When speaking of the formation and shaping of the sama' (all that is above the earth; atmosphere and beyond) as we know it today, we read in 79:27-33 that it was done before the earth was made hospitable for the humans with water, plants, and animals.
This process of accommodating earth to human life took 4 ayyam 41:10, while the prior shaping of the earth itself took 2 ayyam 41:9. This shaping of the earth initiated together with the universe 41:11. God in this verse tells both entities to come forth from their primordial state, not towards eachother but each on their own, to which they submitted. For the heaven, this resulted in its layering and filling with the celestial bodies in 2 ayyam 42:12 and for the earth, as already stated a few verses earlier in 41:9, it resulted in its finalization just prior to accommodating it for human life 41:10.
Although a superficial reading results in a total of 8 ayyam of creation, yet a closer look reveals otherwise.
41:9-10 is sequential, totalizing 6 ayyam of creation (2 to shape the earth followed by 4 to make it suitable for human life). As already stated, the universe as we known it was formed prior to earth's accommodation for life 79:27-33 meaning 42:12 giving 2 ayyam for the universe's formation cannot have occurred after the 6 ayyam cited earlier for shaping earth and making it habitable.
41:9-10 and 41:11-12 are therefore not sequentially connected, hence the use of thumma/moreover to link both passages. Both these passages contain reference to an overlapping timeline; the 2 ayyam to shape the earth in 41:9 is simultaneous to the 2 ayyam to form the sama' (all that is above the earth; atmosphere and beyond) 41:12, after which came the 4 ayyam to make the earth habitable, thus totalizing 6 ayyam of creation.
The fact that 41:9-10 and 41:11-12 are not sequential is further seen from 41:9-10; although the earth has already been formed and adapted for life, the following passage goes back in time when both heaven and earth were in their primordial state. The heaven is named while still unformed just like its earth counterpart is named while still unformed
41:11"Moreover, He directed Himself to the heaven while it was smoke and said to it and to the earth: Come both, willingly or compelled. They both said: We have come willingly".
It then goes on to broadly speak of the universe's development but not the earth's. Its shaping, the stage just prior to making it suitable for human life was already stated a few verses earlier in 41:9.
This type of literary construction is common in the Quran. In 2:29 the timeline of events is not sequential, hence the use again of thumma/moreover. Attention is first directed to the near and tangible provisions of life before switching man's focus to the great encompassing entity above.
The Quran here isnt trying to convey scientific knowledge but to instil spiritual awareness in connection with the observable nature, by emphasizing different aspects, with each aspect having its own sequence. It first attracts attention to God's blessings close at hand and its gradual development 41:9-10 then directs the eye to the distant surrounding greatness and its gradual development 41:11-12, without the 2 being connected sequentially.
The Quran uses many times this literary device, when it wants to switch emphasis from one aspect to another, although both may exist simultaneously. It states for example in
68:13"Oppressive, moreover/thumma of bad character"
or in 90:17 after enumerating some of the benevolent and righteous acts a believer should perform it says
"Moreover/thumma he is of those who believe"
again this does not denote a sequence rather is focusing on each aspects independently, then laying more stress on correct faith. Same in
81:21"One (to be) obeyed, moreover/thumma faithful in trust".
As to the word yawm, there is ample evidence from the language, the Quran, and ahadith that it conveys the concept of "completion of a task". When speaking of the length of the day of resurrection, although it is referred to as a "Day", it should be noted that it will not be anything like the space and time experienced before, due to the changes in the order of the universe. In the hadith, speaking of the dajjal, the prophet stated
"We said: Allah's Messenger, how long would he stay on the earth? He said: For forty days, one day like a year and one day like a month and one day like a week and the rest of the days would be like your days".
In the Quran too, the concept of day/yawm is used for any period of time 22:47,16:77 from a moment 55:29 to fifty thousand years 70:4 and is dependent on the completion of a specific task. So although the Day of judgement is called yawm, the expiration of that day will depend on the completion of the task of judging mankind, even if that task might go on for many current earthly days. That is why the prophet in certain ahadith compares the single day of resurrection to fifty thousand earthly years.
The same notion applies for the ayyam of creation. Ibn Kathir reports an opinion attributed to ibn Abbas where he recites 22:47"And indeed, a day with your Lord is like a thousand years of those which you count" then says that this relativity of time started when heavens and earth were completed. Obviously, counting time on earth prior was not possible, and hence one could not compare human time relatively to God. But this does not mean that time with God could not be relative to other processes in the universe, as is stated in 70:4.
The same notion applies for the ayyam of creation. Ibn Kathir reports an opinion attributed to ibn Abbas where he recites 22:47"And indeed, a day with your Lord is like a thousand years of those which you count" then says that this relativity of time started when heavens and earth were completed. Obviously, counting time on earth prior was not possible, and hence one could not compare human time relatively to God. But this does not mean that time with God could not be relative to other processes in the universe, as is stated in 70:4.
Whether among the commentators or the companions, we find different opinions on the general sequence of creation; if earth came prior to heaven or vice versa, or even simultaneously. The verses in question are open to interpretation and are not crucial matters of salvation for the prophet to have insisted on a definite view. Ibn Kathir, although favouring the position that earth was created before the heavens, attests to earlier views
"It is said that "Then'' in the Ayah (2:29) relates only to the order of reciting the information being given, it does not relate to the order that the events being mentioned took place, this was reported from Ibn `Abbas by `Ali bin Abi Talhah".
This is the view according to which heaven and earth were simultaneously created. Al Qurtubi, prior to ibn Kathir also cites this view, while adopting the position of heaven preexisting the earth. His conclusion is based on Qataadah's statement that the heavenly smoke was created before the earth 41:11"Then He directed Himself to the heaven while it was smoke.."
