Minutes, a Modern View of the Origin of the
Universe, Weinberg, pp. 94-105.
(2) The source of this comment is This is the Truth (videotape). Visit
www.islam-guide.com/truth for a copy of this videotape or to view the video clips of Professor Alfred Kroner s comments online.
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C) The Qur an on the Origin of the Universe
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Figure 10: A new star forming out of a cloud of gas and dust (neb- ula), which is one of the remnants of the smoke that was the origin of the whole universe. (The Space Atlas, Heather and Henbest, p. 50.)
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Figure 11: TheLagoon nebula is a cloud of gas and dust, about 60 light years in diameter. It is excited by the ultraviolet radiation of the hot stars that have recently formed within its bulk. (Horizons, Exploring the Universe, Seeds, plate 9, from Association of Universi- ties for Research in Astronomy, Inc.)
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D) The Qur an on the Cerebrum
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something about nuclear physics fourteen hundred years ago could not, I think, be in a position to find out from his own mind, for instance, that the earth and the heavens had the same origin. 1
D) The Qur an on the Cerebrum:
God has said in the Qur an about one of the evil unbelievers
who forbade the Prophet Muhammad r from praying at the Kaaba:
( No! If he does not stop, We will take him by the naseyah (front of the head), a lying, sinful naseyah (front of the head)! ) (Qur an, 96:15-16)
Why did the Qur an describe the front of the head as being
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lying and sinful? Why didn t the Qur an say that the person was lying and sinful? What is the relationship between the front of the head and lying and sinfulness?
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If we look into the skull at the front of the head, we will find
the prefrontal area of the cerebrum (see figure 12). What does physiology tell us about the function of this area? A book entitled
Essentials of Anatomy & Physiology says about this area: The motivation and the foresight to plan and initiate movements occur in the anterior portion of the frontal lobes, the prefrontal area. This is a region of association cortex... 2 Also the book says: In relation to its involvement in motivation, the prefrontal area is also thought to be the functional center for aggression.... 3
So, this area of the cerebrum is responsible for planning,
motivating, and initiating good and sinful behavior and is respon- sible for the telling of lies and the speaking of truth. Thus, it is proper to describe the front of the head as lying and sinful when someone lies or commits a sin, as the Qur an has said: ...A lying, sinful naseyah (front of the head)!
(1) This is the Truth (videotape). (2) Essentials ofAnatomy & Physiology, Seeley and others, p. 211. Also
see The Human Nervous System, Noback and others, pp. 410-411.
(3) Essentials of Anatomy & Physiology, Seeley and others, p. 211.
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E) The Qur an on Seas and Rivers
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S o m e E v i d e n c e f o r t h e T r u t h o f I s l a m
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Figure 12: Functional regions of the left hemisphere of the cerebral cortex. The prefrontal area is located at the front of the cerebral cortex. (Essentials of Anatomy & Physiology, Seeley and others, p. 210.)
Scientists have only discovered these functions of the prefron-
tal area in the last sixty years, according to Professor Keith L. Moore.1
E) The Qur an on Seas and Rivers:
Modern Science has discovered that in the places where two
different seas meet, there is a barrier between them. This barrier divides the two seas so that each sea has its own temperature, salinity, and density.2 For example, Mediterranean sea water is warm, saline, and less dense, compared to Atlantic ocean water. When Mediterranean sea water enters the Atlantic over the Gibral- tar sill, it moves several hundred kilometers into the Atlantic at a depth of about 1000 meters with its own warm, saline, and less
(1) Al-E jaz al-Elmy fee al-Naseyah (The Scientific Miracles in the
Front of the Head), Moore and others, p. 41.
(2) Principles of Oceanography, Davis, pp. 92-93.
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E) The Qur an on Seas and Rivers
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dense characteristics. The Mediterranean water stabilizes at this depth1 (see figure 13).
