Seven Articles On The Qiblah

Religion and science cross paths in the Abrahamic religions when those who pray face their sacred directions. The seven articles on the Qiblah can lead to greater understanding among believers. _____________________________________ About the Book This book, which covers a variety of important topics, gives the reader almost four decades of developments on the subject of finding the sacred direction of the Qiblah. Also set forth is a sample material on the achievements made many centuries ago by a Muslim scholar. It also presents the amazing relations between sacred directions of the three Abrahamic religions. These similarities make up a very good topic for inter-faith dialogues. This book can also be considered a modern history of science, as readers can learn how the development in the information technology can change the entire concept of a scientific subject and its worldwide dissemination. The author has been devoted to the subject of the Qiblah and sacred directions for many years. His concept of "Peculiar Spherical Ellipse Drawn on a Sphere" is introduced for the first time, in the book. Hopefully, sooner or later it will find its way to other application in the vast fields of technology. The Taj Mahal, one of the wonders of the world, is located on such a giant peculiar spherical ellipse as visualized on the earth by the author, where the sacred directions near Muslims and Christians are back to back aligned, but for futhter alignment on sacred directions of the three Abrahamic religions, one should consider Greenland. The following samples of pages will give a short preview of the above introduction ________________________________________ Preface Before getting to the serious mathematical deliberations presented in this book, let me speak frankly with the reader. Frank talks solve disputes. It is hard and great indeed to be a preacher, but I am not a preacher, nor do I like to preach to anyone except myself. I was raised as a Muslim. I learned my religion in the same way that I learned my mother language. Learning a second language is not an easy task. How can one cope with so many religions and languages in this ever-changing world, except by practicing his own and respecting others’ religions and languages? The concept proposed in this book should be thoroughly examined and approved by the religious authorities. If it is not, it may be denounced without any objection from the author, since I do not want to be named as an innovator or heretic. As a chemical engineer, I have worked on renewable energy sources, and two decades ago studied solar energy. Studying solar energy involves learning positional astronomy. In my work at that time, I also did a research study on a sundial in an old mosque in Tehran years ago. It was this research that inspired me to study the subject of the Qiblah. I learned that there was no specific book in Persian that deals with the subject of the Qiblah in detail. As a result of my interest in the subject, I started writing articles and books on the Qiblah, both in Persian and in English. However, it was not possible until now to publish a book in English. I had to wait for the introduction of electronic publishing. After more than two decades of waiting, one of my books on the Qiblah is now being published in English. The present book is a compilation of seven articles of mine, which were written and published (in Persian or English) in scientific journals over the years. These seven articles are now the seven chapters of the book. Hopefully, this book will be useful to all Muslims. I also hope the book will be translated into various languages for readers around the world. This book might also be useful to readers of other faiths, such as Jews and Christians, since it also covers their sacred directions. Chapter 1 introduces the mathematical calculation of the direction of the Qiblah. Examples are given for the reader’s better understanding of the subject. The difference in longitude between Mecca and any other locality must be known before it is possible to calculate the direction to the Qiblah from that locality. For this reason, Chapter 2 describes the efforts of earlier Muslim scholars to determine the longitudes of various localities. This chapter also gives the reader a brief overview of the achievement of the great medieval Muslim scientist, Biruni. Today’s scientific achievements build on the efforts of many scientists of the past. In Chapter 3 gives a formula to determine the permissible misalignment in the direction of the Qiblah. This formula proves that one has to be mathematically very careful and exact in calculating and fixing the direction of the Qiblah. To correct any possible misaligned direction to the Qiblah, one can study the shadow of an upright rod when the sun is at the zenith or the nadir of the Kaaba. This gives an exact direction of the Qiblah. Details on this method, which has been mentioned by Muslim scholars in the past, are provided in Chapter 4, which uses current international timing and communication systems. Like Chapter 2, this chapter gives the reader a taste of the history of science. All religions have one doctrine in common, namely, that man should be good and do well. The religions of the world also have other common practices. Followers of the Abrahamic religions (Jews, Christian, and Muslims), for example, all pray in a sacred direction. Is there any place on our planet, I wondered, where the followers of the Abrahamic religion might pray together, facing the same direction, for peace and the eradication of poverty, selfishness and ignorance? The answer is yes, and the place is given in Chapter 5. The subject of Chapter 6 is reflected in the title of this book. The direction of the Qiblah at the pearl of monuments, the Taj Mahal, is almost due west. Further, the Taj Mahal is located on a peculiar spherical ellipse on the earth, which is the locus of the places having either the directions of their Qiblah and geographical east or west in common. This means both Christians and Muslims have a unified direction in part of the said peculiar spherical ellipse, where the direction of the Qiblah is due east. Yes, whwhile studying the Qiblah, one can get deeply into mathematics and taste the interaction of science and religion. Since this article on which this chapter is based has a mathematical theme, it was initially dedicated to the memory of the late Iranian professor, Dr. Mohssen Hashtroodi of Tehran University. My original intention was to include this article in a book in his memory, but that book was never published. Now I thank Mr. Hassan Faghih Abdollahi’s efforts in this regard. Mr. Hassan Faghih has done a great deal of study on Professor Hashtroodi’s life and achievements. I couldn’t wait to publish my dedicated article any longer. I had to get it published before I meet my fate. Finally, in Chapter 7 there is a proposal for building Worship Complexes around the world, hopefully to bring peoples of all faiths together. This planet needs peace and respect, rather than hatred, among its peoples so that we may be able to use the resources and efforts to solve the problems of all creatures living on earth. All of us have seen documentary films that show the ugly face of poverty and ignorance around the world, and even in our own backyards, no matter where we live. As I said at the opening of this preface, the concept of Worship Complexes shall be first examined and approved by all religious disciplines involved.