The Movement of the Sun in the Quran - A Response to Incipient Objections*

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Faculty Member at al-Mustafa International University (dr.mostarhami@chmail.ir).

2 4th Level Student and MSc. in Exegesis and Qurʾānic Sciences (Primary Author) (Email: Jg237191@gmail.com).

Abstract

Abstract
The book ‘Critique of the Qurʾān’ seeks to negate the divine provenance of the Holy Qurʾān by comparing the explicative verses about the movement of the sun with the Ptolemaic model and the daily motion of the sun. As has historically been the case, with the introduction of Ptolemy’s theory in Islamic lands, many Muslim scholars embarked on such a comparison. However, with the discovery of the galactic motion of the Sun in the last century, some commentators have cited these verses as a scientific miracle. Now the question arises as to whether these verses are compatible with Ptolemy’s model and the daily motion of the sun, and if so, what are the answers to the doubts raised by Sahā (the author of the aforementioned work)? Using the library-reference method, we believe that because Ptolemy’s theory was not known among the Muslims in the early days of Islam and the sharp difference between the Qurʾānic perspective and this theory, the two views are incompatible with each other. Furthermore, in the verses about Dhūl-Qarnayn, the Qurʾān is not making a statement about the realities of nature. It is merely explaining Dhūl-Qarnayn’s observations. Also, verse 38 of Surah Yāsīn does not explicitly refer to the literal motion of the sun, and the tradition mentioned about this verse regarding the daily motion of the sun is considered to be a solitary tradition that cannot be invoked in matters of faith.

Keywords

The Quran and Science
Volume 13, Issue 24
January 0
Pages 77-94

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History

  • Receive Date: 22 April 2019
  • Revise Date: 08 May 2019
  • Accept Date: 30 May 2019

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