Figure 13: The Mediterranean sea water as it enters the Atlantic over theGibraltar sill with its own warm, saline, and less dense characteristics, because of the barrier that distinguishesbetween them. Temperatures are in degrees Celsius (C ). (Marine Geology, Kuenen, p. 43, with a slight enhancement.)
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Although there are large waves, strong currents, and tides in
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these seas, they do not mix or transgress this barrier.
The Holy Qur an mentioned that there is a barrier between two
seas that meet and that they do not transgress. God has said:
( He has set free the two seas meeting to- gether. There is a barrier between them. They do not transgress. ) (Qur an, 55:19-20)
But when the Qur an speaks about the divider between fresh
and salt water, it mentions the existence of a forbidding partition with the barrier. God has said in the Qur an:
( He is the one who has set free the two kinds of water, one sweet and palatable, and the other salty and bitter. And He has made between them a barrier and a forbidding partition. ) (Qur an, 25:53)
(1) Principles of Oceanography, Davis, p. 93.
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E) The Qur an on Seas and Rivers
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One may ask, why did the Qur an mention the partition when
speaking about the divider between fresh and salt water, but did not mention it when speaking about the divider between the two seas?
Modern science has discovered that in estuaries, where fresh
(sweet) and salt water meet, the situation is somewhat different from what is found in places where two seas meet. It has been discovered that what distinguishes fresh water from salt water in estuaries is a pycnocline zone with a marked density discontinuity separating the two layers. 1 This partition (zone of separation) has a different salinity from the fresh water and from the salt water2
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(see figure 14).
Figure 14: Longitudinal section showing salinity (parts per thousand ) in an estuary. We can see here the partition (zone of separation) between the fresh and the salt water. (Introductory Oceanography, Thurman, p. 301, with a slight enhancement.)
This information has been discovered only recently, using
advanced equipment to measure temperature, salinity, density, oxygen dissolubility, etc. The human eye cannot see the difference between the two seas that meet, rather the two seas appear to us as one homogeneous sea. Likewise, the human eye cannot see the division of water in estuaries into the three kinds: fresh water, salt water, and the partition (zone of separation).
(1) Oceanography, Gross, p. 242. Also see Introductory
Oceanography, Thurman, pp. 300-301.
(2) Oceanography, Gross, p. 244, and Introductory Oceanography,
Thurman, pp. 300-301.
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F) The Qur an on Deep Seas and Internal Waves
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F) The Qur an on Deep Seas and Internal
Waves:
God has said in the Qur an:
( Or (the unbelievers state) is like the dark- ness in a deep sea. It is covered by waves, above which are waves, above which are clouds. Darknesses, one above another. If a man stretches out his hand, he cannot see it.... ) (Qur an, 24:40)
This verse mentions the darkness found in deep seas and
oceans, where if a man stretches out his hand, he cannot see it. The darkness in deep seas and oceans is found around a depth of 200 meters and below. At this depth, there is almost no light (see figure 15). Below a depth of 1000 meters there is no light at all.1 Human
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Figure 15: Between 3 and 30 percent of the sunlight is reflected at the sea surface. Then almost all of the seven colors of the light spectrum are absorbed one after another in the first 200 meters, except the blue light. (Oceans, Elder and Pernetta, p. 27.)
(1) Oceans, Elder and Pernetta, p. 27.
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F) The Qur an on Deep Seas and Internal Waves
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beings are not able to dive more than forty meters without the aid of submarines or special equipment. Human beings cannot survive unaided in the deep dark part of the oceans, such as at a depth of 200 meters.
Scientists have recently discovered this darkness by means of
special equipment and submarines that have enabled them to dive into the depths of the oceans.
