DARKNESS AND INTERNAL WAVES IN THE SEAS

40-... or is like the darkness in a deep sea. It is covered by waves, above which are waves,
above which clouds. Darkness, one above another. If a man stretches out his hand, he can
hardly see it. For any to whom God gives not light, there is no light.
24-The Light, 40

The construction of submarines dates back to the 17th century. A vessel that navigated
under water was first contrived in 1620 by C. Drebber. Submarines developed rapidly, and in
1954, nuclear submarines were made. The development of submarines made possible the
study of submarine geology and topography, and life in the depths of oceans. Collection of
data had been possible thanks to the means developed in recent centuries without which a
man could not dive to a depth more than 50 meters.

At a depth of 200 meters from the surface of the sea, darkness reigns. At this depth, then,
“If a man stretches out his hand, he can hardly see it,” as described in the verse. The bottom
of seas and oceans are pitch dark. While broad daylight reigns on the surface, 200 meters
below it is again completely dark. At the time of the descent of the Quran, there were neither
scientific data nor knowledge based on observation about the darkness reigning in the depth
of seas. Just as it told about many aspects of heavenly phenomena comprehensible by man
without the help of satellites, the Quran also provided information about submarine life in the
depth of seas and oceans hardly accessible to man without submarines and instruments. The
Quran - whose range of information is vast enough to cover everything, from the space high
above down to the depth of the seas - itself proves its divine origin by the very fact that it is
flawless.

WAVES ABOVE WAVES

In general, we have the impression that the wave only breaks on the surface and that the
water underneath is calm and still. That is why the expression in the Quran, “by waves,
above which are waves,” may seem puzzling. These waves were discovered in 1900 and are
as described in the Quran. The dark depth of the sea contains these waves topped by the
waves on the surface.

In the verse, we also observe the motion of light. The sun’s rays are refracted as they strike
the clouds and lose some of their luminescence. The rays that reach the surface of the seas
diffract as they continue their journey in the spectrum, the first layer holding onto the yellow,
while the second holds onto the green; in the last layer, the seventh in fact, the blue
disappears. Thus, as the journey goes further downward, light vanishes. The sunlight
refracted in the clouds, the light that vanishes in the levels of oceans, completely disappears
in the depths of oceans and cannot light the bottom. Not even fish can see their way unless
they themselves generate some form of light.

6- Say: “The Quran was sent down by Him, who knows the mystery that is in the heavens
and the earth: verily He is Forgiving, Merciful.”
25-The Distinguisher, 6