THE MIRACLE IN THE ATOM

Introduction
Why ? Once the answer is found, this question is the key to a gate that leads one to a completely different world. It is, at the same time, a slim line that separates those who know from those who don't. In the world in which we live, mankind is caught up in a continuous search for the answers to many questions like "what?", "how?" and "in what way?", and can make but little headway in answering them. It is unlikely for man to make his way to the truth unless he asks himself the question "why?" about the extraordinary order and balance with which he interacts. In this book, we will deal with the subject of "the atom", the groundwork of every animate and inanimate thing. After seeing what occurs and in what way it occurs with regards to the atom, we will seek the answers to the question "why?" The answer to this question will take us to the truth we pursue. Since the first half of the 19th century, hundreds of scientists worked day and night to reveal the secrets of the atom. These studies that uncovered the form, motion, structure and other properties of the atom shattered the very grounds of classical physics that assumed matter to be an entity without any beginning or end, and laid the foundation for modern physics. They also produced many questions. Many physicists, looking for answers to these questions, finally agreed that there is perfect order, unerring balance and conscious design in the atom, as in everything else in the universe. This truth is revealed in the Qur'an sent down by Allah fourteen centuries ago. As made clear in the verses of the Qur'an, the whole universe works in perfect order because the earth, the sky and everything in between is created by Allah, Who has infinite power and wisdom. It is certainly no wonder that everything created by Allah has extraordinary excellence and runs within a flawless order. What comes as a real surprise is man's unrelenting insensitivity towards the numerous miracles he encounters, sees, hears, and knows – including his own body – and his negligence about the reason "why" these extraordinary details are presented to him. Though dwelling on a scientific subject, the purpose of "The Miracle in the Atom" is different from that of conventional scientific books. This book deals with the "atom", unique in being the building block of both animate and inanimate objects, with the questions "what?", "how?" and "in what way?", thereby opening the door to the answer of the question "why?" Once beyond this door, the superiority of the wisdom and knowledge of Allah, and His creation will be revealed for all to see: Allah, there is no god but Him, the Living, the Self-Sustaining. He is not subject to drowsiness or sleep. Everything in the heavens and the earth belongs to Him. Who can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them but they cannot grasp any of His knowledge save what He wills. His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the earth and their preservation does not tire Him. (Surat al-Baqara: 255)

JESUS WILLRETURN

Introduction
Like all the other prophets, Jesus ('Isa) (as) is a chosen slave of Allah whom Allah assigned to summon people to the true path. However, Allah has given Jesus (as) some attributes distinguishing him from other prophets, the most important one being that he was raised up to Allah and that he will come back to earth again.
Contrary to what most people believe, Jesus (as) was not crucified and killed nor did he die for any other reason. The Qur'an tells us that they did not kill him and they did not crucify him and that Allah raised him up to Him. Furthermore, the Qur'an acquaints us with some events from the life of Jesus (as) which have not yet happened. Thus, his second coming to earth is a prerequisite for these events to happen. There is no doubt that the events related in the Qur'an will certainly happen.
In addition we are told in a great many reliable hadiths1 of the Prophet Muhammad (saas) that Jesus (as) is alive in the sight of Allah and will return to earth, and that when he does so he will rule with the Qur'an, be a means whereby the Christian world turns to Islam, and will, together with the Mahdi 2, make Islamic moral values prevail all over the world. Great Islamic scholars are in agreement that Jesus (as) did not die and will return to earth. Despite this, however, some people assume that Jesus (as) passed away some thousands of years ago and that thus it is unlikely that he will return. This is a misconception arising from lack of knowledge about the Qur'an and the hadith.
The Prophet Muhammad (saas) also told us that in the time when Jesus (as) will be sent back to earth, which is called 'the end of time', there will be a period in which the earth will attain unprecedented peace, justice and welfare.
The 'end times' refers to the period of time close to the end of the world. According to Islam, in this time, there will be the terrible trials of the Dajjal (Anti-Christ), many earthquakes and the emergence of Yajuj and Majuj (Gog and Magog) after which the ways of the Qur'an will prevail and people will extensively adhere to the values it teaches.
Evidence that Jesus (as) did not die, that he was raised to the presence of Allah and that he will return again will be examined in this book in the light of the Qur'anic verses, hadiths and Islamic scholars' interpretations. However, before proceeding, it would be beneficial to remind ourselves of some basic information directly related to this subject.

THE EVOLUTION DECEIT

Special Preface:
The Real Ideological Root of Terrorism: Darwinism and Materialism
Introduction
Most people think the theory of evolution was first proposed by Charles Darwin, and rests on scientific evidence, observations and experiments. However, the truth is that Darwin was not its originator, and neither does the theory rest on scientific proof. The theory consists of an adaptation to nature of the ancient dogma of materialist philosophy. Although it is not backed up by scientific discoveries, the theory is blindly supported in the name of materialist philosophy.
This fanaticism has resulted in all kinds of disasters. Together with the spread of Darwinism and the materialist philosophy it supports, the answer to the question "What is a human being?" has changed. People who used to answer: "Human beings were created by God and have to live according to the beautiful morality He teaches", have now begun to think that "Man came into being by chance, and is an animal who developed by means of the fight for survival." There is a heavy price to pay for this great deception. Violent ideologies such as racism, fascism and communism, and many other barbaric world views based on conflict have all drawn strength from this deception.
This article will examine the disaster Darwinism has visited on the world and reveal its connection with terrorism, one of the most important global problems of our time.

The Darwinist Lie: 'Life is conflict'
Darwin set out with one basic premise when developing his theory: "The development of living things depends on the fight for survival. The strong win the struggle. The weak are condemned to defeat and oblivion."
According to Darwin, there is a ruthless struggle for survival and an eternal conflict in nature. The strong always overcome the weak, and this enables development to take place. The subtitle he gave to his book The Origin of Species, "The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life", encapsulates that view.
Furthermore, Darwin proposed that the 'fight for survival' also applied between human racial groups. According to that fantastical claim, 'favoured races' were victorious in the struggle. Favoured races, in Darwin's view, were white Europeans. African or Asian races had lagged behind in the struggle for survival. Darwin went further, and suggested that these races would soon lose the "struggle for survival" entirely, and thus disappear:
At some future period, not very distant as measured by centuries, the civilised races of man will almost certainly exterminate, and replace the savage races throughout the world. At the same time the anthropomorphous apes… will no doubt be exterminated. The break between man and his nearest allies will then be wider, for it will intervene between man in a more civilised state, as we may hope, even than the Caucasian, and some ape as low as a baboon, instead of as now between the negro or Australian and the gorilla.1
The Indian anthropologist Lalita Vidyarthi explains how Darwin's theory of evolution imposed racism on the social sciences:
His (Darwin's) theory of the survival of the fittest was warmly welcomed by the social scientists of the day, and they believed mankind had achieved various levels of evolution culminating in the white man's civilization. By the second half of the nineteenth century racism was accepted as fact by the vast majority of Western scientists.2

Darwin's Source of Inspiration: Malthus's Theory of Ruthlessness
Darwin's source of inspiration on this subject was the British economist Thomas Malthus's book An Essay on the Principle of Population. Left to their own devices, Malthus calculated that the human population increased rapidly. In his view, the main influences that kept populations under control were disasters such as war, famine and disease. In short, according to this brutal claim, some people had to die for others to live. Existence came to mean "permanent war."
In the 19th century, Malthus's ideas were widely accepted. European upper class intellectuals in particular supported his cruel ideas. In the article "The Scientific Background of the Nazi 'Race Purification' Programme", the importance 19th century Europe attached to Malthus's views on population is described in this way:
In the opening half of the nineteenth century, throughout Europe, members of the ruling classes gathered to discuss the newly discovered "Population problem" and to devise ways of implementing the Malthusian mandate, to increase the mortality rate of the poor: "Instead of recommending cleanliness to the poor, we should encourage contrary habits. In our towns we should make the streets narrower, crowd more people into the houses, and court the return of the plague. In the country we should build our villages near stagnant pools, and particularly encourage settlements in all marshy and unwholesome situations,"and so forth and so on.3
As a result of this cruel policy, the weak, and those who lost the struggle for survival would be eliminated, and as a result the rapid rise in population would be balanced out. This so-called "oppression of the poor" policy was actually carried out in 19th century Britain. An industrial order was set up in which children of eight and nine were made to work sixteen hours a day in the coal mines and thousands died from the terrible conditions. The "struggle for survival" demanded by Malthus's theory led to millions of Britons leading lives full of suffering.
Influenced by these ideas, Darwin applied this concept of conflict to all of nature, and proposed that the strong and the fittest emerged victorious from this war of existence. Moreover, he claimed that the so-called struggle for survival was a justified and unchangeable law of nature. On the other hand, he invited people to abandon their religious beliefs by denying the Creation, and thus undermined at all ethical values that might prove to be obstacles to the ruthlessness of the "struggle for survival."
Humanity has paid a heavy price in the 20th century for the dissemination of these callous views which lead people to acts of ruthlessness and cruelty.
What 'The Law of the Jungle' Led to: Fascism
As Darwinism fed racism in the 19th century, it formed the basis of an ideology that would develop and drown the world in blood in the 20th century: Nazism.
A strong Darwinist influence can be seen in Nazi ideologues. When one examines this theory, which was given shape by Adolf Hitler and Alfred Rosenberg, one comes across such concepts as "natural selection", "selective mating", and "the struggle for survival between the races", which are repeated dozens of time in the works of Darwin. When calling his book Mein Kampf (My Struggle), Hitler was inspired by the Darwinist struggle for survival and the principle that victory went to the fittest. He particularly talks about the struggle between the races:
History would culminate in a new millennial empire of unparalleled splendour, based on a new racial hierarchy ordained by nature herself.4
In the 1933 Nuremberg party rally, Hitler proclaimed that "a higher race subjects to itself a lower race… a right which we see in nature and which can be regarded as the sole conceivable right".
That the Nazis were influenced by Darwinism is a fact that almost all historians who are expert in the matter accept. The historian Hickman describes Darwinism's influence on Hitler as follows:
(Hitler) was a firm believer and preacher of evolution. Whatever the deeper, profound, complexities of his psychosis, it is certain that [the concept of struggle was important because]… his book, Mein Kampf, clearly set forth a number of evolutionary ideas, particularly those emphasizing struggle, survival of the fittest and the extermination of the weak to produce a better society.5
Hitler, who emerged with these views, dragged the world to violence that had never before been seen. Many ethnic and political groups, and especially the Jews, were exposed to terrible cruelty and slaughter in the Nazi concentration camps. World War II, which began with the Nazi invasion, cost 55 million lives. What lay behind the greatest tragedy in world history was Darwinism's concept of the "struggle for survival."
The Bloody Alliance: Darwinism and Communism
While fascists are found on the right wing of Social Darwinism, the left wing is occupied by communists. Communists have always been among the fiercest defenders of Darwin's theory.
This relationship between Darwinism and communism goes right back to the founders of both these "isms". Marx and Engels, the founders of communism, read Darwin's The Origin of Species as soon as it came out, and were amazed at its 'dialectical materialist' attitude. The correspondence between Marx and Engels showed that they saw Darwin's theory as "containing the basis in natural history for communism". In his book The Dialectics of Nature, which he wrote under the influence of Darwin, Engels was full of praise for Darwin, and tried to make his own contribution to the theory in the chapter "The Part Played by Labour in the Transition from Ape to Man".
Russian communists who followed in the footsteps of Marx and Engels, such as Plekhanov, Lenin, Trotsky and Stalin, all agreed with Darwin's theory of evolution. Plekhanov, who is seen as the founder of Russian communism, regarded marxism as "Darwinism in its application to social science".6
Trotsky said, "Darwin's discovery is the highest triumph of the dialectic in the whole field of organic matter." 7
'Darwinist education' had a major role in the formation of communist cadres. For instance, historians note the fact that Stalin was religious in his youth, but became an atheist primarily because of Darwin's books.8
Mao, who established communist rule in China and killed millions of people, openly stated that "Chinese socialism is founded upon Darwin and the theory of evolution." 9
The Harvard University historian James Reeve Pusey goes into great detail regarding Darwinism's effect on Mao and Chinese communism in his research book China and Charles Darwin.10
In short, there is an unbreakable link between the theory of evolution and communism. The theory claims that living things are the product of chance, and provides a so-called scientific support for atheism. Communism, an atheist ideology, is for that reason firmly tied to Darwinism. Moreover, the theory of evolution proposes that development in nature is possible thanks to conflict (in other words "the struggle for survival") and supports the concept of "dialectics" which is fundamental to communism.
If we think of the communist concept of "dialectical conflict", which killed some 120 million people during the 20th century, as a "killing machine" then we can better understand the dimensions of the disaster that Darwinism visited on the planet.

