|
 |
THE RELATIVITY
OF TIME AND Relativity in the Qur’an The conclusion to which we are led by the findings of modern science is that time is not an absolute fact as supposed by materialists, but only a relative perception. What is more interesting is that this fact, undiscovered until the 20th century by science, was imparted to mankind in the Qur'an 14 centuries ago. There are various references in the Qur'an to the relativity of time. It is possible to see the scientifically-proven fact that time is a psychological perception dependent on events, setting, and conditions in many verses of the Qur'an. For instance, the entire life of a person is a very short time as we are informed by the Qur'an;
In some verses, it is indicated that people perceive time differently and that sometimes people can perceive a very short period of time as a very lengthy one. The following conversation of people held during their judgement in the Hereafter is a good example of this:
In some other verses it is stated that time may flow at different paces in different settings:
These verses are all manifest expressions of the relativity of time. The fact that this result only recently understood by science in the 20th century was communicated to man 1,400 years ago by the Qur'an is an indication of the revelation of the Qur'an by God, Who encompasses the whole time and space. The narration in many other verses of the Qur'an reveals that time is a perception. This is particularly evident in the stories. For instance, God has kept the Companions of the Cave, a believing group mentioned in the Qur'an, in a deep sleep for more than three centuries. When they were awoken, these people thought that they had stayed in that state but a little while, and could not figure out how long they slept:
The situation told in the below verse is also evidence that time is in truth a psychological perception.
The above verse clearly emphasises that God Who created time is unbound by it. Man, on the other hand, is bound by time that is ordained by God. As in the verse, man is even incapable of knowing how long he stayed in his sleep. In such a state, to assert that time is absolute (just like the materialists do in their distorted mentality), would be very unreasonable. Destiny This relativity of time clears up a very important matter. The relativity is so variable that a period of time appearing billions of years' duration to us, may last only a second in another dimension. Moreover, an enormous period of time extending from the world's beginning to its end may not even last a second but just an instant in another dimension. This is the very essence of the concept of destiny- a concept that is not well understood by most people, especially materialists, who deny it completely. Destiny is God's perfect knowledge of all events past or future. A majority of people question how God can already know events that have not yet been experienced and this leads them to fail in understanding the authenticity of destiny. However, "events not yet experienced" are not yet experienced only for us. God is not bound by time or space for He Himself has created them. For this reason, the past, the future, and the present are all the same to God; for Him, everything has already taken place and finished. Lincoln Barnett explains how the Theory of General Relativity leads to this fact in The Universe and Dr. Einstein: According to Barnett, the universe can be "encompassed in its entire majesty only by a cosmic intellect".220 The will that Barnett calls "the cosmic intellect" is the wisdom and knowledge of God, Who prevails over the entire universe. Just as we easily see a ruler's beginning, middle, and end, and all the units in between as a whole, God knows the time we are subjected to like a single moment right from its beginning to the end. People experience incidents only when their time comes and they witness the fate God has created for them. It is also important to draw attention to the shallowness of the distorted understanding of destiny prevalent in society. This distorted conviction of fate holds a superstitious belief that God has determined a "destiny" for every man but that these destinies can sometimes be changed by people. For instance, for a patient who returns from death's door people make superficial statements like "He defeated his destiny". Yet, no one is able to change his destiny. The person who turns from death's door does not die because he is destined not to die then. It is again the destiny of those people who deceive themselves by saying "I defeated my destiny" to say so and maintain such a mindset. Destiny is the eternal knowledge of God and for God, Who knows time like a single moment and Who prevails over the whole time and space, everything is determined and finished in a destiny. We also understand from what is related in the Qur'an that time is one for God: some incidents that appear to happen to us in the future are related in the Qur'an in such a way that they already took place long before. For instance, the verses that describe the account that people are to give to God in the hereafter are related as events which already occurred long ago:
Some other verses on this subject are:
