CHAPTER TWO
Science
and the Qur'anic Revelations UNGRUNDGING
TRIBUTES Today,
thee are in the world some one thousand million Muslims who unhesitatingly
accept that the Holy Qur'an is the "WORD OF GOD"
and that it is a "Miracle." Why should they not, when even avowed enemies are
paying unsolicited tributes regarding the
miraculous nature of this Book of God. The Rev. R. Bosworth-Smith in his
book "Muhammad and Muhammadanism" [Now
the argument is carried a stage farther. Such rejection is also a mark of
injustice, a deliberate perversity in going against obvious Signs, which should
convince all honest men.] opines about the Qur'an: (a) "A MIRACLE OF PURITY OF STYLE, OF WISDOM AND OF TRUTH". Another
Englishman – A.J. Arberry, in the preface of his English translation of the
Holy Qur'an – says: (b) "WHENEVER I HEAR THE QUR’AN CHANTED, IT IS AS THOUGH I AM LISTENING TO MUSIC, UNDERNEATH THE FLOWING MELODY, THERE IS SOUNDING ALL THE TIME THE INSISTENT BEAT OF A DRUM, IT IS LIKE THE BEATING OF MY HEART." From
these words and the rest of his preface he sounds like a Muslim, but regretfully
he died outside the pale of Islam. And yet another Briton, Marmaduke Picktall in
the foreword to his translation of the Holy Qur'an, describes it as : (c) "THAT INIMITABLE SYMPHONY, THE VERY SOUND OF WHICH MOVE MEN TO TEARS AND ECSTASY". This
Author embraced Islam before translating the Qur'an, and we are not in a
position to verify whether he wrote the previous effect before or after his
conversion. (d)
"NEXT TO THE BIBLE [Coming from a
Christian critic of Islam, we will not take exception to his placing the Qur'an
in the second place.],IT (The Qur'an) IS THE MOST ESTEEMED AND MOST POWERFUL
RELIGIOUS BOOK IN THE WORLD". J. Christy Wilson in "Introducing Islam" New York 1950 (e) "THE KORAN IS THE MUHAMMADAN BIBLE, AND IS MORE REVERENCED THAN ANY OTHER SACRED BOOK, MORE THAN THE JEWISH OLD TESTAMENT OR THE CHRISTIAN NEW TESTAMENT.". J. Shillidy, D.D. in "Ihe Lord Jesus in the Koran" Surat 1913, p.111 We
can quite easily adduce a dozen more eulogies to the above list. Friends and
foes alike pay ungrudging commendations to the Last and Final Revelation of God
– the Holy Qur'an. The contemporaries of Muhammad (pbuh) saw in its beauty and
majesty, the nobility of its Call and the magnanimity of its Message, the Sign
and Miracle of God's Handiwork, and accepted Islam. To all the tributes and
testimonies the unbeliever and the septic may say that these are all subjective
feelings. He might further seek refuge in the pretext that he does not know
Arabic. He is heard to say, "I do not see what you see, nor do I feel as
you feel. How am I to know that God exists and that it is He Who inspired His
Messenger Muhammad (pbuh) with that beautiful Message; the Qur'an?" He
continues "I am not averse to the beauty of its philosophy, its practical
ethics and high morality, I am prepared to concede that Muhammad (pbuh) was a
sincere man and that he gave many beautiful precepts for human welfare. What I
cannot subscribe to is what you Muslims claim, "a supernatural authority
for his dicta." REASONED
LOGIC To
this kind of sympathetic, yet skeptical mentality, the Author of the Book
(Al-Qur'an) uses various types of arguments to resolve his doubts. To the
atheists and agnostics, the cynics and the skeptics, who have a super-abundance
of scientific knowledge and who consider themselves to be "intellectual