Darwinism and Terrorism
As we have so far seen, Darwinism is at the root of various ideologies of violence that have spelled disaster to mankind in the 20th century. The fundamental concept behind this understanding and method is "fighting whoever is not one of us."
We can explain this in the following way: There are different beliefs, worldviews and philosophies in the world. It is very natural that all these diverse ideas have traits opposing one another. However, these different stances can look at each other in one of two ways:
1) They can respect the existence of those who are not like them and try to establish dialogue with them, employing a humane method. Indeed, this method conforms with the morality of the Qur'an.
2) They can choose to fight others, and to try to secure an advantage by damaging them, in other words, to behave like a wild animal. This is a method employed by materialism, that is, irreligion.
The horror we call terrorism is nothing other than a statement of the second view.
When we consider the difference between these two approaches, we can see that the idea of "man as a fighting animal" which Darwinism has subconsciously imposed on people is particularly influential. Individuals and groups who choose the way of conflict may never have heard of Darwinism and the principles of that ideology. But at the end of the day they agree with a view whose philosophical basis rests on Darwinism. What leads them to believe in the rightness of this view is such Darwinism-based slogans as "In this world, the strong survive", "Big fish swallow little ones", "War is a virtue", and "Man advances by waging war". Take Darwinism away, and these are nothing but empty slogans.
Actually, when Darwinism is taken away, no philosophy of 'conflict' remains. The three divine religions that most people in the world believe in, Islam, Christianity and Judaism, all oppose violence. All three religions wish to bring peace and harmony to the world, and oppose innocent people being killed and suffering cruelty and torture. Conflict and violence violate the morality that God has set out for man, and are abnormal and unwanted concepts. However, Darwinism sees and portrays conflict and violence as natural, justified and correct concepts that have to exist.
For this reason, if some people commit terrorism using the concepts and symbols of Islam, Christianity or Judaism in the name of those religions, you can be sure that those people are not Muslims, Christians or Jews. They are real Social Darwinists. They hide under a cloak of religion, but they are not genuine believers. Even if they claim to be serving religion, they are actually enemies of religion and of believers. That is because they are ruthlessly committing a crime that religion forbids, and in such a way as to blacken religion in peoples' eyes.
For this reason, the root of the terrorism that plagues our planet is not any of the divine religions, but in atheism, and the expression of atheism in our times: "Darwinism" and "materialism."
ISLAM IS NOT THE SOURCE OF TERRORISM, BUT ITS SOLUTION
Some people who say they are acting in the name of religion may misunderstand their religion or practice it wrongly. For that reason, it would be wrong to form ideas about that religion by taking these people as an example. The best way to understand a religion is to study its divine source.
The holy source of Islam is the Qur'an; and the model of morality in the Qur'an-Islam-is completely different from the image of it formed in the minds of some westerners. The Qur'an is based on the concepts of morality, love, compassion, mercy, humility, sacrifice, tolerance and peace, and a Muslim who lives by that morality in its true sense will be most polite, considerate, tolerant, trustworthy and accomodating. He will spread love, respect, harmony and the joy of living all around him.
Islam is a Religion of Peace and Well-Being
The word Islam is derived from the word meaning "peace" in Arabic. Islam is a religion revealed to mankind with the intention of presenting a peacable life through which the infinite compassion and mercy of God manifest on earth. God calls all people to Islamic morals through through which mercy, compassion, tolerance and peace can be experienced all over the world. In Surat al-Baqara verse 208, God addresses the believers as follows:
You who believe! Enter absolutely into peace (Islam). Do not follow in the footsteps of Satan. He is an outright enemy to you.
As the verse makes clear, security can only be ensured by 'entering into Islam', that is, living by the values of the Qur'an.
God Has Condemned Wickedness
God has commanded people to avoid committing evil; He has forbidden disbelief, immorality, rebellion, cruelty, aggressiveness, murder and bloodshed. He describes those who fail to obey this command as "following in Satan's footsteps" and adopting a posture that is openly revealed to be sinful in the Qur'an. A few of the many verses on this matter in the Qur'an read:
But as for those who break God's contract after it has been agreed and sever what God has commanded to be joined, and cause corruption in the earth, the curse will be upon them. They will have the Evil Abode. (Surat ar-Ra'd: 25)
Seek the abode of the hereafter with what God has given you, without forgetting your portion of the world. And do good as God has been good to you. And do not seek to cause mischief on earth. God does not love mischief makers. (Surat al-Qasas: 77)
As we can see, God has forbidden every kind of mischievous acts in the religion of Islam including terrorism and violence, and condemned those who commit such deeds. A Muslim lends beauty to the world and improves it.
Islam Defends Tolerance and Freedom of Speech
Ýslam is a religion which provides and guarantees freedom of ideas, thought and life. It has issued commands to prevent and forbid tension, disputes, slander and even negative thinking among people.
In the same way that it is determinedly opposed to terrorism and all acts of violence, it has also forbidden even the slightest ideological pressure to be put on them:
There is no compulsion in religion. Right guidance has become clearly distinct from error. Anyone who rejects false gods and believes in God has grasped the Firmest Handhold, which will never give way. God is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (Surat al-Baqara: 256)
So remind, you need only to remind. You cannot compel them to believe. (Surat al-Ghashiyah: 22)
Forcing people to believe in a religion or to adopt its forms of belief is completely contrary to the essence and spirit of Ýslam. According to Ýslam, true faith is only possible with free will and freedom of conscience. Of course, Muslims can advise and encourage each other about the features of Qur'anic morality, but they will never resort to compulsion, nor any kind of physical or psychological pressure. Neither will they use any worldly privilege to turn someone towards religion.
Let us imagine a completely opposite model of society. For example, a world in which people are forced by law to practice religion. Such a model of society is completely contrary to Ýslam because faith and worship are only of any value when they are directed to God by the free will of the individual. If a system imposes belief and worship on people, then they will become religious only out of fear of that system. From the religious point of view, what really counts is that religion should be lived for God's good pleasure in an environment where peoples' consciences are totally free.
God Has Made the Killing of Innocent People Unlawful
According to the Qur'an, one of the greatest sins is to kill a human being who has committed no fault.
...If someone kills another person - unless it is in retaliation for someone else or for causing corruption in the earth - it is as if he had murdered all mankind. And if anyone gives life to another person, it is as if he had given life to all mankind. Our Messengers came to them with Clear Signs but even after that many of them committed outrages in the earth. (Surat al-Ma'ida: 32)
Those who do not call on any other deity together with God and do not kill anyone God has made inviolate, except with the right to do so, and do not fornicate; anyone who does that will receive an evil punishment. (Surat al-Furqan: 68)
As the verses suggest, a person who kills innocent people for no reason is threatened with a great torment. God has revealed that killing even a single person is as evil as murdering all mankind. A person who observes God's limits can do no harm to a single human, let alone massacre thousands of innocent people. Those who assume that they can avoid justice and thus punishment in this world will never succeed, for they will have to give an account of their deeds in the presence of God. That is why believers, who know that they will give an account of their deeds after death, are very meticulous to observe God's limits.
God Commands Believers to be Compassionate and Merciful
Islamic morality is described in the Qur'an as:
...To be one of those who believe and urge each other to steadfastness and urge each other to compassion. Those are the Companions of the Right. (Surat al-Balad: 17-18)
As we have seen in this verse, one of the most important moral precepts that God has sent down to His servants so that they may receive salvation and mercy and attain Paradise, is to "urge each other to compassion".
Ýslam as described in the Qur'an is a modern, enlightened, progressive religion. A Muslim is above all a person of peace; he is tolerant with a democratic spirit, cultured, enlightened, honest, knowledgeable about art and science and civilized.
A Muslim educated in the fine moral teaching of the Qur'an, approaches everyone with the love that Ýslam expects. He shows respect for every idea and he values art and aesthetics. He is conciliatory in the face of every event, diminishing tension and restoring amity. In societies composed of individuals such as this, there will be a more developed civilization, a higher social morality, more joy, happiness, justice, security, abundance and blessings than in the most modern nations of the world today.
God Has Commanded Tolerance and Forgiveness
The concept of forgiveness and tolerance, described in the words, 'Make allowances for people' (Surat al-A'raf: 199), is one of the most fundamental tenets of Islam.
When we look at the history of Ýslam, the way that Muslims have translated this important feature of Qur'anic morality into the life of society can be seen quite clearly. Muslims have always brought with them an atmosphere of freedom and tolerance and destroyed unlawful practices wherever they have gone. They have enabled people whose religions, languages and cultures are completely different from one another to live together in peace and harmony under one roof, and provided peace and harmony for its own members. One of the most important reasons for the centuries-long existence of the Ottoman Empire, which spread over an enormous region, was the atmosphere of tolerance and understanding that Ýslam brought with it. Muslims, who have been known for their tolerant and loving natures for centuries, have always been the most compassionate and just of people. Within this multi-national structure, all ethnic groups have been free to live according to their own religions, and their own rules.
True tolerance can only bring peace and well-being to the world when implemented along the lines set out in the Qur'an. Attention is drawn to this fact in a verse which reads:
A good action and a bad action are not the same. Repel the bad with something better and, if there is enmity between you and someone else, he will be like a bosom friend. (Surat al-Fussilat: 34)
Conclusion
All of this shows that the morality that Islam recommends to mankind brings to the world the virtues of peace, harmony and justice. The barbarism known as terrorism, that is so preoccupying the world at present, is the work of ignorant and fanatical people, completely estranged from Qur'anic morality, and who have absolutely nothing to do with religion. The solution to these people and groups who try to carry out their savagery under the mask of religion is the teaching of true Qur'anic morality. In other words, Ýslam and Qur'anic morality are solutions to the scourge of terrorism, not supporters of it.

