LAYERS OF EARTH

12- It is God who created the seven heavens and of the earth the same number. The
commands flow among them that you may know that God has power over everything and
everything is held within the knowledge of God.
65-Divorce, 12

The 12th verse of sura 65 mentions the seven heavens and as many layers in the earth. We
already saw that the seven layers of the heavens were in perfect harmony with each other,
each performing its duty impeccably. The 12th verse of the 65th sura establishes a similarity
between the heavens and the earth.

Our earth is also stratified as the heavens are, and our life on earth depends on these layers.
In the Arabic community of the Prophet’s time, the surface of the earth was an expanse full
of mystery. The knowledge prevalent at the time did not permit man to have an inkling of the
stratigraphy. The fact that the statement in the Quran of the atmospheric layers is almost a
replica of this stratification of the earth is another miracle.

LIFE DEPENDENT ON TERRESTRIAL STRATA

As I have already pointed out in previous chapters, the Quran’s statements are not meant to
be miracles as such. But the fact that these statements reflect at the same time actualities
beyond the grasp of the scientific lore of the Prophet’s time points to announcements of
miraculous dimensions. Our aim is not only to establish truths expressed therein, but rather
to meditate upon the wonderful designs of God. Thanks to the matter forming the substance
of the core that is one of the layers of our sphere, a magnetic field is produced around our
world, making life on earth possible. Had the dynamo in the center of the earth been a little
bit weaker, the magnetic field around the earth known as the Van Allen belts (belts of intense
radiation in space about the earth formed by high-energy charged particles which are
trapped by the geomagnetic field) would fail to form an obstacle sufficient enough to stop the
lethal radiation threatening our world. The harmony in the concentration of such substances
as nickel and iron in liquid form within the core of the earth renders possible the function of
the Van Allen belts. All these minutely calculated designs are created in perfect order by our
Creator in preparation for man’s emergence upon the earth.

It took our earth billions of years to cool (it is estimated that the earth formed about 4.5
billion years ago). Despite this fact, the core of the earth contains lava, the temperature of
which is extremely high. The proportion of the upper crust of the earth, of the soil - on which
we live - to the world, may be likened to the ratio of the peel of an apple to its mass. The
proportion of the crust of the earth to the diameter of the world is less than 1%. We are far
from being conscious of this fact as we read our book, go on a walk, eat and talk. The terrific
phenomena occurring in the core of our earth have little unwanted effect on our condition
upon the earth where we continue to live as if by the side of a calm lake. These occurrences
we qualify as terrific because the high temperatures and magnetic phenomena are in actual
fact necessary for our survival. Our existence depends on these phenomena without being
adversely effected. The phenomena in question
are far from fortuitous and beyond our control. God is the Author of all these correlated
phenomena. It is incumbent upon us to give thanks to our Creator in full consciousness of
our human frailty for all the beauties and perfection we are witnessing.
 NUMBER OF LAYERS
The earth is made of many different and distinct layers. The deeper layers are composed of
heavier metals; they are hotter, denser and under much greater pressure than the outer
limits. One of the layers is the Oceanic Crust (1), and another one is the Continental Crust
(2). Beneath is the Upper Mantle (3). Another layer is the Asthenosphere (4) that exhibits
plastic properties. Beneath is the Lower Mantle (5). The Outer Core (6) is underneath; its
liquid content with the dynamo effect generated by the rotating of the earth forms the
protective magnetic field around it. And the last layer is the Inner Core (7).

We see that our world is made of layers whose raw material and function vary. The figure 7 is
again indicated in the Quran for the layers of the earth. If the two layers are integrated into
a single layer for study purposes, changing the figure 7, then the meaning of 7 in the Arabic
language must be taken as a plurality. A detailed examination of God’s wonderful world
shows that God has power over all things and that God comprehends all things in His
knowledge, as it is said in the verse which we examined in this chapter.