Let’s see what some Muslim scholars say about whether the earth is flat or round:
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Part of me hopes that was satire.
Sadly I have christian relatives who are just as bright.
Let’s see what Muslim scholars say about whether the earth is flat or round…
Say wha…? It is my understanding that Flat Earthers in the Muslim world are only marginally more common than Flat Earthers in the Christian world, and when controlling for differences in relative levels of education, I’d be willing to bet the difference disappears.
And since when is one guy “Muslim scholars”, the plural and normative case? From the video, the other two guys were hammering on him with science and logic. They are, all three, “Muslim Scholars” in the sense that they are likely all Muslim and are all titled scholars. This is different from being a scholar *of* Islam, which none of the people presented are referred to as being, though the first guy gives it a good college try by throwing out the Qur’anic verses. Quoting scripture does not a scholar make.
I enjoyed the way that Al-Tael, physicist, refutes the dogma whilst hefting a big book of SCIENCE!
“So far no doctor has discovered how the eye works”
erm, yeah, they really have….
“The moon has a diameter of 1,200,000 Km”
Ooooooooooh, so close. It’s 3747.8 Km, but what’s 1 196 525.2 Km between friends?
The best line of the whole thing though: “The sun is smaller than the Earth” I nearly choked on my tea!
The sun is clearly smaller than the Earth. I mean, just look at it. It’s the size of a quarter.
Obviously the cars in the background don’t exist. I sincerely doubt the Koran references automobiles driven by petroleum oil, ergo they don’t exist. My best guess is that it is the lower half of the eye that sees things far away, and that instead of looking round they look like cars. Yeah, that has to be it. You know, because if the Koran doesn’t reference it, it isn’t so.
I wonder if the Koran also references striped buttoned shirts…
I’m curious if it says that the eye has this strange split vision in the Koran. Also, does it say what the diameter of the sun and moon are? Lastly, does it even have the words ‘meter’ and ‘diameter’ in it?
That’s the problem with using one book as the source of all true statements.
But boy do I love a good ol’ crazy every once in a while!
Why are these Muslin scientists wasting time with the old guy?
Clearly, he was either dropped on his head at some point or was teleported here from the 12th century.
NASA has just been messing with us. It’s a big conspiracy. Ever heard of Photoshop?
Everyone knows the world is flat and sits atop big huge pillars. The Koran and Bible told me so.
Good to know that the Flat Earth Society has its equal in the muslim world.
Hey, there are even two Flat Earth Societies!
The moon isn’t one-sixth the mass of the earth; it’s closer to one-eightieth earth mass.
The surface gravity of the moon is about one-sixth gee, true; but the moon is a lot smaller than earth, so someone on the moon’s surface is closer to its center than someone on earth’s surface is to its center. Surface gravity is proportional to the body’s mass divided by the square of its radius.
I know this is true for my bible tells me so.
Wait, we have no idea of how the eye works? Yes we do, we can even fix problems in the eye with laser beams.
And, uh, the diameter of the moon is roughly 3,475 km, about 1/4 that of the earth (the mass is about 1/6 though), while the diameter of the sun is 1,392,000 km.
This is a clear demonstration of how religion is harmful. If he wants to reject science, he should probably take off those glasses, sell his car, turn off the gas, heat, and power, and see how much help god gives him.
Regarding the diameters of the moon and the sun, does that guy not know how to google? Perhaps we should send him the link to http://www.justfuckinggoogleit.com
If you want to come up with some crackpot theory be my guest, but if you want some chance of people believing it, at least make it first-glance-credible.
“So far, no doctor has succeeded in understanding how the eye works.”
Said the guy wearing GLASSES. Or did Allah poof those on to his face for him?
My brain now hurts.
AHAA! This proves that Galileo was wrong! The Inquisition has been vindicated! everyonenowqueueforconfession…
Despite the “Earth is flat” guy being completely brainwashed by the magical awesomeness of the Quran, odds are that the scientist dude is also a religious fanatic.
It’s a phenomenon I’ve seen a ridiculous number of times. I’ve known rocket scientists (actual ones, not just exaggerating) who unquestioningly believe in religion while at the same time unquestioningly believing in Science.
I’ve had to deal with this type of bi-directional logic all my life in India, leading to many arguments that I could not possibly win because the other person “went both ways”, if you will.
