Deep sea currents

In the Qur'an we read:

"Or as darkness on a vast, abysmal sea. There covers it a wave, above which is a wave, above which is a cloud. Layer upon layer of darkness."

The noble Qur'an, Al-Noor(24):40.

Mankind began to build submersibles in the seventeenth century. The first crude craft known to have ventured underwater was built by Cornelis Drebbel, court engineer to James I of England, and was demonstrated on the Thames river in 1620. From then onwards, development of submarines continued until the twentieth century, or 1954 to be exact, when the first nuclear submarine became a reality. With mankind's study of the sea came the realization that the waters lying underneath the surface waves were not the place of tranquil calmness they were previously envisioned to be. Rather, there were underwater currents called deep sea currents which could at times become such violent storms as to rearrange sediments in the ocean bottom. How did Muhammad (pbuh) know about these underwater currents centuries before mankind invented the tools necessary for underwater exploration?

"Say: It was sent down by He who knows the secrets in the heavens and the earth."

The noble Qur'an, Al-Furqaan(25):6.

It is worth mentioning here in connection with the above verse that some scientists have interpreted the "layer upon layer of darkness" to be the gradual separation of the light spectrum within the ocean, one color at a time until complete darkness is finally achieved. In other words, at one depth, the yellow bandwidth is suppressed and "yellow darkness" is achieved. At another depth, the red bandwidth is suppressed and "red darkness" is achieved, and so forth.

There are many other scientific statements made in the Qur'an which were only discovered to be scientifically accurate many centuries after Muhammad's death. Many of them have only been discovered in this century. They range over many fields of science including Anatomy, Chemistry, Astronomy, Geology, Hydrology, and many other disciplines which are only beginning to be addressed by scientists today.

For example, the Qur'an makes reference to the fact that a human's pain receptors are located in the skin (Al-Nissa(4):56). That the frontal lobes of the brain are responsible for lying and sin (Al-Alak(96):16). That mountains have below them roots that extend deep into the earth's surface (Al-Naba(78):7). That mountains pin the earth's crust and prevent it from moving (Al-Nahil(16):15). That there exists a physical barrier between bodies of fresh and salt water (Al-Rahman (55):20). There is also information regarding the formation of milk in cows (Al-Nahi(16):66). And on and on. So where was Muhammad (pbuh) getting all of these scientific facts if not from the Creator of mankind and the universe? Allah Almighty askes:

"Is this sorcery or is it that you do not see?"

The noble Qur'an, Al-Tur (52):15.



Prof. Keith Moore is not the only scholar who has been presented with such verses of the Qur'an. Many other scholars from all over the world have been presented with similar statements from the Qur'an in their field of expertise. Only a few of these people are:

1) Dr. E. Marshall Johnson, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, and the Director of the Daniel Baugh Institute, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, USA. Author of over 200 publications. Former President of the Teratology Society among other accomplishments. After studying the verses of the Qur'an he came to the following conclusion:

"The Qur'an describes not only the development of external form but emphasizes also the internal stages - the stages inside the embryo of its creation and development, emphasizing major events recognized by contemporary science... If I was to transpose myself into that era, knowing what I do today and describing things, I could not describe the things that were described... I see no evidence to refute the concept that this individual Muhammad had to be developing this information from some place... so I see nothing in conflict with the concept that divine intervention was involved..."

2) Dr. Joe Leigh Simpson. Professor and Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Baylor Collage of Medicine, Houston, Texas. He is the President of the American Fertility Society, and has served in many other professional, national, and international organizations. He has received numerous awards including Association of Professors of Obstetrics and Gynecology Public Recognition Award in 1992. He has published more than 400 chapters and articles in journals and books. He says:

"... these Hadeeths (sayings of Muhammad) could not have been obtained on the basis of the scientific knowledge that was available at the time of the writer'... It follows that not only is there no conflict between genetics and religion (Islam) but in fact religion (Islam) may guide science by adding revelation to some of the traditional scientific approaches... There exist statements in the Qur'an shown centuries later to be valid which support knowledge in the Qur'an having been derived from God."