giants," the point is driven home that they are in reality like stunted
"dwarfs.". They are like the dwarf who may have acquired abnormal
development in any one particular direction at the expense of other parts of his
faculty, like an oversized head on a puny body, the Supreme Creator questions
him. But
before we pose God's question to him, let me satisfy my own curiosity. "You
men of science who have studied astronomy and who study our Universe through
your mighty telescopes as if scrutinizing an object in the palm of your hand;
tell me how did this Universe come into being?" This man of science though
lacking in spiritual insight, is nevertheless most generous in sharing his
knowledge. He readily responds. "Well," he begins, "Billions of
years ago our Universe was a single piece of matter, and there happened a "Big
Bang" in the centre of that huge lump of matter and mighty chunks of
matter began flying in all directions. Out of that "big bang" our
solar system came into being as well as the galaxies, and since there is no
resistance in space to that primordial momentum generated by the initial
explosion, the stars and the planets swim along in their orbits." AND THE SUN
RUNS HIS COURSE FOR A PERIOD DETERMINED FOR HIM: THAT IS THE DECREE OF (HIM) THE
EXALTED IN MIGHT THE ALL-KNOWING. AND THE MOON, WE HAVE MEASURED FOR HER
MANSIONS (TO TRAVERSE) TILL SHE RETURNS LIKE THE OLD (AND WITHERED) LOWER PART
OF A DATE – STALK. IT IS NOT PERMITTED TO THE SUN TO OVERTAKE THE MOON, NOR
CAN THE NIGHT OUTSTRIP THE DAY: EACH (JUST) SWIMS ALONG IN (ITS OWN) ORBIT
(ACCORDING TO LAW) (SURA
YA-SIN) Holy
Qur'an36:38-40
The artheistic scientist continues, "Ours is an 'expanding' universe.The
galaxies are receding away from us at a faster and faster rate, and once they
reach the speed of light, [Light
is said to travel at a speed of a hundred and eighty six thousand miles per
second (7.5 times around the world in one second!).] we will not be able to see them anymore. We
must construct bigger and better telescopes as quickly as possible to study the
sights, if not we will miss the bus!". "When did you discover these fairy tales?' we ask. "No, these are not fairy tales but scientific facts!" our friend assures us. "All right, we accept your facts for what you say they are, but when did you really stumble upon these facts? "Only yesterday!" he replies. Fifty years, after all, is only 'yesterday' in the history of the human race. "An unlettered Arab in the desert over 1400 years ago could never have had your knowledge of the 'big bang' and of your 'expanding universe', could he?", we ask. "No never!' he retorts boastingly. "Well, then listen to what this ummi Prophet uttered under inspiration" [Ummi: means unlettered, unlearned."And the Book is given to him that is NOT LEARNED, saying, Read this, I pray thee and he sayeth, I am not learned" Isaiah 29:12. See how this prophecy finds fulfillment in Muhammad (pbuh). Obtain your FREE COPY OF "What the Bible says about Muhammad (pbuh)" from the IPCI.]: DO NOT THE
UNBELIEVERS (THE ATHEISTS AND THE AGNOSTICS) SEE THAT THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH
WERE JOINED TOGETHER (AS ONE UNIT OF CREATION) BEFORE WE CLOVE THEM ASUNDER? (SURA
ANBIYAA) Holy
Qur'an 21:30 AND IT IS
THE (GOD ALMIGHTY) WHO CREATED THE NIGHT AND THE DAY, AND THE SUN AND THE MOON:
ALL (THE CELESTIAL BODIES) SWIM ALONG, EACH IN ITS ROUNDED COURSE.
