יהודי, נוצרי ומוסלמי מדברים על בריאת העולם. אומר המוסלמי:

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העיסוק במיתוסים הדתיים על בריאת העולם, ובדרך שבה הם מתאימים, או לא מתאימים לתיאוריות מדעיות שונות, ובמיוחד לגיל היקום ולגיל כדור-הארץ, מעסיקות לא מעט אנשים (אם כי, האמת ניתנת להיאמר, מדובר בשתי דיסציפלינות שיכולות להתקיים זו לצד זו מבלי להתאמת ולהתעמת). מכיוון שהתרגלנו לראות ניסיונות "תיאום" כאלה מצד טוענים יהודיים ונוצריים, אולי כדאי לראות שגם מדענים מוסלמים מוטרדים מאותן שאלות. הנה מאמר שהגיע אלינו ממדען המחשב והמתמטיקאי פרופ' קאמל בן-סאלם מתוניס.
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נקודה מעניינת שכדאי לשים אליה לב: האיזכורים הרבים של תרומותיהם של מתמטיקאים מוסלמים להתפתחות המדע במאות שחלפו.
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A NEW APPROACH TO ESTIMATE THE AGE OF THE EARTH AND THE AGE OF THE UNIVERSE
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by
Kamel BEN SALEM
Professor of Data Analysis, Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Sciences of Tunis – Tunisia.
(E-mail : kamel.bensalem@fst.rnu.tn)

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Forwoed: The confrontation of holy Books with science data has always been a subject of meditation. It is in this context, that many researchers have examined the Bible and the Qur'an in order to see to what extent they are compatible with modern scientific data.
In a previous article, we studied the evolution of the Universe, more precisely that of the Solar System, starting from the Qur'anic text. In the present article, we propose a new approach to estimate accurately the ages of the Earth and the Universe respectively. The choice of these themes was motivated by the fact that the majority of the Qur'anic verses related to modern science deal with Astronomy in particular. It has to be noted that the emphasis on this aspect is justified in the Qur'an itself since it says : "The creation of the heavens and of the Earth is indeed more grandiose than the creation of Man. Yet most men understand not." (Qur'an 40:57).
We must point out that this paper does not aim to find a "concordance" between the Qur'an and Science. It is rather an analysis of an ancient document and the comparison of some of its excerpts with modern knowledge. The interpretation of verses related to the ages of the Earth and of the Universe should not, in any case, be taken as a new "theory" or "proof" paralleling the scientific theories themselves. Rather, the gist of our work is a search of meaning at the level of man and of the religious message. The approach is therefore quite different and takes place in another domain, which may enrich rational knowledge.
Our contribution here is in fact at the level of crossings between religion and science: how can our present knowledge enlighten our understanding of the ancient texts? Conversely, how can a prophetic message, dating back very far in the past, agree or not with our present knowledge?
Rational knowledge cannot guarantee the religious message and vice versa. However, both aspects are an ever-flowing source of questions and interrogations referring back to each other and helping us to find a meaning to our existence.
It should also be made clear that this is not a proposal for an alternative model of the universe, meant to replace those which have been so far patiently put forward by astronomers on the basis of their observations. 1
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Abstract : In a previous article, we proposed estimations for the age of the Universe and for the date of stabilization of its general structure on the basis of a given age of the Earth equal to 4.6 billion years. In the present article, we propose a new approach to estimate more accurately and at the same time, the age of the Earth and that of the Universe, starting from verse 4 of Sura 70 of the Qur'an. The procedure we followed and which is detailed in this article, should in our view, contribute to enlighten the debate on the question. We must add that our approach can in no case be considered as based on “concordism” or conjecture. Indeed, it rests on rigorous mathematical computations.
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1 INTRODUCTION
For millennia, the problem of determining the ages of the Earth and that of the Universe has provoked multiple debates and controversies. Before the Scientific Revolution, the notion of Universe was blurred. In the Middle Ages, there was the Earth which was considered as the center of the universe, and the Sun which revolved around it, while the stars were only an ornament of the sky. The concern was thus limited to the problem of the Earth: was it eternal or did it have a beginning and an end and how old was it? Scholars studied this question at length and various answers were proposed. It must be emphasized that it was only in the last century that, thanks to the remarkable development of telescopes and the launching of satellites, the problem of the age of the Universe was addressed seriously. Estimations were facilitated thanks to the development of Computer science.
