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Geocentrism and the Quran: Difference between revisions
→Counter-arguments: addressing the 39:5 wrapping = earth rotation claim
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Lightyears (talk | contribs) (New section: Counter-arguments, with 91:3-4 comprehensively refuted.) |
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At first it seems plausible to suppose that 'day' and 'night' refers to the process of the earth's rotation revealing and obstructing the view of the sun. But this idea quickly falls apart when comparing with other verses as detailed below, but also even examining it in isolation. For the Earth is a globe, and there are no specific times 'when' (itha) the day reveals the sun or the night conceals it. Rather at all times half the Earth is in daytime and half in nighttime, so the sun is at all times both revealed and concealed. This problem wouldn't arise if the word 'when' (itha) was absent in these verses. | At first it seems plausible to suppose that 'day' and 'night' refers to the process of the earth's rotation revealing and obstructing the view of the sun. But this idea quickly falls apart when comparing with other verses as detailed below, but also even examining it in isolation. For the Earth is a globe, and there are no specific times 'when' (itha) the day reveals the sun or the night conceals it. Rather at all times half the Earth is in daytime and half in nighttime, so the sun is at all times both revealed and concealed. This problem wouldn't arise if the word 'when' (itha) was absent in these verses. | ||
There are other verses that mention the night covering (with the same Arabic verb as 91.3), which show that the verb in this context does not simply mean the body of the earth blocking the line of sight to something. | There are other verses that mention the night covering (with the same Arabic verb as 91.3), which show that the verb in this context does not simply mean the body of the earth blocking the line of sight to something. Verses 92:1-2 use identical words as 91:3-4, but without the pronoun suffix at the end. So the night is when things generally are covered, not just the sun, and the day is when things generally are revealed. Clearly the verbs are meant in a poetic sense. | ||
{{Quote|{{cite quran|92|1|end=2|style=ref}}|By the night enshrouding, And the day resplendent}} | {{Quote|{{cite quran|92|1|end=2|style=ref}}|By the night enshrouding, And the day resplendent}} | ||
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{{Quote|{{cite quran|10|27|style=ref}}|They have no protector from Allah - as if their faces had been covered with a cloak of darkest night}} | {{Quote|{{cite quran|10|27|style=ref}}|They have no protector from Allah - as if their faces had been covered with a cloak of darkest night}} | ||
With the same arabic word for cover yet again, this time it is the day doing the covering, and it is quite a stretch if not impossible to interpret | With the same arabic word for cover yet again in verse 7:54, this time it is the day doing the covering, and it is quite a stretch if not impossible to interpret this as the rotating Earth blocking the night (whatever nonsense that could mean) in analogy to their interpretation of 91:4. Rather it seems that the day and night are moving entities in the Qur'an. | ||
{{Quote|{{cite quran|7|54|style=ref}}|He covereth the night with the day, which is in haste to follow it}} | {{Quote|{{cite quran|7|54|style=ref}}|He covereth the night with the day, which is in haste to follow it}} | ||
The other verse used as evidence of heliocentrism is 39:5. Here the word translated wraps (kawwara, as with a turban, for example) supposedly indicates the rotation of the Earth. | |||
{{Quote|{{cite quran|39|5|style=ref}}|He wraps the night over the day and wraps the day over the night and has subjected the sun and the moon, each running [its course] for a specified term.}} | |||
But as with 7:54 mentioned above and the verses where the day and night (as well as the sun and moon) have a falak (rounded course), it actually indicates that the night and day are moving entities rather than any sign that the Earth revolves. Muhammad was mocked anyway by those who disbelieved what he said, and the Qur'an contains many claims that sounded absurd even to many of his contemporaries, so it is reasonable to ask why the Qur'an could not give even some vague indication that the earth itself is revolving or that it has an orbit. | |||
There are also two nearly identical verses to 39.5. These are 31:29 and 35:13 (also with the similar phrase are 3:27 22:61 and 57:6) where instead of 'he wraps', the verb 'he causes to enter' (yooliju) is used. Together, along with 7:54 where the day covers and chases the night, they present a picture of the day and night successively wrapping across the other and covering the other by entering into it. | |||
==Supporting Evidence== | ==Supporting Evidence== | ||