Mohamed Jameel: Posted 28 December 2023
Time is Relative in the Qur’an
Human life is too brief to witness the cosmic-level changes that unfold. The sun rises and sets every day, as does the moon. The constellations of stars appear seemingly constant. The lifespan of a star, like our sun, is incomprehensibly long compared to the human experience. For instance, the estimated lifespan of the sun is 10 billion years, while the average global human lifespan is merely 70 years. This vast difference translates to over 140 billion human generations occurring during the sun’s lifetime.
In the Qur’an (7:54), it is stated that Allah created the heavens and the earth (including the entire universe) in six days. According to the current understanding of cosmology and the formation of celestial bodies, this process is estimated to have taken approximately 9.3 billion years from the Big Bang to the formation of the Earth. It is worth noting that the ‘day’ mentioned in this context extends over more than a billion years as we measure it.
إِنَّ رَبَّكُمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ…
Indeed, your Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and earth in six days, ….. (Qur’an 7:54)- Sahih International
Time is not a constant, but rather, it is relative. A day and a year on Earth differ significantly from those on other planets within our solar system. When we express time elsewhere, we often refer to Earth time as our point of reference. For instance, a day on Mercury is equivalent to 58.6 Earth days, a day on Venus equals 243 Earth days, and a day on Mars is just 41 minutes longer than an Earth day. In the broader context of the cosmic formation of galaxies and Earth, a ‘day’ encompasses more than a billion years. This concept of relativeness of time finds further support in the Quran (70:4).
تَعْرُجُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ إِلَيْهِ فِي يَوْمٍ كَانَ مِقْدَارُهُ خَمْسِينَ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ ﴿٤﴾
The angels and the Spirit will ascend to Him during a Day the extent of which is fifty thousand years. (Qur’an 70:4)- Sahih International
End-time to Ressurection
The Qur’an describes catastrophic events that unfold during the End-times. In these events, those living on Earth will grapple for survival, and ultimately, everyone will face mortality when the first trumpet is sounded. The duration between the first and second blows, leading to the resurrection of all, remains unknown. It could span millions or billions of years, as we measure time.
Many believe that human beings will experience resurrection on Earth. This prospect may face some challenges, as evidence from both Astrophysics and Cosmology suggest unless the Earth becomes a forbidden planet such as the gas planet, Halla (8 UMi b). The sun, pivotal to this consideration, is anticipated to conclude its life cycle in approximately 5 billion years. During its red-giant stage, most scientists believe the Earth will be transformed into a hostile environment unsuitable for human habitation because the oceans will evaporate and the atmosphere may dissipate.
يَوْمَ تُبَدَّلُ الْأَرْضُ غَيْرَ الْأَرْضِ وَالسَّمَاوَاتُ ۖ وَبَرَزُوا لِلَّـهِ الْوَاحِدِ الْقَهَّارِ﴿٤٨﴾
[It will be] on the Day the earth will be replaced by another earth, and the heavens [as well], and all creatures will come out before Allah, the One, the Prevailing. (Qur’an 14:48)- Sahih International
The Qur’an (14:48) asserts that the Earth will be replaced and the heavens or skies are also replaced, it implies significant changes in the galaxies. This could be compelling evidence for the merger of the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies, forming the ‘Milkomeda’ galaxy, a concept to be explored further below. According to the Qur’an (18:47), the land/ground will be seen flat without mountains when everyone is assembled. It is also noteworthy to recall that the Earth also did not always have mountains throughout its age. The movement of tectonic plates caused to formation of mountains.
وَيَوْمَ نُسَيِّرُ الْجِبَالَ وَتَرَى الْأَرْضَ بَارِزَةً……
And the Day We will cause (to) move the mountains and you will see the earth (as) a leveled plain…. (Qur’an 18:47).
Final Days of our Sun
Like other stars, the sun will come to an end. The 4.6 billion-year-old Sun is a middle-aged star. Over the next 5 billion years, the hydrogen nuclear reaction in the Sun will convert hydrogen to helium. As hydrogen decreases, the Sun’s core will shrink. When the core gets smaller and heats up, the reaction of helium produces other heavy elements. The hotter core also makes hydrogen fuse in the surrounding shell. With nuclear reactions increasing, the sun will be 40 percent brighter in about 3.5 billion years.
By this point, most scientists believe that the ice at the pole will melt, the sea will rise to the surface and the atmosphere will disappear. The sun slowly grows while Mercury and Venus enter the sun. If the planets are moving away slower than the sun is expanding, both Earth and Mars will also enter the sun’s atmosphere. The moon may eventually coincide with the sun, as stated in verse 8 of Surah Al-Qiyamah.
