The book under review provides insight into the
passages referring to
Nature in the
holy Quran. Nature and its diverse manifestations make a recurring theme in the Quran. Several of them
provide broad hints to very complex scientific facts that could not have been comprehended by the 7th century Arabs who formed the earliest audience of the message brought by the holy Prophet of Islam. However, today''s man with his well developed empirical skills has access to deeper meanings of these passages. One such reference was to the development of the
human embryo which led French embryologist Maurice Bucaille to establish a link between the Quranic text and contemporary facts. Author Tahsin Ahmed has put his reflections on these passages and brings to relief the centrality of the
divine strategy of using Nature as a medium to guide the human thought. The author elaborates the reference to
constitution of human fingers to today''s fingerprints, a crucial element in forensic sciences. Oceans merge but still their waters retain their distinct traits. Honey bees produce honey with medicinal properties out of the nectar collected from a wide flora. Milk flows out from amidst urine and dung from the cattle. Birds fly in the sky without the aid of monitors, radars and without the risk of crashlanding. Water being the very essence of the biological constitution of all animals too finds a mention in the Quran. A delicate sprout tears the hard earth asunder but man has to use heavy machinery to gain the same result. Water cycle and seasons provide the human being with ideal conditions for a sustainable livelihood. Variety and diversity in the seemingly similar groups and classes of animals too provides enough pointers to the divine scheme of things. All these manifestation of nature are there to urge man to study, contemplate, observe, reflect, appreciate, understand and think and perceive the greatness of God and seek his guidance and submit himself to his obedience. Arabic language''s capacity to provide layered meanings to themes becomes evident to any careful reader of the holy Quran. Each meaning unravels the doors to new interpretation in epochs and eras ahead. The book compresses a lot of such insights between the covers and makes it a useful compendium of references to Nature. The book has been produced with a commendable and sophistry.
More reviews about the Quranic insights into Nature