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Scientific Errors in
the Qur'an

If the Qur’an contains even one

contradiction or mistake then the claims
of divine authorship and infallibility are not
true. An objective evaluation of the Qur’an
shows that it contains numerous scientific
and historical errors and reflects a pre-
scientific, 7th century view of the natural
world.
Some will contest these numerous errors
in the Qur'an by appealing to metaphor,
alternative meanings, or
phenomenological interpretations of the
text. Even supposing alternative
explanations were possible in every case,
the problem would remain that the Qur’an
contains no obvious attempts to
differentiate its understanding of the
natural world and historical events from
the common folklore and unscientific
misconceptions of the people living in 7th
century Arabia. An all-powerful, all-
knowing, perfect communicator would
have been able to foresee how such
misleading statements would be
understood by future generations and the
doubts and confusions they would cause.
Such overwhelming weakness in the
Qur'an when we should expect perfection
is already reason enough to reject any
claims to its divine authorship.

Contents
Astronomy
Geocentricism

Setting and Rising Place of the Sun

Earth and Heavens Created in Six Days

Earth Created before Stars

Earth and Heavens were Torn Apart

Universe was Made from Smoke

Seven Earths
 Seven Heavens

The similar size and distance of the sun and

moon

Moon was Split in Two

The Moon's light

Meteors are Stars Shot at Devils

Sky is a Tent/Dome

Sky is a guarded canopy

Sky can Fall Down on People

The Heavens can be Rolled Up

The Stars Will Fall

The Cause of Shadows Changing Length

Ignorance of the North and South Poles

Biology
Evolution
Human Creation from Clay
 First Humans: Adam and Eve

Embryology
Sperm Originates Between the Backbone
and Ribs

Embryo is Initially Formed from Semen

No Mention of Female Ovum

Humans Created from a Clot of Blood

Gender of a Baby is Decided After it

Becomes a Clot

Bones are Formed before Flesh

All Organisms are Created in Pairs

Fetus is in Three Layers of darkness

Functions of the Heart

Source and Purity of Milk

Geology and Meteorology

The Earth is Flat
Facing Toward Mecca
 Fasting and Prayer Requirements Near the
Poles

Earth is Spread Out and Flat

The Earth is a carpet

Earth is Like a Couch

Earth is a Bed

The Earth was stretched out

Earth is a Level Plain

Permanent Barrier between Fresh and Salt

Water

Mountains Prevent Earthquakes

Mountains Cast into the Earth

Chest Contracts with Altitude

Earthquakes are a Punishment from God

Hurricanes and Blizzards are a Punishment

from God

No Evaporation in Water Cycle

 Mountains of Hail in the Sky

Allah Uses Thunderbolts to Smite People

Zoology

Ants Recognize Humans and Speak with Each

Other

Only Four Types of Cattle

Horses Created as Transportation

All Animals Live in Communities

Bird Flight is a Miracle

Birth Defects and Imperfections

History
Wall of Iron between Two Mountains

Christians Worship Mary as Part of the Trinity

Samaritans existing in ancient Egypt

Mary Confused with Miriam

Coat of Mail was Invented during the Reign of

David
 Crucifixions in Ancient Egypt

Noah's Flood

Noah's Ark holds Every Species

Pharaoh or Pharaohs

Jews call Ezra the Son of God

Nobody before John the Baptist was given the

name "John"

Supernatural Destruction of Cities

Humans can Live for a Thousand Years

Non-Existent Mosque in Jerusalem

Sociology
Linguistics

People are Protected in Mecca

Requirement to Learn in Arabic

Myths and Legendary Tales

Humans Transformed into Apes

Golden Calf Statue Moos

 Tribes Trapped Behind a Wall

Supernatural Food

A Stick Transforms into a Serpent

Solomon's Army of Genies and Birds

Jonah Performs Repentance inside a Fish

Muhammad Flies on a Winged Horse to

Heaven

Body Parts Speak

Sea Split in Half

Solomon can Control the Wind

A Dead Man Testified against his Killer

Mountains and Birds can Sing Songs

Others
Mathematical Error in Hereditary Laws

People use the Forehead to Lie

References
 See Also

Astronomy
Geocentricism

Main Article: Geocentrism and the

Qur'an

The Qur'an mentions a few times that the

sun and the moon travel in an orbit (falak -
a rounded course), but does not mention
once that the Earth does too. This is
consistent with an Earth-centered
(geocentric) view of the cosmos that
places a motionless Earth at the center of
the universe and all "heavenly bodies"
travel around the Earth. This was the
prevailing understanding of the universe
prior to the 16th century when Copernicus
helped explain and popularize a sun-
centered (heliocentric) view of the
universe. Tellingly, the sun's orbit is almost
always mentioned in the context of night
and day (13:2 is the only exception) and is
always mentioned with that of the moon,
which does in fact orbit the Earth each
month, and to a naive observer seems to
traverse the sky each night when it is
visible.
 A token unto them is night. We strip it of
the day, and lo! they are in darkness. And
the sun runneth on unto a resting-place
for him. That is the measuring of the
Mighty, the Wise. And for the moon We
have appointed mansions till she return
like an old shrivelled palm-leaf. It is not
for the sun to overtake the moon, nor
doth the night outstrip the day. They float
each in an orbit.
Qur'an 36:37-40

This is in a passage about night and day.

Right after describing the change from day
to night, it says that the sun runs on to a
resting place for it (‫) ِﻟ ُﻤ ْﺴﺘَ َﻘﺮ ﻟ َﻬﺎ‬. There are
also sahih hadith (Sahih Muslim 1:297 )
that mention the sun's daily cycle using the
same Arabic word to mean a resting place,
which is underneath Allah's throne, and is
where each night the sun prostrates and is
asked to go and rise 'from its rising place'
(‫)ﻣ ْﻦ َﻣ ْﻄ ِﻠ ِﻌ َﻬﺎ‬.
ِ This cycle repeats, until one day
Allah asks the sun to rise 'from your
setting place' (‫)ﻣ ْﻦ َْﻏ ِﺮ ِﺑ ِﻚ‬.
ِ

The alternative view was that it refers to

the sun's final resting on the last day. Other
verses talk about the sun swimming for a
'term appointed' (using a different arabic
word). Another version of the above hadith
probably supports this view (for details of
all these things see footnotes in the main
article ). Whichever interpretation was
intended, the sun's movement is
nevertheless mentioned right after
describing day and night, just as the next
verse mentions the different mansions
appointed for the moon each night. The
whole passage is about day and night and
the sun and moon's movement in that
context.

And He it is Who created the night and

the day, and the sun and the moon. They
float, each in an orbit.
Quran 21:33
Some try to explain away the above
Qur'anic description of the sun moving in
an orbit as a reference to our sun orbiting
the black hole at the center of the milky
way galaxy every 225 million years. This is
an Ad hoc hypothesis, of no relevance to
human time scales, and nothing from the
text implies that the sun is orbiting
anything other than the Earth. If the author
had knowledge of the sun orbiting a black
hole then it is conspicuous that he never
mentions it explicitly nor in any way
differentiates the sun's orbit from that of
the moon.
 Hast thou not seen how Allah causeth
the night to pass into the day and
causeth the day to pass into the night,
and hath subdued the sun and the moon
(to do their work), each running unto an
appointed term; and that Allah is
Informed of what ye do?
Quran 31:29

Notice also that the sun running / pursuing

its course (yajree ‫)ﻳ ْﺠ ِﺮ ٓى‬
َ is something that
the author expects people to have seen
(another problem for the galactic orbit
interpretation).

By the Sun and his (glorious) splendour;

By the Moon as she follows him;
 Qur'an 91:1-2 }

The Arabic word translated "follow" is

primarily defined as to follow, go or walk
behind, follow in way of immitation, of
action etc. and was often used for animals
like camels following behind each other.
Yet the Moon does not actually follow
behind the sun's movement, nor does it
provide its own light like the sun. The
verse is most suggestive of a worldview in
which the moon and sun traverse the
same or similar paths after one another,
which is what a 7th century person might
believe from observing the sky. A less
suspicious choice of word would have
been better for a supposedly perfect book
if it merely meant the sun and moon
appear one after the other. One day
instead of following the sun, the moon will
by joined with it according to another
verse (see the Similar Size and Distance of
the Sun and Moon section below).

Abraham said, ‘Indeed Allah brings the

sun from the east; now you bring it from
the west.’ So the disbeliever was
overwhelmed [by astonishment], and
Allah does not guide the wrongdoing
people.
Quran 2:258
Here the Qur'an quotes a few lines from a
debate between Abraham and a
disbelieving King, where Abraham replies
that Allah 'brings the sun' (yatee
biashshamsi ‫)ﻳﺎ ِﺗﻰ ِﺑﭑﻟﺸ ْﻤ ِﺲ‬
َ from the east.
The arabic verb and preposition indicates
that the sun actually moves. The verb
means to come , and when it has an
object with the bi preposition it means to
bring, as in many other instances in the
Qur'an. While the story is quoting a mere
human's words, the author clearly believes
it to be a good response and sees no
problem with it.

Setting and Rising Place of the Sun

 Main Article: Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun
Setting in a Muddy Spring

The Qur'an assumes a flat earth which has

physical places into which the sun sets
and rises from. Since the earth is a
rotating sphere, the sun does not set in
any particular place and you can never
travel to "the spot" where the sun sets nor
a place where it rises; the sun appears to
set or rise on the horizon no matter where
you are on the planet. In these verses, the
author propagates a popular legend from
the 7th century of a man named Dhu'l-
Qarnayn who visits the places where the
sun sets and rises; here he finds the sun
going down into a muddy spring and later
rising on a tribe with no coverings.

Till, when he reached the setting-place of

the sun, he found it setting in a muddy
spring, and found a people thereabout.
We said: O Dhu'l-Qarneyn! Either punish
or show them kindness.
Quran 18:86

Till, when he reached the rising-place of

the sun, he found it rising on a people for
whom We had appointed no shelter
therefrom.
Quran 18:90
Centuries after Muhammad lived, people
with better astronomical knowledge than
him had to invent creative interpretations
of these verses to say that Dhu'l-Qrnayn
only traveled until he reached "the west" or
to a spot "at the time" when the sun set
and not the "place" where the sun set.
Unfortunately, these alternative
interpretations are severely undermined by
the context and Arabic words used in
these verses, which instead point to
physical locations where the sun did its
setting and rising. Plenty of evidence
shows that the early Muslims understood
the verse in this straightforward way.
Again, we must ask why an all-knowing
being would use such misleading verses
that mimic the misconceptions and
legends prevalent at the time if one of the
alternative explanations is correct.

Earth and Heavens Created in Six

Days

Main Article: Qur'an, Hadith and

Scholars:Creation

The Earth first formed around 9 billion

years after the Big Bang. The Qur'an,
however, repeats the prevailing Middle-
Eastern myth that the Earth and universe
were formed in six days.
In the hundreds of other Qur'anic verses
where the Arabic word 'yawm' appears,
everyone understands it to mean day. Yet
Islamic websites try and rescue the Qur'an
by pointing to an alternative meaning of
yawm, which almost always means 'day',
but can sometimes mean 'time period'.
Curiously, and rather conveniently, yawm is
only claimed to mean time period rather
than day in the verses about the creation
of the world. Again, nothing in the context
of the verses, nor the Qur'an in general,
suggests awareness that the universe or
Earth were formed over long time periods.
The author makes precisely zero attempt
to distingish his description from the
prevailing Middle-Eastern creation myths
in this regard, which feature six literal days
of creation (for example in the Bible we
have, "Evening came and morning came:
The first day." - Genesis 1:5).

