Surah Al Kahf -Ayah No 25

 Assalam o Alaikum.  This Juma coincides with 10th of Muharram. Sad day when kids of my Aqa Alaihe Salam were apparently slain but they live.

Today's Ayah is about the time for which our Heroes, The Boys slept in Al Kahf (The Cave). 
Firstly, Islamic / lunar day starts with moonrise i.e. After Maghrib. Hence, this Blog is shared on Thursday eve (Shab-e-Juma) as a gentle reminder for recitation and understanding of Al Kahf or part of it.

Secondly, we need to understand the rationale of 309 years' sleep by The Boys in this Ayah. According to Christian tradition they slept for 300 years. In order to balance out lunar and Gregorian accounts, Allah swt used figure of 309. Lunar calendar is usually 11 days lesser than Gregorian Calendar i.e. 354 days a year. Total days were 309 x 354 = 109,386. Divide this by days in a Gregorian year, 109,386 ÷ 365 = 299.68 i.e. approx 300 years. This story emanated from Christian traditions which follows Gregorian Calendar and they already had the correct numbers i.e. 300 years. However, currently, the story is being told in Quran which made it incumbent upon us to follow Lunar Calendar. Either way, the figures are correct. Such is wisdom, truth and authenticity of this Book. Subhan Allah.

Thirdly, the time travel aspect of this story; The Boys slept for three centuries and woke up as if they woke from overnight sleep. Despite, the time jump, they were healthy and well nourished. They engaged in normal conversation of how long they had slept and craved for food. Their unscathed mental and physical health defied logic. Yet, justified the only true logic that The Creator of Universe may suspend laws of Physics to make His point. And for once, in the form of true story, human romance with time travel was also satiated.

Fourthly, why lunar cycle is the calendar of choice in Islam? Is it just an outdated calendar system or one of our lost treasures of wisdom and religious inheritance? Let's find out from tradition and science:

1. The new moon marks the beginning of each new lunar month and it is easy for people to see the new moon and know that a new month has begun. Interestingly, the word month is derived from the word moon.

2. Islamic physical worships of fasting  and Hajj rotate every year and are not fixed like the Solar Year. People, therefore, will perform acts of worship in various climatic conditions and in different length of hours in submission to the will of Allah where human imagination plays no part.

3. Lunar calendar makes it easier to calculate tides. Tides are linked with gravitational pull which will (scientifically) cause doomsday. In fact, moon is a cosmic force which has impact on cycles of nature.For example, the gravitational force of the moon influences the sap of plants affecting photosynthesis and all the processes that a plant goes through in its development.

4. Hunters for visibility and fishermen for lunar sensitivity and reproductive activity of sea creatures know moon cycles very well.

5. The new moon is ideal to reflect on new ideas. Whereas, during the full moon we experience the phase in which people's emotions reach the surface.

Lastly, as Muslims all our important events of the year like Ramadan & Hajj followed by Eids, Rabi ul Awal, Muharram, Shab-e-Meraj, Shab-e-Barat etc are all from Islamic Calendar. Allah swt made it crystal clear in Al Baqarah, 'They ask you (O Muhammad (PBUH)) about the new moons. Say,'They are measurements of time for the people...' [02:189]. To resurrect our relation with lunar sense of time, start by celebrating birthdays as per Islamic Calendar every year. It can have lasting impression on growing kids and has worked like magic in my household.
Only Allah knows the whole Truth