Ever since the dawn of mankind, we have sought to understand
nature and our place in it. In this quest for the purpose of life many
people have turned to religion. Most religions are based on books claimed
by their followers to be divinely inspired, without any proof. Islam is
different because it is based upon reason and proof.
There are clear signs that the book of Islam, the Quran, is
the word of God and we have many reasons to support this claim:
· There are
scientific and historical facts found in the Quran which were unknown to the
people at the time, and have only been discovered recently by contemporary
science.
· The Quran is in a
unique style of language that cannot be replicated, this is known as the
‘Inimitability of the Quran.’
· There are
prophecies made in the Quran and by the Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and
blessings of God be upon him, which have come to be pass.
This article lays out and explains the scientific facts that
are found in the Quran, centuries before they were ‘discovered’ in contemporary
science. It is important to note that the Quran is not a book of science
but a book of ‘signs’. These signs are there for people to recognise
God’s existence and affirm His revelation. As we know, science sometimes
takes a ‘U-turn’ where what once scientifically correct is false a few years
later. In this article only established scientific facts are considered,
not just theories or hypothesis.
Scientific Facts in the Quran
The Quran was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad in the 7th
century.
Science at the time was primitive, there were no telescopes,
microscopes or anything even close to the technology we have today.
People believed that the sun orbited the earth and that the sky was held up by
big pillars at the corners of a flat earth. Within this backdrop the
Quran was revealed, and it contains many scientific facts on topics ranging
from astronomy to biology, geology to sociology.
Some people may claim that the Quran was changed as new
scientific facts were discovered but this cannot be the case because it is a
historically documented fact that the Quran is preserved in its original
language[1]. The Quran was written down and
memorised by people during the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad. One of
the copies of the Quran which was written a few years after the death of the
Prophet Muhammad is preserved in a museum in Uzbekistan . This copy is over
1400 years old and is exactly the same as the Arabic Quran that we have today[2].
The following are nine scientific facts found in the Quran:
1. Origin of Life
Water is essential for all living things. We all know
that water is vital to life but the Quran makes a very unusual claim:
We made every living thing from water? Will they not
believe? (Quran 21:30)
In this verse water is pointed out as the origin of all
life. All living things are made of cells. We now know that cells
are mostly made up of water[3]. For example, 80% of the
cytoplasm (basic cell material) of a standard animal cell is described as water
in biology textbooks.
The fact that living things consist mostly of water was
discovered only after the invention of the microscope. In the deserts of Arabia , the last thing someone would have guessed is that
all life came from water.
2. Iron
Iron is not natural to the earth. It did not form on
the earth but came down to earth from outer space. This may sound strange
but it’s true. Scientists have found that billions of years ago the earth
was stuck by meteorites. These meteorites were carrying Iron from distant
stars which had exploded[4].
The Quran says the following on the origin of Iron:
“We sent down Iron with its great inherent strength and its
many benefits for humankind.” (Quran 57:25)
God uses the words ‘sent down’ for Iron. It is clear
from the verse that Iron is not an earthly material, but was sent down for the
benefit of humanity. The fact that Iron came down to earth from outer
space is something which could not be known by the primitive science of the 7th
century.
3. Sky’s Protection
The sky plays a crucial role in protecting the earth.
The sky protects the earth from the lethal rays of the sun. If the sky
did not exist then the sun’s radiation would have killed off all life on
earth. It also acts like a blanket wrapped around the earth, to protect
it from the freezing cold of space. The temperature just above the sky is
approximately -270oC. If this temperature was to reach earth then the
planet would freeze over instantly. The sky also protects life on earth
by warming the surface through heat retention (greenhouse effect), and reducing
temperature extremes between day and night[5]. These are some of the many protective
functions of the sky.
The Quran asks us to consider the sky in the following
verse:
“We made the sky a protective ceiling. And yet they
are turning away from Our signs!” (Quran 21:32)
The Quran points to the sky’s protection as a sign of
God. The protective properties of the sky were discovered by scientific
research conducted in the 20th century.
4. Mountains
The Quran draws our attention to a very important
characteristic of mountains:
“Did We not make the earth a resting place? And the mountains
as stakes?” (Quran 78:6-7)
The Quran indicates that mountains have deep roots by using
the word stakes to describe them. In fact mountains do have deep roots,
and the word stakes is an accurate description for them. A book titled
‘Earth’ by Geophysicist Frank Press explains that mountains are like stakes,
and are buried deep under the surface of the earth. Mount
Everest (pictured below), the height of which is approximately 9
km above ground, has a root deeper than 125 km.
The fact that mountains have deep ‘stake’ like roots was not
known, until after the development of the theory of plate tectonics in the
beginning of the 20th century.[6]
5. Expansion of the Universe
At a time when the science of Astronomy was still primitive,
the expansion of the universe was described in Quran:
“And it is We who have built the Universe with [Our
creative] power and keep expanding it.” (Quran 51:47)
The fact that the universe is expanding was discovered in
the last century. The physicist Stephen Hawking in his book ‘A Brief
History of Time’ writes, “The discovery that the universe is expanding was one
of the great intellectual revolutions of the 20th century.”.
The Quran mentioned the expansion of the universe even
before the invention of the telescope!
6. Sun’s Orbit
In 1512 the astronomer Nicholas Copernicus put forward his
theory that the Sun is motionless at the centre of the solar system, and that
the planets revolve around it. The belief that the Sun is stationary was
widespread amongst astronomers until the 20th century. It is now a well-established
scientific fact that the Sun is not stationary, but is moving in an orbit
around the centre of our Milky Way galaxy[7].
