Assalam to all of you,
These statements are made by Countess
1. I don’t take the Quranic verse of the creation literally but symbolically and . You claim to be “scientifically minded’
2. there is no definitive answer to the beginning of creation? I am as a result keeping an open mind and looking out for evidence.
3. we should teach kids that empirical evidence and logic should be placed higher than that of non tangible belief.
I will tackle your statements and REFUTE them within the light of Quranic verses and its compatibility with science.
I will discuss with you based on the Quranic verses: Invite to the Way of your Lord with wisdom and fair preaching, and argue [jadilhum] with them in a way that is better.” [an-Nahl: 125] Also,
“Say, 'Produce your proof if you are truthful.'" [al-Baqarah: 111]
Answering your 1st and 2nd statements:
I will outline here the creation of human kind and embryology based on Quranic evidences.
"0' mankind! Surely We created you from dust." (30:20)
The gradual process of man's physical development has been referred to in the following Verses of the Holy Qur'an:
"He began the creation of man from dust. Then He made his progeny of an extract of water held in light esteem. Then He made him complete and breathed into him of His spirit and made for you ears and eyes and heart." (32: 7-9)
According to the latest scientific researches the man has been created from clay with all its element and their inherent properties. It is discovered by a chemical analysis of the human body that a defect occurs in its normal functioning when the quantity of any of these element gets diminished. In such case vitamins are used to supplement the deficiency and restore normal health.
Qur'an speaks in so many verses about the creation of man. In one verse, we are told that man is created from dust. Allah says:
"O mankind! if ye are in doubt concerning the Resurrection, then lo! We have created you from dust, then from a drop of seed, then from a clot, then from a little lump of flesh shapely and shapeless, that We may make (it) clean for you. And We cause what We will to remain in the wombs for an appointed time, and afterward We bring you forth as infants, then (give you growth) that ye attain your full strength. And among you there is he who dieth (young), and among you there is he who is brought back to the most abject time of life, so that, after knowledge, he knoweth naught." (Al-Hajj: 5)
This is one stage of the creation in fact.
The Qur'an refers to another stage in the verse:
"Verily We created man from a product of wet earth. Then placed him as a drop (of seed) in a safe lodging; Then fashioned We the drop a clot, then fashioned We the clot a little lump, then fashioned We the little lump bones, then clothed the bones with flesh, and then produced it another creation. So blessed be Allah, the Best of Creators!"(Al-Mu'minun: 12-14)
"If we take dust and add water to it, it will be mud. If it is left for some time, it will turn into clay. These are simply the stages of the creation of man. Man thus comes from dust, turned into clay after the addition of water. If we scrutinize this issue, we will find out that man, in his daily life, needs earth and depends on it in so many aspects. It is this earthy soil where we grow the plants upon which we live. Thus, preserving the materials of man depends on the source from which these materials are created. Scientists have analyzed the human body and found that it is composed of 16 substances including oxygen and manganese. These elements are no more than the elements of the earth’s crust. This experiment was not meant for proving the credibility of the Qur'an; rather, it was solely for scientific research purposes.
In addition, death itself serves as a proof of creation. When we try to demolish a building, we follow the reverse order of building it; we start with the last floor. By the same token, since we have not eye-witnessed the creation of man, then we shall see how death occurs. Actually, we witness several deaths everyday. When man dies, his soul leaves his body, then the decline starts; his body becomes dry (which is similar to the stage of clay) and then decays and turns finally into dust which was his original substance. Life is given to man through the soul that is blown into his body. When the soul departs, man dies and starts his way back to his original form going through the stages of his first creation. Thus, death stands as a living proof for creation." By Sheikh Mohammed Mutawalli Al Sha’raawi.
Now let us come to embryology:
A.“Now let man but think from what he is created! He is created from a drop emitted – Proceeding from between the back bone and the ribs.” [Al-Qur’an 86:5-7]
Drop emitted (Nutfah)
The Glorious Qur’an mentions no less than eleven times that the human being is created from nutfah, which means a minute quantity of liquid or a trickle of liquid that remains after emptying a cup. This is mentioned in several verses of the Qur’an including 22:5 and 23:13.1
Science has confirmed in recent times that only one out of an average of three million sperms is required for fertilising the ovum.
B. “And made his progeny from a quintessence of the nature of a fluid despised.”
Quintessence of liquid ( sulalah)
The Arabic word sulaalah means quintessence or the best part of a whole. We have come to know now that only one single spermatozoon that penetrates the ovum is required for fertilization, out of the several million produced by man. That one spermatozoon out
of several million, is referred to in the Qur’an as sulaalah. We have also come to know now that only one ovum is fertilized out of the tens of thousand produced by the female. That one ovum out of tens of thousand is also refered to in the Qur'an as Sulaalah. This word also means gentle extraction from a fluid. The fluid refers to both male and female germinal fluids containing gametes. Both ovum and sperm are gently extracted from their environments in the process of fertilization.
