The Science of Quran

Sunday, April 1, 2007
THE SCIENCE OF QURAAN
6. OCEANOLOGY
BARRIER BETWEEN SWEET AND SALT
WATERS
“He has let free the two bodies
of flowing water, meeting together:
Between them is a Barrier
which they do not transgress.”
[Al-Qur’an 55:19-20]
In the Arabic text the word barzakh means a
barrier or a partition. This barrier, however, is not a
physical partition. The Arabic word maraja literally
means ‘they both meet and mix with each other’.
Early commentators of the Qur’an were unable to
explain the two opposite meanings for the two
bodies of water, i.e. they meet and mix, and at the
same time there is a barrier between them. 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.1
Oceanologists are now in a better position to explain
this verse. There is a slanted unseen water barrier
between the two seas through which water from one
sea passes to the other.
But when the water from one sea enters the other
sea, it loses its distinctive characteristic and
becomes homogenized with the other water. In a way
this barrier serves as a transitional homogenizing
area for the two waters.
This phenomenon is also mentioned in the following
verse of the Qur'an:
“And made a separating bar
between the two bodies
of flowing water?”
[Al-Qur’an 27:61]
This phenomenon occurs in several places, including
the divider between the Mediterranean and the
Atlantic Ocean at Gibralter. A white bar can also be
clearly seen at Cape Point, Cape Peninsula, South
Africa where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Indian
Ocean.
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.
“It is He Who has
let free the two bodies
of flowing water:
one palatable and sweet,
and the other salty and bitter;
yet has He
made a barrier between them,
and a partition that is forbidden
to be passed.
[Al-Qur’an 25:53]
Modern science has discovered that in estuaries,
where fresh (sweet) and salt water meet, the
situation is somewhat different from that found in
places where two salt water 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
salinity different from both the fresh water and the
salt water.2
This phenomenon occurs in several places, including
Egypt, where the river Nile flows into the
Mediterranean Sea.
These scientific phenomena mentioned in the Qur’an
was also confirmed by Dr. William Hay, a wellknown
marine scientist and Professor of Geological
Sciences at the University of Colorado, U.S.A.
DARKNESS IN DEPTHS OF OCEAN
Prof. Durga Rao is a world renowned expert in the
field of Marine Geology and was a professor at King
Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah. He was asked to
comment on the following verse:
“Or (the Unbelievers’ state)
is like the depths of darkness
in a vast deep ocean,
overwhelmed with billow
topped by billow,
topped by (dark) clouds:
depths of darkness,
one above another:
if a man stretches out his hand,
he can hardly see it!
For any to whom Allah
giveth not light,
there is no light!”
[Al-Qur’an 24:40]
Prof. Rao said that scientists have only now been
able to confirm, with the help of modern equipment,
that there is darkness in the depths of the ocean.
Humans are unable to dive unaided underwater for
more than 20 to 30 metres, and cannot survive in
the deep oceanic regions at a depth of more than
200 metres. This verse does not refer to all seas
because not every sea can be described as having
accumulated darkness layered one over another. It
refers especially to a deep sea or deep ocean, as the
Qur’an says, “darkness in a vast deep ocean”. This
layered darkness in a deep ocean is the result of two
causes:
1. A light ray is composed of seven colours seen
in the rainbow. These seven colours are Violet,
Indigo, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange and Red
(VIBGYOR). The light ray undergoes
refraction when it hits water. The upper 10 to
15 metres of water absorb the red colour.
Therefore, if a diver is 25 metres under water
and gets wounded, he would not be able to see
the red colour of his blood, because the red
colour does not reach this depth. Similarly,
orange rays are absorbed at 30 to 50 metres,
yellow at 50 to 100 metres, green at 100 to 200
metres, and finally, blue beyond 200 metres
and violet and indigo above 200 metres. Due to
successive disappearance of colour, one layer
after another, the ocean progressively becomes
darker, i.e. darkness takes place in layers of
light. Below a depth of 1000 meters there is
complete darkness.1
2. The sun’s rays are absorbed by clouds which in
turn scatter light rays thus causing a layer of
darkness under the clouds. This is the first
layer of darkness. When light rays reach the
surface of the ocean they are reflected by the
wave surface giving it a shiny appearance.
Therefore, it is the waves which reflect light
and cause darkness. The unreflected light
penetrates into the depths of the ocean. Thus,
the ocean has two parts. The surface
characterized by light and warmth and the
depth characterized by darkness. The surface
is further separated from the deep part of the ocean
by waves.
The internal waves cover the deep waters of
seas and oceans because the deep waters have
a higher density than the waters above them.
The darkness begins below the internal waves.
Even the fish in the depths of the ocean cannot
see; their only source of light is from their own
bodies.
The Qur’an describes this aptly:
“Darkness in a vast deep ocean overwhelmed with
waves topped by waves”.
