Sound like your intellectual activity on the subject has ceased. Please prove that god exists and if it exists, that it did reveal it's guidance to humans. (note: quoting religious texts does not qualify as proof, argument 'by design' is not a proof.)
Please prove that all Muslims, Jews, Christians, Wiccans, Mystics, Buddhists, Hindus, Druids, etc. have ceased intellectual activity. Quoting a theory from C. G. Jung doesn't count, either. While I can't directly prove the existance of God in a way that scientists can prove the earth is round, (God would never allow this, for a man to prove His existance) but I can prove He exists using logic and reason.
What if reason leads one to conclude that religious faith has no basis in any facts that can be verified? If a god really does exist and it endowed humans with a special place in creation, giving them the ability to reason, why should humans abondon reason when it comes to questioning a god's existence? Does a god fear logic?
Humans do have the ability to reason. You do not give up this ability by believing in the Creator. One person can reason that God does not exist, while another can reason that He does. Using logic & reason I concluded that there is an Almighty God, and that only a fool would reject His love. How did I come to this logic?
Using Reason & Logic to Find God
One of the more popular aspects of the i'jaaz (the miraculous nature) of the Qur'aan in these times concerns its comments on aspects of science that the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and his people could not have known about. There are a number of books written about this topic, perhaps the most popular being Maurice Bucaille's The Bible, Qur'an, and Science1 It should be remembered however, that the Qur'aan is not meant to be a book primarily devoted to a discussion of 'science', but rather a book that is meant for the guidance of mankind. As such, any references to subjects of a scientific nature are typically brief and not very descriptive. The i'jaaz, however appears in the fact that even in these limited descriptions, the Qur'aan conforms exactly to modern science, and imparts knowledge that was unknown during the lifetime of the Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam). These descriptions are free from retroactive ideas that plagued humanity from the earliest of times, such as the concept that the Earth is stationary, and all the other planets and stars rotate around it.
There are numerous examples of such verses, such as the description of the formation of human life. The sperm of man is referred to as a 'mixture of liquids' (76:2), since the sperm is composed of various secretions from the testicles, the seminal vesicles, the prostate and other glands. From the literally millions of sperms produced and ejaculated, only one sperm is actually used in the fertilization process - a very small quantity. This is referred to in a number of verses by the word 'nutfah' (75:37) which signifies a small quantity of mixed fluid. the sperm then hoins the female egg and forms the zygote. This occurs in the mother's womb, a 'safe lodging' (23:13). (see Chapters 3, 4, 5 and 6 - Web Ed.). ...
During the delivery process, the passage of the baby from the mother's womb to the outside world occurs through the birth canal. Typically, this canal is extremely narrow and tight. However, shortly before the birth, certain changes occur, including the release of certain hormones, the contractions of the uterus, and the breakage of the 'bag of water' surrounding the baby, all of which contribute to making the canal loose. This is referred to in 80:20, "then We made the passage (though the birth canal) easy."
Perhaps the best way to appreciate the beauty of the above verses is to see pictures of the human embryo as it goes through the various stages of development...(see Chapters 3, 4, 5 and 6 - Web Ed)
The vivid yet simple descriptions given in these verses (i.e. 22:5) were unknown to the people of the Prophet's time, demonstrating the i'jaaz of the Qur'aan in Science.
Other facts that are given in the Qur'aan include the description of the formation of milk (16:66), the notion of orbits for the planets (21:33 and 36:40), and the description of the water cycle (15:22, 35:9 and more). Every verse that discusses nature and the creation falls into this category. In many verses, Allah Himself commands mankind to ponder over the creation, and mentions these as an indication of His Existence and Power. (3:190-191)
One final note on the concept of science as an i'jaaz of the Qur'aan: There can never be a real contradictions between the Qur'aan and the Laws of Allah concerning the creation (i.e. actual science). The Qur'aan is the Book of Allah, and since it is from Allah "there is no doubt in it" (2:1)
Likewise, the laws that govern the creation are also from Allah. What is studied as 'science', on the other hand, is the attempt by man to understand the creation and laws of Allah. Therefore it is possible fro a scientific assumption to be incorrect, and this is clearly demonstrated by historically scientific 'facts' as the Earth being flat, or the orbiting of the Sun around the Earth. These concepts were believed to in so strongly by the 'scientists' of their time that, on occasion, those who opposed them were harassed and even killed. Yet, later scientists discovered the inaccuracy of these concepts.