MIRACLES OF THE QUR'AN

INTRODUCTION
Fourteen centuries ago, Allah sent down the Qur'an. This book of guidance and wisdom calls man to the truth and instructs all human beings to adhere to the values which this mighty revelation contains. From the day of its revelation to the Day of Judgement, this last divine book will remain as the sole guide for humanity. The book of Allah states, “But it is nothing less than a Reminder to all the worlds.” (Qur’an, 68:52)
Ever since the Qur’an was revealed, it has possessed an easily understandable language and tone, accessible to all people and in all times. Allah tells us of this style in the Qur’an: “We have made the Qur’an easy to remember...” (Qur’an, 54:22)
The perfection of the literary language of the Qur’an, the incomparable features of its style and the superior wisdom contained within it are some of the definitive proofs that it represents the Word of our Lord.
In addition, the Qur'an contains within its words many miracles which prove it to be Allah’s Word. One of these attributes is the remarkable number of scientific truths which are contained in the holy book of Islam. In this book which was revealed over fourteen centuries ago to the Prophet Muhammad (saas), there are innumerable examples of information humanity have only been able to uncover by the technology of the 20th and 21st century.
Of course, we should not view the Qur'an as a book of science for it is primarily a book of moral and spiritual guidance. However, many scientific facts that are expressed in an extremely concise and profound manner, within the verses of the Qur’an, have only been discovered by scientists with the aid of the technological advancement of the 20th and 21st century. Quite simply, these facts which we now point out to the reader could not have been known at the time of the Qur'an's revelation, and this is still more proof that the Qur’an is the Word of Allah.
In order to understand the scientific miracles contained in the Qur'an, we must first look at the level of scientific knowledge which existed at the time when this holy book was revealed. When one understands the context in which the Qur’an was revealed, one can understand more clearly how extraordinary the book of Islam actually is.
In the 7th century, when these sacred verses were sent down, Arab society was awash with many superstitious and groundless notions. Lacking the technology to examine the universe and nature, these early Arabs believed in uncorroborated tales inherited from past generations and did not question them. For example, they supposed that mountains supported the sky above. They believed that the earth was flat and that mountains acted as pillars that kept the vault of heaven high above us.
Into this atmosphere of legend and myth, the Qur’an came down. It replaced ignorance with knowledge and illogical conjecture with guidance and certainty. One verse of the Qur’an states, "Allah is He Who raised up the heavens without any support..." (Qur’an, 13:2)
This verse invalidated the belief that the sky remains above because of support from the mountains. The Qur’an is filled with important facts which were revealed at a point in human history when no man could possibly have known them. The Qur'an—which was revealed at a time when people knew very little about astronomy, physics, or biology—contains key facts on a variety of subjects all of which point to the fact that it is revealed by Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. Some of the subjects explained and dealt with in the Qur’an are: the creation of the universe, the creation and miraculous development of the human being from miniscule embryo to grown adult, the structure of the atmosphere in which we live and the delicate balances that make life on earth possible. In order to understand some of these points more fully, let us look at some of these scientific miracles revealed in the Qur'an together.

LOVE OF ALLAH

Introduction
ove is one of the greatest blessings that Allah gives to people. Throughout their life, everyone wants to be with those who they love, rely on, and are close to. Many of Allah’s blessings and their true meanings can only be found in an environment where true love and friendship exist. For example, a person who is enjoying a magnificent view naturally wants to share his feelings of awe and happiness with someone whom he loves. In the same way, the most magnificent feast or the most beautifully furnished house may not seem very attractive if you are alone. Allah has created people in such a way that they enjoy being loved and loving others, and are pleased with friendships and closeness. To be with those who live by the Qur’an’s morals, and to have fulfilling friendships and love with them is, for each believer, more enjoyable than many other blessings.
This is why Paradise, which Allah promises to those faithful servants whom He loves and with whom He is pleased, is an extraordinarily beautiful place where true love, friendship, and closeness are lived with great exuberance. In the Qur’an, Allah informs us of how believers will live in Paradise: It will be a life of constant joy, friendship, love, peaceful discussions, kind words, and overall peace. Its inhabitants will encounter none of the obstacles to love and friendship that they knew on Earth. For example, one verse in the Qur’an reveals that all malice and hatred will be removed from the hearts of those who enter Paradise (Surat al-A‘raf, 43). In other words, whatever prohibits love and friendship (e.g., jealousy, enmity, rivalry, anger, getting cross, or being offended) will not be found in Paradise.
One of the most important characteristics of the Muslims living in Paradise will be their ability to love, just as they did on Earth, all of the prophets, those pious believers who strove in the path of Allah, and all of the Muslims who lived in the past.
All believers feel very close to other pious believers who strive to please only Allah, and so choose them to be their close friends and guardians. Under all circumstances and unconditionally, they derive great pleasure from being in the company of other Muslims. This great love emanates from their fear and awe of Allah, and, as a reward for their internal closeness to our Lord, they will be rewarded with Paradise, the most beautiful abode of love and truthfulness.
The true source of love in the believers’ hearts is their profound love of Allah. Believers love Allah greatly and, at every moment, strive to gain His love and good pleasure.
Allah has created everything from nothing. While a person was still in a state of “nothingness,” Allah granted him or her life as a blessing. Our Lord, the Most Merciful, the Most Gracious, and the possessor of infinite mercy, has provided everything for His servants: a vast variety of foods, fruits, and flowers; lovely creatures and landscapes in which we take pleasure; and all other things, from the Sun to water, from the air we breathe to the vitamins we need. He created all of this perfectly on our world, which travels thousands of kilometers per hour in outer space, and maintains it in absolute safety. Believers who think about the blessings bestowed upon them, who are aware that He can do all things and is the sole sovereign of the universe, the Creator of everything in the best possible form, will feel their love for Allah strengthen. Those who love and fear Allah, and hold Him in awe, will faithfully observe the boundaries that He has established for humanity, show great sensitivity when implementing His rules, and do their best to win His good pleasure, love, mercy, and Paradise.
Your friend is only Allah, His messenger, and those who believe: those who perform prayer, give alms, and bow [in prayer]. (Surat al-Ma’ida, 55)
As for those who make Allah their friend, and His messenger, and those who believe: It is the party of Allah who are victorious! (Surat al-Ma’ida, 56)
Every believer who loves and respects Allah and who strives to please Him, enriches the world with goodness. Whoever loves Allah also loves His creations, feels compassion and mercy for them, and wants to protect them by bringing more goodness and beauty into the world. Allah’s messengers, the most excellent and moral people in the world, always invited their people toward love and closeness to each other and to Allah.
Allah gives the following glad tidings to these people:
That is the good news that Allah gives to His servants who believe and do right actions. Say: “I do not ask you for any wage for this—except that you love your near of kin. If anyone does a good action, We will increase the good of it for him. Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Ever-Thankful.” (Surat ash-Shura, 23)
Some people, who are not aware of the Qur’an’s morality and who, as a result, cannot properly acknowledge and appreciate Allah, are deprived of love and friendship and live a life characterized by pain and punishment. Among these people, even the ones who lead the apparently most successful lives cannot find true happiness and peace. Those who lead a solitary life that has no room for love and friendship, and who do not live by the Qur’an, find no moment that is truly good or enjoyable. Such a state is a punishment for those who are characterized by spiritual and temporal cruelty toward others and a lack of belief. They will never truly love or be loved. The love experienced by these people (ascribing partners to Allah) is not true love and will only bring them pessimism, hopelessness, and pain.
As Allah informs us, loneliness and a lack of friendship are specific to Hell:
He did not believe in Allah the Magnificent, nor did he urge the feeding of the poor. Therefore, here today he has no friend. (Surat al-Haqqa, 33-35)
This book seeks to remind believers of the importance of feeling love toward our Lord, Who possesses infinite mercy, and the importance of Allah’s love toward His creations and the believers, as well as to demonstrate that the lack of love, which is a sign of those who deny His existence, is a great catastrophe and punishment. Believers must do their best to avoid this situation by leading a life full of love with the hope of attaining Paradise and binding oneself with love and loyalty to our Lord, humanity’s true Friend and Guardian, and to the believers.

CONCLUSION

Conclusion

With your body made up of atoms, you are breathing atoms in the air, eating atoms in food and drinking atoms of water. What you see is nothing other than the collision of electrons of the atoms in your eye with photons. And what about what you feel by touch? The sensations are simply formed by atoms in your skin repelling atoms of objects.
Indeed, almost everyone knows today that his body, the universe, the world, in short, everything consists of atoms. Yet, perhaps, most people so far never thought about what kind of a system the entity we call the atom has. Or, even if they did, they did not feel the need to investigate it, because they always thought this concerns physicists alone.
Man, however, lives entwined within this perfect system throughout his life. This is such a system that every one of the trillions of atoms forming the armchair on which we sit has an order about which a book could be written. It takes pages to tell the formation, the system and the power of a single atom. As the technology advances and our knowledge of the universe increases, these pages also increase.
How then did this order form? It cannot be that the particles scattered around after the Big Bang have formed the atom with a sudden decision, and then an appropriate environment was formed by chance, and these atoms have transformed into matter. It is certainly impossible to explain such a system by "chance". Everything you see around you, and even the air you cannot see, consist of atoms, and there is a very complex traffic between these atoms.
Who then can direct the traffic between the atoms? Can it be you? If you think that your body consists of atoms alone, then which one of your atoms directs which, and which atom directs what? Do the atoms of your brain that are no different from other atoms control the others? If we assume that the atoms of your brain are directors, then we have to answer these questions:
* If all atoms forming the brain are directors, how and based on what do they make their decisions?
* How do trillions of atoms forming the brain cooperate?
* Why does not a single atom out of trillions of them oppose the decision that is taken?
* How do the atoms communicate with each other?
Considering the above questions, it is obviously an illogical deduction to say that all of the trillions of atoms forming the brain are directors.
So, can it be correct to think that only one of these trillions of atoms is the director and the others are its followers? If we believe a single atom to be the director, then the questions that come to the mind are:
* Which atom is the director and who elected this atom?
* Where in the brain is this atom?
* What is the difference of this atom from the others?
* Why do the other atoms obey this atom unconditionally?
Before answering these questions, let us state one more thing: the supposed director atom is also made up of other particles. Why and under what pretext do these particles come together to form this director atom? Who controls these particles? Since there is another will directing these particles, how right would it be to defend that this atom is the director?
At this point, the claim that one of the atoms forming our brain may be the director atom is inevitably disproved. How do the countless number of atoms in the universe continue their existence in full harmony, while people, animals, plants, earth, air, water, objects, planets, space, and everything else are made of atoms? Which one of these countless atoms can be the director when it itself is made up of many sub-particles? To make such a claim or to attribute everything to chance and to deny the being of Allah, Who created all the worlds, is only "rejecting those signs in iniquity and arrogance in spite of their own certainty about them." (Surat an-Naml: 14)
Just think: a human being, who is made up of the arrangement of atoms in various combinations, is born, is fed with atoms and grows up with atoms. He then reads books made of atoms in a building made of atoms. Later, he receives a diploma composed of atoms that says "nuclear engineer" on it. Yet, he can still come and deliver speeches such as "these atoms have come together as a result of sheer coincidence, and the extraordinary system within them has formed by chance". If this is so, where does he derive the consciousness, will and intelligence to deliver this speech?
In almost every page of this book, we saw repeatedly that it is impossible for the atom making up every animate or inanimate thing in the universe, to be itself formed by chance. What we will say to those who, despite all we have told, still think that this phenomenon has come about by "chance" or taken its present form through the mechanism of "trial and error" will be no different from what the prophet Ibrahim, peace be upon him, said to the disbelievers:
What about the one who argued with Ibrahim about his Lord, on the basis that Allah had given him sovereignty? Ibrahim said, 'My Lord is He who gives life and causes to die.' He said, 'I too give life and cause to die.' Ibrahim said, 'Allah makes the sun come from the East. Make it come from the West.' And the disbeliever was dumbfounded. Allah does not guide wrongdoing people. (Surat al-Baqara: 258)
They said 'Glory be to You! We have no knowledge except what You have taught us. You are the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.'(Surat al-Baqara: 32)

