WikiIslam - User contributions [en]

Science and the Seven Earths

2014-12-05T02:22:05Z

Sunshine Beam: /* Seven Layers of Earth's Atmosphere */

[[File:Sunset from the ISS.JPG|right|thumb|250px|Limb view of the Earth's atmosphere. Colors roughly denote the layers of the atmosphere.]]
This article analyzes several different apologetic arguments claiming the [[Qur'an]] correctly asserts that there are "seven heavens" and "seven earths".

==Apologetic Claims==

{{Quote||"Allah is He Who Created seven firmaments and of the earth a similar number. Through the midst of them (all) descends His command: that ye may know that Allah has power over all things, and that Allah comprehends all things In (His) Knowledge. (The Noble Quran, 65:12)"

According to Noble Verse 65:12 above, Allah Almighty created 7 Heavens for form the universe. The new scientific discovery had revealed to us that the earth that we currently live on today is also formed from seven layers. The very bottom layer contains most of the uranium and potonium ("sic") and all the materials that we need to create nuclear weapons and energy. Noble Verse 65:12 above does indeed say that the earth was created with seven layers. . . . 
The Seven "Heavens" refers to the layers of our atmosphere.

1. troposphere 2. stratosphere 3. ozone layer 4. mesosphere 5. thermosphere 6. ionosphere 7. exosphere

The Seven "Earths" refer to the layers that literally make up the Earth

1. crust 2. lithosphere 3. upper mantle 4. astenoshpere ("sic") 5. lower mantle 6. outer core 7. inner core

OR they could refer to the "7 Continents" (in the context that "al-ard" means ground)

1. North America 2. South America 3. Australia 4. Asia 5. Africa 6. Antarctica 7. Europe}}

==Analysis==

===Seven Layers of Earth's Atmosphere===

{{Quote||
The Seven "Heavens" refers to the layers of our atmosphere.

1. troposphere 2. stratosphere 3. ozone layer 4. mesosphere 5. thermosphere 6. ionosphere 7. exosphere}}

There is only one atmosphere, but you can classify this one atmosphere by different criteria.
If you partition it by temperature, you get 5 layers. By aerodynamical state 4 layers, by radiophysical state 3 layers and by chemical processes 2 layers. There is no classification into 7 layers.

To reach the needed "seven layers" different criteria are being mix to reach the desired number 7. For example, Earth's atmosphere is commonly divided into five main layers based on temperature. From highest to lowest, these layers are:

#Exosphere
#Thermosphere
#Mesosphere
#Stratosphere
#Troposphere

Within the five principal layers which are largely determined by temperature, several secondary layers may be distinguished by other properties:

#Ozone layer
#Ionosphere
#Homosphere and heterosphere
#Planetary boundary layer<ref>{{cite web|url= http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Earth|title= Atmosphere of Earth|publisher= Wikipedia|author= |date= accessed January 2, 2014|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FAtmosphere_of_Earth&date=2014-01-03 |deadurl=no}}</ref>

[[Apologists]] include all five principle layers in their count, then arbitrarily add the ozone layer (which is contained within the stratosphere) and the ionosphere (which forms the inner edge of the magnetosphere) to reach the desired number 7.

If two of the secondary layers are included in the total count, there is no logically viable reason to exclude the planetary boundary layer (the part of the troposphere that is closest to Earth's surface) or the homosphere and heterosphere (which are contained within all five principle layers). However, it clear from Qu'ran explained that seven atmospheres in not at all referenced but description to Allah's Chair. Book of Fateh Al-Bari fe Shareh, Sahih Bukhari, Book of Tawhid, Chapter 112, Page 425: "The distance between the lower sky and the sky in the top of it is 500 years, same distance between each until the seventh sky. The thickness of each sky is 500 years, as well as, between the seventh sky and Allah's chair is 500 years. Moreover, between Allah's chair and the water is 500 years, and nothing is hiding of what of what you do to Allah." 500 years between each sky places the earth out further then Sedna and Pluto in the Oort Cloud being clearly scientifically false. Sunan Abu-Dawood, Book 40, Hadith 4705: Allah's messenger said, "...Above the seventh heavens, over there is sea, the distance whose top and bottom is like that between one heaven and the nearest Above is eight mountain goats, the distance between whose hoofs and haunches are like the distance between one heaven and the next, then Allah, the great, is above that." Scientific evidence shows no ocean above earths atmosphere, or mountains goats.

===Seven Layers of the Earth===

{{Quote||The Seven "Earths" refer to the layers that literally make up the Earth

1. crust 2. lithosphere 3. upper mantle 4. astenoshpere ("sic") 5. lower mantle 6. outer core 7. inner core}}

Note the same dishonest approach taken to assign seven layers of the atmosphere - i.e. the ''double counting of layers''.

The general scientific view is that the earth is composed of four or five major layers depending on whether one splits the mantle or not.<ref>Lisa Gardiner - [http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Interior_Structure/interior.html&edu=high Structure of the Interior of Earth] - Windows to the Universe, January 18, 2010</ref><ref>Eugene C. Robertson - [http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/interior/ The Interior of the Earth] - U.S. Geological Survey, May 21, 2007</ref><ref>Maggi Glasscoe - [http://scign.jpl.nasa.gov/learn/plate1.htm Structure of the Earth] - Southern California Integrated GPS Network (SCIGN), August 14, 1998</ref>

The five layers are as follows:

#crust
#upper mantle
#lower mantle
#outer core
#inner core

<center>[[File:Lithosphere.gif|450px]]</center>

There are two ways to classify the composition of the geosphere - chemically, into crust, mantle, and core, or functionally, in the case of the outer layers (crust and mantle) into lithosphere and asthenosphere.<ref>Dr. Michael Pidwirny - [http://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/10h.html Fundamentals of Physical Geography/ Structure of the Earth] - 2nd Edition, 2006</ref><ref>[http://www.palaeos.com/Earth/Geosphere/structure.htm The history of life on Earth] - Palaeos</ref>

<center>[[File:Geosphere.gif]]</center>

From the evidence above, one can see the apologetic deceit because they double-count the lithosphere/asthenosphere while they also count the crust and upper mantle. Note that this is dishonest because these are alternative classifications. One cannot honestly count all lithosphere, asthenosphere, crust, and upper mantle together as one would be recounting the same rocks.

