The Al Furqan Prevails As It Must
By
Naseer Ahmed, New Age Islam
9 May 2022
This is a rejoinder to Mr. Sumit Paul’s
article, “Let's
Scrutinise Certain 'Facts' In the Al-Furqan”
Mr Sumit Paul says, “When I was a student of
comparative religions and theology, I'd often laugh with my erudite professors
seeing the anomalies, inconsistencies, aberrations and discrepancies in the
scriptures of all man-made faiths, not just Islam.”
I wonder
why should anyone pursue the study of religions unless they have a passion for
learning how religion has contributed to civilizing us and putting us on the
path of discovering the secrets of the world. I now know, thanks to Mr Sumit Paul
that the passion for mocking religion cold be the motivation for some. Is the
profession of mocking religions so very rewarding that the Universities are
teaching it and students enrol for it?
He further
says, “When Truth is so meandering and full of empty verbiage, it can be
anything but Truth. Truth is and should be axiomatic. In other words, it must
be self-evident and self-explanatory.”
Oh really?
If that were so, all of us would be polymath. Rocket science wouldn’t be called
Rocket Science. Einstein’s general theory of relativity would be understood by
a child. Every student of the sciences and mathematics would score a 100% on
every test on the subject.
He
concludes with, “Now the point is: In spite of all these absurd inaccuracies,
the Islamic apologists will continue to call their Quran, the INFALLIBLE book
of Allah and even a mere suggestion to scrutinise these verses and 'facts' may
result in the severance of your head from your torso.”
Mr Sumit
himself doesn’t believe in what he said above, otherwise, he wouldn’t have said
it. As for the absurd inaccuracies that he speaks about, they are a result of
his reading of a poor translation of the Quran, his own inadequacies, and his
self-confessed bias for mocking.
Historical
Reasons for the Bias against Religion in Western Education
Those of us
brought up on western education are heavily influenced by its worldview formed
based on Europe’s history. Therefore, the word medieval, which also connotes
primitive and cruel, is unthinkingly used by us for the history of the rest of
the world also. The medieval age is also the Dark Age for Europe, but not for
the rest of the world.
Western
education has a very strong anti-religion slant which rubs off on all who
acquire it. There are very good historical reasons why western education has
this stance. During the medieval ages, also known as Europe’s dark age, the
Church took a very hostile stand against science and the scientists, declared
them heretics, made them publicly renounce science and if they defied, burnt
them at the stakes preceded by indescribable torture. Such obscurantists are common to all
religions to this day. For a very long time, education meant religious
education primarily, but the seminaries were also centres of secular research
and teaching subjects such as philosophy, medicine, mathematics and astronomy.
The secular and the religious parted ways when the view of the world held by
religion began to be questioned by those who pursued the sciences.
The Church
wielded enormous power because of peoples’ religious faith. Scientific
discoveries which went against the Church’s view of the world were a big
challenge to its authority and the Church fought back with persecution.
The
Reading of the Scriptures – Challenges
The Bible
and every scripture are primarily about religion or the moral way of living.
These are not books of science or history, although they contain verses that
describe the world, its origins, procreation, some natural phenomena etc.
necessary for making a point. If the scriptures are from God, then these must
not contain anything that contradicts facts determined by science. Also, a book
inspired by God must be clear as to its literal meaning. However, every book of
scripture is heavily interpreted. Why is this so? Because, when the literal
meaning differs from the view held by the reader, he has a strong tendency to
interpret what he reads, to make it yield the meaning he expects. Every translation
involves such interpretation and differs from the original to the extent, that
the translator’s knowledge of the world is defective or different from the text
of the scriptures. The language of Jesus was Aramaic but the Bible people read
is in English which is a translation from the Greek Bible. It is therefore
translated and interpreted at least twice over. The problem is actually far
more serious. The Bible comprises four Gospels selected from about 20 Gospels.
These are not Gospels therefore but the Gospel according to their author who is
not Jesus. The interpretation of the Gospel of Jesus has therefore taken place
at several levels and stages. The human mind interprets and while interpreting,
changes the meaning to suit its own worldview, and adds details that it finds
missing or drops that which does not appear to make sense.