POWER OF THE ATOM

Power Of The Atom


We now know how atoms, the building blocks of the whole universe and everything therein, animate-inanimate, form matter in an extraordinary way. As we have examined, these extremely minute particles have a perfect organisation within themselves. Yet, the miraculous aspect of the atom does not end the re; the atom also houses tremendous energy.
While the power hidden in the atom serves humanity on one hand, it poses an extremely great danger for humanity on the other hand. So much so that by the misuse of this power, tens of thousands of people lost their lives in a very short time -a few seconds- at Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II. In recent years, an accident that took place in the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Russia caused the death or injury of a great number of people.
Before giving detailed information on the disasters the power of the atom caused in Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Chernobyl, let us take a short lo ok at the nature of this power in the atom and how it is released.

Power Hidden In the Nucleus
In the chapter titled "The Formation Adventure of the Atom", we had said the force keeping the protons and neutrons together in the atomic nucleus is "the strong nuclear force". The enormous power of nuclear energy is revealed by the liberation of a tiny part of this force in the nucleus. The magnitude of this energy varies depending on the type of the element, because the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of each element is different. As the nucleus grows, the number of neutrons and protons and the magnitude of the force bonding them to each other increase. It is extremely difficult to release this force that is responsible for keeping protons and neutrons together in a large nucleus. As the particles grow more distant from each other, they, just like a taut bow, try to come together with greater force.
Before going into the details of this force, let us think it over. How can such an enormous force fit in such a small place? This is such a force that it has been discovered after years of research conducted by thousands of people. When it is not interfered with, it does not do any harm to anyone, yet, with the intervention of man, it may at any time become a force killing millions.
Two technical processes called "fission" and "fusion" release this extraordinary force in the nucleus of the atom, which may endanger the lives of millions of people. Although these reactions at first seem to take place in the nucleus of the atom, they actually involve all the components of the atom. The reaction known as fission is a nuclear reaction in which an atomic nucleus splits into fragments, and the reaction called fusion is the bringing together of two nuclei by a great force. In either reaction, a tremendous amount of energy is released.

Fission
Fission is a nuclear reaction in which the atomic nucleus, which is held together by the strongest force in the universe, the "Strong Nuclear Force", splits into fragments. The main material used in fission experiments is "uranium" because the uranium atom is one of the heaviest. In other words, there are plenty of protons and neutrons in its nucleus.
In fission experiments, scientists shot a neutron at the uranium nucleus at great velocity. They faced a very interesting situation. After the neutron was absorbed by the uranium's nucleus, the uranium nucleus had become very unstable. The nucleus' being "unstable" means the formation of a difference between the numbers of protons and neutrons in the nucleus, resulting in an imbalance in its structure. Therefore, the nucleus starts splitting into fragments while emitting a certain amount of energy to eliminate this imbalance. The nucleus, under the impact of the energy released, starts ejecting the components it contains at great velocity.
Considering the results these experiments yielded, neutrons were accelerated and uranium was bombarded with neutrons in special environments called "reactors". However, uranium is bombarded with neutrons according to a very fine measure, not randomly, because any neutron bombarding the uranium atom has to hit the uranium immediately and at the desired point. That is why these experiments are conducted taking every probability into consideration. The amount of the uranium to be used, the amount of the neutrons used to bombard the uranium and the duration and speed at which the neutrons will bombard the uranium should all be very precisely calculated.
After all these calculations are made and the appropriate setting is prepared, the nucleus is bombarded with neutrons in such a way that they penetrate the nuclei of the atoms in the uranium. It is sufficient that the nucleus of at least one of the atoms in this mass is split in two. In this division, an average of two or three neutrons are sent out from the mass of the nucleus at great velocity and high energy. Neutrons that are released start a chain reaction by colliding with other uranium nuclei within the mass. Each newly split nucleus behaves like the initial uranium nucleus. Thus, a chain of nuclear reactions starts. A large number of uranium nuclei are split into fragments as a result of these chain reactions, causing an enormous amount of energy to be released.
It was these nuclei divisions that have caused the Hiroshima and Nagasaki disasters, causing the death of tens of thousands of people. At the moment of the detonation of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima by the United States in 1945 during World War II, and in its aftermath, approximately 100,000 people died. Another atom bomb dropped on Nagasaki by America three days after the Hiroshima disaster caused the death of another 40,000 people right at the moment of detonation. While the power released by the nuclei caused the death of many people, it also destroyed a very large residential area, and gave rise to many irreparable genetic and physiological disorders in the remaining residents of that area, due to the radiation released, which was to affect generations to come.
If our earth, the whole atmosphere, everything animate and inanimate including us, are composed of atoms, what prevents atoms from being involved in nuclear reactions like the ones in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, that could occur anytime and anywhere?
The neutrons are created in such a way that, when they are free in nature - without being linked to a nucleus - they are subjected to a decomposition called "beta disintegration". Because of this disintegration, no neutrons wander freely in nature. Therefore, neutrons that are to be used in nuclear reactions must be obtained through artificial methods.
This makes clear that, Allah, the Creator of the entire universe, created everything with a precise measure. If neutrons had not decomposed in the free state, the earth would be nothing but an uninhabitable spherical celestial body where endless nuclear reactions took place. Allah created the atom along with this colossal power within it and keeps this power under control in a phenomenal way.

Fusion
Nuclear fusion, just the contrary of fission, is the process of bringing together two light nuclei to form a heavier nucleus and using the bonding energy thus released. However, to achieve this in a controlled fashion is very difficult. This is because nuclei carry positive electrical charges and repel each other very strongly if forced to come together. Therefore, a force strong enough to overcome the repulsive force between them must be used to make them fuse. This required kinetic energy is equivalent to a temperature of 20-30 million degrees.44 This is an extraordinarily high temperature and although researchers have been trying for years to produce a stable fusion reaction that produces more power than it consumes, they have not been successful so far.
Fusion reactions take place in the sun all the time. The heat and light coming from the sun is the result of hydrogen being fused into helium and energy being released in place of the matter lost during this conversion. Each second, the sun converts 564 million tons of hydrogen to 560 million tons of helium. The remaining 4 million tons of matter is converted into energy. This tremendous event producing the solar energy that is extremely vital for life on our planet has continued for millions of years without pause. This may bring to our minds such a question: If such a great amount of matter as 4 million tons is lost in the sun each second, when will the sun be fully consumed?
The sun loses 4 million tons of matter per second, 240 million tons per minute. If we assume that the sun has been producing energy at this rate for 3 billion years, the mass it has lost during this period would be 400,000 million times million tons, which is equal to one 5,000th of the current total mass of the sun. This amount is like one gram of sand being lost out of a 5 kilogram rock in 3 billion years. As this makes clear, the mass of the sun is so enormous that a very long time has to pass before it is finished.
Man has only discovered the composition of the sun and the events taking place inside it this century. Earlier, no one ever knew about phenomena such as nuclear explosions, fission or fusion. Nobody knew how the sun produced energy. Yet, while man was unaware of all these, the sun always continued to be the energy source of the earth and life, for millions of years with this incredible mechanism.
Now, the really curious thing is that our earth has been placed at such an exact distance from the sun - a source of energy possessing an enormous mass - that it is neither exposed to its scorching, destructive power, nor deprived of the useful energy it provides. In the same way, the sun, which possesses such enormous power and energy, is created at the distance, with the power and the size which are perfect for all life on earth, and foremost, man.
This gigantic mass and the incredible nuclear reactions occurring in it have been carrying on their activities for millions of years in perfect harmony with the earth and in the most controlled manner. To understand what an extraordinary, controlled and balanced system this is, it is good enough to remember that man is incapable of controlling even one simple nuclear power plant he has established. No scientist, no technological equipment was able to prevent the nuclear accident that occurred in the Chernobyl reactor in Russia in 1986. It is said that the impact of this nuclear accident will endure for 30-40 years. Although scientists have covered around the contaminated sections of the reactor with enormously thick concrete to prevent further damage, it was later reported that there were leaks from the concrete. Let alone nuclear explosions, even nuclear leaks are extremely dangerous for human life, and science is helpless against this threat.
At this point, we stand facing Allah's endless power and His sovereignty over each particle (atom) in the universe and the sub-atomic particles inside this particle (protons, neutrons…). Allah's power and sovereignty over the beings He creates are stated in a verse as follows:

You do not engage in any matter or recite any of the Qur'an or do any action without Our witnessing you while you are occupied with it. Not even the smallest speck eludes your Lord, either on earth or in heaven. Nor is there anything smaller than that, or larger, which is not in a Clear Book. (Surah Yunus: 61)

