The Expansion Of The Universe

[ArabGirl]

for those who dont know: Quran i the religion book of muslims

In the Qur'an, which was revealed fourteen centuries ago at a time when the science of astronomy was still primitive, the expansion of the universe was described in the following terms:

And it is We Who have constructed the heaven with might, and verily, it is We Who are steadily expanding it. (Qur'an, 51:47)

The word "heaven," as stated in the verse above, is used in various places in the Qur'an. It is referring to space and the wider universe. Here again, the word is used with this meaning, stating that the universe "expands." The Arabic word "moosiaaoona" in the term "inna lamoosiaaoona," translated into English as "it is We Who are steadily expanding it", comes from the verb "evsea," meaning "to expand." The prefix "la" emphasises the following name or title and adds a sense of "to a great extent." This expression therefore means "We expand the sky or the universe to a great extent." This is the very conclusion that science has reached today.

Until the dawn of the 20th century, the only view prevailing in the world of science was that "the universe has a constant nature and it has existed since infinite time." However, modern research, observations, and calculations carried out by means of modern technology have revealed that the universe in fact had a beginning and that it constantly "expands."

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Russian physicist Alexander Friedmann and the Belgian cosmologist Georges Lemaitre theoretically calculated that the universe is in constant motion and that it is expanding.

This notion was confirmed by the use of observational data in 1929. While observing the sky with a telescope, Edwin Hubble, the American astronomer, discovered that the stars and galaxies were constantly moving away from each other. This discovery is regarded as one of the greatest in the history of astronomy. During these observations, Hubble established that the stars emit a light that turns redder according to their distance. That is because according to the known laws of physics, light heading towards a point of observation turns violet, and light moving away from that point assumes a more reddish hue. During his observations, Hubble noted a tendency towards the colour red in the light emitted by stars. In short, the stars were moving further and further away, all the time. The stars and galaxies were not only moving away from us, but also from each other. A universe where everything constantly moves away from everything else implied a constantly expanding universe. The observations carried out in the following years verified that the universe is constantly expanding.

In order to gain a clearer understanding of this, let us imagine the universe to be the surface of a balloon being inflated. In the same way that the more the balloon is inflated, the further away the points on its surface move from one another, celestial bodies also move away from one another as the universe expands. This was theoretically discovered by Albert Einstein, regarded as one of the greatest scientists of the 20th century. However, in order to avoid violating the "static universe model" that was generally accepted at that time, Einstein laid that discovery aside. He would later describe this as the greatest blunder of his life. 2

This fact was explained in the Qur'an in a time when telescopes and similar technological advancements were not even close to being invented. This is because the Qur'an is the Word of Allah: the Creator and Ruler of the entire universe.

http://www.miraclesofthequran.com/scientific_02.html

[IDK]

Ok... so.. the universe expands and the Qu'ran is verified?

[Craig]

Arabgirl,

The problem with the quote from the Quran is that it's not clear what exactly what sense the word "expanding" has in the sentence. One way to read the sentence, as the article suggests, is that the universe itself is expanding. However, there is another way of reading it, and one I'd argue is more consistent with what was originally intended, is that the heavens are being expanded by new things being added to them, such as new heavenly bodies, and things of this sort.

There are two things that could be done to clarify the issue:

1) What is the context surrounding the quote? All we have is a single sentence pulled from the Quran. It would help if we could see English translations of some of the other scriptures (assuming "scriptures" is the correct word), that precede and follow the quote.

2) What is the word in Arabic that has been translated as "expanding" in English? What are all the different ways this word can be translated? Often, it is the case that a word in one language does not have an identical counterpart in English. So, in these cases, good translations employ the closest available word in English, but also devote a sentence or two explaining how the word in its original language is different from in English.

For example, consider the word "tekne" in the Ancient Greek context. I've been told that it can be translated as "craft" in English. However, the word "craft" is not entirely sufficient as a translation of "tekne". In English, "craft" frequently applies to a more limited set of skills than it does in Ancient Greece. Someone is welcome to correct me if I'm wrong, but as I understand "tekne" in the Greek sense also refers to skills like being a woodworker, stonecutter, weaponsmith, etc. In modern usage however, the word "craft" can specifically refer to "arts and crafts". Therefore, to make it clear what "tekne" means, it is necessary to not only provide a translation, but explain that "tekne" is used in the broad sense of the word "craft", and not the more limited sense of "arts and crafts".

Make sense?

[Craig]

I just talked with my Early Modern Philosophy professor today, and according to him, the Aristotelean understanding of the word "tekne" includes things like a doctor's skills in medicine and would also include the practical application of modern science. As this example makes even more apparent, a simple translation of "tekne" = "craft" is insufficient in English. We also need an understanding of how the Greek understanding of "craft" differs from ours.

[Tisatashar]

Here's a few more lines about the way the universe in the Qur'an:

As regards to the big Bang itself…

Have not the unbelievers ever considered that the skies and the earth were once one mass, then We split them asunder? And We have created every living thing from water. Will they still not believe? Qur’an, 21:30

This explosion left the universe filled with gaseous clouds. The formation of the galxies and stars is reported thus;

Then He turned towards the sky, which was but smoke, He said to it and to the earth: 'Come forward both of you, willingly or unwillingly,' and they submitted: 'We shall come willing'. Qur’an, 41:11

The expansion of the universe, one of the main areas of research of modern science, is revealed in this verse:

And it is We Who have constructed the heaven with might, and it is We Who are steadily expanding it. Qur'an 51:47