Whereas the estimations of the age of the Earth have varied from a few thousand to a few million then to a few billion years, the age of the Universe was estimated according to values which slightly oscillated according to the methods that were applied. In this article, we intend to present a new approach to determine those key-parameters which still preoccupy researchers nowadays.
1.1 Age of the Earth
According to Aristotle, the Earth is eternal. With the revolution induced by Copernicus, Aristotle‟ theses were put aside in favor of the Judeo-Christian theses which put forth the number 5500 before the birth of Christ [11]. The Creationists, followers of Bishop Ussher, will even set the creation date of the world at Sunday, October 23rd of the year 4004 before Jesus Christ at 10 am [11]. 2
It was only at the end of the 18th century that Geology ceased to be a speculative science to become a science of observation and that a physicist such as Lord Kelvin or geologists such as John Turberville Needham or Jean-Louis Giraud Soulavie proposed for the age of the Earth several million years. Following the discovery of radioactivity, geologists worked out more reliable dating methods. In 1905, Lord Rayleigh was the first to assert that the Earth was older than one billion years. This figure continued to increase up until 1953 when Clair Patterson showed that the Earth and the meteorites formed at the same time, starting from an identical reservoir, 4.55 billion years ago. This age was confirmed by other radio-chronological methods and definitely accepted in the 1970s. The graph below (fig.1) shows how the estimation of the age of the Earth has evolved in the course of the last two millennia. In this manner, the first one dating back to the first century after Jesus Christ, was according to Saint Barnaba 6 000 years, and the most recent, of about 4.55 billion years according to radio-metric methods [15].
Fig.1: Variations in the Estimations of the Age of the Earth in the Course of Time
1.2 Age of the Universe
Since the advent of the Christian Era, the Church kept the Occident under a lead weight and blocked all attempts at questioning the creed. Everything was in the Genesis!… Reason was subdued to Faith! Thus, towards the end of the fourth century, Saint Augustine warned against "temptation… the ill of curiosity… which drives towards discovering the secrets of nature…". Two centuries later, it was the monk Cosmas who stood “against those who believe, like the Pagans, that the sky is spherical”. It was through the south of Spain, where the three great religions coexisted fruitfully for several centuries that the light was to come again. This happened thanks to the Arab-Muslim Andalusians who, after having assimilated Greek knowledge, were to spread it again with important contributions on their part. It was thanks to the Qur'anic revelations that the Arabs underwent a change which affected all the aspects of 3
their life. Indeed, those desert-dwellers who were almost all illiterate, were called upon to learn to read as early as the first revealed verse!
– Sura 96, verses 1-5
"Read! In the name of thy Lord, Who created, Who created man from something which clings. Read! Thy Lord is the Most Noble, Who taught by the pen, Who taught man what he did not know. "
These same people who had no means of transportation other than camels, were even invited to conquer space and to exploit terrestrial depths.
– Sura 55, verse 33
"O assembly of Jinns and Humans, if you can pass beyond the zones of the heavens and the earth, then pass beyond (them)! Not without a power shall ye be able to pass!"
(It is the power of science which is referred to here).
It was in this manner that human beings realized anew that they could study and understand the nature of the Universe.
Astronomy developed thanks to the discovery of the Astrolabe by the Arabs. Then, Western scholars brought on their own contributions. Kepler, Galileo and Newton laid out the foundations of Mechanics starting from the motion of planets. Nevertheless, the Universe was confined to the limits of the Solar System.