Secondly, neither the universe nor Earth

were formed in six distinct long periods of
time. It would have been trivial for an all-
knowing diety to have poetically indicated
the vast duration in which the universe has
developed, which has taken place over the
past 13.8 billion years.

We created the heavens and the earth

and all between them in Six Days, nor did
 any sense of weariness touch Us
Quran 50:38

The Earth specifically was created in two

days according to the Qur'an, and in four
days (on days three and four according to
the tafsirs) were created mountains and
the sustenance of the Earth.

Say: Is it that ye deny Him Who created

the earth in two Days? And do ye join
equals with Him? He is the Lord of (all)
the Worlds. He set on the (earth),
mountains standing firm, high above it,
and bestowed blessings on the earth,
and measure therein all things to give
them nourishment in due proportion, in
 four Days, in accordance with (the needs
of) those who seek (Sustenance).
Quran 41:9-10

Mountains in fact continue to rise and

erode to this day. Similarly, living things
and their sustenance continue to evolve,
yet the Qur'an says that the creation of
mountains and sustenance occurred in a
specific period that ended two days before
the creation of the universe was
completed. See the next section regarding
the final two of the six days in 41:11-12
which immediately follow the verses
shown above.

Earth Created before Stars

The author of the Qur'an is also unaware
that the elements in the Earth's crust and
core were first formed in stars by
nucleosynthesis. When those stars
exploded as supernovas, they expelled the
elements that were used in future solar
systems such as our own. Modern
radiometric dating of meteorites and rocks
from the Earth and Moon show that these
bodies were formed 4.5 billion years ago.
Yet the Qur'an describes the Earth being
fully formed before the stars. All rocky and
gaseous planets in the universe were
formed in a similar manner to the Earth
and the Qur'an singling out the Earth only
further highlights the author's ignorance of
the history of the formation of celestial
objects.

Verse 41:12 says that lamps (or more

specifically, stars in the similar verse
Quran 37:6 ) were placed in the lowest of
the seven heavens. But before there were
seven heavens, while heaven was just
smoke, the Earth already existed
according to verse 11, and the Earth's
creation and completion in the preceeding
days is described in verses 9-10 already
discussed in the previous section.
 Then turned He to the heaven when it
was smoke, and said unto it and unto the
earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth.
They said: We come, obedient. Then He
ordained them seven heavens in two
Days and inspired in each heaven its
mandate; and We decked the nether
heaven with lamps, and rendered it
inviolable. That is the measuring of the
Mighty, the Knower.
Quran 41:11-12

The verse below further confirms that

heaven was only made into seven heavens
when the Earth already existed according
to the Qur'an.
 He it is Who created for you all that is in
the earth. Then turned He to the heaven,
and fashioned it as seven heavens. And
He is knower of all things.
Quran 2:29

َ ‫)ﻣ ٰ َﺼ ِﺒ‬
The word lamps (masabeeha ‫ﻴﺢ‬ َ in
Quran 41:12 and Quran 67:5 would
obviously have to include any luminous
bodies such as the stars, as does kawakibi
ِ ‫ )ﻛ َ َﻮ‬in Quran 37:6 , a word that also
(‫اﻛ ِﺐ‬
appears in Joseph's dream (Quran 12:4 )
and the destruction of the heavens (Quran
82:1-2 ) and has a parallel in Quran 15:16-
17 , where the word zodiacal
constellations / great stars (baroojan
‫وﺟﺎ‬
ً ‫ )ﺑ ُُﺮ‬is used instead.

Some websites attempt to reconcile the

Qur'anic description with modern science
by denying that the word 'Then' in the
verses above indicate sequence, and
instead claim that it means 'moreover'.
They claim this despite the fact that these
words (thumma in 41:11 and 2:29, and fa
in 41:12 - all translated as 'Then') generally
are used to indicate sequence. In other
contexts thumma was sometimes used to
mean 'moreover', which is generally clear
from those contexts, but the passages
quoted above describe a process - the
creation of the heavens and Earth, and it
would be ludicrous to use these words
when describing such a process if they
were not indicating sequence.

Earth and Heavens were Torn Apart

Some websites claim that the following

verse is compatible with the Big Bang
theory. But according to this theory, the
Universe was formed about 13.8 billion
years ago due to a rapid expansion from
singularity. The earth was formed 4.54
billion years ago from accretion of debris
that surrounded the precursor of the Sun.
There was no "separation" of the "joined"
earth and heavens as this verse suggests.
It is, in fact, a repetition of cosmic egg
myths in which an egg-like structure was
split into two halves, the lower half
forming the earth and the upper half
forming the heaven. The verse itself
assumes that the listeners are familiar
with the concept.

Do not the Unbelievers see that the

heavens and the earth were joined
together (as one unit of creation), before
we clove them asunder? We made from
water every living thing. Will they not
then believe?
Quran 21:30
This separation can be read in the context
of verses that mention something
"between" the fully formed earth and the
heavens (which seems to be occupied by
the clouds Quran 2:164 and birds Quran
24:41 ).

And verily We created the heavens and

the earth, and all that is between them, in
six Days, and naught of weariness
touched Us.
Quran 50:38

There is no scientific theory in which the

Earth and heavens were torn apart from
each other. The verse says that "We clove
them" (dual pronoun 'huma'), not "We clove
it", thereby indicating that the Earth and
heavens are distinct after the cloving. To
imagine that verse 21:30 describes the big
bang, the atomic particles that would later
form the Earth would at the beginning
have to be separated from those that
would go on to form everything else in the
universe. This bears no resemblance to
scientific cosmology, wherein the material
that forms the Earth passed through at
least one earlier generation of star, and
more recently was part of various
asteroids, comets and planetesimals
orbiting the sun (which could all be
described as being in the 'heavens') that
sometimes collided and merged with each
other, sometimes split apart, and gradually
coalesced under gravity to form the Earth
and other planets.

Moreover, the very next verse Quran 21:31

speaks of mountains being placed on the
Earth. Here 'the Earth' clearly means an
actual world, so how do the Islamic
websites expect anyone to believe that in
the previous verse 'the Earth' refers merely
to atomic particles at the time of the big
bang that would billions of years later form
the Earth?

Universe was Made from Smoke

 Main Article: Quran and a Universe from
Smoke

Looking once again at the verses

discussed above, it is worth pointing out
that there was no stage of formation of
the Universe that involved smoke (carbon
particles suspended as a result of
combustion; the word translated smoke is
ٍ ‫دُ َﺧ‬, which literally
the noun dukhan ‫ﺎن‬
means smoke, as from a fire). Nor did the
Earth and heavens each "come" as
separate entites at any point of time. Earth
is a part of this Universe and has
developed within it.
 Then turned He to the heaven when it
was smoke, and said unto it and unto the
earth: Come both of you, willingly or loth.
They said: We come, obedient. Then He
ordained them seven heavens in two
Days and inspired in each heaven its
mandate; and We decked the nether
heaven with lamps, and rendered it
inviolable. That is the measuring of the
Mighty, the Knower.
Quran 41:11-12

Apologetics that try to reinterpret 'smoke'

as the primordial state of the universe
after the big bang should notice (aside
from their poor grasp of science) that the
Qur'an indicates a time when just the
heaven, but not Earth is smoke.
Furthermore, the Earth and its mountains
are clearly mentioned as already existing
in the previous two verses (Quran 41:9-10
discussed above).

Seven Earths

Main Article: Cosmology of the Qur'an

This verse claims there are seven Earths.

Allah it is who hath created seven

heavens, and of the earth the like
thereof. The commandment cometh
down among them slowly, that ye may
 know that Allah is Able to do all things,
and that Allah surroundeth all things in
knowledge.
Quran 65:12

A hadith reveals that these are seven

Earths stacked above each other.

The Prophet said, "Whoever takes a

piece of the land of others unjustly, he
will sink down the seven earths on the
Day of Resurrection.
Sahih Bukhari 3:43:634

The number, like seven heavens, might

have come from a misunderstanding of
mythology from classical antiquity in
which there were seven moving planets
(Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the
sun and moon). If instead we take it to
mean seven actual planets the Qur'an is
still wrong. According to astronomers,
there are eight ordinary planets and five
dwarf planets, which leaves the grand total
at thirteen in our solar system. Modern
astronomy also has found thousands of
other planets in other solar systems and
Cosmologists estimate that hundreds of
billions of stars and planets exist in the
universe. The author of the Qur'an singling
out such a small number of celestial
objects only reaffirms his ignorance of the
makeup of the universe.
Seven Heavens

Main Article: Cosmology of the Qur'an

The universe consists of hundreds of

billions of galaxies, each with hundreds of
billions of stars. While the Qur'anic notion
that the heaven of stars is covered by six
further heavens might currently be
unfalsifiable, the myth of seven heavens
was a common idea prevalent in the
Middle East during the time when the
Qur'an was first recited.

See ye not how Allah has created the

seven heavens one above another
Quran 71:15
Some Islamic websites claim that these
are seven layers of the atmosphere,
despite the fact that verse 37:6 says that
stars are in the nearest heaven. There are
only 5 not 7 principal layers to the Earth's
atmosphere, and likewise only 5 not 7
major layers to the Earth itself.

Surely We have adorned the nearest

heaven with an adornment, the stars
Quran 37:6

The similar size and distance of the

sun and moon

Main Article: Geocentrism and the

Qur'an
The Qur'an has statements about the end
of the world that are much as one would
expect if the author believed the sun and
moon to be of similar size and a similar
distance from Earth.

And the moon darkens And the sun and

the moon are joined,
Qur'an 75:8-9

The word translated "are joined" is Arabic

jumi'a , a verb which means to collect
together, gather together, bring together.
Given that this would actually require the
moon to travel 98 million miles away from
Earth and into the sun, which dwarfs it by
over 600 times in diameter, it seems vastly
less fitting as an apocalyptic event than if
the ancient conception of the cosmos was
correct. Thus it is far more likely that the
author had such a misconception about
the sun and moon.

Moon was Split in Two

Main Article: Moon Split Miracle

The Qur'an and Hadith claim that the

moon was miraculously split into two
pieces and then, presumably, put back
together again. There is absolutely no
scientific evidence whatsoever that the
moon has ever been split into two. Since
the moon is visible to half the planet at any
given time, we should expect to see
numerous accounts from different parts of
the world attesting to this event if it
actually happened. The Romans, Greeks,
Egyptians, Persians, Chinese and Indians
had avid astronomers who should have
seen this event and recorded it in their
histories. The absence of historical record
from other civilizations, contemporary to
Muhammad, is a strong indication that this
event never happened.

The hour drew nigh and the moon did

rend asunder.
Quran 54:1-3
 Narrated Anas: "That the Meccan people
requested Allah's Apostle to show them
a miracle, and so he showed them the
splitting of the moon."
Sahih Bukhari 4:56:831

The Moon's light

A popular claim is that the Qur'an has

knowledge that the moon does not emit its
own light, but simply reflects light coming
from the Sun. The Arabic word for
reflected (in`ikaas) does not appear in the
two Qur'anic verses that say the Moon is a
"light". It instead uses the word "noor"
(nooran ‫ ) ُﻧﻮ ًرا‬which simply means a light,
and in another verse, muneer (muneeran
‫ﻴﺮا‬
ً ‫)ﻣ ِﻨ‬, which means giving light and is from
the same root as noor. This is vague
enough to be interpreted either way, so is
not necessarily an error, but nor can any
special knowledge be claimed.

