Prophet Noah and The Flood...

format_quote Originally Posted by Gossamer skye

tell me what you understood from what I have written above!

I understood that you feel the ayat should not be taken literally in terms of what it means by "progeny" and what it means by "endure".

You take the former to refer to those who are righteous in conduct, and the latter to mean those who are with guidance.

To support the former, you quote the Qur'anic ayats, which show that Prophet Nuh's son Yam was considered to be not of his family for that very reason.

However, there is a difference between "family" and "progeny". Progeny specifically denotes offspring, while family is a very general term. You can have people who belong to one and not the other.

As for "endure", there is nothing to indicate the meaning, which you propose, as it simply says to endure on the Earth. To endure is to continue to last, or to survive. If it meant as torch bearers of guidance, it would've said so. Instead, all of the ahadith on the subject say that it is literally only his offspring that endures on the Earth.

format_quote Originally Posted by Gossamer skye

this is what I have found of Ibn Kathir:


[وَجَعَلْنَا ذُرِّيَّتَهُ هُمُ الْبَـقِينَ ]

(And, his progeny, them We made the survivors.) "All people descended from the offspring of Nuh, peace be upon him.'' At-Tirmidhi, Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Hatim narrated from Samurah, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet said, concerning the Ayah,

[وَجَعَلْنَا ذُرِّيَّتَهُ هُمُ الْبَـقِينَ ]

(And, his progeny, them We made the survivors):

«سَامُ، وَحَامُ، وَيَافِث»

(Sam, Ham and Yafith.) Imam Ahmad recorded from Samurah, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah said:

«سَامُ أَبُو الْعَرَبِ، وَحَامُ أَبُو الْحَبَشِ، وَيَافِثُ أَبُو الرُّوم»

(Sam was the father of the Arabs, Ham was the father of the Ethiopians and Yafith was the father of the Romans.)'' This was also recorded by At-Tirmidhi. What is meant here by Romans is the original Romans, i.e., the Greeks who claimed descent from Ruma (Roma) the son of Liti, the son of Yunan, the son of Yafith, the son of Nuh, peace be upon him.


http://www.tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=37&tid=44185

Can I find anything to confirm my understanding, I think it is common sense? for who would those of his progeny mate with, if there were only Noah (p) and three sons? you need women.. you should also average in that other survivors, may have been old, or barren or their offspring perished at some point if all that remained were the progeny of Noah!
also apparent from the verse:
But they rejected him, and We delivered him, and those with him, in the Ark: but We overwhelmed in the flood those who rejected Our signs. They were indeed a blind people! (Surat al-Araf: 64)
Thereafter We drowned those who remained behind. (Surat ash-Shuara: 120)
We (once) sent Nuh to his people, and he tarried among them a thousand years less fifty: but the Deluge overwhelmed them while they (persisted in) sin. (Surat al-Ankaboot: 14)
We saved him and those who adhered to him. By Our mercy, and We cut off the roots of those who rejected Our signs and did not believe. (Surat al-Araf: 72)

and Allah swt knows best.

this is my best understanding, anything beyond this I believe you have to direct to a scholar and not lay-men

Prophet Nuh's sons had wives with them.

format_quote Originally Posted by Gossamer skye

so then Noah and his three sons couldn't have possibly been the only ones to survive if there would be a continuation of the specie.. correct?

I never said they were the only ones to survive. I simply said that it was only Prophet Nuh's progeny that would endure on the Earth through them. Everyone else's progeny would not.

Everyone on the ark survived. That isn't the issue. The issue is who's progeny survived afterward.

format_quote Originally Posted by Gossamer skye

I don't see any conflict in that. The earth was once populated by Adam and Eve, and it can be re-populated by Noah's progeny.. I again fail to see where there is an issue?

Funny. We were studying this in class just last Saturday.

Basically, here's how it works:
Prophet Adam Alayhe Salaam's progeny was wiped out, and Prophet Nuh Alayhe Salaam restarted the world basically with a pair of every animal, and then the Muslims and believers of that time. Don't know if that helps any.

format_quote Originally Posted by Gossamer skye

I don't see any conflict in that. The earth was once populated by Adam and Eve, and it can be re-populated by Noah's progeny.. I again fail to see where there is an issue?

You had suggested that 37:77 meant more than just his genetic offspring, and I took issue with that.