Cosmology which studies the Universe as a whole, truly acquired its status as a Science only about a century ago, and has since then been constantly evolving. Indeed, up until the beginning of the 20th Century, Cosmology could hardly be considered a science, particularly because the different theories on the formation and evolution of the Universe were only based on rudimentary observations. Indeed, the Solar System was understood since Copernicus, and Newton‟s and Kepler‟s laws were established and applied, particularly to the motions of planets around the Sun, thereby allowing Le Verrier for instance, to discover the planet Neptune. Nevertheless, it was well and good enough to suspect the existence of very distant objects, without knowing either their distance, their dimensions or their mass. It was only in the beginning of the 20th Century, in the twenties, that Hubble clearly showed the spectral shift towards the red, of galaxies, thus proving that they were very distant objects and therefore very massive and composed of millions of billions of stars, further implying that the Universe was expanding. Twentieth Century Astronomy has appealed more and more to Physics, which is helping now better to understand the structure, the formation and the evolution of the Universe. Estimates of the age of the Universe fluctuated between 10 and 20 billion years. The quasi-totality of these estimates are based on the Hubble Constant, which was increasingly refined reaching a value of around 73 km/sec/Mpc leading to a stable value of 13.7 billion years for the age of the universe. Other dating techniques have confirmed this value which has now been definitely accepted. 4
2 THE CREATION PROCESS ACCORDING TO THE HOLY BOOKS
2.1 Creation According to the Biblical Thesis
We find in the first chapter of Genesis a clear assertion that God created the Universe in six days. No mention is made of billions of years nor any other long period of time.
Most Christians have accepted the argument according to which the word “day” in Genesis did not mean literally a 24-hour day, but that those “days” rather represented six long periods of time (ages): this theory is often designated by the expression “epoch-day”. However, this notion of “day” in the creation tale still appears in the context of a 24 hour cycle of light and darkness, as can be seen in the following verse:
“And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.” (Genesis 1:5)
The use of the word “day” in Genesis 1 is always specifically attached to the words “one night and one morning”. This expression has been utilized several times in the Old Testament. Each time, without exception, it refers to an average day of 24 hours. It is also important to emphasize that nowhere in the Old Testament is this expression used with a metaphorical meaning.
Moreover, when the word “day” is used with a numeral or a numerical adjective such as first day, second day, it always refers literally to a 24 hour day, all the more as there is no clearer manner of specifying that we deal with a regular day than the expression “one night and one morning” associated with the word “day”, itself qualified by the numerical adjective one. The only possible interpretation is that the first chapter of Genesis describes six (self) rotations by the Earth and not an indeterminate period of billions of years.
This conclusion is confirmed by Exodus 20:11. This passage, “engraved in stone by the finger of God Himself” asserts:
“For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day.”
2.2 Creation According to the Qur'anic Thesis
The majority of Qur'anic verses dealing with modern science are of an astronomical order. The reason for putting this subject forth is explained by Qur'an itself. Thus, it is made clear in the following verse that the creation of the Universe constitutes a more grandiose feat than the creation of Man.
– Sura 40, verse 57
"The creation of the heavens and of the Earth is indeed more grandiose than the creation of Man. Yet most men understand not."
The verse that follows clearly invites Humans to focus their attention on what exists in the skies in the first place, and then on what is on Earth in second place, keeping in mind that everything manifestly points to the Divine Might. Indeed, it is this invitation which was at the origin of the development of the sciences of Astronomy among Muslims following the Qur'anic revelations. 5
– Sura 10, verse 101
"Say : “Behold all that is in the heavens and the earth …”."
The idea of an ex-nihilo creation is latent everywhere in Qur'an: "When it decides a thing, It says to him simply: would be! And it is!". This does not imply that the duration of creation was forcibly instantaneous, as is the case of the creation of the Universe which underwent several stages. Indeed, God willed that the Universe be formed according to a process ruled by the laws of Physics (which He Himself pre-established) as can be understood from the following verse which makes clear that when the Divine Command is expressed, its realization follows for certain (in a slow progressive manner according to the human scale).
– Sura 16, verse 1
"God‟s command comes; so seek not to hasten it."
Here, we are in the presence of a new notion of creation, different from that which is known in the other religions.
The Qur'anic verses reserved for creation mention the period of the creation (the age) of the Earth and of the Universe, and indicate that the latter originated from a huge mass of smoke (particles) according to the same process of formation. As for the verses dealing with Astronomy, they are numerous and concern the future of the Solar System and that of the Universe at the same time.
2.3 Comparison between the Biblical and the Qur'anic Theses
When the Qur'an speaks about the creation of the Universe, it mentions like the Bible that the creation lasted six days. However, it adds that the stabilization of its general structure took two days and that the creation of the Earth lasted two days. But, in contrast to the biblical thesis, it mentions explicitly and unequivocally that the length of one day is a very long period, and in no way compares with a regular day of 24 hours (cf. §3.1). Therefore, the notion of “epoch-day” which was invented by the Christian exegetes, is rather more applicable to the Qur'anic text than to the Bible.
