The water cycle: a complete description

Surah Az-Zumar Verse 21 2026-09-01 19:29:22
Quranic verses

أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ أَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَسَلَكَهُ يَنَابِيعَ فِي الْأَرْضِ ثُمَّ يُخْرِجُ بِهِ زَرْعًا مُّخْتَلِفًا أَلْوَانُهُ ثُمَّ يَهِيجُ فَتَرَاهُ مُصْفَرًّا ثُمَّ يَجْعَلُهُ حُطَامًا

Have you not considered that Allah sends down rain from the sky and makes it flow as springs in the earth? Then He produces thereby crops of varying colors; then they dry and you see them turned yellow; then He makes them [scattered] debris.

Surah Az-Zumar (39:21)

In Surah Az-Zumar (39:21), the Quran describes the water cycle:

"Have you not seen that Allah sends down rain from the sky, and makes it flow as springs in the earth, then produces thereby crops of varying colors, then they dry and you see them turn yellow, then He makes them [scattered] debris."

This description of the water cycle — descent of rain, infiltration into the soil, formation of springs, growth of plants, then their withering — corresponds to the complete hydrological cycle as described by modern science.

Scientific findings

  • The complete hydrological cycle (evaporation, condensation, precipitation, infiltration)
  • Bernard Palissy's discovery (16th century) on the origin of springs
  • Modern understanding of the water cycle in the 19th century

Scientific references

  • The Water Cycle — USGS (United States Geological Survey, 2020)
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