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Shooting Stars in the Quran: Difference between revisions
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→The Hadith: Have added in a reference to those saying najm can mean any celestial body that emits light - and noted that they do not cite a classical Arabic dictionary to object to this argument. Also made the buruj dictionary citation match the others in Lane's Lexicon.
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(→Ancient beliefs around stars and meteors pre-Islam: Added a scholarly source (Nicolai Sinia) for pre-Islamic poetry containing this same (incorrect) idea before Muhammad, directly linking it to his immediate environment) |
(→The Hadith: Have added in a reference to those saying najm can mean any celestial body that emits light - and noted that they do not cite a classical Arabic dictionary to object to this argument. Also made the buruj dictionary citation match the others in Lane's Lexicon.) |
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In {{Quran|67|5}}, the word translated "missiles" is rujūman (رُجُومًا), which are things that are thrown, especially stones.<ref>رُجُومًا - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000214.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1048]</ref> | In {{Quran|67|5}}, the word translated "missiles" is rujūman (رُجُومًا), which are things that are thrown, especially stones.<ref>رُجُومًا - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000214.pdf Lane's Lexicon p. 1048]</ref> | ||
In {{Quran|15|16}} the phrase translated "zodiacal signs" is [https:// | In {{Quran|15|16}} the phrase translated "zodiacal signs" is Burūj بُرُوجًا, meaning great stars or constellations;<ref>Lanes Lexicon [https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume1/00000217.pdf Vol 1 p217 - برج Burūj] </ref> Surah 85 (Al-Burūj) is called [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Burooj The Great Star]. | ||
This term also means towers/forts/castles, which a smaller number of mufassirūn have understood it as (towers on the firmament) in their commentaries on the Quran.<ref>E.g. ''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/15.16 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse 15:16.]'' | This term also means towers/forts/castles, which a smaller number of mufassirūn have understood it as (towers on the firmament) in their commentaries on the Quran.<ref>E.g. ''[https://quranx.com/Tafsir/Abbas/15.16 Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs on verse 15:16.]'' | ||
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These also seem to reinforce the incorrect idea of stars being shooting stars, and give us yet a fourth word for stars. | These also seem to reinforce the incorrect idea of stars being shooting stars, and give us yet a fourth word for stars. | ||
In both cases we see the word (najm/نجم) is used to describe the shooting star. Literally: رُمِيَ was thrown<ref>رمي - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000327.pdf Lane's Lexicon page 1161]</ref> بِنَجْمٍ a star<ref>نجم - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000282.pdf Lane's Lexicon Supplement page 3028]</ref> فَاسْتَنَارَ then it flamed<ref>نار - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000119.pdf Lane's Lexicon page 2865]</ref> (نار in Arabic form X, derived from نور light). It is sometimes said that a najm (نجم) could refer to any kind of celestial body and not necessarily a star, but it is at least clear that these hadiths refer to what we now understand are visible meteors. | In both cases we see the word (najm/نجم) is used to describe the shooting star. Literally: رُمِيَ was thrown<ref>رمي - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000327.pdf Lane's Lexicon page 1161]</ref> بِنَجْمٍ a star<ref>نجم - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000282.pdf Lane's Lexicon Supplement page 3028]</ref> فَاسْتَنَارَ then it flamed<ref>نار - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000119.pdf Lane's Lexicon page 2865]</ref> (نار in Arabic form X, derived from نور light). It is sometimes said that a najm (نجم) could refer to any kind of celestial body (without any reference to a classical Arabic dictionary)<ref>[https://islamqa.info/amp/en/answers/243871 Meteorites and shooting stars may be called “stars” (nujoom) and “heavenly bodies” (kawaakib) in Arabic.] IslamQA. 2016. | ||
See Lane's Lexicon Classical Arabic Dictionary of [https://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000282.pdf Najm, Volume 8, pages: 282] </ref> and not necessarily a star, but it is at least clear that these hadiths refer to what we now understand are visible meteors. | |||
A hadith in Sunan Ibn Majah's collection also conveys the concept, though without clarifying the nature of the shihab (the word translated as "burning flame" in the Quran verses quoted above): | A hadith in Sunan Ibn Majah's collection also conveys the concept, though without clarifying the nature of the shihab (the word translated as "burning flame" in the Quran verses quoted above): | ||