Scientific Miracles of Holy Quran: Article by Taha Husnain Shah

 

1. INTRODUCTION

We live in a world today whose roots are embedded with science and technology. No sector of life is left revolutionised. It has also developed a sense of materialism leading the majority to regard super-natural and metaphysical as superstitions of the past. Only matter, energy and the laws of physics governed by the mathematical principles are considered absolute, leaving an Almighty being out of the equation. Yet it has not been able to answer the unknown beginning of the universe and the a-biogenetic origin of life. This mystery is enough to allow the existence of an Almighty being whose creations are the heavens and the earth. This divine being utilises a optimised network to communicate with its creation.
In Islamic theology, The Almighty does this by ascribing Messengers and Prophets to take His holy word to mankind. He also makes the message clear by strengthening it with logical arguments, profound language, miracles, and predictions about the future. The Holy Quran, being the only preserved book of the Almighty is no exception. No one has been able to prove it unreliable based on facts and intellect, and its supremacy is recognised in its language and eloquency. It also makes future predictions with a decent amount of scientific knowledge, most of which were not discovered until the twentieth century.

 

2. WHY SCIENCE?

A common practice since the beginning to justify the truthfulness of a Prophet or Messenger is the miracles given to them according to the societal norms and evolutionary traits of the era. For instance, the first followers of Musa (A.S) or Moses were the sorcerers and magicians of Egypt since they firsthand witnessed His miracles and realised that it was something that could not be replicated by magic.Similarly in the time of Isa (A.S) or Jesus, the society expressed admiration for the healers and the doctors as medicine was expanding, so He could cure diseases and bring the dead back to life by the Power of the Almighty God.As the Quran is a book of reference and guidance for all the generations to come and knowing that the human race that was about to embark on an arousing journey of science and technology, Almighty Allah furnished HIS last revelation with signs of scientific discoveries so that HIS creation may recognise and praise HIM. It says in the Holy Quran:

 

“We will show them OUR signs in the universe and in their own selves, until it becomes manifest to them that this (the Quran) is the truth” (Quran; 41:53)

“Do they not ponder about the Qur’an? Had it been from any other than Allah, they would surely have found in it much inconsistency” (Quran; 4:82)

Almighty Allah also encourages us to explore the mysteries of the Holy Quran, subject it to rigorous testing and contemplate on the signs of their Divine creator to ruminate and realise that He is the absolute, the all powerful and all knowing, the only one worthy of worship.

“Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of the night and the day are signs for those of understanding. Who remember Allah while standing or sitting or (lying) on their sides and give thought to the creation of the Heavens and the Earth, (saying), “Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly; exalted are You (Above such a thing); then protect us from the punishment of the fire” ’’

 

A list of some of the most profound and marvellous scientific miracles in the Holy Quran are assembled below:

 

3. SCIENTIFIC MIRACLES OF THE HOLY QURAN:

3.1 EXPANSION OF THE UNIVERSE:

In 1915, a prominent theoretical physicist of the era Albert Einstein gave his general theory of relativity. According to this revolutionary idea, the universe is not static but a dynamic sheet of space and time. He also proposed cosmological constant λ which hinted at a mysterious force known for the expansion of universe and the separation of galaxies. This notion was experimentally proved by Edwin Hubble in 1929. He calculated the speed with which the galaxies were moving away from each other, it indicated that the universe is expanding.

The same idea was mentioned in the Holy Quran which was revealed more than 1400 years ago. Almighty Allah states:

“The Heavens, WE have built them with power. And verily, WE are expanding it” (Quran; 51:47)

 

3.2 THE BIG BANG:

Modern theories of cosmology state that universe was formed as a result of an explosion from a definite point in time of infinite volume and zero density. In context, it is referred to as a gravitational singularity. Its reason is said to be the fluctuations in the quantum fields but complete details are yet not proposed. Belgian Priest and theoretical physicist Georges Lemaître is considered the father of this idea.This explosion is termed The Big Bang and this doctrine of the creation of the universe without an Almighty being is strengthened by many evidences like the composition of Hydrogen and Helium in the universe and the Cosmic Microwave Background. Nearly all astronomers of the contemporary world regard this theory as their best attempt in explaining the origin of the universe.

However, the creator and fosterer of the universe also elucidated it eloquently in His divine scripture. Allah Almighty refers to the Big Bang in the following words:

“The heavens and the earth were joined together as one unit, before WE close them asunder” (Quran; 21:30)

Then Allah explains the joining of the gas clouds to form stars and galaxies:

“Then he turned to heaven when it was all smoke. HE said to the heaven and the earth: “Come (into being), willingly or unwillingly”. They said: “Here we come (into being) in willing obedience”” (Quran; 41:11)

 

3.3 ARRIVAL OF IRON:

Iron is the second most abundant metal in the Earth’s crust, after Aluminium and the most in terms of sheer mass. It maintains the chemistry of our crust and trace amounts of it are essential for all life-forms. Its abundance in our crust is also the major former and reinforcer of our magnetic field which saves the life from the sun’s coronal rays and geomagnetic storms. Thus it benefits us in many different ways other than infrastructure and machinery.
The common man in the street may think that it was always existed on our planet, but in reality, it is formed in the core of massive and swollen stars at the end of their lifetime. Stars work by fusing hydrogen into helium and release their energy. Eventually they start to run low of their fuel, and then they start to fuse helium into heavier elements like carbon, oxygen and neon and eventually into iron and nickel. Finally the star explodes in a brilliant spectacle filled with colour and glamour and throws all of its inner components into the cosmos. One such debris of a dead star is believed to have collided with Earth in its primordial stages and brought the iron we now know and use.
This brilliant astronomical and astrophysical phenomenon is mentioned in the Holy Quran as:

“And we sent down iron, wherein there is awesome power and many benefits for people” (Quran; 57:25)

Notice that here the word sent down is used, how can in a book revealed more than 1400 years ago to someone who could not read or write contain information regarding supernovas and astronomy, could it be that it is a creation of someone other than the Almighty One who knows and controls the entirety of our universe.