He it is Who appointed the sun a

splendour and the moon a light, and
measured for her stages, that ye might
know the number of the years, and the
reckoning. Allah created not (all) that
save in truth. He detaileth the revelations
for people who have knowledge.
Quran 10:5

And hath made the moon a light therein,

and made the sun a lamp?
 Quran 71:16

Noor appears again (this time as a

participle muneeran ‫ﻴﺮا‬
ً ‫ )ﻣ ِﻨ‬in a similar verse
about the moon:

Blessed be He Who hath placed in the

heaven mansions of the stars, and hath
placed therein a great lamp and a moon
giving light!"
Quran 25:61

Perhaps the best example of a verse

showing the noor simply means light and
not reflected light can be found in 33:45-46
in which a lamp is shining light with the
exact same Arabic word as in 25:61 above
(muneeran ‫ﻴﺮا‬
ً ‫)ﻣ ِﻨ‬:

O Prophet! Lo! We have sent thee as a

witness and a bringer of good tidings
and a warner. And as a summoner unto
Allah by His permission, and as a lamp
that giveth light.
Quran 33:45-46

In Lane's Lexicon of classical arabic, this

word muneer (‫ﻴﺮ‬
ً ‫ )ﻣ ِﻨ‬is defined as 'Giving
light, shining bright, bright, or shining
brightly'. Noor is defined on the previous
page as 'Light; whatever it may be; and
the rays thereof'. In reference to Qur'an
verse 10:5 (quoted above) that describe
the moon with this word, he says, 'In the
Kur. x. 5, the sun is termed ‫ ﺿﻴﺎء‬and the
moon ‫ ﻧﻮر‬and it is said that ‫ ﺿﻴﺎء‬is
essential, but ‫ ﻧﻮر‬is accidental [light]'. It is
important to note that this notion of
essential and accidental light and its
application to the sun and moon originates
not from the Arabs at the time of the
Qur'an, but rather from the book Kitab al-
Manazir, commonly known as 'Optics',
published in 1572 by the great polymath
and optics pioneer al-Hazen. Lane goes on
to say, citing the highly regarded Taj al-
Arus classical dictionary, 'it is of two kinds,
the light of the present world and that of
the world to come; and the former is either
perceived sensibly, by the eye, and this is
what diffuses itself from luminous bodies,
as the sun and moon and stars, and is
mentioned in the Kur. x. 5 referred to
above'.

The word "Noor" is also used in this verse

to show that Allah is the "light" of the
universe. Clearly the author is not implying
that Allah reflects light from another
source but is the source of the light.

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the

earth. The Parable of His Light is as if
there were a Niche and within it a Lamp:
the Lamp enclosed in Glass: the glass as
 it were a brilliant star: Lit from a blessed
Tree, an Olive, neither of the east nor of
the west, whose oil is well-nigh luminous,
though fire scarce touched it: Light upon
Light! Allah doth guide whom He will to
His Light: Allah doth set forth Parables
for men: and Allah doth know all things.
Quran 24:35

Meteors are Stars Shot at Devils

Main Article: Mistranslations of Qur'an

67:5

The Qur'an says that stars (kawakib

ْ / lamps (masabih ‫ﻴﺢ‬
ِ ‫)ٱﻟﻜ َ َﻮ‬
‫اﻛ ِﺐ‬ َ ‫)ﻣ ٰ َﺼ ِﺒ‬
َ adorn the
heavens and guard against devils.
The author of the Qur'an does not seem to
know the difference between stars (giant
balls of gas thousands of times larger
than the earth) and meteors which are
small rocky masses of debris which
brighten up after entering the earth's
atmosphere. Many ancient people
confused the two, as meteors look like
stars that are streaking across the sky; this
is why they were often called shooting
stars or falling stars. In the following
verse, the Qur'an claims that Allah uses
stars as missiles to ward away devils. This
repeats a common Arab myth at the time
the Qur'an was first recited.
 We have indeed decked the lower heaven
with beauty (in) the stars, (For beauty)
and for guard against all obstinate
rebellious evil spirits, (So) they should
not strain their ears in the direction of
the Exalted Assembly but be cast away
from every side, Repulsed, for they are
under a perpetual penalty, Except such
as snatch away something by stealth,
and they are pursued by a flaming fire, of
piercing brightness.
Quran 37:6-10

The same Arabic words are used at the

start of verse 67:5 as in 37.6 (‫ﺂء‬ َ ‫َزﻳﻨﺎ ٱﻟﺴ َﻤ‬
‫)ٱﻟﺪ ْﻧ َﻴﺎ‬, except the stars are described as
lamps. Clearly the lamps that 'beautify the
heaven' refer to stars (and perhaps also
the 5 visible planets), which are always
there. Meteors are generally not much
larger than grains of sand and are only
visible for a second when they burn up,
generating light in the Earth's atmosphere
after millions of years in darkness, but the
author of the Qur'an believes that meteors
(the 'missiles') are a kind of star.

And verily We have beautified the world's

heaven with lamps, and We have made
them missiles for the devils, and for
them We have prepared the doom of
flame.
 Quran 67:5

In Sahih Muslim we have a hadith

confirming that the pursuing flames /
missiles in the two verses refer to what we
would call meteors which they saw
shooting across the sky.

'Abdullah. Ibn 'Abbas reported: A person

from the Ansar who was amongst the
Companions of Allah's Messenger (pbuh
reported to me: As we were sitting
during the night with Allah's Messenger
(pbuh), a meteor shot gave a dazzling
light. Allah's Messenger (pbuh) said:
What did you say in the pre-Islamic days
when there was such a shot (of meteor)?
They said: Allah and His Messenger
know best (the actual position), but we,
however, used to say that that very night
a great man had been born and a great
man had died, whereupon Allah's
Messenger pbuh) said: (These meteors)
are shot neither at the death of anyone
nor on the birth of anyone. Allah, the
Exalted and Glorious, issues Command
when He decides to do a thing. Then (the
Angels) supporting the Throne sing His
glory, then sing the dwellers of heaven
who are near to them until this glory of
God reaches them who are in the heaven
of this world. Then those who are near
the supporters of the Throne ask these
supporters of the Throne: What your
Lord has said? And they accordingly
inform them what He says. Then the
dwellers of heaven seek information
from them until this information reaches
the heaven of the world. In this process
of transmission (the jinn snatches) what
he manages to overhear and he carries it
to his friends. And when the Angels see
the jinn they attack them with meteors. If
they narrate only which they manage to
snatch that is correct but they alloy it
with lies and make additions to it.
Sahih Muslim 26:5538
Sky is a Tent/Dome

A common myth at the time of the Quran's

composition was that the sky or heavens
were held up with pillars. Many Bedouin
people living in Arabia imagined the sky as
a large tent covering, similar to the tents
they used. The author repeats this myth by
describing the sky as being "raised" above
the earth.

Who has made the earth your couch, and

the heavens your canopy
Quran 2:22
 Allah is He Who raised the heavens
without any pillars that ye can see
Quran 13:2

In another verse, the author says that the

sky / heaven is a covering that can be
removed.

And when the sky is stripped away

Quran 81:11

Sky is a guarded canopy

This verse seems to relate to the verses

about devils chased by shooting stars
(meteors) that guard the lowest heaven.
See for example Quran 37:6-10 discussed
above, in which we find a noun meaning
guard from the same Arabic root (hafiza )
as the verb in this verse). Somewhat
ironically, the things supposedly guarding
the sky / heaven can actually pose a threat
to living things on Earth.

Asteroids and meteorites have penetrated

the atmosphere and hit the earth
throughout the course of history. This
includes the massive meteorite that hit
near the Yucatán Peninsula 65 million
years which killed off numerous species
including most dinosaurs.

And We have made the heaven a

guarded canopy and (yet) they turn aside
 from its signs.
Quran 21:32

Sky can Fall Down on People

The Qur'an author thought that the

sky/heaven is like a ceiling held up by
Allah that can fall to earth or fragments
break off and fall on someone. This is
obviously impossible as the earth's
atmosphere is simply made of gas and
outer space is not a solid object.

And if they were to see a fragment of the

heaven falling, they would say: A heap of
clouds.
Quran 52:44
See they not what is before them and
behind them, of the sky and the earth? If
We wished, We could cause the earth to
swallow them up, or cause a piece of the
sky to fall upon them. Verily in this is a
Sign for every devotee that turns to Allah
(in repentance).
Quran 34:9

Hast thou not seen how Allah hath made

all that is in the earth subservient unto
you? And the ship runneth upon the sea
by His command, and He holdeth back
the heaven from falling on the earth
unless by His leave. Lo! Allah is, for
mankind, Full of Pity, Merciful.
 Quran 34:9

The Heavens can be Rolled Up

These verses imply that the heavens have

two dimensional surfaces.

The Day when We shall roll up the

heavens as a recorder rolleth up a
written scroll.
Quran 21:104

No just estimate have they made of

Allah, such as is due to Him: On the Day
of Judgment the whole of the earth will
be but His handful, and the heavens will
be rolled up in His right hand: Glory to
 Him! High is He above the Partners they
attribute to Him!
Quran 39:67

The Stars Will Fall

The Qur'an says that the stars will fall

(inkadarat ‫ )ٱﻧﻜَﺪَ َر ْت‬along with other
dramatic events surrounding the last day.
The author clearly had no idea of the size
and distance of the stars. The word ‫ ﻛﺪر‬in
the form used in this verse (form VII)
meant to dart down as is said of a bird or
hawk, or to fall and scatter.

And when the stars fall

Quran 81:2
The structure of space-time is such that
nothing, not even stars, can move faster
than the velocity of light. Even if stars were
to somehow move close to light speed
across the sky their motion would be
imperceivable to the naked eye as many
visible stars are hundreds of light years
away. Neither would we be able to see
anything that the stars are doing recently
(when we see a star 100 light years away,
we are seeing it as it was 100 years ago).

The Cause of Shadows Changing

Length
Shadows are produced when the sun's
light is blocked by an obstacle. It is the
Earth's rotation that causes these
shadows to change size and lengthen.
However, verse 25:45 seems to say that
the reason that shadows lengthen rather
than being stationary is because Allah has
made the sun their guide. Yet if the Earth
did not rotate (so shadows were
stationary) and then the Earth was made
to rotate (so that they could lengthen and
draw in) the sun would not need to be
made to do anything different in either
case. Thus the most likely explanation is
that the verse represents a geocentric
worldview where the sun moves across
the sky, guiding the shadows.

Hast thou not turned thy vision to thy

Lord?- How He doth prolong the shadow!
If He willed, He could make it stationary!
then do We make the sun its guide; Then
We draw it in towards Ourselves,- a
contraction by easy stages.
Quran 25:45-46

Then the next verse, 25:46, says that

shadows are drawn towards Allah which
has no scientific meaning.

