RAMADAN 2005 The 26th Day

2534

18 Şubat, 2018

Ayat of the Day

Those who submit themselves completely to Allah and do good have grasped the Firmest Handhold. The end result of all affairs is with Allah. (Surah Luqman: 22)

Hadith of the Day:

"The most perfect believer in respect of faith is he who is best of them in manners." (Abu Dawud)

Miracles of the Qur’an:

THE CITY OF IRAM

At the beginning of 1990, press-releases in the well-known newspapers of the world declared "Fabled Lost Arabian city found," "Arabian city of Legend found" and "The Atlantis of the Sands, Ubar." What rendered this archaeological find particularly intriguing was the fact that this city is mentioned in the Qur'an. Many people had previously suggested ‘Ad was a legend or that the location in question could never be found. Such people could not conceal their astonishment at this phenomenal discovery.

It was Nicholas Clapp, a noted documentary filmmaker and a lecturer on archaeology, who found this legendary city mentioned in the Qur'an. Being an Arabophile and a winning documentary film maker, Clapp had come across a very interesting book during his research on Arabian history. This book was Arabia Felix, written by the English researcher Bertram Thomas in 1932. Arabia Felix was the Roman designation for the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula which today includes Yemen and much of Oman. The Greeks called this area "Eudaimon Arabia" and medieval Arab scholars called it "Al-Yaman as-Sa`eed." All of these names mean "Happy Yemen," because the people living in that region used to serve as middlemen in the lucrative spice trade between India and places north of the Arabian Peninsula. In addition, the people living in this region produced and distributed "frankincense," an aromatic resin from rare trees.

The English researcher Thomas described these tribes at length and claimed that he found the traces of an ancient city founded by one of these tribes. This was the city known as "Ubar" by the Bedouins. In one of the trips he made to the region, the Bedouins living in the desert had shown him well-worn tracks and stated that these tracks led toward the ancient city of Ubar. Thomas, who showed great interest in the subject, died before being able to complete his research.

Clapp, who examined what the English researcher Thomas wrote, was convinced of the existence of the lost city described in the book. He quickly started his research, attempting to carry on from where Thomas had left the project. Clapp took two different approaches in his mission to prove the existence of Ubar. First, he found the tracks which the Bedouins said existed and in order to aid his work, he applied to NASA to provide the satellite images of the area. After a long struggle, he succeeded in persuading the authorities to take the pictures of the region he so craved.

Clapp went on to study the ancient manuscripts and maps in the Huntington library in California. Here, he quickly found a map covering the region he was studying so intensely. He found a map drawn by the Greek-Egyptian geographer Ptolemy in 200, which showed the location of an old city found in the region and the paths which actually led up to this city.

Meanwhile, his research received a further boost when he received the news that satellite photographs had been taken by members of NASA. In the pictures, caravan trails, which were virtually invisible to the naked eye, caught Clapp's attention. They could only be seen as a whole from the sky. Comparing these pictures with the old map he had in hand, Clapp immediately realized that the trails in the old map corresponded with the trails in the pictures taken from the satellite. The final destination of these trails was a broad site understood to have once been a city.

Finally, thanks to the work of Clapp and Thomas before him-along with a helping hand from NASA researchers-the location of this legendary city, which had been subject of the stories told orally by the Bedouins, was discovered. After a short while, excavations began and remains of an old city were brought to light. This lost city was dubbed "Ubar, the Atlantis of the Sands."

But let us ask: What was it that proved this to be the city of the people of ‘Ad mentioned in the Qur'an?

From the very beginning of the study of the site, it was understood that this ruined city belonged to ‘Ad. Researchers discovered Iram's pillars, which were specifically mentioned in the Qur'an, in the form of towers in the land of the people of ‘Ad. Dr. Juris Zarins, a member of the research team leading the excavation, said that since the towers were alleged to be the distinctive feature of Ubar and since Iram was mentioned as having towers or pillars, this then was the strongest proof so far that the site they had unearthed was Iram, the city of ‘Ad described in the Qur'an:

Don't you see what your Lord did with ‘Ad-Iram of the columns whose like was not created in any land? (Surat al-Fajr: 6-8)

As seen, that the information provided by the Qur'an about the events of the past is in total agreement with historical information is another evidence of the fact that the Qur'an is the word of Allah. (See Harun Yahya, Perished Nations, Ta-Ha Publishers, UK, 2001; Global Publishing, Istanbul, 2002)

Wonders of Creation:

Water Lilies

Little flowers on the Earth are mostly considered commonplace by people, notwithstanding their overall perfection. What prevents people from grasping the creation miracles in these flowers is the familiarity brought about by seeing them everywhere and every day. Therefore, flowers that grow in a totally different place, under totally different conditions and in totally different sizes will be assessed without the “glasses of familiarity” and thus help us grasp the existence of Allah.