(SURA ANBIYAA)
Holy Qur'an 21:33 'BIG BANG' THEORY Can't
you see that the words "The Unbelievers" in the first
quote above are specifically addressed to You – the men of science —
the geographers, the astronomers, who,
after having made amazing discoveries and conveyed these discoveries to mankind,
still remain so ‘BLIND’ as not to ‘SEE’ its
Author? “With
our Sciences and Encyclopaedias, we are
apt to forget the Divineness, in those laboratories
of ours”
says Thomas Carlyle. Where on earth could a camel driver in the desert have gleaned ‘Your
facts’ fourteen hundred years ago,
except from the Maker of the ‘Big
Bang’ Himself’? ORIGIN OF LIFE “And
You biologists
who seem to have your fingers on all organic life, and yet have the temerity to
deny the existence of the Source of that Life, i.e. God: tell me, according to
your vaunted research; where and how did life originate?” Like
his ‘unbelieving’ astronomer companion in science, he too begins —
“Well, billions of years ago
primaeval matter in the sea began to generate protoplasm out of which came the
amoeba; and out of that mire in the sea came all living things. In one word ALL
LIFE came from the sea, i.e. Water!” “And
when did you discover this fact that all living things came from water?” The
answer is no different from that of his fellow scientist the astronomer —
“Yesterday!” “No
man of learning, no philosopher or poet could ever have guessed your biological
discovery fourteen centuries back, could he?” we ask, and our biologist is as
emphatic as the astronomer. “No, never!” says he. “Well,
then, you just listen to this untutored son of the desert!” AND WE MADE
FROM WATER EVERY LIVING THING WILL THEY (THE
UNBELIEVERS, THE ATHEISTS AND THE AGNOSTICS) THEN NOT BELIEVE? (SURA
ANBIYAA) Holy
Qur'an 21:30 Protoplasm is the basis of all living matter, and “the vital power of protoplasm seems to depend on the constant presence of water” (Lawson’s Text Book of Botany, London 1922). Textbooks on Zoology are also cler on this point. For further explanation see Yusuf Ali’s translation and commentary, available from the IPCI. The
above statement is further elaborated in the Book of God : AND ALLAH HAS
CREATED EVERY ANIMAL FROM WATER: OF THEM THERE ARE SOME THAT CREEP ON THEIR
BELLIES; SOME THAT WALK ON TWO LEGS; AND SOME THAT WALK ON FOUR. ALLAH CREATES
WHAT HE WILLS; FOR VERILY ALLAH HAS POWER OVER ALL THINGS.
(SURA NUR)
Holy Qur'an 24:45 It
will not be difficult for you to note that these words of the Omnipotent,
Omniscient Creator of the Universe were addressed to YOU men of knowledge in
answer to your skepticism TODAY. Their real import was beyond the dwellers of
the desert fourteen centuries ago. The Author (God Almighty) is reasoning with YOU,
you men of science, how can YOU not believe in God? YOU should be
the LAST to deny His existence and yet you are the FIRST! What sickness has
overtaken YOU that you allow your egos to overshadow your sense of logic? AND
to the botanists and the zoologists and the physicists who, despite their
amazing insight into the nature of things, refuse to acknowledge a Master
Creator. Let them then account for these utterances of Muhammad (pbuh) the
mouthpiece of God. GLORY BE TO HIM
(GOD ALMIGHTY) WHO CREATED IN PAIRS ALL THINGS THAT WHICH THE EARTH PRODUCES
(THE VEGETABLE KINGDOM), AS WELL AS THEIR OWN (HUMAN) KIND (THE ANIMAL KINGDOM)
AND (OTHER) THINGS OF WHICH THEY HAVE NO KNOWLEDGE (LIKE OF PHYSICS) (SURA
YA-SIN) Holy
Qur'an 36:36
Here is another verse fromYA-SIN.
A special plea is made to Muslim readers who already know the Sura in
Arabic, to now master its English meaning as well. Equip yourself for all the
good work! "CREATED
IN PAIRS" "The mystery of sex
runs through all creation, - in man, in animal life, in vegetable life, and in
other things of which we have no knowledge. Then there are pairs of opposite
forces in nature, e.g. positive and negative electricity, etc. The atom itself
consists of a positively charged nucleus or protons, surrounded by negatively
charged electrons. The constitution of matter itself is thus referred to as
pairs of opposite energies." (Comment by A. Yusuf Ali) [Obtain
your volume of Yusuf Ali's translationwith over 6000 such explanatory notes at a
subsidized price from the IPCI.] SIGNS OF GOD The verses of this “Perspicuous Book,” the Holy Qur’an are
evidently self-explanatory. Students of the Qur’an saw the unmistakable Finger
of God in every discovery that man made. These were the “Signs,” the
“Miracles” from his Beneficent Lord and Cherisher so as to remove his doubts
and strengthen his faith. …
IN THESE ARE SIGNS FOR A PEOPLE OF LEARNING. (SURA
RUM)
Holy Qur’an