Therefore, when there is a conflict between the meaning of a clear, explicit verse (meaning qat'ee ad-dalaalah) of the Qur'aan and 'modern' science. a Muslim must take the verse of the Qur'aan - without hesitation - over any scientific 'fact'. A rejection of such a verse, or even the apparent meaning of such a verse, would be tantamount to a rejection of Allah's knowledge. For example, the theory of evolution is, for the most part, agreed upon by the majority of non-Muslim scholars. Whether there is strong proof to back up the theory or not is irrelevant - the Qur'aan is clear that Allah created Adam from His own Hands, and "From him He created his mate, and from these two He spread forth many men and women" (4:1)
Therefore a Muslim can never believe in the theory that men are descendants of apes, no matter what "proof" might seem to exist.2 Neither is it allowed, as some Muslim rationalists have done, to try to interpret clear Qur'aanic texts to suit modern theories. Following the above example, to try to interpret the story of the creation of Adam and Eve as actually having been the creation of some Neanderthal neo-human species is almost as blasphemous as rejecting the verse in the first place!
It is possible, however, for there to be an apparent conflict between a verse and a scientific fact, when no such conflict exists. This occurs when some scholars take one of the possible linguistic meanings of a vers, such that this meaning conforms with the verse, but is not the only meaning that may be derived from it (basically, the verse is dhannee ad-dalaalah). For example some scholars have understood certain verses of the Qur'aan (e.g., "And it is He who has spread out the Earth" (13:3), and (15:9)) to indicate that the Earth is flat, since the phrase 'madd' occurs, which means 'to spread out'. However, this verse is not explicit in stating taht the Earth is flat, and to conclude this from the above verse requires a degree of interpretation. Since there exists clear proof that the Earth is not flat, this interpretation must be rejected. The meaning of the verse, therefore, is that Allah has created this Earth as a very vast place for mankind, and not that the Earth is flat (This principle may also apply to the verse 'baynas sulbi wat taraaib" in soorah At-Taariq referring to semen and interpreted as "coming forth from between the backbone and the ribs or breastbone" - Web Ed).
Also, it is essential that scientific facts are not read in where they do not exist. Unfortunately, this has become an all too common trend among 'modernistic' Muslims who have specialised in science, but are not very familiar with the interpretation of the Qur'aan.3 Once again, the Qur'aan "...is a book of guidance...and not a book of science, nor a mine of cryptic notes on scientific facts."4
For example, many people interpret the following verse as a prediction of space travel by man:
O assembly of Men and Jinns! If you have opower to pass through the zones of the Heavens and Earth - then pass! But you will never be able to pass them except with authority (from Allah) (55:33)
However, a look at the next verse, and the authentic tafseers of Ibn Katheer and At-Tabaree, will show that this verse is in reference to the jinns listening to the whispers of the angels in the Heaven (or to the Resurrection of the creation on the Day of Judgment), and not to inter-galactic travel!
In conclusion, although the scientific aspect of the Qur'aan is one of the aspects of it's i'jaaz, it must be put in its proper place, and a proper methodology needs to be followed in order to extract examples of such verses. It does more harm than good when certain verses int he Qur'aan are 'bent over backwards,' so as to say, to seek to prove that they contain certain implied scientific facts. One only needs to read works in which this methodology was followed to see how ludicrous the conclusions are. (For example, Muhammad Rasheed Ridaa (d. 1935), one of the founders of the 'Modernist' movement, claimed that the 'Jinns' that the Qur'aan was referring to actually alluded to the discovery of disease-arraying microbes!) When such facts are clear and explicit from the verse, they should be mentioned (such as the examples quoted above - and in this book, inshaa-allah), but when they go against the intent and meaning of the verse, they should be abandoned.
How the Qur'aan relates to Geology and the Origin of the Earth
Professor Alfred Kroner: ?and that many of the statements made at the time could be proven, but that modern scientific methods are now in a position to prove what Muhammad said 1400 years ago.
We present to you Professor Alfred Kroner who is one of the world?s most famous geologists. He is a Professor of Geology and the Chairman of the Department of Geology at the Institute of Geosciences, Johannes Gutenburg University, Mainz, Germany. We met him and presented several Qur'aanic verses and Ahadeeth of the Prophet Muhammad (sallAllahu ?alaihi wa sallam). He studied and commented on them. Then we had a discussion with him.
Professor Kroner said: "Thinking about many of these questions and thinking where Muhammad came from, he was after all a Bedouin. I think it is almost impossible that he could have known about things like the common origin of the universe, because scientists have only found out within the last few years with very complicated and advanced technological methods that this is the case."
Professor Kroner chose an example from the Qur'aan which proved to him why the Qur'aan could not have come from Muhammad (sallAllahu ?alaihi wa sallam) himself. The example which Professor Kroner chose is a description in the Qur'aan of the fact that this universe had its beginnings in one single entity. Allah, may He be Exalted and Glorified said: "Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together [ratqan], before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing?" [Qur'aan 21:30] As you know, it was water that allowed all living things to thrive.