Recently new scientific hypotheses proposed by J. Marvin Herndon and Prof Xiaodong Song suggest the inner core may be further subdivided into four layers; the inner core, the innermost core, a sub-shell of fission material and decay products, and a subcore of uranium and plutonium forming the georeactor.<ref>D. F. Hollenbach, and J. M. Herndon - [http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/98/20/11085 Deep-Earth reactor: Nuclear fission, helium, and the geomagnetic field] - PNAS 2001 vol. 98 no. 20 pp 11085-11090</ref> If this new theory is accepted the number of layers of the earth rises from five to eight.

===Seven Continents of the Earth===

The same apologists try to hedge their bets by claiming it is either seven layers or seven continents.

{{Quote||OR they could refer to the "7 Continents" (in the context that "al-ard" means ground) 1. North America 2. South America 3. Australia 4. Asia 5. Africa 6. Antarctica 7. Europe}}

The former explanation (seven layers) would seem more accurate as all translations refer to "earth" and not ground. Nevertheless, although the number of continents is traditionally considered seven, some geographers and scientists think there are only six as [[Europe]] and [[Asia]] are technically a single land mass (i.e. Eurasia) and on the same tectonic plate.<ref>Matt Rosenberg - [http://geography.about.com/library/misc/blcont.htm Continents] - About.com</ref> Therefore, the traditional number of seven continents is more a cultural bias than an actual geographical/geological fact.

===Seven Earths===

There are some who claim that Allah created seven earths.<ref>[http://www.justread.20m.com/scientific%20truth.htm Layers of the Earth] - Justread.20m.com</ref> This is in fact the correct understanding of verse 65:12 supported by various [[hadith]]s and [[tafsir]] commentaries. However, we only know of one, our own. To get around this problem, apologists such as Maurice Bucaille claim scientists have just not discovered the other six yet.<ref>Dr. Maurice Bucaille - [http://web.archive.org/web/20030514172921/http://www.masmn.org/Books/Maurice_Bucaille/The_Bible_The_Quran_and_Science/043.htm The Bible, The Qur'an and Science/ Confrontation with the data in the Qur'an concerning the creation]</ref>

To further complicate matters for apologists, Islamic sources state the seven earths being referred to in verse 65:12 are flat islands, one under the other. For example:

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.oocities.org/tirmidhihadith/page8.html|2=2014-01-07}} Al Tirmidhi 5735]|2=Narrated AbuHurayrah:

While Allah's Prophet (peace be upon him) and his companions were sitting clouds came over them and Allah's Prophet (peace be upon him) asked, "Do you know what these are?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger knew best, he said, "These are the clouds (anan), these are the water-carriers of the Earth, which Allah drives to people who do not thank Him or call upon him." He then asked, "Do you know what is above you?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "It is the firmament, a ceiling which is guarded and waves which are kept back." He then asked, "Do you know what is between you and it?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Between you and it are five hundred years." He then asked, "Do you knew what is above that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) best he said, "Two heavens with a distance of five hundred years between them." He went on speaking like that till he counted seven heavens, the distance between each pair being like between Heaven and Earth. He then asked, "Do you know what is above that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Above that is the Throne, and the distance between it and the (seventh) heaven is the same as that between each pair of heavens." He then asked, '''"Do you know what is below you?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "It is the earth." He then asked, "Do you know what is under that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Under it there is another Earth with a journey of five hundred years between them," and so on till he had counted seven earths with a journey of five hundred years between each pair. He then said, "By Him in Whose hand Muhammad's soul is, if you were to drop a rope to the lowest earth it would not pass out of Allah's knowledge."''' He then recited, "He is the First and the Last, the Outward and the Inward, and He is omniscient." (Tirmidhi commented that Allah's Messenger's recitation of the verse indicates that it would go down within Allah's knowledge, power and authority, for Allah's knowledge, power and authority are everywhere, while He is on the Throne, as He described Himself in His Book.)}}

{{Quote|{{Tabari|1|pp. 207-208}}|According to Muhammad b. Sahl b. 'Askar-Isma'il b. 'Abd al-Karim-Wahb, mentioning some of his majesty (as being described as follows): The heavens and the earth and the oceans are in the haykal, and the haykal is in the Footstool. God's feet are upon the Footstool. He carries the Footstool. It became like a sandal on His feet. When Wahb was asked: What is the haykal? He replied: Something on the heavens' extremities that surrounds the earth and the oceans like ropes that are used to fasten a tent. And when Wahb was asked how earths are (constituted), he replied: '''They are seven earths that are flat and islands'''. Between each two earths, there is an ocean. All that is surrounded by the (surrounding) ocean, and the haykal is behind the ocean.}}

==Conclusion==

The scientific evidence does not support any of the claims concerning the Qur'anic verse 65:12 and its scientific accuracy.

Earth's atmosphere is divided into five main layers based on temperature. Within these five principal layers, several secondary layers may be distinguished by other properties. There is no classification into 7 layers.

Modern geology states that there are only four or five layers of the Earth, or up to eight if the new hypotheses of the subcore georeactor are accepted. Without the double-counting of layers, There is no classification into 7 layers.

The number of continents is traditionally considered seven, but there are only six as Europe and Asia are technically a single land mass (i.e. Eurasia) and on the same tectonic plate. Therefore, the traditional number of seven continents is more a cultural bias than an actual geographical/geological fact.

Furthermore, if one delves a little deeper into the Islamic sources, it is discovered that the seven earths being referred to in verse 65:12 are in fact flat islands, one under the other.

{{Core Science}}

==See Also==

{{Hub4|Harun Yahya|Harun Yahya}}
{{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}}

==External Links==

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.answering-islam.org./Quran/Science/seven_earths.html|2=2011-12-05}} Qur'an & Science Problem: The Seven Earths] ''- [[Answering Islam]]''

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Hector]]
[[ru:Семь слоев Земли]]

Science and the Seven Earths

2014-12-05T02:08:01Z

Sunshine Beam: /* Seven Layers of Earth's Atmosphere */

[[File:Sunset from the ISS.JPG|right|thumb|250px|Limb view of the Earth's atmosphere. Colors roughly denote the layers of the atmosphere.]]
This article analyzes several different apologetic arguments claiming the [[Qur'an]] correctly asserts that there are "seven heavens" and "seven earths".

