Book of Signs Foundation » Authenticity of Qur’an

OCD & Its Cure in the Light of the Quran

obaloch — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 17:31:53 +0000

Cause of obsessive compulsive disorder

The cause of the condition is unknown. There is growing evidence that OCD represents abnormal functioning of brain circuitry.

What is OCD?

Obsessions occur when people repeatedly get intrusive thoughts or ideas that can be frightening or distressing. i.e. thinking that your mother is going to die, and then worrying that they will because you had this thought.
Compulsions are when people feel compelled to do certain things even when they don’t want to. They may include hand washing, counting, checking, cleaning etc.

People who carry out these rituals are described as having OCD. Generally, the purpose of the ritual is to ward off or protect from the consequences of a potential danger.

Who gets OCD?

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder affects 1 in 50 people, (1 in 100 children) and affects men and women equally. It may appear at any time in a person’s life, but for 50% of sufferers, it begins in childhood or adolescence. Symptoms may come and go, improve or worsen over time. Study’s have found that people with OCD do share certain personality traits, specific life-long tendencies to think and act in particular ways. One study suggests that OCD sufferers may be summed up as fearful, introspective, and depressive.

Sir Aubrey Lewis, a great English psychiatrist, concluded in 1935 that most extreme cases of OCD could be grouped under four general categories: filth, harm, lust, and blasphemy

Filth: fear of dirt and of contamination by germs, poisons, or body secretions
Harm: fear of acting on persistent impulses to harm other people or oneself
Lust: obsessive sexual thoughts
Blasphemy: religious obsessions, etc.

إِنَّمَا يَأۡمُرُكُم بِٱلسُّوٓءِ وَٱلۡفَحۡشَآءِ وَأَن تَقُولُواْ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعۡلَمُون١٦٩
He (Satan) keeping ordering you to harmful (acts & things) , immodest acts, and that you ascribe to God what you do not know. (2:169)

In this verse, the Quran tells us, that Satan keeps ordering us, in the voice of our own thoughts, in an impulsive form, to do evil, immodest acts, and to say superstitious things. So, Satan whispers and keeps the impulsiveness feeling and thoughts going. As Sir Aubrey Lewis categorized these thoughts into haram, filth, immodest acts, and blasphemy. Haram and filth are put into one category in the Quran. Instead of blashphamy, the Quran mentions “ascribe to God what you do not know.” Some of the more recent scientists, just call it superstitious thoughts. Either way it is impulsive thoughts about the unseen world.

The Quran gives a solution to this problem in the verse before. So it reads

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ كُلُواْ مِمَّا فِى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ حَلَـٰلاً۬ طَيِّبً۬ا وَلَا تَتَّبِعُواْ خُطُوَٲتِ ٱلشَّيۡطَـٰنِ‌ۚ إِنَّهُ ۥ لَكُمۡ عَدُوٌّ۬ مُّبِينٌ (١٦٨) إِنَّمَا يَأۡمُرُكُم بِٱلسُّوٓءِ وَٱلۡفَحۡشَآءِ وَأَن تَقُولُواْ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعۡلَمُونَ (١٦٩)
O people, eat permissible pure things out of what lies in the earth, and do not follow the footsteps of Shaitan (Satan); 83 indeed, he is an open enemy for you. (168) He orders you only to (do) Haram and immodest acts, and that you ascribe to God what you do not know. (169)

The first solution is to eat of Good and pure things of the earth. Second solution is to stop following the ways of Satan. He is an enemy of humans, and wants to make things difficult for them. One way he does this is by putting a human in a state of OCD. As mentioned earlier, fear is a trait common in OCD patients, and the Quran teach in many places fear is tool of the Satan. In one particular place the Quran mentions, “Satan threatens (creates fear) you with poverty and he commands you to immorality. But God promises you His forgiveness and bounty (QURAN, 2:268)

In fact, bulimia and anorexia are often associated with OCD because it normally starts as obsessive thoughts geared toward being thin and good looking? OCD can be a very debilitating disorder. Not only is the person bombarded by troublesome thoughts all of the time, but it can lead to serious behavioral problems such as cutting, eating disorders and the like. For example, kids may become obsessed with thoughts of becoming popular or staying thin. Although it is common for kids to go through generalized thoughts such as these, when the thoughts consume who they are, the issue is a deeper one and should be addressed. So, again with bulimia and anorexia we find a link between OCD and food.

Probably the most overlooked form of therapy for treating obsessive compulsive disorder, and many disorders like it is through whole food diet therapy as mentioned in the Quran. A diet rich in tryptophan, the amino acid precursor to serotonin, is essential to maintaining levels of serotonin. The following foods are rich in this amino acid and should be incorporated into your diet regularly. This list includes: oatmeal, rice bran, eggs, cottage and swiss cheeses, blueberries, bananas, and turkey, roast beef, chicken, whole grains, salmon, tofu, brown rice, baked beans, broccoli, avocado, mackerel, potatoes, nuts and sunflower seeds. It is also advisable that you choose organic, pesticide and hormone free meats and veggies.

Many parents who have used vitamin and other supplements for their children with OCD offer anecdotal reports of improved mood states and reduced symptoms. Among the nutritional supplements they (and some psychiatrists) recommend are B complex, omega 3 fish oil, and calcium/magnesium. The potential use of any vitamin supplements and herbal medicines for your child’s OCD should be discussed with your doctor.