Strangely, it seems to be the direction in which a lot of (South) Asian countries (i.e. India and the sub-continent) are heading, with even the most modernist thinkers embracing technology and scientific progress while thinking God for making them smart enough to initiate this progress.
I still love that huge book of science. It’s baller.
LOL! Would it be a valid debate response to say, “WTF are you talking about?!?” because that’s what I was thinking as the flat-earth guy was trying to explain things.
Heh.
@Everyone: I think none of the above have ever even tried to read the KORAN or atleast tried to see wheather KORAN is saying what the Old Guy (Claiming to be Muslim) is true or not.
1. The Old Guy (Claiming to be Muslim, dont forget there are ARAB Coptic Christians as well living in Iraq, Palistine, Egypt etc..) does not give any reference in Koran.
2. I belive this old man have absolute ZERO knowledge on Koran.
Please see below for more clarity what Allah says about the Earth in Koran with reference : -
1. SHAPE OF THE EARTH IS SPHERICAL
In early times, people believed that the earth was flat. For centuries, men were afraid to venture out too far, for fear of falling off the edge! Sir Francis Drake was the first person who proved that the earth is spherical when he sailed around it in 1597.
Consider the following Qur’anic verse regarding the alternation of day and night:
“Seest thou not that Allah merges Night into Day
and He merges Day into Night?” [Al-Qur’an 31:29]
Merging here means that the night slowly and gradually changes to day and vice versa. This phenomenon can only take place if the earth is spherical. If the earth was flat, there would have been a sudden change from night to day and from day to night.
The following verse also alludes to the spherical shape of the earth:
“He created the heavens and the earth in true (proportions): He makes the Night overlap the Day, and the Day overlap the Night.”
[Al-Qur’an 39:5]
The Arabic word used here is Kawwara meaning ‘to overlap’ or ‘to coil’– the way a turban is wound around the head. The overlapping or coiling of the day and night can only take place if the earth is spherical.
The earth is not exactly round like a ball, but geo-spherical, i.e. it is flattened at the poles. The following verse contains a description of the earth’s shape:
“And the earth, moreover,
hath He made egg shaped.”
[Al-Qur’an 79:30]
The Arabic word for egg here is dahaahaa1 which means an ostrich-egg. The shape of an ostrich-egg resembles the geo-spherical shape of the earth.
Thus the Qur’an correctly describes the shape of the earth, though the prevalent notion when the Qur’an was revealed was that the earth was flat.
2. MOONLIGHT IS REFLECTED LIGHT
It was believed by earlier civilizations that the moon emanates its own light. Science now tells us that the light of the moon is reflected light. However this fact was mentioned in the Qur’an 1,400 years ago in the following verse:
“Blessed is He Who made Constellations in the skies, and placed therein a Lamp and a Moon giving light.” [Al-Qur’an 25:61]
The Arabic word for the sun in the Qur’an, is shams. It is also referred to as siraaj which means a ‘torch’ or as wahhaaj meaning ‘a blazing lamp’ or as diya which means ‘shining glory’. All three descriptions are appropriate to the sun, since it generates intense heat and light by its internal combustion.
The Arabic word for the moon is qamar and it is described in the Qur’an as muneer which is a body that gives noor i.e. reflected light. Again, the Qur’anic description matches perfectly with the true nature of the moon which does not give off light by itself and is an inactive body that reflects the light of the sun. Not once in the Qur’an, is the moon
mentioned as siraaj, wahhaaj or diya nor the sun as
noor or muneer.
This implies that the Qur’an recognizes the difference between the nature of sunlight and moonlight. The following verses relate to the nature of light from the sun and the moon:
“It is He who made the sun to be a shining glory
and the moon to be a light (of beauty).” [Al-Qur’an 10:5]
“See ye not how Allah has created the seven heavens
one above another, “And made the moon a light in their midst, and made the sun as a (Glorious) Lamp?” [Al-Qur’an 71:15-16]
The Glorious Qur’an and modern science, are thus in perfect agreement about the differences in the nature of sunlight and moonlight.