Effects of the Atomic Bomb: Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The atomic bombs dropped in the final year of World War II have revealed to the whole world the tremendous power hidden in the atom. Both bombs caused hundreds of thousands of people to lose their lives and inflicted lifelong physical damage on many of the survivors.
Although the impact of the explosion depends on the power of the bomb and various environmental conditions, let us see, based on the example of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, how the enormous power inside the atom, causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in a few seconds, is released second by second:
- The moment of explosion…
Let us assume that an atomic bomb explodes at an altitude of 2,000 m as it did in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The neutrons bombarding the uranium and which split the first atoms into fragments creates chain reactions within the mass as mentioned before. In other words, the neutrons thrown out from the first fragmented nuclei hit other nuclei and split these new nuclei as well. Thus, all nuclei are rapidly fragmented in a chain reaction and the explosion occurs in a very short time. Neutrons move so fast that the bomb releases a total energy of 1,000 billion kilo-calories during one millionth of a second.
The temperature of the gas, into which the bomb is instantaneously converted, rises to several million degrees and the gas pressure rises to one million atmospheres.
- One thousandth of a second after the explosion…
The diameter of the detonated mass of gas increases and various rays are emitted. These radiations form the "initial flash" of the explosion. This flash may cause full blindness in anyone standing within an area having a diameter of tens of kilometres. This flash is hundreds of times stronger than that emitted from the surface of the sun (per surface unit). The time elapsed since the outset of the explosion is so short that people close to the explosion site cannot even find time to close their eyes.
The pressure of the shock causes heavy damage indoors. Power transmission towers, two-piece bridges and skyscrapers built from glass-steel are also damaged. In the close surroundings of the explosion, a great amount of powder-like fine dust is raised.
- 2 seconds after the explosion…
The flashing mass and the air surrounding it form a fireball. The heat radiated from this fireball, whose surface is still extremely hot and which glows like the sun and even more, is powerful enough to ignite all combustible matter within an area of 4-5 kilometres in diameter. The radiance of the fireball may cause irreparable damage to the sense of vision. At this moment, a shock wave moving at very great speed develops around the fireball.
- 6 seconds after the explosion…
At this point, the shock wave hits the earth and causes the first mechanical damage. The wave creates powerful air pressure, the intensity of which decreases as one goes farther from the centre of the explosion. Even around 1.5 km away from this point, the added pressure is twice as strong as normal atmospheric pressure. The chance of people staying alive at this pressure is 1%.
- 13 seconds after the explosion…
The shock wave diffuses along the surface of the earth and it is followed by the explosion created by the repositioning of the air sent by the fireball. This explosion diffuses along the earth at a speed of 300-400 km per hour.
In the meantime, the fireball has cooled down and its volume has decreased. Being lighter than air, it starts to rise. This upward motion causes the direction of wind on the earth to reverse and causes a strong wind to start blowing towards the centre, even though it was initially blowing outwards from the centre of the explosion.
- 30 seconds after the explosion…
As the fireball rises, its spherical shape is distorted and it takes the appearance of a mushroom.
- 2 minutes after the explosion…
The mushroom shaped cloud has now reached an altitude of 12,000 metres. This is the lower limit of the stratospheric layer of the atmosphere. The winds blowing at this altitude cause the mushroom shaped cloud to disperse and the components of the cloud (mostly radioactive remains) to scatter into the atmosphere. As these radioactive remains consist of very tiny particles, they may rise to higher layers in the atmosphere. Before falling on the earth, these remains may be made to travel several times around the earth by the winds blowing in the upper layers of the atmosphere. Thus, radioactive remains may be dispersed all over the world.

Radiation Emitted By the Atom
Radiation consists of gamma rays, neutrons, electrons and similar sub-atomic particles moving at very high speeds such as 200,000 km per second. These particles may easily penetrate the human body and harm the cells forming the body. This damage may cause a fatal cancer or, if it takes place in reproductive cells, it may give rise to genetic disorders that will influence generations to come. Therefore, the results of a radioactive particle hitting a human being are very serious.
Radiation released in atomic explosions affects living beings either directly or through the products of radioactive decay that emerge during the explosion.
As one of these particles or rays travels at high speed in matter, it collides very strongly with atoms or molecules that get in its way. This collision may be a disaster for the delicate structure of the cell. The cell may die, or, even if it recovers, it may start to grow in an uncontrolled fashion - which is cancer - perhaps weeks, months, or years later.
Those who disbelieve say, 'The Hour will never come.' Say: 'Yes, by my Lord, it certainly will come!' He is the Knower of the Unseen, Whom not even the weight of the smallest particle eludes, either in the heavens or in the earth; nor is there anything smaller or larger than that which is not in a Clear Book. (Surah Saba': 3)
Radiation is very intense in an area of 1,000 metres in diameter around the centre of the explosion. Those who survive other fatal factors lose almost all white cells in their blood, wounds appear on their skins, and all of them die because of haemorrhages in a short period of time from a few days up to two or three weeks. The effect of radiation on those farther from the point of explosion varies. Those who are exposed to these harmful rays emitted by the fireball at distances of 13, 16, and 22 km suffer from third, second, and first degree burns respectively. Digestive problems and haemorrhages are experienced less, but real disorders appear later: hair loss, skin burns, anaemia, sterility, miscarriages, giving birth to crippled or deformed babies. In these cases, too, death is possible within a period from ten days to three months. Even years later, sight disorders, leukaemia and radiation cancer may develop. One of the greatest dangers of hydrogen bomb explosions (another nuclear bomb of enormous destructive power caused by the fusion of the nuclei of various hydrogen isotopes in the formation of helium nuclei) is the entrance of radioactive dust into the body through respiration, digestion and the skin. This dust causes the above-mentioned disorders depending on the degree of contamination.
All these are caused by atoms, which we cannot even see with our eyes. Atoms can form life just as they can destroy it. This property of the atom shows us very clearly how helpless we are and how superior is Allah's power.

THE SECOND STEP ON THE PATH TO MATTER : MOLECULES

The Second Step On The Path To Matter: Molecules


What is it that makes the objects you see in your surroundings different from each other? What is it that discriminates their colours, shapes, smells, and tastes? Why is one substance soft, another hard, and yet another fluid? From what you have read so far, you may answer these questions saying, "The differences between their atoms do this". Yet, this answer is not sufficient, because if the atoms were the cause for these differences, then there would have to be billions of atoms bearing different properties from each other. In practice, this is not so. Many materials look different and bear different properties although they contain the same atoms. The reason for this is the different chemical bonds the atoms form among them to become molecules.
On the way to matter, molecules are the second step after atoms. Molecules are the smallest units determining the chemical properties of matter. These small bodies are made up of two or more atoms and some, of thousands of groups of atoms. Atoms are held together inside molecules by chemical bonds determined by the electromagnetic force of attraction, which means that these bonds are formed on the basis of the electrical charges of the atoms. The electrical charges of atoms, in turn, are determined by the electrons on their outermost shell. The arrangements of molecules in different combinations give rise to the diversity of matter we see around us. The importance of the chemical bonds that lie at the heart of the diversity of matter come forward at this very point.

Chemical Bonds
As explained above, chemical bonds are formed through the motion of electrons in the outermost electron shells of the atoms. Each atom has a tendency to fill up its outermost shell with the maximum number of electrons it may shelter. The maximum number of electrons the atoms can hold in their outermost shells is 8. To do this, atoms either receive electrons from other atoms to complete the electrons in their outermost shells to eight, or if they have lesser electrons in their outermost shells, then they give these to another atom, making a sub-shell that had previously been completed in their outermost orbits. The tendency of the atoms to exchange electrons constitutes the basic inciting force of the chemical bonds they form between each other.
This driving force, that is, the objective of the atoms to raise the number of electrons in their outermost shells to maximum, causes an atom to form three types of bonds with other atoms. These are the ionic bond, covalent bond and metallic bond.
Commonly, special bonds categorised under the general title of "weak bonds" act between molecules. These bonds are weaker than the bonds formed by atoms to constitute molecules because molecules need more flexible structures to form matter.
Let us now, in brief, see the properties of these bonds and how they are formed.

Ionic Bonds
Atoms combined by this bond swap electrons to complete the number of electrons in their outermost shells to eight. Atoms having up to four electrons in their outermost shells give these electrons to the atom with which they are going to combine, that is, with which they will bond. Atoms having more than four electrons in their outermost shells receive electrons from the atoms with which they will bond. Molecules formed by this type of bond have crystal (cubic) structures. Familiar table salt (NaCl) molecules are among substances formed by this bond. Why do atoms have such a tendency? What would happen if they did not have it?
Until today, the bonds formed by atoms could be defined only in very general terms. It has not yet been understood why atoms adhere to this principle. Could it be that atoms decide by themselves that the number of electrons in their outermost shells should be eight? Definitely not. This is such decisive behaviour that it goes beyond the atom, because it has no intellect, will, or consciousness. This number is the key in the combination of atoms as molecules that constitute the first step in the creation of the matter, and eventually, the universe. If atoms did not have such a tendency based on this principle, molecules, and in turn, matter would not exist. Yet, from the first moment they were created, atoms have been serving in the formation of molecules and matter in a perfect manner thanks to this tendency.

Covalent Bonds
Scientists who studied the bonds between atoms faced an interesting situation. While some atoms swap electrons for bonding, some of them share the electrons in their outermost shells. Further research revealed that many molecules that are of critical importance for life owe their existence to these 'covalent' bonds.
Let us give a simple example to explain covalent bonds better. As we mentioned previously on the subject of electron shells, atoms can carry a maximum of two electrons in their innermost electron shells. The hydrogen atom has a single electron and it has the tendency to increase the number of its electrons to two to become a stable atom. Therefore, the hydrogen atom forms a covalent bond with a second hydrogen atom. That is, the two hydrogen atoms share each other's single electron as a second electron. Thus, the H2 molecule is formed.

Metallic Bonds
If a large number of atoms come together by sharing each others' electrons, this is called a "metallic bond". Metals like iron, copper, zinc, aluminium, etc., that form the raw material of many tools and instruments we see around us or use in daily life, have acquired a substantial and tangible body as a result of the metallic bonds formed by the atoms constituting them.
Scientists are not able to answer the question as to why electrons in the electron shells of the atoms have such a tendency. Living organisms, most interestingly, owe their existence to this tendency.

The Next Step: Compounds
Do you wonder how many different compounds these bonds can form?
In laboratories, new compounds are produced everyday. Currently, it is possible to talk about almost two million compounds. The simplest chemical compound can be as small as the hydrogen molecule, while there are also compounds made up of millions of atoms.27
How many different compounds can an element form at most? The answer to this question is quite interesting because, on the one hand, there are certain elements that do not interact with any others (inert gases), while, on the other hand, there is the carbon atom that is able to form 1,700,000 compounds. As stated above, the total number of compounds is about two million. 108 elements out of the total of 109 form 300,000 compounds. Carbon, however, forms 1,700,000 compounds all by itself in a most amazing fashion.

The Building Block of Life: the "Carbon" Atom
Carbon is the most vital element for living beings, because all living organisms are constructed from compounds of carbon. Numerous pages would not be enough to describe the properties of the carbon atom, which is extremely important for our existence. Nor has the science of chemistry yet been able to discover all of its properties. Here we will mention only a few of the very important properties of carbon.
Structures as diverse as the cell membrane, the horns of an elk, the trunk of a redwood, the lens of the eye, and the venom of a spider are composed of carbon compounds. Carbon, combined with hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen in many different quantities and geometric arrangements, results in a vast assortment of materials with vastly different properties. So, what is the reason for carbon's ability to form approximately 1.7 million compounds?
One of the most significant properties of carbon is its ability to form chains very easily by lining carbon atoms up one after another. The shortest carbon chain is made up of two carbon atoms. Despite the unavailability of an exact figure on the number of carbons that make up the longest carbon chain, we can talk about a chain with seventy links. If we consider that the atom that can form the longest chain after the carbon atom is the silicon atom forming six links, the exceptional position of the carbon atom will be better understood.28
The reason for carbon's ability to form chains with so many links is because its chains are not exclusively linear. Chains may be branched, as they may also form polygons.
At this point, the form of the chain plays a very important role. In two carbon compounds, for example, if the carbon atoms are the same in number yet combined in different forms of chains, two different substances are formed. The abovementioned characteristics of the carbon atom produce molecules that are critical for life.
Some carbon compounds' molecules consist of just a few atoms; others contain thousands or even millions. Also, no other element is as versatile as carbon in forming molecules with such durability and stability. To quote David Burnie in his book Life:
THREE SIMILAR MOLECULES RESULT: THREE VERY DIFFERENT SUBSTANCES
Even a difference in a few atoms between molecules leads to very different results. For instance, look carefully at the two molecules written below. They both seem very similar except for very small differences in their carbon and hydrogen components. The result is two totally opposite substances:
C18H24O2 and C19H28O2
Can you guess what these molecules are? Let us tell you immediately: the first is oestrogen, the other is testosterone. That is, the former is the hormone responsible for female characteristics and the latter is the hormone responsible for male characteristics. Most interestingly, even a difference of a few atoms can cause sexual differences. Now take a look at the formula below.
C6H12O2
Doesn't this molecule look very much alike the oestrogen and testosterone hormone molecules? So, what is this molecule, is it another hormone? Let us answer right away: this is the sugar molecule. From the examples of these three molecules made up of elements of the same type, it is very clear how diverse the substances are that the difference in the number of atoms may produce. On the one hand, there are the hormones responsible for sexual characteristics, while on the other hand, there is sugar, a basic food.