If your child or adolescent is dealing with OCD, there are clear benefits to be gained from cutting down the amount of highly sugared and caffeinated products in his diet. This includes candy, cookies and cakes, sodas, coffee, tea and other “energy boosting” bars or drinks containing high amounts of sugar and caffeine. These products can increase anxiety and nervousness in a child with OCD, ADHD or social anxiety. A balanced diet with all food groups represented is an important element in the home care of a child with OCD. Also important is an adherence to a regular routine for three meals a day.

However, most important foods would be the foods mentioned in the Quran itself, and in the model we see in the Prophets.

Meaning of Seven Earths in Quran

obaloch — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 20:42:00 +0000

The prophet (PBUH) said: (Whoever usurps even one span of the land, his neck will be encircled because of it with seven earths) [narrated by Al Bukhari]. Here the prophet gave another characteristic of the layers, encirclement, by saying (will be encircled with it) and this is how the layers truly look like, they are concentric and each one encircles the one underneath it.”

Here the prophet gave another characteristic of the layers, encirclement, by saying (will be encircled with it) and this is how the layers truly look like, they are concentric and each one encircles the one underneath it.”

The Seven “Earths” refer to the layers that literally make up the Earth
crust
lithosphere
upper mantle
astenoshpere
lower mantle
outer core
inner core

Seven heavens may refer to the 7 ozone layers:
troposphere
stratosphere
ozone layer
mesosphere
thermosphere
ionosphere
exosphere

Studies in geology have proven that the earth is composed of seven zones, identified from the inner to the outer layers as follows:

(1) The Solid Inner Core of Earth: 1.7% of the Earth’s mass; depth of 5,150 – 6,370 kilometers (3,219 – 3,981 miles)

The inner core is solid and unattached to the mantle, suspended in the molten outer core. It is believed to have solidified as a result of pressure-freezing which occurs to most liquids when temperature decreases or pressure increases.

(2) The Liquid Outer core: 30.8% of Earth’s mass; depth of 2,890 – 5,150 kilometers (1,806 – 3,219 miles)

The outer core is a hot, electrically conducting liquid within which convective motion occurs. This conductive layer combines with Earth’s rotation to create a dynamo effect that maintains a system of electrical currents known as the Earth’s magnetic field. It is also responsible for the subtle jerking of Earth’s rotation. This layer is not as dense as pure molten iron, which indicates the presence of lighter elements. Scientists suspect that about 10% of the layer is composed of sulfur and/or oxygen because these elements are abundant in the cosmos and dissolve readily in molten iron.

(3) The “D” Layer: 3% of Earth’s mass; depth of 2,700 – 2,890 kilometers (1,688 – 1,806 miles)

This layer is 200 to 300 kilometers (125 to 188 miles) thick and represents about 4% of the mantle-crust mass. Although it is often identified as part of the lower mantle, seismic discontinuities suggest the “D” layer might differ chemically from the lower mantle lying above it. Scientists theorize that the material either dissolved in the core, or was able to sink through the mantle but not into the core because of its density.

(4) Lower Mantle: 49.2% of Earth’s mass; depth of 650 – 2,890 kilometers (406 -1,806 miles)

The lower mantle contains 72.9% of the mantle-crust mass and is probably composed mainly of silicon, magnesium, and oxygen. It probably also contains some iron, calcium, and aluminum. Scientists make these deductions by assuming the Earth has a similar abundance and proportion of cosmic elements as found in the Sun and primitive meteorites.

(5) Middle Mantle (Transition region): 7.5% of Earth’s mass; depth of 400 – 650 kilometers (250-406 miles)

The transition region or mesosphere (for middle mantle), sometimes called the fertile layer, contains 11.1% of the mantle-crust mass and is the source of basaltic magmas. It also contains calcium, aluminum, and garnet, which is a complex aluminum-bearing silicate mineral. This layer is dense when cold because of the garnet. It is buoyant when hot because these minerals melt easily to form basalt which can then rise through the upper layers as magma.

(6) Upper Mantle: 10.3% of Earth’s mass; depth of 10 – 400 kilometers (6 – 250 miles)

The upper mantle contains 15.3% of the mantle-crust mass. Fragments have been excavated for our observation by eroded mountain belts and volcanic eruptions. Olivine (Mg,Fe)2SiO4 and pyroxene (Mg,Fe)SiO3 have been the primary minerals found in this way. These and other minerals are refractory and crystalline at high temperatures; therefore, most settle out of rising magma, either forming new material or never leaving the mantle. Part of the upper mantle called the asthenosphere might be partially molten.

(7) Lithosphere

Oceanic crust: 0.099% of Earth’s mass; depth of 0-10 kilometers (0 – 6 miles)

The rigid, outermost layer of the Earth comprising the crust and upper mantle is called the lithosphere. The oceanic crust contains 0.147% of the mantle-crust mass. The majority of the Earth’s crust was made through volcanic activity. The oceanic ridge system, a 40,000-kilometer (25,000 mile) network of volcanoes, generates new oceanic crust at the rate of 17 km3 per year, covering the ocean floor with basalt. Hawaii and Iceland are two examples of the accumulation of basalt piles.

Conclusion

The layers of the earth coincide with the above mentioned hadith of the Prophet. The miracle is in two matters:

(1) The expression of the hadith, ‘He will sink down the seven earths on the Day of Resurrection,’ indicates the stratification of these “earths” around one center.

(2) The accuracy with which the Prophet of Islam referred to the seven inner layers of earth.

