Does Quran speak about Aliens and Extraterrestrial Life?
9:08
14 Feb 2013
Extraterrestrials, Miracles / Ijaz
Safiyyah Ally
Shabir Ally
Shabir Ally and Safiyyah Ally (the show’s host) discuss the possibility of there being intelligent life outside of Earth. Shabir Ally notes that there’s no concrete evidence so far, but that the Qurʾān provides openings to the possibility, suggesting that many Earths exist, quoting the first surah of the Qurʾān, which praises “the Lord of the worlds”. Shabir Ally suggests that beings on other worlds are among the things that “only God knows.”
This undated clip is part of an episode of “Let the Qurʾān Speak” (www.quranspeaks.com), produced in Canada.
Evaluation:
The information on the Qurʾān is carefully contextualized and discussed.
The scientific material presented is factually accurate and conforms with the ideas of contemporary scholars.
There is insufficient historical material upon which to base an evaluation.
About Safiyyah Ally
Safiyyah Ally is known for hosting the Canadian TV show Let the Quran Speak from 2006-2014. Before this however, Ally graduated with a B.A. in Political Science and Near and Middle Eastern Studies (2005) and a Ph.D. in Political Science (2013) from the University of Toronto. It appears that Ally held the associate editor position of the online news website, altmuslim.com (“Global Perspectives on Muslim life, politics & culture”), at some point, though it is unclear when exactly she occupied the position. In addition she began working as a teaching assistant for the University of Toronto in 2008 and as of 2015 still holds this position (according to her LinkedIn). One can connect with Ally through her LinkedIn page for more information.
Selected Bibliography:
“About Us.” Let the Quran Speak. N.p., n.d. Web. Accessed 13 June 2015.
Ally, Safiyyah. “Safiyyah Ally.” LinkedIn. LinkedIn, n.d. Accessed 13 June 2015.
About Shabir Ally
Shabir Ally is a Muslim scholar who specializes in religious debates, specifically on Islam v. Christianity. He received an undergraduate degree from Laurentian University in Ontario, Canada in religious studies and also holds a M.A. and Ph.D. in Qurʾānic exegesis from the University of Toronto; the Muslim Debate Initiative notes his dissertation’s completion in 2012. As of 2018, Ally is the president and Imam of the Islamic Information and Dawah Centre International in Toronto, Canada in addition to appearing on the TV show Let the Quran Speak. The organization also runs a Facebook page.
For more information, and a collection of Ally’s work, see his site on Islamio. He also updates a Facebook page regularly. Some videos of his lectures may also be found on Let the Quran Speak’s YouTube page.
Selected Bibliography:
“Dr. Shabir Ally.” Islamio. Islamio, n.d. Accessed 13 June 2015.
“Shabir Ally.” Facebook. Facebook, n.d. Accessed 13 June 2015.
“Meet Dr. Shabir Ally!” The Muslim Debate Initiative Blog. N.p., 15 Nov. 2012. Accessed 13 June 2015.
“Shabir Ally.” Veritas. W3 Creatives, n.d. Accessed 13 June 2015.