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ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naik* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net1
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim NaikIn the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful1. INTRODUCTIONEver since the dawn of human life on this planet,Man has always tried to understand Nature, hisown place in the scheme of Creation and the purposeof Life itself. In this quest for Truth, spanning manycenturies and diverse civilizations, organizedreligion has shaped human life and, to a largeextent, has determined the course of history. Whilesome religions have been based on written text,claimed by their followers to be divinely inspired,others have relied solely on human experience.Al-Qur’an, the main source of the Islamic faith, isa book believed by its followers, the Muslims, to becompletely of Divine origin. Muslims also believethat it contains guidance for all humankind. Sincethe message of the Qur’an is believed to be for alltimes, it should be relevant to every age. But doesthe Qur’an pass this test?In this booklet, I intend to give an objective analysisof the Muslim belief regarding the Divine origin ofthe Qur’an, particularly in the light of establishedscientific discoveries.There was a time, in the history of world civilization,when ‘miracles’, or what were perceived to bemiracles, took precedence over human reason andlogic. Of course, the normal defination of ‘miracle’ issimply, anything that takes place out of the normal* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net2
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikcourse of life and for which humankind has noexplanation.However, we must be careful before acceptingsomething as a miracle. In 1993, ‘The Times ofIndia’, Mumbai, reported that ‘a saint’ by the name‘Baba Pilot’ claimed to have stayed continuouslysubmerged under water in a tank for threeconsecutive days and nights. However, whenreporters wanted to examine the bottom of the tankof water in which he claimed to have performed his‘miraculous feat’, he refused to let them do so. Heargued by asking as to how one could examine thewomb of a mother that gives birth to a child.Obviously the ‘saint’ had something to conceal! Hisclaim was a gimmick simply to gain publicity.Surely, no modern person with even the slightestinkling towards rational thinking would accept sucha ‘miracle’. If such false miracles are the tests ofdivinity, then we would have to accept all worldfamous magicians known for their ingeniousmagical tricks and illusions, as genuine God-men!A book, claiming to be of Divine origin, is in effect,claiming to be a miracle. Such a claim should beeasily verifiable in any age, according to thestandards of that age. Muslims believe, that theQur’an is the last and final revelation of God, themiracle of miracles, revealed as a mercy to mankind.Let us therefore investigate the veracity of thisbelief.* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net3
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim NaikTHE CHALLENGE OF THE QUR’ANLiterature and poetry have been instruments ofhuman expression and creativity, in all cultures.The world also witnessed an age when literatureand poetry occupied pride of position, similar to thatnow enjoyed by science and technology.Even non-Muslim scholars agree that the Qur’an isArabic literature par excellence – that it is the bestArabic literature on the face of the earth. The Qur’anchallenges mankind to produce the likes of it:“And if ye are in doubtas to what We have revealedfrom time to time to Our servant,then produce a Surah likethereunto;and call your witnesses or helpers(if there are any) besides Allah,if your (doubts) are true.“But if ye cannot –and of a surety you cannot –then fear the Firewhose fuel is Men and Stones –which is prepared for thosewho reject Faith.”[Al-Qur’an 2:23-24]11Al-Qur’an 2:23-24 indicates Surah or Chapter No. 2 and Aayaator Verses 23 and 24. The same notation is followed throughoutthis book. References and translation of the Qur’an are fromthe translation of the Qur’an by Abdullah Yusuf Ali, new revisededition, 1989, published by Amana Corporation, Maryland, USA.* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net4
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim NaikThe challenge of the Qur’an, is to produce a singleSurah (chapter) like the Surahs it contains. The samechallenge is repeated in the Qur’an several times.The challenge to produce a Surah, which, in beauty,eloquence, depth and meaning is at least somewhatsimilar to a Qur’anic Surah remains unmet to this day.A modern rational man, however, would never accepta religious scripture which says, in the best possiblepoetic language, that the world is flat. This is becausewe live in an age, where human reason, logic and scienceare given primacy. Not many would accept the Qur’an’sextraordinarily beautiful language, as proofof itsDivine origin. Any scripture claiming to be a divinerevelation must also be acceptable on the strength of itsown reason and logic.According to the famous physicist and Nobel Prizewinner, Albert Einstein, “Science without religion islame. Religion without science is blind.” Let us thereforestudy the Qur’an, and analyze whether the Qur’an andModern Science are compatible or incompatible?The Qur’an is not a book of Science but a book of‘Signs’, i.e. Aayaats. There are more than six thousand‘Signs’ in the Qur’an of which more than a thousanddeal with hard core Science.We all know that many a times Science takes a ‘U-turn’.In this book I have considered only established scientificfacts and not hypotheses and theories based on mereassumptions and not backed by proof.* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net5
