Page 61 - Allah is Known through Reason

face with abundant leaves, the more will they be able to make use of sun-
light, these water lilies make ample use of daylight to perform photosyn-
thesis. They 'know' that otherwise they will not be able to survive at the
bottom of the river due to the scarcity of light. It is certainly quite inspir-
ing for a plant to employ such an 'intelligent' tactic.
However, sunlight alone does not suffice for the Amazon water lilies.
They also need oxygen equally, yet it is obvious that this oxygen does not
exist in the muddy ground in which their roots are located. This is why
water lilies stretch out stems developing from their roots upwards towards
the water surface where their leaves float. Sometimes these stems grow as
tall as 11 metres; they are tied to the leaves and function as oxygen-carri-
ers between the leaves and the root. 21
How can a bud in its initial stages in life in the depths of a river know
that it needs oxygen and sunlight to survive, that it would not be able to
live in their absence, and that everything it needs is present on the water
surface? A being recently introduced to life is aware neither of the fact that
this water has an ending point, nor of the existence of the sun or oxygen.
Therefore, if the whole event is assessed from the standpoint of evo-
lutionists, these plants should long before have been defeated by environ-
mental conditions and become extinct. Nevertheless, water lilies are still
present today in all their perfection.
The unbelievable life struggle of water lilies continues well after they
reach light and oxygen on the water surface, where they curl the brims of

The Signs in the Heavens and on the Earth 61