Amazon water lilies that grow in the sticky mud covering the bottom of the Amazon River are interesting enough to remove the glasses of familiarity' from people, because they continue their lives not in the way people are accustomed to and witness everyday, but with a very different struggle.

These plants start to grow in the mud at the bottom of the Amazon River, and then reach out towards the river surface. Their goal is to reach the sunlight which is vital to their existence. When they finally reach the water's surface, they stop growing and develop thorny, round buds. The buds develop into gigantic leaves with a reach of 2 meters in as short a time as a couple of hours. “Knowing” that the more they cover the river surface with abundant leaves, the more will they be able to make use of sunlight, these water lilies make ample use of daylight to perform photosynthesis. They “know” that otherwise they will not be able to survive at the bottom of the river due to the scarcity of light. It is certainly quite inspiring for a plant to employ such an “intelligent” tactic.

However, sunlight alone does not suffice for the Amazon water lilies. They also need oxygen equally, yet it is obvious that this oxygen does not exist in the muddy ground in which their roots are located. This is why water lilies stretch out stems developing from their roots upwards towards the water surface where their leaves float. Sometimes these stems grow as tall as 11 meters; they are tied to the leaves and function as oxygen-carriers between the leaves and the root.

How can a bud in its initial stages in life in the depths of a river know that it needs oxygen and sunlight to survive, that it would not be able to live in their absence, and that everything it needs is present on the water surface? A being recently introduced to life is aware neither of the fact that this water has an ending point, nor of the existence of the sun or oxygen.

Therefore, if the whole event is assessed from the standpoint of evolutionists, these plants should long before have been defeated by environmental conditions and become extinct. Nevertheless, water lilies are still present today in all their perfection.

The unbelievable life struggle of water lilies continues well after they reach light and oxygen on the water surface, where they curl the brims of their huge leaves upward to prevent them from sinking.

They can continue their lives with all these precautions, yet they also know that these are not enough for their reproduction. They need a living being that will carry their pollen to another water lily, and this living being is a beetle (coleopterans) which has been created with a special weakness for white color. They prefer these white water lilies out of all the attractive flowers of the Amazon River. When Amazon water lilies are visited by creatures which will continue their species, they close all their leaves, imprison them, and offer them ample pollen. They let them free after keeping them for one night, and then change their color so that they do not bring the same pollen back to them. The once pure white, glorious water lilies will now go on adorning the Amazon river in pink.

Could such flawless and finely calculated plans be the work of a bud unaware of everything? Of course not. They are the work of the wisdom of Allah, Who created all things. All the details summarized here show that plants, like all other living beings in the universe, came into existence already furnished with the most convenient systems, and this was thanks to their Creator.

Lives of the Prophets:

THE STRUGGLE OF MUSA (AS) AGAINST THE MAGICIANS

Magicians came to Pharaoh from all parts of the land of Egypt to perform their magic against Musa (as). Pharaoh was certain of his ultimate victory. Following a successful confrontation, the authority of Pharaoh and his inner circle would have been assured. The magicians, on the other hand, were curious as to the reward they would receive in return for defeating Musa (as):

[They said] "To bring you all the skilled magicians."

The magicians came to Pharaoh and they asked, "Will we receive a reward if we are the winners?"

He [Pharaoh] said, "Yes, and you will be among those brought near." (Surat al-A‘raf: 112-114)

Pharaoh was taking advantage of the situation to consolidate his authority, while the magicians thought that by being honored with being "close" to Pharaoh, they would gain certain benefits. The most able magicians of Egypt were brought against Musa (as) and Harun (as). Musa (as) was asked to decide who should start:

They said, "Musa, will you throw or shall we be the first to throw?"

He said, "No, you throw!"

And suddenly their ropes and staffs appeared to him, by their magic, to be slithering about. (Surah Ta-Ha: 65-66)

When the magicians performed their magic, their ropes and staffs appeared to slither. As the verse informs us, all were deceived into seeing ropes and staffs as moving by themselves.

A certain point deserves attention here: in the above verse, we encounter the expression "appear to be slithering about." This wording indicates that there was not an actual movement, but only one perceived by the spectators. In another verse, the illusory nature of this incident is explained as follows:

He [Musa] said, "You throw." And when they threw, they cast a spell on the people's eyes and caused them to feel great fear of them. They produced an extremely powerful magic. (Surat al-A‘raf: 116)

With their illusions, the magicians of Pharaoh won the public over. They exalted his regime by the spells they performed, which they did "by the might of Pharaoh." Pharaoh, in return, provided them financial benefits. In brief, their relationship was mutually beneficial.