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naik2. ASTRONOMYCREATION OF THE UNIVERSE:‘THE BIG BANG’The creation of the universe is explained byastrophysicists as a widely accepted phenomenon,popularly known as ‘The Big Bang’. It is supportedby observational and experimental data gathered byastronomers and astrophysicists for decades.According to ‘The Big Bang’, the whole universe wasinitially one big mass (Primary Nebula). Then therewas a ‘Big Bang’ (Secondary Separation) whichresulted in the formation of Galaxies. These thendivided to form stars, planets, the sun, the moon,etc. The origin of the universe was unique and theprobability of it happening by ‘chance’ is nil.The Qur’an contains the following verse regardingthe origin of the universe:“Do not the Unbelievers seethat the heavens and the earthwere joined together (as oneunit of Creation), beforeWe clove them asunder?”[Al-Qu’ran 21:30]The striking similarity between the Qur’anic verseand ‘The Big Bang’ is inescapable! How could a book,which first appeared in the deserts of Arabia 1400years ago, contain this profound scientific truth?* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net6
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim NaikINITIAL GASEOUS MASSCREATION OF GALAXIESBEFOREScientists agree that before the galaxies in theuniverse were formed, celestial matter wasinitially in the form of gaseous matter. In short,huge gaseous matter or clouds were presentbefore the formation of the galaxies. To describeinitial celestial matter, the word ‘smoke’ is moreappropriate than gas. The following Qur’anic verserefers to this state of the universe by the worddukhaan which means smoke.“Moreover, He Comprehendedin His design the sky,and it had been (as) smoke:He said to it and to the earth:‘Come ye together,willingly or unwillingly.’They said: ‘We do come (together),in willing obedience.’”[Al-Qur’an 41:11]Again, this fact is a corollary to the ‘Big Bang’ andwas not known to anyone before the prophetehood ofMuhammad (Peace be upon him)1. What then, couldhave been the source of this knowledge?1Muslims also send salutations upon all the previous divinelyinspired Prophets on taking their names.* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net7
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim NaikSHAPE OF THE EARTH IS SPHERICALIn early times, people believed that the earth wasflat. For centuries, men were afraid to venture outtoo far, for fear of falling off the edge! Sir FrancisDrake was the first person who proved that theearth is spherical when he sailed around it in 1597.Consider the following Qur’anic verse regarding thealternation of day and night:“Seest thou not that Allahmerges Night into Dayand He merges Day into Night?”[Al-Qur’an 31:29]Merging here means that the night slowly andgradually changes to day and vice versa. Thisphenomenon can only take place if the earth isspherical. If the earth was flat, there would havebeen a sudden change from night to day and fromday to night.The following verse also alludes to the sphericalshape of the earth:“He created the heavens andthe earth in true (proportions):He makes the Nightoverlap the Day,* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net8
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikand the Dayoverlap the Night.”[Al-Qur’an 39:5]The Arabic word used here is Kawwara meaning‘to overlap’ or ‘to coil’– the way a turban is woundaround the head. The overlapping or coiling of theday and night can only take place if the earth isspherical.The earth is not exactly round like a ball, butgeo-spherical, i.e. it is flattened at the poles. Thefollowing verse contains a description of the earth’sshape:“And the earth, moreover,hath He made egg shaped.”[Al-Qur’an 79:30]The Arabic word for egg here is dahaahaa1 whichmeans an ostrich-egg. The shape of an ostrich-eggresembles the geo-spherical shape of the earth.Thus the Qur’an correctly describes the shape of theearth, though the prevalent notion when the Qur’anwas revealed was that the earth was flat.MOONLIGHT IS REFLECTED LIGHTIt was believed by earlier civilizations that the moonemanates its own light. Science now tells us1The Arabic word dahaahaa has been translated by A. YusufAli as “vast expanse”, which also is correct. This word also meansan ostrich-egg.* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net9
