The Quran and Extraterrestrial Life

There are two verses in the Quran which imply the existence of extraterrestrial life. The first verse indicates the existence of planets similar to earth in the universe:

"God is He who has created seven heavens (samawatte) and of the earth a similar number..." (65:12)

According to Muhammad Asad's interpretation [1] the term Sama (plural: Samawatte), translated as heaven or sky, is applied to any thing that is spread like a canopy above any other thing. Thus, the visible sky which stretches like a vault above Earth and forms its canopy is called sama; and this is the primary meaning of this term in the Quran; in a wider sense, it has the connotation of a "galaxy" or a "cosmic system". As regard to the "seven heavens", it is to be borne in mind that in Arabic usage the number "seven" is often synonymous with "several", or "many". This may explain the "seven heavens" as denoting the multiplicity of galaxies or cosmic systems. As such the above verse (65:12) would mean that God created the universe to compromise many galaxies, each having at least one earth similar to ours.

The second verse speaks not only of the possibility of extraterrestrial life, but it categorically declares that it does exist [2]:

"And among His signs is the creation of heavens and the earth, and of all the living creatures (da'bbah) which He has caused to multiply throughout them, and He has the power to gather them together (Jam-i-him) whenever He wills." (42:29)

The first part of this verse declares the existence of living creatures on the Earth as well as the cosmic system. The Quran describes the living creatures as (da'bbah) which cover all living species that creep or move along the surface of the Earth. It is certainly not applicable to any form of spiritual life. In Arabic an angel will never be referred to as da'bbah or a jinni for that matter. The second part of the verse speaks of bringing together the life on Earth and the life elsewhere in the universe. The verse does not specify the time or the place of this meeting but rather states that this event will most certainly come to pass whenever God so desires. It should be pointed out that the Arabic term Jam-i-him used to express the gathering event can imply either a physical encounter or a contact through communication.

In conclusion the Quran states that life exists in many forms and in many places in this gigantic cosmos and not only restricted to Earth. God has the power to allow these various creatures to be gathered whenever He wills. This is an early reference to the space age in which current space explorations may constitute a modest beginning. However, the very fact that more than fourteen hundred years ago such a possibility of extraterrestrial life was even predicted is miraculous in itself.

References:

1. Muhammad Asad, "The Message of the Qur'an", Published by Dar Al-Andalus, Gibraltar (1980)
2. Yusuf Ali, "The Holy Qur'an", Published by the Muslim Students Association, USA (1975).