Second, some people have reported that iron does descend from heaven.

Third—and this is the answer—it may be said to him: Allah Most High did not say, “We sent down iron from heaven,” nor did He say, “We sent down for you eight mates from heaven.” Thus, the assertion that “it is known that iron did not physically descend from heaven to earth, and that livestock did not descend from heaven to earth” does not contradict the apparent meaning of the Quran, such that one could claim that its apparent meaning is untrue and must be interpreted otherwise. Rather, He said:

“And We sent down iron.” [al-Hadīd 25]

Sending something down entails its coming from an elevated place. There is no doubt that iron comes from mines in the mountains, which rise above the earth. It has been said that the higher the mine, the better its iron. Those who extract iron from mines say, “There has come down to us from the mine