I always used to think that if Allah can create anything instantly, why did He take 6 days to create the Universe? I gathered some information and here it is. First of all, if Allah wanted, he could have created the heavens and the earths in one day. But then we would have questioned that why Allah created it in one day. Allah wanted to create in six days and He can do whatsoever He wants. This is the first part of this question. (These six days are not equal to our earthly six days. Click here to learn more:Allah says that He has created the heavens and the earths in six days contradicts science)
Why was world created in 6 days when nothing is impossible for Allah: Be & it will be?
As Muslims and as Jews and Christians, we have no problem in believing that if Allah wants something, He says be and it is. There is no problem in that. So if Allah wanted to create the whole universe in a flash that would have been done. But why did Allah choose to create the universe in six days? Well there are some opinions of this question.
Firstly, it is Allah’s way to teach his servants how to be kind and gentle and to take things thoroughly instead of hasting things.
Secondly, when He created it over a span of six days His magnificence, His wisdom and His power was apparent to the angels because it was created bit by bit. So when you create things bit by bit this shows your power and your excellence and your magnificence. When you see how gradually it was created bit by bit this gives you a lot of appreciation to Allah’s power and to Allah’s wisdom.
Alam-e-Amr and Alam-e-Khalq
When Allah talks about His creations, He use two different ways to describe “How He created them”. Here are two examples from each category:
1. The creation from Kun كُن (BE)
Indeed, the example of Jesus to Allah is like that of Adam. He created Him from dust; then He said to him, “Be,” and he was.
Chapter 3 (Surah Al-Imran) verse 59
2. The creation of Khalq
“Indeed your Lord is Allah Who created the heavens and the earth in six Days, then established Himself on the Throne. He makes the day and night overlap in rapid succession. He created the sun, the moon, and the stars—all subjected by His command. The creation and the command belong to Him ˹alone˺. Blessed is Allah—Lord of all worlds!”
Chapter 7 (Surah Al-A`raf) verse 54
If you carefully read these examples, then you will notice that in the creation from Kun, there is no time interference. But in the second example, there is a time frame.
In Islamic theology, “Alam e Amr” translates to “The World of Command” and “Alam e Khalq” means “The World of Creation”.
The Alam-e-Amr is a metaphysical world where there is no time. Creations that are from the Ayam-e-Amr cannot be perceived from the five senses. Souls and angels are the creatures of Alam-e-Amr. Alam-e-Khalq is the physical world. There is a time frame and the creations of Alam-e-Khalq can be perceived from five senses. Our body is a creation of Alam-e-Khalq. The Big Bang, the creation of this universe and everything is from Alam-e-Khalq.
So, when Allah talks about the creations of Alam-e-Khalq, He gives us the time. For example, He created them heavens and the earths in six days. For example, a human baby needs a gestation period of 9 months etc.
When Allah talks about the Alam-e-Amr, He use Kun (no time, be and it is). He Who created Adam without a father or a mother is able to create Isa, as well, without a father. There was no time. He Wills and it becomes.
The Science
This is what even science talks about. Before the Big Bang, there was no time. The science and time starts after the Big Bang. Allah created the souls and angels before He created the universe. Allah SWT asked all of His creatures whether they wanted free will and to be held accountable for their actions in the cosmos. Every entity in His creation declined.
So, when Allah SWT created Hazrat Adam AS, he gathered the souls of all humanity and asked them the same question about being granted the freedom to do whatever they choose while being held accountable for their acts in this life. All human souls accepted Allah SWT’s condition. Of course, we cannot recall this event before our physical body was created after this promise in the Alam-e-Khalq.
Summary
Now because the heavens and the earths are a part of Alam-e-Khalq, that is why Allah has used the time frame.
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