==Apologetic Claims==

{{Quote||"Allah is He Who Created seven firmaments and of the earth a similar number. Through the midst of them (all) descends His command: that ye may know that Allah has power over all things, and that Allah comprehends all things In (His) Knowledge. (The Noble Quran, 65:12)"

According to Noble Verse 65:12 above, Allah Almighty created 7 Heavens for form the universe. The new scientific discovery had revealed to us that the earth that we currently live on today is also formed from seven layers. The very bottom layer contains most of the uranium and potonium ("sic") and all the materials that we need to create nuclear weapons and energy. Noble Verse 65:12 above does indeed say that the earth was created with seven layers. . . . 
The Seven "Heavens" refers to the layers of our atmosphere.

1. troposphere 2. stratosphere 3. ozone layer 4. mesosphere 5. thermosphere 6. ionosphere 7. exosphere

The Seven "Earths" refer to the layers that literally make up the Earth

1. crust 2. lithosphere 3. upper mantle 4. astenoshpere ("sic") 5. lower mantle 6. outer core 7. inner core

OR they could refer to the "7 Continents" (in the context that "al-ard" means ground)

1. North America 2. South America 3. Australia 4. Asia 5. Africa 6. Antarctica 7. Europe}}

==Analysis==

===Seven Layers of Earth's Atmosphere===

{{Quote||
The Seven "Heavens" refers to the layers of our atmosphere.

1. troposphere 2. stratosphere 3. ozone layer 4. mesosphere 5. thermosphere 6. ionosphere 7. exosphere}}

There is only one atmosphere, but you can classify this one atmosphere by different criteria.
If you partition it by temperature, you get 5 layers. By aerodynamical state 4 layers, by radiophysical state 3 layers and by chemical processes 2 layers. There is no classification into 7 layers.

To reach the needed "seven layers" different criteria are being mix to reach the desired number 7. For example, Earth's atmosphere is commonly divided into five main layers based on temperature. From highest to lowest, these layers are:

#Exosphere
#Thermosphere
#Mesosphere
#Stratosphere
#Troposphere

Within the five principal layers which are largely determined by temperature, several secondary layers may be distinguished by other properties:

#Ozone layer
#Ionosphere
#Homosphere and heterosphere
#Planetary boundary layer<ref>{{cite web|url= http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Earth|title= Atmosphere of Earth|publisher= Wikipedia|author= |date= accessed January 2, 2014|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FAtmosphere_of_Earth&date=2014-01-03 |deadurl=no}}</ref>

[[Apologists]] include all five principle layers in their count, then arbitrarily add the ozone layer (which is contained within the stratosphere) and the ionosphere (which forms the inner edge of the magnetosphere) to reach the desired number 7.

If two of the secondary layers are included in the total count, there is no logically viable reason to exclude the planetary boundary layer (the part of the troposphere that is closest to Earth's surface) or the homosphere and heterosphere (which are contained within all five principle layers). However, it clear from Qu'ran explained that seven atmospheres in not at all referenced but description to Allah's Chair. Book of Fateh Al-Bari fe Shareh, Sahih Bukhari, Book of Tawhid, Chapter 112, Page 425: "The distance between the lower sky and the sky in the top of it is 500 years, same distance between each until the seventh sky. The thickness of each sky is 500 years, as well as, between the seventh sky and Allah's chair is 500 years. Moreover, between Allah's chair and the water is 500 years, and nothing is hiding of what of what you do to Allah."

===Seven Layers of the Earth===

{{Quote||The Seven "Earths" refer to the layers that literally make up the Earth

1. crust 2. lithosphere 3. upper mantle 4. astenoshpere ("sic") 5. lower mantle 6. outer core 7. inner core}}

Note the same dishonest approach taken to assign seven layers of the atmosphere - i.e. the ''double counting of layers''.

The general scientific view is that the earth is composed of four or five major layers depending on whether one splits the mantle or not.<ref>Lisa Gardiner - [http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Interior_Structure/interior.html&edu=high Structure of the Interior of Earth] - Windows to the Universe, January 18, 2010</ref><ref>Eugene C. Robertson - [http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/interior/ The Interior of the Earth] - U.S. Geological Survey, May 21, 2007</ref><ref>Maggi Glasscoe - [http://scign.jpl.nasa.gov/learn/plate1.htm Structure of the Earth] - Southern California Integrated GPS Network (SCIGN), August 14, 1998</ref>

The five layers are as follows:

#crust
#upper mantle
#lower mantle
#outer core
#inner core

<center>[[File:Lithosphere.gif|450px]]</center>

There are two ways to classify the composition of the geosphere - chemically, into crust, mantle, and core, or functionally, in the case of the outer layers (crust and mantle) into lithosphere and asthenosphere.<ref>Dr. Michael Pidwirny - [http://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/10h.html Fundamentals of Physical Geography/ Structure of the Earth] - 2nd Edition, 2006</ref><ref>[http://www.palaeos.com/Earth/Geosphere/structure.htm The history of life on Earth] - Palaeos</ref>

<center>[[File:Geosphere.gif]]</center>

From the evidence above, one can see the apologetic deceit because they double-count the lithosphere/asthenosphere while they also count the crust and upper mantle. Note that this is dishonest because these are alternative classifications. One cannot honestly count all lithosphere, asthenosphere, crust, and upper mantle together as one would be recounting the same rocks.

Recently new scientific hypotheses proposed by J. Marvin Herndon and Prof Xiaodong Song suggest the inner core may be further subdivided into four layers; the inner core, the innermost core, a sub-shell of fission material and decay products, and a subcore of uranium and plutonium forming the georeactor.<ref>D. F. Hollenbach, and J. M. Herndon - [http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/98/20/11085 Deep-Earth reactor: Nuclear fission, helium, and the geomagnetic field] - PNAS 2001 vol. 98 no. 20 pp 11085-11090</ref> If this new theory is accepted the number of layers of the earth rises from five to eight.

===Seven Continents of the Earth===

The same apologists try to hedge their bets by claiming it is either seven layers or seven continents.

{{Quote||OR they could refer to the "7 Continents" (in the context that "al-ard" means ground) 1. North America 2. South America 3. Australia 4. Asia 5. Africa 6. Antarctica 7. Europe}}

The former explanation (seven layers) would seem more accurate as all translations refer to "earth" and not ground. Nevertheless, although the number of continents is traditionally considered seven, some geographers and scientists think there are only six as [[Europe]] and [[Asia]] are technically a single land mass (i.e. Eurasia) and on the same tectonic plate.<ref>Matt Rosenberg - [http://geography.about.com/library/misc/blcont.htm Continents] - About.com</ref> Therefore, the traditional number of seven continents is more a cultural bias than an actual geographical/geological fact.