Concerning the Genesis, there is no doubt that that part in the Old Testament which mentions durations or the manner of “measuring” time has been written quite recently (to human scale) and been subjected to numerous free interpretations according to the whims of their authors and translators. The latter have not always known how to perceive the subtleties of the ancient texts and therefore, transmitted them with very liberal interpretations in keeping with the knowledge of the moment [6]. The Biblical thesis and the Qur'anic thesis should in no way disagree regarding the length of the days of creation, since originally, there was only one religion. Moses‟ message, Jesus Christ‟s and Muhammad‟s are the links of the same chain. Indeed, the Qur'anic revelation continues what was revealed to the previous prophets as is explained in Sura 3, verse 84:
– Sura 3, verse 84
"Say (O Muhammad) : “We believe in God, and in what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Isma'il, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and in (the Books) given to Moses, Jesus, and the Prophets, from their Lord : We make no distinction between one and another among them, and to Him (God) we have submitted”." 6
At this juncture, we should not deny the laudable efforts undertaken by some Christian scholars for research in the spiritual domain, with the aim of bringing the biblical notions closer to the modern scientific notions. In this manner, cosmologist John Barrow of Cambridge University, was able to demonstrate a very important conclusion, to wit, that the fundamental constants of the Universe must correspond exactly to what they are, so that the life and consciousness which scrutinize them may appear in it.
This conclusion was already stated in the Qur'anic text more than 14 centuries ago. Indeed, it is made clear in Sura 25, verse 2, that everything that was created by God was so made in very precise and optimal proportions.
– Sura 25, verse 2
"He to Whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth, no son has He begotten, nor has He a partner in His dominion. It is He Who created all things, and ordered them in due proportions."
2.4 The Solar System in the Qur'an
The Qur'an deals with the future of the Sun, the Earth as well as the other planets in several verses, which can be summed up as follows [3]:
• The Sun shall swell in the manner of a balloon (1) and the sky shall become red and will have the look of a scarlet rose (2),

(1) " When the sun becomes like a balloon in (the state of ) inflation." (Qur'an 81:1)
(2) "Then, when the heaven is rent asunder, becoming scarlet-rosy like red hide." (Qur'an 55 :37)
Indeed, during its last spasm which will last a few million years, the Sun will occupy the entire celestial vault and will certainly look like one of those agonizing stars which were often times observed by the Hubble space telescope (see images on the site http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/planetary, particularly the « Cat‟s Eye Nebula » which was discovered in September 1994, http://imgsrc.hubblesite.org/hu/db/1995/01/images/a/formats/full_jpg.jpg)
• There will then be an increase in brightness on the terrestrial globe (3) and the stars will no longer be visible from the Earth (4),

(3) "So, when the sight is dazzled. " (Qur'an 75:7)
(4) "And when the stars, lose their lustre. " (Qur'an 81:2)
• A convergence of the Sun to the Moon will occur, (thus to the Earth). To designate this convergence, the Qur'an utilizes the term « joined »,

"… And the sun and moon are joined together." (Qur'an 75 :9)
• This convergence will, as a consequence destabilize the Moon which will be cleft asunder,
7
"The Hour has drawn near and the moon has been cleft asunder." (Qur'an 54 :1)
• Further, there will be a modification in the orbits of the planets of the Solar System.

" … And when the planets will disperse (intatharat)" (Qur'an 82:2)
(The Arabic term “intatharat” which means an organized dispersion, by opposition to the term “tanātharat” which means a random dispersion.)
Concerning our terrestrial globe, there will occur:
• Boiling of the seas (5) and dilation of the waters (6), disintegration of the mountains which will melt like « crumbling sand dunes » and will lose their height and solidity (7), dilation of the Earth‟s crust (8)… The Qur'an also makes it clear that the Earth will subsist despite these cataclysms.