The only way for a desert dweller to have known these facts 1400 years ago is through revelation from God.

Diet and Health

obaloch — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 21:52:01 +0000

{وَالَّذِي هُوَ يُطْعِمُنِي وَيَسْقِينِ وَإِذَا مَرِضْتُ فَهُوَ يَشْفِينِ}
And Abraham prayed, “And He feeds me and quenches my thirst and when I fall sick then He (Allah) cures me.” [Soorah Shu'araa: 80]

In this statement of the Quran by Abraham is a great scientific fact. That is our food is directly related to our health and sickness.

WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?

Serious diseases that are linked to what we eat kill an estimated three out of four Americans each year. These diseases include heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, some types of cancer, and diabetes. Eating a diet that contains 5 to 9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day as part of a healthy, active lifestyle lowers the risk for all of these diseases.

Most Americans don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables to keep them healthy. Despite the fact that they are important for maintaining overall good health and preventing diseases, eating fruits and vegetables is not even on many people’s radar screens.

Taking multivitamins doesn’t solve the problem–it is impossible to capture all of the vitamins, minerals, disease-fighting phytochemicals, and fiber found in fruits and vegetables, in a pill. Only fruits and vegetables, not vitamin pills, can provide all of these health-protecting nutrients together.

WHO IS AT RISK?

Everyone has some degree of risk for developing diet-related chronic diseases, and this risk increases with age. Lifestyle factors that contribute to increased risk for these diseases include not eating enough fruits and vegetables, eating too many foods high in saturated fats (fried foods, full-fat dairy products, fatty cuts of meat) and not getting enough exercise. These behaviors begin in childhood and become habits that can carry into adulthood.

Heart disease, which is largely influenced by what we eat, remains the number one killer of both American men and women. And, high blood pressure, which can be reduced within a month by changing eating habits, will affect 90 percent of American men and women at some point in their lifetime.

In general, men get chronic diseases more often than women and die from them at earlier ages. African American men have even higher rates of these diseases than white men, including heart disease, high blood pressure, many cancers, and diabetes, and get them even earlier in life.

The number of servings of fruits and vegetables that is recommended depends on a person’s age and gender, ranging from five a day for children age 2 to 6 (as well as some women and some older adults) to nine a day for teenage boys and active men.

CAN IT BE PREVENTED?

Leading causes of death, which include heart disease, high blood pressure, many cancers, diabetes and stroke, are largely preventable through lifestyle choices such as eating more fruits and vegetables. Eating 5 to 9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day is one of the easiest things everyone can do to lower their chances for all of the diet-related diseases.

This may sound like a lot, but in fact one serving size is actually quite small (it fits in the palm of your hand), and it’s easy to eat several servings during one meal in a vegetable or fruit salad, for instance. But remember, pills don’t count.

BOTTOM LINE

Simple lifestyle changes can save lives and improve your quality of life. A person does not have to drastically alter his or her diet to be healthier. Simply substituting an apple a day as a snack instead of a candy bar can make an important difference in lowering risk for disease and improving everyday performance. It is not necessary to make large changes in diet in order to improve health and avoid disease. Here are a few simple tips:

Grab an apple, orange, banana, pear, or other piece of moderate-sized fruit to eat on-the-go.
Snack on raw veggies like baby carrots, pepper strips, broccoli, and celery.
Pick up ready-made salads from the produce shelf for a quick salad anytime.

HEALTHY DIET OVERVIEW

The food choices we make can have an important impact on our health. However, expert opinions about which and how much of these foods is best continues to change as new research is completed.
This topic summarizes the research about the relationships between various foods or supplements and specific health conditions, and concludes with general recommendations for following a healthy diet.

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
A number of studies have demonstrated important health benefits of eating fruits and vegetables.

These foods decrease the risk of cardiovascular diseases including coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke [1]; eating up to six servings per day appears to provide the most benefit. Cruciferous vegetables (ie, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, brussel sprouts), green leafy vegetables, citrus fruits, and vitamin C-rich fruit and vegetables may lower the risk of cardiovascular disease to the greatest extent.
High intake of fruits and vegetables also reduces the risk of developing certain kinds of cancer (including lung cancer and cancer of the gastrointestinal system).

The National Cancer Institute recommends a goal of five servings of fruits or vegetables per day.
FIBER
Eating a diet that is high in fiber can decrease the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke by 40 to 50 percent [2]. Eating fiber also protects against type 2 diabetes, and eating soluble fiber (such as that found in vegetables, fruits, and especially legumes) may help control blood sugar in people who already have diabetes.
The recommended amount of dietary fiber is 20 to 35 grams of fiber per day. Many breakfast cereals are excellent sources of dietary fiber. By reading the product information panel on the side of the package, it is possible to determine the number of grams of fiber per serving

FAT
High blood cholesterol levels increase the risk of coronary heart disease. Eating foods lower in certain types of fat and cutting back on foods that contain cholesterol can lower cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. The type of fat consumed appears to be more important than the amount of total fat. Saturated fats and trans fats should be avoided.

Trans fats are those that are solid at room temperature, and are found in many margarines and in other fats labeled “partially hydrogenated.” Another major source is oils that are maintained at high temperature for a long period, such as in fast food restaurants.
Saturated fats come mainly from animal products, such as cheese, butter, and red meat.

When considering a low fat diet, it is important not to replace fat with carbohydrates. Increases in carbohydrate intake may lower levels of high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (good cholesterol), which actually increases the risk of coronary heart disease.