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We can also understand from the following sentences in the
previous verse, ...in a deep sea. It is covered by waves, above which are waves, above which are clouds.... , that the deep waters of seas and oceans are covered by waves, and above these waves are other waves. It is clear that the second set of waves are the surface waves that we see, because the verse mentions that above the second waves there are clouds. But what about the first waves? Scientists have recently discovered that there are internal waves which occur on density interfaces between layers of dif- ferent densities. 1 (see figure 16). The internal waves cover the
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Figure 16: Internal waves at interface between two layers of water of different densities. One is dense (the lower one), the other one is less dense (the upper one). (Oceanography, Gross, p. 204.)
(1) Oceanography, Gross, p. 205.
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G) The Qur an on Clouds
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deep waters of seas and oceans because the deep waters have a higher density than the waters above them. Internal waves act like surface waves. They can also break, just like surface waves. Internal waves cannot be seen by the human eye, but they can be detected by studying temperature or salinity changes at a given location.1
G) The Qur an on Clouds:
Scientists have studied cloud types and have realized that rain
clouds are formed and shaped according to definite systems and certain steps connected with certain types of wind and clouds.
One kind of rain cloud is the cumulonimbus cloud. Meteor-
ologists have studied how cumulonimbus clouds are formed and how they produce rain, hail, and lightning.
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They have found that cumulonimbus clouds go through the
following steps to produce rain:
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1) The clouds are pushed by the wind: Cumulonimbus clouds
begin to form when wind pushes some small pieces of clouds (cumulus clouds) to an area where these clouds converge (see figures 17 and 18).
Figure 17: Sat- ellite photo showing the clouds moving towards the convergence areas B, C, and D. The arrows indicate the di- rections of the wind. (The Use of Satellite Pic- tures in Weather Analy- sis and Fore- casting,An- derson and others, p. 188.)
(1) Oceanography, Gross, p. 205.
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G) The Qur an on Clouds
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S o m e E v i d e n c e f o r t h e T r u t h o f I s l a m
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Figure 18: Small pieces of clouds (cumulus clouds) moving towards a convergence zone near the horizon, where we can see a large cumulonimbus cloud. (Clouds and Storms, Ludlam, plate 7.4.)
2) Joining: Then the small clouds join together forming a larger
cloud1 (see figures 18 and 19).
Figure 19: (A) Isolated small pieces of clouds (cumulus clouds). (B) When the small clouds join together, updrafts within the larger cloud increase, so the cloud is stacked up. Water drops are indicated by .(The Atmosphere, Anthes and others, p. 269.)
(1) See The Atmosphere, Anthes and others, pp. 268-269, and Elements
of Meteorology, Miller and Thompson, p. 141.
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G) The Qur an on Clouds
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3) Stacking: When the small clouds join together, updrafts
within the larger cloud increase. The updrafts near the center of the cloud are stronger than those near the edges.1 These updrafts cause the cloud body to grow vertically, so the cloud is stacked up (see figures 19 (B), 20, and 21). This vertical growth causes the cloud body to stretch into cooler regions of the atmosphere, where drops of water and hail formulate and begin to grow larger and larger. When these drops of water and hail become too heavy for the updrafts to support them, they begin to fall from the cloud as rain, hail, etc.2
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Figure 20: A cumulonimbus cloud. After the cloud is stacked up, rain comes out of it. (Weather and Climate, Bodin, p.123.)
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God has said in the Qur an:
( Have you not seen how God makes the clouds move gently, then joins them together, then makes them into a stack, and then you see the rain come out of it.... ) (Qur an, 24:43)
Meteorologists have only recently come to know these details
of cloud formation, structure, and function by using advanced equipment like planes, satellites, computers, balloons, and other
(1) The updrafts near the center are stronger, because they are protected
from the cooling effects by the outer portion of the cloud.
(2) See The Atmosphere, Anthes and others, p. 269, and Elements of
Meteorology, Miller and Thompson, pp. 141-142.
