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Written by Dr. Zakir Naik

Category: Koran, Qur'an - The Final Testament

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12. GENERAL SCIENCE

FINGERPRINTS

“Does man think that We cannot assemble his bones? Nay, We are able to put together in perfect order the very tips of his fingers.” [Al-Qur’an 75:3-4]

Unbelievers argue regarding resurrection taking place after bones of dead people have disintegrated in the earth and how each individual would be identified on the Day of Judgement. Almighty Allah answers that He can not only assemble our bones but can also reconstruct perfectly our very fingertips.

Why does the Qur’an, while speaking about determination of the identity of the individual, speak specifically about fingertips? In 1880, fingerprinting became the scientific method of identification, after research done by Sir Francis Golt. No two persons in the world can ever have exactly the same fingerprint pattern, not even identical twins. That is the reason why police forces worldwide use fingerprints to identify criminals.

Fourteen hundred years ago, who could have known the uniqueness of each human’s fingerprint? Surely it could have been none other than the Creator Himself!

PAIN RECEPTORS IN THE SKIN

It was thought that the sense of feeling and pain was dependent only on the brain. Recent discoveries however prove that there are pain receptors present in the skin, without which a person would not be able to feel pain.

When a doctor examines a patient suffering from burn injuries, he verifies the degree of burns by a pinprick. If the patient feels pain, the doctor is happy, because it indicates that the burns are superficial and the pain receptors are intact. On the other hand, if the patient does not feel any pain, it indicates that it is a deep burn and the pain receptors have been destroyed.

The Qur’an gives a clear indication of the existence of pain receptors in the following verse:

“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 Penalty: acquiring the appearance of a leech."

Compare the readily available Qur’anic knowledge with Man’s struggle with scientific findings:

In 1677, Hamm and Leeuwenhoek were the first scientists to observe human sperm cells (spermatozoa) through a microscope. They thought that a sperm cell contained a miniature human being which grew in the uterus to form a newborn. This was known as the perforation theory. When scientists discovered that the ovum was bigger than the sperm, it was thought by scientists like De Graf and others that the foetus existed in a miniature form in the ovum. Later, in the 18th century, Maupertuis propagated the theory of biparental inheritance.

The alaqah is transformed into mudghah which means ‘something that is chewed (having teeth marks)’ and also something that is tacky and small which can be put in the mouth like gum. Both these explanations are scientifically correct. Prof. Keith Moore took a piece of plaster seal and made it into the size and shape of the early stage of foetus and chewed it between the teeth to make it into a mudghah. He compared this with the photographs of the early stage of foetus. The teeth marks resembled the ‘somites’ which is the early formation of the spinal column.This mudghah is transformed into bones (izam). The bones are clothed with intact flesh or muscles (lahm). Then Allah makes it into another creature for Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise. [Please look at: Al-Qur’an 4:56]

Prof. Tagatat Tejasen, Chairman of the Department of Anatomy at Chiang Mai University in Thailand, has spent a great amount of time on research of pain receptors. Initially he could not believe that the Qur’an mentioned this scientific fact 1,400 years ago. He later verified the translation of this particular Qur ‘anic verse. Prof. Tejasen was so impressed by the scientific accuracy of the Qur’anic verse, that at the 8th Saudi Medical Conference held in Riyadh on the Scientific Signs of Qur’an and Sunnah, he proudly proclaimed in public:

“There is no God but Allah and Muhammad (peace be upon him) is His Messenger.”

14. CONCLUSION

To attribute the presence of scientific facts in the Qur’an to coincidence would be against common sense and a true scientific approach.

Indeed the scientific accuracy of the Qur’anic verses confirm the Qur’an’s open declaration:

“Soon will We show them Our Signs in the (furthest) regions (of the earth), and in their own souls, until it becomes manifest to them that this is the Truth it is not enough that Thy Lord doth witness all things?” [Al-Qur’an 41:53]

The Qur’an invites all humans to reflect on the Creation of this universe in the verse:

“Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of Night and Day —there are indeed Signs for men of understanding .“ [Al-Qur’an 3:190]

The scientific evidences of the Qur’an clearly prove its Divine origin. No human could have produced a book, fourteen hundred years ago, that would contain such profound scientific facts.

The Qur’an, however, is not a book of Science but a book of ‘Signs’. These signs invite Man to realize the purpose of his existence on earth, and to live in harmony with Nature. The Qur’an is truly a message from Allah, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe. It contains the same Message of the Oneness of God, that was preached by all prophets, right from Adam, Moses, Jesus to Muhammad (peace be upon them).