FOLATE
Folate is a type of B vitamin that is important in the production of red blood cells. Low levels of folate in pregnant women have been linked to a group of birth defects called neural tube defects, which includes spina bifida and anencephaly. Vitamins containing folate and breakfast cereal fortified with folate are recommended as the best ways to ensure adequate folate intake.

However, supplements containing folate (called folic acid) are no longer recommended to reduce the risk of colon cancer or heart disease.

ANTIOXIDANTS
The antioxidant vitamins include vitamins A, C, E, and beta-carotene. Many other foods, especially fruits and vegetables, also have antioxidant properties. Studies have not clearly shown that antioxidant vitamins prevent cancer, and some studies show they may actually cause harm.
No recommendations can yet be made regarding the use of vitamin C to prevent coronary heart disease (CHD).
Vitamin E supplements, either alone or in combination with other antioxidant vitamins, are of no benefit in preventing prevention of CHD. Studies have also failed to show that supplements of vitamins E and C decrease the risk of stroke. The American Heart Association does recommend, however, that a healthy diet include foods high in antioxidants, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
CALCIUM AND VITAMIN D
Adequate calcium and vitamin D intake are important, particularly in women, to reduce the risk of osteoporosis. A healthcare provider can help to decide if supplements are needed, depending upon a person’s dietary intake of calcium and vitamin D (table 2). Calcium from food sources and supplements appears to slightly increase the risk of prostate cancer, although it may help to protect against colon cancer.
Although the optimal level has not been clearly established, experts recommend that premenopausal women and men consume at least 1000 mg per day and postmenopausal women should consume 1500 mg per day. No more than 2000 mg of calcium should be consumed per day. Experts recommend that adults consume a total of 800 International Units (IU) of vitamin D each day. This dose appears to reduce bone loss and the number of bone fractures in older women and men. Milk is the primary dietary source of dietary vitamin D, containing approximately 100 IU per cup. Infants and children also need vitamin D.

GENERAL RECOMMENDATION FOR A HEALTHY DIET
Eat a lot of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and a limited amount of red meat. Eat at least five servings a day of fruits and vegetables. More is even better. Tips for achieving this goal include:

Make fruits and vegetables part of every meal. Frozen or canned products can be used when fresh products are not convenient or unavailable.
Add fruit to cereal.
Eat vegetables as snacks.
Leave a bowl of fruit out all the time for adults and children to eat as snacks

Trans fats and saturated fats should be avoided. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats should be used instead. Tips to accomplish this include:

Choose chicken, fish, or beans instead of red meat and cheese.
Cook with oils that contain a lot of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, like olive and canola oil.
Choose margarines that do not have partially hydrogenated oils. Soft margarines (especially squeeze margarines) have less trans fats than stick margarines.
Eat fewer store-bought baked goods that may contain partially hydrogenated fats, such as crackers, cookies, and cupcakes.
When eating at fast food restaurants, choose items like broiled chicken.

Get enough folate every day (400 micrograms per day). Tips for achieving this goal include:

Take a daily multivitamin containing 400 micrograms of folate. This is especially important for women in the childbearing years.
Eat breakfast cereal that is fortified with folate.
Eat fruits and vegetables that are rich in folate, like oranges, orange juice, and green leafy vegetables.

Quran vs Bible

obaloch — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 09:29:35 +0000

This video compares several scientific topics mentioned in both the Bible and the Qur’an! Do both books give the same information?
Which book contains the correct information?

The video also contains the following topics:

1. A quick brief introduction to Islam
2. Refuting the claim that Allah is a moon god!
3. Refuting the claim that the circulation around the Kaabah is an act of paganism, and SHOWING its MIRACULOUS part.
4. Comparing four SAME TOPICS mentioned in both the Bible and the Quran. The topics are:
A. The descriptions of the earth, sun, and the stars in the Bible and the Quran

B. The shape of the earth in the Bible and the Quran. This includes some remarkable Quran descriptions regarding the earth. Does the Bible say the same?

C. Some of the earth’s attributes in the Bible and the Quran. In this section, the video shows you the Quran’s verse that mentions the DIRECTION of the earth’s rotation and more

D. The drowning of Pharaoh. Did you know that Pharaoh’s body has been found?
Which of the two books has predicted the safety of Pharaoh’s body? The Bible says that not one single man has escaped from the sea! See what the Quran has predicted!

The video also touches on topics like the black holes, the stages of creation, etc. in the Holy Quran.

The Earth, A Living Planet

obaloch — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 22:23:02 +0000

The earth is a living planet where many complex systems run perfectly and continuously, without pause. When compared to other planets, it is evident that in all its aspects the earth is specially designed for human life. Built on delicate balances, life prevails in every spot of this planet, from the atmosphere to the depths of the earth.

Exploring only a few of the millions of these delicate balances would be sufficient to show that the world we live in is specially designed for us.

One of the most important balances in our planet is revealed in the atmosphere that surrounds us. The atmosphere of the earth holds the most appropriate gasses in the most appropriate ratio needed for the survival not only of human beings, but also of all the living beings on the earth.

The 77% of nitrogen, 21% of oxygen and 1% of carbon dioxide as well as other gasses readily available in the atmosphere represent the ideal figures necessary for the survival of living beings. Oxygen, a gas that is vital for living beings, helps to burn up food and convert it into energy in our bodies.

