BİRİNCİ FEN · ÜÇÜNCÜ BÂB · ALTINCI FASIL · İkinci Madde
Second Article
It states that the element of earth exists in two layers and that the views of some philosophers are compatible with certain verses and hadiths in a particular way.
O esteemed one! Know that philosophers and theologians have said: This earthy element is a sphere divided into two layers.
The first of these is the layer of mud (tabaka-i tîniyye). All minerals, plants, living beings, spring waters, earthquakes, and gases (buhârat) have originated and manifested on the upper side of this layer of mud.
Although the element of earth is colorless, it becomes colored with various hues due to its mixture with the aforementioned formations. To measure the thickness and depth of this layer of mud, Indian philosophers, using different methods, dug many deep wells in various places, burning candles and observing the behavior of fire, to estimate the thickness of the earth.
To make this observation, they dug up to seven thousand cubits deep in deserts and fifteen thousand five hundred cubits – which is approximately five farsakhs – near coastlines, until they reached the end of the layer of mud; reaching pure, dry, and colorless earth. Four of these wells still exist in the Kenkeder Desert, the extremity of India.
The Well of Shaddad is located in the Golden Quarter of Damascus, in the Zeydânî Desert. It is also called the Well of Haviyya. The people of this quarter go to visit it. They make scrolls the size of a camel using cloth soaked in oil; then they ignite them and throw them into the well. As they watch the mass of fire descend, they see that it appears smaller as it goes down, until it becomes as small as (a star) in the sky.
It has been established through the science of debate (munâzara) that a fire, the size of a camel, burned on top of a large mountain at night is visible from a distance of five farsakhs like a star. Thus, the thickness of the layer of mud is known by this comparison. The layer of mud is considered the sixth layer in relation to the fiery layer.
The second layer of the element of earth is pure earth, which surrounds the center; it is the original element surrounding the center. It is completely cold, dry, and colorless; it is not colored. For the original element has no color. Just as water takes on the color of the vessel in which it is contained. The depth of this layer of pure earth has been calculated to be one thousand two hundred seventeen farsakhs until it reaches the center. Because the circumference (belt) of the globe is eight thousand farsakhs, the radius from any point on this circumference to the center has been found to be one thousand two hundred seventy-two farsakhs. Thus, the thickness of the pure layer is found by subtracting the thickness of the mud layer, which is five farsakhs, from the radius of the globe. Therefore, above the sphere of the moon there is a fiery layer, within it a smoky layer, within that a cold layer, within that a vaporous layer, within that a watery layer, beneath that a layer of mud, and within that a layer of pure earth; this being the seventh layer. These seven layers encompass one another. These explanations are in accordance with the meaning of the verse: “Indeed, Allah has created seven heavens and seven earths” (Talak, 65/12).
It is narrated from Ibn Abbas (r. anhumâ) that if the story "the world is between the horns of a bull and on the back of a fish" is accepted as true, it would be more appropriate to interpret these terms as the signs of the Bull and Fish constellations. For it seems that the companions had such interpretations in the early centuries of Islam. At that time, religious matters were not yet institutionalized, and everything was not yet in its proper place. The majority of the people (in such intricate matters) would consult philosophical views. Thus, so that they would not refrain from memorizing and reciting the precepts of the Islamic religion, they would give authoritative answers even to questions not pertaining to religious affairs, according to the hadith: "Speak to the people in terms they understand." Surely, the primary duty of prophets and their companions is to teach religion to people; it is not to explain the realities of existence. This is why when the Prophet (s.a.w.) was asked about changes in the moon, he waited until a verse was revealed from Allah: “They ask you about the new moon. Say, ‘It is only a calculation for [the times of] people and [for] Hajj’” (Bakara, 2/189). So that people would know what to ask, and not ask him questions pertaining to matters other than religious rulings. Just as the Prophet (s.a.w.) said regarding when to plant a date palm and how to graft it: “You are better able to know about worldly affairs.”
The two poles of the globe – as explained above – are at the ninetieth degree, where there is six months of night and six months of day. Therefore, the darkness for Hızır and Iskender would be in the northern pole, consisting entirely of those six months of night. Otherwise, it has not been established by scholars that a place is perpetually dark. The Wall of Ya’juj and Ma’juj, however, is said to be located east of the seventh clime, north of old Tataristan.
Some ancient books state: “the distance of the earth is a five-hundred-year journey, and the distance between earth and heaven is also a five-hundred-year journey.” The book Summuvat narrates a hadith in support of these words. However, we believe that the numbers mentioned in such narrations refer to the multiplicity of distances; they do not express certainty. Because fifty, seventy,
"Sayings of the Naqshbandis: A Collection of Sayings and Advice from Shaykhs of the Naqshbandi Sufi Order"
“O Messenger! Ask forgiveness for them (the hypocrites) or do not ask forgiveness; if you should ask forgiveness for them seventy times, still Allah will not forgive them. For they disbelieved in Allah and His Messenger, and died while they were apostates.” (Surah At-Tawbah, 9:80)
In this verse, the number is not intended to be taken literally, but rather as an expression of great abundance. Similarly, many scholars have interpreted such expressions to align with religious teachings.