Ignorance of the North and South

Poles
 Main Article: The Ramadan Pole
Paradox

In polar regions, the longevity of day and

night vary during summer and winter. The
day gets shorter and shorter in winter until
there are days or weeks of uninterrupted
night. At the poles themselves, day and
night alternately last for six months and all
phases of the moon occur several times
between sunrise and sunset. The author of
the Qur'an did not know about this and he
only repeated earlier geocentric ideas. See
also the Fasting and Prayer Requirements
Near the Poles section below.
 It is not for the sun to overtake the moon,
nor doth the night outstrip the day. They
float each in an orbit.
Quran 36:40

Furthermore, when reading this verse one

should wonder in what sense day and
night each have an orbit. See Geocentrism
and the Quran regarding that question.

Biology
Evolution

The Qur'an presupposes a creationist view

of life on earth. Its understanding of the
history of human life is incompatible with
the overwhelming scientific evidence that
humans have evolved from prior life forms,
over the course of millions of years,
through natural selection [1] . While some
Muslims accept the theory of evolution,
most reject it in favor of a creationist
world view. Opinion polls show that the
majority of Muslims agree Islam and
evolution are not compatible.

Human Creation from Clay

Main Article: Creation of Humans from

Clay

The Qur’an states that man was created

instantaneously from clay (salsalin ‫)ﺻ ْﻠ ٰ َﺼ ٍﻞ‬
َ
/ mud (hamain ‫)ﺣ َﻤﺎ‬.
َ There is no indication
that the author is aware of the evolution of
human life over millions of years nor our
common ancestry with apes and primates.

We created man from sounding clay,

from mud molded into shape;
Quran 15:26

Similarly, it says that the first man was

created from dust (turabin ‫اب‬ ٍ ‫) ُﺗ َﺮ‬.

Lo! the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as

the likeness of Adam. He created him of
dust, then He said unto him: Be! and he
is.
Quran 3:59
First Humans: Adam and Eve

Main Article: Qur'an, Hadith and

Scholars:Creation

The Qur’an and Hadith contains stories

concerning the 'first humans' and how all
people are descended from these two
earliest ancestors. It states that humans
were created in a garden (paradise) and
then brought to earth fully formed. This
view of the origins of human life is clearly
contradicted by DNA evidence and the
numerous fossils of pre-homosapien
species that lived on earth for millions of
years before modern humans first evolved.
[2]
 "He it is Who created you from a single
being, and of the same (kind) did He
make his mate,"
Quran 7:189

Another verse is clear on literal descent of

humanity from one man by sexual means
(i.e. semen) after Allah had created him
out of clay.

Who made all things good which He

created, and He began the creation of
man from clay; Then He made his seed
from a draught of despised fluid;
Quran 32:7-8
The word translated “seed” in Pickthall’s
translation is nasl ‫ﻧﺴﻞ‬, which means
progeny (i.e. descendants).

Some Muslim creationists will claim the

view of two ancestral “parents” is
consistent with recent scientific findings
that show a common female and male
ancestor of all modern humans. They
often exploit the confusion caused by
scientists referring to these genetic
ancestors as Mitochondrial Eve and Y-
chromosomal Adam. These two
individuals bear little resemblance to the
Quranic account as they are simply the
last common male and female ancestors
of everyone alive today, not of all humans
in history. The Qur'an clearly states Eve
was created later than Adam, however
Mitochondrial Eve lived some 50,000 to
80,000 years earlier than Y-chromosomal
Adam.[3] Genetic evidence
overwhelmingly indicates that humans
diverged from earlier species as a
population, not a single couple. [4] .

Embryology

Main Article: Embryology in the Qur'an

The Qur'an and Hadith contain statements

about bodily fluids and the stages of
development of the human embryo. Many
of these descriptions are vague and
unscientific. Most bear a striking
resemblance to similar descriptions found
in the Jewish Talmud and the ideas of
ancient Greeks such as Galen, including
their errors.

Sperm Originates Between the Backbone

and Ribs

Main Article: Qur'an and Semen

Production

The Qur'an states, incorrectly, that semen

originates from somewhere between the
backbone and ribs. Today we know sperm
comes from the testicles and semen from
various glands behind and below the
bladder, which is not between the
backbone and ribs.

He is created from a drop emitted-

Proceeding from between the backbone
and the ribs
Quran 86:6-7

Embryo is Initially Formed from Semen

Main Article: Greek and Jewish Ideas

about Reproduction in the Quran and
Hadith

The author of the Qur'an describes the

initial formation of a human embryo out of
fluid emanating from the man (and
possibly also of the woman), which is
placed in the womb. This reflects the
contemporary, but incorrect, view that
semen is the material from which the
embryo is initially formed, as taught by
Hippocrates, Galen, and the Jewish
Talmud. In fact, semen is the vehicle for
the sperm cells, one of which fuses with a
woman's ovum in her fallopian tube, and
the resulting cell divides and travels back
into the womb for implantation.

While English translations mention a "drop

of seed", or "drop of sperm", the Arabic
word in question is nutfah, which literally
means a small amount of liquid, a
euphemism for semen.

Did We not create you from a liquid

disdained? And We placed it in a firm
lodging For a known extent.
Quran 77:20-22

Then placed him as a drop (of seed)

[nutfah] in a safe lodging;
Quran 23:13

From what thing doth He create him?

From a drop of seed [nutfah]. He
createth him and proportioneth him
Quran 80:18-19
 Indeed, We created man from a sperm-
drop mixture [nutfatin amshajin] that We
may try him; and We made him hearing
and seeing.
Qur'an 76:2

No Mention of Female Ovum

The Qur'an's author did not mention the

role of the ovum in human reproduction
and appears to have no knowledge of it.
This verse fails to mention the important
role of the female egg, or ovum, plays in
the reproduction of humankind. It implies
that reproduction is caused simply by the
male semen. The human ovum is very
small, though visible to the human eye,
and it's purpose wasn't understood in the
7th century. Again, we are left wondering
why an all-knowing deity would omit such
information.

He is created from a drop emitted

Quran 86:6

Humans Created from a Clot of Blood

Main Article: Embryology in the Qur'an

The Qur'an and Hadith depict that humans

are formed from a clot of blood after an
initial semen stage. There is no stage in
embryonic development where humans
are formed from a clot of blood. This
description is likely influenced by an
unscientific and primitive understanding of
human reproduction based on
observations from an early-term
miscarriage and a woman's menstrual
cycle. While in modern times some
Muslims seek to use alternative meanings
for the relevant word, the mere fact that it
certainly can mean clotted blood (which is
the unanimous interpretation in the
classical tafsirs), in a passage about a
biological process (formation of a baby), is
a major weakness in what should be a
perfect description.

Then We made the sperm into a clot of

congealed blood...
 Quran 23:14

Created man, out of a (mere) clot of

congealed blood:
Quran 96:2

Narrated 'Abdullah bin Mus'ud: “Allah's

Apostle, the true and truly inspired said, "
(The matter of the Creation of) a human
being is put together in the womb of the
mother in forty days, and then he
becomes a clot of thick blood for a
similar period, and then a piece of flesh
for a similar period.”
Sahih Bukhari 4:54:430

Gender of a Baby is Decided After it

Becomes a Clot
The Qur'an says that an embryo is
transformed from semen into a clot, then it
is shaped, and then the male or female sex
is determined. Modern genetics has
shown that the sex of a human is decided
at the moment of conception.[1]

Was he not a drop of fluid which gushed

forth? Then he became a clot; then
(Allah) shaped and fashioned And made
of him a pair, the male and female.
Quran 75:37-39

While translators mostly use "And" in verse

39, the Arabic word is fa , as also in the
previous conjunction, which indicates
sequence (i.e. 'and then'). The tafsirs also
take this view, and it is very much reflected
in a sahih hadith found in Bukhari and
Muslim:

Narrated Anas bin Malik:

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said,

"At every womb Allah appoints an angel
who says, 'O Lord! A drop of semen, O
Lord! A clot. O Lord! A little lump of
flesh." Then if Allah wishes (to complete)
its creation, the angel asks, (O Lord!) Will
it be a male or female, a wretched or a
blessed, and how much will his provision
be? And what will his age be?' So all that
 is written while the child is still in the
mother's womb."
Sahih Bukhari 1:6:315

Bones are Formed before Flesh

Main Article: Embryology in the Qur'an

The Qur'an explains that the bones of a

human embryo are formed first and then
covered up with flesh. Modern scientific
studies and research have shown that the
cartilage models and muscles start to
form at the same time and in parallel.
Muscles have started to form before the
cartilage models start to be replaced with
bone.
 Then We made the sperm into a clot of
congealed blood; then of that clot We
made a (foetus) lump; then we made out
of that lump bones then (not and)
clothed the bones with flesh; then we
developed out of it another creature. So
blessed be Allah, the best to create!
Quran 23:14

The Qur'an again parallels the influential

Greek physician Galen, who says:

And now the third period of gestation

has come. After nature has made
outlines of all the organs and the
substance of the semen is used up, the
time has come for nature to articulate
 the organs precisely and to bring all the
parts to completion. Thus it caused flesh
to grow on and around all the bones...
Galen, On semen, p.101

All Organisms are Created in Pairs

Main Article: Qur'anic Claim of

Everything Created in Pairs

Not every creature procreates or

reproduces through male and female
sexual relationship. The whiptail lizard in
the U.S. Southwest, Mexico, and South
America, is an all-females species which
reproduces by parthenogenesis. Viruses
reproduce using a host's DNA and are
neither female nor male. Bacteria
reproduce by cell division. Fungus can
reproduce either sexually or asexually.
Many species of plants also reproduce
either asexually or through pollination.

And of every thing We have created

pairs: That ye may receive instruction.
Quran 51:49

Glory to Allah, Who created in pairs all

things that the earth produces, as well
as their own (human) kind and (other)
things of which they have no knowledge.
Quran 36:36

Fetus is in Three Layers of darkness

The word butun (‫ )ﺑﻄﻦ‬means
belly/abdomen/midriff, though some
translators like to use the more specific
word "womb". Tafsirs interpreted the "three
darknesses" as the placenta, womb
(uterus) and belly. There are in fact many
more layers in the human body such as the
endometrium, myometrium, perimetrium,
peritoneum, besides the cervix uteri,
corpus uteri, abdomen (with walls), and
placenta (with layers). The idea of three
membranes around the fetus (chorion,
allantois, and amnion) was taught by the
highly influential Greek physician, Galen.
Perhaps the Qur'anic author is simply
repeating this idea, which applies only to
the embryonic membranes.

The allantois is a sac-like structure which

becomes part of the umbilical cord, hardly
a 'a darkness' for the embryo. The other
two membranes, the chorion and amnion,
together form the amniotic sac, which is
quite thin and transparent.

He created you from one soul. Then He

made from it its mate, and He produced
for you from the grazing livestock eight
mates. He creates you in the wombs of
your mothers, creation after creation,
within three darknesses. That is Allah,
 your Lord; to Him belongs dominion.
There is no deity except Him, so how are
you averted?
Quran 39:6

Functions of the Heart

In several verses, the Qur'an ascribes

understanding and thinking to the heart
instead of the brain.

