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The History of the Universe – Quranic Style

islamic quran god creation
A straightforward explanation of how God made the universe according to the Qur'an.

God’s revelation in the Qur’an explains The Beginning. Like the Biblical creation story in Genesis, the Qur’an states that the Universe and planet Earth took six days, with the exception of the 7th - in Islamic monotheism, God does not need a rest.
Now it must be remembered that in Arabic the word ‘yawm’ [ya-oom] can mean a day of approximately 24 hours as we know it, or it can mean any stage or period of time. As God points out, a day to Him can mean a thousand earth years, fifty-thousand or more. (See Qur’an, 32:5 and 70:4). Many Muslim scholars have long known that the creation of the Earth was in six long stages and not in the human understanding of ‘days’.

water cycle quran earth
There are several passages of the Qur'an that narrate the origin of the universe, although not in an essay format or in order of events. Surah seven, Al-`Araf contains one of the most powerful explanations as God reminds us of His ultimate control,
"Indeed, your Lord is Allah , who created the heavens and earth in six days and then established Himself above the Throne. He covers the night with the day, [another night] chasing it rapidly; and [He created] the sun, the moon, and the stars, subjected by His command. Unquestionably, His is the creation and the command; blessed is Allah , Lord of the worlds." (Qur'an, 7:54)
Thus, the creation of our galaxy, the Milky Way, with the solar system and Earth, took place in the last two periods of time. As God states in the Qur’an,
“Declare, ‘Do you disbelieve in the One Who created the Earth in two stages? Do you make others equal to Him? He is the Lord of all the worlds’.”
(Qur’an, 41:9)

The Origin of the Big Bang

The process of creation can be summarised as follows: All matter in the universe was compacted together in one place. Then Allah gave the command and blew it apart scattering molecules and gases in all directions (“The Big Bang).

big bang theory science islamThe splitting of the compacted matter spread gases, black holes and planets throughout the universe. This is called the ‘Big Bang’.

"Have those who disbelieved not considered that the heavens and the earth were a joined entity? [...]" (Qur’an, 21:30)

The forces of this initial explosion keeps the universe expanding. Even Galaxies and stars are moving away from each other.

expanding universe quran god
God says "...We are its expander." (Qur’an, 51:47)

Space was filled with matter, anti-matter and gases which eventually combined into larger particles. These bits of matter eventually grew into asteroids, planets, stars and moons. Each object of inter-stellar space conformed to a set of physical laws which governed a trajectory of their orbits so a regular patter of rotation could be seen.
"And it is He who created the night and the day and the sun and the moon; all [heavenly bodies] in an orbit are swimming."(Qur’an, 21:33; also see 29:61)
Stars ignited in a fury of radioactive fusion which gave off light and heat which brought warmth to those planets near them. (Qur’an, 86:3) Small moons were captured in the orbit of larger planets and came to have a regular orbit around them, often reflecting light from the sun. (Qur’an, 54:2-1)

Geological Developments

Finally, the planets themselves developed and formed in a variety of ways with fantastic geologic formations and movements both above and below the surface.
"Is He [not best] who made the earth a stable ground and placed within it rivers and made for it firmly set mountains and placed between the two seas a barrier? Is there a deity with Allah ? [No], but most of them do not know."(Qur’an, 27:61)
mountains quran rock formation rivers
All it takes is pressure and time. Look up the Qur'an ayaat.

The planet Earth in particular, cooled near its outer layers, forming a thin crust made up of plates that moved and grated against each other (Qur’an, 15:19). This allowed the Earth’s surface to constantly erase the damage caused by occasional asteroid impacts. But the colliding of the plates also has the side effect of raising tall mountains and exposing the geological history of the planet.

The Earth came into existence long before humans ever appeared. The different coloured layers in the rock table provide us with a geological timeline of our planet’s history. (Qur’an, 35:27; 76:1-2)

Escaping gases from the ground and water, warmed in the sunlight, eventually raised to a high altitude where they formed a protective layer. This Ozone Layer shielded out harmful radiation and ultraviolet rays from the sun. (Qur’an, 2:22; 21:32; 31:32; 40:64)

Allah spread the Earth out and caused the crust, or outer shell, to form like a carpet over the planet surface for us. Then He created mountains in the Earth like ‘tent pegs’ to keep it from being unstable. The formation of mountains acts as a kind of ‘brake’ or buffer zone between the tectonic plates. (Qur'an, 31:10)

After a time, life was to appear but that is the subject of another article. For now, it is simply amazing (khhh’amazing) that this scientific narrative is almost exactly the same as how modern science explains it.

Remember that God mentions these things to teach us to be believer in Him. These are signs, ayaat (ayah, sing.) for any rational mind to think about. If He proves His words with things we have only recently discovered, we would be fairly arrogant to not believe in Him, right?
“Don’t they see anything in the functioning of space and the Earth and in all things Allah created?” (Qur’an, 7:185)
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Islamic Educational Resource: Student Questions for Review (age 11-15)
1. Define ‘yawm’, Ozone Layer, ‘ayah’
2. Why did God put so many references to science in the Qur’an?
3. Who began the formation of the Earth?
4. How has modern scientific discoveries helped in the understanding of the Qur’an?
5. Why doesn’t the Qur’an give a single essay about how the universe was formed?
6. What is the Big Bang?
7. Why does Allah give us signs of His creative power?
8. What does Allah tell us about knowledge and faith in the Qur’an, 22:54)
9. What is the function of the canopy over Earth?
10. At the end of the universe, what does Allah say will happen to the mountains in the Qur’an, 20:105-107?
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Images {Bradford Mosque}{Cosmographica.com}{Earthbox)


More on Awesome Science:
British Muslims: Boycotting Evolution But Proud Citizens (Report)
Video: The Big Bang in Animated Wall Paintings
Evolution of Muslim Man {comic}

5 comments:

  1. I haven't finished reading all of the post yet, but just curious-in Islamic monotheism, God does need a rest? or does *not* need a rest?

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  2. OK I just finished reading it. Thanks for sharing! I think my yaqeen(?) in the Quran becomes stronger every day. 

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  3. Does not* need a rest. Allahu akbar, shukran.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The creation of Allah is AWESOME! Very informative article. As you say modern science proves what is written in the Quran - yet they still do not believe.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you. Have you read Muslimness.com?

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