Shaqq al-Qamar: Difference between revisions

According to [[al-Shaykh al-Tusi]], Muslims had [[consensus]] over the occurrence of Shaqq al-Qamar, and since denials appeared years later, they do not undermine the validity of the consensus. However, there are disagreements in [[hadith]]s with regard to details and how the event took place. According to hadiths, the Prophet (s) split the moon into two parts as a miracle, and then returned it to the original state. This part of the story is agreed upon by Islamic sources.

According to the majority of [[Shiite]] and [[Sunni]] [[exegete]]s, the first verses of the [[Qur'an 54]] were [[Revelation|revealed]] about the splitting of the moon,

  |quote  = '''The Hour has drawn near and the moon is split. If they see a sign, they turn away, and say, ‘An incessant magic!’'''

Accounts of the Shaqq al-Qamar miracle can be found in historical, hadith, and exegetical sources. The story appears in historical sources, such as ''al-Bidaya wa l-nihaya'', ''al-Fitan'', ''al-Khara'ij wa l-jara'ih'', and Miqrizi's ''Imta' al-asma'''. [[Qadi Abd al-Rahman al-Iji]] takes hadiths of Shaqq al-Qamar to be [[mutawatir]].

In Sunni sources of hadiths, the story of Shaqq al-Qamar is cited from six people, "[[Anas b. Malik]], [[Jubayr b. Mut'im]], [[Hudhayfa b. Yaman]], [[Ibn Abbas]], [[Abd Allah b. Umar]], and [[Ibn Mas'ud]].  

#Al-Shaykh al-Tusi in his ''[[Al-Amali (al-Tusi)|al-Amali]]''

#''[[Tafsir al-Qummi]]''

The miracle took place in the early years after the Bi'tha in [[Mecca]]. [[Allama Tabataba'i]] maintains that it took place on the night of [[Dhu l-Hajja]] 14, 5 AH (May 6, 627).

[[Polytheist]]s asked the [[Prophet (s)]] to split the moon because they believed that magic could only act on earthly phenomena. Thus, they asked the Prophet (s) to do something on heavenly objects to prove that he was not a magician.

Muslim scholars have adopted two approaches to Shaqq al-Qamar. The majority of Shiite and Sunni exegetes of the [[Qur'an]] acknowledge that the event did take place and take the first three verses of [[Sura al-Qamar]] (Qur'an 54) to concern the miracle of Shaqq al-Qamar. With slight differences, the story appears in Shiite and Sunni books. Many scholars believe that there is [[consensus]], [[tawatur]], or [[Al-Khabar al-Wahid|istifada]] with regard to the story.

The second approach, adopted by people such as [[Hasan al-Basri]], Ata' Khurasani, and Balkhi is that the first verses of Sura al-Qamar are concerned with events happening prior to the [[resurrection]], or [[indications of the hour]].

:The answer is that, on modern cosmology, this is not impossible. Moreover, the genesis of the Solar System and the appearance of meteorites constitute evidence against such a claim.

:Muslim scholars tried to reply to this objection in various ways. For example, the event took place at night when many people were asleep, Arabs were not interested in the observation of the sky at the time, and other similar replies.

* The material for this article is mainly taken from [http://fa.wikishia.net/view/%D8%B4%D9%82%E2%80%8C%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%85%D8%B1 {{ia|شق‌القمر}}] in Farsi WikiShia.

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