And We place upon their hearts veils lest

they should understand it, and in their
ears a deafness; and when thou makest
mention of thy Lord alone in the Qur'an,
they turn their backs in aversion.
Quran 17:46
 Lo! now they fold up their breasts that
they may hide (their thoughts) from Him.
At the very moment when they cover
themselves with their clothing, Allah
knoweth that which they keep hidden
and that which they proclaim. Lo! He is
Aware of what is in the breasts (of men).
Quran 11:5

Source and Purity of Milk

Main Article: Qur'an and Milk

The Qur'an states that milk is produced, in

the body, somewhere between excretions
and blood. The mammary glands, where
milk is produced and stored, are nowhere
near the intestines which is where
excrement is stored. Many kinds of cattle
and goat milk needs processing or
pasteurization before they can safely be
consumed; the milk is often infected with
bacteria and other micro-organisms. A
significant number of humans are lactose
intolerant and unable to digest milk
without experiencing abdominal bloating
and cramps, flatulence, diarrhea, nausea,
or vomiting. This makes the Qur'anic claim
that milk is 'pure' and 'agreeable' to those
who drink it dubious.

And verily in cattle (too) will ye find an

instructive sign. From what is within their
 bodies between excretions and blood,
We produce, for your drink, milk, pure
and agreeable to those who drink it.
Quran 16:66

Geology and Meteorology

The Earth is Flat

Main Article: Flat Earth and the Qur'an

Facing Toward Mecca

The Qur'an tells all Muslims to face in the

direction of the Kaaba in Mecca when they
pray. However, even if you suppose that
alligning yourself with a great circle
around the globe counts as facing the
direction of Mecca, you are simultaneously
facing opposite its direction as the circle
can be traced behind you. Even worse, on
the opposite side of the Earth every
direction is equally facing towards and
away from Mecca. The Americas are
mostly in the hemisphere of this antipode.
There, the rhumb line method is often
preferred because the great circle method
lines across the continent diverge before
they start to converge when they enter the
hemisphere of Mecca, causing people
north and south to face away from each as
they pray. Astronauts in Earth orbit or (one
day) on the Moon and Mars would require
even more contrived solutions. The author
here presupposes a small world, local to
Arabia, that is flat. Only in that world view
can people everywhere face Mecca.

From whencesoever Thou startest forth,

turn Thy face in the direction of the
sacred Mosque; that is indeed the truth
from the Lord. And Allah is not
unmindful of what ye do.
Quran 2:149

Fasting and Prayer Requirements Near

the Poles

Main Article: The Ramadan Pole

Paradox
The Qur'an commands Muslims to fast
from eating and drinking from sunrise till
sunset during Ramadan. The author of the
Qur'an was apparently unfamiliar with the
polar regions in which there are six
months of sunlight and six months of
perpetual night during Summer and Winter.
Such fasting is not observable by anyone
living in the polar regions, and very easy
(depth of Winter) or extremely hard (height
of Summer) in places within around 40
degrees latitude of the poles. Various
contrived rules have been proposed by
Muslim scholars for those at such
latitudes to try to accommodate the
inconvenient fact that we live on a round
Earth.

...Then strictly observe the fast till

nightfall...
Quran 2:187

A similar issue exists for the five daily

prayers. Anyone living in the polar region
would not be able to make a sunset or
sunrise prayer for much of the year. Even
for cities further south like Aberdeen in
Scotland, the gap between the night prayer
(Isha) and the dawn prayer (Fajr) is around
4 and a half hours in June, so anyone
following these rules has to interupt their
sleep around 3.20am, then go back to
sleep before getting up for the day. Such
issues would not have crossed the mind of
a 7th century man in Arabia, who believed
that everyone experiences sunrise and
sunset when he does, and where it would
be perfectly natural to arise at dawn any
time of the year.

Establish regular prayers - at the sun's

decline till the darkness of the night, and
the morning prayer and reading: for the
prayer and reading in the morning carry
their testimony.
Quran 17:78

Earth is Spread Out and Flat

The author of the Qur'an mentions to his
audience that the Earth is 'spread out' and
layed flat. The arabic word here (sataha )
was used to describe making the flat top
or roof of a house or chamber and making
a top surface flat. Words from the same
root mean the flat top surface or roof of a
house or chamber, a flat plane in geometry,
a level place upon which dates can be
spread, a rolling pin (which expands the
dough), plane or flat.

And at the Earth, how it is spread out?

Quran 88:20

The Qur'anic commentary of al-Jalalayn

agrees with this understanding of the
verse saying that most scholars at his
time agree that the earth is flat and not
spherical.

And the earth, how it was laid out flat?,

and thus infer from this the power of
God, exalted be He, and His Oneness?
The commencing with the [mention of]
camels is because they are closer in
contact with it [the earth] than any other
[animal]. As for His words sutihat, 'laid
out flat', this on a literal reading suggests
that the earth is flat, which is the
opinion of most of the scholars of the
[revealed] Law, and not a sphere as
astronomers (ahl al-hay'a) have it, even
 if this [latter] does not contradict any of
the pillars of the Law.
Tafsir al-Jalalayn for verse 88:20

The Earth is a carpet

The arabic word (bisaatan ) used here

means a thing that is spread or spread out
or forth, and particularly a carpet.

And Allah has made the earth for you as

a carpet (spread out)
Quran 71:19

Earth is Like a Couch

The Earth is described using an arabic

word (firashan ) that means a thing that is
spread on the ground to sit or lay upon.

[He] who made for you the earth a bed

[spread out] and the sky a ceiling and
sent down from the sky, rain and brought
forth thereby fruits as provision for you.
So do not attribute to Allah equals while
you know [that there is nothing similar to
Him].
Quran 2:22

Ibn-Kathir in his Tafsir agrees with this

interpretation that the earth is flat and
comfortable like a bed.

who has made the earth as flat and

comfortable as a bed and placed upon it
 mountains standing firm... (Tafsir Ibn
Kathir (Part 1)
Ibn-Kathir

The same root word for couch in 2:22 is

used as a verb in 51.48 in the sense of to
spread (the first word translated spread
here).

And the earth, We have spread it; how

excellent (are) the Spreaders!
Quran 51:48

Earth is a Bed

The Earth is described like a bed (or carpet

in Yusuf Ali's translation) in verse 20:53,
and similarly Quran 43:10 . The arabic
word (mahdan ) suggests something
completely flat and spread out on the
ground and not rolled up for storage.

Who hath appointed the earth as a bed

and hath threaded roads for you therein
and hath sent down water from the sky
and thereby We have brought forth
divers kinds of vegetation
Quran 20:53

Sometimes the same Arabic word is

translated as expanse as in this verse.
Together with the next verse, the Earth is a
thing spread out and pegged down by
mountains.
 Have We not made the earth as a wide
expanse, And the mountains as pegs?
Quran 78:6-7

The same root word is used as a participle

at the end of 51.48

And the earth, We have spread it; how

excellent (are) the Spreaders!
Quran 51:48

The Earth was stretched out

In the verse below, as also in Quran 13:3

and Quran 50:7 , the Qur'an uses a verb
(madadna ) that meant to extend by
drawing or pulling, stretch out, expand.
 And the earth We have spread out (like a
carpet); set thereon mountains firm and
immovable; and produced therein all
kinds of things in due balance.
Quran 15:19

Earth is a Level Plain

The Qur'an describes a time in the future

when mountains will be removed. Verse
18:47 uses an arabic word (baarizatan )
that means "entirely apparent" to describe
the Earth at this time. Verse 20:106 uses
words (qa'an and safsafan ) that mean a
level plain. This description assumes the
Earth is already flat and level with only the
mountains giving it shape. The author here
appears to have no knowledge that the
Earth is round and not level.

And (bethink you of) the Day when we

remove the hills and ye see the earth
emerging, and We gather them together
so as to leave not one of them behind.
Quran 18:47

They will ask thee of the mountains (on

that day). Say: My Lord will break them
into scattered dust. And leave it as an
empty plain, Wherein thou seest neither
curve nor ruggedness.
Quran 20:105-107

Permanent Barrier between Fresh and

Salt Water

Main Article: Meeting of Fresh and Salt

Water in the Quran

When a fresh water river flows into the sea

or ocean, there is a transition region in
between. This transition region is called an
estuary where the fresh water remains
temporarily separated from the salt water.
However, this separation is not absolute
(thus cannot be described as a "barrier"),
is not permanent, and the different salinity
levels between the two bodies of water
eventually homogenize. The Qur'an
however erroneously says that the
seperation between the two types of water
is absolute and permanent.

It is He Who has let free the two bodies

of flowing water: One palatable and
sweet, and the other salt and bitter; yet
has He made a barrier between them, a
partition that is forbidden to be passed.
Quran 25:53

Mountains Prevent Earthquakes

Main Article: The Qur'an and Mountains

Modern geology has discovered that large

plates in the crust of the earth are
responsible for the formation of
mountains. Called Plate tectonic these
massive plates meet and the pressure
between them pushes up the crust
forming mountains but also causing
earthquakes and faults. the Qur'an
propagates the idea that mountains are
crucial in stabilizing the earth when, in
fact, the earth would be much more stable
and have less earthquakes if mountains
did not exist.

And He has set up on the earth

mountains standing firm, lest it should
shake with you; and rivers and roads;
that ye may guide yourselves
Quran 16:15

Mountains Cast into the Earth

Mountains are usually formed through the
movement of lithosphere plates. They
were not thrown down into the earth.

And He hath cast into the earth firm hills

that it quake not with you, and streams
and roads that ye may find a way
Quran 16:15

The word he has cast is alqa (lam-qaf-ya),

which in this form means to throw or cast
down and is the same word used in 12:10
when Yusuf is cast down into the well, and
in 20:20 when Moses casts down his staff,
which becomes a snake.
Chest Contracts with Altitude

Main Article: Qur'an Describes Altitude

Sickness

This verse says that your chest cavity gets

smaller with higher altitude when in reality
the opposite is true.

Those whom Allah (in His plan) willeth to

guide,- He openeth their breast to Islam;
those whom He willeth to leave straying,-
He maketh their breast close and
constricted, as if they had to climb up to
the skies: thus doth Allah (heap) the
penalty on those who refuse to believe.
Quran 6:125
Earthquakes are a Punishment from
God

Main Article: Accidents and Natural

Disasters in the Muslim World

Some of the highest death tolls from

natural disasters in the last decade were in
Muslim countries. In fact, natural disasters
do not differentiate between Muslim or
non-Muslim nations nor are they controlled
by a divine being. Earth quakes are
extremely common along tectonic fault
lines and are not a punishment for human
behavior but the byproduct of natural
forces. The Qur'anic author perpetuates an
unscientific understanding of his
phenomena in there verses.

Do then those who devise evil (plots) feel

secure that Allah will not cause the earth
to swallow them up, or that the Wrath
will not seize them from directions they
little perceive?
Quran 16:45

But they denied him, and the dreadful

earthquake took them, and morning
found them prostrate in their dwelling
place.
Quran 29:37

Hurricanes and Blizzards are a

Punishment from God

Main Article: Accidents and Natural

Disasters in the Muslim World

Two of the deadliest blizzards in history

happened in Muslim countries. However,
the Qur'an regards those natural disasters
as violent punishment from God. Weather
patterns follow predictable patterns and
are not controlled by a divine being.

Do ye then feel secure that He will not

cause you to be swallowed up beneath
the earth when ye are on land, or that He
will not send against you a violent
tornado (with showers of stones) so that
 ye shall find no one to carry out your
affairs for you
Quran 17:68

No Evaporation in Water Cycle

Main Article: Water Cycle in the Qur'an

Every verse about rain in the Qur'an implies

that rain comes either directly from the sky
or from Allah. However the crucial step of
evaporation of water into the air is
conspicuously never mentioned, despite
apologetics claiming that the water cycle
is described in the Qur'an. Condensation
of water is never mentioned. This means
that the author of the Qur'an believed in
clouds and rainfall as a linear process
orchestrated by Allah as opposed to a
cyclic process.

