uhhuh. sure.
There are a number of these verses that cover scientific topics ranging from the big bang to pregnancy to the shape of the earth. Dr Zakir Naik (founder and president of the Islamic Research Foundation) also mentions a few in "dahwah to an atheist", a youtube clip which is supposed to convert an atheist, such as myself, into a believer.
right.
Lets take a deeper look into these miracles shall we? These are some of the biggest miracles and most used to convince people of Islam's divine power. quran translations used are the yusuf ali version, muhsin khan version and sahih international. I compare all 3 to make sure there isn't a big difference in the translation that could be misinterpreted. These are three of the most used english qurans in the world, so if you disagree with their translations, well then you'v got some major problems in the religion.
oh and if I happen to have any information here that is wrong according to you, do send me a mail explaining what it is, why im wrong and a reference link if its possible.
1. The big bang.
It is stated in Surah 21:30 that the heavens and the earth were joined together and god clove them asunder/separated them/pulled them apart. This is one of the most vague explanations of the big bang iv ever seen but alright, let assume for a minute that "separating the heavens and the earth" actually relates to the big bang.
Is this an accurate representation of the big bang? This verse clearly implies that the universe and the earth were there at the same time. The latest understanding is that the universe has been around for at around 13 to 14 billion years and the earth is estimated to be about 4 billion years old meaning that the earth and the universe did not coexist for roughly 10 billion years. Also, the universe is homogeneous and the earth is in no way "separated" from the rest of the universe.
Also, the quran states that the universe probably started out as smoke (surah 41:11). This is claimed to be a miracle because we've discovered the universe probably started out as gases. However gas and smoke are two very different things. Smoke is caused when organic compounds burn. organic compounds were not present at the time.
The idea that the quran presents is very similar to ancient egypt beliefs that the earth and heavens were one block that were broken into two. Beliefs that are... wrong.
2. The moon's light
The 'miracle' here is that surah 25:61 states that the moon gets its light from the sun. Although all translations state that the moon gives light (without any mention of 'reflect' or 'borrow') lets assume that it does indeed state that the moon reflects light from the sun. Is this a miracle? According to Dr Naik, we did not know that the moon reflects light till as recently as 200-300 years ago. Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) however, already described this about 1000 years before Islam after observing a lunar eclipse. Other greek scholars that held the viewpoint that the moon got its light from the sun were Anaxagoras and Parmenidas (100-200 years before Aristotle)
Miracle? only if you're brainwashed.
3. Separation of salt and fresh water
Verse 25:53. Here the quran supposedly talks about an invisible barrier that does not allow salt and fresh water to mix. If we accept this meaning, it was already known way before Muhammad's time. Aristotle wrote "the drinkable sweet water is light and is all drawn up, the salt water is heavy and is left behind". Anyways, It doesn't take a genius to realize the difference between salt and fresh water, even though water from rivers flows into the sea. The information isnt totally accurate either. Actually it isnt accurate at all. What separates the two is a delta, an area where salt and fresh water mix. thats right, mix. there is a partition zone where the water gradually changes from 0 parts per 1000 salty to 33 parts per 1000 salty. There is no "invisible barrier" that keeps the two from mixing. More than likely Muhammad copied this from the bible, book of genesis.
source : my taste buds
4. The shape of the earth
There are maybe 5 or more verses describing the earth as a spread out carpet (flat?) The main reason why Musims argue that the quran reveals that the earth is round is due to the verse 79:30 which contains the Arabic word “dahaha” which apparently means “(ostrich) egg-shaped”. The other meaning of the word dahaha is ‘spread out’ which pretty much means the same word has two very different meanings. The reason ‘dahaha’ is thought to mean egg-shaped is because it is thought to have been derived from the word ‘duhiya’ which supposedly refers to the egg of an ostrich. Firstly, the word ‘duhiya’ is a noun and not a root. Both ‘duhiya’ and ‘dahaha’ were derived from the word ‘dahawa’. Secondly the word ‘duhiya’ doesn’t refer specifically to the egg of an ostrich, it refers to the place where an ostrich lays its egg (funny enough, the place where an ostrich lays its egg is flat as the ostrich flattens the ground before laying its eggs). Im not 100% sure as to where the exact source of "egg shape" comes from but out of 15 reliable English translations of the Quran, only 1 (Rashad Khalifa translation) mentions "egg shaped" and it seems to have caught on after that. From what I can tell, the proper translation of shaped like an ostrich egg should be 'baidaiwiy' or 'baidi'l shakl'
Okay for the sake of the argument, lets just say that all these translations are absolutely wrong and this "ostrich egg interpretation" that popped out of nowhere is right. Is it a miracle? It would be, if Muhammad was the first that spoke about this. Aristotle had written about this 1000 years before, the same time he wrote about the lunar eclipse and the moon reflecting light. Aristotle used his observations and calculations about the solar eclipse to argue that the world was spherical. Pythagoras attempted to calculate the size of the spherical earth.
The verses do lead to the idea the the quran holds mainstream 7th century mentality of a flat earth. But even if it didn't, its no miracle.
