HEAVENS NOT SUPPORTED BY PILLARS

The fact that the Quran speaks of scientific phenomena that could not be accessible to the level of knowledge at the time of the Prophet is a miracle in itself. While trying to emphasize this feature of the Quran, we often stressed that the Quran had, 1400 years ago, spoken of scientific facts that have only come to light in recent years, if not in the course of the twentieth century.

God is He who raised the heavens without any pillars… (13:2)

One of the facts that could not possibly be attained by observations and research at the time of the Prophet is given in the verse quoted above. However, this discovery is certainly not of recent date. But at the time of the descent of the Quran, there was no general consensus about this. Even after the time of the Quran’s descent there were still people who believed that the world abutted mountains at both extremities.

For instance, in the New American Bible, a picture is drawn to show how the authors of the Bible imagined the world. In that picture, the sky resembles an overturned bowl and is supported by columns (The New American Bible, St Joseph’s Medium Size Edition, and pp. 4-5). Ibn Abbas (d. 687 AD), Mujahid (d. 718 AD) and Ikrima (d. 733 AD) believed in the existence of pillars (mountains) supporting the sky, too. These persons asserted that the Quran’s verses referred only to what was visible and that in the portion of space invisible to the eye the pillars held up the sky. This had also been the contention of the Babylonians who believed that the sky abutted on mountains at its extremities. At the time of the Prophet, mankind did not know that the earth was spherical and that traveling in opposing directions led two people to the same spot. Therefore, the said subject of debate could not scientifically be accounted for at the time of the Prophet. Moreover, such a bold statement would have had deleterious effects on the Prophet’s credibility, and objections would not tarry to arrive. Those who claimed that Muhammad was the author of the Quran would not be in a position to account for such a statement.

To appreciate better the value of these statements in the Quran, our imagination must go back to the time of the Prophet and try to guess at the mentality of the people. The Quran was revealed at a time when the airplane and the automobile did not exist, when the actual shape of the earth was unknown, when there was no such thing as a world map and when the majority of Arabs were illiterate. This is to remind the persons who claim that the authorship of the Quran should be attributed to the Prophet or to other writers at the time of the Prophet. So, if one considers that the statements of the Quran had been revealed in such a situation, the miraculous character of the explanations may gain a different dimension.

HEAVEN’S SUPPORT

In the long history of the world, man benefited from the atmosphere’s characteristics and advantages without being cognizant of the mystery behind this boon. How did this mass of gases come into being then? How is it that its stability is maintained? The fact that the sky had a “well protected roof” (Ch 19), that it possessed returning and reflecting properties (Ch 20), that it was made of layers, each having its proper function (Ch 17) and that its maintenance was without pillars, all point to the glorious design of God.

Research conducted on planets of the solar system led us to conclude that none of them was surrounded by an atmosphere like the one that surrounds our world; and the way it is designed to make life on earth possible was a proof of the fact that God had decided that life thrives on earth.

The gas molecules upon the surface of the planet move at a tremendous speed. If the gravitational force of the planet overcomes this motion, the planet would attract the gas molecules and the surface of the planet would absorb the gas molecules. On the other hand, if the gas molecules moved rapidly and could escape the planet’s gravitational field, they would pursue their travel in space. So, both the atmosphere and the balances established took place at a stage after the creation of the earth. The expression in the Quran, “He raised the sky, and set the balance” (55-Gracious, 7) is in perfect accord with the formation of the sky and the establishment of balance in it after the creation of the world. The formation of gas molecules in the form of the atmosphere and its fixation was possible only by the establishment of a balance, a balance between the gravitational force of the sphere and the speed at which the gas molecules travel. God contrived a precise balance in order to raise the sky high without pillars.

However, this design had to be coupled with what was necessary for its perpetuity.

