أَلَم تَرَوا كَيفَ خَلَقَ اللَّهُ سَبعَ سَماواتٍ طِباقًا
Have you not seen how Allah has created seven heavens in layers?
EXEGESIS
Ṭibāq (sing. ṭabaq) denotes that which is placed over another similar thing. It carries the meaning of layers or from stage to stage (84:19). The creation of the seven heavens in layers (ṭibāqa) is also given in 67:3 and, as explained in the Exegesis there, the layers would refer to existential planes in the spectrum of existence (wujūd), meaning each heaven would be a different plane and realm of existence, as opposed to all of them falling under the one physical world. And hence, all the stars and heavenly bodies visible and known to man, only make up the lowest heaven: We certainly adorned the lowest heaven with lamps (67:5). See also 15:14-18 and 41:12.
Most verses refer to these multiple realms as seven heavens, but in one verse these are given as seven pathways or tiers: Certainly, We created above you the seven tiers (ṭarāʾiq) (23:17). Another common pattern found in the Quran is to follow the mention of the creation of the heavens with a mention of the creation of the earth and, oftentimes, a mention of other signs of God including the mountains, the sun and moon, the creation of man, and so forth. In this surah, the creation of man is given in the previous verse, the sun and moon are mentioned in the next verse, and thereafter the earth is mentioned as a receptacle and a source of blessing and ease for man (verses 17-20).
EXPOSITION
Having mentioned the creation of man, Prophet Noah (a) now turns the people’s attention to the vast and far more enormous universe as if to say the idol worshippers: Is it you whose creation is more prodigious or the sky which He has built? (79:27), This is the creation of Allah. Now show me what others besides Him have created (31:11), Say: ‘Tell me about your partners [you ascribe to Allah] whom you invoke besides Allah? Show me what [part] of the earth they have created. Do they have any share in the heavens?’ (35:40, 46:4), and so on.
Have you not seen means: Do you not already know? It is an invitation to ‘see’ how God created the heavens, through faith and reasoning, and, obviously, not through direct witnessing with the eye. The invitation to observe God’s signs in the heavens is also given in other verses such as 10:101 and 12:105.
Besides the seven heavens being understood as separate realms that operate unlike the corporeal rules that govern our world (as explained under the Exegesis), some exegetes regard the seven heavens as separate spiritual and metaphysical realms as degrees that separate creation from the Absolute, and the places where physical reality joins metaphysical reality in ascending subtlety – the seventh and final heaven being furthest from the material world, marking the end of supranormal creation. The final gulf between the two is marked by ‘the lote tree of the uttermost limit’ (sidrat al-muntahā) (53:14).
For a more detailed discussion on the meaning of seven heavens see 41:12 and for the meaning of seven (and its multiples), as symbolic representations for many, or perfect completion, see the explanation for seven under 69:32.
INSIGHTS FROM HADITH
- From Imam Ali (a): ‘Among the proofs of His creation is the creation of the skies (samāwāt) that are fastened without pillars and stand without support. He called them and they responded obediently and humbly, without being lazy or loathsome. If they had not acknowledged His Godhead and obeyed Him, He would not have made them [the skies] the place for His Throne, the abode of His angels, and the destination for the rising of the pure utterances and the righteous deeds of the creatures.’
- Imam Ali (a) was asked: ‘How far is it from the heavens to the earth?’ and he replied: ‘The reach of the sight and the plea [to Allah] of the oppressed.’
- From Imam al-Bāqir (a) concerning seven heavens in layers, he said: ‘[It means] some of them above others.’
REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE
The fact that Prophet Noah (a) would use such words as in this verse as an argument in trying to reason with them, proves that this was something the earliest prophets had preached and it was a known fact since the earliest generations of mankind. Alternatively, we could assume Prophet Noah (a) was simply asking them to see how perfect the creation of the heavens was (seven representing perfection), just like in 67:3 where the words He created seven heavens in layers is immediately followed with an invitation to reflect: you do not see any discordance in the creation of the All-beneficent. Look again! Do you see any flaw? Look again, once more. Your look will return to you humbled and weary (67:3-4).
There is also a third understanding shared by Makārim Shīrāzī which he says is the opinion of some exegetes, that verses 13-20 might be God’s speech to humankind in general and not Prophet Noah’s (a) to his people; hence the words, Noah said in verse 21 is a resumption of his lamenting to his Lord.
Ibn Abbas also seems to think Prophet Noah (a) did not use such intellectual arguments with his people because, quite likely, they were not aware of such celestial and scientific facts well enough to appreciate such arguments. He, therefore, interprets the verse as: Have you not seen, O polytheists of Mecca, how Allah has created … The verses in other surahs concerning Prophet Noah (a) do not hint at his people being engaged in such intellectual debates, as, for example, is seen directly in the case of Prophet Abraham (a) (6:76-80, 21:62-67).
Yet most exegetes, Makārim Shīrāzī concedes, hold verses 13-20 to be Prophet Noah’s (a) speech, and the repetition of Noah said in verse 21 could simply be to indicate that Prophet Noah’s (a) speech to the people had ended in verse 20, and that he was now redirecting his speech back to his Lord. This is because there is no evidence to suggest the conversation has now digressed to the Meccan polytheists or that Prophet Noah (a) is no longer the interlocutor.
[1] Nahj, sermon 182.
[2] Mizan, 17/373.
[3] Qummi, 2/387.
[4] Nemuneh, 22/75 (footnote).
[5] Ibn Abbas, p. 617.
[6] Nemuneh, 22/75 (footnote).