If the oxygen quantity in the atmosphere were greater than 21%, the cells in our body would soon start to suffer great damage. The vegetation and hydrocarbon molecules needed for life would also be destroyed. If this quantity were less, then this would cause difficulties in our respiration, and the food we eat would not be converted into energy. Therefore, the 21% of oxygen in the atmosphere is the most ideal quantity determined for life.

No less than oxygen, other gasses like nitrogen and carbon dioxide are also arranged in the ideal quantity for the needs of living beings and the continuity of life. The amount of nitrogen in the atmosphere has the ideal ratio to balance the harmful and burning effects of oxygen. This ratio represents the most appropriate value required for photosynthesis, which is essential for life’s energy supply on the earth. Moreover, the amount of carbon dioxide has the most appropriate value needed to maintain the stability of the surface temperature of the earth and to prevent heat loss especially at night time. This gas, comprising 1% of the atmosphere, covers the earth like a quilt and prevents the loss of heat to space. If this amount were greater, the temperature of the earth would increase excessively, causing climatic instability and posing a serious threat to the living beings.

These proportions remain constant thanks to a perfect system. The vegetation covering the earth converts carbon dioxide to oxygen, producing 190 billion tons of oxygen every day. The proportion of other gasses is always kept constant on the earth by the help of interconnected complex systems. Life is thus sustained.

In addition to the establishment of the ideal gas mixture required for life on earth, the mechanisms needed to preserve and maintain this order are created alongside with it. Any break in the balance, though instantaneous, or any change in the ratios even for a very short time period, would mean the total destruction of life. Yet, this does not happen. The formation of these gasses in the atmosphere just in the amount people need, and the constant preservation of these ratios indicate a planned creation.

At the same time, the earth has the ideal size in terms of magnitude to possess an atmosphere. If the mass of the earth were a little less, then its gravitational force would be insufficient and the atmosphere would be dispersed into space. If its mass were a little greater, then the gravitational force would be too much and the earth would absorb all gasses in the atmosphere. There is an incredibly high number of conditions required for the formation of an atmosphere such as the one our world currently has and all of these conditions should exist altogether to be able to talk of life.

The creation of these delicate proportions and balances in the sky is mentioned in the Quran:

“He erected heaven and established the balance.” (Quran 55:7)

The majority of people spend their lives without being aware of the delicate balances and subtle adjustments in the gas composition of the atmosphere, the distance of the world from the sun or the movements of planets. They are ignorant of the great significance of these balances and adjustments to their own lives. However, even a minor deviation in any one of these arrangements would create very severe problems regarding the existence and survival of humankind.

There are many other balances established on earth for the continuity of life:

For instance, if the surface gravity were stronger than its current value, the atmosphere would retain too much ammonia and methane gasses, which would mean the end of life. If it were weaker, the planet’s atmosphere would lose too much water, and life on earth would be impossible.

The thickness of the earth’s crust constitutes another one of the delicate balances in the earth. If the earth’s crust were thicker, too much oxygen would be transferred from the atmosphere to the crust and this would have severe effects on human life.

If the opposite were true, that is, if the earth’s crust were thinner, volcanic and tectonic activity would be too great to permit life on earth.

Another crucial balance for human life is the ozone level in the atmosphere. If it were greater than its current value, the surface temperatures would be too low. If it were less, surface temperatures would be too high, and there would be too much ultraviolet radiation at the surface.

In fact, the absence of even a single one of these balances would herald the end to life on earth. However, God has created the universe with infinite wisdom and power and designed the earth especially for human life. Despite this fact, the majority of people lead their lives in total ignorance of these events. In the Quran, God reminds people of His:

“(God) makes night merge into day and day merge into night, and He has made the sun and moon subservient, each one running until a specified time. That is God, your Lord. The Kingdom is His. Those you call on besides Him have no power over even the smallest speck.” (Quran 35:13)

It is sufficient to look at millions of dead planets in space in order to understand that the delicate balances required for life on earth is not a result of random coincidences. The conditions essential for life are too complicated to have been formed “on their own” and at random, and these conditions are specially created for life alone.

These balances we have briefly described so far are only a few of the millions of intricate, interrelated balances and orders established so that people can live in peace and safety on the earth.

Examining only a part of the balances and harmony on the earth is enough to comprehend the superior being of God and grasp the existence of a planned creation in every detail of the universe. It is no doubt impossible for a person or any other living being to build such an enormous balance and order. Nor are the components of this order such as atoms, elements, molecules, and gasses, capable of establishing an order based on such intricate and extremely delicate calculations and measurements, and such fine tunings. This is because activities like planning, ordering, arranging, calculating, and proportioning can only be realized by beings that possess wisdom, knowledge and power. The Exalted Being Who orders, plans and balances the entire universe to be fit for life of human beings on a planet like earth and Who sustains it with dramatically delicate measures and balances is God, Who has Infinite Wisdom, Knowledge and Power.

In the Quran, it is stated that those people who are able to realize these facts are the only “people with intelligence”:

“Indeed in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, there are Signs for people with intelligence: those who remember God, standing, sitting and lying on their sides, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth: [They say] ‘Our Lord, You have not created this for nothing. Glory be to You! So safeguard us from the punishment of the Fire.” (Quran 3:190-191)

How The Bible Has Changed Over Time

obaloch — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 06:22:18 +0000

Various Contradictions and Omissions in Bible Translations

This table compares various verses in the KJV, NIV, NASB, and NWT. The term “OMITTED” is used when either the phrase or the verse in question is omitted. This table is a very small sampling of contradictory verses, not an exhaustive one. How can we trust the bible to be the word of God, if every hundred years additions and omissions are being made to the bible. The Quran on the other hand has never changed.