===Seven Earths===

There are some who claim that Allah created seven earths.<ref>[http://www.justread.20m.com/scientific%20truth.htm Layers of the Earth] - Justread.20m.com</ref> This is in fact the correct understanding of verse 65:12 supported by various [[hadith]]s and [[tafsir]] commentaries. However, we only know of one, our own. To get around this problem, apologists such as Maurice Bucaille claim scientists have just not discovered the other six yet.<ref>Dr. Maurice Bucaille - [http://web.archive.org/web/20030514172921/http://www.masmn.org/Books/Maurice_Bucaille/The_Bible_The_Quran_and_Science/043.htm The Bible, The Qur'an and Science/ Confrontation with the data in the Qur'an concerning the creation]</ref>

To further complicate matters for apologists, Islamic sources state the seven earths being referred to in verse 65:12 are flat islands, one under the other. For example:

{{Quote|1=[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.oocities.org/tirmidhihadith/page8.html|2=2014-01-07}} Al Tirmidhi 5735]|2=Narrated AbuHurayrah:

While Allah's Prophet (peace be upon him) and his companions were sitting clouds came over them and Allah's Prophet (peace be upon him) asked, "Do you know what these are?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger knew best, he said, "These are the clouds (anan), these are the water-carriers of the Earth, which Allah drives to people who do not thank Him or call upon him." He then asked, "Do you know what is above you?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "It is the firmament, a ceiling which is guarded and waves which are kept back." He then asked, "Do you know what is between you and it?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Between you and it are five hundred years." He then asked, "Do you knew what is above that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) best he said, "Two heavens with a distance of five hundred years between them." He went on speaking like that till he counted seven heavens, the distance between each pair being like between Heaven and Earth. He then asked, "Do you know what is above that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Above that is the Throne, and the distance between it and the (seventh) heaven is the same as that between each pair of heavens." He then asked, '''"Do you know what is below you?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "It is the earth." He then asked, "Do you know what is under that?" On their replying that Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) knew best, he said, "Under it there is another Earth with a journey of five hundred years between them," and so on till he had counted seven earths with a journey of five hundred years between each pair. He then said, "By Him in Whose hand Muhammad's soul is, if you were to drop a rope to the lowest earth it would not pass out of Allah's knowledge."''' He then recited, "He is the First and the Last, the Outward and the Inward, and He is omniscient." (Tirmidhi commented that Allah's Messenger's recitation of the verse indicates that it would go down within Allah's knowledge, power and authority, for Allah's knowledge, power and authority are everywhere, while He is on the Throne, as He described Himself in His Book.)}}

{{Quote|{{Tabari|1|pp. 207-208}}|According to Muhammad b. Sahl b. 'Askar-Isma'il b. 'Abd al-Karim-Wahb, mentioning some of his majesty (as being described as follows): The heavens and the earth and the oceans are in the haykal, and the haykal is in the Footstool. God's feet are upon the Footstool. He carries the Footstool. It became like a sandal on His feet. When Wahb was asked: What is the haykal? He replied: Something on the heavens' extremities that surrounds the earth and the oceans like ropes that are used to fasten a tent. And when Wahb was asked how earths are (constituted), he replied: '''They are seven earths that are flat and islands'''. Between each two earths, there is an ocean. All that is surrounded by the (surrounding) ocean, and the haykal is behind the ocean.}}

==Conclusion==

The scientific evidence does not support any of the claims concerning the Qur'anic verse 65:12 and its scientific accuracy.

Earth's atmosphere is divided into five main layers based on temperature. Within these five principal layers, several secondary layers may be distinguished by other properties. There is no classification into 7 layers.

Modern geology states that there are only four or five layers of the Earth, or up to eight if the new hypotheses of the subcore georeactor are accepted. Without the double-counting of layers, There is no classification into 7 layers.

The number of continents is traditionally considered seven, but there are only six as Europe and Asia are technically a single land mass (i.e. Eurasia) and on the same tectonic plate. Therefore, the traditional number of seven continents is more a cultural bias than an actual geographical/geological fact.

Furthermore, if one delves a little deeper into the Islamic sources, it is discovered that the seven earths being referred to in verse 65:12 are in fact flat islands, one under the other.

{{Core Science}}

==See Also==

{{Hub4|Harun Yahya|Harun Yahya}}
{{Hub4|Cosmology|Cosmology}}

==External Links==

*[{{Reference archive|1=http://www.answering-islam.org./Quran/Science/seven_earths.html|2=2011-12-05}} Qur'an & Science Problem: The Seven Earths] ''- [[Answering Islam]]''

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Hector]]
[[ru:Семь слоев Земли]]

Parallels Between the Qur'an and Late Antique Judeo-Christian Literature

2014-12-05T01:08:54Z

Sunshine Beam: /* Parallelisms */

''By Julian Charteris''

The similarities between the Qur'an and previous scriptures has been noted since the advent of Islam. However, the Judeo-Christian tales and their Qur'anic counterparts do not always match. This in-depth study takes a closer look at some of these parallelisms.

==Parallelisms==

*[[Parallelism: Introduction|Introduction]]
*[[Parallelism: Talking Baby Jesus|Talking Baby Jesus]]
*[[Parallelism: Sanhedrin 37a|Sanhedrin 37a]]
*[[Parallelism: The Raven and the Burial of Abel|The Raven & the Burial of Abel]]
*[[Parallelism: Quranic Version of Trinity‎|The Quranic Version of Trinity‎]]
*[[Parallelism: Jesus Christ and Clay Birds|Jesus Christ & the Clay Birds]]
*[[Parallelism: Mary and Zachariah|Mary & Zachariah]]
*[[Parallelism: Mary, Jesus and the Palm Tree|Mary, Jesus & the Palm Tree]]
*[[Parallelism: Satan Refusal to Prostrate|Satan Refusal Prostrate‎]]
*[[Parallelism: The Story of Queen of Sheba|The Queen of Sheba]]
*[[Parallelism: The Story of Abraham and the Idols|Abraham & the Idols]]
*[[Parallelism: Wealth of Korah|The Wealth of Korah]]
*[[Parallelism: Conclusion|Conclusion]]

