Response to Scientific Errors in the Hadith

True understanding of the hadiths (and Qur’an) rests upon sound knowledge (ilm) transmitted through reliable isnad, deep fiqh, and a Tawhidic epistemology which recognizes that Allah is the sole source of all knowledge (Ilm al-Haqīqī).

Three reasoning paths:

Textual-Contextual Reasoning: Hadith are not always literal descriptions of reality. Scholars such as Imam Al-Ghazali and Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani taught us: hadith can be classified into literal (haqīqī) and figurative (majāzī) meaning. Some of these ahadith (e.g., about giant goats in space, earth on whale) may represent:
- Cultural expressions
- Metaphorical illustrations
- Testimony about unseen realms (`alam al-ghayb)
To judge them by “modern science” standards — born from a secularized epistemology — is philosophically inappropriate.
Historical-Scientific Reasoning: “Scientific errors” attributed to hadith often assume that hadith are a science textbook. But Islam never presented hadith as scientific treatises. Their aim is guidance, not empirical description. Even in places where “science” today “contradicts,” it can be:
- A test for humility
- A partial truth
- A later misinterpretation (e.g., the heart “housing” belief can refer to cognitive centers, as some modern neuroscience suggests the heart affects emotional cognition).
Science itself changes; Qur’an and hadith have stability.
Theological-Epistemological Reasoning: Using “WikiIslam” (a known anti-Islamic site) or “modern secular science” as the judge over hadith is upside-down epistemology (naẓariyyah al-maʿrifah): Allah is Al-Aleem (The Knower), and revelation is the criterion (mīzān), not human reason per se (`aql) corrupted by secular thought. Remember:

“They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah will perfect His light…” Quran 9:32

All so-called “scientific errors” reflect either:

Phenomenological Language
Spiritual Symbolism
Metaphysical Realities
Cultural Context
Future Unfolding (Ghayb)

Not one claim truly proves a “scientific error” if Islamic epistemology is properly applied.

1. Adam was a 90-foot Giant

Criticism: No evidence humans were ever this tall in fossil record.

Rebuttal:
Hadith reflects initial creation in higher stature, spiritual anthropology. ‘Size’ here symbolizes the primordial nobility (fitrah) of Adam. Fossil record deals only with material dimensions, not the complete human reality.

Backlinks: Primordial Human Condition, Spiritual Anthropology in Islam

2. The Sun Prostrates under the Throne

Criticism: Sun does not physically move under a throne.

Rebuttal:
Prostration is a metaphysical act. Cosmic entities submit to divine command unseen by material senses, consistent with unseen world (`Alam al-Ghayb).

Backlinks: Cosmic Submission in Quran, Metaphysical Dimensions of Natural Phenomena

3. Sun Sets in a Muddy Spring

Criticism: Astronomically impossible.

Rebuttal:
Phenomenological description (zahir al-hissi) from human perspective; not a scientific account. Similar to Qur’anic “Dhul Qarnayn found it setting.”

Backlinks: Phenomenological Language in Revelation, Apparent vs Objective Reality

4. The Moon Has Its Own Light

Criticism: Moon reflects sunlight, does not emit light.

Rebuttal:
The word “نور” (nūr) in Arabic includes reflected light. No contradiction when Arabic semantic fields are respected.

Backlinks: Quranic Semantics of Light, Arabic Lexical Analysis of Nur

5. Eclipses Occur to Scare Humans

Criticism: Eclipses are natural phenomena.

Rebuttal:
Hadith highlights spiritual pedagogy — Allah uses natural signs to remind humans of mortality, dependence.

Backlinks: Natural Signs (Ayat) in Quran, Spiritual Lessons from Natural Events

6. Giant Goats and Cosmic Layers

Criticism: Mythical cosmology.

Rebuttal:
Unseen (`ghayb) cosmology conveyed in imagery to reflect layered realities of heavens. Not intended as empirical textbook.

Backlinks: Islamic Cosmology, Symbolic Language for Ghayb

7. Earth Rests on a Cosmic Whale (Nun)

Criticism: Myth incompatible with physics.

Rebuttal:
Classical exegetes (e.g., Ibn Kathir) preserved Isra’iliyyat reports without necessarily affirming them. Core belief is Allah’s control over Earth’s stability.

Backlinks: Isra’iliyyat in Tafsir Tradition, Divine Sovereignty over Earth

8. Sex Determines Gender Based on Discharge Timing

Criticism: Genetics determines sex at conception.

Rebuttal:
Hadith describes observable correlations, not genetic mechanisms. Intended as wisdom for lay understanding, not scientific explanation.

Backlinks: Lay Explanations in Hadith, Scientific vs Observational Descriptions

9. Satan Touches Babies at Birth

Criticism: No evidence for spiritual touch.

Rebuttal:
Spiritual realities (like Satan’s influence) are beyond empirical observation. Crying symbolizes initial human vulnerability to evil forces.

Backlinks: Spiritual Anthropology of Birth, Ghayb and the Unseen Battle

10. Yawning is from Satan

Criticism: Yawning has physiological causes.

Rebuttal:
Physiology and spiritual causality can coexist. Yawning signifies spiritual laxity, exploited by Satan.

Backlinks: Dual Causality in Islam, Symbolic Acts of Shaytan

11. Seven Intestines for Non-Muslims

Criticism: No biological difference in intestines.

Rebuttal:
Metaphor for spiritual gluttony vs temperance. “Seven intestines” indicates excessive materialism.

Backlinks: Spiritual Symbolism in Hadith, Temperance and Asceticism

12. Women Deficient in Intelligence

Criticism: Sexist and scientifically inaccurate.

Rebuttal:
“Deficiency” refers to specific legal testimony in certain contexts, not absolute cognitive ability. Reflects social realities of 7th-century Arabia.

Backlinks: Contextual Interpretation of Women’s Testimony, Gender and Legal Testimony in Islam

13. Spinal Bone Never Decays

Criticism: Bones decompose.

Rebuttal:
Refers to the “ajbu al-dhanab” (coccyx) as a seed of resurrection. Even if materially it decays, the essential substance is preserved metaphysically.

Backlinks: Doctrine of Bodily Resurrection, Ajbu al-Dhanab in Islamic Eschatology

14. Mountains Stabilize Earth

Criticism: Tectonic theory contradicts.

Rebuttal:
Mountains exert gravitational influence stabilizing crust movements. Quran and hadith refer to metaphysical and phenomenological effects, not geological mechanics.

Backlinks: Quranic Descriptions of Earth’s Stability, Phenomenological Observations in Revelation