That sends down (from time to time) rain

from the sky in due measure;- and We
raise to life therewith a land that is dead;
even so will ye be raised (from the dead)
Quran 43:11

Mountains of Hail in the Sky

Hail forms in cumulonimbus clouds when

updrafts raise water droplets to an altitude
where they freeze. However, the Qur'anic
author seems to have imagined mountain-
like masses of hail in the sky / heaven.
Hast thou not seen how Allah wafteth
the clouds, then gathereth them, then
maketh them layers, and thou seest the
rain come forth from between them; He
sendeth down from the heaven
mountains wherein is hail, and smiteth
therewith whom He will, and averteth it
from whom He will. The flashing of His
lightning all but snatcheth away the
sight.

Transliteration: wayunazzilu (and he

sends down) mina (from) alssamai (the
sky) min (from) jibalin (mountains) feeha
(in it ['it' is feminine here so must refer to
the sky]) min (of) baradin (hail)
 Quran 24:43

Tafsirs such as Jalalayn and the one

attributed to Ibn Abbas say that this
means mountains in the sky. Ibn Kathir
notes two views, that these are literally
mountains of hail in the sky, or that they
are a metaphor for clouds. Clouds could
poetically be described as mountains in
the sky, but for the verse to literally say
"mountains of hail in the sky" strongly
suggests large masses of ice (in the
clouds or otherwise), and we can see it
being understood in this literal way as
evidenced in tafsirs.
Allah Uses Thunderbolts to Smite
People

The Qur'anic author was superstitious

about thunder and lightning and imagined
that they strike those whom Allah wishes
to smite.

And the thunder declares His glory with

His praise, and the angels too for awe of
Him; and He sends the thunderbolts and
smites with them whom He pleases, yet
they dispute concerning Allah, and He is
mighty in prowess.
Quran 13:13
More light on this verse comes in the
following hadith, graded hasan (good) by
Dar-us-Salam. Muhammad believed the
sound of thunder was an angel striking the
clouds, which he drives along with a piece
of fire.

Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: "The Jews came to

the Prophet (‫ )ﷺ‬and said: 'O Abul-
Qasim! Inform us about the thunder,
what is it?' He said: 'An angel among the
angels, who is responsible for the
clouds. He has a piece of fire wherever
that he drives the clouds wherever Allah
wills.' They said: 'Then what is this noise
we hear?' He said: 'It is him, striking the
 clouds when he drives them on, until it
goes where it is ordered.' They said: 'You
have told the truth.'
Jami` at-Tirmidhi 5:44:3117

Zoology
Ants Recognize Humans and Speak
with Each Other

Ants typically communicate with each

other using pheromone which are a
chemical signal. While scientists have also
discovered that ants make some noises,
nothing has ever indicated that the brains
of ants could produce such complex
communication as is depicted in the
Quranic story of Solomon and the ants.
However, the Qur'an tells us that not only
does an ant warn her fellow ants of the
approach of a large army of humans, but it
recognizes one of the humans as
Solomon. Then, he also understands her
speech. How an ant could even see that
far or have known the identify of Solomon
is never explained. This account of a
talking ant is clearly a legend and not
scientific.

At length, when they came to a (lowly)

valley of ants, one of the ants said: "O ye
ants, get into your habitations, lest
Solomon and his hosts crush you (under
 foot) without knowing it." So he smiled,
amused at her speech; and he said: "O
my Lord! so order me that I may be
grateful for Thy favours, which thou hast
bestowed on me and on my parents, and
that I may work the righteousness that
will please Thee: And admit me, by Thy
Grace, to the ranks of Thy righteous
Servants."
Quran 27:18-19

Only Four Types of Cattle

While the Qur'an states that Allah has

provided four kinds of cattle (eight
including male and female) for use by
humans and for eating, in fact there are
more than a dozen kinds of cattle. The
word "cattle" in 39:6 is al-ana'ami ,
meaning pasturing (i.e. grazing) animals.
The word azwajin ("kinds" in the
translation of 39:6 below) generally means
mate or member of a pair. Quran 6:143-
144 clarifies that this refers to male and
female pairs of sheep, goats, oxes and
camels, so in fact the author of the Qur'an
is aware only of four kinds of cattle useful
for humans (horses, mules and donkeys
are considered distinct from cattle in
Quran 16:5-8 ). This neglects other types
of cattle from the regions outside of
Arabia such as reindeer, which are
important to people in northern latitudes.
He created you from one being, then
from that (being) He made its mate; and
He hath provided for you of cattle eight
kinds. He created you in the wombs of
your mothers, creation after creation, in a
threefold gloom. Such is Allah, your Lord.
His is the Sovereignty. There is no Allah
save Him. How then are ye turned away
Quran 39:6

And of the cattle (He produceth) some

for burdens, some for food. Eat of that
which Allah hath bestowed upon you,
and follow not the footsteps of the devil,
for lo! he is an open foe to you. Eight
pairs: Of the sheep twain, and of the
goats twain. Say: Hath He forbidden the
two males or the two females, or that
which the wombs of the two females
contain? Expound to me (the case) with
knowledge, if ye are truthful. And of the
camels twain and of the oxen twain. Say:
Hath He forbidden the two males or the
two females, or that which the wombs of
the two females contain; or were ye by to
witness when Allah commanded you (all)
this? Then who doth greater wrong than
he who deviseth a lie concerning Allah,
that he may lead mankind astray without
knowledge. Lo! Allah guideth not
wrongdoing folk.
Quran 6:142-144
Horses Created as Transportation

It took thousands of years of

domestication and cross-breeding before
horses were domesticated approximately
4,000 years ago in East Europe and Central
Asia. Prior to this, horses were wild
animals though the Qur'an neglects to
mention this important fact. Even today
feral horses are descendants of once
domesticated horses that aren't tamed or
used for human transportation.

And (He has created) horses, mules, and

donkeys, for you to ride and use for
 show; and He has created (other) things
of which ye have no knowledge.
Quran 16:8

All Animals Live in Communities

The Qur'an is emphatic that all animals live

in communities. Some animals such as
the jaguar or leopard are well known for
being solitary creatures, rarely meeting in
pairs and only to mate. They do not live in
communities and routinely fight each other
over territory.

There are also species even whose young

are not raised as a family, which lay eggs
and abandon them before hatching. Sea
Turtles bury their eggs on a beach and
leave them. When an egg hatches the baby
turtle must dig to the surface and make a
sprint to the sea or perish. Some reptiles
behave similarly. An even better example
is the Carolina anole, which is a lizard
species. They lay just a single egg every 2
weeks, around 10 in total, each taking 5 to
7 weeks to hatch. Anole hatchlings must
fend for themselves and are by nature
solitary creatures from birth.

One translation attempts to interpret

umamun (community / nation) to mean
genus (group of species, plural: genera).
Even supposing this to be the correct
interpretation, it would represent the pre-
scientific understanding in which every
creature can be neatly categorised,
ignorant of the on-going process in which
sub-groups of many species are diverging
and gradually evolving into new species.

There is not an animal (that lives) on the

earth, nor a being that flies on its wings,
but (forms part of) communities like
you. Nothing have we omitted from the
Book, and they (all) shall be gathered to
their Lord in the end.
Quran 6:38

Bird Flight is a Miracle

Today, engineers and scientists are well
aware of the aerodynamic properties of a
bird's wing. It functions by creating a
difference in the air pressure between the
lower and upper part of the wing and this
creates lift that pushes the bird upward.
The wings of birds evolved over millions of
years to acquire this feature. The author of
the Qur'an, however, is unaware of these
scientific details and says that 'nothing'
holds up the bird except the miraculous
power of Allah.

Do they not look at the birds, held poised

in the midst of (the air and) the sky?
Nothing holds them up but (the power
 of) Allah. Verily in this are signs for those
who believe
Quran 16:79

Birth Defects and Imperfections

The author of the Qur'an states that there

are no flaws in anything. The author fails
to mention the numerous defects and
imperfections in all species.

Who hath created seven heavens in

harmony. Thou (Muhammad) canst see
no fault in the Beneficent One's creation;
then look again: Canst thou see any
flaw?
Quran 67:3
History
Wall of Iron between Two Mountains

Main Article: Dhul-Qarnayn

The author of the Qur'an repeats the Syrian

legend of Alexander the Great as a great
king who helps a tribe of people build a
massive wall of iron between two
mountains. Even with satellites and near
universal exploration of the world, no
archaeologist has ever found even a trace
of such a massive structure.

"Bring me blocks of iron." At length, when

he had filled up the space between the
 two steep mountain-sides, He said,
"Blow (with your bellows)" Then, when he
had made it (red) as fire, he said: "Bring
me, that I may pour over it, molten lead."
Thus were they made powerless to scale
it or to dig through it.

Quran 18:96-97

Christians Worship Mary as Part of

the Trinity

Christians have never worshipped Mary as

part of the Trinity. The author of the Qur'an
seems to be mistaken in his
understanding of the doctrine of the Trinity
and the theology of Christians.

And behold! Allah will say: "O Jesus the

son of Mary! Didst thou say unto men,
worship me and my mother as gods in
derogation of Allah'?" He will say: "Glory
to Thee! never could I say what I had no
right (to say). Had I said such a thing,
thou wouldst indeed have known it. Thou
knowest what is in my heart, Thou I
know not what is in Thine. For Thou
knowest in full all that is hidden
Quran 5:116

Further evidence that the author believed

Mary was part of the Christian trinity
appears in Surah Al-Ma'idah when the
subject of the trinity is explicitly
addressed:

They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah

is the Messiah, son of Mary. The
Messiah (himself) said: O Children of
Israel, worship Allah, my Lord and your
Lord. Lo! whoso ascribeth partners unto
Allah, for him Allah hath forbidden
paradise. His abode is the Fire. For evil-
doers there will be no helpers. They
surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is
the third of three; when there is no Allah
save the One Allah. If they desist not
from so saying a painful doom will fall
 on those of them who disbelieve. Will
they not rather turn unto Allah and seek
forgiveness of Him? For Allah is
Forgiving, Merciful. The Messiah, son of
Mary, was no other than a messenger,
messengers (the like of whom) had
passed away before him. And his mother
was a saintly woman. And they both
used to eat (earthly) food. See how We
make the revelations clear for them, and
see how they are turned away!
Quran 5:72-75

It is particularly noteworthy that no other

entity is mentioned (i.e. the holy spirit,
which is the 3rd member of the trinity in
actual Christian doctrine). Verse 75 even
uses the statement that the Messiah and
Marium both ate food to demonstrate that
they are normal humans and not a part of
a divine trinity with Allah.

Samaritans existing in ancient Egypt

The Qu'ran claims that Moses dealt with a

Samaritan during his time, however they
did not exist until over half a millennium
after this even supposedly occurred. The
term Samari itself comes from the city of
Samaria, an archaeologically confirmed
city which was built by King Omri in around
870BC, nearly 700 years after Moses is
supposed to have existed.

“( Allah) said; ‘We have tested thy people

in thy absence: the Samiri has led them
astray’.”
Quran 20:85

“( Moses) said, ‘What then is thy case, O

Samiri?’”
Quran 20:95

These verses concern the story of the

golden calf in the time of Moses. It seems
that Muhammad may have been confused
because there is another Biblical passage
in Hosea 8:5-6 about a much later golden
calf that the Samaritans worshipped after
the time of Solomon.