In their confrontation with Musa (as), the magicians were completely aware that Pharaoh was not in possession of any kind of divine power. However, purely out of a desire to be brought "close" to enjoy the resulting benefits, they threw their staffs. They did so, quite sure of their superiority over Musa (as), which they expressed thus:

They threw down their ropes and staffs and said, "By the might of Pharaoh we are the winners." (Surat ash-Shu‘ara’: 44)

Although deceitful, the magicians' show impressed the crowd. As we read in the Qur'an, the people were terrified. Musa (as) too was impressed; his heart was filled with fear since the magicians' ropes and staffs appeared to him also as slithering about. Nonetheless, Allah reminded Musa (as) not to be frightened:

Musa experienced in himself a feeling of alarm. We said, "Have no fear. You will have the upper hand. Throw down what is in your right hand. It will swallow up their handiwork. Their handiwork is just a magician's trick. Magicians do not prosper wherever they go." (Surah Ta-Ha: 67-69)

Bolstered by this reminder from Allah, Musa (as) immediately turned to the magicians, telling them that their performance was mere sorcery which would be rendered void by the will of Allah:

When they had thrown, Musa said, "What you have brought is magic. Allah will certainly prove it false. Allah does not uphold the actions of corrupters." (Surah Yunus: 81)

Then Musa (as) threw down his staff. The result was terrifying for the magicians. Musa's (as) staff swallowed the sorcery of Pharaoh's magicians:

We revealed to Musa, "Throw down your staff." And it immediately swallowed up what they had forged. So the Truth took place and what they did was shown to be false. They were defeated then and there, transformed into humbled men. (Surat al-A‘raf: 117-119)

Unlike the illusory tricks of magicians, Musa (as) worked a real miracle by his staff. The magicians had plotted against Musa (as). However, Allah, the best of plotters, aided Musa (as) with a plan which rendered their tricks utterly worthless. Thus, the plots of the magicians only worked against them. Provided with supernatural properties by Allah, the staff effected a true miracle.

Consequently, contrary to expected, Musa (as) defeated the magicians. So, everybody witnessed that Allah's promise was true. Allah did not leave Musa (as) alone and, through this miracle, made him victorious over one of the most powerful systems of his time.

Evolution Deceit:

The Theory of Evolution:
A Unique Deception in the History of the World - II

In yesterday’s article, we mentioned that chance can by no means produce a single living cell. But since evolutionists believe in this impossibility, then let them take a suitable amount of mud and wait for it to construct palaces, produce the latest model Jaguar, or build bridges. Let them wait for that mud to produce, spontaneously, first a single cell, then amoeba, fish, lizards, horses, apes and finally human beings. Then let them watch those human beings design cars, make discoveries and found civilizations. In fact, even the most dyed in the wool evolutionist knows this can never happen, but they imagine that by making this claim together with Latin terms and a weighty style it somehow becomes credible.

To believe that all the living things we see on Earth, the flowers with their matchless beauty, fruits, flavors, butterflies, gazelles, rabbits, panthers, birds, and billions of human beings with their different appearances, the cities built by these human beings, the buildings they construct, and bridges all came about by chance from a collection of mud, means taking leave of one's senses. The fact that large numbers of people believe in such nonsense in no way legitimizes it; on the contrary, it shows that we are looking at a miracle. A miracle took place 150 years ago, when an old man with an amateur interest in biology began to bring a huge mass of people under his influence with the senseless ideas he produced from his imagination during a sea voyage. The fact that so many people were taken in by these nonsensical claims like a spell is a great miracle of Allah. In the Qur'an Allah reveals that some people will believe in the impossible and be taken in by nonsense, though they will be unaware of the fact.

The Theory of Evolution Is a Deception of Satan, and Satan's Deception Is Weak

Allah reveals in the Qur'an that Satan has vowed to turn people away from the true path, to deceive them, to make them believe in nonsense and perversions, and set snares for them:

"I will lead them astray and fill them with false hopes. I will command them and they will cut off cattle's ears. I will command them and they will change Allah's creation." Anyone who takes Satan as his protector in place of Allah has clearly lost everything. He makes promises to them and fills them with false hopes. But what Satan promises them is nothing but delusion. (Surat an-Nisa’: 119-120)

When we read that in past civilizations some people worshipped fire or idols made of stone, and took the Sun or Moon as their deities, we are astounded that people could have believed in such things. These people, as revealed in the verses, are taken in by unbelievable nonsense at the prompting of Satan and imagine, as if laboring under a spell, that the most irrational and illogical things are really true. Satan, by Allah's leave and with the means He gave him of course, has assumed the task of deceiving those who do not believe in Allah, making them do insane things, making them believe in false things instead of Allah and portraying, by means of deception, these things as reasonable and legitimate. The theory of evolution is just such a vehicle that Satan has been employing for the last 150 years. In addition he has turned this vehicle into a most potent weapon by concealing it under the name of something that people have the greatest confidence in – science. Those who are taken in by Satan's deceptions, albeit unawares, even professors, rectors, teachers and doctors, come to believe the most incredible things that even children would not.