Carbon is a very unusual element. Without the presence of carbon and its unusual properties, it is unlikely that there would be life on Earth.29
Concerning the importance of carbon for living beings, the British chemist Nevil Sidgwick writes in Chemical Elements and Their Compounds:
Carbon is unique among the elements in the number and variety of the compounds which it can form. Over a quarter of a million have already been isolated and described, but this gives a very imperfect idea of its powers, since it is the basis of all forms of living matter. 30
The class of compounds formed exclusively from carbon and hydrogen are called "hydrocarbons". This is a huge family of compounds that include natural gas, liquid petroleum, kerosene, and lubricating oils. The hydrocarbons ethylene and propylene form the basis of the petrochemical industry. Hydrocarbons like benzene, toluene, and turpentine are familiar to anyone who's worked with paints. The naphthalene that protects our clothes from moths is another hydrocarbon. Hydrocarbons combined with chlorine or fluorine form anaesthetics, the chemicals used in fire extinguishers and the Freons used in refrigeration.
As the chemist Sidgwick stated above, the human mind is insufficient to fully understand the potential of this atom that has only six protons, six neutrons and six electrons. It is impossible for even a single property of this atom, which is vital for life, to form by chance. The carbon atom, like everything else, has been created by Allah perfectly adapted for the bodies of living beings, which Allah encompasses down to their very atoms.
What is in the heavens and in the earth belongs to Allah. Allah encompasses all things. (Surat an-Nisa': 126)



Intermolecular Bonds: Weak Bonds
The bonds combining the atoms in molecules are much stronger than these weak intermolecular bonds. These bonds can help the formation of millions, and even billions of kinds of molecules.
Well, how do molecules combine to form matter?
Since molecules become stable after their formation, they no longer swap atoms.
So, what holds them together?
In an effort to answer this question, chemists produced different theories. Research showed that molecules are able to combine in different ways depending on the properties of the atoms in their composition.
These bonds are very important for organic chemistry, which is the chemistry of living beings, because the most important molecules constituting life are formed due to their ability to form these bonds. Let us take the example of proteins. The complex three-dimensional shapes of proteins, which are the building blocks of living things, are formed thanks to these bonds. This means that the weak chemical bond between molecules is at least as necessary as the strong chemical bond between atoms for the formation of life. Certainly, the strength of these bonds must be of a certain measure.
We can continue with the protein example. Molecules called amino acids combine to form proteins, which are much larger molecules. The atoms forming amino acids are combined by covalent bonds. Weak bonds combine these amino acids in such a way as to produce three-dimensional patterns. Proteins can function in living organisms only if they have these three dimensional patterns. Therefore, if these bonds did not exist, neither would the proteins or therefore, life exist.
The "hydrogen" bond, a type of weak bond, plays a major role in the formation of materials that bear great importance in our lives. For instance, the molecules forming water, which is the basis of life, are combined by hydrogen bonds.

THE STRUCTURE OF THE ATOM

The Structure Of The Atom


Air, water, mountains, animals, plants, your body, the chair on which you sit, in short, everything you see, touch, and feel, from the heaviest to the lightest is formed of atoms. Each page of the book you hold in your hand comprises billions of atoms. Atoms are particles so minute that it is impossible to view one even with the most powerful microscopes. The diameter of an atom is only of the order of one millionth of a millimetre.
It is not possible for a human being to visualize this size. Therefore, let us try to explain it with an example:
Think that you have a key in your hand. No doubt, it is impossible for you to see the atoms in this key. If you say you must see the atoms, then you have to magnify the key in your hand to the proportions of the world. Once the key in your hand becomes as large as the earth, then each atom inside the key is the size of a cherry.13
Let us give another example to comprehend this minuteness and how everywhere and everything is full of atoms:
Let us suppose that we want to count all the atoms in a single grain of salt and let us assume that we are able to count one billion (1,000,000,000) atoms per second. Despite our considerable deftness, we would need over five hundred years to count the number of atoms inside this tiny grain of salt.14
What, then, is there inside such a small structure?
Despite its exceedingly small size, there is a flawless, unique and complex system inside the atom comparable in sophistication to the system we see in the universe at large.
Each atom is made up of a nucleus and a number of electrons moving in orbital shells at great distances from the nucleus. Inside the nucleus are other particles called protons and neutrons.
In this chapter, we will look at the extraordinary structure of the atom that constitutes the basis of everything animate and inanimate, and see how the atoms combine to form molecules and ultimately, matter.

The Power Hidden In the Nucleus

The nucleus is located right at the centre of the atom and is made up of a certain number of protons and neutrons depending on the properties of that atom. The radius of the nucleus is about ten thousandth of the radius of the atom. To express that in numbers, the radius of the atom is 10-8 (0.00000001) cm, the radius of the nucleus is 10-12 (0.000000000001) cm. Therefore, the volume of the nucleus is equal to a ten billionth of the volume of the atom.
Since we cannot visualize this vastness (better to say, minuteness), let us take our example of the cherry. Let us look for the nucleus inside the atoms that we had visualised as the size of cherries when the key in your hand was magnified to be the size of the earth. But such a search would be inconclusive because even at that scale, it is absolutely impossible for us to view the nucleus, which is still exceedingly small. If we really want to see it, then we would have to change the scale again. The cherry representing our atom must again expand and become a large ball two hundred metres in diameter. Even at this unbelievable scale, the nucleus of our atom would not become any bigger than a very tiny grain of dust.15
So much so that when we compare the diameter of the nucleus that is 10-13 cm and the diameter of the atom that is 10-8 cm, we come to the following result: if we assume the atom to be a sphere, if we wished to fill this sphere totally with nuclei, then we would need 1015 (1,000,000,000,000,000) nuclei to fill it.16
Yet there is one thing even more surprising than that: although its size is one ten billionth of an atom's size, the nucleus' mass comprises 99.95% of the mass of the atom. How is it that something constitutes almost all of a given mass, while, on the other hand, occupying almost no space?
The reason is that the density comprising the mass of the atom is not distributed evenly throughout the whole atom. That is, almost the entire mass of the atom is accumulated in the nucleus. Say, you have a house of 10 billion square metres and you have to put all the furniture in the house in a room of one square metre. Can you do this? Of course you cannot. Yet, the atomic nucleus is able to do this thanks to a tremendous force unlike any other force in the universe. This force is the "strong nuclear force", one of the four fundamental forces in the universe we mentioned in the previous chapter.
We had noted that this force, the most powerful of the forces in nature, keeps the nucleus of an atom intact and keeps it from fragmenting. All the protons in the nucleus have positive charges and they repel each other because of the electro-magnetic force. However, due to the strong nuclear force, which is 100 times stronger than the repulsive force of the protons, the electro-magnetic force becomes ineffective, and thus the protons are held together.
To sum up, there are two great forces interacting with each other inside an atom so small as to be unseen to us. The nucleus is able to stay together as a whole owing to the precise values of these forces.
When we consider the size of the atom and the number of atoms in the universe, it is impossible to fail to notice that there is tremendous equilibrium and design at work. It is crystal clear that the fundamental forces in the universe have been created in a very special way with great wisdom and power. The only thing those who reject faith resort to is nothing other than claiming that all of these came into being as a result of "coincidences". Probabilistic calculations, however, scientifically put the probability of the equilibriums in the universe being formed "coincidentally" at "0". All these are clear evidence of the existence of Allah and the perfection of His creation.
…My Lord encompasses all things in His knowledge so will you not pay heed? (Surat al-An'am: 80)

The Space In the Atom
As mentioned previously, the greater part of an atom consists of space. This makes everyone think of the same question: why is there such space? Let us think. In simple terms, the atom consists of a nucleus, around which electrons revolve. There is nothing else between the nucleus and the electrons. This microscopic distance "in which nothing exists" is in fact a very large one on the atomic scale. We can exemplify this scale as follows: if a small marble of one centimetre in diameter represents the electron closest to the nucleus, the nucleus would be one kilometre away from this marble.17We can cite the following example to make this magnitude clearer in our mind:
There is a great space lying between the basic particles. If I think of the proton of an oxygen nucleus as the head of a pin lying on the table in front of me, then the electron revolving around it draws a circle passing through Holland, Germany and Spain (The writer of these lines lives in France). Therefore, if all atoms forming my body came together so close as to touch each other, you would not be able to see me any more. You would actually never be able to see me with the naked eye. I would be as small as a tiny dust particle of the size of a several thousandth of a millimetre.18
At this point, we realise that there is a similarity between the largest and the smallest spaces known in the universe. When we turn our eyes to the stars, there again we see a void similar to that in the atoms. There are voids of billions of kilometres both between the stars and between the galaxies. Yet, in both of these voids, an order that is beyond the understanding of human mind prevails.

InsIde the Nucleus: Protons and Neutrons
Until 1932, it was thought that the nucleus only consisted of protons and electrons. It was discovered then that there are not electrons but neutrons in the nucleus besides the protons. (The renowned scientist Chadwick proved in 1932 the existence of neutrons in the nucleus and he was awarded a Noble Prize for his discovery). Mankind was introduced to the real structure of the atom only at such a recent date.
We had mentioned before how small is the nucleus of the atom. The size of a proton that is able to fit in the atomic nucleus is 10-15 metres.
You may think that such a small particle would not have any meaning in one's life. However, these particles that are so small as to be incomprehensible by the human mind form the basis of everything you see around you.

Source of the Diversity In the Universe
There are 109 elements that so far have been identified. The entire universe, our earth, and all animate and inanimate beings are formed by the arrangement of these 109 elements in various combinations. Thus far, we saw that all elements are made up of atoms that are similar to each other, which, in turn are made up of the same particles. So, if all the atoms constituting the elements are made up of the same particles, what then is it that makes the elements different from each other and causes the formation of infinitely diverse matters?
It is the number of protons in the nuclei of the atoms that principally differentiates the elements from each other. There is one proton in the hydrogen atom, the lightest element, 2 protons in the helium atom, the second lightest element, 79 protons in the gold atom, 8 protons in the oxygen atom and 26 protons in the iron atom. What differentiates gold from iron and iron from oxygen is simply the different numbers of protons in their atoms. The air we breathe, our bodies, the plants and animals, planets in space, animate and inanimate, bitter and sweet, solid and liquid, everything… all of these are ultimately made up of protons, neutrons and electrons.

