Atmospheric Water in the Qur’anic Perspective: A Linguistic and Scientific Analysis of the Concept of ar-Raj’ in Surah Ath-Thariq Verse 11

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-464-8_14How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Ar-raj’; Atmospheric Water; I‘jaz bayani; I‘jaz ‘ilmi; Scientific Miraculousness; Semantic Analysis

Abstract

This article examines the concept of ar-raj’ in Surah At-Tariq verse 11 through a semantic and scientific analysis to reveal the Qur’anic description of atmospheric water. Semantically, ar-raj’ derives from the root meaning “to return” but also encompasses the notion of “storage” or “containment,” as interpreted by classical Arabic lexicons and exegetes. This indicates the sky’s function not only in returning rain to Earth but also in serving as a reservoir that holds and manages water vapor before releasing it as rain. Scientifically, this corresponds with the atmospheric processes in which the sky acts as a massive system for storing, condensing, and precipitating water, reflecting the water cycle understood in meteorology. The study uses a qualitative library research method combining semantic analysis of the Qur’anic term with scientific data on atmospheric water systems. The findings show that the Qur’an’s use of ar-raj’ encompasses both i’jaz bayani (the linguistic eloquence and precision of expression) and i’jaz ‘ilmi (the scientific miraculousness), illustrating natural phenomena with terms that convey layered and multifaceted meanings. This research contributes to contemporary Qur’anic studies by highlighting the integrated relationship between divine revelation, language, and empirical science.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Muhamad Redho Al Faritzi
AU  - Ahmad Qolbi Zidan Johnderose
AU  - Raihan Muhammad Firdaus Ar-Rasyid
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/09/21
TI  - Atmospheric Water in the Qur’anic Perspective: A Linguistic and Scientific Analysis of the Concept of ar-Raj’ in Surah Ath-Thariq Verse 11
BT  - Proceedings of International Conference of Islamic Studies (ICONIS 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 192
EP  - 204
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-464-8_14
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-464-8_14
ID  - Faritzi2025
ER  -