Editing Islamic philosophy (section)

===Cosmology===
{{Main|Astronomy in medieval Islam}}
There are several [[cosmological]] verses in the [[Qur'an]] which some modern writers have interpreted as foreshadowing the [[Metric expansion of space|expansion of the universe]] and possibly even the [[Big Bang]] theory:<ref>{{cite web |author=A. Abd-Allah |url=http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/scislam.html |title=The Qur'an, Knowledge, and Science |publisher=[[University of Southern California]] |access-date=2008-01-22 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081128054613/http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/scislam.html |archive-date=2008-11-28 }}</ref>

{{blockquote|Do the disbelievers not realize that the heavens and earth were ˹once˺ one mass then We split them apart? And We created from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?|{{qref|21|30|c=y}}}}
{{blockquote|We built the universe with ˹great˺ might, and We are certainly expanding ˹it˺.|{{qref|51|47|c=y}}}}

In contrast to ancient [[Greek philosophy|Greek philosophers]] who believed that the [[universe]] had an infinite past with no beginning, [[Medieval philosophy|medieval philosophers]] and theologians developed the concept of the universe having a finite past with a beginning. This view was inspired by the [[creation myth]] shared by the three Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The [[Christian philosophy|Christian philosopher]], [[John Philoponus]], presented the first such argument against the ancient Greek notion of an infinite past. His reasoning was adopted by many, most notably; Muslim philosopher, [[Al-Kindi]] (Alkindus); the [[Jewish philosophy|Jewish philosopher]], [[Saadia Gaon]] (Saadia ben Joseph); and the [[Kalam|Muslim theologian]], [[Al-Ghazali]] (Algazel). They used two logical arguments against an infinite past, the first being the "argument from the impossibility of the existence of an actual infinite", which states:<ref name=Craig/>

:"An actual infinite cannot exist."
:"An infinite temporal regress of events is an actual infinite."
:".•. An infinite temporal regress of events cannot exist."

The second argument, the "argument from the impossibility of completing an actual infinite by successive addition", states:<ref name=Craig/>

:"An actual infinite cannot be completed by successive addition."
:"The temporal series of past events has been completed by successive addition."
:".•. The temporal series of past events cannot be an actual infinite."

Both arguments were adopted by later Christian philosophers and theologians, and the second argument in particular became famous after it was adopted by [[Immanuel Kant]] in his thesis of the first antimony concerning time.<ref name=Craig/>

In the 10th century, the [[Brethren of Purity]] published the ''[[Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity]]'', in which a [[Heliocentrism|heliocentric]] view of the universe is expressed in a section on cosmology:<ref>{{Harvp|Nasr|1993|p=77}}</ref>

{{Blockquote|God has placed the Sun at the center of the Universe just as the capital of a country is placed in its middle and the ruler's palace at the center of the city.}}

Cosmological ideas maintained by scholars such as [[al-Farabi]] and Ibn Sina, have strong resemblance with the [[Neoplatonism|Neo-Platonistic]] [[Emanationism|emanation cosmology]]. They identified the different [[Nous|Intellects]], dividing the cosmos into different spheres, as similar to the Islamic angels. However, Islamic scholars repeatedly insist that all heavenly spheres as a whole form a single body and are moved by God, in contrast to Aristotelian cosmology in which God only moves the outer sphere.<ref name="auto">{{cite news|date=9 March 2020|title=Guardian cartoon of cow in relation to Priti Patel sparks outrage amongst diaspora in Britain|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/guardian-cartoon-of-cow-in-relation-to-priti-patel-sparks-outrage-amongst-diaspora-in-britain/articleshow/74557770.cms|url-status=live|access-date=6 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200911224645/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/guardian-cartoon-of-cow-in-relation-to-priti-patel-sparks-outrage-amongst-diaspora-in-britain/articleshow/74557770.cms|archive-date=11 September 2020}}</ref> According to ibn Sina, but differing from al-Farabi, God is not part of the scheme of emanation. God emanated things in accordance with his will. In his ''Theologia Aristotelis'' he shows that through the manifestation of God, the intellects are aware of God and their role in the universe. Further Ibn Sina seems to distinguishes between two types of angels: One completely unrelated to matter, and another one, which exists in form of a superior kind of matter. The latter ones can carry messages between the heavenly spheres and the sublunary world, appearing in visions. Therefore, the higher angels dwell in [[Jabarut|higher spheres]], while their subordinate angels appear in an [[Malakut|intermediary realm]]. Ibn Sina's explanation might imply an attempt to consider revelation as part of the natural world.<ref name="glasse 49 50">Cyril Glassé, Huston Smith, The New Encyclopedia of Islam Rowman Altamira 2003 {{ISBN|978-0-759-10190-6}} page 49-50</ref><ref>[[Al-Qadi Abd al-Jabbar|Abd al-Jabbar]], Ibn Sina and al-Ghazali ''God and Humans in Islamic Thought'' Routledge 2006 {{ISBN|9780203965375}}  p. 97</ref> Also Qazwini lists a lower type of angels; earthly angels as indwelling forces of nature, who keep the world in order and never deviate from their duty. Qazwini believed that the existence of these angels could be proved by reason and effects of these angels on their assigned object.<ref>Syrinx von Hees Enzyklopädie als Spiegel des Weltbildes: Qazwīnīs Wunder der Schöpfung: eine Naturkunde des 13. Jahrhunderts Otto Harrassowitz Verlag 2002 {{ISBN|978-3-447-04511-7}} page 263</ref>