To begin we must point out that the Quran can never contradict reality or a firmly established scientific fact. The problem lies only in the understanding or interpretation of a verse. That is what may be correct or may be mistaken. However, some early scholars have inferred from this verse that the earth and the heavens do not rotate.
Shayk Al Albani was asked: I heard from one of the ʿulama in Saudi Arabia, on the programme Nūr ʿalā al-Darb, a fatwa from one of the ʿulama in which he said that there is nothing in the Quran or in the Sunnah proving the dawrān (rotation) of the earth. He uses Quran verses as proof that the earth is fixed (thābitah) and settled (qarār), and that the mountains were placed in it so that it would not tilt or shake. So, is there any proof of the dawrān (rotation) of the earth and the sun or not?
In summary, the question is: Is there any evidence from the Qur’an and the Sunnah for the dawrān (rotation) or ḥarakah (movement) of the earth, or is there no evidence?
Shaykh Al Albani says: Personally, I am not concerned with whether there is something in the Quran about a specific detail or issue from the knowledge of astronomy. The Quran and the Sunnah were not revealed to teach people astronomy, geography, natural sciences, and the like. What suffices me is to believe that there is nothing in the Quran or in the Sunnah that contradicts a true scientific fact.
The earth being kura (spherical) and being one of the akwān (heavenly bodies) that Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, suspended by His power in the sky, and that He is the One who holds it so it does not cease to exist (zawāl) – this is a confirmed scientific fact, and it cannot be denied scientifically. Therefore, we cannot imagine that there would be any text in Islam, whether from the Sunnah or especially from the Quran, that contradicts such a scientific reality.
That is what I say. Still, there are things in the Quran that can be used as dalīl (evidence) for the kurawiyyah (sphericity) of the earth and its dawrān (rotation). But the problem is that most people, except those whom Allah protects, and they are few, are overwhelmed by taqlīd (imitation), whether in tafsīr or in fiqh.
Added to this is a psychological complex found in some of the people of knowledge towards the disbelievers from the West, who through their diligence and dedication to worldly matters managed to discover things that people had not known before. This psychological complex drives them to stubbornness and denial of established facts.
I believe, and I have heard, that there are still people to this day who do not believe that some disbelievers travelled to the moon, because they did not see it themselves, and the only source is reports from disbelievers. This still exists today.
And this psychological complex can lead a person to force interpretations of certain Quran verses in order to reject these scientific facts. I do not find anything at all in the Sharīʿah that contradicts the kurawiyyah (sphericity) of the earth and its dawrān (rotation).
In fact, I find things that support it, especially since some of our earlier ʿulama, like Ibn Taymiyyah and others, also held this view. So this opinion is not, as some people wrongly assume today, taqlīd of the disbelievers or being dazzled by them or believing them in what should not be believed. Rather, it is an opinion that some Muslim scholars from the past already said.
For example, if we recite some of the āyāt from Sūrat Yā Sīn, where it begins with a mention of the earth:
وَآيَةٌ لَّهُمُ ٱلْأَرْضُ ٱلْمَيْتَةُ أَحْيَيْنَـٰهَا وَأَخْرَجْنَا مِنْهَا حَبًّۭا فَمِنْهُ يَأْكُلُونَ
And a sign for them is the dead earth, We gave it life and brought forth from it grain so they eat from it
Then He says:
وَٱلْقَمَرَ قَدَّرْنَـٰهُ مَنَازِلَ حَتَّىٰ عَادَ كَٱلْعُرْجُونِ ٱلْقَدِيمِ • لَا ٱلشَّمْسُ يَنبَغِى لَهَآ أَن تُدْرِكَ ٱلْقَمَرَ وَلَا ٱلَّيْلُ سَابِقُ ٱلنَّهَارِ ۚ وَكُلٌّۭ فِى فَلَكٍۢ يَسْبَحُونَ
And the moon, We have determined for it phases until it returns like the old curved stalk. It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor does the night precede the day. Each one is swimming in an orbit
Everything that is mentioned, the earth, the moon, and the sun, is in a state of motion in its orbit. This needs no reinterpretation or forced explanation, whether to support or reject the idea. The verse is very clear: وَكُلٌّۭ فِى فَلَكٍۢ يَسْبَحُونَ (Each one is swimming in an orbit). Every one of the things mentioned – the earth, the moon, and the sun – is swimming in an orbit.
To conclude: No, it is not necessary that we find in the Quran what affirms or supports every scientific opinion, because the Quran was not revealed for that purpose. But in truth, we say: the Quran contains many āyāt that point to scientific matters, some of which have only been known today, and some of which are still unknown, and perhaps will never be known until the Day of Judgement.
That is because this is part of the knowledge of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, and He said:
وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىْءٍۢ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ
(And they do not encompass anything of His knowledge except what He wills).
