Some brief examples of Scientific data in the Quran

a) The Earth and Heavens were joined together

All scientific circles in the world today agree that the planets were originally composed of a mass of Sodium gas and that first the heavens and the earth were joined together as a single entity and then they separated from each other. Centuries ago, the Quran referred to this scientific theory.

It says when describing the creation of the heavens: ﴾Then God turned to the creation of the heavens (the planets), when they were but a smoky substance.﴿ (41:11)

﴾Do the unbelievers not see that the heavens and the earth were joined together before we separated them, and that We brought all living things into existence from water? Why do they still not believe in God?﴿ (21:30)

Thus the Quran unveils one of the great mysteries of nature: the planets were originally composed of smoky substance (mass of Sodium gas), and the separation of the planets from a huge object and then their separation from each other. Since at the time of revelation of the Quran, the general level of knowledge and science was extremely low, does this not constitute a proof of the heavenly nature of the Quran?

b) Expansion of Universe

One of the most subtle discoveries in science concerns the expansion of universe, its tendency constantly to extend its boundaries. This was something completely unknown to the human being until the last century. This mystery is, however, mentioned by the Quran in the following terms, which again bear witness to its remarkable profundity when discussing such matters:

﴾We created the heavens with Our strength and power, and constantly expand them﴿. (51:47)

c) Force of Gravity

We know that before the time of Newton, that great scientific personality, no one was aware of the force of gravity. Newton proved that the falling of objects to earth, the rotation of the moon and the Venus, the motion of the planets, and other instances of attraction are all subject to the single law, the law of universal gravity.

The Quran describes the above mentioned gravitational force as ‘invisible pillars’: ﴾God it is Who raised up the heavenly bodies to invisible pillars .....﴿ (13:2).

In conveying this scientific truth, the Quran has used an expression that is comprehensible for the men of all ages. Are these ‘unseen pillars’, which prevent the planets from colliding with each other or falling, anything other than the mysterious and invisible force of universal gravity, a law to which the Creator of the universe has subjected all of the heavenly bodies?

d) Production of Milk in animals

The Quran describes the factors which give rise to milk in animals in a way that is entirely compatible with the data of modern science.

This is what God’s book has to say: ﴾There is in truth for you a lesson in your animals and flocks. We give you to drink a pure milk derived from that which is contained in their bodies, from the merging of what is held in their intestines with blood. The drinking of that is then made easy for those who drink it.﴿ (16:66).

Dr. Bucaille writes in his book: “From a scientific point of view, physiological notions must be called upon to grasp the meaning of this verse. The substances that ensure the general nutrition of the body come from chemical transformations which occur along the length of the digestive tract. These substances come from the contents of the intestine. On arrival in the intestine at the appropriate stage of chemical transformation, they pass through its wall and towards the systemic circulation (of blood)...... This very precise concept is the result of the discoveries made in the chemistry and physiology of the digestive system. It was totally unknown at the time of the Prophet Muhammad and has been understood only in recent times.”

e) In Pairs

It is only recently that researchers have come aware of insemination in plants and learned that every living being including plants comes into existence as the result of the merging of a male and female parts.

In verses that are totally free of ambiguity, the noble Quran, sets forth clearly the principle of gender in the gender world, together with the existence of male and female parts even in plants. ﴾Do they not look at the earth, where we created the plants in pairs﴿. (42:7).

f) Role of Wind
The Quran also mentions the role and operation of an important factor in the bringing of things to fruition: the wind. ﴾We have sent the winds as a means of insemination and impregnation, and then sent down rain from the heavens.﴿ (15:22).

In this verse, the Quran unveils another a great mystery of creation, the fundamental role played by the wind in the fertilization of plants.

g) Light in the Moon is merely a Reflection

It is known that the sun is a star that generates intense heat and light by its internal combustion, and that the moon which does not give off light itself, merely reflects the light received from the sun.

The Quran testifies the above fact: ﴾Blessed is the One Who placed the constellations in heaven and placed in it a lamp (SIRAJ) and a moon, giving light (MUNIIRA)﴿. (25:61)

Here the moon is defined as a body that gives reflection of light (Muniira), while the sun is compared to a blazing lamp or torch (Siraj).

h) High Altitude

It is infact a highly common place reflection on the discomfort experienced at high altitude, which increases the higher one climbs, that is expressed in the Quran verse 125, sura 6:

﴾Those whom God wills to guide, He opens their breast to Islam. While those whom He wills to let straying, He makes their breath closed and constricted, as if they had to climb up the skies﴿.

Who informed the Prophet that by climbing up in the skies, the pressure increases and breathing becomes difficult?

i) Honey Bees

Concerning bees, the Quran says: ﴾Your Lord inspired the (female) bee, choose your dwelling in the hills, in the trees and in what (man) build. Eat of all fruit and follow the ways of your Lord in humility. From within their bodies comes a liquid of different colours where is cure for men﴿. (16:68-69)

Quran refers that the worker-bees who are searching for food are females. The verbs used in Arabic refer to female bees. This is very amazing. For all along, until only recently, people imagined that the “soldier-bees” were males.

j) Development of the Embryo

The Quranic description of certain stages in the development of the embryo corresponds exactly to what we today know about it. After ‘the thing which clings’, the Quran informs us that the embryo passes through the stage of ‘chewed flesh’, then tissue appears and is clad in flesh:

﴾We fashioned the thing which clings into a chewed lump of flesh and We fashioned the chewed flesh into bones, and We clothed the bones with intact flesh﴿. (23:14).

It was only during the nineteenth century that people had a slightly clearer view of this question.

All the afore mentioned and many other modern scientific concepts found abundantly in the Glorious Quran, that was revealed 14 centuries ago, with utmost accuracy and free from any error, prove beyond any iota of doubt the divine source of its revelation.

* Authenticity of the Quran. Chapter 5. By Shaikh Muslim Bhanji. Published by: Tabligh Centre of KSI Jamat – Daressalaam. Reproduced with permission by the Ahlul Bayt Digital Islamic Library Project team.