Surah An-Naml (27) — Ayah 61

(Ayah 61) ➊ { اَمَّنْ جَعَلَ الْاَرْضَ قَرَارًا:} Or who is it who made the earth a place of settlement? Mufassir Abdur Rahman Kilani (may Allah have mercy on him) writes: "In this one sentence, many of Allah's powers are encompassed. It had become known to mankind thousands of years ago that our massive earth is spherical and suspended in space. Most of the earth is covered by oceans, and despite the earth being round, water does not fall off it. The reason for this is that, like every celestial body, our earth also has gravity, due to which things can fall to the earth by themselves, but cannot rise up by themselves without the use of some force, except for gases and water vapors, whose sphere is above the earth. If any gas lighter than ordinary air escapes from the earth, it will rise up by itself. If these wonders were not enough, further research in astronomy has added immensely to these wonders, for example, our earth, while facing the sun, rotates on its axis at a speed of about one thousand miles per hour, and this rotation completes in one day and night or 24 hours. Secondly, our earth is 93 million miles away from the sun and completes one revolution around it in a year, so the speed of its revolution around the sun is sixty-six thousand six hundred miles per hour. Despite both these types of rotations, Allah has so firmly held the earth that we cannot even feel it, rather we walk and live on it comfortably. One meaning of the earth being a place of settlement is this, and it is mentioned in authentic ahadith that our earth used to sway due to these rotations, so Allah placed mountains in various directions in such a way that the swaying stopped and it became a place of settlement for all other things. Its third aspect is that if the earth always remained in front of the sun, then half of the earth would always have day and the other half would always have night, thus the entire earth would become completely useless for plants and all living beings. This is because, for the life and growth of plants and living beings, night is as necessary as day. Allah established the system of night and day on earth and made it a place of settlement for all creatures. Its fourth aspect is that if the distance of the earth from the sun were less than the current distance, all creatures would wither and eventually perish or be destroyed due to the intensity of heat, and if this distance were greater, there would be so much cold that all creatures would freeze and eventually perish or be destroyed. In this way, the earth could not become a place of settlement for creatures. Its fifth aspect is that our earth revolves around the sun at an angle of 77 degrees, due to which there is gradual change in the duration of day and night, sometimes the days start getting longer and the nights gradually shorter, and sometimes the opposite happens. Then, based on this, there is change in seasons—sometimes it is summer, sometimes winter, sometimes spring, sometimes autumn, and sometimes rainy season—and these seasons have a deep connection with the production, growth, and ripening of various kinds of crops, grains, and fruit-bearing trees. If Allah had not established this system, then the issue of food for the inhabitants of this earth could have become extremely problematic. In that case, this earth could not have become a place of settlement for us. Its sixth aspect is that up to five or six hundred miles above our earth, a dense layer of air has been made, protecting the earth from celestial or atmospheric calamities. According to current research, about twenty million meteors daily approach our earth at a lightning speed of 30 miles per second. When they reach this atmospheric layer, they catch fire and are destroyed there. Sometimes, a meteor of larger size does fall to the earth and makes a deep crater, but this happens rarely, as Allah wills; in general, we remain safe from them. If Allah had not arranged this atmospheric layer around the earth, the earth could never have become a safe place of settlement. In short, there are so many aspects to this issue that the more one ponders over them, the more aspects come to light. Now the question is, does any other deity besides Allah have any share in this system of the universe, no matter how small? If the answer to this question is negative, then how can others be associated with Allah in worship?" (Taysir al-Qur'an)

➋ { وَ جَعَلَ خِلٰلَهَاۤ اَنْهٰرًا:} By rivers are meant all streams, brooks, and rivers, etc. They are supplied with water partly by rain; some of the rainwater is absorbed by the earth, and the remaining excess water flows towards the streams and brooks. Their greatest source is the mountains and the springs between the mountains. In winter, snow accumulates on the mountains, which melts in summer and first takes the form of streams and brooks, and then rivers, or this water follows the course of already existing streams and brooks. Through these, those areas are irrigated where rainfall is less or does not occur on time, and rivers are especially mentioned because the life and growth of all plants and living beings depend on water. After air, water is such an important thing that nothing can sustain its life without it. (Kilani)

➌ { وَ جَعَلَ بَيْنَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ حَاجِزًا:} For its explanation, see Surah Al-Furqan (53).

➍ { بَلْ اَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُوْنَ:} That is, most polytheists do not have knowledge of the truth, so they associate partners with Allah. "Most" is mentioned because there are some who do have knowledge of the truth, but due to stubbornness, do not accept it.

61-1. That is, stationary and stable, it neither shakes nor sways. If it were not so, it would not be possible to live on the earth. The purpose of making great mountains on the earth is also to prevent the earth from moving and swaying.