30:22
What an irony! It is the ‘people of learning’ who are actually
rebellious! Their vast material knowledge has inflated them with pride. They
lack the genuine humility which goes together with all true knowledge. In
the words of a modem Frenchman: “THE
ABOVE OBSERVATION (HIS OWN THESIS) MAKES THE
HYPOTHESIS ADVANCED BY THOSE WHO SEE
MUHAMMAD AS THE AUTHOR OF THE QUR’AN UNTENABLE. HOW COULD A MAN, FROM BEING ILLITERATE, BECOME THE
MOST IMPORTANT AUTHOR, IN TERMS OF LITERARY MERITS, IN THE WHOLE
OF ARABIC LITERATURE? “HOW
COULD HE THEN PRONOUNCE TRUTHS OF A
SCIENTIFIC NATURE THAT NO OTHER HUMAN BEING COULD POSSIBLY HAVE DEVELOPED AT
THAT TIME, AND ALL THIS WITHOUT ONCE MAKING THE SLIGHTEST
ERROR IN HIS PRONOUNCEMENT ON THE SUBJECT?” See “The Bible, the Qur’an and Science” p. 125 by Maurice Bucaille EARLY INSPIRATION The
seeds of this booklet, "AL-QUR'AN
– The Miracle of Miracles", was
probably sown by the Roving Ambassador of Islam, the silver-tongued orator –
Maulana Abdul Aleem Siddiqui. I was only a schoolboy when he visited South
Africa on a lecture tour in 1934. among his many erudite speeches, I heard him
talk on “Cultivation of Science by the Muslims." Subsequently, a
booklet under the same title was published by the World Federation of Islamic
Missions, Karachi, Pakistan, which brings back the earlier joy and thrill of the
discourse I heard in my teens. In memory of that great servant of Islam, I
reproduce here, for posterity, a few words of what the Maulana had to say on the
relationship between the Holy Qur'an and the branches of scientific knowledge. EXHORTATIONS
TO THE SCIENCES “The
stress which the Holy Qur'an has laid on the scientific study of the universe is
a phenomenon unique in the religious literature of the world. Repeatedly it
calls our attention to the multifarious phenomena of nature occurring around us.
Repeatedly it exhorts the Muslims that the pursult of scientific knowledge is
one of their religious duties. Repeatedly it emphasizes the great truth unknown
to the pre-Qur'anic world that everything in nature is for the service of man
and should be harnessed by him for his use. It exhorts us to study the structure
and function of the human organism, the structure, functions and distribution of
animals, the form, structure, functions, classification and distribution of
plants, and these are problems of BIOLOGY.” "It
exhorts us to study the order of nature and the general properties of matter as
affected by energy, which is the problem of modern PHYSICS.” "It
exhorts us to study the properties of substances both elementary and compound
and the laws of their combination and action one upon another, which is the
problem of modern CHEMISTRY.” "It
exhorts us to study the structure and mineral constitution of the globe, the
different strata of which it is composed, the changes that take place in its
organic and inorganic matter, etc, etc,; which are the problems of modern
GEOLOGY.” "It
exhorts us to study the general description of the earth, its physical divisions
into seas, rivers, mountains, plains, etc., and the minerals, plants and animals
in each, and its political divisions which are the problems of modern
GEOGRAPHY.” "It
exhorts us to study the causes which bring about the alternatioin of day and
night, the variation of the seasons, the movement of the planets and other
celestial phenomena, which are the problems of modern ASTRONOMY." "It
exhorts us to study the movements of winds, the formation and evolution of
clouds and the production of rain, and other similar phenomena, which are the
problems of modern METEOROLOGY." For
centuries, Muslims were world leaders in the field of scientific learning. Then
slowly, the leadership began to slip away from their hands. Muslims had failed
in their leadership role and materialistic Europe moved forward to fill the
vacuum in leadership created by the Muslims. Further,
the Maulana records the contribution made by the Muslims as follows: "The
intellectual upheaval created by Islam was a gigantic one. There is not a single
department of learning which the Muslim scholars have left untouched and which
they have not carved out a high position for themselves.” "In
truth, Islam intends the Muslim community to be a community of intellectuals,
and the cultivation of science and all other forms of learning is one of the
primary aims of Islam. Had it not been for the Muslims, Europe would never have
seen its way to the Renaissance and the modern scientific era would never have
dawned. Those nations who have received their knowledge of science from Europe
are in fact indirectly the disciples of the Islamic community of the past.