The Quran
is available as revealed, in the language of revelation, and also in hundreds
of translations. It is also heavily interpreted for the same reasons discussed
before, but luckily, recourse to the original text in Arabic is available.
Should Science
And Religion Be At Loggerheads?
For a long
time, the universities of secular education and religious seminaries competed
to attract students and increase their influence. Initially, there were not
many takers for secular education although it had not taken an openly
anti-religious stand and a very strong belief in God was common among the
scientists such as Isaac Newton and many others. In fact, the study of science
was “inspired by the conviction that the universe is the product of a rational
mind who designed it to be understood and who designed the human mind to
understand it” or as Johannes Kepler said, “God created us after his own image
so that we could share in his own thoughts”.
The
competition for influence between the seminaries and the secular universities
continued. When Darwin came up with the theory of evolution as an alternate
model of reality, which explains life without the Creator as the Intelligent Designer,
evolving from humble single-cell microorganisms as a result of a process of
natural selection, the challenge to religion became a very direct one. The
fight now was framed as “either you believe in evolution or creation, or
“either you believe in religion or science” and science appeared to be winning.
Nothing succeeds like success as they say.
Science
became the new religion and equally dogmatic and intolerant of dissent.
Scientifically speaking, the idea of intelligent design was never defeated and
is valid to this day, and is overwhelmingly the more probable one, but has been
discarded by those who swear by science. Today, it would require an extremely
brave man to say in academic circles, that the theory of an Intelligent Design
is overwhelmingly the more probable one. “As far as they are concerned, take
your life in your hands to challenge the theory of evolution intellectually,”
Gelernter (author of Giving up Darwin) said. “They will destroy you if you
challenge it.” Such extreme allegiance to evolutionary biology fosters a
deficit of free speech within academic communities. “What I’ve seen, in their
behaviour intellectually and at colleges across the West, is nothing
approaching free speech on this topic,” Gelernter said. “It’s a bitter rejection…
It effectively shuts down meaningful scientific intellectual discussion.” Such
behaviour reminds us of the extent to which Darwinism is no longer just a
scientific theory but the basis of a worldview, and an emergency replacement
religion for the many troubled atheists who need one. For the atheists, it is
their religion for which they will fight, persecute, ridicule, mock and do all
those things that bigots do. The common man does not think for himself and is
brainwashed by his religion and that religion could be science.
There are very few enlightened souls who
believe in only the religion of God by whatever name, that the same God has
inspired every religion including science, and that there is no need to be
antagonistic to any of them. Religions including science complement each other
and lead us to the truth.
Now for the
many misunderstandings that Mr Sumit Paul has of the Quran.
The
Story of Creation of the Universe in the Quran
The Quran
gives us the following amazing information that was confirmed by science much
later:
1. That everything was brought together or
joined together before being rent asunder
2. That the universe is expanding (as it
should be if it was all joined together in the beginning)
3. That all living things are made of water
predominantly
For a very
long time, astrophysicists and cosmologists had assumed a static universe with
no beginning and no end, both in time and space. Then certain observations such
as the accidental detection of cosmic microwaves and the measurement of their
wavelengths led to the conclusion that the universe was expanding. If it was
expanding, then working backwards in space and time, it became reasonable to
assume that it was all swished together the size of less than a proton before
the big bang. Time and space begin with the big bang. This is supported by
Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity.
Now compare
this with what the Quran said 1400 years ago.
(21:30) Do not the Unbelievers see that the
heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we
clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then
believe?
(51:47) AND IT IS We who have built the
universe with [Our creative] power; and, verily, it is We who are steadily
expanding it
Another Version
of Creation In The Quran
The
creation of the Universe which includes the earth takes only two days (41:9 and
12). Making the earth fit for sustaining life takes another four days (41:10)
or a total of six days. Verse 41:11
again speaks about bringing together everything before cleaving them asunder.
The big bang theory confirms what the Quran said 1400 years ago.
(41:9) Say:
Is it that ye deny Him Who created the earth in two Days? And do ye join equals
with Him? He is the Lord of (all) the Worlds.
(10) He set
on the (earth), mountains standing firm, high above it, and bestowed blessings
on the earth, and measure therein all things to give them nourishment in due
proportion, in four Days, in accordance with (the needs of) those who seek
(Sustenance).
(11) Moreover
He comprehended in 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."