The meaning of ratqan in this verse, as Ibn Abbas, Mujaahid, and others (Raziallaahu-t'aala-anha) said, may Allah be pleased with all of them, is that the heavens and the earth were stuck together or blended together, and that they were later separated from each other. Professor Kroner used this as an example to prove that no human being during the time of Prophet Muhammad (sallAllahu ?alaihi wa sallam), could have known this.
Professor Kroner: "Somebody who did not know something about nuclear physics 1400 years ago could not, I think, be in a position to find out from his own mind for instance that the earth and the heavens had the same origin, or many others of the questions that we have discussed here."
Professor Kroner, so it seemed to us, has a special talent of being evasive. For example, we asked him to describe the geological conditions of Arabia. ?Was Arabia full of orchards and rivers?? He said: "During the Snow Age." And it is further known that the North Polar icebergs are slowly moving southwards. When those polar icebergs become relatively close to the Arabian Peninsula, the weather will change and Arabia will become one of the greenest and wettest parts of the world. We asked him: ?Will Arabia become the land of orchards and rivers?? He said: "Yes, it is a scientific fact."
This astonished us, and we wondered how he could state this as a scientific fact while it was related to the future and we asked: ?Why?? He said: "Because the new Snow Age has actually started. And we can see the snow crawling once again from the North Pole southwards. In fact, the polar snow is now on the way to get closer to the Arabian Peninsula. We can see the signs of this in the snow blizzards striking the northern parts of Europe and America every winter. Scientists have other signs and information proving the actual beginning of another Snow Age. It is a scientific fact."
So we said to him: ?What you have just mentioned has only been known to scientists after a long series of discoveries and with the help of specialized instruments. But we have already found this mentioned by the Prophet Muhammad (sallAllahu ?alaihi wa sallam) 1400 years ago. He said in a hadeeth transmitted in Saheeh Muslim:
The Last Hour will not come upon us until the lands of the Arabs are once again pasture lands and filled with rivers.
At this point we asked Professor Kroner: ?Who told the Prophet Muhammad (sallAllahu ?alaihi wa sallam), that the lands of the Arabs were once filled with orchards and rivers?? He immediately replied: "The Romans." This reminded me of Professor Kroner?s evasive ability. We asked him another question, we said to him: ?But who informed the Prophet Muhammad (sallAllahu ?alaihi wa sallam), that the lands of the Arabs would once again become pasturelands and be filled with rivers??. Professor Kroner becomes evasive if embarrassed. But whenever he was faced with the truth, he is courageous enough to state his opinion frankly and thus he replied: "This could have been known to him only through revelation from above."
Finally, after our discussions with him, he made the following comments: "If you combine all these and you combine all those statements that are being made in the Qur'aan in terms that relate to the earth and the formation of the earth and science in general, you can basically say that statements made there in many ways are true. They can now be confirmed by scientific methods, and in a way you can say that the Qur'aan is a simple science text book for the simple man, and that many of the statements made in there at that time could not be proven but that modern scientific methods are now in a position to prove what Muhammad said 1400 years ago."
Allah confirms in His Book that:
"This is no less than reminder to (all), the worlds. And you shall certainly know the truth of it all after a while." (Qur'aan 38:87-88).
On the Sensory Characteristics of the Skin
Dr. Tagatat Tejasen: "Laa Ilaahaa IllAllah Muhammad Rasool Allah!"
This man is uttering the Islamic creed (Shahaadah) thus declaring that he is becoming a Muslim. This occurred during the Eighth Saudi Medical Conference which was convened in Riyadh. He is Professor Tejatat Tejasen, Chairman of the Department of Anatomy at Chiang Mai University in Thailand. He was previously the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the same university.
We presented to Professor Tejasen some Qur'aanic verses and Prophetic Ahadeeth which deal with his specialization in the field of anatomy. He commented that they also had in their Buddhist books very accurate descriptions of embryonic developmental stages. We told him that we were very anxious and interested to see those descriptions and learn about these books. A year later, Professor Tejasen came to King Abdul Aziz University as an outside examiner. We reminded him of the statement he made one year before, but he apologized and said that he in fact had made that statement without ascertaining the matter. However, when he checked the Buddhist books he found that they contained nothing of relevance to the subject.
Upon this, we presented to him a lecture written by Professor Keith Moore about the compatibility of modern embryology with what is contained in the Qur'aan and the Sunnah and we asked Professor Tejasen if he knew of Professor Keith Moore. He replied that he knew him of course, adding that Professor Moore was one of the most world-renowned scientists in that field.
When Professor Tejasen studied this article he also was greatly astonished. We asked him several questions in his field of specialization. One of the questions pertained to modern discoveries in dermatology about the sensory characteristics of the skin. Dr. Tejasen responded: "Yes if the burn is deep."