Mary Confused with Miriam

Main Article: Mary the sister of Aaron in

the Quran

Each of the following verses narrates the

story of Jesus's birth. But Mary the mother
of Jesus was born in the first century BCE
and is not related to Moses and his family
whose story is set 1500 years earlier.
Miriam, not Mary, was the sister of Moses
and Aaron and daughter of Amram
(Imran).
 Then she brought him to her own folk,
carrying him. They said: O Mary! Thou
hast come with an amazing thing. O
sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a
wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.
Quran 19:27-28

And Mary, daughter of 'Imran, whose

body was chaste, therefor We breathed
therein something of Our Spirit. And she
put faith in the words of her Lord and His
scriptures, and was of the obedient.
Quran 66:12

"Daughter of 'Imran" is not a mere figure of

speech about her ancestry - Mary's mother
is described as the wife of 'Imran, and two
verses earlier it is conspicuous that "the
Family of 'Imran" is mentioned after other
famous prophets:

Lo! Allah preferred Adam and Noah and

the Family of Abraham and the Family of
'Imran above (all His) creatures. They
were descendants one of another. Allah
is Hearer, Knower. (Remember) when the
wife of 'Imran said: My Lord! I have
vowed unto Thee that which is in my
belly as a consecrated (offering). Accept
it from me. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the
Hearer, the Knower! And when she was
delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am
delivered of a female - Allah knew best
 of what she was delivered - the male is
not as the female; and lo! I have named
her Mary, and lo! I crave Thy protection
for her and for her offspring from Satan
the outcast.
Quran 3:33-36

Coat of Mail was Invented during the

Reign of David

There is no evidence that coats of

chainmail (as distinct from scale armour)
existed during the time of David (10th
century BCE). The earliest example of a
coat of mail was Celtic and its invention is
commonly credited to the Celts in the 3rd
century BCE.[2]. Mail has also been found
in a 5th century BCE Scythian grave, and
there is a cumbersome Etruscan pattern
mail artifact from the 4th century BCE.[3]
Such artifacts would have been easily
preserved and found by archeologists if
they had existed much earlier. Some older
translations of the Bible mention Goliath
and David wearing a "coat of mail" in 1
Samuel 17:5 and 17:38 respectively. This
is a well known mistranslation for a word
meaning armour in general.

In the Qur'an, David is taught by Allah how

to make coats of iron chainmail
(sabighatin ‫)ﺳ ِﺒ ٰ َﻐ ٍﺖ‬
َ ٰ and to measure the
chainmail links (as-sardi ‫ )ٱﻟﺴ ْﺮ ِد‬thereof. It
says people should be thankful for this
knowledge which has been passed down
from him.

And assuredly We gave David grace from

Us, (saying): O ye hills and birds, echo his
psalms of praise! And We made the iron
supple unto him, Saying: Make thou long
coats of mail and measure the links
(thereof). And do ye right. Lo! I am Seer
of what ye do.
Quran 34:10-11

And We made Solomon to understand

(the case); and unto each of them We
gave judgment and knowledge. And we
subdued the hills and the birds to hymn
 (His) praise along with David. We were
the doers (thereof). And We taught him
the art of making garments (of mail) to
protect you in your daring. Are ye then
thankful?
Quran 21:79-80

Crucifixions in Ancient Egypt

There are no references from any culture

anywhere in the world to crucifixion as a
method of execution before 500 BCE,
where they started to appear in several
middle eastern cultures. However, the
Qur'an tells of crucifixions at the time of
Joseph (approximately 2000 BCE) and
Moses (approximately 1500 BCE).
Ancient Egypt has been extensively
studied in archaeology. While there is
hieroglyphic evidence of people impaled
through upright stakes in ancient Egypt,
this is a distinct execution method from
the crucifixion on palm trees in the
Qur'anic story. Palm trees are far too thick
to be used as upright stakes for impaling a
person from above, so no-one would
choose palm trees for such a purpose.
Rather, the Egyptians would have to impale
the victim to the side of the palm tree
trunk in the Qur'an's anachronistic tale.

O two companions of prison, as for one

of you, he will give drink to his master of
 wine; but as for the other, he will be
crucified, and the birds will eat from his
head. The matter has been decreed
about which you both inquire."
Quran 12:41

(Pharaoh) said: Ye put faith in him before

I give you leave. Lo! he is your chief who
taught you magic. Now surely I shall cut
off your hands and your feet alternately,
and I shall crucify you on the trunks of
palm trees, and ye shall know for certain
which of us hath sterner and more
lasting punishment.
Quran 21:71

Noah's Flood
Islamic websites try to escape the
embarrassment that the Qur'an contains
an un-historical, world-wide flood story as
found in the Bible and ancient near-
Eastern mythology. They claim instead
that the textual evidence supports nothing
more than a regional flood in the Qur'anic
story of Noah. There are many severe
weaknesses in this claim.

If the flood was not world-wide then why

was Noah instructed to spend time
building a boat at all when he could have
just taken his family out of the flood region
with sufficient warning? Animals in the
region could have done likewise by the
same kind of miracle needed to bring them
all to an ark.

At length, behold! there came Our

command, and the fountains of the earth
gushed forth! We said: "Embark therein,
of each kind two, male and female, and
your family - except those against whom
the word has already gone forth,- and the
Believers." but only a few believed with
him.
Quran 11:40

Why would Noah have to put every kind of

animal on the ark to save them when there
would have been more members of most
species elsewhere in the world, unaffected
by the regional flood?

The son replied: "I will betake myself to

some mountain: it will save me from the
water." Noah said: "This day nothing can
save, from the command of Allah, any
but those on whom He hath mercy! "And
the waves came between them, and the
son was among those overwhelmed in
the Flood.
Quran 11:43

A mountain, or simply fleeing the region

would be enough to save someone from a
regional flood, but this verse says nothing
can save them.
 And Noah, said: "O my Lord! Leave not of
the Unbelievers, a single one on earth!
Quran 71:26

"The Earth" here could also be translated

"the land", but why would Noah only care
about a single region of disbelievers?

The story of Noah was a famous myth of a

world-wide flood. At very least it is a major
weakness that the Qur'an makes no
attempt to distinguish itself from the same
world-wide flood myth that its listeners
were familiar with.

Noah's Ark holds Every Species

The legend of Noah and the Ark states
that two of each kind of animal was
placed on an ark. However, there are over a
hundred thousand species of animals
including penguins, polar bears, koala
bears, and kangaroos that live spread
across the entire planet and in different
climates and requiring specialized diets.
There is no way such an event could have
occurred.

At length, behold! there came Our

command, and the fountains of the earth
gushed forth! We said: "Embark therein,
of each kind two, male and female, and
your family - except those against whom
 the word has already gone forth,- and the
Believers." but only a few believed with
him.
Quran 11:40

Pharaoh or Pharaohs

Geographically, the Coptic land of Egypt

was adjacent to Arabia. Thus, most Arabs
were aware of the preservation method
applied by the ancient Egyptian to their
Pharaohs. They were preserved intact
using methods such as salt to dry the
body (hence salt in the body of Ramesses
II is not evidence that he drowned in the
sea). There were many Pharaohs ranging
from numerous dynasties who were
preserved in this way, but the Qur'an
merely narrated one un-named Pharaoh
who would be preserved as a sign.

This day shall We save thee in the body,

that thou mayest be a sign to those who
come after thee! but verily, many among
mankind are heedless of Our Signs!"
Quran 10:92

Jews call Ezra the Son of God

Historically, Judaism has been a strict

form of monotheism. But the author of the
Qur'an accuses Jews of polytheism by
stating that they call Uzair (Ezra) the son
of God in the same way that Christians see
Jesus as the son of God. The author of the
Qur'an seems to be unaware of the
different theological implications of these
two terms between Judaism and
Christianity.

The Jews call 'Uzair a son of Allah, and

the Christians call Christ the son of
Allah. That is a saying from their mouth;
(in this) they but imitate what the
unbelievers of old used to say. Allah's
curse be on them: how they are deluded
away from the Truth!
Quran 9:30

Nobody before John the Baptist was

given the name "John"
The name "John" originates from the
Hebrew name Yohanan. Several figures in
the Old Testament bore this name. To
quote historical examples, there was a
high priest named Johanan (3rd century
BC) and a ruler named John Hyrcanus
(died 104 BC). These people existed
before John the Baptist, who was a
contemporary of Jesus. But the Qur'an
claims that nobody before John the
Baptist (Yahya in Arabic) bore his name.

(It was said unto him): O Zachariah! Lo!

We bring thee tidings of a son whose
name is John; we have given the same
name to none before (him).
 Quran 19:7

Supernatural Destruction of Cities

The author of the Qur'an thought that

outside the vicinity of Arabia there were
cities and tribes destroyed by Allah for
rejecting his messengers and Islam. In
each specific example in the Qur'an (A'ad,
Thamud, Midian, the people of Lot,
Pharoah's army), the destruction of the
disbelievers is sudden and total. Thanks to
today's scientific progress, historical cities
and tribes are known to have been
destroyed by natural disasters, famine,
wars, migration, or neglect, often taking
years or decades to unfold. But the Qur'an
merely repeats a common myth of the
ancient Near East whereby these incidents
are treated as swift and sudden
punishments by God for people's sins.

And how many a township have We

destroyed because it had been
immersed in evildoing - and now they
[all] lie deserted, with their roofs caved
in! And how many a well lies abandoned,
and how many a castle that [once] stood
high!
Quran 22:45

The suddenness of Allah's punishment is

stressed many times in Surah al-A'raf:
How many a township have We
destroyed! As a raid by night, or while
they slept at noon, Our terror came unto
them.
Quran 7:4

And every nation hath its term, and when

its term cometh, they cannot put it off an
hour nor yet advance (it).
Quran 7:34

Are the people of the townships then

secure from the coming of Our wrath
upon them as a night-raid while they
sleep? Or are the people of the
townships then secure from the coming
 of Our wrath upon them in the daytime
while they play?
Quran 7:97-98

In the Qur'an, the people of Thamud were

killed instantly by an earthquake Quran
7:78 or thunderous blast Quran 11:67 ,
Quran 41:13-17 , Quran 51:44 , Quran
69:5 . The people of A'ad were killed by a
fierce wind for 7 days Quran 41:13-
16 ,Quran 46:24-35 ,Quran 51:41 , Quran
69:6-7 . The people of Midian (Midyan)
were killed overnight by an earthquake
Quran 7:91 , Quran 29:36 . The towns of
Lot were destroyed by a storm of stones
from the sky Quran 54:32 , Quran 29:34 .
The actual locations of these towns or
tribes are currently unknown, and Midian
was a wide geographical area, so claims
about their sudden demise may always be
unfalsifiable. Many other polytheist towns
throughout the world certainly did not
experience any sudden destruction.

Humans can Live for a Thousand

Years

The oldest verified human life has been a

little over 120 years. Based on fossil
records and testing on human remains,
anthropologists have concluded that
human life spans are increasing, not
decreasing. Nevertheless, the Qur'an
claims that Noah lived for almost 1,000
years.

