| Topic: |
Science > Physics |
| User: |
"" |
| Date: |
10 Jan 2005 06:05:26 PM |
| Object: |
where did tsunami destroy, and where not |
PONDICHERRY, India (AP) - Religious devotees believe a divine force
saved this port city from last week's tsunami, but the vendors who
sell fruit and snacks next to the sea say it really was France.
During the city's nearly three centuries as a French colonial enclave,
French engineers built and maintained a massive, stone sea wall that
kept Pondicherry's historic center dry even though tsunami waves drove
water 24 feet above the normal high-tide mark.
IFRAME:
http://z1.adserver.com/w/cp.x;rid=75;tid=6;ev=1;dt=2;ac=64;c=748;
[cp.x;rid=75;tid=6;ev=1;dt=3;ac=64;c=748;]
"The water rose quickly, up to the main road," said M. Keshavan, a
23-year-old who sells mangos and crispy snacks to tourists visiting
the wall. He pointed to a two-foot retaining wall next to the road
that runs along the top of the sea wall: "It stopped there."
The Pondicherry district recorded some 600 deaths from the huge waves
that struck India's southeastern coast after a mammoth earthquake off
Indonesia, but most of those killed were fishermen who lived in
villages beyond the man-made barrier.
On Dec. 26, when towering waves crashed against India's southern
coast, the wall held. Keshavan said the water then receded from the
harbor to where the seabed drops off into deep water - about 650 feet
out from the wall.
"There was nothing but wet sand. People ran out to pick up the fish
that were left behind, but the police ordered them to come back," he
said.
The ocean surged into the harbor and retreated two more times before
the sea finally returned to normal, he said.
"Pondicherry was very safe because of the rock barrier," said S.
Subramanian, manager of the Tourist Information Bureau, which has its
office on the road overlooking the ocean. He said only the fishing
villages and beach resorts on either side of the barrier were damaged.
Every year the sea wall is inspected. Whenever gaps appear, or the
stones sink into the sand, the government adds more boulders to keep
it strong, he said.
The deep-water harbor itself also helped. The steep drop-off forms an
underwater wall that breaks up the power of incoming waves.
In neighboring Bangladesh, which had only two deaths from the tsunami,
there is a similar natural barrier. Billions of tons of sediment
carried into the sea by the country's numerous rivers slowed the sea
surges before they hit the coast.
Not everyone believes the wall was responsible for keeping the city
safe.
At a religious retreat established in the French Quarter in 1926 by
Indian guru Sri Aurobindo, an anti-colonial revolutionary turned
scholar and holy man, devotees attributed the city's salvation to
Aurobindo and his French-born wife, whom they call "The Mother."
"I am not sure you will believe this, but it was The Mother who
protected the city," said S. Ramanathan, an elderly devotee who lives
and works in the ashram. "I stay in a very protected place, so we are
not affected by the tsunami at all."
Keshavan, the vendor, answers that there was nothing supernatural
about Pondicherry's escape.
"It was this wall," he said, standing confidently on top of the
barrier as waves splashed below.
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| User: "habachi-wog" |
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| Title: Re: where did tsunami destroy, and where not |
10 Jan 2005 08:21:06 PM |
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Earthquakes in the Islamic culture
uploaded 05 Jan 2005
??? ???????? ???????? ???????? ????????? ????? ?????????? ?????????? ??????
??????? - ?????? ??????????? ???????? ????? ?????????? ?????? ??????????
???????? ????? ????? ?????? ????????? ??????? ???????? ???????? ????? ???
?????????? ????????? ??????? ??????? ???????
"O mankind! Fear your Lord and be dutiful to Him! Verily, the earthquake of
the Hour (of Judgement) is a terrible thing. The Day you shall see it, every
mother giving suck shall forget her suckling-babe, and every pregnant female
shall drop her load (unformed): you shall see mankind as in a drunken riot,
yet not drunk: but dreadful will be the Wrath of Allah." [al-hajj 22:1-2]
????? ?????????? ????????? ???????????? - ???????????? ?????????
???????????? - ??????? ??????????? ??? ????? - ?????????? ?????????
???????????? - ??????? ??????? ??????? ?????
"When the Earth is shaken with her (final) earthquake. And Earth yields up
her burdens, And man says: What has befallen her? On that day she shall tell
her news, Because your Lord had inspired her." [al-zilzala, 99:1-5]
?????????? ??????? ??? ????????????? ??????????? ??????????? ???????????
??????? ?????????????? ????? ????? ????? ???????? ???????????? ????
??????????????
"Do you feel secure that He Who is in heaven will not cause you to be
swallowed up by the earth when it shakes (as in an earthquake)?" [al mulk
64.16]
The news of the last week has been dominated by discussions of earthquakes
and tidal waves. This is understandable considering the high death toll
following the Indian Ocean tsunami. Occurrences of this kind often push us,
to think deeply about our predicament as human beings. That is, we are
continually at the mercy of the elements. It is thought that the earth's
surface is physically built up of a series of tectonic plates that shift,
collide and interact to release and retain the pressure that lies beneath,
generated by the molten furnaces of the inners of this planet. Therefore
living with seismic activity has always been an aspect of human existence.
It follows then that thinkers and observers have always passed comment on
this phenomenon.
The 1755 Lisbon earthquake compelled the French philosopher, Voltaire to
question the nature of a god that would allow such an occurrence to happen.
The priests of Lisbon however had few questions relating god's attributes to
the tragic event. It was clear to them that it was a punishment from god.