It was stated to Dr. Tejasen: You will be interested to know that in this book, the Holy Book - the Qur'aan, there was a reference 1400 years ago which pertains to the moment of punishment of the unbelievers by the fire of Hell and it states that when their skin is destroyed, Allah makes another skin for them so that they perceive the punishment by a fire, indicating knowledge about the nerve endings in the skin, and the verse is as follows:
Those who reject our signs, We shall soon cast into the fire. As often as their skins are roasted through, We shall change them for fresh skins, that they may taste the chastisement. Truly Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise. (Qur'aan 4:56).
We asked: So do you agree that this is a reference to the importance of the nerve endings in the skin in sensation, 1400 years ago? Dr. Tejasen responded: "Yes I agree."
"This knowledge about sensation had been known long before, because it says that if somebody does something wrong, then he will be punished by burning his skin and then Allah puts a new skin on him, covers him, to make him know that the test is painful again. That means they knew many years ago that the receptor of pain sensation must be on the skin, so they put a new skin on."
The skin (see Fig. 8.1) is the center of sensitivity to burns. Thus, if the skin is completely burnt by fire, it looses its sensitivity. It is for this reason that Allah will punish the unbelievers on the Day of Judgment by returning to them their skins time after time, as He, the Exalted and Glorified, said in the Qur'aan:
Those who reject our signs, We shall soon cast into the fire. As often as their skins are roasted through, We shall change them for fresh skins, that they may taste the chastisement. Truly Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise. (Qur'aan 4:56).
We asked him the following question: ?Is it possible that these verses came to the Prophet Muhammad, (sallAllahu ?alaihi wa sallam), from a human source?? Professor Tejasen conceded that they could have never come from any human source. But he still asked about the source of that knowledge and from where could Muhammad have possibly received it?
We said, "From Allah, the Most Glorified and Most Exalted." Then he asked: "But who is Allah?"
We replied: He is the Creator of all that is in existence. If you find wisdom then it is because it comes only from the one Who is Most Wise. If you find knowledge in the making of this universe, it is because the universe is the creation of the One Who has all the knowledge. If you find perfection in the composition of these creations, then it is proof to you that it is the creation of the One Who Knows Best, and if you find mercy, then this bears witness to the fact that it is the creation of the One Who is Most Merciful. In the same way, if you perceive creation as belonging to one unified order and tied together firmly, then this is proof that it is the creation of the Only Creator, May He be Glorified and Exalted.
Fig. 8.1
Professor Tejasen agreed with what we said to him. He returned to his country where he delivered several lectures about his new knowledge and discoveries. We were informed that five of his students converted to Islam as a result of these lectures. Then at the Eighth Saudi Medical Conference held in Riyadh, Professor Tejasen attended a series of lectures on Medical signs in the Qur'aan and Sunnah.
Professor Tejasen spent four days with several scholars, Muslims and non-Muslims, talking about this phenomenon in the Qur'aan and the Sunnah. At the end of those sessions Professor Tejasen stood up and said:
"In the last three years I became interested in the Qur'aan, which Shaykh Abdul-Majeed Az-Zindani gave me. Last year, I got Professor Keith Moore?s latest script from the shaykh. He asked me to translate it into the Thai language and to give a few lectures to the Muslims in Thailand. I have fulfilled his request. You can see that in the video tape that I have given to the shaykh as a gift. From my studies and from what I have learned throughout this conference, I believe that everything that has been recorded in the Qur'aan 1400 years ago must be the truth, that can be proven by scientific means. Since the Prophet Muhammad could neither read nor write, Muhammad must be a messenger who relayed this truth which was revealed to him as an enlightenment by the One Who is an eligible Creator. This Creator must be Allah, or God. Therefore, I think this is the time to say ?Laa ilaaha illAllah?, that there is no god to worship except Allah, ?Muhammad Rasool Allah?, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah..."
"I have not only learned from the scientific knowledge in the conference, but also the great chance of meeting many new scientists and making many new friends among the participants. The most precious thing that I have gained by coming to this conference is ?Laa ilaaha IllAllah, Muhammad Rasool Allah?, and to have become a Muslim."
The truth verily comes from Allah who said in the Qur'aan: And those to whom knowledge has come see that the (revelation) sent down to thee from thy Lord - that is the truth, and that it guides to the path of the Exalted (in Might), worthy of all praise. (Qur'aan 34:6).
Would you like to know more, evolving? The Creation of Man? How Islam relates to Astronomy? Using reason & logic and armed with this information, I concluded that God is real, and that He did in fact reveal His message to humans centuries ago. I have to hand it to you, evolving. You're one of the most intelligent unbelievers I've debated with so far (I'm not being sarcastic). I hope you read everything in this post, and draw your own conclusions using your ability to reason.
Inshaa'Allah.
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Edited by Zahid (03/26/02 03:40 PM)
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