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikthat the light of the moon is reflected light. Howeverthis fact was mentioned in the Qur’an 1,400 yearsago in the following verse:“Blessed is He Who madeConstellations in the skies,and placed therein a Lampand a Moon giving light.”[Al-Qur’an 25:61]The Arabic word for the sun in the Qur’an, is shams.It is also referred to as siraaj which means a ‘torch’or as wahhaaj meaning ‘a blazing lamp’ or as diyawhich means ‘shining glory’. All three descriptionsare appropriate to the sun, since it generatesintense heat and light by its internal combustion.The Arabic word for the moon is qamar and itis described in the Qur’an as muneer which is abody that gives noor i.e. reflected light. Again, theQur’anic description matches perfectly with the truenature of the moon which does not give off light byitself and is an inactive body that reflects the lightof the sun. Not once in the Qur’an, is the moonmentioned as siraaj, wahhaaj or diya nor the sun asnoor or muneer. This implies that the Qur’anrecognizes the difference between the nature ofsunlight and moonlight.The following verses relate to the nature of lightfrom the sun and the moon:* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net10
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naik“It is He who made the sunto be a shining gloryand the moon to be a light(of beauty).”[Al-Qur’an 10:5]“See ye nothow Allah has createdthe seven heavensone above another,“And made the moona light in their midst,and made the sunas a (Glorious) Lamp?”[Al-Qur’an 71:15-16]The Glorious Qur'an and modern science, are thusin perfect agreement about the differences in thenature of sunlight and moonlight.THE SUN ROTATESFor a long time European philosophers and scientistsbelieved that the earth stood still in the centre of theuniverse and every other body including the sunmoved around it. In the West, this geocentric conceptof the universe was prevalent right from the time ofPtolemy in the second century B.C. In 1512, NicholasCopernicus put forward his Heliocentric Theory ofPlanetary Motion, which asserted that the sun is* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net11
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikmotionless at the centre of the solar system with theplanets revolving around it.In 1609, the German scientist Yohannus Kepplerpublished the ‘Astronomia Nova’. In this heconcluded that not only do the planets move inelliptical orbits around the sun, they also rotateupon their axes at irregular speeds. With thisknowledge it became possible for European scientiststo explain correctly many of the mechanisms of thesolar system, including the sequence of night andday.After these discoveries, it was thought that the Sunwas stationary and did not rotate about its axis likethe Earth. I remember having studied this fallacyfrom Geography books during my school days.Consider the following Qur’anic verse:“It is He Who createdthe Night and the Day,and the sun and the moon:All (the celestial bodies)swim along, each in itsrounded course.”[Al-Qur’an 21:33]The Arabic word used in the above verse isyasbahoon . This word is derived from the wordsabaha. It carries with it the idea of motion thatcomes from any moving body. If you use this wordfor a person on the ground, it would not mean thathe is rolling but would imply that he is walking or* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net12
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikrunning. If you use this word for a person in water,it would not mean that he is floating but wouldimply that he is swimming.Similarly, if you use the word yasbah for a celestialbody such as the sun, it would not only mean that itis flying through space but would also mean that itis rotating as it goes through space. Most schooltextbooks have now incorporated the fact that thesun rotates about its axis. The rotation of the sunabout its own axis can be proved with the help of anequipment that projects the image of the sun on thetop of a table, so that one can examine the image ofthe sun without being blinded. It is noticed that thesun has spots which complete a circular motion onceevery 25 days i.e. the sun takes approximately 25days to rotate round its axis.The sun travels through space at roughly 240 kmper second, and takes about 200 million years tocomplete one revolution around the centre of ourMilky Way Galaxy.“It is not permittedto the Sun to catch up the Moon,nor can the Night outstrip the Day:Each (just) swims alongin (its own) orbit(according to Law).”[Al-Qur’an 36:40]This verse mentions an essential fact discovered* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net13
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikonly recently by modern astronomy, i.e. theexistence of the individual orbits of the Sun and theMoon, and their journey through space with theirown motion.The ‘fixed place’ towards which the sun travels,carrying with it the solar system, has been locatedpreirsely by modern astronomy. It has been given aname, the Solar Apex. The solar system is indeedmoving in space towards a point situated in theconstellation of Hercules (alpha Lyrae) whose exactlocation is now firmly established.The moon rotates around its axis in the sameduration that it takes to revolve around the earth.It takes approximately 29½ days to complete onerotation.One cannot help but be amazed at the scientificaccuracy of the Qur’anic verses. Should we notponder over the question: “What is the source ofknowledge contained in the Qur’an?”THE SUN WILL EXTINGUISHThe light of the sun is due to a chemical process onits surface that has been taking place continuouslyfor the past five billion years. It will come to an endat some point of time in the future, when the sunwill be totally extinguished, leading to extinction ofall life on earth. Regarding the impermanence of thesun’s existence, the Qur’an says:“And the Sun runs its course* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net14