However, that weapon of Satan is only effective against weak people, those with no faith. Sincere, devout individuals are never affected by it, and perceive Satan's deception in all clarity. In the verse, "Satan's scheming is always feeble" (Surat an-Nisa’: 76), Allah has revealed that Satan's deceptions are weak. In another verse Allah reveals that Satan says he will never be able to mislead His sincere servants (Surat al-Hijr: 39-40).

As is revealed in the verses, by Allah's leave, Satan's deceptions are powerless against sincere servants. In the same way that the faithful are unaffected by Satan's snares, they also foil him by revealing his deceptions.

It is easy to free oneself from Satan's snares. All one has to do is to think honestly. Anyone who thinks honestly will see that the claims of the theory of evolution are untrue. Evolutionists, too, would see this manifest truth if they could free themselves from the effect of their own circles, their concerns to the effect that "If I say I do not believe in evolution what will my colleagues think of me?" and will cease to believe in such an impossible scenario as evolution. In one verse Allah reveals:

As for those who guard against evil, when they are bothered by visitors from Satan, they remember and immediately see clearly. (Surat al-A‘raf: 201)

Quick Grasp of Faith:

Is it proper to feel sorry for those who do not believe in Allah?

Those who are sure of Allah’s existence and the Hereafter desire that other people grasp the truth and live by the Qur’an’s morals, which is the most suitable way of living for human beings. Knowing that each unbeliever will meet with Hell’s infinite punishment, the believers put forth their best efforts to lead the unbelievers to belief. But while each believer is responsible for conveying the message and for calling people to the truth, only Allah can guide people to the truth. Even if the believers convey the message all day and night, express themselves in the most impressive ways and give the most convincing examples, the people being addressed may not believe if Allah does not guide them. If Allah wills, He guides anyone He selects at any time. This is only by His will, and Allah is the best of judges because whatever He determines and decides is the best for humanity. For that reason, those people who refuse to believe despite the best efforts of the believers should not be a cause of sorrow. Knowing that submitting to His will is the right conduct, believers place their trust in Allah.

Book Review:

The Dark Clan

In the world we live in a problem exists that is threatening social peace and harmony in every nation big or small: moral degeneration. Education projects, seminars and campaigns, run by either the state or various non-governmental organizations aim to curb the effect of moral degeneration. However, these efforts have mostly failed to have a lasting effect. Moral degeneration is gaining momentum by the day because solutions are being sought in the wrong places and therefore these efforts end up in a vicious circle. The most important reason for this vicious circle is that those groups or individuals seeking to combat decadence fail to appreciate the degree to which it is being purposely encouraged and directed. The common view, which is true to some extent, that moral degeneration is an inevitable occurrence caused by the bad living conditions prevailing in society, does not provide a clear picture in relation to the causes and solutions to the problem because it fails to take into account a fundamental reality.

The battle between good and evil has been fought throughout history. Opposite every believer communicating Allah's religion and virtue, there always stood a similar group, labouring to undermine the believers and to prevent the spread of morality. This is a reality Allah revealed to us in the Qur'an. It is possible that the Qur'anic expression,"ruling elite of society" (Surat al-A‘raf: 88) indicates the people who are the brains behind these clans (Allah knows best). In Surat al-An'am, God says:

And likewise in every city We set up its greatest wrongdoers to plot in it. They plot against themselves alone, but they are not aware of it. (Surat al-An‘am: 123)

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Site of the Day:

www.creationofuniverse.com

The Universe and its elements : all the galaxies, stars, planets, asteroids, the Milky Way, the Sun, the Earth, the Moon and billions of other immense bodies are rotating and revolving in excellent harmony. If scrutinized in terms of cosmic, physical, mathematical and bio-chemical aspects, from micro level to macro level, the Universe proves to be supplied with the most suitable design for human life.

From the expansional rate of the Universe to the location of Earth in the Solar System, from percengates of athmospheric gases to properties of sunlight, innumerous equilibriums are sustained each second and each hour. Not even one of these arrangements may occur by chance. All obey the infallible wisdom of Allah exhibiting His might and art. This web site displays the evidence for the creation of the Universe and it reveals the eternal might and wisdom of Allah, who created this great universe from nothingness.

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RAMADAN 2005 The 26th Day

Water Lilies

The Dark Clan

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