Several detailed tomes have been written on the subject of Qur’an and modern science and further research in this field is on. Inshaa'Allah, this research will help mankind to come closer to the Word of the Almighty. These articles only contains a few of the scientific facts present in the Qur’an. I cannot claim to have done full justice to the subject.

Prof. Tejasen accepted Islam on the strength of just one scientific ‘sign’ mentioned in the Qu’ran. Some people may require ten signs while some may require hundred signs to be convinced about the Divine origin of the Qur’an. Some would be unwilling to accept the Truth even after being shown a thousand signs. The Qur’an condemns such a closed mentality in the verse:

“Deaf, dumb and blind, They will not return (To the path).” [Al-Qur’an 2:18]

The Qur’an contains a complete code of life for the individual and society. Alhamdulillah (Praise be to Allah), the Qur’anic way of life is far superior to the ‘isms’ that modern man has invented out of sheer ignorance. Who can give better guidance than the Creator Himself?

I pray that this humble effort is accepted by Allah, to whom I pray for mercy and guidance (Aameen).

____________

Footnotes:

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Written by Dr.Zakir Naik

Category: Koran, Qur'an - The Final Testament

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9. MEDICINE

HONEY: HEALING FOR HUMANKIND

The bee assimilates juices of various kinds of flowers and fruit and forms honey within its body, which it stores in its cells of wax. Only a couple of centuries ago humans came to know that honey comes from the belly of the bee. But this fact was mentioned in the Qur’an 1,400 years ago in the following verse:

“There issues from within their bodies a drink of varying colours, wherein is healing for men.” [Al-Qur’an 16:69]

We are only now aware that honey has healing properties and is also a mild antiseptic. The Russians would use honey to cover their wounds in World War II. The wound would retain moisture and would leave very little scar tissue. Due to the density of honey, no fungus or bacteria could grow in the wound.

Dramatic improvements were visible in 22 incurable chest and Alzheimer’s disease patients at nursing Homes in England who were treated by Sister Carole, a nun, with propolis, a substance which bees produce to seal hives against bacteria.14

A person suffering from an allergy of a particular plant may be given honey from that plant so that the person develops resistance to that allergy. Honey is also rich in fructose and vitamin K.

The knowledge contained in the Qur’an regarding honey, its origin and properties, was discovered centuries after its revelation.

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Written by Dr. Zakir Naik

Category: Koran, Qur'an - The Final Testament

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10. PHYSIOLOGY

BLOOD CIRCULATION AND MILK

The Qur’an was revealed 600 years before the Muslim scientist Ibn Nafees described the circulation of the blood and 1,000 years before William Harwey brought this understanding to the Western world. Roughly thirteen centuries before it was known what happens in the intestines to ensure that organs are nourished by the process of digestive absorption, a verse in the Qur’an described the source of the constituents of milk, in conformity with these notions.

To understand the Qur’anic verse concerning the above concepts, it is important to know that chemical reactions occur in the intestines and that, from there, substances extracted from food pass into the blood stream via a complex system; sometimes by way of the liver, depending on their chemical nature. The blood transports them to all the organs of the body, among which are the milk-producing mammary glands.

In simple terms, certain substances from the contents of the intestines enter into the vessels of the intestinal wall itself, and these substances are transported by the blood stream to the various organs.

This physiological concept must be fully appreciated if we wish to understand the following verses of the Qur’an:

“And verily in cattle there is a lesson for you. We give you to drink of what is inside their bodies, coming from a conjunction between the contents of the intestine and the blood, a milk pure and pleasant for those who drink it.” [Al-Qur’an 16:66]15

“And in cattle (too) ye have an instructive example: from within their bodies We produce (milk) for you to drink; there are, in them, (besides), numerous (other) benefits for you; and of their (meat) ye eat.” [Al-Qur’an 23:21]

The 1400 year old Qur’anic description of the production of milk in cattle is strikingly similar to what modern physiology has discovered in recent times.

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Written by Dr.Zakir Naik

Category: Koran, Qur'an - The Final Testament

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8. ZOOLOGY

ANIMALS AND BIRDS LIVE IN COMMUNITIES

“There is not an animal (that lives) on the earth, nor a being that flies on its wings, but (forms part of) communities like you.” [Al-Qur’an 6:38]

Research has shown that animals and birds live in communities, i.e. they organize, and live and work together.