C. “Verily We created man from a drop of mingled sperm.”
Mingleliquids (nutfatus amshaaj)
The Arabic word nutfatin amshaajin means mingledliquids. According to some commentators of the Qur’an, mingled liquids refers to the male or female agents or liquids. After mixture of male and female gamete, the zygote still remains nutfah. Mingled liquids can also refer to spermatic fluid that is formed of various secretions that come from various glands. Therefore, nutfatin amshaaj, i.e. a minute quantity of mingled fluids refers to the male and female gametes (germinal fluids or cells) and part of the surrounding fluids.
EMBRYOLOGICAL STAGES
D. “Man We did create from a quintessence (of clay); then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm in a place of rest, firmly fixed; then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then of that clot We made a (foetus) lump; then We made out of that lump bones and clothed the bones with flesh; then We developed out of it another creature. so blessed be Allah, the Best to create!” [Al-Qur’ an 23:12-14]
In this verse Allah states that man is created from a small quantity of liquid which is placed in a place of rest, firmly fixed (well established or lodged) for which the Arabic word qaraarin makeen is used. The uterus is well protected from the posterior by the spinal column supported firmly by the back muscles. The embryo is further protected by the amniotic sac containing the amniotic fluid. Thus the foetus has a well protected dwelling place. This small quantity of fluid is made into alaqah, meaning something which clings. It also means a leech-like substance. Both descriptions are scientifically acceptable as in the very early stages the foetus clings to the wall and also appears to resemble the leech in shape. It also behaves like a leech (blood sucker) and acquires its blood supply from the mother through the placenta. The third meaning of the word alaqah is a blood clot. During this alaqah stage, which spans the third and fourth week of pregnancy, the blood clots within closed vessels. Hence the embryo acquires the appearance of a blood clot in addition to acquiring the appearance of a leech. Compare the readily available Qur'anic knowledge with Man's struggle with scientific findings: In 1677, Hamm and eeuwenhoek were the first scientists to observe human sperm cells (spermatozoa) through a microscope. They thought that a sperm cell contained a miniature human being which grew in the uterus to form a newborn. This was known as the perforation theory. When scientists discovered that the ovum as bigger than the sperm, it was thought by scientists like De Graf and others that the foetus existed in a miniature form in the ovum. Later, in the 18th century, Maupertuis propagated the theory of biparental inheritance. The alaqah is transformed into mudghah which means something that is chewed (having teeth marks)’ and also something that is tacky and small which can be put in the mouth like gum. Both these explanations are scientifically correct.
Prof. Keith Moore took a piece of plaster seal and made it into the size and shape of the early stage of foetus and chewed it between the teeth to make it into a mudghah. He compared this with the photographs of the early stage of foetus. The teeth marks resembled the ‘somites’ which is the early formation of the spinal column.
This mudghah is transformed into bones (izâm). The bones are clothed with intact flesh or uscles (lahm). Then Allah makes it into another creature.
According to Dr. Keith Moore, the modern classification of embryonic development stages which is adopted throughout the world, is not easily comprehensible, since it identifies stages on a numerical basis i.e. stage 1, stage 2, etc. On the other hand, the divisions revealed in the Qur’an are based on distinct and easily identifiable forms or shapes, which the embryo passes through.
I can go on with other Quranic verses in this issue but I am afraid it might go above your knowledge. I only urge you to read carefully and sink the abovementioned verses with their meanings in the light that the Quran is in perfect conformity with ESTABLISHED SCIENCE .
The Qur'anic precedence with such precise and comprehensive knowledge points to only one facet of the multifarious, miraculous nature of this Glorious Book, being the last Divine message, and the only one that has been kept intact with exactly the same language of revelation word for word and letter for letter for more than 14 centuries
Your 3rd statement
I do welcome your idea to teach children established science. You used “empirical evidence” which is compatible with the Quran. But I totally disagree using logic theories since we all know that many a times Science takes a ‘U-turn’. There I have to disappoint you that hypothesis and theories based on mere assumptions and not backed by proofs should be thrown in the middle of the see or in the bin or discarded. Hence we cannot introduce to children.
In conclusion:
the Qur'anic verses are not meant to be pieces of scientific information, but as scientific knowledge that has been left for man to gain over a long span of time. This is simply due to the limitations of the human senses and the cumulative nature of the scientific knowledge. The illustrious Qur'an, being the word of the Creator is, hence, the absolute truth, therefore Qur'anic verses with cosmic reflections must convey a number of absolute facts about the universe.
The Qur'anic precedence with such precise and comprehensive knowledge points to only one facet of the multifarious, miraculous nature of this Glorious Book, The Quran is not SCIENCE BUT SIGNS, being the last Divine message, and the only one that has been kept intact with exactly the same language of revelation word for word and letter for letter for more than 14 centuries.
Regretfully, you are not scientifically minded. If you have done your homework ,you would not have come up with using logic arguments. You reckon that you have come up with a difficult subject but scientists have preceded you.
Sadly, I see that your ideas are merely based on doubts rather than scientifically motivated.
If you have ANY other issues regarding Quran and science, I urge you to feel free and post what you have in mind.
Thank you dr. Yahya as well as the other participants for their great arguments which in fact helped me to use them in my reply to Countess-vampire.
Wa salam warahamah