وَخَسَفَ الْقَمَرُ ﴿٨﴾وَجُمِعَ الشَّمْسُ وَالْقَمَرُ ﴿٩﴾
And the moon darkens. And the sun and the moon are joined. (Qur’an 75:8-9)- Sahih International
Red Giant stage: The Mars and Earth in the atmosphere of the sun. The habitable zone moves to the region of Jupiter and Saturn, the gas planets. Source: Astronomy (Roen Kelly)
After forming a red giant, the sun will lose about half of its mass as the outer layers are blown off at about 20km per second. The core will then heat up rapidly, making it radiate ultraviolet light and x-rays that catch up with the outer layers and turn them into a brightly glowing ring of plasma. The planetary nebula will shine for about 10,000 years.
فَإِذَا انشَقَّتِ السَّمَاءُ فَكَانَتْ وَرْدَةً كَالدِّهَانِ ﴿٣٧﴾
And when the heaven is split open and becomes rose-colored like oil (Qur’an 55:37)- Sahih International
In the Quran (81:1), the word “كُوِّرَتْ” is translated as “is wrapped up.” When we consider this translation in the context of the formation of planetary nebulae, it becomes apparent that the nebula envelops the core of the sun, which is referred to as a white dwarf. Within the hot core of the white dwarf, no nuclear fusion occurs, and over time, it gradually cools down, eventually transforming into a black dwarf. This envelope extends over several light years. The Quranic verse, in its subtle description, resonates with the intricate stages of celestial transformations observed in the life cycle of stars.
إِذَا الشَّمْسُ كُوِّرَتْ ﴿١﴾ وَإِذَا النُّجُومُ انكَدَرَتْ ﴿٢﴾
When the sun is wrapped up [in darkness]. And when the stars fall, dispersing, (Quran 81:1-2)- Sahih International.
(On the day) when the sun is made to cease shining, the stars are made to fade away, (Qur’an 81:2)- Sarwar
Sun Reaching its Final Destination
The Andromeda Galaxy is the closest spiral galaxy to the Milky Way, with a notable approach speed of approximately 113 km/s. Traditionally, scientists anticipated a merger between these two galaxies around five billion years in the future. However, recent research has unveiled an ongoing merging process. The galactic haloes, extending beyond the visible perimeters of the galaxies, have already made contact. As the merger reaches its zenith, the celestial landscape undergoes a profound transformation: stars within both galaxies reposition themselves. Some stars, currently visible in our night sky, may vanish, while others might dim, and new stars may come into existence. Could this be the changes to the sky that the Qur’an (14:48) states during the resurrection? Allah knows best.
During the formation of the Milkomeda Galaxy from the collision of two galaxies, the fate of our sun unfolds. At this juncture, our sun is anticipated to be in a later stage of its life cycle, specifically the red giant phase. As the newly emerging Milkomeda Galaxy takes shape, it becomes the ultimate destination for our sun. The sun evolves through its life stages, transitioning from a red giant to a white dwarf, and ultimately fading into a black dwarf. In the concluding phases of this cosmic journey, the visibility of the nebula associated with the sun finally diminishes.
وَالشَّمْسُ تَجْرِي لِمُسْتَقَرٍّ لَّهَا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ تَقْدِيرُ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ ﴿٣٨﴾
And the sun runs [on course] toward its stopping point. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing. (Quran 36:38)- Sahih International
And the sun runs its course for its final destination; this is a command of the Almighty, the All-Knowing. (Qur’an 36:38) -Ahmed Raza Khan
Ressurection
Using the signs in the Quran and what we know from cosmology, it seems the Resurrection takes billions of years from now. If it is going to happen on the earth, it should be able to escape from the red giant sun and move to a new habitable zone, and such a long duration can recover it from past damages. Or else it can happen on one of the exo-planets in the universe. Allah knows the exact time and where.
Although we can predict what will happen to the Sun and galaxy, our lives are too short to see such cosmic changes. After the catastrophic end-time events, humans would have disappeared on Earth’s surface for billions of years until resurrected and assembled for final judgment. We would not know how long passed away but we can remember everything we did on the Earth (Qur’an 79:35). Our existence we had on the Earth may seem just momentary.
لَا أُقْسِمُ بِيَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ ﴿١﴾ وَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِالنَّفْسِ اللَّوَّامَةِ ﴿٢﴾ أَيَحْسَبُ الْإِنسَانُ أَلَّن نَّجْمَعَ عِظَامَهُ ﴿٣﴾ بَلَىٰ قَادِرِينَ عَلَىٰ أَن نُّسَوِّيَ بَنَانَهُ ﴿٤﴾
I swear by the Day of Resurrection. And I swear by the reproaching soul [to the certainty of resurrection]. Does man think that We will not assemble his bones? Yes. [We are] Able [even] to proportion his fingertips. (Qur’an, 75:1-4)- Sahih International
يَوْمَ يَتَذَكَّرُ الْإِنسَانُ مَا سَعَىٰ ﴿٣٥﴾
The day man remembers all that he had done. (Qur’an 79:35)- Ahmed Ali