==See Also==
* [[Library]] ''- WikiIslam's online "library of books"''
{{Hub4|Corruption of Scripture|the Corruption of Scripture}}

[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:People of the Book]]
[[Category:In-Depth Studies]]
[[Category:Parallelism]]

Parallelism: Satan and His Refusal to Prostrate

2014-12-05T00:58:00Z

Sunshine Beam: /* Conclusion */

{{parallelism_qjcs}}
===Qur'anic Account===

The Qur'anic story that Satan was expelled from Heaven for defying Allah’s command to prostrate to Adam seems to have antecedents in pre-Islamic Zoarastrian scriptures which influenced Jewish tales. The Bible does not contain this tale; but are found in both the Zoroastrian Avesta's and Yezidis sacred texts.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|11-18}}|And We indeed created you, then We fashioned you, then We said to the angels: Make submission to Adam. So they submitted, except Iblis; he was not of those who submitted.
‏He said: What hindered thee that thou didst not submit when I commanded thee? He said: I am better than he; thou hast created me of fire while him Thou didst create of dust.
He said: Then get forth from this (state), for it is not for thee to behave proudly therein. Go forth; therefore, surely thou art of the abject ones.
‏He said: Get out of it, despised, driven away. Whoever of them will follow thee; I will certainly fill hell with you all.}}

This story recurs several times in the Qur'an, for instance:

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|28-35}}| Remember when your Lord said to the angels, "I am going to create a man (Adam) from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud. So when I have fashioned him completely and breathed into him (Adam) the soul which I created for him then fall you down prostrating yourselves unto him." SO the angels prostrated themselves all of them together, except Iblis, he refused to be among the prostrators. Allah said: "O Iblis! What is your reason for not being among the prostrators?" Iblis said: "I am not the one to prostrate myself to a human being, whom You created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud." Allah said: "Then get out from here for verily you are Rajim (an outcast or cursed one). Verily the curse shall be upon you till Day of Recompense (Day of Resurrection). }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|62}}|"Shall I prostrate to one whom You created from clay?" Iblis said: "See? those whom You have honored above me, if You give me respite (keep me alive) to the Day of Resurrection, I will surely seize and mislead his offspring (by sending them astray) all but a few!" }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|38|71-85}}|Remember when your Lord said to the angels: "Truly I am going to create man from clay. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by me, then you fall down prostrate to him." So the angels prostrated themselves all of them; except Iblis, he was proud and was one of the disbelievers. Allah said: "The truth is, and the truth I say, that I will fill Hell with you and those of them (mankind) that follow you together."}}

===Apocryphal Account===

Apparently, the story of Satan refusing to prostate/worship (sajada) Adam is found in the apocryphal ‘Life of Adam and Eve’, a first to fourth century Jewish Hellenistic work. Some authorities date it to the first century CE based on the absence of the Christian concept of original sin and the influence of the story on the Ebionites.<ref>Encyclopædia Britannica - [http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-73363 biblical literature] britannica.com</ref>

Another version of this in Syriac, The Cave of Treasure, appeared in the sixth century. There were also other earlier versions in Arabic, Ethiopic, and Armenian, which indicate the early spread of the story regarding the worship of Adam by the angels.<ref>Samuel M. Zwemer - [http://answering-islam.org./Books/Zwemer/Studies/chap10.htm Studies in Popular Islam: The Worship of Adam by Angels] answering-islam.org</ref>

{{Quote|[http://www.unicorngarden.com/adameve.htm Life of Adam and Eve]|“And with a heavy sigh, the devil spake: ‘O Adam! all my hostility, envy, and sorrow is for thee, since it is for thee that I have been expelled from my glory, which I possessed in the heavens in the midst of the angels and for thee was I cast out in the earth.’ Adam answered, ‘What dost thou tell me? What have I done to thee or what is my fault against thee? Seeing that thou hast received no harm or injury from us, why dost thou pursue us?’

“The devil replied, ‘Adam, what dost thou tell me? It is for thy sake that I have been hurled from that place. When thou wast formed, I was hurled out of the presence of God and banished from the company of angels. When God blew into thee the breath of life and thy face and likeness was made in the image of God, Michael also brought thee and made (us) worship thee in the sight of God; and God the Lord spake: “Here is Adam. I have made him in our image and likeness.”

“‘And Michael went out and called all the angels saying: “Worship the image of God as the Lord hath commanded.”

“‘And Michael himself worshipped first; then he called me and said: “Worship the image of God the Lord.” And I answered, “I have no (need) to worship Adam.” And since Michael kept urging me to worship, I said to him, “Why dost thou urge me? I will not worship an inferior and younger being (than I). I am his senior in the Creation, before he was made was I already made. It is his duty to worship me.”

“‘When the angels, who were under me, heard this, they refused to worship him. And Michael saith, “Worship the image of God, but if thou wilt not worship him, the Lord God will be wroth with thee.” And I said, “If He be wroth with me, I will set my seat above the stars of heaven and will be like the Highest.”

“‘And God the Lord was wroth with me and banished me and my angels from our glory; and on thy account were we expelled from our abodes into this world and hurled n the earth. And straightway we were overcome with grief, since we had been spoiled of so great glory. And we were grieved when we saw thee in such joy and luxury. And with guile I cheated thy wife and caused thee to be expelled through her (doing) from thy joy and luxury, as I have been driven out of my glory.’

“When Adam heard the devil say this, he cried out and wept and spake: ‘O Lord my God, my life is in thy hands. Banish this Adversary far from me, who seeketh to destroy my soul, and give me his glory which he himself hath lost.’ And at that moment, the devil vanished before him. But Adam endured in his penance, standing for forty days (on end) in the water of Jordan.”}}

The story is also found in the Talmud, namely the Genesis Rabba (or Bereshith Rabba – compiled in the fourth or fifth century CE, some say sixth century CE) and the Pirke Rabbi De Eliezer. Also, in Die Schatzhöle, an anonymous work, which dates from the sixth century, we have the Christian legend of what took place after the creation of Adam:

{{Quote|[http://answering-islam.org./Books/Zwemer/Studies/chap10.htm The Worship of Adam by Angels]|“When the angels saw his splendid appearance, they were moved by the fairness of his aspect. And God gave him there the dominion over all creatures, and all the wild beasts and the cattle and the birds, and they came before Adam and he gave them names, and they bowed their heads before him and worshipped him, and all their natures worshipped and served him. And the angels and powers heard the voice of God, who said to him, ‘O Adam, behold I have made thee king, priest, prophet, lord, head and leader of all creatures and they serve thee and are thine. And I have given thee dominion over all I have created.’ And when the angels heard this word, they all bent their knees and worshipped him.

