Page 58 - Miracles of The Qur'an Vol. 3

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The metaphor
of His Light is that of a niche in which is a lamp, the lamp
inside a glass, the glass like a brilliant star, lit from a blessed
tree, an olive, neither of the east nor of the west, its oil all but
giving off light even if no fire touches it. Light upon Light.
Allah guides to His Light whoever He wills and Allah makes
metaphors for mankind and Allah has knowledge of all things.
(Surah an-Nur, 35)

Quasar is the name given to the extremely dense and bright bodies
that look like stars and emit radio waves in space. Quasars are acknowl-
edged as the brightest celestial bodies in the universe. The brightness of
the brightest quasars in the universe is more than two trillion times
greater than that of the Sun (2x10 ) – this is approximately 100 times
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greater than the total light emitted by a galaxy such as the Milky Way. 36
The word "noor" (nur) in the verse means "light, brightness, day-

light, shining, illumination." The light referred to in the verse is sugges-
tive, in terms of its brightness, of these celestial bodies known as quasars.
Here, the visibility of quasar light and the source of that light seems to be
the reason for this intricate description. (Allah knows the truth.)
The word "duriyyun" meaning "bright" in the expression "kaannaha
kawkabun durriyyun" in the verse, itself meaning "like a bril-

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