I have noticed that in some cases, different editions may not treat a verse the same way. This table represents the verses as I have them in my printed editions (NIV 1984, NASB 1977, NWT 1984).

	AV (King James)	New International	New American Standard	New World Translation
Mt 9:13	for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.	For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.	For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.	For I came to call, not righteous people, but sinners.
Mt 18:11	For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.	OMITTED	footnote casts doubt	OMITTED
Mt 19:17	Why callest thou me good?	“Why do you ask me about what is good?”	“Why are you asking me about what is good?”	“Wny do you ask me about what is good?”
Mt 25:13	Ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.	You do not know the day or the hour.	You do not know the day nor the hour.	You know neither the day nor the hour,
Mk 10:24	.how hard it is for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!	.how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!	.how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!	.how difficult a thing it is to enter into the kingdom of God!
Lk 2:33	And Joseph and his mother,,,	The child’s father and mother.	His father and mother.	its father and mother.
Lk 4:4	Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.	Man does not live on bread alone.	Man shall not live on bread alone.	Man must not live by bread alone.
Lh 4:8	Get thee behind me, Satan.	OMITTED	OMITTED	OMITTED
Jn 6:47	He that believeth on mehath everlasting life.	He who believes has everlasting life.	He who believes has eternal life.	He that believes has everlasting life.
Jn 8:9	And when they heard it,being convicted by their own conscience, went out.	.those who heard began to go away.	.when they heard it, they began to go out one by one.	OMITTED
Jn 9:4	I must work the works of him that sent me.	We must do the work of him who sent me.	We must work the works of Him who sent Me.	We must work the works of him that sent me.
Jn 10:30	I and my Father are one	I and the Father are one.	I and the Father are one.	I and the Father are one.
Ac 2:30	that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;	.he would place one of his descendants on his throne.	.to seat one of his descendants upon his throne.	.he would seat one from the fruitage of his loins upon his throne.
Ac 8:37	If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.	OMITTED	footnote casts doubt (some editions just omit it)	OMITTED
Ac 23:9	Let us not fight against God.	OMITTED	OMITTED	OMITTED
Rom 13:9	Thou shalt not bear false witness.	OMITTED	OMITTED	OMITTED
Co 1:14	In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.	In whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.	In whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.	By means of whom we have our release by ransom, the forgiveness of our sins.
1Ti 3:16	God was manifest in the flesh.	He appeared in a body.	He who was revealed in the flesh.	He was made manifest in the flesh.
1Ti 6:5	Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.	“from such withdraw thyself” is omitted	“from such withdraw thyself” is omitted	“from such withdraw thyself” is omitted
1Pe 1:22	Ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit.	you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth.	Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls.	Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth.
1Jo 4:3	And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God.	But every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.	And every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God.	But every inspired expression that does not confess Jesus does not originate with God.
Re 5:14	Four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.	.the elders fell down and worshipped.	.the elders fell down and worshipped.	.the elders fell down and worshipped.
Re 20:9	Fire came down from God out of heaven.	Fire came down from heaven.	Fire came down from heaven.	Fire came down out of heaven.
Re 21:24	And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it.	The nations will walk by its light.	And the nations shall walk by its light.	And the nations will walk by means of its light.

Signs of The Last Day

obaloch — Thu, 05 May 2011 05:38:50 +0000

Is there such a thing as a Doomsday? What are its signs? Does this agree or disagree with science?

FIRE AND OXYGEN

obaloch — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 01:28:57 +0000

Quran, the Miraculous Book calls our attention to the

multifarious phenomena of nature occurring around us. It keeps on diverting the attention of its reader from the day its revelation started to Prophet Muhammad (Peace be Upon Him) till present and future generations to the search for existence of God. It picks up examples and observations we have in our close environment. Here to quote one example for people who would know God from the phenomena of combustion and fire we kindle. The Quran reads and claims as;

“أَفَرَأَيْتُمُ النَّارَ الَّتِي تُورُونَ{71} أَأَنتُمْ أَنشَأْتُمْ شَجَرَتَهَا أَمْ نَحْنُ الْمُنشِؤُونَ{72}” (الواقعة : 21-72)

“See ye the fire which ye kindle? Is it ye who grow its tree or do We grow it” (56: 71-72).

Attention of the reader is diverted to the phenomena of fire burning in relation to a tree with a question that who created its tree that produce fire. What is the use of the word ‘tree’ Quran relates with the fire? Why not Quran choose the word ‘wood’ because fire burns dry wood as we observe in our daily life. What is the relation of tree with a fire to occur? Simpler, for a 7^th century reader is that fire burns dry wood and that is our common observation too. But a very close reading of the passage would mean something different for a person who is more specialized in science and would seek the existence of God in his/ her scientific discoveries. He/she would put the question why does Quran not explain the exact process of fire if it has taken it as something that would guide mankind to the existence of God. What all science knows is neither tree nor wood but ‘Oxygen’ that is released by plants during photosynthesis which means ”putting together with light.” The best known form of photosynthesis is the one carried out by higher plants and algae, and some cyanobacteria responsible for a major part of photosynthesis in oceans. All green plants on the surface of earth have green coloring chlorophyll which contains chloroplast in them. Chlorophyll absorbs the sunlight and combines carbon dioxide and water in a process called photosynthesis. The end products of this photosynthesis are carbohydrate (sugar) and oxygen (Figure Photosynthesis).