“And when the head of the lower order saw that greatness had been given to Adam, he envied him thenceforth, refused to worship him and said to his powers: ‘Worship him not and praise him not with the angels. It befits him to worship me, not me to worship dust, formed out of a grain of dust.’ Such things the rebel had uttered and was disobedient and by his own free will became separated from God. And he was felled and he fell, he and his whole band. On the sixth day in the second hour, he fell from heaven, and they were stripped of the robes of their glory, and his name was called Satana, because he had turned away from God, and Sheda, because he had been cast down, and Daiva, because he had lost the robe of his glory. And look, from that same day and until today, he and all his armies are stripped and naked and ugly to look on. And after Satan had been cast from Heaven, Adam was exalted so that he ascended to Paradise.”}}

===Conclusion===

The Qur'anic story of Satan refusing to worship or prostate before Adam seems to have distinct antecedents in pre-Islamic Zoarastrian, Yezidi, Jewish and Christian sources. It is possible that this is merely coincidence. For more than fifteen centuries after God revealed Genesis to Moses he was content to leave this story untold. Then around the first century CE Jewish story tellers, independent of divine revelation, invented this story. After another six hundred years or so, Allah decided it was high time this story was properly told to humanity, thus he chose to reveal it to Muhammad in a form almost identical to that told by the non-divine Jewish writers.

One begs the question why an omniscient deity would leave himself open to a charge of ‘parallelism’ when the simplest solution would merely be to include the story within the first chapter of the Torah. Instead, he chose to allow Jewish rabbis to receive the distinction of co-inventing this story, long before his revelation to any prophet.

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{pn|prev=Parallelism: Mary, Jesus and the Palm Tree|next=Parallelism: The Story of Queen of Sheba|prevtitle=Mary, Jesus and the Palm Tree|nexttitle=The Story of Queen of Sheba}}
__NOTOC__
[[Category:Parallelism]]

Parallelism: Satan and His Refusal to Prostrate

2014-12-05T00:55:45Z

Sunshine Beam: /* Conclusion */

{{parallelism_qjcs}}
===Qur'anic Account===

The Qur'anic story that Satan was expelled from Heaven for defying Allah’s command to prostrate to Adam seems to have antecedents in pre-Islamic Zoarastrian scriptures which influenced Jewish tales. The Bible does not contain this tale; but are found in both the Zoroastrian Avesta's and Yezidis sacred texts.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|11-18}}|And We indeed created you, then We fashioned you, then We said to the angels: Make submission to Adam. So they submitted, except Iblis; he was not of those who submitted.
‏He said: What hindered thee that thou didst not submit when I commanded thee? He said: I am better than he; thou hast created me of fire while him Thou didst create of dust.
He said: Then get forth from this (state), for it is not for thee to behave proudly therein. Go forth; therefore, surely thou art of the abject ones.
‏He said: Get out of it, despised, driven away. Whoever of them will follow thee; I will certainly fill hell with you all.}}

This story recurs several times in the Qur'an, for instance:

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|28-35}}| Remember when your Lord said to the angels, "I am going to create a man (Adam) from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud. So when I have fashioned him completely and breathed into him (Adam) the soul which I created for him then fall you down prostrating yourselves unto him." SO the angels prostrated themselves all of them together, except Iblis, he refused to be among the prostrators. Allah said: "O Iblis! What is your reason for not being among the prostrators?" Iblis said: "I am not the one to prostrate myself to a human being, whom You created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud." Allah said: "Then get out from here for verily you are Rajim (an outcast or cursed one). Verily the curse shall be upon you till Day of Recompense (Day of Resurrection). }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|62}}|"Shall I prostrate to one whom You created from clay?" Iblis said: "See? those whom You have honored above me, if You give me respite (keep me alive) to the Day of Resurrection, I will surely seize and mislead his offspring (by sending them astray) all but a few!" }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|38|71-85}}|Remember when your Lord said to the angels: "Truly I am going to create man from clay. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by me, then you fall down prostrate to him." So the angels prostrated themselves all of them; except Iblis, he was proud and was one of the disbelievers. Allah said: "The truth is, and the truth I say, that I will fill Hell with you and those of them (mankind) that follow you together."}}

===Apocryphal Account===

Apparently, the story of Satan refusing to prostate/worship (sajada) Adam is found in the apocryphal ‘Life of Adam and Eve’, a first to fourth century Jewish Hellenistic work. Some authorities date it to the first century CE based on the absence of the Christian concept of original sin and the influence of the story on the Ebionites.<ref>Encyclopædia Britannica - [http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-73363 biblical literature] britannica.com</ref>

Another version of this in Syriac, The Cave of Treasure, appeared in the sixth century. There were also other earlier versions in Arabic, Ethiopic, and Armenian, which indicate the early spread of the story regarding the worship of Adam by the angels.<ref>Samuel M. Zwemer - [http://answering-islam.org./Books/Zwemer/Studies/chap10.htm Studies in Popular Islam: The Worship of Adam by Angels] answering-islam.org</ref>

{{Quote|[http://www.unicorngarden.com/adameve.htm Life of Adam and Eve]|“And with a heavy sigh, the devil spake: ‘O Adam! all my hostility, envy, and sorrow is for thee, since it is for thee that I have been expelled from my glory, which I possessed in the heavens in the midst of the angels and for thee was I cast out in the earth.’ Adam answered, ‘What dost thou tell me? What have I done to thee or what is my fault against thee? Seeing that thou hast received no harm or injury from us, why dost thou pursue us?’

“The devil replied, ‘Adam, what dost thou tell me? It is for thy sake that I have been hurled from that place. When thou wast formed, I was hurled out of the presence of God and banished from the company of angels. When God blew into thee the breath of life and thy face and likeness was made in the image of God, Michael also brought thee and made (us) worship thee in the sight of God; and God the Lord spake: “Here is Adam. I have made him in our image and likeness.”