61-2. For its explanation, see (وَهُوَ الَّذِيْ مَرَجَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ ھٰذَا عَذْبٌ فُرَاتٌ وَّھٰذَا مِلْحٌ اُجَاجٌ ۚ وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَهُمَا بَرْزَخًا وَّحِجْرًا مَّحْجُوْرًا) 25. Al-Furqan:53) footnote.

61. Who made the earth a stable place [62], and placed rivers within it [63], and set mountains upon it, and placed a barrier between the two seas [64]? Is there any god with Allah? No, but most of them do not know.

[62]
Six Interpretations of the Earth Being a Place of Rest:

Within this single sentence, many powers of Allah Almighty are encompassed. It had become known to mankind thousands of years ago that our massive globe, the Earth, is round and suspended in the vast expanse of space. Most of the Earth's surface is ocean, and despite the Earth being round, water does not fall off it; the reason for this is that, like every celestial body, our Earth also possesses gravity. Because of this, objects can fall to the ground by themselves, but cannot rise up on their own without the use of some force, except for gases and water vapors, whose sphere is above the Earth. If any gas lighter than ordinary air escapes from the Earth, it will rise up by itself. If these wonders were not enough, further research in astronomy has added immensely to these marvels. For example, one is that our Earth, while facing the sun, rotates on its axis at a speed of about one thousand miles per hour, and its rotation is completed in one day and night, or 24 hours. Secondly, our Earth is 93 million miles away from the sun and completes one revolution around it in a year, so its speed of revolution around the sun is sixty-six thousand six hundred miles per hour. Despite these two types of rotations, Allah Almighty has so firmly held the Earth that we cannot even feel it, and we walk and live on it with ease. One meaning of the Earth being a place of rest is that, as mentioned in authentic hadiths, our Earth, due to these rotations, used to shake. So Allah Almighty placed mountains in various directions in such a way that the shaking stopped, and it became a place of rest for humans and all other things. Its third aspect is that if the Earth always remained in front of the sun, then one half of the Earth would always have day, and the other half would always have night. In this way, the entire Earth would become completely useless for plants and all living beings, because for the life and growth of plants and living beings, night is as necessary as day. Allah Almighty established the system of night and day on Earth, making it a place of rest for all creatures. Its fourth aspect is that if the distance between the Earth and the sun were less than it is now, all creatures would wither and eventually perish or be destroyed due to the intensity of heat and scorching. And if this distance were greater, it would be so cold that all creatures would freeze and eventually perish or be destroyed. In this way, the Earth could not become a place of rest for creatures. Its fifth aspect is that our Earth revolves around the sun at an angle of 66 degrees, due to which the duration of day and night gradually changes; sometimes the days start getting longer and the nights shorter, and sometimes the opposite happens. Then, based on this, the seasons change—sometimes it is summer, sometimes winter, sometimes spring, sometimes autumn, and sometimes the rainy season. These seasons have a deep connection with the growth of various types of crops, grains, and fruit-bearing trees, their development, and the ripening of crops and fruits. If Allah Almighty had not established this system, the issue of food for the inhabitants of this Earth could have become extremely problematic. In such a case, this Earth could not have become a place of rest for us. Its sixth aspect is that up to five or six hundred miles above our Earth, a dense layer of air has been created, protecting the Earth from celestial or atmospheric calamities. According to current research, about twenty million meteors head towards our Earth daily at a lightning speed of 30 miles per second. When they reach this atmospheric layer, they catch fire and are destroyed there. Sometimes, a meteor of larger size does fall to the Earth and creates a deep crater, but this happens rarely, as Allah wills. In normal circumstances, we remain safe from them. If Allah Almighty had not established this atmospheric system around the Earth, the Earth could never have become a safe place of rest. In short, there are so many aspects to this issue that the more one reflects on them, the more aspects come to light. Now the question is: does any other deity besides Allah have any share, however small, in this system of the universe? And if the answer to this question is negative, then how can others be associated with Allah in worship?

[63] By rivers are meant all streams, brooks, and rivers, etc. They are supplied with water primarily by rain; some of the rainwater is absorbed by the earth, and the remaining excess water flows towards the streams and brooks. Their greatest source is the mountains and the springs between the mountains. In winter, snow accumulates on the mountains, which melts in summer and first takes the form of streams and brooks, and then of rivers, or this water follows the course of already formed streams and brooks. Through these, those areas are irrigated where rainfall is scarce or does not occur on time. Rivers are especially mentioned because the life and growth of all plants and living beings depend on water. After air, water is such an essential thing that nothing can sustain its life without it.

[64] For its explanation, see the commentary on verse 53 of Surah Al-Furqan, footnote number 66.