(5) "(I Swear)… By the Canopy Raised High, And by the boiling sea." (Qur'an 52 :5-6)
(6) "… And when the seas are burst forth. " (Qur'an 82:3)
(7) "…And the mountains will be like crumbling sand dunes." (Qur'an 73:14)
(8) "…. And when the Earth expands." (Qur'an 84 :3)
All of these happenings are specified in an unequivocal style and can in no way make room for any subjective interpretations [10].
2.5 Deduction Concerning the Universe
Other than the particulars on the origin and formation of the Universe, we find four essential pieces of information in the Qur'anic text [10]:
• The Universe originated from a large mass of smoke: "Moreover He turned to heaven when it was smoke and said to it and to the earth : “come willingly or unwillingly!”. They said : “we come in willing obedience”." (Qur'an 41:11)

• The Universe is continuously expanding: "The heaven, We have built it with power, Verily We are expanding it." (Qur'an 51:47)
• The creation phenomenon in the Universe is a continuous process : "It is God Who begins (the process of) creation; Then repeats it." (Qur'an 30:11)

• That there will be a (great) collapse (big crunch) of the Universe towards the end of the Solar System at the latest.

Note : It is important to note here that verse 11 of Sura 41 implies in no way that the Earth was created with the rest of the Universe simultaneously. Rather, it was only a command which was transmitted. Achievements by the Divine Will spreads in time as was made clear in §2.2. 8
3 DETERMINING THE AGES OF THE EARTH AND OF THE UNIVERSE
3.1 The Notion of Day according to the Qur'anic Text
The word « day » (yawm in Arabic) was cited several times in the Qur'anic text. This word was used in several Suras according to the context, either to mean the period separating two successive sunrises (it is then a period related to the rotation of the terrestrial globe on its axis) or to mean a long period corresponding in fact to years.
Thus, when the Qur'an narrates the tale of the birth of the prophet Yahya (John the Baptist), son of Zachariah, it is made clear that the latter began by praying God to grant him an offspring. The Angels informed him that God had fulfilled his wish and announced that he will have a son named Yahya who will be chaste, a prophet and one among good men. Zachariah was astonished at the news since he was old and his wife was sterile. So, he asked God for a sign and God asserted to him that the sign was that he would be able to talk to people only through gestures, for three days (ayyam):
– Sura 3, verse 41
"He (Zachariah) said: “O my Lord! Make a sign for me”. God said: “Your sign is that you shall not speak to mankind for three days except with signals. And remember your Lord much (by praising Him again and again), and glorify (Him) in the afternoon and in the morning”."
In the same context, the Qur'anic text narrates the story of the Arab prophet Hud and his people (the „Aad people who lived in southern Arabia) who, after having denied his message, suffered a punishment which lasted seven nights and eight days.
– Sura 69, verse 6-7
"And the „Aad, they were destroyed by a furious Wind, Exceedingly violent; He made it rage against them seven nights and eight days in succession: So that thou couldst see the (whole) people lying prostrate in its (path), as if they had been roots of hollow palm-trees tumbled down!
The use of the word „nights‟ (then days) in the preceding verse, allows us to clearly understand that the eight days are in fact terrestrial days.
The use of the word „day‟ to mean a long period of time is also frequent in the Qur'anic text. This use can be seen in several Suras. Thus, when the Qur'anic revelation was in its beginnings, the Meccans defied the Prophet of Islam incessantly, demanding that he show them Divine punishment immediately:
– Sura 22, verse 47
"Yet they ask thee to hasten on the punishment! But God will not fail in His promise. Verily a day in the sight of thy Lord is as a thousand years of your reckoning. "
In fact, the expression "a day in the sight of your Lord" in no way indicates that there is a day and a night for the Lord, since the notion of „day‟ is always linked with the complete rotation of a planet on its axis. Therefore, this notion of day does have the meaning of a long period, thereby indicating that the measure of time is totally relative.
This notion is also asserted in the following verse which makes it clear that the Divine Command reaches Humans at the end of one day equivalent to a thousand years of our reckoning: 9
– Sura 32, verse 5
"He rules (all) affairs from the heavens to the earth : in the end will (all affairs) go up to Him in a day, the period whereof is (as) a thousand years of your reckoning. "
We may wonder here about the use of the « thousand » factor in verses 47 of Sura 22 and 5 of Sura 32, since using another factor (three or four thousands for instance, would not change the apparent meaning of the verses, i.e. the huge gap between the human measuring unit and the one chosen by God). We may also wonder about the reason according to which the expression "a thousand years" in each one of the two previous verses is followed by the expression "of your reckoning". Let‟s note that only verse 4 of Sura 70 escapes this rule.