Instead of turning their attentions to the 50,000 that died in the quake,
they proceeded to salvage crucifixes and religious icons from the collapsing
buildings. To them church paraphernalia was more important than the lives of
"sinners". They did this to ward off more catastrophes sent by a god made
irate by the behaviour of people of Lisbon. Immanuel Kant was so disturbed
by the Lisbon earthquake that he wrote three separate treatise on the issue
of earthquakes. Earthquakes feature commonly in the old Judaeo-Christian
text as well as the writings of ancient Greece and Rome. Thus philosophies
and religions have addressed the natural phenomenon of earthquakes. All of
these reams of text on the subject should come as no surprise as
civilisations for millennia have experienced the deviation resulting from
earthquakes.
Seismic convulsions also have a particular prominence within the texts of
Islam. In the Quran there are also several references to earthquakes in
various contexts. Similarly the hadith of Rasool-Allah (Sallallahu alaihi
wasallam) refer to this phenomenon. Earthquakes have been addressed in
relation to civilisations that have been destroyed previously, as well as in
relation to the end of the world and the accountability that we will all
face, and also in relation to the signs of the hour. Thus earthquakes are
central to the general culture of Islam.
There is a whole surat that bares the name, al-zilzala "the earthquake".
This is one of the most profound chapters in the Quran in that it describes
in the most comprehensive way, but within the simplest of terms exactly what
the whole issue of the day of judgement is leading up to. That is, to see
the results of our good and bad actions.
Abu Hurraairah narrated that Rasool-Allah (Sallallahu alaihi wasallam)
recited (?????????? ????????? ????????????) "On that day she shall tell her
news" [Al-Zilala, 99:4]. Then he (Sallallahu alaihi wasallam) inquired, "Do
you know what its 'news' are?" He was told "Allah and His Rasool know
better." He said, "Its news are that it shall bear witness against every
slave man and woman concerning that which they did on its back. It will say
'you did this and this on such and such day.' These will be its news."
(tirmithi)
There are many other verses (see above) that address the subject of the end
of the world using the shaking of the earth to describe the horrors of that
day.
The Quran also describes the narrative of how the communities that had
disobeyed Allah's (Subhanahu wa ta'ala) command or rejected the message that
was brought to them.
??????? ???????? ????????? ????????? ??????? ??? ?????? ????????? ???????
????????? ????????? ???????? ????? ????????? ??? ????????? ??????????? -
???????????? ?????????????? ??????????? ???????????? ??? ?????????
?????????? - ???????? ????????? ????? ?????????? ????? ???? ??????????????
????????? ?????? ???????????? ????????????? ??????????? ???? ??????????
????????? ???????????????
"And to (the people of) Madyan (Midian), We sent their brother Shu'aib
(Shuaib). He said: "O my people! Worship Allah, and hope for (the reward of
good deeds by worshipping Allâh Alone, on) the last Day, and commit no
mischief on the earth as Mufsidun (those who commit great crimes,
oppressors, tyrants, mischief-makers, corrupts). And they belied him
[Shu'aib (Shuaib)], so the earthquake seized them, and they lay (dead),
prostrate in their dwellings. And 'Ad and Thamud (people)! And indeed (their
destruction) is clearly apparent to you from their (ruined) dwellings.
Shaitan (Satan) made their deeds fair-seeming to them, and turned them away
from the (Right) Path, though they were intelligent." [al Ankabout 29:
36-38]
??????????? ?????????? ?????????? ???? ?????? ????????? ?????????? ???
??????? ???????? ????? ????????? ??? ????? ???? ?????????????? -
?????????????? ??????????? ????????????? ??? ????????? ?????????? -
?????????? ???????? ??????? ??? ?????? ?????? ?????????????? ?????????
?????? ?????????? ?????? ??????? ???? ?????????? ?????????????
"So they killed the she camel and insolently defied the Commandment of their
Lord, and said: "O Salih (Saleh)! Bring about your threats if you are indeed
one of the Messengers (of Allah)." So the earthquake seized them, and they
lay (dead), prostrate in their homes. Then he [Salih (Saleh)] turned from
them, and said: "O my people! I have indeed conveyed to you the Message of
my Lord, and have given you good advice but you like not good advisers."
[al-araaf 7:77-79]
????? ??????? ???? ????? ?????? ??????????? ?????? ????? - ????????? ????
?????? ????????? ?????????????? ???????????? ?????? ?????????? - ?????
???????????? ??? ??????? ????? ??????? ????????????
"And in the Thamud (was another Sign): Behold, they were told, "Enjoy (your
brief day) for a little while!" But they insolently defied the Command of
their Lord: So the stunning noise (of an earthquake) seized them, even while
they were looking on. Then they could not even stand (on their feet), nor
could they help themselves." [Adh-Dhariyat 51:43-45]
The sayings of Rasool-Allah (Sallallahu alaihi wasallam) also made reference
to the issue of earthquakes. Again these are in several contexts. One of
which was in relation to the signs of the hour that is to come.
Narrated Ibn 'Umar: (The Prophet) said, "O Allah! Bless our Sham and our
Yemen." People said, "Our Najd as well." The Prophet again said, "O Allah!
Bless our Sham and Yemen." They said again, "Our Najd as well." On that the
Prophet said, "There will appear earthquakes and afflictions, and from there
will come out the side of the head of Satan." [Bukhari]
Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet said, "The Hour (Last Day) will not be
established until (religious) knowledge will be taken away (by the death of
religious learned men), earthquakes will be very frequent, time will pass
quickly, afflictions will appear, murders will increase and money will
overflow amongst you." (See Hadith No. 85 Vol 1). [Bukhari]
In the light of the earthquakes, every human being should look to himself or
herself and contemplate whether they are living their lives as they should.
As for the Muslim, all of these discussions of earthquakes should prompt us
to think about out situation. Just as importantly all this discussion should
urge us to look deeply into the aspects of Islam where earthquakes are
referred. Most important of all, this topic should force us to contemplate
on our preparation for the day of reckoning.
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