In other words, above these waves there are more
types of waves, i.e. those found on the surface of
the ocean. The Qur’anic verse continues, “topped
by (dark) clouds; depths of darkness, one above
another.”
These clouds as explained are barriers one over the
other that further cause darkness by absorption of
colours at different levels.
Prof. Durga Rao concluded by saying, “1400 years
ago a normal human being could not explain this
phenomenon in so much detail. Thus the
information must have come from a supernatural
source”.
“It is He Who has
Created man from water:
then has He established
relationships of lineage
and marriage:
for thy Lord has power
(over all things).”
[Al-Qur’an 25:54]
Was it possible 14 centuries ago for any human
being to guess that every living being was made
from water? Moreover would such a guess be
conceivable by a human being in the deserts of
Arabia where there has always been scarcity of
water?
(A MORE INTERESTING SECTION ON BIOLOGY TO COME INSHA ALLAHAFTER MY CBSE BOARD EXAMS ARE OVER)
8. BOTANY
PLANTS HAVE MALE AND FEMALE
Previously, humans did not know that plants too
have male and female gender distinctions. Botany
states that every plant has a male and female
gender. Even the plants that are unisexual have
distinct elements of both male and female.
“‘And has sent down
water from the sky.’
With it have We produced
diverse pairs of plants
each separate from the others.”
[Al-Qur’an 20:53]
FRUITS HAVE MALE AND FEMALE
“And fruit of every kind
He made
in pairs, two and two.”
[Al-Qur’an 13:3]
Fruit is the end product of reproduction of the
superior plants. The stage preceding fruit is the
flower, which has male and female organs (stamens
and ovules). Once pollen has been carried to the
flower, they bear fruit, which in turn matures and
frees its seed. All fruits therefore imply the
existence of male and female organs; a fact that is
mentioned in the Qur’an.
In certain species, fruit can come from non-fertilized
flowers (parthenocarpic fruit) e.g. bananas, certain
types of pineapple, fig, orange, vine, etc. They also
have definite sexual characteristics.
EVERYTHING MADE IN PAIRS
“And of everything
We have created pairs.”
[Al-Qur’an 51:49]
This verse lays emphasis on everything. Besides
humans, animals, plants and fruits, it may also be
referring to electricity in which the atoms consist of
negatively – and positively – charged electrons and
protons. And many more things!
“Glory to Allah, Who
created in pairs
all things that the
earth produces,
as well as their own
(human) kind
and (other) things of which
they have no knowledge.”
[Al-Qur’an 36:36]
The Qur’an here says that everything is created in
pairs, including things that the humans do not
know at present and may discover later.
9. ZOOLOGY
ANIMALS AND BIRDS LIVE IN COMMUNITIES
“There is not an animal
(that lives) on the earth,
nor a being that flies
on its wings,
but (forms part of)
communities like you.”
[Al-Qur’an 6:38]
Research has shown that animals and birds live in
communities, i.e. they organize, and live and work
together.
THE FLIGHT OF BIRDS
“Do they not look at
the birds, held poised
in the midst of (the air
and) the sky?
Nothing holds them up
but (the power of) Allah.
Verily in this are Signs
for those who believe.”
[Al-Qur’an 16:79]
Another verse also touches on birds:
“Do they not observe
the birds above them,
spreading their wings
and folding them in?
None can uphold them
except (Allah) Most Gracious:
truly it is He
that watches over all things.”
[Al-Qur’an 67:19]
The Arabic word amsaka literally means, ‘to put
one’s hand on, seize, hold, hold someone back,’
which expresses the idea that Allah holds the bird
up in His power. These verses stress the extremely
close dependence of the birds’ behaviour on Divine
law. Modern scientific data has shown the degree of
perfection attained by certain species of birds with
regard to the programming of their movements. It is
only the existence of a migratory programme in the
genetic code of the birds that can explain the long
and complicated journey that very young birds,
without any prior experience and without any guide,
are able to accomplish. They are also able to return
to the departure point on a definite date.
Prof. Hamburger in his book ‘Power and Fragility’
gives the example of ‘mutton-bird’ that lives in the
Pacific with its journey of over 24,000 km in the
shape of figure ‘8’. It makes this journey over a period of 6 months and comes back to its departure
point with a maximum delay of one week. The highly
complicated instructions for such a journey have to
be contained in the birds’ nervous cells. They are
definitely programmed. Therefore, should we not at
least reflect on the identity of this ‘Programmer’?
THE BEE AND ITS SKILL
“And thy Lord taught the Bee
to build its cells in hills,
on trees, and in
(men’s) habitations;
then to eat of all
the produce (of the earth),
and find with skill
the spacious paths of its Lord.”
