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Cosmology of the Quran: Difference between revisions
→The gates of the heavens: Added in Wheeler and Noegel's link with 'fiery' underworld and boiling waters from below in the flood of Noah, as well as other verses which support this idea.
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(→The throne ('arsh) of Allāh: Mentioned the throne rests on the waters, and gave a contemporary apocryphal parallel for this idea.) |
(→The gates of the heavens: Added in Wheeler and Noegel's link with 'fiery' underworld and boiling waters from below in the flood of Noah, as well as other verses which support this idea.) |
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As Nicolai Sinai notes,<ref>''Samāʾ | heaven, sky'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 412). Princeton University Press. </ref> this is further supported by the sky (al-samā) having gates, a common cosmological idea in antiquity<ref>Anthony, Sean W., Dr.. ''Muhammad and the Empires of Faith: The Making of the Prophet of Islam.'' University of California Press. Kindle Edition. Location 1134 - 1145. | As Nicolai Sinai notes,<ref>''Samāʾ | heaven, sky'' Sinai, Nicolai. Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary (p. 412). Princeton University Press. </ref> this is further supported by the sky (al-samā) having gates, a common cosmological idea in antiquity<ref>Anthony, Sean W., Dr.. ''Muhammad and the Empires of Faith: The Making of the Prophet of Islam.'' University of California Press. Kindle Edition. Location 1134 - 1145. | ||
''The cosmological notion of humankind being blocked from accessing Paradise by gates and, thus, the existence of a heavenly gatekeeper is quite an ancient one and by no means exclusive to Jewish, Christian, or Muslim sacred cosmology. Indeed, where “the keys to heaven” as opposed to “the keys of Paradise” motif appears first in the Islamic tradition is in the Qurʾan itself.'' </ref> (see: | ''The cosmological notion of humankind being blocked from accessing Paradise by gates and, thus, the existence of a heavenly gatekeeper is quite an ancient one and by no means exclusive to Jewish, Christian, or Muslim sacred cosmology. Indeed, where “the keys to heaven” as opposed to “the keys of Paradise” motif appears first in the Islamic tradition is in the Qurʾan itself.'' </ref> (see: {{Quran|7|40}}, {{Quran|15|14}}, {{Quran|78|19}}, {{Quran|5|11}} of which Allāh holds the keys {{Quran|42|12}}), of which the opening causes the water to fall and drown the people of Noah once he's safe in the boat ({{Quran|54|11-12}}; cf. Genesis 7:11 and 8:2<ref>[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%207%3A11-8%3A2&version=NABRE Genesis 7:11-8:2]. New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE). BibleGateway.com. </ref>), which would seem to presuppose the Biblical notion that the firmament separates the waters above. | ||
{{Quote|{{Quran|54|11}}|Then We opened the gates of the sky with pouring waters}} | {{Quote|{{Quran|54|11}}|Then We opened the gates of the sky with pouring waters}} | ||
The sky is also the source of vivifying precipitation<ref>Samāʾ | heaven, sky entry. Sinai, Nicolai. ''Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary'' (p. 412). Princeton University Press. </ref> (e.g., {{Quran|2|22}}, {{Quran|30|24}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|45|5}}, {{Quran|50|9}}, {{Quran|71|11}} and {{Quran|41|39}}), with it's life giving qualities to 'dead' soil shown as proof of Gods ability to resurrect the dead (e.g. Q 43:11 '“''and Who sent down out of heaven water in measure; and We revived thereby a land that was dead; even so you shall be brought forth''”), in line with the contemporary view of the qualities of the celestial waters, that are consistent with the fish miraculously regaining life in Q 18:61 and 63, that meaningfully takes place where the heavenly ocean joins the lower part of the world,<ref>''Tesei, Tommaso. Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context.'' Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, ''(pp. 28-29)'' <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19</nowiki>. <nowiki>https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19</nowiki></ref> which Angelika Neuwirth notes is the exegetical view most in line with the Qur'anic evidence.<ref>Cosmology Entry. Space in cosmological context. Encyclopaedia Of The Qur’an. pp. 445-446. Angelika Neuwirth. 