Seven Heavens and Earth

In this article the issue of seven heavens and earth has been assessed from the Quranic and cosmological perspective. It has been cleared that this issue has been there since Prophet Noah and is not a Quranic invention. The phrase “seven heavens” can be an actual number or a number which suggests a great number. Heaven in the Quran can be meant earth atmosphere, position of stars and planets, or higher stages of existence (divine heavens). Therefore Quranic objective in seven heavens verses is not the same and in each of them one of the meanings may be considered. So we cannot apply one certain comment about all verses. On the other hand, in cosmology also, existence or absence of more than one heaven has not been proved. Consequently, there is not any real contradiction between Quran and modern cosmology in this field. As there is no agreement between Quranic seven heavens and Ptolemaic system. On the contrary, Quran is opposing Ptolemaic system theory. That is why the comment of Soroush in regard to the compatibility of Quranic seven heavens with Ptolemaic system has been criticized. In another chapter of the article, the issue of Quranic seven heavens has been discussed which is highly unlikely to be taken from the Quran.