Atmospheric Pressure and its Effects

Man’s need of Oxygen:

In His Holy Quran Allah, All-Mighty, says,
“And whomsoever Allah wills to guide, He opens his breast to Islam; and whomsoever He wills to send astray, He makes his breast closed and constricted, as if he were climbing up into the sky. Thus Allah puts wrath on those who believe not.”

[VI; 125]

The above Verse is an example of the scientific miracles of the Holy Quran, and it also provides clear evidence of Muhammad’s being Allah’s Prophet and Messenger. It has now been proved in medical science of aviation and space that excessive heights above the Earth’s surface cause physiological changes in the human body that are manifested by a feeling of closed-ness and constriction in the breast until one reaches the critical stage mentioned in the Holy Quran:
“He makes his breast closed and constricted, as if he were climbing up into the sky”.

This is because the higher one goes up into the sky, the lesser atmospheric pressure and the lesser oxygen is there.
If man goes up to a height of 10,000 feet above sea level, he feels decrease of both oxygen and atmospheric pressure. If he goes higher up to 16,000 feet high, his pulse increases and so do his breathing and blood pressure, in order to provide his body with the necessary oxygen. If, however, he goes up higher to 25,000 feet high, his body fails to cope with such an unfamiliar height. So what happens? Certain symptoms begin to show. First, he feels that his breast is closed and constricted:
“He makes his breast closed and constricted, as if he were climbing up into the sky”.


If, however, man goes up more than 25,000 feet high, he loses consciousness. That is why planes that fly higher than 40,000 feet high are provided with eight times as much air as they are on the Earth’s surface, so as to make the pressure in them equal that on the Earth’s surface; otherwise passengers would lose consciousness. Thus, the above Quranic Verse provides clear evidence of the miraculous nature of the Holy Quran and Muhammad’s being Allah’s Prophet and Messenger.
The above-mentioned are facts about symptoms in case of decrease of Oxygen, but what about symptoms in case of decrease of atmospheric pressure?
Scientists say that with the decrease of atmospheric pressure all gases in the body expand and blast out tissues as well as organs and other parts of the body such as the lungs, the colon, and the middle ear. In fact, decrease of atmospheric pressure has serious unbearable effects on the human body, particularly stomach ache, colon ache, ear ache, and pains in the lungs and joints. All such unbearable aches and pains are caused by the decrease of atmospheric pressure. But the question is: How did Allah’s Messenger, Muhammad, (PBUH), know such fact?! Did he, or anyone else at his time, ever climb up into the sky so as to describe such a natural phenomenon?! No! Of course not! But it is Allah, All-Mighty, Who revealed to him the above-mentioned Verse,
“And whomsoever Allah wills to guide, He opens his beast to Islam; and whomsoever He wills to send astray, He makes his breast closed and constricted, as if he were climbing up into the sky. Thus Allah puts wrath on those who believe not.”

[VI; 125]

That is why Ali, the venerable Companion, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “In the Holy Quran are indeed Verses that have not been yet interpreted!”
Only with the development of science, and only when man went up high above the Earth’s surface on balloons airplanes, he could unveil such cosmic facts. When you fly in an airplane, you do not feel such things as above mentioned, because special apparatuses press the air inside the plane in order to make the pressure inside equal to that on the Earth’s surface. If such apparatuses were suddenly to break down, the plane has to make an immediate forced-landing, otherwise all passengers on board would be killed. This is the meaning of Allah’s Words
“He makes his breast closed and constricted, as if he were climbing up into the sky”.

A study under the title “High Pressures” has been lately shown. It began by defining the unit of atmospheric pressure, which is the pressure of the atmosphere that is equal to the weight of 1333 grams on one square centimeter, i.e. the weight of 76 cubic centimeters of Mercury on one square centimeter. The human body, whose area is from 1 to 2 square meters, unconsciously bears 10 – 20 tons of air. In other words, on the Earth we exist in the midst of a deep vast ocean of air, and each one of us bears 10 – 20 tons of air on himself/herself.
Scientists hold that the pressure in the Earth’s interior is equal to 3600,000,000 units of the Earth’s atmospheric pressure. The pressure in the Sun’s interior is equal to 100 billion units of the Earths atmospheric pressure. The interior pressure of a neutron star, which used to be as big as the Sun but then became only 14 kilometers in diameter, is a million million billion units of the Earth’s atmospheric pressure.
Diamond is the hardest pressed element on Earth, for it has undergone 4 million units of the Earth’s atmospheric pressure, which is more than that of the Earth’s center. But some scientific research centers have been able to press charcoal up to 5000 units at a temperature of 2000 degrees Celsius and made it the so-called “artificial diamond”, which is widespread on markets of jewelry.
Medical scientists have also found out that liquid medicines are more beneficial than pressed ones, since pressure may affect the nature of matter.
Another fact that I would like to put forward to you, as it might be of great use is psychological matters, is that the biggest and most expensive piece of diamond in the world is worth 140 million Dollars. If we get a lump of charcoal of the same size and compare them together, we find out that it is high pressures that change cheap charcoal into precious diamond.
True faith in Allah and His Messenger, living for a great Cause and exposure to great pressures, are sure to turn a true believer into a brilliant person.
Cheap ordinary coal, a piece of which costs only a pence, turns into priceless diamond if it is put under high pressures.
Idleness, sport and following one’s lusty desires and caprices do not make true faith, nor do they make heroism or excellence, but great pressures for the Cause of Allah do.
The above physical fact is very useful for improving our relationship with Allah, Most Gracious, Whose Messenger, (PBUH), lived a life full of pressures: he migrated from his hometown and tasted different kinds of sufferings. But the more sufferings he underwent, the nearer to Allah he became. Difficulties always breed ease; and a dark night is always followed by a bright day. Allah, Most Gracious, says,
“And it may be that you dislike a thing that is good for you and that you may like a thing that is bad for you.”