In the Holy Qur’an, it is stated that halva (manna) was sent from the sky upon Musa’s (Moses) (pbuh) people. Does the halva pour down from the sky?

In the Holy Qur’an, it is stated that halva (manna) was sent from the sky upon Musa’s (Moses) (pbuh) people. Does the halva pour down from the sky?

Dear Brother / Sister,

“And We gave you the shade of clouds and sent down to you Manna and quails, saying: "Eat of the good things We have provided for you:" (But they rebelled); to us they did no harm, but they harmed their own souls.” (Al-Baqara, 57)

Manna that God sent down from the sky to the Children of Israel who murdered their Prophets is narrated as follows in the Quran: .

God sent a cloud on the sons of Israel in order to protect them from the scorching desert heat. The desert without rain or cloud was like a ‘hell’ that emitted fire and sparked flames. God sent down the shade of clouds to cool them, and sent manna and quails when their reserves ran out of food and beverages. In this way, the desert which was not different from the hell before, turned into the gardens of Eden in which they settled down quietly. However, despite these abundant blessings of God, the sons of Israel did not feel it beneath them to be grateful at least for once.

Tafsir scholars put forward different ideas about what Manna means. Narrating from Ibn Abbas, Ali Ibn Abu Talha says:

 “Manna was falling upon the trees on the people, and they were eating this Manna however they wanted.”

Mujahid also says that Manna is something like adhesive. On the one hand, Imam Suddi says: “They told ‘Oh Musa! How will it be here, where is the food for us?’ Therefore, God sent down Manna (halva) on them. They were falling upon the ginger tree.”

On the other hand, Qatada says that Manna was falling upon the ground like snow and it was whiter than milk, sweeter than honey. Qatada, moreover, points out that the halva was falling from dawn to sunrise.

Today, in the manner that the verses of the Qur’an express and tafsir scholars interpret, there is a sweet and healing matter which is called “gezo”, “stum” or directly “manna” and pours down onto the woodland in some regions.

It is stated by the local people that this stum is pouring heavily in every spring and summer in Mardin, Cizre. Sheik Mehmed Bahir Hashimi of Cizre expresses that first modest lightning flash, then, the halva start to fall from the sky like snowing only onto the woodland parts. The halva which is indicated to be sweeter than honey and sugar adheres to the leaves of oak tree. However, the halva does not adhere to the leaves in a way to ruin its content. Halva contains less acid than the sugar and sweet on the market.

 

What do the Torah and the Bible say for this matter?

 

Manna takes place in the Holy scripture (The Bible and Torah). Christians call the halva as ‘tomana’ while Qur’an calls it as ‘manna’.

The following  is stated in a verse in the chapter of Numbers in the Torah.

“And the manna was as coriander seed, and the color thereof as the color of bdellium.  And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil. And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.”(Numbers 11:7, 8, 9)

 

The verses in the chapter of the Exodus of Torah indicate the existence of manna.

 

“And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host. And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground.  And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, this is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat.” (Exodus 16: 13, 14, 15)

 

Both Christians and Jewish people believe in the Manna at least as much as we do. However, the Jehovah’s witnesses, who say that they are dependent on the Holy Scripture (the Bible), do not believe that manna is still falling down. In addition, the English science magazine ‘Nature’ treated the topic in the issue of January 1981.

In conclusion, if the gainsayers who deny the limitless blessings of God even though they eat the food He provides no matter what its nature is deny vivid, sweet, wonderfully colored, brilliantly scented foods coming out of the tasteless, colorless, scentless ground, they will certainly deny the manna which falls from the sky.

Faith is made up of trial and testing.

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