Geocentrism and the Quran: Difference between revisions

According to several verses in the Qur'an, the sun's cycle is repeated on a regular basis and is comparable in this respect to the orbit of the Moon as well as the cycle of and night and day.  

In Muhammad's lifetime it was common practice to use the sun and moon for timekeeping, which helps explain the emphasis in the Qur'an on the regulated and scheduled nature of the courses of the sun and moon as a sign from Allah and as a divinely sanctioned monthly calendar (see previous section).

{{Quote|{{Quran|6|96}}|He it is that cleaves the day-break (from the dark): He makes the night for rest and tranquility and '''the sun and moon for the reckoning [of time]''')}}{{Quote|{{Quran|9|36}}|Indeed, (the) number (of) the months with Allah (is) twelve months in (the) ordinance (of) Allah (from the) Day He created the heavens and the earth; of them, four (are) sacred. That (is) the religion the upright, so (do) not wrong therein yourselves. And fight the polytheists all together, as they fight you all together. And know that Allah (is) with the righteous.}}{{Quote|{{Quran|10|5}}|It is He Who made the Sun to be a shining glory and the moon to be a light (of beauty), and measured out stages for her; '''that ye might know the number of years and the count [of time]'''. Nowise did Allah create this but in truth and righteousness. (Thus) doth He explain His Signs in detail, for those who have knowledge.}}

The moon (the sign, or ''ayah'', of the night) is used to count the years, which comprise the twelve [[Islamic Lunar Calendar|lunar months]] making up the Islamic year, and the sun is to be used to keep track of time. The only solar movement to be used for timekeeping is the apparent daily course of the sun (from east up and then down to the west). To this day, virtually all mainstream Islamic authorities use the (less precise and regularly unpredictable) lunar calendar to determine the date and the apparent position of the sun from any given location to determine the ''waqt'' (prescribed time) of daily [[Salah|''salats'']] (prayers). In some cases, as with the Burj Khalifa, which is one of the tallest buildings in the world and which is located in the United Arab Emirates, this means that prayer times differ one the top floor of the building from the prayer times on the bottom floor of the building, as the moment of sunset and sunrise varies as one ascends in elevation.