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An Allegation of Contradiction Levelled against the Quran: Six or eight days?The Heavens and Earth were Created in 6 Days but some Christian Missionaries seemto think the Quran contradicts Itself on this Fact. All these references from theHoly Quran show that the Heavens and the Earth were created in 6 days: 7:54, 10:3,11:7, 25:59, 32:4, 50:38, 57:4 and 41:9-12.The Christian missionary (or any other critic) agrees with all these referencesbut one (41:9-12). The critic tries to put this reference forward as acontradiction. After simple analyses we realise the critic is completely wrong andis basing his/her allegation solely on their own inadequate understanding of theverses in question.The Quran was revealed in the Arabic language and remains in the Arabic languagedespite it being translated in numerous other languages, English is one of theselanguages it has been translated in. The most popular English translation of theQuran is by Abdullah Yusuf Ali. Often, Christian missionaries and other critics ofIslam utilize this translation when quoting from the Quran.However, on this occasion the critics do not utilize the Yusuf Ali Translation.This is very interesting as this particular translation disproves their claims andclearly shows that there in no contradiction contained within the Quran. Thequestion that needs to be asked is; why would the critic of Islam depart from themost popular translation of the Quran on this occasion?The answer to this question may become apparent to the neutral observer during thecourse of this refutation. Without further delay allow us to move on to theQuranic verses that the critics allege to be contradictory.The Quran teaches, in numerous verses, that the Earth was created in 6 days. Thecritic would agree with this but they would allege that 41:9-12 teaches it wascreated in 8 days, they come to this allegation as they incorrectly double count,this is proven within this article. In order to highlight the errors of the criticit requires us to quote the English translation of the Quran, I will use AbdullahYusuf Ali, and this is the translation of each verse (whatever is in the bracketsis commentary for clarification purposes from me):41:9- Say: Is it that ye deny Him Who created the earth in two Days? And do yejoin equals with Him? He is the Lord of (all) the Worlds.This is the initial creation of the Earth and the earlier stage of Creation andit lasted for two days. The next stage of the development of the Earth, as we knowit, is mentioned in the next verse of the Quran.41:10- He set on the (earth), mountains standing firm, high above it, and bestowedblessings on the earth, and measure therein all things to give them nourishment indue proportion, in four Days, in accordance with (the needs of) those who seek(Sustenance).This is the next (last) stage of the Creation of the Earth and seems more like thefinishing touches (i.e. adding’ mountains’, ‘blessings’ and ‘nourishment’) andthis stage took four days while the initial stage took two days. SimpleMathematics tells us that 4+2=6! Therefore it is clear that the duration of theCreation of the Earth is 6 days. The next verse is a further reference to thefirst two days but refers to the Heavens.41:11- Moreover He comprehended in His design the sky, and it had been (as) smoke:He said to it and to the earth: "Come ye together, willingly or unwillingly." Theysaid: "We do come (together), in willing obedience."
 
This verse refers to the ‘sky’ (Heavens) and teaches us that it was’ as smoke’before its Creation. It is clear that this verse is referring to a stage ofCreation when the Earth had not been completed as the Earth had not ‘cometogether’ with the sky at this stage. So, at this stage the Earth had not beenfinalised (fully created), therefore it is clear that the creation of the Heavensand the Earth are occurring simultaneously. The next verse mentions the Heavens. 41:12- So He completed them as seven firmaments in two Days, and He assigned toeach heaven its duty and command. And We adorned the lower heaven with lights, and(provided it) with guard. Such is the Decree of (Him) the Exalted in Might, Fullof Knowledge.The Creation of the Heavens is completed in two days. These two days fall withinthe 6 days that God used to create the Earth. This is clear as the Earth is notfinalised whilst the Heavens were being Created. Therefore we can safely say thatthe Earth and the Heavens were created simultaneously. This follows modernscientific knowledge too.So, it is clear that the Quran teaches 6 days for Creation. However, one may bewondering how the critics claim that the Quran teaches eight (8) days rather thansix (6). The critic double-counts and confuses himself as he counts the two daysthat it took for the Creation of the Heavens as extra days, thus adding these twodays onto 6 days, therefore the critic wrongly gets a total of 8 days. The erroris committed by the critic as the critic overlooks the fact that the Earth had notbeen fully formed whilst the heavens were being created (i.e. both were beingcreated at the same time). In short, the critic does not realise that the Creationof the Heavens and the Earth are Created simultaneously. I hope they realisetheir errors after reading this article and God-Willing they will correctthemselves.This article does give me the chance to address deceptive methods used by somecritics and anti-Islamic websites (mainly produced by Christian missionaries). Asearlier stated in the article; Abdullah Yusuf Ali’s translation of the Quran intothe English language is commonly used but for these verses in question (41:9-12)many critics and anti-Islamic websites break from the norm and use alternativetranslations. They do this as the first word in 41:11 is summa which can betranslated into three different English words:1.Moreover (Abdullah Yusuf Ali uses this word to translate summa)2.Then (the critics tend to use translations that use this word)3.SimultaneouslyIt is sad that the critics would use a ‘pick and mix’ methodology and deliberatelyignore the best-known translation (Yusuf Ali) in order to try and further theirallegation. The critic who uses this methodology has been exposed but even thetranslation of ‘summa’ to the word ‘then’ rather than ‘moreover’ or‘simultaneously’ does not strengthen their claim as it is clear from the contentof 41:11 that the Earth had not been finalised whilst the Heaven was being createdin 2 days. Therefore, even if they use the word ‘then’, it is still clear that theEarth and Heaven were Created simultaneously so there is no need for the critic todouble count!I am pretty sure that the objective reader would acknowledge that this is a fairexplanation and accept that it is not a contradiction. However, I am equally surethat the extreme critic (usually tend to be Christian missionaries) will dismissthis explanation and continue down the route of deception. May Allah guide them,aameen. I would also like to leave them with some food for thought:
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YahyaSnow

Thanks for reading and learning about Islam rather than believing propaganda and lies about Islaam. Peace

reply06 / 28 / 2009
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