QUR’ANIC PICTURES OF THE UNIVERSE

Qur’anic Pictures of the Universe is an extraordinary journey through five basic aspects or ‘pictures’ – each treated in a separate chapter – of the Qur’anic depiction of the universe that is based on the relevant Qur’anic verses. The first two aspects, namely astronomical and architectural pictures, deal mainly with the material and structural dimension of the universe. The next two aspects, namely the universe as a divine kingdom and as the totality consisting of gradations of the one divine light, deal with the subtle and purely spiritual aspects of the universe. Finally, the book discusses how, according to the Qur’an, the human being is viewed as the microcosm of the universe. Already one of the leading authorities on Islamic science, Bakar has brought to bear his extensive knowledge of Qur’anic exegesis as well as traditional Islamic philosophy and metaphysics to produce the most thorough, coherent, and highly original presentation of the Qur’anic view of the universe to appear in the last few centuries. He masterfully expounds the implications of the various terms in the Qur’an in light of their usage elsewhere in the Qur’an, traditional exegesis, and linguistic, cosmological and ontological connotations, to settle with the most coherent meanings for the given context....