Black Holes - Reality or Fantasy (Islamic Perspective)
By: Anita Bano
Date: 03/02/2022
You might have heard of black holes and even seen them in cartoons. But have you ever wondered what is a black hole and is it even a reality? The term black hole was first adopted by the American Physicist John Wheeler in 1969. A black hole is formed when the star, which has consumed all its fuel, collapses on itself, eventually turning into a black hole with infinite density, zero volume, and an immensely powerful magnetic field. The enormous gravitation captures even the fastest particles i.e. photons. Therefore, we are unable to see the black holes even with the most powerful telescope. Black holes are “black”, veiled from direct observation. They, nevertheless, reveal themselves indirectly by the tremendous suction which their gravitational force exerts on other heavenly bodies. Black holes are cosmic bodies that pack an immense amount of mass into a surprisingly small space. Due to their extremely intense gravity, nothing can escape their grasp not even light which defines the universe’s speed limit.
Black holes also cause wrap in space and also tear holes in it. That is why these collapsed stars are known as a black hole. This fact may be referred to in the verse about stars: “I swear by Heaven and the Tariq! And what will convey to you about the Tariq? The star piercing ( the darkness)!” [Quran 86:1-3]
The final stage of a typical star, three times the mass of the sun, ends after its burning out and its implosion as a black hole of only 20 kilometers in diameter.
At the center of black holes (collapsed stars) lies a location called “singularity”. This is known as the gravitational singularity and is found at the center of the black hole. This is the end-point for every particle that falls into a black hole. An observer far away from a black hole sees the event near a black hole in slow motion. If he shines a beam of light into a black hole, he will have to wait forever but still this beam of light never reaches the singularity. Singularity is the location is the future of stars where space and time become indistinguishable. Here, the structure of space-time becomes singular. However, singular (Ahad in Arabic) is one of God’s 99 names. In the Quran, Allah swears by the location of stars which turn out to carry his name. “And I swear by the stars’ position and that is a mighty oath if you only knew”Quran 65:75-76]. Here God swears not by the stars but by their location (“Mawakeh” in Arabic). Today, we know that the future of that location is singular that is they carry God’s name Ahad.
This proves that black holes are not just a made-up fantasy story but they are a reality as hinted in the Quran, but still many people in the world call it a myth. Now, it is up to them to use their mind and to figure out for themselves the truth.
