According to science, the proximity and distance of the sun and the earth affect the weather, while in the hadith it is mentioned that heat and cold are from the breaths of Hellfire
Reference: (Sahih Bukhari: 3087, Sahih Muslim: 617)
. Similarly, it is also said that Hellfire speaking is against reason.① First Point
Hellfire complaining to its Lord is not against reason or science, because these are matters of the unseen which we cannot judge based on worldly reason or scientific instruments.
② Second Point
This complaint of Hellfire is not to any creature but directly to the Lord of the universe, who has power over everything.
③ Third Point
In worldly life, there are countless examples that help in rationally accepting this issue, such as feeling the heat of a fever. When even a weak creature in this world—like a human, whom the Quran has described as weak—can perceive certain hidden matters, then can the Almighty Lord, who is the Creator of all creatures, not be capable of speaking to a creature, granting it the ability to speak, or removing its difficulties?
④ Fourth Point
The Holy Quran condemns those who, on similar rational grounds, view the belief in the Hereafter with doubt and deny resurrection. The Quran has adopted this effective style in their refutation: The Lord who is capable of creating the first time, is He not capable of raising again?
Thus, the command of the Exalted Allah is:
أَوَلَيْسَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ بِقَادِرٍ عَلَىٰ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ مِثْلَهُمْ ۚ بَلَىٰ وَهُوَ الْخَلَّاقُ الْعَلِيمُ
Reference: (Surah Yaseen: 81)
Translation: Is He, who created the heavens and the earth, not able to create the like of them? Yes, indeed! He is the repeated creator, the all-knowing.
قُلْ يُحْيِيهَا الَّذِي أنْشَأهَا أوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ خَلْقٍ عَلِيمٌ
Reference: (Surah Yaseen: 79)
Translation: Say, He will give them life who produced them the first time. And He is, of all creation, Knowing.
Explanation by Hafiz Ibn Abdul Barr, may Allah have mercy on him
Hafiz Ibn Abdul Barr, may Allah have mercy on him, explained that the scholars are divided into two groups in understanding this hadith:
◄ The first group: They interpret the hadith in its literal meaning.
◄ The second group: They interpret the hadith in a metaphorical sense.
According to the scholars who take the literal meaning, there are many parallels in the Holy Quran, such as:
◄ The hands and feet giving testimony
Reference: (Surah An-Nur: 24)
◄ Various things glorifying Allah
Reference: (Surah Al-Isra: 44, Surah Saba: 10, 18)
◄ On the Day of Resurrection, Allah addressing Hellfire saying: "Are you full?" and Hellfire replying: "Are there any more?"
Reference: (Surah Qaf: 30)
All these examples in the Quran are applied to reality, not metaphor.
Those scholars of Hadith who interpret them metaphorically also have Quranic examples, which Hafiz Ibn Abdul Barr, may Allah have mercy on him, mentioned in his book "Al-Tamhid." However, after presenting all the arguments, Ibn Abdul Barr preferred the literal meaning.
Similarly, Imam Qurtubi, Imam Nawawi, Hafiz Ibn Hajar, and other senior scholars have also applied this Hadith to reality.
Sheikh Saleh Al-Munajjid and other contemporary scholars have clarified that: these two breaths (heat and cold) are not the cause of the emergence of cold or heat, rather they are given during the season of heat or cold.
⑤ Fifth Point
People who understand the intensity of cold or heat based on the earth's proximity or distance from the sun should not consider this Hadith incorrect, because in some matters the nature of causes can be different. Some things may have a scientific cause and another Shariah cause, and both can exist simultaneously.
A Shariah cause refers to that which is known through revelation, and a scientific cause is that which is known through knowledge or observation. For example, the scientific cause of a solar eclipse is that the moon comes between the earth and the sun. This can generally occur on the 28th, 29th, or 30th day of the lunar month, when these two luminous bodies come close to each other. Similarly, the scientific cause of a lunar eclipse is that the earth comes between the sun and the moon, and this only happens on full moon nights, when the moon is on one side and the sun on the other.
All these things are explained by astronomy, but there is also a Shariah cause mentioned in the Hadith: Allah Almighty frightens His servants through it. Likewise, the intensity of heat or cold can have a scientific cause and a Shariah cause, and both can occur together. Therefore, it is neither correct to rely solely on scientific causes nor to be so extreme in matters of Shariah causes that scientific facts are rejected.
⑥ Sixth Point
It is also clear from terrestrial and scientific evidence that several factors are involved in heat or cold, such as:
◄ It is accepted that some parts of the earth are hot and some are cold. If only the sun's proximity or distance were the reason, the weather should be the same everywhere, but this is not the case.
◄ It is always cold on mountains, even though due to their height they are relatively closer to the sun.
◄ There is a difference in temperature in different regions of the earth, such as more heat at the equator and more cold near the poles.
◄ The temperature of space and the temperature of the earth are not the same, even though the sun gives equal light to both.
From all these observational and scientific facts, it clearly emerges that the sun's proximity or distance alone does not affect the heat or cold of the weather; rather, the earth has its own temperature, and the earth's structure, tilt, distance, and other factors also play an important role in this.
