ALLAH MAKES A MAJOR SCIENTIFIC AND GEOGRAPHICAL ERROR ABOUT THE SETTING/SINKING OF THE SUN

Dear reader,

Zul-Qarnain and the Setting of the Sun in Surah 18:85–86

Is it really true that the sun sets in a muddy or dark spring, or is the Qur’an mistaken, or is there another explanation? First, we will examine the plain meaning of Surah 18:85–86, and then we will examine the explanations and responses of some Muslims regarding this matter.

A Little Astronomy

It may not be widely known that the Islamic Abbasid rulers, Arabs, and Persians advanced greatly in astronomy, giving many stars their names, and even transcribed and corrected some of the astronomical charts of the Egyptian ruler Ptolemy (Ptolemy’s tables). However, the sun is many times larger than the entire earth, and the earth travels around the sun. The sun does not set in a muddy spring.

Who is Zul-Qarnain?

We have no evidence that Muhammad told anyone exactly who Zul-Qarnain was. Muslims have four different views:

1. Alexander the Great (of Macedonia) – This is the most common Muslim view. Zul-Qarnain means “the one with two horns.” There is a fabricated myth saying that Alexander the Great was a god and had two ram’s horns growing from the sides of his head. Despite the fact that this was not true (and it would be difficult to find a battle helmet large enough), this story was known, and many Muslims assume that Allah in Surah 18 was referring to Alexander by this divine name.

2. Cyrus I of Persia – Another view. His kingdom indeed consisted of two groups: the Medes and the Persians, but beyond that there is no evidence that the two horns refer to him.

3. A Yemeni king who wore a battle helmet with two ram’s horns – A view held by some Muslims.

4. An unknown man – The fourth view. However, it does not seem wise to provide explanations about people the speaker had never heard of.

Conclusion: It does not matter who Zul-Qarnain actually was. If he discovered that the sun sets in a muddy spring, and the sun does not set in a muddy spring, then this is false — regardless of the person Muhammad was referring to.

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Surah 18 Ideas and Responses

Idea 1: The sun actually sets in a muddy spring!

For early Muslims, the Qur’an taught that this literally happens. The early Muslim historian al-Tabari, vol. 1 p.234, shows this. A second example:
“[Dhu al-Qarnaiyn] witnessed the setting of the sun in its resting place in a black, foul-smelling muddy spring.” (al-Tabari vol. 5 pp.173–174).
Dhu Qarnain is also found in al-Tabari vol. 1 p.371.

Another point connected to this: the earth rests on a large fish according to al-Tabari vol. 1 p.220 (839–923 A.D.).

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Idea 2: The sun appeared to Alexander as setting in Lake Ithaca in Macedonia

This idea assumes Zul-Qarnain was Alexander and that Alexander was a good Muslim. This contradicts the fact that Alexander had a temple built for him. Also, Alexander went to conquer north and west of Ithaca — modern-day Albania.

Worse, the Greeks had settlements hundreds of miles west of Ithaca (Spain, Sicily, etc.) at least five hundred years before Alexander. What would make a very intelligent Greek think that the sun sets in a Macedonian lake when Greek ships traveled much farther west beyond Alexander’s country? Furthermore, Tertullian, in A Treatise on the Soul chapter 49 p.227, says that Aristotle, who lived around the same time, mentions a hero from the island of Sardinia far west of Macedonia but around the same latitude.

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Idea 3: The “muddy spring” is the Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean has no mud and is not black — it is blue-green. Also, it is not a spring but an ocean. The sun does not set in the ocean. More importantly, Alexander, Cyrus I of Persia, and Yemeni kings never traveled to the Atlantic Ocean, yet Surah 18:85–86 says Zul-Qarnain saw or witnessed this.

Any one of these points is enough to refute this idea, so why do Muslims suggest it? This shows how far they try to go to prove that Surah 18:1–2 is not in error. If Allah of Islam had this idea in the Qur’an, and Allah knew it was false, then this would be a lie. If the Allah of Islam did not know this fact, then he would lack knowledge and could not be all-knowing. If these verses did not come from the Allah of Islam, then the Qur’an would contain obvious errors, because it attributes this falsehood to Allah when it is not true. Of course, if the Islamic Allah is not real, and the true God is not the author of the Qur’an, then the Islamic Allah did not lie because he does not exist.

