Is the Universe Finite, or Infinite according to the Koran?
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It is a common thing to wonder about the Universe. IT is so vast and so beautiful that we fall in love with this great creation of GOD.
But, do we know whether the Universe is Finite or Infinite?
Theists believe in a finite Universe, adding to the idea of creationism. However Atheists believe in an Infinite Universe adding to the Belief that No GOD exists.
Let us examine the Koran and see what GOD says about the Universe in the Great reading.
Do the unbelievers not realize that the heaven and the earth used to be one solid mass that we exploded into existence? And from water we made all living things. Would they believe?
This means that before time (expansion of the universe), the universe was one solid mass (possibly smaller than an atom or even smaller than a quark) exploded which gives us proof that the Universe is finite. This also tells us that GOD is the creator of the Universe. Praise GOD.
Let's examine another verse-
Then He turned to the sky, when it was still gas, and said to it, and to the earth, "Come into existence, willingly or unwillingly." They said, "We come willingly."
This tells us that All celestial Objects form in gaseous (or dust like) state. Today's science has proven that the Sun and other stars, galaxies and planets, was in fact, formed when a gaseous mass came together due to gravity. And the remnants of Stars became planets and this is how the Earth formed.
Expansion of the Universe Theory" Confirmed-
We constructed the sky with our hands, and we will continue to expand it.
The above verse, directly tells us that the universe is expanding. This means that it is finite and has an Edge.
Conclusion
THE UNIVERSE IS FINITE -
Yes Munzir. According to Quran, universe is most definetly finite.
Every thing that had a begining will have an end.
However, there is a twist (or atleast I think so). In 21.30 Allah infers that 'the universe as we see now EXISTED as one solid mass' Now, what was this solid mass..? What was its source..? Was it Allah himself..? Did it co-existed with Allah..? Did Allah created it..?
What are your thoughts.
Brother,
Yushua. -
Your conclusion is both correct and utterly incorrect.
The "heavens and earth" is finite, it has a beginning and an end. "The universe" is a vague term. Does it refer to the whole of existence, or does it refer to only our observable universe? This is where one will get confused. This is also why in al-quran only "heavens and earth" is used in reference. "The universe" is a single concept. The term "heavens and earth" is two concepts interlinked.
Now to shine some clarity. The observable universe is ALWAYS finite. The grand universe as a whole must be infinite if and only if the original singularity that it sprung from is infinite in energy content. This follows from the rule that energy cannot be created or destroyed. I presently understand the infinite universe to be the case as current physics says that we originated from an infinitely hot, infinitely dense point.
The next thing to note is that when the heaven and earth was one solid mass, there is no definition of size. Size only came after the universe split. Thus it is BOTH smaller than a planck length AND bigger than anything you can concieve. This again is another region where one often gets confused.
Then we turn our attention to 5147. And now you notice the strict usage of samaa rather than heavens AND earth. It is talking about the boundary of the observable universe. Of course for all intents and purposes, the observable universe IS "the universe" to us because we can't reach out past that fickle boundary. However you can take ANY point in the entire universe to be the centre of the universe. In al-quran, ALLAH takes the Earth as the centre of the universe and the heavens as that around the centre; why? Because it's an earth centric book. If we were martians it would most probably say "the heavens and mars" but that is a guess as good as any.
All in all the answer to your question can only be found when our progress in science reveals the truth as to whether the original singularity is actually finite or infinite. I observe that any guess one currently makes with regards to this is utterly in vain, unless perhaps you know something that I don't!
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Salam,
The model of universe that I am comfortable with is infinite, but finite. Something with a boundary condition of no boundary, warped around itself. At any given time, the universe can have a finite volume ( i doubt though) , but due to the "time" factor, the volume is variable depending on when you actually measure it. That may be is what makes me say it is infinite, yet finite. Infinite because of uncertainty principle not allowing us to measure, but Allah isnt a slave to it so its limited from his point of view.
God knows if I made the slightest of sense laugh
May God guide us
---------------------- Student of Allah
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The term "universe" of Latin origin means "turned, combined into one" and it refers to all the space that exists. The Qur'an uses "the Sky and the Earth" or "the Skies and the Earth", and sometimes adds "what's between them". Nothing above nor beyond them. It's finite in its existence, but infinite for us, as number 23428756890238 is finite but we cannot count to it, it's too big for us to reach its end. As we cannot even imagine that number in quantity we cannot know the universe, it'll be guessing (rajm) not knowledge ('ilm). People let their imagination (sheyTaan) drives them to "the voyage through universe", but it's not real (Haqq), that doesn't function (baaTil).
All we think we or somebody else knows about the universe beyond human's experience is just "Star trek", less sci and more fi.
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The Quran presents a multiverse model. But of course these universes are finite in size and also finite in number (e.g. 7, or 11, 19...)
As I mentioned in this article, there is also the Hereafter Universe called the Lord's Floor (and some exceptional people are already living there in the flesh now). And only this Lord's Floor (Indallah) will exist forever. The other universes will be destroyed by the Big Crunch in the Apocalypse.
https//free-minds.org/forum/index.php?topic=9611687.0
Peace