“‘And Michael went out and called all the angels saying: “Worship the image of God as the Lord hath commanded.”

“‘And Michael himself worshipped first; then he called me and said: “Worship the image of God the Lord.” And I answered, “I have no (need) to worship Adam.” And since Michael kept urging me to worship, I said to him, “Why dost thou urge me? I will not worship an inferior and younger being (than I). I am his senior in the Creation, before he was made was I already made. It is his duty to worship me.”

“‘When the angels, who were under me, heard this, they refused to worship him. And Michael saith, “Worship the image of God, but if thou wilt not worship him, the Lord God will be wroth with thee.” And I said, “If He be wroth with me, I will set my seat above the stars of heaven and will be like the Highest.”

“‘And God the Lord was wroth with me and banished me and my angels from our glory; and on thy account were we expelled from our abodes into this world and hurled n the earth. And straightway we were overcome with grief, since we had been spoiled of so great glory. And we were grieved when we saw thee in such joy and luxury. And with guile I cheated thy wife and caused thee to be expelled through her (doing) from thy joy and luxury, as I have been driven out of my glory.’

“When Adam heard the devil say this, he cried out and wept and spake: ‘O Lord my God, my life is in thy hands. Banish this Adversary far from me, who seeketh to destroy my soul, and give me his glory which he himself hath lost.’ And at that moment, the devil vanished before him. But Adam endured in his penance, standing for forty days (on end) in the water of Jordan.”}}

The story is also found in the Talmud, namely the Genesis Rabba (or Bereshith Rabba – compiled in the fourth or fifth century CE, some say sixth century CE) and the Pirke Rabbi De Eliezer. Also, in Die Schatzhöle, an anonymous work, which dates from the sixth century, we have the Christian legend of what took place after the creation of Adam:

{{Quote|[http://answering-islam.org./Books/Zwemer/Studies/chap10.htm The Worship of Adam by Angels]|“When the angels saw his splendid appearance, they were moved by the fairness of his aspect. And God gave him there the dominion over all creatures, and all the wild beasts and the cattle and the birds, and they came before Adam and he gave them names, and they bowed their heads before him and worshipped him, and all their natures worshipped and served him. And the angels and powers heard the voice of God, who said to him, ‘O Adam, behold I have made thee king, priest, prophet, lord, head and leader of all creatures and they serve thee and are thine. And I have given thee dominion over all I have created.’ And when the angels heard this word, they all bent their knees and worshipped him.

“And when the head of the lower order saw that greatness had been given to Adam, he envied him thenceforth, refused to worship him and said to his powers: ‘Worship him not and praise him not with the angels. It befits him to worship me, not me to worship dust, formed out of a grain of dust.’ Such things the rebel had uttered and was disobedient and by his own free will became separated from God. And he was felled and he fell, he and his whole band. On the sixth day in the second hour, he fell from heaven, and they were stripped of the robes of their glory, and his name was called Satana, because he had turned away from God, and Sheda, because he had been cast down, and Daiva, because he had lost the robe of his glory. And look, from that same day and until today, he and all his armies are stripped and naked and ugly to look on. And after Satan had been cast from Heaven, Adam was exalted so that he ascended to Paradise.”}}

===Conclusion===

The Qur'anic story of Satan refusing to worship or prostate before Adam seems to have distinct antecedents in pre-Islamic Zoarastrian, Yezidi, lJewish and Christian sources. It is possible that this is merely coincidence. For more than fifteen centuries after God revealed Genesis to Moses he was content to leave this story untold. Then around the first century CE Jewish story tellers, independent of divine revelation, invented this story. After another six hundred years or so, Allah decided it was high time this story was properly told to humanity, thus he chose to reveal it to Muhammad in a form almost identical to that told by the non-divine Jewish writers.

One begs the question why an omniscient deity would leave himself open to a charge of ‘parallelism’ when the simplest solution would merely be to include the story within the first chapter of the Torah. Instead, he chose to allow Jewish rabbis to receive the distinction of co-inventing this story, long before his revelation to any prophet.

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{pn|prev=Parallelism: Mary, Jesus and the Palm Tree|next=Parallelism: The Story of Queen of Sheba|prevtitle=Mary, Jesus and the Palm Tree|nexttitle=The Story of Queen of Sheba}}
__NOTOC__
[[Category:Parallelism]]

Parallelism: Satan and His Refusal to Prostrate

2014-12-05T00:49:36Z

Sunshine Beam: /* Qur'anic Account */

{{parallelism_qjcs}}
===Qur'anic Account===

The Qur'anic story that Satan was expelled from Heaven for defying Allah’s command to prostrate to Adam seems to have antecedents in pre-Islamic Zoarastrian scriptures which influenced Jewish tales. The Bible does not contain this tale; but are found in both the Zoroastrian Avesta's and Yezidis sacred texts.

{{Quote|{{Quran|7|11-18}}|And We indeed created you, then We fashioned you, then We said to the angels: Make submission to Adam. So they submitted, except Iblis; he was not of those who submitted.
‏He said: What hindered thee that thou didst not submit when I commanded thee? He said: I am better than he; thou hast created me of fire while him Thou didst create of dust.
He said: Then get forth from this (state), for it is not for thee to behave proudly therein. Go forth; therefore, surely thou art of the abject ones.
‏He said: Get out of it, despised, driven away. Whoever of them will follow thee; I will certainly fill hell with you all.}}

This story recurs several times in the Qur'an, for instance:

{{Quote|{{Quran|15|28-35}}| Remember when your Lord said to the angels, "I am going to create a man (Adam) from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud. So when I have fashioned him completely and breathed into him (Adam) the soul which I created for him then fall you down prostrating yourselves unto him." SO the angels prostrated themselves all of them together, except Iblis, he refused to be among the prostrators. Allah said: "O Iblis! What is your reason for not being among the prostrators?" Iblis said: "I am not the one to prostrate myself to a human being, whom You created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud." Allah said: "Then get out from here for verily you are Rajim (an outcast or cursed one). Verily the curse shall be upon you till Day of Recompense (Day of Resurrection). }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|17|62}}|"Shall I prostrate to one whom You created from clay?" Iblis said: "See? those whom You have honored above me, if You give me respite (keep me alive) to the Day of Resurrection, I will surely seize and mislead his offspring (by sending them astray) all but a few!" }}

