Fact or Fiction; Analysing the idea of the universe being created in 6 days

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

Brother Ronald,

We thank you for your query.

The verse you refer to is 50:38, not 50:58. Nevertheless, as per your query, you find the content of the verse to be irrational, far-fetched and non-sense. We will hereby analyse the verse in reference and prove that the verse is very much rational and does make sense. You have been subjected to denial due to your misunderstanding of the word “Yaum” which has been used in the verse. We hereby sincerely attempt to explain to you the verse and remove your misunderstanding.

We do agree, the Quran says that the heavens and the earth were created in six days i.e. 6 epochs and the same has been mentioned in:

Surah Al-A’raf -7:54

Surah Yunus -10:03

Surah Hud -11:07

Surah Al-Furqan -25:59

Surah Al-Sajda -32:04

 Surah Qaf -50:38

Surah Al-Hadid -57:04.

The word Ayyaam (plural of yaum) loosely translated as days in this verse, does not refer to the 24-hour day period, in the way we describe it in today’s time. Rather, the correct interpretation of the word Ayyaam is “long periods” or “ages”.[1][2][3]Before we substantiate our stance with reference from the classical books on Quranic exegesis, we find it appropriate to explain the concept of having 24 hours in a day. This will assist in understanding the issue in reference.

The concept of fixed-length hours in a day did not originate until the Hellenistic period, when Greek astronomers began using such a system for their theoretical calculations. Hipparchus proposed dividing the day into 24 equinoctial hours, based on the 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness observed on equinox days.[4][5][6] Before that, people would regard sunlit and dark periods as two opposite realms and not part of the same day.

More so, the concept of having 24 hours in a day is wholly related to the existence of the sun. As the Earth orbits the Sun, it rotates on its axis, taking about 24 hours to complete one full rotation. At any one time, one half of the Earth is lit up by the Sun and experiences daytime, whilst the other half experiences night-time. As the Earth turns, each place will move from day to night and back to day again.[7] Therefore, hypothetically, if there were no sun, then there would have been no concept of a 24-hour day.

Keeping the above in consideration, your enquiry about the number of days spent on the creation of the earth is not correct. How could it have been possible to have stipulated number of days whilst the sun did not even come into existence yet? When the medium through which days and years is calculated was non-existent at the time of creating the universe, then be it exactly 6 days or 6 billion years, what difference does it make? Rather, what you should have asked was “When the sun was not yet created before the birth of the earth and the heavens, on what basis was the count of six days?” Let us take the privilege to answer this question as well. The concept of day and night is a terminology used on earth. It is obvious that before the creation of the heaven and earth, time must have been determined through a different method and was not at all dependent on the sun. However, understanding the exact nature of this method is something which is beyond the human intellect.  This idea is similar to how the day and night will not depend on the sun in Jannah (Paradise)- as the sun won’t be there.[8] The word Yaum, in the Arabic language is used for a general period, as explained by many Exegetes:

لكن اليوم قد يطلق ويراد به الوقت والحين وقد يعبر به عن مدة الزمان أي مدة كانت

Translation: The word “Yaum” is often used in general referring to time and period. It is also used to indicate an epoch- be it of any duration.

Similarly, the following verse compliments our stance:

وَيَسْتَعْجِلُونَكَ بِالْعَذَابِ وَلَن يُخْلِفَ اللَّهُ وَعْدَهُ وَإِنَّ يَوْمًا عِندَ رَبِّكَ كَأَلْفِ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ

Translation: And they urge you to hasten the punishment. But Allah will never fail in His promise. And indeed, a day with your Lord is like a thousand years of those which you count. (22:47)

Also, consider this hadith which is narrated in Sahih al-Muslim that strengthens the same idea:

Translation: Abu Hurayrah said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “There is no owner of treasure who does not pay his zakaah, but it will be heated in the Fire of Hell and made into plates with which his sides and forehead will be branded until Allaah passes judgement between His slaves on a Day the length of which will be “like fifty thousand years”, then he see shown his path and whether it leads to Paradise or to Hell. And there is no owner of camels who does not pay zakaah on them, but a soft sandy plain will be prepared for him and they will be made to step on him. Every time the last of them has gone the first of them will return, until Allaah passes judgement between His slaves on a Day the length of which will be “like fifty thousand years”, then he will see his path and whether it leads to Paradise or to Hell. (Sahih al- Muslim: 2290)

The above examples make it apparent that six days in the verse, refer to six different periods of time and not 144 hours, as has been incorrectly understood by you.[9] [10]

If you are a man of science, your concern probably is concrete scientific evidences and not random quotations from early Scholars of Islam. Right? While we appreciate your concern, your confusion is due to your unfamiliarity with the vastness of the Arabic language.