– Sura 70, verse 4
"The angels and The Spirit will ascend unto Him within a day (period of time) the measure whereof is fifty thousand years."
There is no doubt that the fifty thousand years quoted in the verse above are not the same kind as the thousand years mentioned in the preceding two verses. The choice of the thousand factor in verses 47 of Sura 22 and 5 of Sura 32, as well as the reason why the expression "of your reckoning" does not appear in verse 4 of Sura 70, will be dealt with in section 3.4.
Note : According to the exegete Al-Qurtubi [1], it was reported that one person asked Ibn „Abbas (companion and cousin of Prophet Muhammad, who was considered to be one of the first Qur'an exegetes) about the meaning of the expression "one day equivalent to thousand years". The latter answered that God alone knew its meaning and did not volunteer his opinion on a subject that was beyond him.
3.2 The Nature of „Years‟ in the Qur'anic Text
Concerning the two verses which state that one day in the sight of your Lord is equivalent to a thousand years, let us ponder about the nature of these thousand years. Is it meant a thousand Lunar years (354.36 days), since the Qur'anic revelation occurred among a people using the Lunar calendar (with possible intercalations) or of Solar years (365.25 days) since some Arabs of the Peninsula (especially those to the North, in Syria-Palestine and to the South in Najran) were christianized? It seems obvious to us that the answer is that the years mentioned in the preceding verses must have a nature totally different from those utilized in the common calendars. Indeed, the revelation was not intended specifically for the Arabs, were they Polytheists, Christianized or converted to Judaism. We are dealing here with a universal year, common to all Humanity. To our mind, it is the sidereal year, which has been adopted in Astronomy, and rightfully so, since the Qur'anic revelation was destined to Humanity in its entirety as the following verses confirm it:
– Sura 34, verse 28
"We have not sent thee but as a universal (Messenger) to men, giving them glad tidings, and warning them (against sin), but most men understand not."
– Sura 55, verse 33
"O assembly of Jinns and Humans, if you can pass beyond the zones of the heavens and the earth, then pass beyond (them)! Not without a power shall ye be able to pass!" 10
– Sura 49 verse 13
"O mankind! We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other. Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of God is (he who is) the most pious of you. And God has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things)."
We must emphasize the fact that the choice to define the term „year‟ was dictated by social, cultural and religious considerations (the Gregorian Calendar adopted the Tropical year, because it made seasons coincide with the same periods each year). This justifies appropriately the sidereal nature of years quoted in the Qur'anic text.
3.3 The Sidereal Year
The Sidereal year is the time needed for the Sun to return to the same position with respect to the stars of the celestial sphere observing from the same place on the Earth. Alternatively, it is the period of time during which the Earth accomplishes a complete revolution around the Sun in a fixed reference frame (axes system). In other words, what is meant here is the time elapsed after which, as seen from the Earth, the Sun occupies the same position with respect to the stars on the celestial sphere. In the last few years, it has been demonstrated that the Earth is steadily slowing down the speed of its rotation. The duration of one day is lengthening by 1.752 milliseconds a day at the end of a century [7]. The duration of one sidereal year should not then be considered as constant. Its value is rendered by the following formula [7]:
S(t) = 365.25636300 days + 1.1522 10-6 t + 0.0044 10-6 t2
where t is the time elapsed since January 1st, 2000 at noon (noted as J2000) and expressed in thousands of Julian years, a Julian year being equal to 365.25 days.
The value of the average sidereal year was at the J2000 epoch of 365.25 days 6h 9mn 9.76 s.
Let‟s note that the Qur'anic revelation covered a time span extending (approximately) from the year 610 to 632. It happened in two periods: the period known as the Meccan Period (from the beginning of the revelation till the Prophet‟s migration to Medina i.e. 610-622) and the period known as the Medinese Period (from the Prophet‟s migration till his death i.e. 622-632). Verse 4 of Sura 70 was revealed in the course of the first period (Meccan). If we wish to find out the mean value of the sidereal year , denoted S, at the time of the revelation of the mentioned verse, we must then bound it by two values S(t1) and S(t2) with t1 = (610-2000)/1000 = -1.390 and t2 = (622-2000)/1000 = -1.378.
