Is Everything Created Out of Water? Will Our Provision Come From Unexpected Places?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam
Question: Assalaamu alaikum,
In the Quran it says that:
1 – Allah made everything out of water. Is this supposed to be taken literally?
2 – Allah will provide for you from places you could never imagine.Is this supposed to be taken literally?
Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,
I pray that you are in the best of health and faith, insha’Allah.
(1) Allah Most High says, “Are the disbelievers not aware that the heavens and the earth used to be joined together and that We ripped them apart, that We made every living thing from water? Will they not believe?” [21.30]
(2) And He says, “And whoever is mindful of Allah, He will grant them a way out, and will provide for them in ways unimagined.” [65.2-3]
See: The Meaning of Rizq (Provision) When Used in the Qur’an and Sunnah and: A Reader on Patience and Reliance on Allah
I asked Shaykh `Ali Hani who said that we understand such verses literally. This is because the basis of language is that it is understood literally unless there is an indication otherwise.
However, Qur’anic verses need to be soundly understood and practised as per the sunna of the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace). Allah’s providing, for instance, will come when a person takes the means. Anything else is just folly.
See also: Understanding the Qur’anic Verse “Slay them wherever you find them”: Balance, Justice, and Mercy in Islamic Rules of Jihad
And Allah alone gives success.
wassalam,
Tabraze Azam
Checked & Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.