Verily, God is the One who holds the heavens and the earth, lest they cease. (35: 41)

The establishment of this balance depends on the synchronization of a variety of data. For instance, the heat balance of the surface of the earth depends on the position of the earth in relation to the sun, which, in turn, will affect the motion of gas molecules. The rotation of the earth is an important factor for the homogeneity of heat. If there is an increase in this speed, the atmosphere will scatter; if, on the other hand, this speed slows down, the homogeneity will be upset, for the atmosphere will be absorbed by the soil. For the maintenance of the atmosphere, the difference in temperature between the equator and the polar regions and the chains of mountains like the Himalayas, the Taurus Mountains and the Alps that forestall the terrible consequences that air currents would generate are also important. The chain of mountains contributes to the preservation of the balance by blocking the winds blowing upon the surface of our sphere and gathering the cold air at heights. The gases in the atmosphere also play an important role in the maintenance of the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide, whose proportion in the atmosphere is insignificant, has the function of covering the earth as a blanket, thus preventing the loss of heat at night. From the raison d’être of the mountain range to the creation of carbon dioxide, from the magnitude of the earth to the position of the sun, from the balance of heat on the surface of the earth to the characteristics and speeds of gases in the atmosphere, everything has been designed with an unerring precision in perfect conformity. An atmosphere can function without adhering to the earth, without getting scattered in every possible direction, thanks to innumerable conditions.

Verily in these things there are signs for those who understand. (13: 4)

MOUNTAINS AS PEGS

Mountains are often mentioned in the Quran. The simile of pegs seems to be preternatural in the light of geological findings of the last century. The mountains we observe on the surface of the earth rest on immense strata that may be ten to fifteen times as deep as the portion remaining on the surface of the earth. For instance, the highest mountain on earth, whose peak attains an altitude of 9 km from the ground, possesses a substratum that goes about 125 km into the depths of the earth. For a peg to be able to fulfill its function, the length of the portion stuck in the earth is important. The same holds true for the mountain.

Have We not made the earth habitable? (78:6)

And the mountains as pegs? (78:7)

There also exist mountains rising from the bottom of seas that also possess substratum. These substrata support the visible portion of the mountains in accordance with the Archimedean principle. These substrata were unknown until a few centuries back, let alone during the time of the Prophet. The simile in the Quran is once again a miraculous statement.

FUNCTION OF MOUNTAINS

In geology textbooks that have not been updated, information is not available about the role the mountains play, the role of stabilizing the crust of the earth. However, there are some publications on this issue.

The book entitled “Earth” is one of the many now on the market. Frank Press, author of this book, is the president of the Academy of Sciences, adviser to Jimmy Carter, ex-President of the USA. This author likens the mountains to wedges, the greater part of which remain underneath the surface of the earth. In this book, Dr. Press explains the functions of mountains, drawing special attention to their important role in stabilizing the crust of the earth. This information exactly matches the statement in the Quran:

“And We have set on the earth mountains standing firm lest it should shake with them.”(21:31)

Actually, the crust of the earth floats on a liquid. This outermost layer of the earth extends 5 km from the surface. The depths of the mountain strata go as far down as 35 km. Thus, the mountains are sort of pegs driven into the earth. Just like the pegs used to stabilize a tent on the ground, so these pegs stabilize the crust of the earth. Mountains are the outcome of collisions between strata of the earth’s crust; the result of the encroachment of a given stratum on another one. These strata that go deeper and deeper enable the crust layers to

integrate.

Isostasy is defined in the Webster’s Third New Twentieth Century Dictionary as follows: “Isostasy is the general equilibrium in the earth’s crust, maintained by a yielding flow of rock material beneath the surface under gravitate stress, and by the approximate equality in mass of each unit column of the earth from the surface to a depth of about 100 km.” At a time when mountains were viewed as mere prominences, the Quran’s reference to mountains’ strata invisible to the eye and their stabilization role leaves us in awe.

DIFFICULTY OF ASCENDING TO THE SKY

A person subject to spells of dejection and who feels strained is likened to a person who is ascending to the sky. We know today that during ascension, atmospheric pressure gradually decreases, rising blood pressure causing strain on the functioning of heart and veins topped by lack of oxygen, which in turn influences the lungs, making one feel constricted. If one persists going even higher, there comes a moment when the individual loses his life.