3. THE SUN ROTATES
For a long time European philosophers and scientists believed that the earth stood still in the centre of the universe and every other body including the sun moved around it. In the West, this geocentric concept of the universe was prevalent right from the time of Ptolemy in the second century B.C. In 1512, Nicholas Copernicus put forward his Heliocentric Theory of Planetary Motion, which asserted that the sun is motionless at the centre of the solar system with the planets revolving around it. In 1609, the German scientist Yohannus Keppler published the ‘Astronomia Nova’. In this he concluded that not only do the planets move in elliptical orbits around the sun, they also rotate upon their axes at irregular speeds. With this knowledge it became possible for European scientists to explain correctly many of the mechanisms of the solar system, including the sequence of night and day.
After these discoveries, it was thought that the Sun was stationary and did not rotate about its axis like the Earth. I remember having studied this fallacy from Geography books during my school days.
Consider the following Qur’anic verse:
“It is He Who created the Night and the Day, and the sun and the moon: All (the celestial bodies) swim along, each in its rounded course.” [Al-Qur’an 21:33]
The Arabic word used in the above verse is “yasbahoon” . This word is derived from the word sabaha. It carries with it the idea of motion that comes from any moving body. If you use this word for a person on the ground, it would not mean that he is rolling but would imply that he is walking or
running. If you use this word for a person in water,
it would not mean that he is floating but would
imply that he is swimming.
Similarly, if you use the word yasbah for a celestial body such as the sun, it would not only mean that it is flying through space but would also mean that it is rotating as it goes through space. Most school textbooks have now incorporated the fact that the sun rotates about its axis. The rotation of the sun about its own axis can be proved with the help of an equipment that projects the image of the sun on the top of a table, so that one can examine the image of the sun without being blinded. It is noticed that the sun has spots which complete a circular motion once
every 25 days i.e. the sun takes approximately 25 days to rotate round its axis.
The sun travels through space at roughly 240 km per second, and takes about 200 million years to complete one revolution around the centre of our Milky Way Galaxy.
“It is not permitted to the Sun to catch up the Moon, nor can the Night outstrip the Day: Each (just) swims along
in (its own) orbit (according to Law).” [Al-Qur’an 36:40]
This verse mentions an essential fact discovered
only recently by modern astronomy, i.e. the existence of the individual orbits of the Sun and the Moon, and their journey through space with their own motion.
The ‘fixed place’ towards which the sun travels, carrying with it the solar system, has been located preirsely by modern astronomy. It has been given a name, the Solar Apex. The solar system is indeed moving in space towards a point situated in the constellation of Hercules (alpha Lyrae) whose exact location is now firmly established.
The moon rotates around its axis in the same duration that it takes to revolve around the earth.
It takes approximately 29½ days to complete one rotation.
One cannot help but be amazed at the scientific accuracy of the Qur’anic verses.
Should we not ponder over the question: “What is the source of knowledge contained in the Qur’an?”
THE SUN WILL EXTINGUISH
The light of the sun is due to a chemical process on its surface that has been taking place continuously for the past five billion years. It will come to an end at some point of time in the future, when the sun will be totally extinguished, leading to extinction of all life on earth.
Regarding the impermanence of the sun’s existence, the Qur’an says:
“And the Sun runs its course for a period determined
for it; that is the decree of (Him) the exalted in Might, the All-Knowing.” [Al-Qur’an 36:38]1
The Arabic word used here is mustaqarr, which means a place or time that is determined. Thus the Qur’an says that the sun runs towards a determined place, and will do so only up to a pre-determined period of time – meaning that it will end or extinguish.
There is more, I hope you study islam not the Muslims of present day.
Thank you
Youtube search for Quran And Modern Science Conflict Or Conciliation
links 1 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEmcSKKkczQ&feature=PlayList&p=4A6ACA3F84F0D846&index=0&playnext=1
good luck
There are two scholars debating. Thus the plural.
The book looked hefty enough to make a decent tool of ironic beating.
“What happened to you?”
“He beat me with science!“
“What happened to you?”
“He beat me with science!“
Lol. That’s the best phrase I’ve heard all day.
Ah, the third guy is the host.
I think though it’s slightly dirty pool to imply that this is actually something of a live debate within the actual community of scholars who happen to be Muslim. Every once in a while American news agencies throw a “debate” for people who deny the Apollo moon landing (or less amusingly, the Holocaust); it doesn’t mean there is a live debate on the matter in the wider community.