(12) So He
completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned to each heaven
its duty and command. And We adorned the lower heaven with lights, and
(provided it) with guard. Such is the Decree of (Him) the Exalted in Might,
Full of Knowledge.
The day
here is not our 24 hour day but a cosmic day which the Quran describes in one
context as our thousand years and in another context as our 50 thousand years.
In different contexts, a cosmic day is defined differently. The concept of
relativity of time is there bang in your face. In the context of the creation
of the Universe, the cosmic day is not defined. This could be because the
number is very large for which there was no name in the vocabulary of the 7th
century Arabs. For men of understanding, it is sufficient to know that a day
here is a cosmic day and not our 24-hour day.
The Sky
in the Quran
The sky in
the Quran refers to everything out there in space and not just what we see as
the blue skies and is correctly described as “like smoke”. The rain therefore
falls from the skies as a result of the clouds raised and moved around by the
winds.
(24:43) Seest thou not that Allah makes the
clouds move gently, then joins them together, then makes them into a heap? -
then wilt thou see rain issue forth from their midst
(46:24) Then, when they saw the (Penalty in the
shape of) a cloud traversing the sky, coming to meet their valleys, they said,
"This cloud will give us rain!" "Nay, it is the (Calamity) ye
were asking to be hastened!- A wind wherein is a Grievous Penalty!
(20:53) "He Who has, made for you the
earth like a carpet spread out; has enabled you to go about therein by roads
(and channels); and has sent down water from the sky." With it have We
produced diverse pairs of plants each separate from the others.
There is no
verse in the Quran that says the earth is flat. However, there may be feeble
minds who think that to say that the earth is spread out, is to say that it is
flat! Don’t blame the Quran for it.
Verses Regarding
Relations With Christians
The verses
of the Quran need to be understood in their context. Verse 5:51 is from the war
phase when the Christians of Medina behaved in a hostile and untrustworthy
manner and it is under such circumstances that the Quran prohibits befriending
them. The verse is transactional, meaning, limited to those Christians of those
times of that place alone.
Verse 5:5 permits marriage alliances with the
Jews and the Christians and makes permissible their food and is what is
generally applicable. There is no contradiction between verses 5:5 and 5:51.
Does the
Quran say that the sperm comes from between the ribs and the backbone?
Many of the
verses of the Quran cannot be understood correctly, except with the help of
discoveries made by Science in the 19th century. Until such discoveries were
made, these verses were mistranslated and misunderstood. Science corroborates
what the Quran tells us. Science and the Quran are never at loggerheads.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Also Read: According To Quran
5:51, Can Muslims Not Accept Non-Muslims As Friends?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are
many verses in the Quran the truth of which is not self-evident but have been
proved correct by scientific discovery.
Now
consider the following mistranslated verses:
(86:5)
Now let man but think from what he is created!
(6) He
is created from a drop emitted-
(7)
Proceeding from between the backbone (Sulb) and the ribs (Taraib):
The
incorrect interpretation by the translators and commentators of verses 86:6,7
is proof that the verse is not authored by man. At no point in the history of
mankind did man think that conception takes place from a fluid that emanates
from “between the ribs and the backbone” of a man. The role of testicles in
conception was well known and so also the practice of castration to prevent
procreation was well established. Clearly, therefore, any verse authored by man
would have been worded differently and none of the commentators and translators
understood their own version of the translated verse. It is easy to see how
they went wrong. If the verse had contained only the word `Sulb’, 100%
of the commentators/translators would have translated it as “from the loins of
man”. For example, no translator/commentator has gone wrong in the case of
verse 4:23 “ ….wives of your sons proceeding from your Aslabikum (which is
translated as loins by all) …..”. In this verse, the reference is only to the
sons of the man irrespective of their mother and therefore there is no place
for the word “Taraib”.
Also,
consider:
(76:2) Verily We created Man from
a drop of mingled seed (nuṭ'fatin amshājin), in order to try him: So We gave him (the gifts), of
Hearing and Sight.
