Page 89 - Beauties for Life in the Qur'an

DESCRIPTIONS OF PLACES IN THE QUR'AN 87

there is a source of water allows people to have a ready supply
of water to meet their bodily, hygienic, and other needs.
A settled area with a rich supply of water surely provides
many other benefits. History shows that civilizations estab-
lished alongside rivers made extensive use of these benefits.
As the verse maintains, a river whose water flows down a
mountainside or a hill deposits fertile sediments in the river bed
and, at the point where it leaves these sediments, gradually
forms a mineral-rich and nourishing alluvial plane. Such an
area is of great benefit to the quality and productivity of agri-
culture. Rivers facilitate irrigation and contribute to the fertility
and growth of plantations. A copious supply of flowing water
also promotes stockbreeding alongside the river.
Another reason why rivers have been a key element for all civ-
ilizations is that they promote such commercial and social activ-
ities as navigation, transportation, and fishing. For example,
using the Nile river's benefits enabled the Egyptians to attain an
advanced culture and civilization.
Besides these very important social and commercial benefits,
the beautiful sight of a river is surely another blessing for the
human soul. These sources of water, which are pleasing to both
the eye and the ear, provide a beautiful view and make such set-
tled areas quite valuable.
These benefits, of which we have mentioned only a few, are
enough to show that places with an abundant supply of water
are the most suitable places for settlement. Allah also points to
this fact by describing the place in which Maryam and the
Prophet 'Isa (as) lived.