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikfor a period determinedfor it; that isthe decree of (Him)the exalted in Might,the All-Knowing.”[Al-Qur’an 36:38]1The Arabic word used here is mustaqarr, whichmeans a place or time that is determined. Thus theQur’an says that the sun runs towards a determinedplace, and will do so only up to a pre-determinedperiod of time – meaning that it will end orextinguish.INTERSTELLAR MATTERSpace outside organized astronomical systems wasearlier assumed to be a vacuum. Astrophysicistslater discovered the presence of bridges of matterin this interstellar space. These bridges of matterare called plasma, and consist of completely ionizedgas containing equal number of free electrons andpositive ions. Plasma is sometimes called the fourthstate of matter (besides the three known statesviz. solid, liquid and gas). The Qur’an refers tothe presence of this interstellar material in thefollowing verse:“He Who created the heavens1A similar message is conveyed in the Qur’an in 13:2, 35:13,39:5 and 39:21.* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net15
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naikand the earth and allthat is between.”[Al-Qur’an 25:59]It would be ridiculous for anyone to even suggestthat the presence of interstellar galactic materialwas known 1400 years ago!THE EXPANDING UNIVERSEIn 1925, American astronomer Edwin Hubble,provided observational evidence that all galaxiesare moving away from one another, which impliesthat the universe is expanding. The expansion of theuniverse is now an established scientific fact. This iswhat the Qur’an says regarding the nature of theuniverse:“With power and skilldid We constructthe Firmament:For it is We Who createthe vastness of Space.”[Al-Qur’an 51:47]The Arabic word musioon is correctly translated as‘expanding it’, and it refers to the creation of theexpanding vastness of the universe.One of the greatest astrophysicist StephenHawking, in his book, ‘A Brief History of Time’,* For more Queries contact: webmaster@irf.net16
ISLAMIC RESEARCH FOUNDATIONSpreading the Truth of Islamwww.irf.netTHE QUR AN AND MODERN SCIENCECOMPATIBLE OR INCOMPATIBLE ?Authored by: Dr. Zakir Abdul Karim Naiksays, “The discovery that the univ
this book. References and translation of the Qur’an are from the translation of the Qur’an by Abdullah Yusuf Ali, new revised edition, 1989, published by Amana Corporation, Maryland, USA. THE CHALLENGE OF THE QUR’AN Literature and poetry have been instruments of human expression and creativity, in all cultures.
Islamic Grave Voodoo 57 Allah Will Grow Humans from their Graves 57 Islamic Interrogation in Graves 58 Islamic Torment in Graves 59 Islamic Rewards in Graves 61 CHAPTER 8 63 Islamic Medicine Voodoo 63 Islamic Cauterizing and Cupping 63 The Qur'an and Honey are Cures for All Illness 65
The Evolution of Islamic Banking System in Muslim countries: Before describing the evolution of the Islamic banking it is important to understand what Islamic banking is and what are its principles or features. 1.1) What is Islamic Banking? Islamic Banking is banking or financing activity that is based on Shariah (Islamic Law) and all
Director of the Center for Islamic Economics and Finance, College of Islamic Studies, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar Keywords Islamic Finance Community-Based Devel-opment Islamic Moral Economy Blended Finance Received: 15December2016 Accepted: 05 February 2017 Abstract. Contemporary Islamic Finance is seen by many as
PAGE 6 ISLAMIC FOUNDATION PROGRAM BOOK 2015 PAGE 7. Contact Islamic Foundation Banquets 630-941-8800 Ext.1048. Islamic Foundation Villa Park, 300 W Highridge road, Villa Park, IL 60181 Official Islamic Foundation Prayer Time
Islamic styles around the Islamic worlds like "Mamluk and Fatimid" styles in Egypt, "Moroccan" style in Morocco and Al-Andalus (Spain) [1], all of these styles have the same reference which is Islamic shareãa; this research tries to find the principles which formed the basics of Islamic architecture and how can
Health and Illness from an Islamic Perspective MAJED A. ASHY ABSTRACT. The Islamic understanding of the human self, its purpose and functions has a great effect on Muslims' understanding of themselves and on Islamic culture. Islamic psychology is a
4. Some Related Issues 71 4.1 Role of Revelation 72 4.2 The Assumption of an Ideal Islamic Society 73 4.3 General Theory of Islamic Economy 73 5. Concluding Remarks 77 Four Islamic Economics in Practice 79 1. Islamic Banks 79 2. Zak ah 81 3. Insurance 82 4. Waqf 82 5. Al-Hisbah 83 Five Hope for the Future 85 l. Introduction 85 2.
Islamic Incantations, Charms, and Spells 48 Islamic Superstitions 49 The Magical Power of Muhammad’s Blood, Urine, and Excrement 51 Muhammad’s Mojeja (Miracles) 51 Islamic Supernatural Power 52 Muhammad’s Night Journey (Isra and Miraj) 54 Islamic Heart Surgery on Muhammad 55 CHAPTER 7 57
