Arabic → English transcript

There is no doubt at all that the earth is not a planet, neither linguistically in terms of its name nor in terms of

its origin, nor in terms of its function, nor in terms of its end at all, for when Almighty God created

the earth, He created it in four days and spread it out, and He made them seven earths. There are seven earths, and this is one

of them. As for the planets, their creation came after the creation of the heaven. He made them an adornment— “And We adorned the lowest heaven with lamps.”

And He, exalted is He, said, “We have adorned the lowest heaven with the adornment of planets,” so they are an adornment. Second, the earth is not

an adornment for the heaven, because the earth is not in the heaven. So if we say that the earth is a planet, then it would be in

the heaven, and the heaven is heaven and the earth is earth. He, exalted is He, said, “Lord of the heavens and the earth and what is between them.” Clear?

The third point is in terms of function, for regarding the earth He said, “In it you live, and in it you die, and from it you will be brought forth.”

As for the planets, they are an adornment for the heaven, missiles against devils, and signs by which one is guided. And we have no knowledge, neither in

any revealed text, neither in the Book of God nor in the Sunnah of His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, that the earth is missiles.

How can they be for the devils, and the devils are on them? And how are the devils on the earth? Clear?

So how can they be missiles against the devils, and not an adornment for the sky, since they are not in the sky?

This planet, this matter… The final matter, in short, is the end of this earth.

And the end of the planets. The fate of the planets is to scatter. The Exalted said, “When the sky is split open, and when the planets are scattered…”

So they scatter. Scatter where? They scatter onto the earth. As for the earth, its fate

is to be changed into another earth, “On the Day when the earth is changed into another earth, and the heavens as well, and they shall appear before God, the One, the Subduer.”

17. And when the earth is stretched out, meaning its length and width are increased, and it is spread like leather, as the Exalted said in Surah

18. Taha: “You will not see in it any crookedness or unevenness,” unlike the first stretching mentioned in His saying, Exalted is He, “And He is the One who

19. spread out the earth,” and His saying, Exalted is He, “And the earth We have spread out and cast therein firm mountains, and caused to grow therein every pair

20. delightful,” and in His saying, Exalted is He, “And the earth We have spread out and cast therein firm mountains, and caused to grow therein of every thing

21. well-balanced.”

So that is an extension, and on the Day of Resurrection it will be extended again, its length and width increased and stretched like tanned leather, so

there is no problem. We do not need to reconcile between them, because there is no contradiction. The planets are one thing and the earth is

another. We do not need to say, “For those upon it, it is an earth, and with respect to the solar system

it is absolutely a planet,” because all the facts I have mentioned are totally incompatible with its being a planet.

Peace be upon you.