What does the Koran say about water?
What does the Koran say about water?
The storage of water inside the Earth
Scientists have explained that the amount of sweet water stored beneath the surface of the Earth is far greater than the amount of water we see in lakes, rivers and seas. Although this is a relatively recent discovery, it is a fact that had already been acknowledged in the Koran (meaning): “And We send the fecundating winds, then cause the rain to descend from the sky, therewith providing you with water (in abundance), though ye are not the guardians of its stores.” (Sura Al-Hijr, ayah 22). Indeed, it has been proven that winds are one of the factors that ‘provoke’ the existence of clouds, and that rain water, despite a complicated process, manages to be stored in the depths of the Earth!
The source of water
Granite rocks, despite their compactness and solid nature, and despite the absence of holes on their surface, nevertheless allow the passage of water through ever-so small pores inside of them. This special feature allows water that falls from the sky to be stored below the Earth’s surface after its passage through the pores of these rocks. And if it were not for this feature that God granted these rocks, water, our source of life, could not have been stored into the depths of the Earth.
Beautifully, the Koran has pointed to this source of pure water (meaning): “And We send down water from the sky according to (due) measure, and We cause it to soak in the soil; and We certainly are able to drain it off (with ease).” (Sura Al-Mu’minun, ayah 18). This verse is but a confirmation that the water contained on Earth is nothing more than rain water; something that has been scientifically proven! This fact, however, had not been discovered during the time the Koran was revealed, so who could have informed the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) of such knowledge?
Let free the two bodies
Scientists have discovered water barriers which divide salty and sweet water in downstream areas. This is one of the scientific phenomena that preserve ecological balance and the Koran magnificently portrays this beautiful phenomenon (meaning): “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.” (Sura Al-Furqan, ayah 53). Modern science has proven that thanks to this well-established partition, salty sea water never crosses its limits and trespasses upon sweet water.
There are in fact water barriers between every two seas that meet on the face of the Earth! For instance, between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean lies a strait called the Mandab Strait (or “Bab-el-Mandeb” in Arabic). This strait is the point at which the Red Sea and Indian Ocean meet. However, it stretches for several kilometers and acts as a barrier which divides these two bodies of water in order for each one to preserve its own temperature, salinity and density. Each body of water keeps its own properties and they never mix nor trespass upon each other! And the Koran specifically refers to this amazing fact (meaning): “He has let free the two bodies of flowing water, meeting together: Between them is a Barrier which they do not transgress.” (Sura Al-Rahman, ayat 19-20). And just as the Koran says that God has “let free the two bodies of flowing water”, science has indeed shown that although two bodies of water like the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean can and do meet, their properties never mix, despite the existence of these seas and oceans for thousands of years!
No one year has more rain than another one
Allah stated in Glorious Koran, Sura al-Hijr (Stone land, Rock City)? Ayah 21 (meaning): “And there is not a thing but its (sources and) treasures (inexhaustible) are with Us; but We only send down thereof in due and ascertainable measures.” Commentators of the Glorious Koran say, “There is no more rain in one year or less than other years. But, some people get rain while others are deprived.” This interpretation was the opinion of our scholars more than seven centuries ago at a time when Europe was rich in myths and superstition. Our scholars have understood the Book of Allah and the Sunna of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), to learn that the amount of rainfall every year is fixed and does not change. This is what scientists in the twentieth century have discovered. Our question to those skeptics who believe that the Koran is an ordinary book is: Where did Ibn Katheer (the renowned scholar of interpretation of Koran) who lived in the sixth century AH acquire such information from? The answer is simply, from the Koran and Sunna of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who is reported to have said, ‘There is no specific year that has more rainfall than another, but rather Allah, the Almighty distributes it [i.e. the rainfall].’ (Narrated by Al-Hakim). Research has proven that the rainfall average is fixed on annual basis.
