“Quranic Architecture,” an illustration of which is shown above, refers to how the Quran is arranged and presented, which includes structural, stylistic, and graphic elements, with the goal of presenting the Quran as a whole in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of its meaning and our relationship to it as readers. It fits into a meaningful spiral shape found everywhere in Allah’s creation, and it also is a significant example of sacred geometry, famously found in the chambered nautilus which meaningfully connects to the Quran, as discussed in this blog.
A couple of explanatory PDFs are below that help read the above chart: 1) a list of names for suras by number (names wouldn’t fit on the chart), and 2) a table with brief explanations for the first 12 suras, which serve as a template for the pie sections (“Houses”) each of which represents a “month” repeated in each turn of the spiral.
The names of Quranic suras by number: a link to the pdf file.
1st 12 Suras^J Houses^J Hijri months Chart.pdfDownload
It’s also important to understand this:
How the Quran Was Sent Down, to know how Divine Messages are sent, unlike human “inspiration.”
The picture above shows how the entire Quran can be envisioned in a single image, showing how the order of suras, roughly from largest to smallest, forms a spiral which contains 12 suras in each turn. Its design is a familiar and beautiful shape:
A chambered nautilus shell, each sura (a word that means “enclosure”) a chamber in that shell, as pictured above. An overview is in the post below. The chambered nautilus also forms a fascinating mathal or metaphor for understanding the Quran explained in this post.
A Summary of Quranic Architecture, a shorter overview of what is meant by Quranic Architecture on this blog.
The spiral as a shape is found in nature in everything from DNA to hurricanes to galaxies to our fingerprints. This makes it a singularly meaningful structure for the Quran’s profound message. The 12 suras of each completed “turn” of the spiral represent 12 months of the year, making this design also a calendar. Each “month” is a sura or “chamber,” giving us 114 chambers, the number of suras in the Quran.
The Chambered Nautilus and Its Connection to the Quran, gives us the connection between Quranic architecture and the chambered nautilus pictured on this blog, including a downloadable PDF.
Quranic Architecture Is a Calendar
The arrangement is also meaningful because it is a cosmic calendar, based on the 12 constellations that lie along the ecliptic, a plane on which lie the sun, moon, and planets as seen from earth. The positions of stars, by which Allah swears in 56:75 (56+75=131 the first prime palindrome number), have been used from ancient times in celestial navigation, used also for ships and even today by pilots and astronauts (in a technologically-enhanced presentation). The stellar background of the zodiac constellations is thus a useful navigational tool as well as a “timepiece” used by ancient Arabs. This graphically emphasizes that the Quran is a book of guidance. Explained in the post below:
Quranic Architecture as a Calendar, How the Quran’s order of surahs forms an architectural calendar with an updated image and PDF.
The 12 Zodiac constellations as “signs” whose meaning is determined and enlightened by the Quran itself is reflected in its architecture. Allah thus utilizes a whole constellation of meaning to present its most profound truths, such as tawheed and taqwa (monotheism and reverence, an acceptance of the Sacred) to guide us through life.
The Quran Transforms Zodiac to Signs of Ethical Path – a brief description of the meaning of the first twelve suras and how it the zodiac’s symbolism is transformed in the Quran to clear ethical guidance, not divination.
Quranic Architecture’s Cosmic Connection, more details on how the year’s journey reflects our journey to Allah, using one of the most commonly used navigational “signs” in the heavens, the zodiac, transforming our understanding of its purpose. The post below gives the specifics.
Why 114 Suras? Explains each of the 12 Zodiac “signs” and the Hijri months both connect to the meaning and placement of the first 12 suras, reflected in the “Houses” of each “pie section” in the above-pictured chart or illustration of Quranic architecture.
This architectural design, mathematically tied to the Quran itself, gives us a view of the Quran analogous to the earth as seen from space: we can see the whole (shape/ image) but not the particulars (text, content). One can then “zoom in and out” to examine its words, ayat, surahs, and sections as they are meaningfully placed in the whole. Below is a pdf that explains the subject in much more detail: quranic-architecture-the-chambered-nautilus-and-the-circle-of-time.pdf
The Quran Constant, Proof of a Divine Security System – A professor and systems analyst discovered a key to the entire Quran’s math-based system protecting it from change, down to the letter, called the “Quran Constant” or QC. Which is in fact based on the “golden ratio.” An earth-shattering discovery complete with sophisticated mathematical proofs!
What Are Houses in Quranic Architecture? These are the “pie sections” in the Quranic Architecture chart above, representing recurring months – each “pie section” is a month as it recurs through the years, thus a multiple-year calendar. This post explains how they fit into the Quran’s structure, and how they can aid interpretation. Fascinating results. Includes graphics illustrating the concept as well as a downloadable pdf.
An Even More Basic Structure: the {2,3,4} and {3,4} Sets (the 2nd a subset of the first)
Is the Quran’s Structure Based on Allah’s Name? And it seems likely all creation reflects this mathematical pattern found in significant parts of the Quran as well. This set is mentioned in two ayat, which scholars have wondered about for centuries: An-Nisa’ 4:3 (regarding numbers of wives, something earthly) and Fatir 35:1 (regarding numbers of angels’ wings, something celestial).
Some important & fascinating facts about this design
- The 12 “months” for 114 suras form 9.5 years. Prophet Noah “remained among his people a thousand years minus fifty years” (29:14), which is 950 years. Move the decimal point 2 spaces to the right, and you have a match. Explained in the post below.
- Interpretation of Numbers 9.5 and 19
- The nautilus design is also like an ark, analogous to Noah’s, “inspired by Allah/God” just as the Quran was inspired by Him. Its purpose is both guidance and protection for those who “board the ark,” in our case, read the Quran. Because it is by reading or listening to the Quran that we “activate” it in our hearts.
- The first sura, Al-Fatiha, means “The Opening.” In this shell architecture, it is indeed a real opening, the only open-ended sura in the Quranic Architecture. Because it is a prayer, always “open” to connect us with Allah. Prayer is also our protection against the “ocean” of life in this world, and the coming catastrophic Judgment Day, directly analogous to the flood of Noah.
This blog is a Quran-centered site, with a mind to unite and include the whole Muslim world in a broader understanding of Allah, of the role of the Prophet, and of Islam itself. I use the name Allah instead of God (although I occasionally use that word too for people’s understanding) because it has amazing properties you wouldn’t want to miss. For those, check out the
Who Is Allah? page. Explains why the name Allah is far and away more meaningful than the word “God,” but not naming a “different god” as some unthinking or ignorant people claim or have been told. Both words refer to the Almighty All-Merciful Creator we all intuitively recognize. The page also links to this post, analyzing the amazing phrase “La illaha illa Allah” which means “there is no god but God” in Arabic. And More!
The word “Quran” means “recitation” or “reading”, referring to the words themselves and their meanings, also unequivocally telling us in its very title why it was sent: to be read and heard by people. It’s not at all strange that Allah would have a “signature” on His creation as well as His Revelations. It is our hope that this site (which is also part of a larger project) will encourage Muslims, and all people interested in finding the truth, to actually read the Quran to discover its overwhelming and mind-blowing, beautiful, all-important meaning.
114 Chambers 