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Idea 4: The “muddy spring” is where Cyrus I viewed the Black Sea

Even if Cyrus I traveled west of the eastern shore of the Black Sea, how would the sun appear to set in the Black Sea if he had already passed the eastern shore going south and east? We have no evidence that Cyrus ever traveled to the region including present-day Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, etc., which lie east of the Black Sea.

A Muslim would have a slightly less weak argument if they said Cyrus saw the sun rise from the Black Sea, because he traveled to Greece. But the Qur’an speaks of sunset. Yet the Black Sea is not a spring, and everyone from the Egyptians to far-northern peoples knew the sun did not set in the Black Sea.

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Idea 5: The “muddy spring” is where Cyrus I viewed the Aegean Sea

But the Persians knew the Athenians, Spartans (Greek origins), and other Greeks well. The Persians knew the Greeks were not on the other side of the sun.

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Idea 6: The “muddy spring” is where the king viewed the Red Sea

The Yemenis (Sabaeans/Shebans) always knew the Abyssinians (Ethiopians) lived across the water. If they believed the sun set in the Red Sea, then Abyssinians would be the people on the other side of where the sun went.

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Idea 7: The “muddy spring” is a metaphor for something else

If this was not literal but a metaphor for other things, then the Qur’an failed to explain that it was not real, and the idea was misleading. Above all, no one can say for sure what exactly it would symbolize.

There is nothing in the Qur’an showing this is not literal, and most early Muslims took it as literal fact. Since they understood the exact meaning from Muhammad’s followers, they were misled by Surah 18.

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Idea 8: Muhammad was narrating a dream

This view does not know who Zul-Qarnain actually was. If Muhammad was narrating a dream, the sun could set anywhere he wanted it to. But even if one does not know which imaginary person is seeing a false thing, how can such a person teach us to believe the truth?

However, if someone said that he saw a certain man named ‘Ali doing miraculous things, and millions of people believed him for centuries — could he be called a liar if he forgot to tell them, “It was only my dream; I never actually saw Ali do that with my eyes”?

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Conclusion

Regardless of whether Zul-Qarnain was Alexander the Great or someone else, the Qur’an states this as fact: that the sun sets in a muddy spring. Even people a thousand years before Muhammad knew the sun did not set at the western edge of Spain. This idea was not metaphorical because no early Muslim is known to have taken it as non-literal or interpreted it as a metaphor for something else, and all early Muslims believed the Qur’an was not written to deceive.

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List of Qur’an Translation Books

1. Arberry, Arthur J. The Koran Interpreted. Macmillian Publishing Co., Inc. 1955.

2. Dawood, N.J. The Koran. Penguin Books. 1956–1999.

3. Malik, Farooq-i-Azam. English Translation of the Meaning of AL-QUR’AN: The Guidance for Mankind. Institute of Islamic Knowledge. 1997.

4. Pickthall, Mohammed Marmaduke. The Meaning of the Glorious Koran. Dar al-Islamiyya (Kuwait).

5. Rodwell, J.M. The Koran. First Edition. Ivy Books, Ballantine Books. 1993.

6. Shakir, M.H. The Qur’an. Tahrike Tarsile Qur’an, Inc. 12th U.S. Edition 2001.

7. Sher Ali, Maulawi. The Holy Qur’an. Islam International Publications (Ahmadiyya) 1997.

8. Yusuf ‘Ali, Abdullah. The Holy Qur-an: English translation of the meanings and Commentary. King Fahd Qur’an Printing Complex. 1410 A.H.

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Other Reference Books

• Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. 1958.

• The History of al-Tabari: An Annotated Translation. Ehsan Yar-Shater, General Editor. State University of New York Press 1989–

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God bless you greatly.

It is I, Dr. Max Shimba,
Servant of Jesus Christ, our Great God and Savior. Titus 2:13

For Max Shimba Ministries Org
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March 22, 2016

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