Baqarah 29

29- HE (ALLAH) IS WHO CREATED EVERY THING THAT IS IN THE EARTH FOR YOU, AND THEN TURNED TO THE HEAVENS AND CONSTRUCTED THEM SEVEN HEAVENS, AND HE (ALLAH) KNOWS ALL CREATION WELL.

In this Ayah Allah the Highest is citing another evidence of His presence and creation.  This is the creation of the Earth and every thing in it, as well as the creation of the Heavens.  We should look at this evidence, to be seen in the earth and in the Heavens:

The Earth is in perfect harmony with all there is in it.  This is what we call now the Echo System.  This system is characterised by it’s harmony from the start, and involving every component.  Whenever we disturb any aspect of the echo system, other aspects suffer.  This is because every part is dependant on the others.  For Example, we need the green plants to use the Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere and give out Oxygen.  When we reduce the plantation in the earth, and emit more Carbon Dioxide from cars and power stations, factories etc, we end up with more Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere and less Oxygen.  Carbon Dioxide keeps the heat in the Earth, therefore the Temperature of the Earth rises, which melts the Ice caps, which raises the water level in the seas and oceans etc.

Also, releasing chemicals in the Earth’s Atmosphere destroys the Ozone Layer of the atmosphere.  This layers filters out many harmful radiations from space.  Thinning of this layer allows more of these radiations through to the Earth, leading to more cancer and malignancies.

One change in the system will be followed by a long list of other changes, affecting man, animals and plants.  This is because of the degree of precision and harmony in the system, which we humans mess up.  This balance did not just happen, but was designed and constructed by the Creator of all things.

All creation on Earth needs and depends on each other for their very existence, just as mankind depends on all of them, animals, plants, fish, insects etc.  Bees need the flowers of plants for their nectar to make honey, which we enjoy eating.  Also they carry the pollens of the flowers from one flower to the next on their legs.  This is important for pollination which gives us better crops, in some cases, without pollination there is no crop at all. 

In the meantime, every thing on and in the Earth, is of benefit to Mankind.  Allah created it all for us and for others to use.  He favoured mankind with a mind, which we often use, to destroy rather than to build.  Most of the things which disturb this system are man made. 

The intricacy, precision, integrity, harmony and perfection of the systems in the Earth and in the Heavens points towards everything having been very well designed and built.  This should point to a designer and maker, Allah the Highest, who said: “IN THE CREATION OF THE HEAVENS AND EARTH AND THE ALTERATION AND SEQUENCE OF THE DAY AND NIGHT, THE VESSELS WHICH SAIL IN THE SEA FOR THE BENEFIT OF MANKIND, THE WATER ALLAH SENDS DOWN FROM THE HEAVENS TO REVIVE THE LAND AFTER IT HAS DIED, HIS PUTTING ALL KIND OF CREATURES IN IT, DIRECTING THE WIND, AND THE CLOUD PLACED BETWEEN THE HEAVENS AND EARTH, ALL ARE SIGNS FOR PEOPLE OF SOUND UNDERSTANDING”.  (S: 2 A: 164

 The creation of the Heavens is a great sign in itself, indeed greater than the creation of man, “INDEED THE CREATION OF THE HEAVENS IS GREATER THAN THE CREATION OF PEOPLE”.  (S: 40 A: 57)

The magnificence of the heavens is unimaginable.  It is vast and very large indeed.  The distances are vast. We do not measure the distances in kilometres or miles, but in light minutes or usually light years.  That is the distance that light travels in a unit of time.  If we know that light travels at the speed of   300, 000 km /second, then we can imagine the distance it travels in a minute, hour, day, year, or a million or billion years.  Our sun is 8.5 light minutes away from the Earth, that is 150,000,000 km. approx., or 93,000,000 miles approx.  The nearest Star to us after the sun is 4 light years away.

This means that what we see happening in the sky, actually happened a long time ago.  We the sun rising 8.5 minutes after it has raised.  As for the nearest star, what we see happening to it, happened 4 years ago.  It took that long for the light to arrive.  As for other Stars that are millions or billions of light years away, what we see of them is very, very, ancient history.

As for the suns (stars), their number is unimaginable.  There are billions of Galaxies in the universe.  Every Galaxy consists of hundreds of millions of Stars.  These stars potentially have planetary systems also.  Can any one imagine these numbers?

Yet all these stars and galaxies are not stationary, they are all moving in a pattern.  But they do not colloid with each other.  All are moving in perfect harmony. 

This is however, the part of the Heavens we are able to see, and there is a great deal more.  The better man’s instruments are able to see into the universe, the more we see.  This might be just the Lower Heaven, about which Allah the Highest, said: “WE HAVE BEAUTIFIED THE LOWER HEAVENS WITH LIGHTS”.  (S: 41 A: 12)

And also said: “WE HAVE BEAUTIFIED THE LOWER HEAVENS WITH STARS”.  (S: 67 A: 5)

So what are the Seven Heavens, only Allah knows?