The Borderline of Physical Existence: the Quarks
Until 20 years ago, it was believed that the smallest particles making up the atoms were protons and neutrons. Yet, most recently, it has been discovered that there are much smaller particles in the atom that form the abovementioned particles.
This discovery led to the development of a branch of physics called "Particle Physics" investigating the "sub-particles" within the atom and their particular movements. Research conducted by particle physics revealed that the protons and neutrons making up the atom are actually formed of sub-particles called "quarks".
The dimension of the quarks that form the proton, which is so small as to exceed the capabilities of human imagination, is much more astounding: 10-18 (0.000000000000000001) metres.
The quarks inside a proton can never be pulled apart from each other very much because the "strong nuclear force" that is responsible for keeping the particles inside the nucleus together operates here as well. This force serves as a rubber band between the quarks. As the distance between the quarks increases, so does this force and two quarks cannot become more distant from each other than a quadrillionth of a metre. These rubber bands between the quarks are formed by gluons that possess the strong nuclear force. The quarks and the gluons have a very strong interaction. However, scientists have not yet been able to discover how this interaction takes place.
Research is underway in the field of "Particle Physics" to unravel the world of sub-atomic particles. Yet, despite all the intellect, consciousness and knowledge mankind possesses, we have only recently been able to discover the very basic particles forming everything, including ourselves. Further, the more we delve into these particles, the more detailed the subject becomes, leaving us in the lurch at the limit of the 10-18 m dimension of the quark. So, what lies beyond this limit?
Today, scientists propound various hypotheses on this subject, but as mentioned above, this limit is the furthest point hitherto reached in the material universe. Everything beyond that point can only be expressed as energy, not as matter. The really important point is that man finds, in a location that he has only just been able to discover with all the technological means at his disposal, enormous balances and the laws of physics already running like a clock. Furthermore, this location is inside the atom, which constitutes the building block of all matter in the universe, as well as of human beings.
Man has just started to become aware of the perfect mechanism functioning without fail in the organs and systems in his own body. His discovery of the mechanisms of the cells forming these structures goes back only a few decades. The supreme creation evident in the atoms lying at the basis of cells, the protons and neutrons in the atoms, and the quarks in these particle is so perfect as to stagger everyone, be him believer or not. The basic point to be pondered here is that all of these perfect mechanisms run in an orderly fashion every second throughout man's life, without any intervention by him, and totally outside his control. It is very self-evident fact to everyone who uses his conscience and wisdom that all of these have been created by Allah, Owner of superior power and knowledge, and are governed by Him.
Everyone in the heavens and earth requests His aid. Every day He is engaged in some affair. So which of your Lord's blessings do you then deny? (Surat ar-Rahman: 29-30)

The Other Aspect of the Atoms: Electrons
Electrons are particles spinning and revolving around the nucleus of the atom similar to the earth rotating on its own axis as it also revolves around the sun. This rotation, like that of the planets, is realised ceaselessly and in perfect order on paths we call orbits. Yet, the proportion of the size of the earth and the sun is very different from the atomic scale. To make a comparison between the size of electrons and the size of the earth, if we enlarge an atom as big as the earth, the electron would be in the size of an apple.19
Tens of electrons revolving in an area so small as to be invisible even to the most powerful microscopes create a very complex traffic inside the atom. The most remarkable point here is that these electrons surrounding the nucleus like an armour of electrical charge do not have even a small accident. In fact, any small accident inside the atom would cause a disaster for the atom. However, such an accident never takes place. The whole operation runs flawlessly. The electrons revolving around the nucleus at the mind-boggling speed of 1,000 km/second never collide with each other. It is extremely amazing that these electrons, which are no different from each other, follow separate orbits, and it is obviously the result of a "conscious creation". If they had different masses and velocities, it might be natural for them to settle in different orbits around the nucleus. For instance, the order of the planets in our solar system follows this logic. Planets that have totally different masses and velocities are naturally settled in different orbits around the sun. But the case with the electrons in the atom is totally different from that of these planets. The electrons are exactly alike but have different orbits around the nucleus: how do they follow these paths unerringly, how do they not collide though they have incredibly small dimensions and move at incredible speeds? These questions lead us to a single point: the only truth we face in this unique order and delicate equilibrium is the perfect creation of Allah.
He is Allah - the Creator, the Maker, the Giver of Form. To Him belong the Most Beautiful Names. Everything in the heavens and earth glorifies Him. He is the Almighty, the All-Wise. (Surat al-Hashr: 24)
Electrons are small particles, almost two thousandth the size of neutrons and protons. An atom has the same number of electrons as protons and each electron bears a negative (-) charge equal to the positive (+) charge borne by each proton. The total positive (+) charge in the nucleus and the total negative (-) charge of the electrons cancel each other and the atom becomes neutral.
The electric charge they carry obliges electrons to obey certain laws of physics. One of these laws of physics is that "same electrical charges repel each other and opposite charges attract each other".
First, under normal circumstances, the electrons, all negatively charged, would be expected to repel each other by obeying this rule and shoot away from the nucleus. Yet, this does not happen. If the electrons were scattered from the nucleus, then the universe would consist of idle protons, neutrons and electrons wandering in the void. Second, the positively charged nucleus would be expected to attract the negative charged electrons and the electrons would stick to the nucleus. In that case, the nucleus would attract all the electrons and the atom would implode.
However, none of these things occur. The abovementioned extraordinary escape velocities of the electrons (1,000 km/sec), the repelling force they exert on each other and the force of attraction the nucleus exerts on the electrons are based on such precise values that these three contradicting factors perfectly balance each other. As a result, this outstanding system inside the atom runs without falling apart. Even if a single one of these forces impinging on the atom were a little bit more or less than it has to be, the atom would never exist.
In addition to these factors, if the nuclear forces binding protons and neutrons in the nucleus to each other did not exist, protons having equal charges could not even come close to each other, much less bond together in a nucleus. In the same manner, the neutrons would never be able to stick to the nucleus. As a result, there would be no nucleus and therefore, no atom.
All these fine calculations are indications that even a single atom is not idle but acts under the perfect control of Allah. Otherwise, it would be inevitable that the universe we live in would end before it started. This process would backfire at the outset and the universe would not form. However, Allah, the Creator of everything, the Omnipotent and the Almighty, established extremely precise equilibriums inside the atom just as He established all the balances in the universe, thanks to which the atom continues to exist in perfect order.
Scientists have spent their best efforts over the years to unravel the secret of this balance established by Allah, and have ended up with merely appointing certain names to observed phenomena such as "the electromagnetic force", "the strong nuclear force", "the weak nuclear force", and "the mass attraction force"… Yet, as mentioned in the introductory part of the book, no one has given a thought to the question "Why?" Why do these forces act at certain intensities under certain rules? Why do the domains that are governed by these forces, the rules they obey, and the intensity of these forces have such great harmony?
Scientists were desperate in the face of all these questions because all they can do is guess at the order in which the events take place. Their research, however, gave rise to an indisputable reality. Every point in the universe reveals the intervention of an Owner of intellect and will Who does not leave even a single atom idle. There is a single power that holds all forces together in harmony, and that is Allah, Who holds all the power and might. Allah manifests His might wherever He wills whenever He wills. The entire universe from the smallest atom to the endless galaxies is able to continue its existence only by Allah's will and preservation.
In the Qur'an, Allah states that there is no power but Him and He announces the punishment of those who, unaware of this, assume that the powerless beings (animate or inanimate) He created have power and strength independently of Him, and attribute divine characteristics to them.
Oh, that those who do evil had but known, (on the day) when they see the punishment, that power belongs wholly to Allah, and that Allah is severe in punishment! (Surat al-Baqara: 165)
So far no scientist has yet been able to explain the cause and source of the forces in the atom and therefore in the universe, and why certain forces come into play on certain occasions. What science does is only to make observations, take measurements and designate "names" for them.
Such "namings" are regarded as great discoveries in the world of science. In fact, what scientists do is not an attempt to form a new equilibrium in the universe or build a new system but just an effort to comprehend and unravel the secret of the evident equilibrium in the cosmos. What they mostly do is simply observe one of the countless wonders of Allah's creation in the universe and assigning a name to it. Scientists detecting a superior system or structure created by Allah are awarded various scientific prizes, honoured and admired by other people. In this case, the one who really should be honoured is, without doubt, Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, Who brought that system into being when it was not, furnished it with exceedingly delicate balances, and endlessly creates extraordinary miracles the like of them.
In the alternation of night and day and what Allah has created in the heavens and the earth there are Signs for people who fear Him. (Surah Yunus: 6)
ACCELERATED PARTICLESAccelerators and Colliders
Studying the particles that are the building blocks of matter is possible by investigating particles that are millions of times smaller than the atom. Research on these extremely minute particles may only be carried out using very enormous and complex particle physics experimental apparatuses. Such highly complex experiments can only be controlled with extensive use of computers. High-energy particle physics is a field of science that studies the building blocks of matter and the interactions between them. Recent experiments carried out by the help of new high technology allow us to rapidly expand our knowledge on the composition of matter. Research on particle physics is conducted in particle accelerator laboratories kilometres in diameter. In particle accelerators, charged particles – mostly protons and electrons – are accelerated to great velocities in an electromagnetic field and directed into a cloud chamber. The accelerated particles are then made to collide with either fixed targets or with each other. The particles shattered as a result of these collisions are examined by various detector systems. The accelerator and detector technologies, whose sophistication increasingly progressed from the 1950's on, made very high-energy collisions possible. The study of these collisions by advanced detector systems gave way to the discovery that protons and neutrons, known as the basis of matter, have a sub-structure composed of particles called quarks. Measurements made at high energy levels gave scientists the opportunity to study the composition of matter at distances as small as one hundredth of the radius of the proton. Accelerator laboratories are found only in a few centres in the world as their foundation and operation are very costly. The most important ones are CERN (Geneva), DESY (Hamburg), Fermilab-FNAL (Chicago) and SLC (California). High-energy physicists participate in experimental studies in these centres in large groups and study the secrets of the atom. Among these laboratories, the SLC is 3 km in diameter and CERN 27 km. However, the champion in the competition for size is the US project SSC which is being constructed in the centre of Texas in the USA, with a perimeter diameter of about 85 kilometres. The cost of the machinery increases in direct proportion to size (For SSC, this figure will be approximately 6 billion dollars).20


Orbits of Electrons
Tens of electrons, which spin and orbit in an area unobservable even by the most powerful microscopes, create an extremely complex traffic inside the atom as we mentioned earlier. This traffic, however, is so orderly as to be incomparably more orderly than the most systematic city traffic. Electrons never collide with each other, because each electron has a separate orbit and these orbits never coincide.
There are 7 electron shells around the nucleus of the atom. The numbers of electrons in these seven electron shells that never change have been specified by a mathematical formula: 2n2. The maximum numbers of electrons that can be present in each electron shell around the atom have been fixed by this formula. (The letter n in the formula shows the electron shell number).