2001. | The sky is also the source of vivifying precipitation<ref>Samāʾ | heaven, sky entry. Sinai, Nicolai. ''Key Terms of the Qur'an: A Critical Dictionary'' (p. 412). Princeton University Press. </ref> (e.g., {{Quran|2|22}}, {{Quran|30|24}}, {{Quran|43|11}}, {{Quran|45|5}}, {{Quran|50|9}}, {{Quran|71|11}} and {{Quran|41|39}}), with it's life giving qualities to 'dead' soil shown as proof of Gods ability to resurrect the dead (e.g. Q 43:11 '“''and Who sent down out of heaven water in measure; and We revived thereby a land that was dead; even so you shall be brought forth''”), in line with the contemporary view of the qualities of the celestial waters, that are consistent with the fish miraculously regaining life in Q 18:61 and 63, that meaningfully takes place where the heavenly ocean joins the lower part of the world,<ref>''Tesei, Tommaso. Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context.'' Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, ''(pp. 28-29)'' <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19</nowiki>. <nowiki>https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19</nowiki></ref> which Angelika Neuwirth notes is the exegetical view most in line with the Qur'anic evidence.<ref>Cosmology Entry. Space in cosmological context. Encyclopaedia Of The Qur’an. pp. 445-446. Angelika Neuwirth. 2001. | ||
Read online for free here: ''[https://archive.org/details/encyclopaedia-of-the-quran-6-volumes-jane-dammen-mc-auliffe/page/n481/mode/2up?q=Cosmology Encyclopaedia Of The Qur’an ( 6 Volumes). Page 15/325 / 482 of 3956 of PDF]''</ref> | Read online for free here: ''[https://archive.org/details/encyclopaedia-of-the-quran-6-volumes-jane-dammen-mc-auliffe/page/n481/mode/2up?q=Cosmology Encyclopaedia Of The Qur’an ( 6 Volumes). Page 15/325 / 482 of 3956 of PDF]''</ref> | ||
===== And deluge from below ===== | |||
As Wheeler and Noegel (2010) note,<ref>Scott Noegel and Brannon Wheeler (eds.), ''The A to Z of Prophets in Islam and Judaism'', Scarecrow Press, 2010, pp. 66-68 under a section titled "Cosmology and Cosmogony": | |||
"..The Bible and the Quran share some cosmological and cosmogonic views rooted in ancient Near Eastern conceptions of the world, such as the notion of a male creator God and his battle against the watery forces of Chaos, the division of the world into lower and upper realms in which the upper realm holds sway over the lower, and a teleological view of time with a definite beginning and end with which historical existence is contrasted. ''In terms of the structure of the world, Jewish and Muslim texts basically hold to the concept of a three-storied universe. The bottom level is often described as hell or the chthonic realm that is beneath the earth. In the biblical tradition, the Earth is conceived of as floating on a vast body of water. Exod 20:4, for example, delineates the heavens above, the earth below, and the water underneath the earth.'' | |||
''The Quran depicts hell as consisting of liquid or boiling water with the earth spread out on top of it (Q 22:19-22, 55:43-44, 56:42-44). Hell also is described as a pit in which are the fires beneath the earth (Q 101:9-11). The great deluge is described as gushing forth from the earth (Q 54:12) and underground fountains (Gen 6:l1), perhaps reflecting an older cosmic battle myth in which water is personified as the monster of chaos that a god or hero conquers in creating and ordering the world''. Much like the classical Greek conception, the earth or the middle realm of the cosmos is envisioned as a flat disc surrounded by the world ocean on all sides. The Quran describes the earth as flat and spread out (Q 71:19), wide and expansive (Q 29:56). There are points on the earth that serve as conduits or points of contact with the lower realms (pits, caves, water sources) and the upper realms (mountains, trees, high buildings)..." | |||
</ref> Muslim traditions embrace the concept of a three-tiered universe: the heavens above, earth in the middle, and hell below, often depicted as an underground, fiery, or watery realm. Alongside Islamic traditions which place it here, they note Qur'anic evidence in that it describes hell as being filled with boiling water beneath the Earth (e.g. see: {{Quran|56|42-44}}, {{Quran|55|43-44}}, and {{Quran|22|19-22}}). | |||
When flooding the Earth in the Qur'anic story of [[:en:Historical_Errors_in_the_Quran#Noah's_worldwide_flood|Noah and the Ark]], along with the (presumably normal) water falling from [[Cosmology of the Quran#The%20gates%20of%20the%20heavens|the gates above in the sky]] just mentioned, the great flood is also described as originating from beneath the earth, stating the waters boil in an 'oven' in contrast with those above. This water comes via springs bursting through the Earth, suggesting a connection between them to hell or at least the lower world. | |||
{{Quote|{{Quran|54|12}}|And We caused to burst the earth (with) springs, so met the water(s) for a matter already predestined.}} | |||
The mentioned 'oven' boiling water from the Earth to flood it could be a metaphor for hell in the following verses, as Wheeler and Noegel (2010) note it is also described as a 'pit' in which there are fires (e.g. {{Quran|101|9-11}}).<ref>Ibid.</ref> | |||