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G) The Qur an on Clouds
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S o m e E v i d e n c e f o r t h e T r u t h o f I s l a m
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Figure 21: A cumulonimbus cloud. (A Colour Guide to Clouds, Scorer and Wexler, p. 23.)
equipment, to study wind and its direction, to measure humidity and its variations, and to determine the levels and variations of atmospheric pressure.1
The preceding verse, after mentioning clouds and rain, speaks
about hail and lightning:
( ....And He sends down hail from mountains (clouds) in the sky, and He strikes with it whomever He wills, and turns it from whom- ever He wills. The vivid flash of its lightning nearly blinds the sight. ) (Qur an, 24:43)
Meteorologists have found that these cumulonimbus clouds,
that shower hail, reach a height of 25,000 to 30,000 ft (4.7 to 5.7 miles),2 like mountains, as the Qur an said: ...And He sends down hail from mountains (clouds) in the sky... (see figure 21).
(1) See Ee jaz al-Qur an al-Kareem fee Wasf Anwa al-Riyah,
al-Sohob, al-Matar, Makky and others, p. 55.
(2) Elements of Meteorology, Miller and Thompson, p. 141.
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G) The Qur an on Clouds
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This verse may raise a question. Why does the verse say its
lightning in a reference to the hail? Does this mean that hail is the major factor in producing lightning? Let us see what the book entitled Meteorology Today says about this. It says that a cloud becomes electrified as hail falls through a region in the cloud of supercooled droplets and ice crystals. As liquid droplets collide with a hailstone, they freeze on contact and release latent heat. This keeps the surface of the hailstone warmer than that of the surrounding ice crystals. When the hailstone comes in contact with an ice crystal, an important phenomenon occurs: electrons flow from the colder object toward the warmer object. Hence, the hailstone becomes negatively charged. The same effect occurs when supercooled droplets come in contact with a hailstone and tiny splinters of positively charged ice break off. These lighter positively charged particles are then carried to the upper part of the cloud by updrafts. The hail, left with a negative charge, falls towards the bottom of the cloud, thus the lower part of the cloud becomes negatively charged. These negative charges are then discharged as lightning.1 We conclude from this that hail is the major factor in producing lightning.
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This information on lightning was discovered recently. Until
1600 AD, Aristotle s ideas on meteorology were dominant. For example, he said that the atmosphere contains two kinds of exha- lation, moist and dry. He also said that thunder is the sound of the collision of the dry exhalation with the neighboring clouds, and lightning is the inflaming and burning of the dry exhalation with
(1) Meteorology Today, Ahrens, p. 437.
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H) Scientists Comments on the Scientific Miracles in the Holy Qur an
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a thin and faint fire.1 These are some of the ideas on meteorology that were dominant at the time of the Qur an s revelation, fourteen centuries ago.
H) Scientists Comments on the Scientific
Miracles in the Holy Qur an:
The following are some comments of scientists on the scien-
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tific miracles in the Holy Qur an. All of these comments have been taken from the videotape entitled This is the Truth. In this vide- otape, you can see and hear the scientists while they are giving the following comments. (Please visit www.islam-guide.com/truth
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for a copy of this videotape, to view it online, or to view the video clips of these comments online.)
1) Dr. T. V. N. Persaud is Professor of Anatomy, Professor of Pediatrics and Child Health, and Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecol- ogy, and Reproductive Sciences at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. There, he was the Chairman of the Department of Anatomy for 16 years. He is well-known in his field. He is the author or editor of 22 textbooks and has published over 181 scientific papers. In 1991, he received the most distin- guished award presented in the field of anatomy in Canada, the J.C.B. Grant Award from the Canadian Association of Anatomists. When he was asked about the scientific miracles in the Qur an which he has researched, he stated the following:
The way it was explained to me is that Muhammad was a very
ordinary man. He could not read, didn t know [how] to write. In fact, he was an illiterate. And we re talking about twelve [actually about fourteen] hundred years ago. You have someone illiterate making profound pronouncements and statements and that are amazingly accurate about scientific nature. And I personally can t see how this could be a mere chance. There are too many accuracies and, like Dr. Moore, I have no difficulty in my mind that this is a divine inspiration or revelation which led him to these statements.