Consider the issue from the perspective of Science and factual evidences. Is the view of different timings on different worlds, a fact or just a fantasy that is found only in the books of Muslims?

It is important to note that the Quran is not a book of science, it is a guide for mankind. The discussion is not meant to prove that Quran deals with science, rather it is to illustrate that the Quran is not contrary to scientific proven facts.

You had put forth two links, explaining the creation of the universe as an evidence for your argument. You adopted a position that whatever science says is the absolute, unchangeable truth. If that is so, please consider the following:

1. Is it not true that until the dawn of the 20^th century, the only view prevailing within the scientific community was that the earth has a constant nature and that it has existed since infinite time?
2. Was not the ‘Big Bang’ theory a departure from conventional thinking that suggested the universe was static and eternal, needing no creator.
3.  Until the early 1920’s, almost every physicist believed that the universe was eternal (Qadeem); all the data supported this, and this belief conflicted with the Qur’an. Yet the Qur’an explicitly states that the universe had a beginning. Further research made physicists abandon the concept of eternal universe and replace it with the concept of the universe having a beginning, possibly about 13.7 billion years ago. Science then came into line with the Qur’an. The same was with the Qur’anic view of the sun. The Astronomers claimed that the sun was stationary, whereas the Qur’an states that the sun has an orbit. This was the most direct contradiction between observations of scientists. It was only due to Vesto Slipher and his observations, that provided the first evidence supporting the expanding universe theory. He is the first recognized person, from the science community, who came up with the theory that the galaxies were moving away from earth at huge velocities.[11] It is only now that due to research, observations and calculation science has come to admit the fact that the world had a beginning and that it is constantly expanding.  And the list goes on and on and on… Science repeatedly changes its view and comes in line with the Quran. The Quran being the book of Allah is perfect and absolute.

Brother, scientific conclusions are inductive in nature and inductive arguments do not lead to certainty. There are many things which science has proven and there is no scope of rejecting them, yet there are many other things which are not absolute in nature. We have created a false dichotomy of Quran vs Science. Science is the application of reason to the natural world. It seeks to understand how the world works. The Qur’an also refers to natural phenomena, and inevitably there have been direct conflicts about scientific conclusions. When a conflict arises, there is no reason to panic or to deny the Qur’anic verse that is not in line with science; nor can anyone use this situation to claim that the Qur’an is wrong. To do so would be to assume that scientific conclusions are true in an absolute sense and will not change; this is patently false. History has shown that science revises its conclusions.[12]

Reverting to the actual issue, it is possible to have different times in different dimensions. Time is a relative concept. Einstein proposed that if a clock is placed in a strong gravitational area, then it will run slower than a normal clock[13] [14] [15]. Similarly, a day is determined by the amount of time it takes for an astronomical object to complete one full spin on its axis. On Earth, a day is 23 hours and 56 minutes, but other planets and bodies rotate at different rates. Consequently, there is difference in time between different planets. For example, 1 day of Venus is equivalent to 243 days on earth.[16]

A similar example is mentioned by Imam Abu Abdillah Razi (525H). He has said that the movement of the far firmament(Falak e Azam) is so fast as compared to the movement of our earth that by the time the raised step of a man running here touches the ground, the far firmament has already moved a distance of three thousand miles.[17]

If such is the case, then why is it difficult to believe that in the sight of Allah 1 day of earth is equal to a very long period of time?[18]

The Qur’an did not give any specified number that stipulates a fixed amount of time that was spent in creating the universe. Infact, Quran has used the exact appropriate words that were supposed to be used in this case. We hope that it is now understood without an iota of doubt that Qur’an and Science are not in Contradiction with one another. Science is based on man’s observations and conclusions. Human by nature is not perfect. The Quran is the speech of Allah. Allah is perfect and so too is the speech of Allah.

If a person who is sincere and honest, studies the Quran with an open heart and correct academic qualifications, setting aside all his emotions, he will find the Quran to be consistent with his natural instinct. Such a person will surely be guided.

We advise you to read the book ‘The Bible, the Qur’an and Science’ by Maurice Bucaille. In this book, the learned author analyzed the scientific data in the Qur’an and the Bible in the light of the established principles of Science. Here is another good book you may consider reading- “The Quran and modern Science- Compatible or Incompatible?” .

We thank you for your query. If you have any other queries, you may contact us again. It will be a pleasure for us to serve you and explain to you the wisdom of Allah.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Naved Akhtar Ibn Shabbir.

Student – Darul Iftaa

Shillong, India. 

Checked and Approved by,

Mufti Ebrahim Desai.