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'''Introduction''' | '''Introduction''' | ||
'''Meteors as stars''' | |||
'the unknown Egyptian author of ‘The Shipwrecked Sailor’ (c. 2000 BC), which recounts a series of fantastic adventures, including surviving something resembling a cosmic impact: Then a star fell. And because of it these went up in fire. It happened utterly. (Source = William Kelly Simpson, ed., The Literature of Ancient Egypt (Cairo, 2003), p. 51. For a discussion of a theoretically catastrophic impact in ancient Egypt, see Aly Barakat, ‘Did the Kamil Meteorite Fall Contribute to the Downfall of the Old Kingdom?’, The Ostracon: Journal of the Egyptian) | |||
Golia, Maria. Meteorite: Nature and Culture (Earth) (p. 131). Reaktion Books. Kindle Edition. | |||
'''Weapons against demons''' | |||
Many cultures had mythology surrounding meteors and meteorites, with some believing they were weapons. For example: | Many cultures had mythology surrounding meteors and meteorites, with some believing they were weapons. For example: | ||
{{Quote|Golia, Maria, Meteorite: Nature and Culture (Earth), Reaktion Books, p. 57 (Kindle Edition)|The oldest portions of Avestan scripture, thought to record Zoroaster’s words, say the sky is made of ‘hardest stone’ and worn as armour by Ahura Mazda, god of creation and cosmic order. Avestan texts contain many astronomical references, and the word asana means both ‘sky’ and ‘stone’. On one occasion, Zoroaster was said to have defeated demons with ‘a massive stone received from God’.}} | |||
stars set men apart, as evidenced in the emergence of the prophet Zoroaster around 1100 BC. An early Christian text suggests that Zoroaster, ‘a very great observer of the stars’, used his wisdom to his advantage: ‘wishing to be regarded as a divine being [he] began to elicit sparks from the stars and show them to people’. This brief passage and a story recorded in the first century AD have been interpreted as describing a meteor shower that Zoroaster may have anticipated.13 The oldest portions of Avestan scripture, thought to record Zoroaster’s words, say the sky is made of ‘hardest stone’ and worn as armour by Ahura Mazda, god of creation and cosmic order. Avestan texts contain many astronomical references, and the word asana means both ‘sky’ and ‘stone’. On one occasion, Zoroaster was said to have defeated demons with ‘a massive stone received from God’. | |||
Golia, Maria. Meteorite: Nature and Culture (Earth) (p. 57). Reaktion Books. Kindle Edition. {{Quote|Golia, Maria, Meteorite: Nature and Culture (Earth), Reaktion Books, p. 57 (Kindle Edition)|The oldest portions of Avestan scripture, thought to record Zoroaster’s words, say the sky is made of ‘hardest stone’ and worn as armour by Ahura Mazda, god of creation and cosmic order. Avestan texts contain many astronomical references, and the word asana means both ‘sky’ and ‘stone’. On one occasion, Zoroaster was said to have defeated demons with ‘a massive stone received from God’.}} | |||
{{Quote|Golia, Maria, Meteorite: Nature and Culture (Earth), Reaktion Books, p. 72 (Kindle Edition)|'Echoing themes from Mesopotamian and classical antiquity, the San god Koa xa, ‘lord of the animals’, used a meteorite to fight lions that attacked his son.'}} | {{Quote|Golia, Maria, Meteorite: Nature and Culture (Earth), Reaktion Books, p. 72 (Kindle Edition)|'Echoing themes from Mesopotamian and classical antiquity, the San god Koa xa, ‘lord of the animals’, used a meteorite to fight lions that attacked his son.'}} | ||
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''For verse 72:8-9:'' | ''For verse 72:8-9:'' | ||
Ibn ‘Abbas says: “( And we used to sit on places (high) therein) in heaven (to listen) before the advent of Muhammad (pbuh). (But he who listened now) after the advent of Muhammad (pbuh) (findeth a flame) a shining star (in wait for him) from the angels in order to prevent them from listening;” | Ibn ‘Abbas says: “( And we used to sit on places (high) therein) in heaven (to listen) before the advent of Muhammad (pbuh). (But he who listened now) after the advent of Muhammad (pbuh) (findeth a flame) a shining star (in wait for him) from the angels in order to prevent them from listening;” | ||
And we used to, that is to say, before his Mission, sit in certain places therein to listen in; but anyone listening now will find a meteor lying in wait for him aimed at him ready to strike him. | Al-Jalalayn say: The jinn say: ‘And we made for the heaven we desired to listen by stealth but we found it filled with mighty guards from among the angels and meteors; scorching stars. This was at the time of the sending of the Prophet. And we used to, that is to say, before his Mission, sit in certain places therein to listen in; but anyone listening now will find a meteor lying in wait for him aimed at him ready to strike him. | ||
Ibn Kathir says: Allah informs about the Jinns when He sent His Messenger Muhammad and revealed the Qur’an to him. Among the ways He protected it (the Qur’an) was by filling sky with stern guards guarding it from all of its sides. The devils were then expelled from the places where they used to sit prior to that. This was so that they could not steal anything from the Qur’an and tell it to the soothsayers, thereby causing matters to be confused and mixed up. If this happened it would not be known who was being truthful. Allah did this out of His kindness to His creation, His mercy upon His servants and His protection of His Mighty Book (the Qur’an). This is why the Jinns said, and we have sought to reach the heaven; but found it filled with stern guards and flaming fires. And verily, we used to sit there in stations, to (steal) a hearing, but any who listens now will find a flaming fire watching him in ambush. Meaning, whoever would like to steal some information by listening, he will find a flaming fire waiting in ambush for him. It will not pass him or miss him, but it will wipe him out and destroy him completely. | Ibn Kathir says: Allah informs about the Jinns when He sent His Messenger Muhammad and revealed the Qur’an to him. Among the ways He protected it (the Qur’an) was by filling sky with stern guards guarding it from all of its sides. The devils were then expelled from the places where they used to sit prior to that. This was so that they could not steal anything from the Qur’an and tell it to the soothsayers, thereby causing matters to be confused and mixed up. If this happened it would not be known who was being truthful. Allah did this out of His kindness to His creation, His mercy upon His servants and His protection of His Mighty Book (the Qur’an). This is why the Jinns said, and we have sought to reach the heaven; but found it filled with stern guards and flaming fires. And verily, we used to sit there in stations, to (steal) a hearing, but any who listens now will find a flaming fire watching him in ambush. Meaning, whoever would like to steal some information by listening, he will find a flaming fire waiting in ambush for him. It will not pass him or miss him, but it will wipe him out and destroy him completely. | ||
Haqq, Abdul. The Qur'an's Difficult Verses Explained (pp. 123-124). Evaluation Press. Kindle Edition. | Haqq, Abdul. The Qur'an's Difficult Verses Explained (pp. 123-124). Evaluation Press. Kindle Edition. | ||
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