We (once) sent Noah to his people, and

he tarried among them a thousand years
less fifty: but the Deluge overwhelmed
them while they (persisted in) sin.
Quran 29:14

Non-Existent Mosque in Jerusalem

Muslims claim that Al-Aqsa mosque is

mentioned in the Qur'an as the furthest
mosque, even though there was obviously
no mosque in Jerusalem during
Muhammad's time.
 Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant
for a Journey by night from the Sacred
Mosque to the farthest Mosque, whose
precincts We did bless,- in order that We
might show him some of Our Signs: for
He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all
things).
Quran 17:1

Sociology
Linguistics

And He taught Adam the names - all of

them. Then He showed them to the
angels and said, "Inform Me of the
names of these, if you are truthful."
 Quran 2:31

The Qu'ran states that the first humans

"Adam and Eve" spoke to each other in
some kind of language in many suras, and
also that God told them the names of
everything. Thanks to the modern field of
linguistics and the history of language we
know that the type of sentences
constructed in the Qu'ran would simply not
have been able to be spoken by humans
until over 100,000 years since the first
humans evolved. The language of the first
humans would be incomprehensible to us
and they would not be able to express the
kinds of sentences that Adam and Eve do
in the Qu'ran.

Allah taught Adam the names of all things.

Does he know how long it takes to speak
these names? Some 1.9 million species of
plants and animals have been identified
and named, out of some 8.7 million that
may actually exist.[4] Millions more have
become extinct. Let us not even talk about
the names of non-living objects, galaxies,
the countless stars and planets of the
universe.

People are Protected in Mecca

Main Article: Hajj

The Qur'an claims Allah has made Mecca
and the Ka'aba a place of safety. However,
historically it has been attacked and seen
battles numerous times. Juhayman al-
Otaybi, Abd-Allah ibn al-Zubayr, and Abu
Tahir al-Janabi killed thousands of Muslim
pilgrims in Mecca. Moreover, Yazid Bin
Muawiya sent an army battalion to attack
Mecca and desecrated the Ka'aba. The
universal safety of people in Mecca has no
historical evidence supporting it.

Remember We made the House a place

of assembly for men and a place of
safety; and take ye the station of
Abraham as a place of prayer; and We
covenanted with Abraham and Isma'il,
that they should sanctify My House for
those who compass it round, or use it as
a retreat, or bow, or prostrate themselves
(therein in prayer).
Quran 2:125

Allah made the Ka'ba, the Sacred House,

an asylum of security for men, as also
the Sacred Months, the animals for
offerings, and the garlands that mark
them: That ye may know that Allah hath
knowledge of what is in the heavens and
on earth and that Allah is well
acquainted with all things.
Quran 5:97
Requirement to Learn in Arabic

There are over 5,000 languages and

dialects in the world, with less than 4% of
the world's population being native Arabic
speakers. Moreover, even native speakers
of modern Arabic in its various dialects
need additional study to be able to
understand well the Qur'anic Arabic from
which the modern language developed.
Even then, both Muslim and non-Muslim
scholars acknowledge that the meaning of
certain words, and historical allusions in
the Qur'an have become lost or have
always been uncertain (as indeed anyone
familiar with the discussions of competing
interpretations in the tafsirs will be aware).

However, it is incumbent upon Muslims to

pray in Arabic, recite the Qur'an in Arabic,
and understand commentaries and the
traditions of Muhammad in classical
Arabic. We are left wondering why an all-
knowing being would not provide a more
efficient way to send his message to all
people on earth and why he does not
account for the immense diversity of
languages.

We have made it a Qur'an in Arabic, that

ye may be able to understand (and learn
 wisdom).
Quran 43:3

Myths and Legendary Tales

While miracles by definition are supposed
to defy the laws of nature and scientific
explanation, it is interesting to observe
some of the strange and absurd myths
and legends in the Qur'an.

Humans Transformed into Apes

The Qur'an records a miraculous event

where Sabbath breakers are transformed
into apes. This account seems to be a
mere legend and has no basis in scientific
fact.

And well ye knew those amongst you

who transgressed in the matter of the
Sabbath: We said to them: "Be ye apes,
despised and rejected."
Quran 2:65

Golden Calf Statue Moos

A statue of a calf was cast out of

ornaments but it could moo.

So he brought forth for them a calf, a

(mere) body, which had a mooing sound,
 so they said: This is your god and the
god of Musa, but he forgot.
Quran 20:88

Tribes Trapped Behind a Wall

Main Article: Dhul-Qarnayn

The story of Dhul-Qarnayn says that two

tribes are trapped behind a massive wall
of Iron. According to the Qur'an, these two
beast tribes were trapped by Dhul-Qarnayn
behind this metal wall and will only be let
free on the day of Judgement. Obviously,
no such wall has ever been found nor are
there tribes somewhere on earth trapped
behind it.
 Until the Gog and Magog (people) are let
through (their barrier), and they swiftly
swarm from every hill.
Quran 21:96

Supernatural Food

Main Article: Parallelism Between the

Qur'an and Judeo-Christian Scriptures

The Qur'an states Mary received food sent

down from heaven. There have never been
any scientifically verified accounts of fully
cooked food falling from the sky.

Jesus, son of Mary, said: O Allah, Lord of

us! Send down for us a table spread with
food from heaven, that it may be a feast
 for us, for the first of us and for the last
of us, and a sign from Thee. Give us
sustenance, for Thou art the Best of
Sustainers.
Quran 5:114

A Stick Transforms into a Serpent

Main Article: Parallelism Between the

Qur'an and Judeo-Christian Scriptures

Then (Moses) threw his rod, and behold!

it was a serpent, plain (for all to see)!
Quran 7:107

Solomon's Army of Genies and Birds

Throughout history, kings and emperors
had commanded huge and small amount
of armies. None was ever recorded to
possess armies that entirely consists of
birds and genies. This story in the Qur'an
draws on Jewish folklore.

And Solomon was David's heir. He said:

"O ye people! We have been taught the
speech of birds, and on us has been
bestowed (a little) of all things: this is
indeed Grace manifest (from Allah.)And
before Solomon were marshalled his
hosts― of Jinns and men and birds, and
they were all kept in order and ranks.
Quran 27:16-17
He spoke with a Hoopoe bird and wanted
to punish it for a small error.

And he took a muster of the Birds; and

he said: "Why is it I see not the Hoopoe?
Or is he among the absentees? I will
certainly punish him with a severe
Penalty, or execute him, unless he bring
me a clear reason (for absence).
Quran 27:20-22

The Hoopoe bird was in fact busy

eavesdropping on a beautiful female ruler,
Queen Sheba.

I found (there) a woman ruling over them

and provided with every requisite; and
 she has a magnificent throne.
Quran 27:23

Jonah Performs Repentance inside a

Fish

A human could not live inside a fish and

pray.

Then the big Fish did swallow him, and

he had done acts worthy of blame. Had it
not been that he (repented and) glorified
Allah,He would certainly have remained
inside the Fish till the Day of
Resurrection.But We cast him forth, on
the naked shore in a state of sickness
Quran 37:142
Muhammad Flies on a Winged Horse
to Heaven

Main Article: Buraq

It took one week to travel from Mecca to

the Farthest Mosque by camel. But the
Qur'an reveals that a magical winged
horse, called the Buraq, traveled a similar
distance in a matter of minutes. No such
creature has ever been shown to be real
and it seems to only exist in legend and
mythology.

Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant

for a Journey by night from the Sacred
Mosque to the farthest Mosque, whose
 precincts We did bless,- in order that We
might show him some of Our Signs: for
He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all
things).
Quran 17:1

Body Parts Speak

The limbs and organs of a human are

controlled by the brain that conveys
electrical signal through the nervous
system. But the Qur'an believes that the
limbs can talk and testify against the
person, even though they would have no
voice, memory or mind of their own.
 On the Day when their tongues, their
hands, and their feet will bear witness
against them as to their actions.
Quran 24:24

Sea Split in Half

Moses and the Israelites crossed a sea

that was split into two halves.

And remember We divided the sea for

you and saved you and drowned
Pharaoh's people within your very sight.
Quran 2:50

Solomon can Control the Wind

King Solomon had the authority to
manipulate the wind at his command and
could fly anywhere he wanted.

Then We subjected the wind to his

power, to flow gently to his order,
Whithersoever he willed
Quran 38:36

A flying carpet made from wood, on top

of which he could carry everything in his
kingdom including chairs, to wherever
Solomon wants to go, whilst flocks of
birds would fly over to give shade
Tafsir Ibn-Kathir on 21:81

A Dead Man Testified against his

Killer

Allah told some people to hit a murder

victim with a piece of cow to temporarily
resurrect him.

And We said: Smite him with some of it.

Thus Allah bringeth the dead to life and
showeth you His portents so that ye may
understand.
Quran 2:73

Mountains and Birds can Sing Songs

And assuredly We gave David grace from

Us, (saying): O ye hills and birds, echo his
 psalms of praise! And We made the iron
supple unto him
Quran 34:10

Others
Mathematical Error in Hereditary
Laws

4.11: Allah (thus) directs you as regards

your Children's (Inheritance): to the male,
a portion equal to that of two females: if
only daughters, two or more, their share
is two-thirds of the inheritance; if only
one, her share is a half. For parents, a
sixth share of the inheritance to each, if
the deceased left children; if no children,
and the parents are the (only) heirs, the
mother has a third; if the deceased Left
brothers (or sisters) the mother has a
sixth. (The distribution in all cases ('s)
after the payment of legacies and debts.
Ye know not whether your parents or
your children are nearest to you in
benefit. These are settled portions
ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-
knowing, Al-wise.

4.12: In what your wives leave, your

share is a half, if they leave no child; but
if they leave a child, ye get a fourth; after
payment of legacies and debts. In what
ye leave, their share is a fourth, if ye
leave no child; but if ye leave a child, they
get an eighth; after payment of legacies
and debts. If the man or woman whose
inheritance is in question, has left neither
ascendants nor descendants, but has
left a brother or a sister, each one of the
two gets a sixth; but if more than two,
they share in a third; after payment of
legacies and debts; so that no loss is
caused (to any one). Thus is it ordained
by Allah; and Allah is All-knowing, Most
Forbearing.
Quran 4:11-12

Wife: 1/8 = 3/24,

Daughters: 2/3 = 16/24,
 Father: 1/6 = 4/24,
Mother: 1/6 = 4/24,
Total = 27/24=1.125

The total does not equal to 1. This error

can never be reconciled in any way. [5]

People use the Forehead to Lie

Main Article: Qur'an and the Lying

Prefrontal Cerebrum

According to a particularly imaginative

miracle claim made by some Islamic
websites, the Qur'an identifies which part
of the brain is used for telling lies. Brain
wave technology has shown that electrical
activity happens in the entire brain when a
person is being deceitful.

Let him beware! If he desist not, We will

drag him by the forelock. A lying, sinful
forelock.
Quran 96:15-16

References
1. Harrison's principles of internal medicine.
(17th ed. ed.). New York [etc.]: McGraw-Hill
Medical. pp. 2339–2346. ISBN 978-0-07-
147693-5, 2008.
2. Richard A. Gabriel, The ancient world ,
Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007 P.79
3. Robinson, H. R., Oriental Armour , New
York:Dover Publications, 1995, pp.10-12
4. Mora, C. (August 23, 2011). "How Many
Species Are There on Earth and in the
Ocean? ". PLoS Biology 9: e1001127.
doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001127 . PMID
21886479. PMC:3160336 .

See Also
Contradictions and Errors - A hub page
that leads to other articles related to
Contradictions and Errors
Scientific Errors in the Qur'an
(Response)
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