As may be seen, occurrences that are going to take place after our death (from our point of view) are related as already experienced and past events in the Qur'an. God is not bound by the relative time frame that we are confined in. God has willed these things in timelessness: people have already performed them and all these events have been lived through and ended. It is imparted in the verse below that every event, be it big or small, is within the knowledge of God and recorded in a book:
The issues discussed in this chapter, namely the truth underlying matter, timelessness, and spacelessness, are indeed extremely clear. As expressed before, these are absolutely not any sort of a philosophy or a way of thought, but crystal-clear truths impossible to deny. In addition to its being a technical reality, the rational and logical evidence also admits no other alternatives on this issue: the universe is an illusory entirety with all the matter composing it and all the people living on it. It is a collection of perceptions. Materialists have a hard time in understanding this issue. For instance, if we return to Politzer's bus example: although Politzer technically knew that he could not step out of his perceptions he could only admit it for certain cases. That is, for Politzer, events take place in the brain until the bus crash, but as soon as the bus crash takes place, things go out of the brain and gain a physical reality. The logical defect at this point is very clear: Politzer has made the same mistake as the materialist philosopher Johnson who said "I hit the stone, my foot hurts, therefore it exists" and could not understand that the shock felt after bus impact was in fact a mere perception as well. The subliminal reason why materialists cannot comprehend this subject is their fearing the fact they will face when they comprehend it. Lincoln Barnett informs us that this subject was "discerned" by some scientists: Along with philosophers' reduction of all objective reality to a shadow-world of perceptions, scientists have become aware of the alarming limitations of man's senses.221 Any reference made to the fact that matter and time is a perception arouses great fear in a materialist, because these are the only notions he relies on as absolute beings. He, in a sense, takes these as idols to worship; because he thinks that he is created by matter and time (through evolution).
From then on, this materialist tries to convince himself of the reality of matter, and makes up "evidence" for this end; hits his fist on the wall, kicks stones, shouts, yells, but can never escape from the reality. Just as they want to dismiss this reality from their minds, they also want other people to discard it. They are also aware that if the true nature of matter is known by people in general, the primitiveness of their own philosophy and the ignorance of their worldview will be bared for all to see, and there will be no ground left on which they can rationalise their views. These fears are the reason why they are so disturbed of the fact related here. God states that the fears of the unbelievers will be intensified in the hereafter. On Judgement Day, they will be addressed thus:
While the fact that matter and time is a perception alarms materialists, just the opposite holds true for true believers. People of faith become very glad when they have perceived the secret behind matter because this reality is the key to all questions. With this key, all secrets are unlocked. One comes to easily understand many issues that he previously had difficulty in understanding. As said before, the questions of death, paradise, hell, the hereafter, changing dimensions, and important questions such as "Where is God?", "What was before God?", "Who created God?", "How long will the life in cemetery last?", "Where are heaven and hell?", and "Where do heaven and hell currently exist?" will be easily answered. It will be understood with what kind of a system God created the entire universe from nothingness. So much so that, with this secret, the questions of "when", and "where" become meaningless because there will be no time and no place left. When spacelessness is comprehended, it will be understood that hell, heaven and earth are all actually in the same place. If timelessness is understood, it will be understood that everything takes place at a single moment: nothing is waited for and time does not go by, because everything has already happened and finished.
To comprehend this secret is the greatest gain in the world. With this secret, another very important reality mentioned in the Qur'an is unveiled: the fact that "God is nearer to man than his jugular vein" (Surah Qaf, 16). As everybody knows, the jugular vein is inside the body. What could be nearer to a person than his inside? This situation can be easily explained by the reality of spacelessness. This verse can also be much better comprehended by understanding this secret. This is the plain truth. It should be well established that there is no other helper and provider for man than God. There is nothing but God; He is the only absolute being Whom one can seek refuge in, appeal for help, and count on for reward. Whereever we turn, there is the countenance of God.
220
Lincoln Barnett, The Universe and Dr.Einstein, William Sloane Associate,
New York, 1948, p.84 |