…And whomever He wills to send astray, He makes his bosom narrow and strained as if he was ascending into the sky. (6:125)

There were no airships or aircraft at the time of the Prophet. Torricelli was the person who in 1643 invented the mercury thermometer with which he demonstrated that the atmosphere exerted a pressure. To speak of a decrease of pressure at the time was out of the question. Nor was there reliable information about circulation of the blood or lungs. One can guess that men climbed heights and had difficulty breathing as they went higher and higher. In the verse, however, ascension is toward the sky. A person experiencing difficulty of respiration on top of the mountain he has climbed may attribute this difficulty not to the lack of sufficient oxygen at the high altitude to which he has climbed. The verse speaks of a process that takes place as one rises to the sky. The question is not of the experience one has on the top of a hill. Ascension to skies has a much wider connotation.

OPTIMUM PRESSURE AND OXYGEN FOR PERPETUATION OF LIFE

The oxygen and pressure ratio being ideal, a man’s bodily functions run across no difficulty from sea level up to a height of 3000 meters. At altitudes ranging from 3000 to 5000 meters, elevated blood pressure and difficulty breathing are experienced. At an altitude of 7500 meters, the tissues are badly in need of oxygen. Above this height, a person experiences a blackout; the blood circulation, the respiration and the nervous system begin to falter. Changes in atmospheric pressure affect the circulation, increasing the pressure of the blood running through the veins and arteries. The balance of gases in the vacuums of the body and the distribution of gases in the blood and tissues (in particular of the nitrogen) is upset. The mechanical effect of a sudden rise and fall in blood pressure results in the rupture of blood vessels. Effects of the changes in gas volumes may be grouped as follows: eardrum ruptures, inflammation of the middle ear, sinusitis due to change in the volume of air in the sinuses, toothaches (dental carries), difficulty passing gas, and colic…

Thanks to the ideal proportion of oxygen, we can comfortably breathe and our circulation functions properly. Prof. Michael Denton says that if the density of the air had been a little higher, the air resistance would reach great proportions and it would be impossible to design a respiratory system to supply enough oxygen for a breathing organism. Between the possible atmospheric pressures and the possible oxygen proportions, looking for an optimum digital value for life, the bracket we come across is a highly limited one. The fulfillment of so many requirements for survival within this narrow bracket certainly points to perfect design.

The perfection of God’s creation becomes once more manifest in the course of our study of the atmospheric pressure, in harmony with the oxygen content of the air, suiting our biological makeup.

THE EARTH DOES ROTATE EVEN THOUGH WE ARE NOT CONSCIOUS OF IT

The mountains’ features seem to make them the most stationary components of the earth’s surface. The idea of the unattainability of mountains led certain primitive mentalities to believe in polytheism and fancy that the mountains were the abode of divinities. The idea of mountain peaks being beyond man’s reach was an illusion, as was also their stationary aspect. The verse refers to this illusion and speaks of the motion of mountains like clouds. If the mountains that had a stationary aspect did move, it would follow that the earth itself also moved. The verse thus dismisses the idea of a fixed world entertained as a consequence of false perception, and informed the public of the time of the movement of mountains, likening them to clouds.

When you look at the mountains, you think that they are standing still. But they are moving like clouds. Such is the artistry of God, who disposes of all things in perfect order. He is indeed fully aware of what you do. (27:88)

This sign, beyond the grasp of the public contemporary with the Prophet, led people to believe that it was a premonitory sign foretelling the end of the world. Even someone who had no knowledge of the Arabic language could see that this interpretation was groundless and conflicting with the Quran. In the verse it is stated that men believe that the mountains are stationary, but this is an illusion. It is impossible to deduce from the mountains in motion that this is to take place at the end of the world.

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE EARTH DID ROTATE?

These false assumptions deduced during the first century after the Prophet may be condoned after we read the commentaries of Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin Baz from Saudi Arabia. As late as the 1970s, he claimed that the earth did not move and that anyone who asserted the contrary was considered to have committed a blasphemy. The Saudi Sheikh spoke as follows: “Anyone who thinks otherwise would be considered to have gone astray and be called on to repent. If he does repent, so much the better, if not, he will be declared to have uttered a blasphemy and be put to death, his estate being forfeited by the treasury of the Muslim State. If the earth rotated as they asserted, lands, mountains, trees, rivers and seas would turn into an absolute chaos. The Western lands would have changed directions and shifted to the East. And the Eastern lands would shift to the West changing the direction of the Kýbla Mecca), henceforth impossible to determine. As none of these happenings are observed, the assertion that the world is in motion is a false statement for many reasons.”