(Click here to see audio and transcript of the fatwa)
Translation: Al-Alusi said in Ruh al-Maʿani (22/204): “Indeed, Allah holds the heavens and the earth so that they do not tazoola” is a new statement which reinforces the depth of the ugliness of shirk, and the verse belongs to Him, meaning: Allah, Most High, preserves the heavens and the earth, either out of dislike for their zawal (movement), or so that they do not tazoola (cease) and vanish. For the created being, just as it depends on the Necessary Being, Exalted is He, for its origination, it also depends on Him for its continued existence.
In Al-Bahr it is also said that an tazoola could be an inclusive substitute for the phrase “the heavens and the earth,” meaning: He, Exalted is He, prevents the zawal (movement) of the heavens and the earth.
Some scholars explained zawal (movement) as movement from their place, meaning Allah, Most High, prevents the heavens from shifting from their place, whether upward or downward, and likewise prevents the earth from such a shift. This is supported by a narration reported by ʿAbd ibn Humayd and a group of others from Ibn Abbas.
Others said: their zawal (movement) refers to their rotation. In this view, they are stationary, while what revolves with the stars are their orbits, which are not the heavens themselves.
Saeed ibn Mansur, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, and ʿAbd ibn Humayd all reported from Shaqiq who said: It was said to Ibn Masʿud that Kaʿb says: The sky revolves around a pole like the pole of a millstone on a pillar resting on the shoulder of an angel. Ibn Masʿud replied: Kaʿb has lied. Allah, Most High, says: “Indeed, Allah holds the heavens and the earth so that they do not tazoola,” and it is enough to call it zawal (movement) to say that it rotates.
Many later Muslim scholars held that the earth does rotate.
His words: wa la’in zaalataa means if they were on the verge of zawal (movement), This is supported by the reading of Ibn Abi ʿAbla: wa law zaalataa (and if they had moved). It has also been said that this is a reference to what will happen on the Day of Judgement when the heavens will be folded up and the mountains will be blown away.
The scholars of tafsir also gave other interpretations of this verse which are more accurate than the previous one. Ibn ʿAtiyyah said in al-Muharrar al-Wajiz: The meaning of zawal here is to shift from their places or to fall from their height.
Translation: His words: “an tazoola” mean of zawal (moving) here is the shifting of the heavens and the earth from their places, or their falling from their elevation. Some of the scholars of tafsir said the meaning is: that they do not tazoola (move) from their rotation.
It appears from the words of Ibn Masʿud that the earth does not rotate, but that the stars move within it. That is because al-Tabari reported that Jundub al-Bajali travelled to Kaʿb al-Ahbar, then returned. Ibn Masʿud said to him: Tell us what he told you.
He said: He told me that the earth is on a pole like the pole of a millstone, and that the pole is on the shoulder of an angel. Ibn Masʿud replied: I wish you had ransomed your journey with something equal to your riding animal and its saddle. Judaism never settles in the heart of a man without nearly remaining with him.
Then he said: “Indeed, Allah holds the samawat (heavens) and the earth so that they do not tazoola,” and it is enough to call it zawal (moving) to say that it rotates. If it rotated, it would have slipped.
As for His words: “wa la’in zaalataa” (and if they were to move), it is said: this refers to the Day of Judgement, when the samaa will be folded up and the mountains blasted away. So it is as if He said: if the time comes for them to tazoola (cease).
Abu Hayyan mentioned in al-Bahr al-Muhit all that Ibn ʿAtiyyah had stated, and then he said: It is not valid to claim that the earth does not rotate. Ibn Kathir mentions that the verse is referring to the earth’s stability rather than rotation
Ibn Kathir said: “Indeed, Allah holds the heavens and the earth so that they do not tazoola” meaning that they do not become unstable or shift from their places, as He said: “And He holds the samaa so that it does not fall upon the earth except by His permission” (al-Hajj: 65), and as He said: “And among His signs is that the samaa (sky) and the earth stand by His command” (al-Rum: 25). “And if they were to move, no one could hold them after Him” meaning that no one can maintain or preserve them except Him.
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (6/557)
This is the truth. The One who preserves the earth and all that is upon it and keeps it from instability or deviating from its orderly course is Allah, Most High.
Likewise, contemporary commentators followed this same direction. At-Tahir ibn ʿAshur said in al-Tahrir wa al-Tanwir (22/328): So He is the One who, by His power, maintains their continued existence. This holding (mentioned in the verse) is what is referred to in astronomy as the system of gravitational force, which keeps everything in balance without disruption. “And if they were to zaalataa (move), no one could hold them after Him. The hypothetical zawal here refers to the disruption of their system, which would lead to collision. Zawal can mean annihilation or shifting from one place to another.”