[Al-Qur’an 16:68-69]
Von-Frisch received the Nobel Prize in 1973 for his
research on the behaviour and communication of the
bees. The bee, after discovering any new garden or
flower, goes back and tells its fellow bees the exact
direction and map to get there, which is known as
‘bee dance’. The meanings of this insect’s movements
that are intended to transmit information between
worker bees have been discovered scientifically
using photography and other methods. The Qur’an
mentions in the above verses how the bee with its
skill, finds the spacious paths of its Lord.
The gender used for the bee in the above verses is
the female gender (fa’slukî and kulî), indicating that
the bee that leaves its home for gathering food is a
female bee. In other words the soldier or worker bee
is a female bee.
In fact, in Shakespeare’s play, ‘Henry the Fourth’,
some of the characters speak about bees and
mention that the bees are soldiers and that they
have a king. That is what people thought in
Shakespearean times. They thought that the
worker bees are male bees and they go home and
are answerable to a king bee. This, however, is not
true. The worker bees are females and they do not
report to a king bee but to a queen bee. But it took
modern investigations in the last 300 years to
discover this.
SPIDER’S WEB, THE FRAGILE HOME
“The parable of those who
take protectors other than Allah
is that of the Spider,
who builds (to itself) a house;
but truly the flimsiest of houses
is the Spider’s house –
if they but knew.”
[Al-Qur’an 29:41]
Besides giving the physical description of the spider’s
web as being very flimsy, delicate and weak, the
Qur’an also stresses on the flimsiness of the
relationship in the spider’s house, where the female
spider many a times kills its mate, the male spider.
The parable also has reference to the weakness of
such relationship of the people who seek protection
for this world and for the hereafter from those other
than Allah.
LIFESTYLE AND COMMUNICATION OF ANTS
“And before Solomon were
marshalled his hosts –
of Jinns and men and birds,
and they were all kept
in order and ranks.
“At length, when they came
to a (lowly) valley of ants,
one of the ants said :
‘O ye ants, get into
your habitations,
lest Solomon and his hosts
crush you (under foot)
without knowing it.’”
[Al-Qur’an 27:17-18]
In the past, some people would have probably
mocked at the Qur’an, taking it to be a book of fairy
tales in which ants talk to each other and
communicate sophisticated messages. In recent
times however, research has shown us several facts
about the lifestyle of ants, which were not known
earlier to humankind. Research has shown that the
animals or insects whose lifestyle is closest in
resemblance to the lifestyle of human beings are the
ants. This can be seen from the following findings
regarding ants:
(a) The ants bury their dead in a manner similar
to the humans.
(b) They have a sophisticated system of division
of labour, whereby they have managers,
supervisors, foremen, workers, etc.
(c) Once in a while they meet among themselves
to have a ‘chat’.
(d) They have an advanced method of
communication among themselves.
(e) They hold regular ‘markets’ where they
exchange goods.
(f) They store grain for long periods in winter and
if the grain begins to bud, they cut the roots, as
if they understand that if they leave it to grow,
it will rot. If the grain stored by them gets wet
due to rains, they take it out into the sunlight
to dry, and once dry, they take it back inside
as though they know that humidity will cause
development of root systems which will cause
the grain to rot.
10. MEDICINE
HONEY: HEALING FOR HUMANKIND
The bee assimilates juices of various kinds of
flowers and fruit and forms honey within its body,
which it stores in its cells of wax. Only a couple of
centuries ago humans came to know that honey
comes from the belly of the bee. But this fact was
mentioned in the Qur’an 1,400 years ago in the
following verse:
“There issues from
within their bodies
a drink of varying colours,
wherein is healing for men.”
[Al-Qur’an 16:69]
We are only now aware that honey has healing
properties and is also a mild antiseptic. The
Russians would use honey to cover their wounds in
World War II. The wound would retain moisture
and would leave very little scar tissue. Due to the
density of honey, no fungus or bacteria could grow
in the wound.
Dramatic improvements were visible in 22
incurable chest and Alzheimer's disease patients at
nursing Homes in England who were treated by
Sister Carole, a nun, with propolis, a substance
which bees produce to seal hives against bacteria.1A person suffering from an allergy of a particular
plant may be given honey from that plant so that
the person develops resistance to that allergy.
Honey is also rich in fructose and vitamin K.
The knowledge contained in the Qur’an regarding
honey, its origin and properties, was discovered
centuries after its revelation.
11. PHYSIOLOGY
BLOOD CIRCULATION AND MILK
The Qur’an was revealed 600 years before the
Muslim scientist Ibn Nafees described the
circulation of the blood and 1,000 years before
William Harwey brought this understanding to the
Western world. Roughly thirteen centuries before it
was known what happens in the intestines to
ensure that organs are nourished by the process of
digestive absorption, a verse in the Qur’an described
the source of the constituents of milk, in conformity
with these notions.