The carbohydrate or glucose which plants produce is utilized by the plants for making starch, fats, and proteins. The second product of this process is oxygen. All oxygen we have in the environment for respiration and combustion comes from this process of photosynthesis. And all this what science has found is correct. He/ she then would say ‘what is God and how would I perceive His existence if I were to take this example of fire?

The Quran answers this question in a more concise manner and shows its reader to know GOD from your scientific discoveries and read the verse below;

“الَّذِي جَعَلَ لَكُم مِّنَ الشَّجَرِ الْأَخْضَرِ نَاراً فَإِذَا أَنتُم مِّنْهُ تُوقِدُونَ{80}” (يس : 80)

Know that “God is One Who produces for you fire out of the green tree, when behold! You kindle therewith”. (36:80).

More special in the verse above is the word ‘green trees’ which has challenged the 7^th century reader to contemplate and as an answer for the 21^st or later century readers. The second point that needs more attention is the Arabic word ‘Min’ meaning “from” or “out of”. What is that which the green trees produce for burning through which we kindle our fire? Is it not explaining the end process of photosynthesis in green trees with which we burn our fire? (Oxygen as one of the end product of photosynthesis is a common knowledge for today’s man but for a reader of 7^th century, the phenomenon was yet to be discovered). It is up to you the men of Science and knowledge. What name you choose for it. You call it element of life, fire or “Oxygen”. It is the property Almighty Allah has put in green trees for you as a sign and a lesson to understand God. If there were no green trees, there would have been no oxygen and no combustion. Nomadic people of desert had no knowledge of oxygen. All they knew was their observation of burning, either it was dry wood or a by-product of a green tree such as coal or oil. Oxygen was not known to them but they were challenged with the word ‘fire’ from green tree and were asked to uncover the knowledge that would lead you to the belief of existence of God after all their discoveries submit to the power of God who put such properties in green trees.

We notice here two remarkable features of the Quran. The first feature is that it expresses scientific truths that will be verified centuries later. The second feature is that the Quran expresses those truths using terms and expressions that would avoid co

Psycholinguist Analysis and The Quran

obaloch — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 01:20:15 +0000

No related posts.

The True History Of The Qur’an in America

admin — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 17:16:20 +0000

Nine years later, we are still haunted by Sept. 11, and in some ways it’s getting worse. All summer, a shrill debate over whether to build a mosque near the Ground Zero site was fueled by pundits on the right, who drummed up a chorus of invective that made it impossible to focus on the modest facts of the case. Then in the days leading up to the 11th, a church in Gainesville, Fla., sparked a firestorm — almost literally — by inviting Christians to come by on the anniversary for a ceremonial burning of the Koran. The Dove World Outreach Center — a misnomer if ever there was one — has made a cottage industry of its Islam-bashing, promoting its old-fashioned hate crusade with the most modern weapons — YouTube, podcasts, Facebook, and blogs (“Top Ten Reasons to Burn a Koran”).

Obviously, this was an act of naked self-promotion as much as a coherent statement about religion. Its instigator, the church’s pastor, Terry Jones, based his crusade on a series of mind-bending assumptions, including his belief that Muslims are always in bad moods (he asks, on camera, “Have you ever really seen a really happy Muslim?”). But for all of its cartoonish qual

ity, and despite his cancellation under pressure Thursday, the timing of this media circus has been a disaster for US foreign policy and the troops we ask to support it. At the exact moment that we want to act as the careful steward of peace in the Middle East, minds around the world have been filled with the image of Korans in America being tossed onto pyres.

For better or worse, there is not much anybody can do about religious extremists who offend decency, yet stay within the letter of the law. The same Constitution that confirms the right to worship freely protects the right to worship badly. But September is also the anniversary of the 1787 document that framed our government, and in this season of displaced Tea Party anger, it is worth getting right with our history. There is nothing wrong with the desire to go back to the founding principles that made this nation great — but we should take the time to discover what those principles actually were.

For most Americans, the Koran remains a deeply foreign book, full of strange invocations. Few non-Muslims read it, and most of us carry assumptions about a work of scripture that we assume to be

hostile, though it affirms many of the earlier traditions of Christianity and Judaism. Like all works of scripture, it is complex and sometimes contradictory, full of soothing as well as frightening passages. But for those willing to make a genuine effort, there are important areas of overlap, waiting to be found.

As usual, the Founders were way ahead of us. They thought hard about how to build a country of many different faiths. And to advance that vision to the fullest, they read the Koran, and studied Islam with a calm intelligence that today’s over-hyped Americans can only begin to imagine. They knew something that we do not. To a remarkable degree, the Koran is not alien to American history — but inside it.

No book states the case more plainly than a single volume, tucked away deep within the citadel of Copley Square — the Boston Public Library. The book known as Adams 281.1 is a copy of the Koran, from the personal collection of John Adams. There is nothing particularly ornate about this humble book, one of a collection of 2,400 that belonged to the second president. But it tells an important story, and reminds us how worldly the Founders were, and how impervious to the fanaticisms that spring up like dandelions whenever religion and politics are mixed. They, like we, lived in a complicated and often hostile global environment, dominated by religious strife, terror, and the bloodsport of competing empires. Yet better than we, they saw the

world as it is, and refused the temptation to enlarge our enemies into Satanic monsters, or simply pretend they didn’t exist.