Therefore :
S(-1.390) = 365.25636140694300 and S(-1.378) = 365.25636142062300
S is thus bounded by two values which can be considered practically identical (10 identical digits). Indeed, the Meccan Period was a short period lasting about a dozen years, and as we mentioned, the lengthening of a day is then of about one millisecond. We'll choose the mean of the two bounds i.e. S = 365.256361414 days. 11
3.4 Method of Estimation
Sura 70 begins with three verses stating that an individual (whose identity is not revealed) wondered about the date for the occurrence of the inescapable punishment for the Unbelievers.
– Sura 70 verse 1-3
"A questioner asked concerning a fateful torment about to befall the unbelievers, which none can avert. From God, the Lord of the ways of ascent."
Let‟s make it clear that the word ascent (ma’arij), from the three consonant root ‘rj (‘araja) quoted in the verse above, means a rise (ascent) with a certain inclination (whereby the link with the word a’raj, meaning someone walking with a bent, i.e. who limps).
The answer is provided in the verse immediately following the previous ones. It asserts that the date for the occurrence of this punishment (therefore of Judgement) will correspond to the ascent and return of Angels to their Lord, namely in a time span of one day equivalent to 50000 years.
– Sura 70, verse 4
"The angels and The Spirit will ascend unto Him within a day (period of time) the measure whereof is fifty thousand years."
Let‟s note that many exegetes interpreted the ascent as the time needed by the Angels to reach their Lord. This interpretation is, to us, totally unacceptable, since to our mind the “ascent” of the Angels to their Lord in no way implies notions of points of departure and points of arrival, since the Angels are immaterial creatures who have nothing in common with human beings. Further, God would never be located in a precise material place.
– Sura 42, verse 11
"… There is nothing like Him; and He is the All-hearing, the All-seeing."
However, it is also interesting to note that one of the Prophet‟s companions [1] realized that verse 4 of Sura 70 simply indicated that the 50,000 period was nothing “but the period separating the beginning of the creation of the world from its ending”, and he designated by “ending” the Day of the Last Judgement.
We also encounter this notion of ascent and return of the Angels to their Lord in verse 38 of Sura 78, stating that the apparition of the Angels and of the Archangel (Gabriel) in closed ranks will announce the arrival of the fateful day of the Judgement of humans.
– Sura 78, verse 38
"The day that The Spirit and the angels will stand forth in ranks, none shall speak except any who is permitted by (God) most Gracious, and he will say what is right."
If we consider verse 4, Sura 70 again, with in mind the fact that one sidereal year is worth an average of 365.256361414 days at the time of the revelation of the latter verse (cf. §3.3), we then find out that the fifty thousand years are equivalent to :
50 000*365.256361414 = 18 262 818.070 days 12
Let‟s recall here that in verse 4 of Sura 70, the expression " …whereof the measure is fifty thousand years." is not, like the other verses, followed by the expression “of your reckoning”. Therefore, the 18 262 818.070 days we obtained are not usual days. If we keep in mind the fact that the days mentioned in verse 47 of Sura 22 and in verse 5 of Sura 32 are equivalent to “a thousand years of our reckoning”, this entails that the ascent will occur at the deadline of 18 262 818 070 years “of our reckoning”. This enormous time span is nothing on the Divine scale, as is confirmed by the two verses that immediately follow the previous one and that clearly assert that the punishment of the infidels, considered very distant by the latter, is in actual fact very near from the Divine point of view.
– Sura 70, verses 5-7
"So be patient, with a good patience. Verily! They see it (the torment) afar off, But We see it (quite) near."
The verses following the above quoted ones, state precisely that the punishment will happen after a given number of extraordinary events have affected our terrestrial globe, decreeing its end, such as the disintegration of the mountains becoming like wool, the transformation of the appearance of the sky blushing, etc…(verses 8 and 9).
– Sura 70, verse 8-9
"The Day that the sky will be like molten metal, and the mountains will be like flakes of wool."