5. Embryology
According to Dr Naik (who happens to be a medical doctor I might add), the quran outlines the correct embryonic process, hundreds of years before it was known.
medical doctor. medical doctor. yeah I still can't believe it. Okay, go time.
the process as described by the quran - first the sperm, then the clot of blood, then it becomes a lump, then bones, and lastly the bones are covered with muscle and flesh. Muhammad's idea of embryology is a carbon copy of galen's ( AD 129 – 217) views. The problem isn't that Muhammad plagiarized Galen's work. Rather, its that by copying Galen's work, Muhammad also copied Galen's errors. This verse shows Muhammad's belief (and Galen's) that bone was created before flesh and muscle, which is wrong. We also know that it isnt possible for a clot of blood to grow into anything. This belief dates back to the Aristotle who believed that semen mixed with menstrual blood is what got a woman pregnant. The quran merely borrowed this (wrong) information. Some might argue that the 'lump' is actually flesh and therefore the argument that 'the quran states bones come before flesh' is wrong. I have found no solid evidence that the lump refers specifically to flesh and muscle. Instead, it most likely refers to the lump that is seen when a woman has a miscarriage. Easily misunderstood. more evidence to show that it most probably isnt the specific lump of flesh in the next paragraph.
the embryo is also referred to as a "clinging substance","chewed substance" or "leech-like substance". The text was originally translated as 'chewed substance' but some muslim scholars prefer to use the newer translation of leech-like substance (where exactly did this come from?). Chewed substance makes the most sense as the lump that is seen during miscarriage could resemble chewed meat.
All signs point to the likelihood that Muhammad got his (inaccurate) information from the greeks. semen + menstrual blood form a clot (and we know menstrual blood has nothing to do with the fetus) which then turns into a lump (which is commonly seen during miscarriage) which then forms the bones and then flesh and muscle covers it (wrong order).
long read on Galen;
6. Fertilization
The quran supposedly describes the fertilization process before it was long known. Hippocrates and Aristotle had already written about this. The quran states that man is created from a drop of mingled fluids. It also states (in surah 86) that man is created from fluid (or a drop of fluid) emitted from between the backbone and the ribs. This again is a carbon copy of the views of Hippocrates, who believed that semen, like all other bodily fluids, passed through the kidney first and then out the penis. We know this is wrong of course, and semen is produced in the testicles (which is not between the ribs and the backbone).
Other people have also pointed out how very interesting it is that this knowledgeable book has absolutely no mention of the female reproductive system, mainly the egg (fits with 7th century knowledge).
source: any 9th grade biology text book
7. Iron
Extremely interesting 'scientific miracle'. The verse states that Iron was brought down. Iron was brought to earth by meteorites. It is by this context that this is considered a miracle. The reason is twofold. 1 - Muhammad could not have possibly known about this and 2 - surah 57 is the middle surah (muslims should understand this).
for the first part, it was common knowledge that iron came from meteorites. The egyptian (2000 BC) called iron "the ore of the heavens". Babylonians were able to distinguish between the different types of meteoritic iron. Knowledge was also present during the chalcolithic period (3200 BC) ,Asia minor (roughly 1000-1300 BC), roman period (6 BC). Even the aboriginals in Australia held meteorites in high regard for this exact reason.
It would have been more impressive if Muhammad could pinpoint ALL the elements which came from space but since it wasnt common knowledge then, its no surprise it wasnt included in the quran.
Also, the idea behind this miracle is debatable as the verse states that "iron was sent down" and if we accept that this means with meteors, how do we interpret surah 39:6 that says cattle was "sent down".. did cows also drop in through meteorites?
8. The orbit of the sun and moon
Im not sure how many muslims believe this but it is apparently still considered to be a "scientific miracle".
surah 18:86 and 18:90 seem to indicate again the possibility of a flat-earth viewpoint where the sun and moon orbit around the earth. This mirrors greek geocentric cosmology and is further strengthened by surah 31:29, 35:13, 21:33 and most importantly, surah 36: 38-40 - which state that the sun and the moon each runs its course for an appointed time and "It is not permitted for the sun to overtake the moon, nor can the night outstrip the day: each swims along in its own orbit" clearly implies the understanding that the moon and sun both orbited around the earth, and that there were not supposed to overlap (I think Muhammad forgot about eclipses).
If you put all these verses together it strongly points to the likelihood that 1 - they had a flat earth viewpoint and 2 - they had a geocentric viewpoint. Both which are wrong of course.
9. Mountains stabilizing the earth
Surah 78: 6 - 7 state that the earth was laid flat out and mountains were set in as pegs to stop the earth from shaking. Again, this wasn't new to Muhammad's time. He follows classical zoroastrian, hindu and christian beliefs that mountains stabilized the planet. the verse also seems to indicate he thought the world was flat. The entire idea behind this thinking is similar to that of putting weights on a piece of paper so that is doesn't get blown away by the wind.
Aside from this not being any new information, it also happens to be wrong. We know that many mountains are created by tectonic plate shifts. To put it in the simplest possible terms, tectonic plate shifts are the cause of earthquakes and mountains. When an earthquake happens around the area where there is a mountain, the mountain does not lessen the magnitude of the earthquake, rather is just spreads it out over a greater area. and the earth isn't flat.
10. Male and female plants
Some muslims claim that surah 20:53 states that God created plants with male and female sexes. This is a miracle because plants were not known to have sexes at that time. For this 'miracle' I even checked 2 more translations of the quran (pickthall and shakir) and in no translation did I find a reference to the sexes. In all translations it states that God created diverse types of plants, different types of plants or many species of plants.
there is absolutely no evidence to suggest this "scientific miracle" is nothing more than just another new attempt to translate a phrase into something entirely different.
Conclusion
when putting all the pieces together one begins to notice a pattern. No scientific miracles and Muhammad's verses mirror greek and egyptian (and occasionally Christian) thinking exactly, repeating their very old (and possibly pretty outdated) understanding of the world. Both the accuracies and inaccuracies. If I did the same thing in uni id be accused of plagiarism. Some of you might bring up that old argument that Muhammad was illiterate and therefore could not have copied the work. 1 - show me some proper evidence that he was an illiterate and 2 - One of the greatest greek philosophers of all time was also illiterate, Socrates, rendering your argument invalid.
Some reading advice and links with basic information. Not all links/articles/books have been included.