To understand the Qur’anic verse concerning the
above concepts, it is important to know that
chemical reactions occur in the intestines and that,
from there, substances extracted from food pass into
the blood stream via a complex system; sometimes
by way of the liver, depending on their chemical
nature. The blood transports them to all the organs
of the body, among which are the milk-producing
mammary glands.
In simple terms, certain substances from the
contents of the intestines enter into the vessels of
the intestinal wall itself, and these substances are
transported by the blood stream to the various
organs. This physiological concept must be fully appreciated if we
wish to understand the following verses of the Qur’an:
“And verily in cattle there is
a lesson for you.
We give you to drink
of what is inside their bodies,
coming from a conjunction
between the contents of the
intestine and the blood,
a milk pure and pleasant for
those who drink it.”
[Al-Qur’an 16:66]1
“And in cattle (too) ye
have an instructive example:
from within their bodies
We produce (milk)
for you to drink;
there are, in them,
(besides), numerous (other)
benefits for you;
and of their (meat) ye eat.”
[Al-Qur’an 23:21]
12. EMBRYOLOGY
MUSLIMS SEEK ANSWERS
A group of Muslim Scholars, under the direction of
an eminent Yemani Scholar, Sheikh Abdul Majid
Azzindani, collected information concerning
embryology1 and other sciences in the Qur'an and
undisputed Hadith2 and translated it into English.
They then followed the Qur'anic advice:
“If ye realise this not,
ask of those who possess
the Message.”
[Al-Qur’an 16:43 & 21:7]
All the information from the Qur’an and the
undisputed Hadith concerning embryology so
gathered, after being translated into English and
presented to Prof. (Dr.) Keith Moore, Professor of
Embryology and Chairman of the Department of
Anatomy at the University of Toronto, in Canada.
At present he is one of the highest authorities in the
field of Embryology.
He was asked to give his opinion regarding the
material presented to him. After carefully
examining it, Dr. Moore said that most of theinformation concerning embryology mentioned in
the Qur’an and the undisputed Hadith is in perfect
conformity with modern discoveries in the field of
embryology and does not conflict with them in any
way. He added that there were a few verses
however, on whose scientific accuracy he could not
comment. He could not say whether the statements
were true or false, since he was himself unaware of
the information contained therein. There was also
no mention of this information in modern writings
and studies on embryology.
One such verse is:
“Proclaim! (or Read!)
In the name of thy Lord
and Cherisher, Who created –
Created man, out of a (mere)
clot of congealed blood.”
[Al-Qur’an 96:1-2]
The Arabic word alaq, besides meaning a congealed
clot of blood, also means something that clings, a
leech-like substance.
Dr. Keith Moore had no knowledge whether an
embryo in the initial stages appears like a leech. To
check this out he studied the initial stage of the
embryo under a very powerful microscope and
compared what he observed with the diagram of a
leech. He was astonished at the striking
resemblance between the two! In the same manner, he acquired more information
on embryology, that was hitherto not known to him,
from the Qur’an.
Dr. Keith Moore answered about eighty questions
dealing with embryological data mentioned in the
Qur’an and Hadith. Noting that the information
contained in the Qur’an and Hadith was in full
agreement with the latest discoveries in the field of
embryology, Prof. Moore said, “If I was asked these
questions thirty years ago, I would not have been
able to answer half of them for lack of scientific
information”.1
In 1981, during the Seventh Medical Conference in
Dammam, Saudi Arabia, Dr. Moore said, “It has
been a great pleasure for me to help clarify
statements in the Qur’an about human development.
It is clear to me that these statements must have
come to Muhammad from God or Allah, because
almost all of this knowledge was not discovered
until many centuries later. This proves to me
that Muhammad must have been a messenger of
God or Allah”.2
Dr. Keith Moore had earlier authored the book,
‘The Developing Human’. After acquiring new
knowledge from the Qur’an, he wrote, in 1982, the
3rd edition of the same book, ‘The Developing Human’. The book was the recipient of an award for
the best medical book written by a single author.
This book has been translated into several major
languages of the world and is used as a textbook of
embryology in the first year of medical studies.
Dr. Joe Leigh Simpson, Chairman of the Department
of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, at the Baylor College
of Medicine, Houston, U.S.A., proclaims: “...these
Hadiths, sayings of Muhammad (pbuh), could not
have been obtained on the basis of the scientific
knowledge that was available at the time of the
writer (implying in the 7th century). It follows that
not only is there no conflict between genetics and
religion (implying Islam) but in fact religion (Islam)
may guide science by adding revelation to some of the
traditional scientific approaches . . . there exist
statements in the Qur’an shown centuries later to be
valid which support knowledge in the Qur’an having
been derived from God.”
THE THIRD PART WILL APPEAR IN TWO MINUTES.
10:45:03 AM
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