Reports of Korans in American libraries go back at least to 1683, when an early settler of Germantown, Pa., brought a German version to these shores. Despite its foreign air, Adams’s Koran had a strong New England pedigree. The first Koran published in the United States, it was printed in Springfield in 1806.

Why would John Adams and a cluster of farmers in the Connecticut valley have bought copies of the Koran in 1806? Surprisingly, there was a long tradition of New Englanders reading in the Islamic scripture. The legendary bluenose Cotton Mather had his faults, but a lack of curiosity about the world was not one of them. Mather paid scrupulous attention to the Ottoman Empire in his voracious reading, and cited the Koran often in passing. True, much of it was in his pinched voice — as far back as the 17th century, New England sailors were being kidnapped by North African pirates, a source of never ending vexation, and Mather denounced the pirates as “Mahometan Turks, and Moors and Devils.” But he admired Arab and Ottoman learning, and when Turks in Constantinople and Smyrna succeeded in inoculating patients against smallpox, he led a public campaign to do the same in Boston (a campaign for which he was much vilified by those who called inoculation the “work of the Devil,” merely because of its Islamic origin). It was one of his finer moments.

Other early Americans denounced Islam — surprisingly, Roger Williams, whom we generally hold up as a model of tolerance, expressed the hope that “the Pope and Mahomet” would be “flung in to the Lake that burns with Fire and Brimstone.” But Rhode Island, and ultimately all of New England, proved hospitable to the strangers who came in the wake of the Puritans — notably, the small Jewish congregation that settled in Newport and built Touro Synagogue, America’s oldest. And in theory — if not often in practice (simply because there were so few) — that toleration extended to Muslims as well.

This theory was eloquently expressed around the time the Constitution was written. One of its models was the 1780 Massachusetts Constitution, which John Adams had helped to create, and which, in the words of one of its drafters, Theophilus Parsons, was designed to ensure “the most ample of liberty of conscience” for “Deists, Mahometans, Jews and Christians.”

As the Founders deliberated over what types of people would ultimately populate the strange new country they were creating, they cited Muslims as an extreme of foreign-ness whom it would be important to protect in the future. Perhaps, they daydreamed, a Muslim or a Catholic might even be president someday? Like everything, they debated it. Some disapproved, but Richard Henry Lee insisted that “true freedom embraces the Mahometan and Gentoo [Hindu] as well as the Christian religion.” George Washington went out of his way to praise Muslims on several occasions, and suggested that he would welcome them at Mount Vernon if they were willing to work. Benjamin Franklin argued that Muslims should be able to preach to Christians if we insisted on the right to preach to them. Near the end of his life, he impersonated a Muslim essayist, to mock American hypocrisy over slavery.

Thomas Jefferson, especially, had a familiarity with Islam that borders on the astonishing. Like Adams, he owned a Koran, a 1764 English edition that he bought while studying law as a young man in Wi

lliamsburg, Va. Only two years ago, that Koran became the center of a controversy, when the first Muslim ever elected to Congress, Keith Ellison, a Democrat from Minnesota, asked if he could place his hand on it while taking his oath of office — a request that elicited tremendous screeches from the talk radio extremists. Jefferson even tried to learn Arabic, and wrote his Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom to protect “the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and the Mahometan, the Hindoo and infidel of every denomination.”

Jefferson and Adams led many of our early negotiations with the Islamic powers as the United States lurched into existence. A favorable treaty was signed with Morocco, simply because the Moroccans considered the Americans ahl-al-kitab, or “people of the book,” similar to Muslims, who likewise eschewed the idolatry of Europe’s ornate state religions. When Adams was president, a treaty with Tripoli (Libya) insisted that the United States was “not in any sense founded upon the Christian religion” and therefore has “no character of enmity against the laws, religion and tranquility of Mussulmen.”

There was another important group of Americans who read the Koran, not as a legal sourcebook, or a work of exoticism, but as something very different — a reminder of home. While evidence is fragmentary, as many as 20 percent of African-American slaves may have come from Islamic backgrounds. They kept their knowledge of the Koran alive through memory, or chanted suras, or, in rare cases, smuggled copies of the book itself. In the 1930s, when WPA workers were interviewing elderly African-Americans in Georgia’s Sea Islands, they were told of an ancestor named Bilali who spoke Arabic and owned a copy of the Koran — a remarkable fact when we remember that it was a crime for slaves to read. In the War of 1812, Bilali and his fellow Muslims helped to defend America from a British attack, inverting nearly all of our stereotypes in the process.

In 1790, as the last of the original 13 states embraced the Constitution, and the United States finally lived up to its name, George Washington visited that state — unruly Rhode Island — and its Jewish congregation at Newport. The letter he wrote to them afterwards struck the perfect note, and drained much of the antiforeign invective that was already poisoning the political atmosphere, only a year into his presidency. Addressing himself to “the children of the Stock of Abraham” (who, in theory, include Muslims as well as Jews), the president of the United States offered an expansive vision indeed:

“May the children of the Stock of Abraham, who dwell in this land, continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other Inhabitants; while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and figtree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”

For democracy to survive, it required consent; a willingness to surrender some bits of cultural identity to preserve the higher goal of a working community. Washington’s letter still offers a tantalizing prospect, especially as his successor turns from the distracting noise of Gainesville to the essential work of building peace in the Middle East, for all of the children of the Stock of Abraham.