Humanity owes to Islam a debt which it can never repay and gratitude which it
can never forget." The
silver-tongued orator (the Maulana) ended his masterful exposition of the topic
– "CULTIVATION OF SCIENCE BY THE MUSLIMS,"
with the words: "Before
I conclude, let me affirm once more that the Muslim community is out and out a
creation of Islam which in its turn is rooted in Divine revelation. Nothing but
belief in and the practice of Islam can make an individual a Muslim. Islam has
laid it down as a religious duty that a Muslim should enquire into the reality
of objects around him, so that his scientific enquiry may lead him to the
knowledge of his Creator. Scientific enquiry in Islam is not an end but a means
to the attainment of a higher end. And this is really the true end of humanity.
TO ALLAH WE BELONG AND TO ALLAH IS OUR
RETURN. Holy Qur'an 2:156 MY ABORTED LECTURE I
had the privilege of hearing the above speech in 1934 from the lips of
the master himself. In the late thirties I had the speech in my hands as a
booklet. I memorized it with some changes and modifications, whilst still
working in a Muslim shop at Adams Mission Station. I was so enthused that I made
arrangements with Adam's College to speak to the students and their lecturers on
the same subject. At that time I might not have fully grasped the enormity of my
task but I will never know for sure as my Muslim Boss came to my rescue? He
threatened me with dismissal if I did not cancel my first public lecture. I
backed out. My employer was no doubt ignorant of Allah's warning. I too, knew no
better. I cannot say what stand I would have taken then if I was programmed with
this admonition: SAY:
IF IT BE YOUR FATHERS, OR YOUR SONS, OR YOUR BROTHERS, OR YOUR MATES, OR YOUR
RELATIONS; OR THE WEALTH THAT YE HAVE AMASSED; OR THE LOSSES YE FEAR IN YOUR
BUSINESSES; OR THE DWELLINGS IN WHICH YOU TAKE DELIGHT – IF YOU LOVE (ANY OF
THESE) MORE THAN YOU LOVE ALLAH, OR HIS MESSENGER, OR THE STRIVING IN HIS CAUSE;
THEN WAIT UNTIL ALLAH BRINGS ABOUT HIS DECISION: AND ALLAH GUIDES NOT A
REBELLIOUS PEOPLE. (SURA
TAWBAH) Holy
Quran 9:24
(a) A video tape on the topic “Da`wah
or Destruction?” is
available from the IPCI Thanks
(?) to our timid brother, my first ever lecture to Christian missionaries and
trainee priests which I had so assiduously planned, memorized and rehearsed came
to nothing. Perhaps I was set back ten years in my career in public speaking.
There are millions like my Muslim boss who are just as terrified by material
considerations enumerated in the above verse who not only will not deliver the
Message of Islam themselves but obstruct those prepared to do the job. Yet they
display in their bearing the utmost piety: to no avail – Allah describes such
as "Perverted transgressors!" TAKE
UP THE CHALLENGE In
the foregoing speech the Maulana had drawn our attention to the Qur'anic
exhortations for us to ponder on: Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Geology,
Meteorology etc. Scholars like Maurice Bucaille, Keith Moore and Sheikh Zindani
have written on different scientific aspects of the Holy Qur'an in recent times.
But the scope is limitless. The noble Qur'an is an ocean of Knowledge. In this
world of specialization, Muslim scientists must take up the challenges hinted at
by the Maulana in the mid-thirties. They do not have to dabble in every field.
To each his own particular specialty. The youth of Islam is hungry for
information and articles and small tracts on different scientific subjects in
order to whet their appetites. Encyclopaedias may follow. Insha-Allah! I
do not have to apologies for leaving the exposition of Qur'anic sciences to
Muslims scientists. Even non-Muslims should be encouraged to explore the depths
of Wisdom as enshrined in the book of God. For my part, as a layman, I will
share with you the miraculous nature of the Holy Qur'an in what appears to me to
be in simple, ordinary facts. |