The Quran mentions the orbit of the Sun:
“It is He who created night and day, the Sun and the Moon,
each floating in its orbit.” (Quran 21:33)
The Quran would have been wrong according to astronomers
just a couple of decades ago. But we now know that the Quranic account of
the Sun’s motion is consistent with modern Astronomy.
7. The Ocean
The Quran uses imagery to covey its deep meanings, here it
describes the state of the unbelievers as:
“Darkness out in a deep ocean which is covered by waves,
above which are waves, above which are clouds, layers of darkness, one upon the
other. When one puts out his hand [therein], he can hardly see it.
Those God gives no light to, they have no light.” (Quran 24:40)
It is commonly thought that waves only occur on the surface
of the ocean. However oceanographers have discovered that there are
internal waves that take place below the surface of the ocean. These
waves are invisible to the human eye, and can only be detected by specialist
equipment[8]. The Quran mentions darkness in
a deep ocean above which are waves, above which are waves, then clouds above
that. This description is not only remarkable because it describes the
internal waves in the ocean, but also because it describes darkness deep in the
ocean. A human being can dive no more than 70 metres without breathing
equipment. Light is present at that depth, but if we go down 1000 metres
it is completely dark[9].
1400 years ago there were no submarines or specialist equipment to discover
internal waves or the darkness deep inside the oceans.
8. Lying and Movement
There was a cruel oppressive tribal leader named Abu Jahl
who lived during the time of Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of
God be upon him. God revealed a verse of the Quran to warn him:
“No Indeed! If he does not stop, We will seize him by the
forehead, his lying, sinful forehead.” (Quran 96:15-16)
God does not call this person a liar, but calls his forehead
(the front part of the brain) ‘lying’ and ‘sinful’, and warns him to stop.
This verse is significant for two reasons. The first
is that the front part of our brain is responsible for voluntary movement[10].This is known as the frontal
lobe. A book titled ‘Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology’ which includes
the results of research on the functions of this area states: The motivation
and the foresight to plan and initiate movements occur in the anterior portion
of the frontal lobes, the prefrontal area[11]. The part of the brain that is
responsible for movement is said to be seized if the man does not stop.
Secondly, numerous studies have shown that this same region
(frontal lobe) is responsible for the lying function of the brain[12]. One such study at the
University of Pennsylvania in which volunteers were asked questions during a
computerized interrogation, it was found that when the volunteers were lying
there was significantly increased activity in the prefrontal and premotor
cortices (frontal lobe region)[13].
The front part of the brain is responsible for movement and
lying. The Quran links movement and lying to this area. These
functions of the frontal lobe were discovered with medical imaging equipment
which was developed in the 20th century.
9. Pain Receptors
For a long time it was thought that the sense of feeling and
pain was dependent on the brain. However it has been discovered that
there are pain receptors present in the skin[14]. Without these pain receptors,
a person would not be able to feel pain.
Consider the following verse on pain:
“We shall send those who reject Our revelations to the
(Hell) Fire. When their skins have been burned away, We shall replace
them with new ones so that they may continue to feel the pain: God is Almighty,
All-Wise.” (Quran 4:56)
God tells the people who reject his message that when they
are in Hell and their skins are burnt off (so they can’t feel any pain), he
will give them new skins so that they continue to feel the pain.
The Quran makes it clear that pain is dependent upon on the
skin. The discovery of pain receptors in the skin is a fairly recent
discovery for Biology.
Conclusion
These are just some of the many scientific facts found in
the Quran. It is important to note that the Quran is not a book of
science, but that it is consistent with science. To claim that scientific
facts in the Quran are due to coincidence would be irrational. The best
explanation is that God revealed this knowledge to the Prophet Muhammad.
Just like the Quran contains knowledge about the natural
world, it also contains information about the inner dimensions of our
souls. It relates to our feelings, wants and needs. The Quran
informs us that we have a purpose in life, and that following God’s guidance
will lead us to inner peace in this life, and Paradise
in the hereafter. And that rejection of his message will lead to
depression in this life and Hellfire after death.
“We shall show them Our signs in the Universe and within
themselves, until it becomes clear to them that this is the Truth. Is it
not enough that your Lord is the witness of all things?” (Quran 41:53)
Footnotes:
[1] The
Magnificent Qur’an: A Unique History of Preservation
[2] (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4581684.stm)
[3] Bruce
Alberts, Essential Cell Biology
[4] M.
E. Walrath, History of the Earth’s Formation
[5] Joseph
M. Moran, Meteorology: the Atmosphere and the Science of Weather [7] Terry A.
Hicks, How Do Mountains Form? [8] Frank Press and Raymond Siever, Earth
[6] Naomi
Oreskes, Plate Tectonics: An Insider’s History Of The Modern Theory Of The
Earth [10] Stephen Hawking, A Brief History Of Time
[7] Lambert
M. Surhone, Orbital Period: Orbit, Sun, Earth, Conjunction, Orbital Node,
Apsis, Semi-Major Axis
[8] M.
Grant Gross, Oceanography: A View of Earth
[9] Danny
Elder, Oceans
[10] (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2289137)
[11] Rod
R. Seeley, Essentials of Anatomy & Physiology
[12] (http://cercor.oxfordjournals.org/content/20/1/205.full.pdf)
[13] (http://www.americanscientist.org/issues/pub/2002/3/diogenes-new-lamp)
[14] Michael Darmon,
Molecular Biology of the Skin: The Keratinocyte
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