Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV’s (rh) 1998 work, Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth, presents a reflective and intellectually engaging discussion on the concept of a cyclic universe, framed through both the Holy Quran and, at that time, the contemporary scientific thought. In exploring the relationship between divine revelation and modern cosmology, he proposes that the universe does not simply begin once and end once; rather, it moves through recurring phases of creation, dissolution and rebirth.
Harmonising scientific evidence with the Quranic perspective
A central theme in the book is the idea of a universal collapse and regeneration. Huzoor (rh) draws upon the Quranic imagery of the heavens being “rolled up like the rolling up of written scrolls” (Surah al-Anbiya, Ch.21: V.105), suggesting a parallel to scientific notions such as the “Big Crunch,” in which the universe’s expansion eventually halts and reverses into a cosmic implosion. He posits that just as the universe emerged from an initial singularity, this same process may unfold repeatedly as implied from the verse. After collapsing, the universe could be reborn in a new “Big Bang”, initiating another cycle of cosmic evolution. In his view, these recurring cycles underscore God’s attribute as the perpetual Creator, continuously bringing new universes into existence rather than acting through a singular, isolated act of creation.
Although Huzoor’s (rh) perspective is rooted in interpreting the verses and predates various contemporary cosmological models, it resonates intriguingly with Sir Roger Penrose’s later proposal of Conformal Cyclic Cosmology (CCC). Both frameworks challenge the notion of a single, absolute beginning to the universe, proposing instead that our known cosmos may be one phase in an ongoing sequence of cosmic epochs. However, the mechanisms differ: whereas Huzoor (rh) invokes a model similar to the “Big Bounce” or oscillatory universe – where expansion is followed by collapse – Penrose’s CCC avoids a collapse altogether. Instead, CCC envisions an infinitely expanded, low‑energy universe that is mathematically rescaled to give rise to a new Big Bang. Despite these differences, both perspectives converge on the profound idea that cosmic history may extend far beyond the confines of a single beginning and a single end. In my humble view, Penrose’s model not only harmonises remarkably well with the verse but may in fact be seen as an advancement upon earlier cosmological interpretations.
We also note that in another verse, Allah has said:
اَللّٰہُ یَبۡدَؤُا الۡخَلۡقَ ثُمَّ یُعِیۡدُہٗ ثُمَّ اِلَیۡہِ تُرۡجَعُوۡنَ
“Allah originates creation; then He repeats it; then to Him shall you be brought back.” (Surah ar-Rum, Ch.30: V.12)
In the 20th century, humankind was able to understand that it all began at one point, a singularity called “Big Bang”. This was prophesied to be understood by humans one day,
اَوَلَمۡ یَرَ الَّذِیۡنَ کَفَرُوۡۤا اَنَّ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَالۡاَرۡضَ کَانَتَا رَتۡقًا فَفَتَقۡنٰہُمَا
“Do not the disbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were a closed-up mass, then We opened them out?” (Surah al-Anbiya, Ch.21: V.31)
Huzoor (rh) contrasts these Quranic verses with the scientific theories prevalent in the late 1990s. He observes that, at the time, many cosmologists leaned toward a model of perpetual expansion, envisioning a universe that would continue stretching outward indefinitely. In contrast, he highlights that the Quranic narrative alludes to a dramatic reversal of this expansion – a cosmic contraction resembling what modern cosmology terms the “Big Crunch.”
The ever-expanding universe
Brian P Schmidt, an Australian astrophysicist, received the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics for his role in the dramatic discovery that the universe is not merely expanding, but expanding at an accelerating rate. Before 1998, the prevailing expectation among cosmologists was that gravity would gradually slow the universe’s expansion. However, Schmidt’s observations of distant supernovae revealed a startlingly different reality: the expansion is not decelerating but accelerating. This discovery reshaped modern cosmology, leading to the widely accepted interpretation that the universe will not reverse into a collapse, but will instead continue expanding indefinitely – its growth driven by the mysterious force known as dark energy, potentially culminating in a dramatic “Big Rip.”
“In the Big Rip theory the universe’s rapid expansion will continue accelerating to a point where the universe will travel faster than the speed of light.”