The Arabic verb most commonly translated as "gushed forth" (fāra فَارَ) in the following two verses (''we have used the Arberry translation stating 'boiled''') means "boiled" in the context of water in a cooking pot,<ref>root fā wāw rā [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/data/20_f/217_fwr.html (ف و ر) Lanes Lexicon:] | |||
fāra فَارَ Lane's Lexicon Dictionary [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2456.pdf p2456] & [https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2457.pdf p2457]</ref> as well as in the other verse where the same root is used as a verb {{Quran|67|7}}. | |||
{{Quote|{{Quran|11|40}}|Until, when Our command came, and the Oven boiled, We said, 'Embark in it two of every kind, and thy family -- except for him against whom the word has already been spoken and whosoever believes.' And there believed not with him except a few.}} | |||
{{Quote|{{Quran|23|27}}|Then We said to him, 'Make thou the Ark under Our eyes and as We reveal, and then, when Our command comes and the Oven boils, insert in it two of every kind and thy, family -- except for him against whom the word already has been spoken; and address Me not concerning those who have done evil; they shall be drowned.}} | |||
Other evidence not mentioned by them includes the [[Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring - Part One|warm muddy spring the sun sets in]] at night and possibly comes out of on the other side of the world. | |||
==== The Sky-ways (asbāb) of the Heavens ==== | ==== The Sky-ways (asbāb) of the Heavens ==== | ||
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===The locations of Heaven and Hell=== | ===The locations of Heaven and Hell=== | ||
Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that for the Qur'an, there is almost no reference to what is beneath the earth, except as no more than a geographic location. There is no concept of an underworld, unlike Mesopotamian mythologies, as well as those of Egypt and Greece.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 212</ref> | Tabataba'i and Mirsadri observe that for the Qur'an, there is almost no reference to what is beneath the earth, except as no more than a geographic location. There is no explicit concept of an underworld, unlike Mesopotamian mythologies, as well as those of Egypt and Greece.<ref>Mohammad Ali Tabatabaʾi and Saida Mirsadri, ''The Qurʾānic Cosmology, as an Identity in Itself'' p. 212</ref> | ||
The Qur'an repeatedly described [[Jannah (Paradise)]] as comprising "Gardens from beneath which the rivers flow". Though not reflected in English translations, in every instance the definite article 'al' is used i.e. "the rivers". This is also noted by Tommaso Tesei, who has detailed how "sources confirm that during late antiquity it was widely held that paradise was a physical place situated on the other side of the ocean encircling the Earth. In accordance with this concept, it was generally assumed that the rivers flowing from paradise passed under this ocean to reach the inhabited part of the world." A notion of four rivers following a subterranean course from paradise into the inhabited world also occurs in contemporary near eastern and Syriac sources.<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. [https://www.academia.edu/12761000/_Some_Cosmological_Notions_from_Late_Antiquity_in_Q_18_60_65_The_Quran_in_Light_of_Its_Cultural_Context_._Journal_of_the_American_Oriental_Society_135.1_2015_19-32 ''Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context.''] Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19.</ref> | The Qur'an repeatedly described [[Jannah (Paradise)]] as comprising "Gardens from beneath which the rivers flow". Though not reflected in English translations, in every instance the definite article 'al' is used i.e. "the rivers". This is also noted by Tommaso Tesei, who has detailed how "sources confirm that during late antiquity it was widely held that paradise was a physical place situated on the other side of the ocean encircling the Earth. In accordance with this concept, it was generally assumed that the rivers flowing from paradise passed under this ocean to reach the inhabited part of the world." A notion of four rivers following a subterranean course from paradise into the inhabited world also occurs in contemporary near eastern and Syriac sources.<ref>Tesei, Tommaso. [https://www.academia.edu/12761000/_Some_Cosmological_Notions_from_Late_Antiquity_in_Q_18_60_65_The_Quran_in_Light_of_Its_Cultural_Context_._Journal_of_the_American_Oriental_Society_135.1_2015_19-32 ''Some Cosmological Notions from Late Antiquity in Q 18:60–65: The Quran in Light of Its Cultural Context.''] Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 135, no. 1, American Oriental Society, 2015, pp. 19–32, https://doi.org/10.7817/jameroriesoci.135.1.19.</ref> | ||