3.4 EMBRYOLOGY IN QURAN:

During the time of Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.W) embryology, just like medicine was in its early stages, limited by the equipment and scientific backbone of the era. The most advanced embryological knowledge at the time was held by a popular Greek doctor Galen, who still held some incorrect notions about the subject in the light of the latest research.
The Quran, in contrast held much more advanced information regarding the stages of human formation, all of these ideas are backed by latest evidences. Allah Almighty says:

“WE made man from an extract of clay. Then WE made him as a drop in a place of settlement, firmly fixed. Then WE made the drop into an alaqah (leech, suspended thing, blood clot), then WE made alaqah into a mudghah (chewed substance)” (Quran; 23:12-14)

One of the most well known anatomist and embryologist of the current times, Professor Emeritus Keith L. Moore said:“It is clear to me that these statements must have come to Muhammad from God, because all of this knowledge was not discovered until many centuries later ”

 

3.5 A PROTECTED CEILING:

Almighty God states in the Holy Book:

“And WE made the sky a protected ceiling, but they, from its signs, are turning away” (Quran; 21:32)

It is common knowledge today that sky protects us from the harmful ultraviolet radiations of the sun. The sun being a blackbody emits radiations of all frequencies and wavelength; most of them carry too much energy and are disastrous to all life forms. Radiations of such properties are absorbed by the middle and upper stratosphere which are layers of our atmosphere and are commonly referred to as the ozone layer.

Thus Almighty Allah has made for us, the sky which functions as a protective shield saving us from the debris and radiations of the cosmos and it has been described in the Holy Book.

 

3.6 MOUNTAINS AS PEGS:

Mountains had always been a subject of fascination and these giants were being considered as humongous stones placed on the surface. Queries like how are they formed? What lies inside them remained unanswered for most of history. Only the newest tech and geological tools have enabled us to formulate the theory of tectonic plates which explains these facts.
Mountains are formed when these giant plates drifting slowly overlap each other for thousands of years, in fact this is the same way the Himalayas and Hindu Kush ranges are formed, as the latest research suggests. This overlapping gives rise to gigantic mountains ranges on one hand and carve deep roots in the lower part of the mantle. So mountains are like pegs or stakes stumped into the crust.

Similar evidence was described in the Holy Quran more than 1400 ago:

“Have WE not made the earth a bed? And the mountains as pegs?” (Quran; 78:7-8)

 

3.7 ORBITAL MOTION OF CELESTIAL BODIES:

It is common knowledge in today’s time that planets of any celestial system revolve around a focal point which in the case of our solar system is sun but it was a very counter intuitive idea in its early stages.
For thousands of years, it was thought that earth was supposed to be stationary and all other celestial bodies revolve around it. The first astronomer to suggest otherwise was Nicolaus Copernicus, a polish catholic who formulated the model of the universe with sun as the centre instead of earth. It was further discovered after modern physics that sun is also not static but moves in the Milky-way. All of this was suggested by the Holy Book of God more than 14 centuries ago, yet they still continue to turn away.

“And He is the One who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon; each floating in its own orbit” (Quran; 21:33)

3.8 EVOLUTION:

The theory of Darwinian evolution always had beef with different faiths like Christianity and Judaism; many think that Islam is also discourager of evolution especially when it is being discarded from the national curricula of many Muslim majority countries. All of this is farfetched from the reality and the essence of Islam.
During the 8th and 9th centuries, many Muslim scholars of recognised fame like Al-Jāḥiẓ, Ibn Khaldūn, and Rumi mentioned evolution and developed what is referred to today as “The Mohammadan theory of Evolution from lower forms”. The main difference is the forecast of medium. What the westerns call it an evolution by chance, is mentioned as the Dictated evolution by the Almighty for the specific creation of Human beings. There are unambiguous verses in the Holy Quran that suggest the creation or bringing up of humans from different, smaller and simpler life-forms. John William Draper, author of The History of the Conflict Between Science and Religion wrote that:

“Theological authorities were therefore constrained to look with disfavour… on the Mohammedan theory of the evolution of man from lower forms, or his gradual development to his present condition in the long lapse of time”

A few of them include:

“What is the matter with you that you do not ascribe dignity to Allah? And certainly he has created you in stages… And Allah has raised you from the Earth like the raising of vegetation” (Quran; 71:15-16, 18)

“Say: “Go all over the earth and behold how [wondrously] He has created [man] in the first in-stance, and thus, too, will God bring into being your second life – for, verily, God has the power to will anything!” ” (Quran; 29:20)

4. CONCLUSION:

All of these astonishing scientific discoveries in a so-called “Primitive book” are a clear indication of its truth and the evidence of the Prophet Hood of Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.W). How could it be that an illiterate man from a Bedouin tribe of Arabs came up with scientific notions and intuitions about the insight mechanisms for the creation and expansion of the universe, the beginning of life, and the geological structure of the earth and the anatomy of the universe? Could this book be sent by someone other than the true Almighty Lord who is the creator, the provider, and the organiser of the Heavens and the Earth? The one who is the most Exalted, and the most Merciful has sent this scripture down to HIS creation as the last and most profound revelation and the only way to connect to HIM. In essence, it is the best bet for anyone who wishes to establish true connection to God and covets the Truth.

“It is only those who have knowledge among HIS servants that fear Allah” (Quran; 35:28)