(1) The Works of Aristotle Translated into English: Meteorologica,
vol. 3, Ross and others, pp. 369a-369b.
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H) Scientists Comments on the Scientific Miracles in the Holy Qur an
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Professor Persaud has included some Qur anic verses and
sayings of the Prophet Muhammad r in some of his books. He has also presented these verses and sayings of the Prophet Muham- mad r at several conferences.
2) Dr. Joe Leigh Simpson is the Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecol- ogy, and Professor of Molecular and Human Genetics at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA. Formerly, he was Professor of Ob-Gyn and the Chairman of the Department of Ob-Gyn at the University of Tennessee, Memphis, Tennessee, USA. He was also the President of the American Fertility Society. He has received many awards, including the Association of Pro- fessors of Obstetrics and Gynecology Public Recognition Award in 1992. Professor Simpson studied the following two sayings of the Prophet Muhammad r:
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{ In every one of you, all components of your creation are
collected together in your mother s womb by forty days... }1
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{ If forty-two nights have passed over the embryo, God
sends an angel to it, who shapes it and creates its hearing, vision, skin, flesh, and bones.... }2
He studied these two sayings of the Prophet Muhammad r
extensively, noting that the first forty days constitute a clearly distinguishable stage of embryo-genesis. He was particularly impressed by the absolute precision and accuracy of those sayings of the Prophet Muhammad r. Then, during one conference, he gave the following opinion:
So that the two hadeeths (the sayings of the Prophet Muham-
mad r) that have been noted provide us with a specific time table for the main embryological development before forty days. Again, the point has been made, I think, repeatedly by other speakers this
(1) Narrated in Saheeh Muslim, #2643, and Saheeh Al-Bukhari, #3208.
Note: What is between these special brackets {...} in this book is a translation of what the Prophet Muhammad r said. Also note that this symbol # used in the footnotes, indicates the number of the
hadeeth.Ahadeeth is a reliably transmitted report by the Prophet Muhammad s r companions of what he said, did, or approved of.
(2) Narrated in Saheeh Muslim, #2645.
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H) Scientists Comments on the Scientific Miracles in the Holy Qur an
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morning: these hadeeths could not have been obtained on the basis of the scientific knowledge that was available [at] the time of their writing ....Itfollows, I think, that not only there is no conflict between genetics and religion but, in fact, religion can guide science by adding revelation to some of the traditional scientific approaches, that there exist statements in the Qur an shown cen- turies later to be valid, which support knowledge in the Qur an having been derived from God.
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3) Dr. E. Marshall Johnson is Professor Emeritus of Anatomy and Developmental Biology at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. There, for 22 years he was Professor of Anatomy, the Chairman of the Department of Anat- omy, and the Director of the Daniel Baugh Institute. He was also the President of the Teratology Society. He has authored more than 200 publications. In 1981, during the Seventh Medical Con- ference in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, Professor Johnson said in the presentation of his research paper:
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Summary: The Qur an describes not only the development
of external form, but emphasizes also the internal stages, the stages inside the embryo, of its creation and development, emphasizing major events recognized by contemporary science.
Also he said: As a scientist, I can only deal with things which
I can specifically see. I can understand embryology and develop- mental biology. I can understand the words that are translated to me from the Qur an. As I gave the example before, if I were to transpose myself into that era, knowing what I knew today and describing things, I could not describe the things which were described. I see no evidence for the fact to refute the concept that this individual, Muhammad, had to be developing this information from some place. So I see nothing here in conflict with the concept that divine intervention was involved in what he was able to write. 1
4) Dr. William W. Hay is a well-known marine scientist. He is Professor of Geological Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, USA. He was formerly the Dean of the
(1) The Prophet Muhammad r was illiterate. He could not read nor
write, but he dictated the Qur an to his Companions and commanded some of them to write it down.
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