15. Al-Hijr Page 263 وَ لَقَدْ And verily جَعَلْنَا We have placed فِی in السَّمَآءِ the heavens بُرُوْجًا constellations وَّ زَیَّنّٰهَا and We have beautified it لِلنّٰظِرِیْنَۙ for the observers وَ حَفِظْنٰهَا And We have protected it مِنْ from كُلِّ every شَیْطٰنٍ devil رَّجِیْمٍۙ accursed اِلَّا Except مَنِ (one) who اسْتَرَقَ steals السَّمْعَ the hearing فَاَتْبَعَهٗ then follows him شِهَابٌ a burning flame مُّبِیْنٌ clear وَ الْاَرْضَ And the earth مَدَدْنٰهَا We have spread it وَ اَلْقَیْنَا and [We] cast فِیْهَا therein رَوَاسِیَ firm mountains وَ اَنْۢبَتْنَا and [We] caused to grow فِیْهَا therein مِنْ of كُلِّ every شَیْءٍ thing مَّوْزُوْنٍ well-balanced وَ جَعَلْنَا And We have made لَكُمْ for you فِیْهَا therein مَعَایِشَ means of living وَ مَنْ and whom لَّسْتُمْ you are not لَهٗ for him بِرٰزِقِیْنَ providers وَ اِنْ And not مِّنْ (is) any شَیْءٍ thing اِلَّا but عِنْدَنَا with Us خَزَآىِٕنُهٗ ؗ (are) its treasures وَ مَا and not نُنَزِّلُهٗۤ We send it down اِلَّا except بِقَدَرٍ in a measure مَّعْلُوْمٍ known وَ اَرْسَلْنَا And We have sent الرِّیٰحَ the winds لَوَاقِحَ fertilizing فَاَنْزَلْنَا and We sent down مِنَ from السَّمَآءِ the sky مَآءً water فَاَسْقَیْنٰكُمُوْهُ ۚ and We gave it to you to drink وَ مَاۤ And not اَنْتُمْ you لَهٗ of it بِخٰزِنِیْنَ (are) retainers وَ اِنَّا And indeed We لَنَحْنُ surely [We] نُحْیٖ We give life وَ نُمِیْتُ and We cause death وَ نَحْنُ and We الْوٰرِثُوْنَ (are) the Inheritors وَ لَقَدْ And verily عَلِمْنَا We know الْمُسْتَقْدِمِیْنَ the preceding ones مِنْكُمْ among you وَ لَقَدْ and verily عَلِمْنَا We know الْمُسْتَاْخِرِیْنَ the later ones وَ اِنَّ And indeed رَبَّكَ your Lord هُوَ He یَحْشُرُهُمْ ؕ will gather them اِنَّهٗ Indeed He حَكِیْمٌ (is) All-Wise عَلِیْمٌ۠ All-Knowing
(15:16) We have indeed set constellations in the heavens8 and have beautified them for the beholders,9
(15:17) and have protected them against every accursed satan10
(15:18) save him who may eavesdrop,11 and then a bright flame pursues him.12
(15:19) As for the earth, We have stretched it out and have cast on it firm mountains, and have caused to grow in it everything well-measured.13
(15:20) And We have provided sustenance for you on it and also for those of whom you are not the providers.
(15:21) There is nothing except that its treasuries are with Us and We do not send it down except in a known measure.14
(15:22) We send fertilizing winds, and then cause rain to descend from the sky, providing you abundant water to drink even though you could not have stored it up for yourselves.
(15:23) It is indeed We Who grant life and cause death and it is We who shall be the sole Inheritors of all.15
(15:24) Surely We know those of you who have passed before and those who will come later.
(15:25) Indeed your Lord will gather them all together. Surely He is All-Wise, All-Knowing.16
8. In Arabic the word buruj is used to denote a fort or palace, or a strong, fortified building. In ancient astronomy, it was used as a term to indicate the twelve constellations which stood for the twelve spheres of the zodiac. In view of the above, some commentators on the Qur'an believe that the word buruj refers here to the spheres of the zodiac. Other commentators have interpreted the word as denoting the planets. Reflection over the content of the present verse and the verse which immediately follows leads me to think that perhaps the reference here is to the heavenly spheres, which have been separated from the other by means of fortified boundaries. Although the frontiers in the atmosphere are imperceptible, it is impossible for anything from one sphere to penetrate into that of another. In this sense, we are inclined to consider buruj as signifying ‘fortified heavenly spheres’.
9. A shining planet or star was placed in every sphere with the result that the entire universe became illuminated. In other words, rather than create a vast, dismal and chaotic wilderness, God created a universe of dazzling beauty. The universe not only bespeaks of the skilled workmanship and infinite wisdom of the Creator; it also reflects the superb aesthetics of the Great Artist. The same idea has been beautifully expressed in the Qur’an in the following words: ‘He Who created in perfect beauty everything that He created’ (al-Sajdah 32: 7).