As to the hadith in Muslim describing 7 literal days of creation, it was rejected by the scholars of the field, including those more authoritative than Muslim such as Bukhari, for both the matn/content and isnad/narrator chain. The hadith is narrated differently in an-Nasa'i
"Verily Allah created heavens and the earths and whatever is between them in six days. Then he ascended to the Throne on the seventh day. He created the clay on Saturday and He created the mountains on Sunday and He created the trees on Monday and He created al makruh on Tuesday and created nur on Wednesday and He caused the animals to spread on Thursday and created Adam (peace be upon him) after 'Asr on Friday; the last creation at the last hour of the hours of Friday, i. e. between afternoon and night".
Here it begins with the creation of the heavens and the earth in 6 ayyam, before mentioning the weekdays corresponding to each arrangement. This means the ayyam of creation and arrangement are different, just as in the Quran. The mention of weekdays does not indicate which came first, just the specific day on which each arrangement was completed. In Quranic terminology, creation, even through God's creative word "Be" does not entail instantaneous apparition. Most of the time it includes a process. For example trees created on Monday means it started at any given time in the past, then finished on a Monday. Similarily, ibn al Jawzi narrates a majority opinion in regards to Adam's creation
"the time that came upon him was forty years when was shaped out from clay yet the spirit was not breathed into him".
This understanding is in congruence with the Quranic notion of process in the act of creation. The 2 hadith read together imply that Adam's creation initiated at an undetermined time then ended 40 years later on a friday. Another thing to note is that the things listed for every weekday is obviously not exhaustive. The arrangement of the earth doesnt consist of simply clay, mountains, trees etc. The hadith is deliberately selecting things that were created on different days, including Saturday. The point being, as noted by several early authorities, that God's power and implication in the universe and the life of man never ceased or diminished at any moment, as implied with the Biblical notion of the Sabbath which ended God's week of work. The selection of saturday where clay, the elemental origin of humanity was created, as the first day to be cited instead of the last, is highly symbolic from that perspective. As a final point to note, the hadith is focused on the creation of things on the earth. It is unconcerned with the heavens and what they contain. The nur spoken of means light but also entails something positive. It is placed in the hadith opposite to makruh, meaning something disliked.
Finally, one might ask the reason for this gradual process of creation and accommodation of the earth. The answer is that our material world is subjected to the effects of time, which was itself created at the start of the universe. Since then, a chain of processes precedes every occurrence and every thing is contingent on another. This in itself is proof for God's existence as a necessary being who is beyond contingency and infinite regress.
Space and time in our universe evidently came into being with the creation of this universe. The same could have occurred beyond our universe. Stephen Hawking once wrote:
“Events before the Big Bang are simply not defined, because there’s no way one could measure what happened at them. Since events before the Big Bang have no observational consequences, one may as well cut them out of the theory and say that time began at the Big Bang"Space and time ultimately came into being at a certain point, since God, the necessary being precedes all things
"I said: 'O Messenger of Allah! Where was our Lord before He created His creation?' He said: 'He was in ama' (word evoking nothingness) - no air was under him, no air was above him, and He created His Throne upon the water".
Even though the creation of the liquid matter/maa' isnt stated, the first part of the prophet's speech implies it is a creation, and it could not have existed from eternity past
"Allah ordained the measures (of quality) of the creation fifty thousand years before He created the heavens and the earth, as His Throne was upon water".
We see here that time must have somehow preexisted our universe, as is the case for spatial dimension that contained a liquid entity/maa'. Nobody except Allah knows the reality and function of that primordial fluid/liquid. It can be inferred that it has a potential that is subdued to His will, as conveyed through the image of the throne above it. When the command is issued, the potential that is in the water begins to be realized
21:30"and made from water every living thing".
The prophet equally stated in a discussion "I said: O Messenger of Allah, when I see you I feel happy and content, tell me about everything.'' He said "Everything was created from water".
As to the throne, an entity sustained by Allah 9:129,23:116 and whose reality and function are only known to Him, it must have also needed space.
We also notice the existence of realms beyond our created universe. And just as we read in the Quran and ahadith of a sequence in the ayyam of creation in the context of this universe, when we read of something created first in a realm beyond our universe, we must have a holistic grasp of all ahadith on the matter so as to establish an overall sequence of creation across all realms.
As was previously seen, first there was Allah, then the throne was created above the water. Sequentially, we thus have Allah, in a realm beyond comprehension, where He always was and always will be, then water then throne, in a realm of their own. We also read that Allah first created the pen
“Verily the first of what Allah created was the Pen. He said to it: “Write.” So it wrote what will be forever.’”
The pen would thus have been created first in its own realm, beyond that of the primordial water and the throne, and prior to our own realm
"O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! We have come to ask you about this matter (i.e. the start of creations)." He said, "First of all, there was nothing but Allah, His throne was over the water, and He wrote everything in the Book (in the Heaven) and created the Heavens and the Earth."
It is understood here that Allah preceded all things, including the entities spoken of prior to the creation of heavens and earth. In another version
"Then the Prophet (ﷺ) started taking about the beginning of creation and the Throne”.
Both creation (of heavens and earth) and the throne had a beginning.
As a side note, all ahadith speaking of the prophet going beyond the farthest limits of creation, the Lot Tree (Sidrat Al-Muntaha), during his ascension to heaven, and that he saw God's throne on which was written on one of its pillars his own name, are weak reports. Similarly, the story that Adam saw Muhammad’s name written on Allah’s throne has been unequivocally disproved as forged or weak by scholars of hadith, including ibn Taymiyyah, and al-Albani.
Further reading answering Sam Shamoun "Exposing More of Islam’s Scientific Blunders and Fairytales"