We see that the opinions entertained about the stationary character of the earth were so firm that bigoted theologians disregarding the revelations of the Quran could utter that anyone who thought that the earth moved had to be subjected to capital punishment in the twentieth century! The Quran is full of miraculous revelations, but there is no end to the lies concocted in the name of religion. The people who took as their guide such concoctions and merely read the Quran as a textbook without understanding its meaning have done the greatest harm to religion. One must understand the reliability of the Quran and avoid all superstitions.

GALILEO’S ORDEAL

Though historically it is a rare and anecdotal reaction and not shared by many Muslim scholars, I mentioned the bigoted reaction of a scholar who railed against the idea of a rotating earth. The case of Galileo, however, is known all over the world. Galileo was an Italian astronomer and physicist, one of the founders of modern science; he believed that the universe was created by God. His empirical and observational scientific approach enabled him to be a pioneer in many fields of science. His ordeal is well known. His postulation that the earth rotated caused him to undergo terrible and painful experiences. The Church had adopted the views of Aristotle and Ptolemy on the universe and the world. This conception posited that the earth remained fixed while the sun revolved around the moon. The Church adopted this earth-centered view as its official credo. The Church propounded all its views as the reflection of God’s will; to oppose them was tantamount to taking a stand against God. We witness once more that one of the main sources of commentaries trying to show that religion and science are mutually exclusive were ignorant dogmatic bigots and the religious establishments under their domination. So has been the case with Islam.

Once man ceases to mix his own ideas with God’s, the problem will be solved. Otherwise, man will continue committing the sin of mixing his views with God’s revelations. Galileo Galilei, like Copernicus and Kepler, argued that the earth moved and the sun stood in the center. According to their contention, the earth had no central position. The Church was not as tolerant as it had been in the case of Copernicus and Kepler. Galileo’s adoption of the Copernican system was refuted by the Church, and under threat of torture from the Inquisition, he was forced to publicly recant his heretical views. This was not the end of the ordeal; he still had to face material and spiritual tortures. He was forced to spend the last eight years of his life under house arrest. The story of the Church and Galilei illustrates best the quarrel between “religion” and science. But the fact remains that the original religion as such was not to blame, but the so-called representatives of fabricated religion were. The Quran warns us against those people who will show up and present themselves as spokesmen of God’s religion as well as against the ignominies perpetrated for material gains.

O believers, many rabbis and priests devour the substance of men and hinder them from the way of God. (9:34)

We must beware of the class of the unenlightened and opportunistic who call themselves representatives of religion. True enlightenment is possible only by guiding ourselves by the precepts of the Quran. To adopt the Quran as our guide is the remedy against superstitions and the sine qua non of coming face to face with the truth.

MOUNTAINS IN MOTION

The verse we are studying in this chapter may have another sign, as well. The terrestrial crust moves as if floating on the mantle, which is denser. This was the reason why the continents, once a whole, were severed from each other. The ideas posited by German meteorologist and geologist Alfred Wegener in an article published in 1915 made him the first serious proponent of the theory of the continental drift. His theory was not espoused by most geologists of his time. It is, however, accepted now as correct in principle. The continental drift is the concept of continent formation by the fragmentation and movement of masses of land on the surface of the earth. The seas and lands are in collision with each other like floating rafts on a lake, sometime overlapping each other. Their speeds vary between 3cm and 15cm per year. Thus, the mountains, that appear stationary to us, are in fact in motion along with the earth, as well as with the continent of which they form a part.

The world we inhabit rotates around its axis and revolves about the sun in its rapid course in space along with the solar system; in addition, we must take into account the world’s movement in relation to the moon. We shall include also the gravitational force of other planets. Unconscious of all these phenomena, we sleep tightly, enjoy our meals with relish, and take pleasure in reading and doing sports. A car is considered super when it does not let us feel we are riding in it. Our world travels at an immense speed and follows extremely complex courses unpiloted, without our being consciously affected by them. The verse we analyzed at the beginning of this chapter is an evidence of the incontestable perfection of God’s design.