{{Quote|{{Quran|38|71-85}}|Remember when your Lord said to the angels: "Truly I am going to create man from clay. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by me, then you fall down prostrate to him." So the angels prostrated themselves all of them; except Iblis, he was proud and was one of the disbelievers. Allah said: "The truth is, and the truth I say, that I will fill Hell with you and those of them (mankind) that follow you together."}}

===Apocryphal Account===

Apparently, the story of Satan refusing to prostate/worship (sajada) Adam is found in the apocryphal ‘Life of Adam and Eve’, a first to fourth century Jewish Hellenistic work. Some authorities date it to the first century CE based on the absence of the Christian concept of original sin and the influence of the story on the Ebionites.<ref>Encyclopædia Britannica - [http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-73363 biblical literature] britannica.com</ref>

Another version of this in Syriac, The Cave of Treasure, appeared in the sixth century. There were also other earlier versions in Arabic, Ethiopic, and Armenian, which indicate the early spread of the story regarding the worship of Adam by the angels.<ref>Samuel M. Zwemer - [http://answering-islam.org./Books/Zwemer/Studies/chap10.htm Studies in Popular Islam: The Worship of Adam by Angels] answering-islam.org</ref>

{{Quote|[http://www.unicorngarden.com/adameve.htm Life of Adam and Eve]|“And with a heavy sigh, the devil spake: ‘O Adam! all my hostility, envy, and sorrow is for thee, since it is for thee that I have been expelled from my glory, which I possessed in the heavens in the midst of the angels and for thee was I cast out in the earth.’ Adam answered, ‘What dost thou tell me? What have I done to thee or what is my fault against thee? Seeing that thou hast received no harm or injury from us, why dost thou pursue us?’

“The devil replied, ‘Adam, what dost thou tell me? It is for thy sake that I have been hurled from that place. When thou wast formed, I was hurled out of the presence of God and banished from the company of angels. When God blew into thee the breath of life and thy face and likeness was made in the image of God, Michael also brought thee and made (us) worship thee in the sight of God; and God the Lord spake: “Here is Adam. I have made him in our image and likeness.”

“‘And Michael went out and called all the angels saying: “Worship the image of God as the Lord hath commanded.”

“‘And Michael himself worshipped first; then he called me and said: “Worship the image of God the Lord.” And I answered, “I have no (need) to worship Adam.” And since Michael kept urging me to worship, I said to him, “Why dost thou urge me? I will not worship an inferior and younger being (than I). I am his senior in the Creation, before he was made was I already made. It is his duty to worship me.”

“‘When the angels, who were under me, heard this, they refused to worship him. And Michael saith, “Worship the image of God, but if thou wilt not worship him, the Lord God will be wroth with thee.” And I said, “If He be wroth with me, I will set my seat above the stars of heaven and will be like the Highest.”

“‘And God the Lord was wroth with me and banished me and my angels from our glory; and on thy account were we expelled from our abodes into this world and hurled n the earth. And straightway we were overcome with grief, since we had been spoiled of so great glory. And we were grieved when we saw thee in such joy and luxury. And with guile I cheated thy wife and caused thee to be expelled through her (doing) from thy joy and luxury, as I have been driven out of my glory.’

“When Adam heard the devil say this, he cried out and wept and spake: ‘O Lord my God, my life is in thy hands. Banish this Adversary far from me, who seeketh to destroy my soul, and give me his glory which he himself hath lost.’ And at that moment, the devil vanished before him. But Adam endured in his penance, standing for forty days (on end) in the water of Jordan.”}}

The story is also found in the Talmud, namely the Genesis Rabba (or Bereshith Rabba – compiled in the fourth or fifth century CE, some say sixth century CE) and the Pirke Rabbi De Eliezer. Also, in Die Schatzhöle, an anonymous work, which dates from the sixth century, we have the Christian legend of what took place after the creation of Adam:

{{Quote|[http://answering-islam.org./Books/Zwemer/Studies/chap10.htm The Worship of Adam by Angels]|“When the angels saw his splendid appearance, they were moved by the fairness of his aspect. And God gave him there the dominion over all creatures, and all the wild beasts and the cattle and the birds, and they came before Adam and he gave them names, and they bowed their heads before him and worshipped him, and all their natures worshipped and served him. And the angels and powers heard the voice of God, who said to him, ‘O Adam, behold I have made thee king, priest, prophet, lord, head and leader of all creatures and they serve thee and are thine. And I have given thee dominion over all I have created.’ And when the angels heard this word, they all bent their knees and worshipped him.

“And when the head of the lower order saw that greatness had been given to Adam, he envied him thenceforth, refused to worship him and said to his powers: ‘Worship him not and praise him not with the angels. It befits him to worship me, not me to worship dust, formed out of a grain of dust.’ Such things the rebel had uttered and was disobedient and by his own free will became separated from God. And he was felled and he fell, he and his whole band. On the sixth day in the second hour, he fell from heaven, and they were stripped of the robes of their glory, and his name was called Satana, because he had turned away from God, and Sheda, because he had been cast down, and Daiva, because he had lost the robe of his glory. And look, from that same day and until today, he and all his armies are stripped and naked and ugly to look on. And after Satan had been cast from Heaven, Adam was exalted so that he ascended to Paradise.”}}

===Conclusion===

The Qur'anic story of Satan refusing to worship or prostate before Adam seems to have distinct antecedents in pre-Islamic Jewish and Christian sources. It is possible that this is merely coincidence. For more than fifteen centuries after God revealed Genesis to Moses he was content to leave this story untold. Then around the first century CE Jewish story tellers, independent of divine revelation, invented this story. After another six hundred years or so, Allah decided it was high time this story was properly told to humanity, thus he chose to reveal it to Muhammad in a form almost identical to that told by the non-divine Jewish writers.

One begs the question why an omniscient deity would leave himself open to a charge of ‘parallelism’ when the simplest solution would merely be to include the story within the first chapter of the Torah. Instead, he chose to allow Jewish rabbis to receive the distinction of co-inventing this story, long before his revelation to any prophet.

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{pn|prev=Parallelism: Mary, Jesus and the Palm Tree|next=Parallelism: The Story of Queen of Sheba|prevtitle=Mary, Jesus and the Palm Tree|nexttitle=The Story of Queen of Sheba}}
__NOTOC__
[[Category:Parallelism]]