3) Dr. T.V.N. Persaud. Professor and Head of the Department of Anatomy, Professor of Pediatrics and Child Health, and Associate Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He is the author and editor of 25 books, has contributed 31 chapters to publications, and has published over 180 scientific papers. In 1991 he received the most distinguished award presented in the field of anatomy in Canada, the J.C.B. Grant Award from the Canadian Association of Anatomists. He says:

"Muhammad was a very ordinary man, he couldn't read, didn't know how to write, in fact he was an illiterate... were talking about 1400 years ago, you have some illiterate person making profound statements that are amazingly accurate, of a scientific nature... I personally can't see how this could be mere chance, there are too many accuracies and like Dr. Moore, I have no difficulty in my mind reconciling that this is a divine inspiration or revelation which lead him to these statements."

4) After a study which lasted ten years, the famous French physician Maurice Bucaille addressed the French Academy of Medicine in 1976 and expressed the complete agreement of the Qur'an and established findings of modern science. He presented his study on the existence in the Qur'an of certain statements concerning physiology and reproduction. His reason for doing that was that

"our knowledge of these disciplines is such, that it is impossible to explain how a text produced at the time of the Qur'an could have contained ideas that have only been discovered in modern times."

5) Dr. Tejatet Tejasen, Head of the Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chiang Mai, Thailand. After his study on the Qur'an passages dealing with embryology:

"From my studies and what I have learnt at this conference I believe that everything that has been recorded in the Qur'an 1400 years ago must be true. That can be proved the scientific way."

Others include:

6) Dr. Gerald C. Goeringer. Professor and Coordinator of Medical Embryology in the Department of Cell Biology in the Georgetown University school of Medicine. Washington, D.C. He has published numerous articles dealing mainly with the study of teratogenesis.

7) Dr. Alfred Kroner, Professor of Geology, Germany.

8) Dr. Yoshiodi Kozan, Director of the observatory of Tokyo, Japan.

9) Dr. William Hay, Professor of Oceanography, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado.

10) Dr. Pete Palmer, Professor of Geology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado.

11) Dr. Sayawida, Professor of Marine Geology, Japan.

12) Dr. Armstrong, Professor of Astronomy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.

13) Dr. Draga Persaud Rauw, Professor of Marine Geology, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

14) Dr. Schroeder, Professor of Oceanography, Germany.


The response of these scholars when presented with verses of the Qur'an in their field of specialization, varied. One thing however was always constant. They all confirmed the accuracy of the scientific statements made in the Qur'an, and they all could not explain how Muhammad (pbuh) could have known with such accuracy the scientific claims to be found in the Qur'an so many centuries before mankind discovered them to be scientific truths.

Allah Almighty tells us in the Qur'an: "Allah did not create (all) that except in truth. He details the signs for people of knowledge." The noble Qur'an, Yunus(10):5

"And those who were given knowledge see that which was sent down upon you by your Lord is the truth and guides to the path of the 'Exalted' (in Might) the 'worthy of all praise'."

The noble Qur'an, Saba(34):6.


"Had We sent down this Qur'an upon a mountain, you would surely have seen it humbling itself and rending asunder for fear of Allah. Such are the parables We put forth for mankind that they may reflect."

The noble Qur'an, Al-Hashr(59):21

"Verily! this Qur'an guides to that which is most upright, and gives glad tidings to the believers who work deeds of righteousness that theirs will be a great reward"

The noble Qur'an, Al-Isra(17):9

"And We have indeed simplified [the comprehension of] this Qur'an for remembrance, so is there any that will remember [and be admonished]?"

The noble Qur'an, Al-Qamar(54):17



To obtain a more in-depth analysis of these matters including video tapes containing interviews with many of these pioneering Western scholars, contact one of the following (ask for the video tape titled "It is the Truth"):

1) Islamic Academy for Scientific Research.
8150 West 111 Street
Palos Hills, IL 60465
U.S.A.
Phone: (708) 974-9151

2) Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)
P.O. Box 38
Plainfield, Indiana, 46168
U.S.A.
Phone: (317) 839-8157

3) Academy for the Miracles of Science in the Qur'an and the Sunnah
P.O. Box 5736
Makkah Al-Mukarramah
Saudi Arabia
Phone: (2) 545-1519

Also look for the books:
"The Bible, the Qur'an and Science," by Dr. Maurice Bucaille
"The Qur'an and Modern Science," by Dr. Maurice Bucaille
"An Introduction to Understanding the Qur'an," by Syed Abdul A'ala Maudoodi
"The Sources of the Qur'an: A Critical Review of the Authorship Theories," by Hamza Mustafa Njozi
"Muhammad's Prophethood: An Analytical View," by Dr. Jamal Badawi