The following verse precises the aspect of the wool.
– Sura 101, verse 5
"The day when … the mountains will be like carded wool."
All these phenomena also foretell the end of the Solar System as we made it clear in [10].
It so happens that the Qur'an asserted that the age of the Earth was two “epoch-days” (or periods), the age of the Universe six periods and that its general structure stabilized in the course of two periods as can be seen in the following verses:
– Sura 50, verse 38
"We created the heavens, the earth and what is between them in six days (periods), and no weariness touched Us."
– Sura 41, verse 9
"Say : “Do you disbelieve Him Who created the earth in two periods? Do you ascribe equals to Him. He is the Lord of the Worlds”."
– Sura 41, verse 10
"He set in the (earth) mountains standing firm. He blessed it. He measured therein its sustenance in four periods, in due proportion…"

The date of stabilization of the galactic structure of the Universe, as well as the date of the ending of the Solar System which are evaluated in relation to the Big Bang, will therefore not be affected by the time shift.
The present estimation of the age of the Earth by the scientists is 4.55 ± 0.01 billion years [5]. As for the estimation of the age of the Universe, it is in the order of 13.7 ± 0.2 billion years [8]. Depending on the followed dating method, accuracy is in the order of a few ten million years for the age of the Earth, and in the order of a few hundred millions for the age of the Universe. This uncertainty is due to the limitations of the dating methods utilized. It would then be interesting to carry out a comparative study between the different dating methods on the one hand and the values we put forth whose accuracy is in the order of thousands of years on the other, while admitting that one thousand years is a trivial value with respect to the age of the Universe or the Earth!
Note : We indicated in [10] an important result (which seems to be generalized in the Qur'anic text), to know, that for a given verse or Sura, the frequency in the use of words or letters is closely related to the subject at hand. Let‟s note that the number of words of the verse which allowed us to deduce the value of the eight periods is equal to eight! (the number of words must be calculated from the beginning of the verse until… "whereof the measure is")
As was mentioned above (cf. §3.1), the choice of the factor „thousand‟ is not a random choice. Indeed, it is common knowledge in Astronomy that the end of the Solar system would happen about 18 billion years after the beginning of creation. If in verse 47 of Sura 22 ("And verily, a day in the sight of your Lord is as a thousand years of your reckoning."), the word ‘thousand’ (alf) was replaced by ‘x’ (a random integer number different from a thousand), we could deduce through a simple arithmetical calculation, that the result 50 000×365.256361414*x would in no way correspond to the date of the end of the Solar System, and consequently, the values of the ages of the Sun and the Universe we deduced above would be erroneous.
Moreover, we can pose the following problem in two unknowns : let‟s assume that in verse 47 of Sura 22 (see above), the factor thousand (alf) was replaced by a factor x (any given integer) and that in verse 4 Sura 70 ("…The angels and The Spirit will ascend unto Him within a day (period of time) the measure whereof is fifty thousand years."), the factor 50 ( khamseen) was replaced by y. For our results to remain correct, we should have:
365.256361414 xy = 18 262 818 070 15
This implies that xy =5×107. This is a nonlinear equation with two integer unknowns which has several solutions. However, before solving it, a certain number of points must be made clear.
1/ Verse 47 of Sura 22 ("And verily, a day in the sight of your Lord is as a thousand years of your reckoning.") indicates that the notion of time for the Lord is not identical to that of Humans. Let x be the number of years cited above (a thousand). If we have to choose any value for x, it must be expressed by a simple, concise and persuasive number, namely the largest non-compound unit known in Arabic by the inhabitants of the Peninsula at that time : in fact only a thousand fits, since for instance the word corresponding to one million at that time was „alf alf‟ (one thousand thousands) i.e. a compound word (the result of one word duplication).
2/ In verse 4 of Sura 70 ("…The angels and The Spirit will ascend unto Him within a day (period of time) the measure whereof is fifty thousand years."), the value y which can replace the factor 50 is linked to an extraordinary phenomenon (the end of the Solar System) and must, to our mind, be the greatest possible (larger than x while maximising the difference y-x or the ratio y/x). Consequently, it must be expressed within the same unit as x i. e. in thousands.