Penrose’s Conformal Cyclic Cosmology (CCC)
Sir Roger Penrose, awarded the Nobel Prize in 2020, introduced an audacious and deeply imaginative cosmological model known as Conformal Cyclic Cosmology (CCC). In this vision, our universe is not a one‑time phenomenon that began with a singular Big Bang. Instead, Penrose proposes that what we call “the universe” is merely one aeon in an endless chain of cosmic epochs – each aeon giving way to the next in a seamless cosmic rhythm. This could be as high as the heat‑death timescale of 10¹⁰⁰ years.
“Never-ending story: the spacelike crossover is simultaneously the conformal infinity at the end of one aeon and the Big Bang singularity of the next.”
A central pillar of CCC is Penrose’s reinterpretation of the Big Bang itself. Rather than viewing it as an absolute beginning arising from nothingness, he describes it as a transition from the infinitely distant future of a previous aeon. In this framework, the death of one universe becomes the birth of the next. The Big Bang, therefore, is not an origin point but a boundary linking two consecutive cosmic eras.
To make such a transition mathematically and conceptually coherent, Penrose relies on the idea of conformal rescaling. In the unimaginably distant future – after all stars have burned out, all matter has decayed, and black holes have evaporated through Hawking radiation – the universe will consist entirely of massless particles such as photons. In a world without mass, the notions of scale, size and even the passage of time lose their meaning. Penrose shows that when this scale‑free, cold and diffuse universe is mathematically “rescaled,” it becomes indistinguishable from the hot, dense conditions associated with a Big Bang. In other words, the end state of one aeon smoothly transforms into the beginning of the next.
CCC also offers an elegant response to one of cosmology’s persistent puzzles: the low‑entropy state of the early universe. According to the second law of thermodynamics, entropy-often understood as disorder-should increase over time. Yet the universe’s beginning appears improbably ordered. Penrose suggests that black hole evaporation plays a crucial role in resolving this paradox. As black holes disappear, they take with them an enormous amount of entropy, effectively resetting the cosmic entropy level. This cleansing process allows each new aeon to start in a state of remarkable order, consistent with what we observe of our own universe’s early conditions.
Penrose further contends that traces of earlier aeons may still be visible in our universe today, pointing to what he calls “Hawking Points” unusual, localised hot spots in the Cosmic Microwave Background that he interprets as the final radiation bursts from supermassive black holes evaporating in a previous aeon – and to concentric circular patterns in the CMB, which he suggests could be the lingering gravitational‑wave imprints of black hole collisions that occurred before our own cosmic cycle began. There is some evidence of his model providing evidence of CCC’s validation. I hope in the future, more research can decisively prove it.
Conclusion
We know an attribute of Allah, known as the “Originator”, as a verse states:
بَدِیۡعُ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَالۡاَرۡضِ
“[He is] the Originator of the heavens and the earth.” (Surah al-Baqarah, Ch.2: V.118)
“(Originator) is derived from بدع, which means, he originated a thing or brought it into existence newly (i.e. for the first time, the thing not having existed before) and not after the similitude of anything pre-existing (Lane). The word ابداع (which is the infinitive form of بدیع ), when used about God, means originating a thing without any tool or instrument or pattern and without matter (Mufradat). Thus, the word combines the idea of originating and creating.” (The Holy Quran with English Translation and Commentary, 2:118, p. 213)
The prevailing cosmological models suggest that the universe eventually reaches a state in which all matter dissolves into a profound emptiness, only for creation to unfold anew as a fresh beginning emerges from that abyss.
Huzoor’s (rh) perspective, though grounded primarily in the reflective study of Quranic verses and formulated well before many contemporary cosmological models, nevertheless aligns in remarkably thought-provoking ways with Sir Roger Penrose’s later framework of Conformal Cyclic Cosmology. Both views challenge the assumption of a singular, absolute beginning to the universe, proposing instead that our cosmos represents a recurring sequence of cosmic cycles. In doing so, this perspective also stands in contrast to the notion of an endlessly expanding universe inflating into infinity. Seen through this lens, Penrose’s CCC appears to harmonise strikingly with the Quranic proclamation: “Remember the day when We shall roll up the heavens like the rolling up of written scrolls by a scribe. As We began the first creation, so shall We repeat it – a promise binding upon Us; We shall certainly perform it.” (Surah al-Anbiya, Ch.21: V.105)
Such resonance reveals a compelling convergence between Quranic insight and modern cosmological thought, encouraging a deeper appreciation of the universe as a dynamic, recurring creation.