Qur’ānic cosmography in its historical perspective: some notes on the formation of a religious worldview

Abstract

This article focuses on some important issues in the formation of Qur’ānic cosmography and the later development of a traditional Islamic worldview based on the Qur’ān. It examines the genealogy and characteristics of the seven-heaven and seven-earth model, as well as key cosmological terms associated with it, such as samā’ and falak. The questions of the historical transmission, assimilation, and transformation of ancient cosmological material in the Qur’ān both as a longue-durée phenomenon and as a result of immediate cross-cultural contact is addressed, with the aim of shedding light on some of the processes responsible for fashioning new religious identity. The study highlights the syncretistic nature of the Qur’ānic cosmographic model and the tensions that confront medieval and modern scholars in their attempt to harmonize, or simply account for, its various constitutive elements.

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