Verily, it is We who have created man out of a drop of sperm intermingled
(with the female ovum) –Asad
The literal translation of Nuṭ'fatin Amshājin is mingled seed
The correct
understanding of mingled seed is the mingling of sperm and ovum
The earlier translators only wondered what
mingled seed meant but did not possess knowledge of the biological process to
translate correctly
The word “Taraib” in 86:7 is what
confused the earlier commentators/translators lacking knowledge of the
biological process. We also know from William Lane’s lexicon, that “Taraib”
most definitely refers to female anatomy but the commentators had no knowledge
of the role of the ovum in conception and therefore took the word “Taraib”
also to refer to the male anatomy.
Now consider the various meanings of Sulb
from William Lane’s lexicon:
Sulb:
said of a thing (and of a man), It (and he) was or became hard, firm
rigid, stiff, tough, strong, robust, sturdy or hardy.
The
backbone is the bone extending from the base of the neck to the rump bone. And
any portion of the back containing vertebrae and particularly the lumbar
portion; the loins.
Example of
phrase of the Arabs: These are the sons of their loins; because the sperma of
the man is held to proceed from the Sulb of the man as is said in the
Ksh & c in (86:7).
Taraib: The plural noun Taraib,
rendered by Asad as "pelvic arch", has also the meaning of
"ribs" or "arch of bones"; according to most of the
authorities who have specialized in the etymology of rare Quranic expressions
this term relates specifically to female anatomy (Taj al-'Arus).
The commentators and translators not having knowledge
of the role of the ovum in conception, and taking both “Sulb” and “Taraib”
to refer to male anatomy made the obvious incorrect conclusion that if the
liquid came from between “Sulb” and “Taraib” it could not be
between loins and ribs but between the backbone and the ribs and as usual when
bewildered, may have added under their breath "Allah knows best"!
Now consider the correct translation in
accordance with the most obvious and common usage of the words “Sulb”
and “Taraib” in Arabic which is correctly rendered by Asad.
86:5 LET MAN, then, observe out of what he has
been created: (6) he has been created out of a seminal fluid issuing from
between the loins [of man] and the pelvic arch [of woman].
The literal
translation of the verse:
Man is
created from a fluid ejected. Coming forth from between (Bayni) the
loins (Sulb) and the pelvic arch (Taraib)
The Arabic
word bayni is suggestive that the loins and the pelvic arch do not belong to
the same person and the ejected fluid is therefore from the loins of the man
and the pelvic arch of the woman. While we know that semen is ejected from the
loins of a man, is the egg ejected from the pelvic arch? Yes, it is.
• The egg is transported to the entrance
of the fallopian tube. Once inside the walls of the fallopian tube, muscle
contractions push the egg gently towards the uterus.
• The egg will either meet sperm on its
journey through the fallopian tube and fertilisation will happen, or it will
arrive in the uterus unfertilised and be absorbed back into the body.
The wrong translation is itself proof that the
verse is not authored by man! If it was authored by man, it would have omitted
the word “Taraib” and like in 4:23, used only “Sulb” which then
would have been translated by all as “issuing from the loins of man”
Can we
ignore Science and understand the Quran correctly? The Quran contains amazingly
accurate knowledge about the world described using the limited vocabulary of
the 7th century. Science helps us understand many of the verses of the Quran
better.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Also Read: Qur'an 5:51 - A
Humanistic Interpretation
---------------------------------------------------------------
It contains
notions of instinct as genetic memory, and conception because of the mingling
of the fluids containing the seed from both the man and the woman as against
the 7th-century notion that the seed came only from the father etc. Scientists
discovered the dynamics of human fertilization only in the nineteenth century
which is why the translators and commentators struggled to translate verses
86:6, 7 correctly. Notions of instinct as genetic memory also emerged only in
the 19th century but are explicitly contained in verse 7:172. Translators and
commentators have similarly struggled with the translation of 7:172 and
concocted the myth of Alam-e-Arwah.
There are many more astonishing verses in the
Quran that have been confirmed by science only in the last couple of centuries.
This should, however, be enough to show how poorly the author has understood
the subject on which he makes so bold to write.
-----
A
frequent contributor to NewAgeIslam.com, Naseer Ahmed is an Engineering
graduate from IIT Kanpur and is an independent IT consultant after having
served in both the Public and Private sector in responsible positions for over
three decades. He has spent years studying Quran in-depth and made seminal
contributions to its interpretation.
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-pluralism/furqan-quran-religion-western-education/d/126961
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