{ Blessed is He who has placed in the sky great stars and placed therein a [burning] lamp and luminous moon.}
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:
AL‑FURQAN (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.
The following verses relate to the nature of light from the sun and the moon:
{ It is He who made the sun a shining light and the moon a derived light and determined for it phases - that you may know the number of years and account [of time]. Allah has not created this except in truth. He details the signs for a people who know }
YUNUS (5)
{ Do you not consider how Allah has created seven heavens in layers And made the moon therein a [reflected] light and made the sun a burning lamp? }
NUH(15-16)
The Glorious Qur'an and modern science, are thus in perfect agreement about the differences in the nature of sunlight and moonlight.
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