That the endless number of electron shells of atoms making up the universe precisely stick to the same number by obeying the 2n2 formula indicates order. That no chaos occurs inside the atom although the electrons move about at incredible speeds is a further indication of this unique order. This is an order that can by no means be attributed to coincidence. The only explanation for the existence of this order is that Allah created everything as a manifestation of His power in an order and harmony as told in the Qur'an. Allah refers to this order He created in the verses of the Qur'an:
...Allah has appointed a measure for all things. (Surat at-Talaq: 3)
…He created everything and determined it most exactly. (Surat al-Furqan: 2)
Everything has its measure with Him, the Knower of the Unseen and the Visible, the Most Great, the High-Exalted. (Surat ar-R'ad: 8-9)
As for the earth, We stretched it out and cast firmly embedded mountains in it and made everything grow in due proportion on it. (Surat al-Hijr: 19)
The sun and the moon both run with precision. (Surat ar-Rahman: 5)
He erected heaven and established the balance. (Surat ar-Rahman: 7)
As the verses reveal, Allah, the Lord of all the worlds, is He Who creates everything in perfect proportion, measure and order. This proportion and measure cover the entire realm of beings from the smallest sub-atomic particle to the gigantic celestial bodies in space: solar systems, galaxies and everything between them. This is the outcome of the endless and infinite might, knowledge, artistry and wisdom of Allah. Allah introduces His attributes to human beings in the perfect measure, order, and equilibrium in the beings and systems He creates. He displays His endless power before our very eyes. This is the truth to which all scientific research and calculations must lead man.

Wave or Particle?
When electrons were first discovered, they were thought to be particles like the protons and neutrons found in the nucleus. In the experiments that followed, however, it was discovered that they display wave characteristics like light particles, that is, photons. Subsequently, quantum physicists came to the conclusion that every particle is simultaneously a wave form with its own distinct frequency.
SIGNS FROM THE QUR'AN
When studying the subject of electron shells, one must also think over a verse pointing to this subject in the Qur'an. There are 7 electron shells around the nucleus of the atom. On each shell are electrons in fixed numbers. Could it be that the expression "the seven heavens" used in the Qur'an to describe the layers forming the heavens, may also be pointing to the orbits electron shells that are as if the heavens of the atom?He Who created the seven heavens in layers. You will not find any flaw in the creation of the All-Merciful. Look again – do you see any gaps? (Surat al-Mulk: 3)This figure never changes. It never becomes 6 or 8. Here, the really miraculous thing is that this figure of seven electron shells is in total harmony with the verse.
It is known that light is spread in a way similar to the ripples created on the surface of water when a stone is throne into a lake. However, light sometimes bears the characteristic of a particle of matter and is observed in the form of sporadic, intermittent pulses like rain drops falling on a window-pane. This same dichotomy was experienced in the electron as well, which led to great confusion in the world of science. The following words of Richard P. Feynman, the renowned Professor of Theoretical Physics, was to lay the whole confusion to rest:
Now we know how the electrons and light behave. But what can I call it? If I say they behave like particles I give the wrong impression; also if I say they behave like waves. They behave in their own inimitable way, which technically could be called a quantum mechanical way. They behave in a way that is like nothing that you have ever seen before… An atom does not behave like a weight hanging on a spring and oscillating. Nor does it behave like a miniature representation of the solar system with little planets going around in orbits. Nor does it appear to be somewhat like a cloud or fog of some sort surrounding the nucleus. It behaves like nothing you have ever seen before. There is one simplification at least. Electrons behave in this respect in exactly the same way as photons; they are both screwy, but in exactly the same way. How they behave, therefore, takes a great deal of imagination to appreciate, because we are going to describe something that is different from anything you know about.21
Because scientists were never able to explain the behaviour of electrons, as a solution they gave a new name to it: "Quantum Mechanical Motion". Let us again quote from Professor Feynman who in the following words states the exceptional nature of that and the awe he feels:
Do not keep saying to yourself, if you can possibly avoid it, 'But how can it be like that?' because you will get 'down the drain', into a blind alley from which nobody has yet escaped. Nobody knows how it can be like that.22
Yet, the blind alley Feynman refers to here is actually not so. The reason why some people can never figure a way out of this dilemma is that despite substantial evidence, they cannot accept that these incredible systems and equilibriums have been brought into existence by the sublime Creator. The situation is extremely clear: Allah created the universe when it was not, furnished it with extraordinary balances and brought it into being without any preceding example. The answer to the scientists' question "How can it be like that?" that can never be solved, nor understood, lies in the fact that Allah is the Creator of everything and that everything exists only by His command "Be!"
To Him is due the primal origin of the heavens and the earth. When He decides on something, He just says to it, 'Be!' and it is. (Surat al-Baqarah: 117)

The World Full of Colour Whose Gates are Opened by Electrons
Have you ever thought what it would be like to live in a world without colour? Try to visualise your body, the people around you, the seas, the sky, trees, flowers, in short, everything in black. You would never want to live in such a world, would you?
What makes the earth colourful? How do the colours, which make our world so extraordinarily beautiful, come into being?
Certain characteristics present in the nature of matter allow us perceive objects in colour. Colours are formed as a natural result of certain motions of the electrons inside the atom. You may think "What do the motions of electrons have to do with colours?" Let's briefly explain this relationship:
Electrons revolve only in electron shells. We just mentioned that there are 7 electron shells. Each electron shell has a specific level of energy, which varies depending on the distance of the shell from the nucleus. The closer an electron shell is to the nucleus, the less energy its electrons have, and the farther it is to the nucleus, the more energy its electrons have.
Each electron shell has "sub-shells", among which the electrons of that shell continuously move.
An electron needs to receive external energy to be able to travel outwards between the shells. The source of this energy is the "photon".
In its simplest terms, the photon is a "light particle". Every star in the universe is a source of photons. The most important source of photons for our world is, of course, the sun. Photons are diffused throughout space from the sun at a speed of 300,000 km a second.
When these photons, arriving on earth from the sun, strike the atoms of objects on earth, the electrons of atoms sometimes begin their travel. If the electrons that are able to travel by the help of this energy rise to a higher energy shell and then return to their own shell, they emit a photon that is to form the colour that will meet our eye. Each one of these processes summarized in the few sentences above has been continuing since the outset of creation without fail. Every step runs under a great plan and to order. If only one part of this interaction between electrons and photons had not worked, this would cause a colourless, dark universe.
Let us again list these steps that have to work according to plan and in order for the formation of a universe with colours instead of a dark one.
· Light coming from the sun to the earth diffuses in the form of photon particles. These photon particles scattered around the earth strike atoms of matters.
· Photons cannot travel a long way inside the atoms. They strike the electrons circling the nucleus.
· Electrons absorb these photons that strike them.
· When the electrons take in the energy of the photons they absorb, they jump to another shell having a higher level of energy.
· These electrons try to return to their original states.
· As they return to their own shells, they emit an energy charged photon.
· These photons emitted by the electrons determine the colour of that object.
To sum up, the colour of an object in fact consists of a mixture of these light particles that are absorbed, then emitted by this object, and reach our eyes. The colour of an object that does not emit light itself but reflects the light it receives from the sun depends both on the light it receives and the change it makes on this light. If the object illuminated with white light appears "red", this is because it absorbs a large portion of the mixture that arrives to it from the sunrays and emits only red. By saying "it absorbs", we mean the following:
As mentioned before, every shell has sub-shells and electrons travel between these sub-shells. Each shell corresponds to a specific level of energy, and electrons carry as much energy as allowed by the energy level of the shell on which they circle. Shells that are more distant from the nucleus, have higher energy. When a space for one electron becomes available in an upper shell, the electron suddenly disappears, and then re-appears again in that sub-shell with higher energy level. Yet, in order for the electron to perform this, it has to raise its energy level to the level required by the shell to which it jumps. The electron increases its energy level by absorbing (swallowing) photon particles coming from the sun.
We can make the situation clearer with a few examples. Let us consider the Morpho Butterfly. The pigments on the butterfly absorb the entire sunlight re-emitting only the colour blue. When the light particles for that reflected colour reach the retina in the eye, they are converted to electrical signals by the cone cells in the retina in such a way to be perceived as blue and sent to the brain. Eventually, the colour blue is formed in the brain.
This means that the colour of an object depends on the character of the light emitted from the light source and how much of this light is re-emitted by the object in question. For instance, the colour of a dress is not the same under sunlight and in a store. If an object is perceived as black by our brain, it means that this object absorbs all the light coming from the sun reflecting none to the outside. In the same manner, if the object reflects all light coming from the sun and does not absorb any of it, then it is perceived as white by our brain. In this case, the points that need careful consideration are the following:
1. The colour of an object depends on the properties of the light emitted by the light source.
2. The colour of an object depends on the reaction of the electrons of the molecules in its structure, as to which light these electrons will absorb and which they will not.
3. The colour of an object depends on how our brain will perceive the photon striking the retina.
Here, let us stop and think once more.
The electrons that revolve at incredible speed around the nucleus of the atom, which is a matter too small to be seen with the eye, suddenly disappear from their own shells and jump to another place called a sub-shell. There also needs to be a space available on the sub-shell for this leap. They are supplied the energy they require during the process by absorbing photons. They then go back to their original orbits. During this action, colours perceivable by the human eye are formed. What's more, atoms in number expressible in trillions keep doing this every moment, thanks to which we are able to view an uninterrupted "image".
This magnificent mechanism is not comparable to the operation of any man-made machine. A clock, for instance, has a highly complex mechanism in itself, and all the parts of a clock (gears, discs, screws, nuts, etc.) must be located in the right places in the right way for a clock to work properly. The smallest problem in this mechanism would impede the mechanism of the clock. Yet, when we think of the structure of an atom and how the abovementioned mechanism of the electrons works, the simplicity of the structure of a clock is better understood. As we said, the mechanism of the electrons is too complex, perfect and flawless to be compared to any man-made system. Definitely, a system that has such mind-boggling complexity and runs so perfectly could not have come about spontaneously, as a result of coincidence, as claimed by materialist scientists. Let us now ask the following question: if you saw a working clock on the ground while walking in a desert, would you think that this had formed out of dust, sand, soil and stones by chance? Nobody would think that, because the design and wisdom in the clock are all too obvious. However the design and wisdom in a single atom are, as we mentioned above, incomparably superior to those in any man-made mechanism. The owner of this wisdom is Allah, Who has supreme knowledge, Who knows, sees and creates everything.
Allah created every 'where' both that which we are able to see and that which we cannot, with boundless artistry and He gave innumerable favours to be at our service, whether we are aware of them or not. The subject of colours about which we previously knew nothing, and felt no need to learn, has been brought to our attention in all its details and complexity as science advanced. It is undeniable that scientific development and progress ought to cause everyone who uses his wisdom and conscience to believe in the existence of Allah. Nonetheless, people still exist who ignore the superior artistry and wisdom observable at every point in the universe. The acclaimed scientist, Louis Pasteur made an interesting remark on this subject saying "Little science takes you away from God but more of it takes you to Him".23
As a person learns more about the examples of creation surrounding him, he grasps much better that Allah encompasses him from every direction, He directs all affairs in heaven and earth, and holds everything under control. He understands that his life will certainly be taken and he will be answerable for everything he has done on earth. As a believer becomes more acquainted with the innumerable phenomena taking place around him, his admiration for Allah's knowledge increasingly grows. This admiration is a very important step on the way to perceiving the infinite power and might of Allah as much as possible and fearing Him as required. This is stated in the Qur'an:
Do you not see that Allah sends down water from the sky and by it We bring forth fruits of varying colours? And in the mountains there are streaks of white and red, of varying shades, and rocks of deep jet black. And mankind and beasts and livestock are likewise of varying colours. Only those of His slaves with knowledge have fear of Allah. Allah is Almighty, Ever-Forgiving. (Surah Fatir: 27-28)