ISLAM

LOCATION : Mecca

HISTORY : 621

NAME : Quran, Surah Zumar, verse 21

NEWS : Do you not see that Allah sends down water from the sky and places it in springs on the earth, then He brings forth with it crops of various colours, then the crops dry up. And you see it turning yellow. Then He turns it into crumbled rubbish. Surely there is a sign in this for the people of understanding.

SCIENCE

LOCATION : France, Paris

DATE : 1580

NAME : Bernard Palissy

NEWS : The perpetual cycle and source of water

The oldest accepted view on the source of water is that of Aristotle[231]. According to Aristotle, water vapour rising from the ground condenses in the cold pits of the mountains and forms underground lakes. Spring waters are fed from these lakes. According to Thales[232], who lived about two hundred years before him, the ocean water gushing into the air with the pressure of the winds blowing in the depths of the land fell to the ground, thus passing into the soil. Plato[233] also shared these views and thought that there was a return to the ocean through a great vortex. During the Renaissance period, Leonardo de Vinci[234] first challenged Aristotle’s claims. Finally, Bernard Palissy gave the true explanation of the perpetual circulation of water and the rain-fuelling of water sources.[235]

The Holy Qur’an, on the other hand, mentions the duty of rainwater with the verse “Do you not see that Allah sends down water from the sky…”; that the sources are the rainwater with the news that “He places it in springs on the earth”; and that these springs are the basic necessities for the maintenance of the life of living beings with the information that “then He brings forth with it crops of various colours”. Allah (swt) informs the servants who witness all these phases of creation that ensure the continuity of living life, but who are ignorant of Him and are only greedy for crops, that there is a time when they will come to an end, and that He alone is the one who will endure: “…then those crops dry up. Then He turns it into crumbled rubbish.”

Every person or group that does not derive its power from Allah (swt) has coveted the crops based on consumption in order to gain authority over people. This is the underlying reason why the Jews, as a race or mentality, have gained power in the countries of the world. For this reason, the verse ends with “Surely there is a lesson in this for those of sound mind”, drawing attention to the fact that it is a lesson for those of intellect. The Holy Qur’an has given us this news 958 years ago.

We should also briefly mention the reason why the rain is called “mercy”. Mercy means pity, mercy and protection. It is also used in the sense of “fertility” because it is the source of life for living things. When considered scientifically, rain is called mercy because it serves a wide area.

When an object dropped from above falls as a result of its weight and the acceleration[236] it gains, an effect occurs against the ground. This situation is formulated in physics under the name of “Law of Falling Objects”. We can predict how a coin dropped from a height of 50-60 metres will have an effect on the ground or on a living being there. Although clouds discharge rain from higher distances and in tonnes, we never witness a destructive effect on the living creature or the ground that the rain comes into contact with. This is explained by science as the soft landing of rain on the ground as a result of the balancing of buoyancy.

Although the distance and acceleration are the same, it is an exemplary situation for us that the raindrop, which pierces the soil and the mountain in a way to form sources, does not harm any other living creature. This fine calculation, which can be described today, teaches us that the rain is also a mercy by sparing us living beings. The fact that the speed and mass of the rain, which is a marvellous art, is balanced with the buoyancy force, is related to the fact that it was sent down in a certain measure.

The average amount of rain falling on the earth is 16 million tonnes per second. The verse that informs us of this measure also explains mercy to us. The mercy mentioned in the verse is presented to our service as protection-preservation in the sense that the rain does not harm living beings and as abundance in the sense that it nourishes the resources. This systematic return, which is constantly repeated, is likened to resurrection after death. Allah (swt) knows the most accurate.

Allah (swt) says:

It is He Who sends down water from the sky according to a measure. With it We give life to the dead land. That is how you will be brought out (from the graves). [237]

[231] Greek philosopher. Birth, 384 BC – death, 322 BC

[232] Greek philosopher. Birth, 624 BC – death, 546 BC

[233] Greek philosopher. Birth, 427 BC – death. 347 b.c. His original name was Aristokles. Because of his broad shoulders and athletic build, he was nicknamed and recognised as Plato, which means Plato in Greek. He is also known as Plato.

[234] Renaissance Italian architect, engineer and geometrician (b. 1452- d. 1519)

[235] Quran, the never-ending miracle, pg.132

[236] The derivative of velocity as a function of time

[237] Surat al-Zuhruf, Verse 11