I would be interested to know (and haven’t the foggiest idea where to start looking) where one may find statistics on adherence to flat earth ideology broken down by region and religious demographics, esp. controlled for education level. It’s possible I’m giving the Muslim world too much credit, but I’m skeptical.
I’m sorry but I only see one scholar in the debate. The host actually seemed pretty dumbfounded and asked for more detailed explanations from the Flat Earther. As already noted, thinking that Earth is flat is a very rare phenomenon in the Muslim world and most Middle Easterners are dumbfounded by those who believe it in earnest.
What I don’t understand is how people shrink when they get further from me, and get HUGE when I put my face closer to them. It doesn’t seem to hurt them, and they don’t even seem to notice! Odd.
Well, remember this?
http://www.lazyiguana.org/posters/elephnats.jpg
It’s not really a debate at all. At the most you have some really old or hardcore Wahabees and Salafees from parts of Africa and Saudi Arabia who say that the world is flat, but it’s really embarassing to most people. One thing al Jazeera is notorious for in the Arab countries is that they will basically give time to everyone and anyone. They have quite a few shows that are only for debating, and they will bring out some of the looniest most backwards people in the Arab world to debate with secularists or more modern people and everyone has a good laugh or is embarassed and then they tune into Dubai One to watch ‘CSI’. But also this policy of giving time to anyone and everyone has meant that dissidents from Egypt, Syria, Jordan, etc have had time on air and their message is reaching across the entire Arab world, and that’s why the Arab governments tend to hate al Jazeera.
You um… you don’t put your face close to others very often, do you?
Cause, you know. That’d be weird.
These ones are small… but the ones out there are far away…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmU_q5xrnto
Well, if ID makes it into the public school science textbooks, then I’m going to INSIST that flat earth theory get equal time!!!
Teach the controversy!!!!!
Yea. And let’s not restrict ourselves to flat-earthism!
You mean like THIS?
No no – atop an elephant standing on the backs of four turtles.
But what are the turtles standing on? Surely the turtles have to be standing on something? (first cause dilemma)
It’s turtles all the way down.
Oooooohhh! How about intelligent falling? How about Stork theory? Yes, yes! It’s all coming together now!
Haha! Sure give them that, and then when they start complaining about teaching the Big Bang theory you can insist that other creation myths be taught, like all the ones where gof masterbated the earth into existence. Then watch their heads explode.
ooops. That was supposed to be god not gof … not that he exists either way.
No, you’ve got it wrong. There is only one turtle and he MUST be self-supporting by logical necessity. Surely you do not deny the axiom ‘On nothing, nothing can stand’ do you? If you accept this one immutable truth, then the turtle must stand on himself. QED.
AAHHHHH!!!!
I think that ID should be taught alongside mythology.
The lol-worthiest statement by far!
Said the guy wearing GLASSES
Do you suppose they are bifocals? That might explain his strange notions about things looking different if you look up or down.
“Said the guy wearing GLASSES” lol pity the guy he was debating didn’t call him out on that.
heehee
Allah’s kinda like Vision Express with his glasses-poofing.
So, I guess my question would then be…
What’s wrong with that?
I mean from a purely practical consequentialist analysis. If a guy can build rockets, read Darwin, and believe in God, what’s the big deal?
People who do not belong to a certain religious tradition usually are primarily concerned with the baneful consequences that transpire when people not themselves embrace the religious viewpoint. I guess I fail to see the harm in a person who does not embody the magical thinking habits, cultural prejudices and repressions, and exceptionalist attitudes saying “BTW, I believe in God”.
Word. I want a heavy, solidly-bound book with “SCIENCE!” emblazoned on the cover handy for when it might be useful. Such an item has infinite comic possibilities.
But they do “embody the magical thinking habits, cultural prejudices and repressions”. That’s kinda my point. They’re intelligent people who still have prejudices, idiotic traditions and choose to repress free expression. That’s what my problem is.
I’ve seen the most unlikely of people talk derogatively about Muslims, for no other reason than that they’re Hindu and it’s what they’re taught by their family. These are otherwise highly intelligent and dare I say, “cool” people, who just act out the prejudices they’ve grown up around.
And it is never a case of “BTW, I believe in God”, but always “BECAUSE I believe in MY god”.
I personally haven’t been a part of the whole Indian ‘culture’ thing mainly because it’s inseperable from religion.