THE FLIGHT OF BIRDS

“Do they not look at the birds, held poised in the midst of (the air and) the sky? Nothing holds them up but (the power of) Allah. Verily in this are Signs forthose who believe.” [Al-Qur’an 16:79]

Another verse also touches on birds:

“Do they not observe the birds above them, spreading their wings and folding them in? None can uphold them except (Allah) Most Gracious: truly it is He that watches over all things.” [Al-Qur’an 67:19]

The Arabic word amsaka literally means, ‘to put one’s hand on, seize, hold, hold someone back,’ which expresses the idea that Allah holds the bird up in His power. These verses stress the extremely close dependence of the birds’ behaviour on Divine law. Modern scientific data has shown the degree of perfection attained by certain species of birds with regard to the programming of their movements. It is only the existence of a migratory programme in the genetic code of the birds that can explain the long and complicated journey that very young birds, without any prior experience and without any guide, are able to accomplish. They are also able to return to the departure point on a definite date.

Prof. Hamburger in his book ‘Power and Fragility’ gives the example of ‘mutton-bird’ that lives in the Pacific with its journey of over 24,000 km in the shape of figure ‘8’. It makes this journey over a period of 6 months and comes back to its departure point with a maximum delay of one week. The highly complicated instructions for such a journey have to be contained in the birds’ nervous cells. They are definitely programmed. Therefore, should we not at least reflect on the identity of this ‘Programmer’?

THE BEE AND ITS SKILL

“And thy Lord taught the Bee to build its cells in hills, on trees, and in (men’s) habitations; then to eat of all the produce (of the earth), and find with skill the spacious paths of its Lord.” [Al-Qur’an 16:68-69]

Von-Frisch received the Nobel Prize in 1973 for his research on the behaviour and communication of the bees. The bee, after discovering any new garden or flower, goes back and tells its fellow bees the exact direction and map to get there, which is known as ‘bee dance’. The meanings of this insect’s movements that are intended to transmit information between worker bees have been discovered scientifically using photography and other methods. The Qur’an mentions in the above verses how the bee with its skill, finds the spacious paths of its Lord. The gender used for the bee in the above verses is the female gender (fasluki and kulee), indicating that the bee that leaves its home for gathering food is a female bee. In other words, the soldier or worker bee is a female bee.

In fact, in Shakespeare’s play, ‘Henry the Fourth’, some of the characters speak about bees and mention that the bees are soldiers and that they have a king. That is what people thought in Shakespearean times. They thought that the worker bees are male bees and they go home and are answerable to a king bee. This, however, is not true. The worker bees are females and they do not report to a king bee but to a queen bee. But it took modern investigations in the last 300 years to discover this.

SPIDER’S WEB, THE FRAGILE HOME

“The parable of those who take protectors other than Allah is that of the Spider, who builds (to itself) a house; but truly the flimsiest of houses is the Spider’s house —if they but knew.” [Al-Qur’an 29:41]

Besides giving the physical description of the spider’s web as being very flimsy, delicate and weak, the Qur’an also stresses on the flimsiness of the relationship in the spider’s house, where the female spider many a times kills its mate, the male spider.

The parable also has reference to the weakness of such relationship of the people who seek protection for this world and for the hereafter from those other than Allah.

LIFESTYLE AND COMMUNICATION OF ANTS

“And before Solomon were marshalled his hosts —of Jinns and men and birds, and they were all kept in order and ranks. “At length, when they came to a (lowly) valley of ants, one of the ants said: ‘O ye ants, get into your habitations, lest Solomon and his hosts crush you (under foot) without knowing it.” [Al-Qur’an 27:17-18]

In the past, some people would have probably mocked at the Qur’an, taking it to be a book of fairy tales in which ants talk to each other and communicate sophisticated messages. In recent times however, research has shown us several facts about the lifestyle of ants, which were not known earlier to humankind. Research has shown that the animals or insects whose lifestyle is closest in resemblance to the lifestyle of human beings are the ants. This can be seen from the following findings regarding ants:

(a) The ants bury their dead in a manner similar to the humans.

(b) They have a sophisticated system of division of labour, whereby they have managers, supervisors, foremen, workers, etc.

(c) Once in a while they meet among themselves to have a ‘chat’.

(d) They have an advanced method of communication among themselves.

(e) They hold regular ‘markets’ where they exchange goods.

(f) They store grain for long periods in winter and if the grain begins to bud, they cut the roots, as if they understand that if they leave it to grow, it will rot. If the grain stored by them gets wet due to rains, they take it out into the sunlight to dry, and once dry, they take it back inside as though they know that humidity will cause development of root systems which will cause the grain to rot.