10. Like other terrestrial creatures, the satans belonging to the jinn species are also confined to the sphere of the earth. They have no access to the heavens.
This has been stated in order to rectify the popular misunderstanding, a misunderstanding held both in the past and even today, that Satan and his descendants are free to strut about in the whole universe. Refuting this, the Qur’an states that satans cannot proceed beyond a certain limit. Their power to soar above is not unlimited.
11. Here reference is made to those satans who try to obtain information regarding matters belonging to the realm beyond the ken of sense-perception, and convey it to others. With the help of this information, many soothsayers, hermits and fake saints try to dupe people by claiming to know much more than they actually do. Those satans try to obtain information by eaves-dropping.
They are able to do so because their constitution is closer to angels than to human beings. But in actual fact they are able to lay their hands on nothing.
12. The Qur’anic expression shihab mubin means. ‘bright flame’. (Elsewhere the Qur’an uses the expression shihab thaqib — literally, ‘the flame that penetrates the darkness’.) What the Qur’an means by this expression is not necessarily that it is a meteor. It might in fact be referring to some cosmic rays, or possibly to some other kind of rays not yet known to us. At the same time, it is also possible that the expression might indeed refer to the meteors which we occasionally observe shooting across the sky and then falling to earth.
According to recent astronomical observations, the number of meteors which rush towards the earth from outer space is one trillion a day. Of these about 20 million reach the upper atmosphere of the earth. Out of these barely one meteor reaches the earth. The speed of these meteors in outer space is around 26 miles per second, sometimes reaching 50 miles per second.
Sometimes almost a rainfall of meteors has been witnessed even by the naked eye. It is on record that on 12 November 1833, in the eastern part of North America, 200,000 meteors were seen falling to earth from midnight till morning in just one location. (See Encyclopedia Britannica, X1Vth edition, vol. XV, pp. 337-9.) Possibly this mass rain of meteors might be the impediment which prevents the free movement of satans in outer space. For it is quite understandable that the rain of a trillion meteors would have made the outer atmosphere impassable for them.
This throws some light on the nature of the ‘fortified spheres’ referred to earlier. (See verse 16 and n. 8 above — Ed.) Apparently, the atmosphere is transparently clear, without any visible walls or ceilings. However, God has surrounded it by a number of imperceptible protective walls which safeguard one sphere from the onslaught of another. As a result of these protective walls, out of a trillion meteors which come shooting towards the earth only one manages to reach its surface.
Of the meteorites preserved in museums all over the world, the largest one weighs 645 pounds. This penetrated 11 feet into the ground when it crashed to earth. Moreover, there is also a huge piece of iron weighing 36.5 tons. The only plausible explanation that scientists have been able to offer for its presence is that it is also perhaps a meteorite. One may, thus, visualize that but for the safeguard provided by the protective spheres the rain of shooting stars would have wreaked havoc on the earth. These fortified spheres are called buruj in the Qur’an.
13. Here attention is drawn to another significant sign of God’s absolute power and wisdom. Plants have such a capacity for growth and multiplication that if one plant were to flourish unchecked, it would leave no room for any other plant to grow. However, since the universe represents a well-thought-out design of the All-Wise and All-Powerful Creator, we witness that the growth of each plant variety stops at a certain point. Another manifestation of the same -phenomenon is that plants of every volume, diameter, height and growth potential have a certain limit which they may not exceed. It is quite evident that someone has fixed the shape, size, foliage and output of each and every tree, plant and vine. It is also evident that all this was done with perfect precision.
14, That God creates everything with perfect precision and in a well measured manner is not confined to plants. It rather applies to all creatures on the earth. A definite measure and limit has been determined for whatever exists, whether it is air, water, light, heat or cold; and whether they are minerals, plants or animals. In short, it has been de*ermined from on high that every object, every species in existence and every form of energy found in the universe should exist strictly according to the measure and within the limits determined by God.
It is certainly owing to God’s wise and superb determination of everything that has produced the balance and proportion which we find in the entire universe. Had the universe been the mere product of an accident, or had it been created by a number of gods, there would never have been the perfect balance and superb proportion that we find between the objects and forces of the universe, let alone that the balance and proportion would have endured in the manner it has.
15. God alone will ultimately inherit all since all beings except God Himself are destined to pass away. Men have been granted the opportunity to make use of their possessions only temporarily. A day will come when they will leave everything behind in the world. Then ultimately everything will revert to God’s treasury.
16. God’s wisdom requires that He should muster together all human beings. His knowledge is so vast and encompassing that no living being can escape his grasp. In fact, such is God that He will not allow to be lost even an atom of the dust of which man was constituted. Hence, whoever doubts the possibility of the Hereafter has no idea of God’s wisdom. Likewise, whoever pleads that it is simply impossible to resurrect human beings since their bodies will totally disintegrate after death is also absolutely ignorant of the extent of God’s power and knowledge.