Обсуждение:Сотворение человека
Ссылки
- A. A. Zindani, E. Marshall Johnson, Mustafa A. Ahmed, G. C. Goeringer, J. Lee Simpson, K. Moore, T. V. N. Persaud, Human development As Describes in the Quran and Sunnah. — Riyadh, 2000. (англ.)
Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān
Biology as the Creation and Stages of Life
- Article Table of Contents
- Creation
- Conception and fetal development
- Birth
- Growth and maturation
- Death
- Bibliography
The Qurʾān depicts the creation of the universe and everything within it as a miracle (q.v.) of God and as proof of the existence of divine power (see power and impotence).¶ According to the Qurʾān, human life began with the creation of Adam and Eve (q.v.). The qurʾānic account of the creation (q.v.) narrative affirms that everything has been created in pairs for reproduction and perpetuation of its own species. Modern Muslim commentators, particularly those who are devoted to «scientific» exegesis (tafsīr ʿilmī, see exegesis of the qurʾān), have decided that since the Qurʾān makes no mention of the evolution of one species to another kind of species, the Darwinian theory of evolution is contrary to the teachings of the Qurʾān. Such contemporary Muslim exegesis also makes the claim that the qurʾānic description from over 1400 years ago, of the conception of the fetus and of its subsequent development and growth, contains details of which scientific observation has become aware only in relatively recent times. A consistent pattern of interpretation, both medieval and modern, is to read the references to conception, birth and human development as evidence of God’s creative majesty and care for humankind. The early life stages and aspects of human biology mentioned in the Qurʾān include conception, fetal development and growth, childbirth, lactation and weaning. There is also abundant reference to the various aspects of adult life as well as to death and to life after death (see death and the dead). There is no sequential treatment in the Qurʾān of the biology of human life and of the human life span. Rather, these are treated in many different sūras and verses but relevant verses have here been grouped for the purpose of thematic analysis. See also life.¶
- Creation
The creation of humans from dust (turāb) is mentioned six times in the Qurʾān, from clay (ṭīn) in eight places and from dry clay (ṣalṣāl) in four places (see clay). Qurʾānic commentators are of the opinion that turāb, ṭīn and ṣalṣāl complement rather than contradict each other, as they refer to the various stages through which Adam was formed (Ṭabarī, Tafsīr; Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr, ii, 457). According to this interpretation, God created Adam from clay, which is a mixture of water and soil or dust and this was then turned into dark fetid mud and brought into shape. This inorganic matter was then transformed into organic material through the divine command of «Be!» (kun) after the soul (rūḥ) had been «breathed» into Adam (see spirit; air and wind). Not only was Adam created from dust but the Qurʾān speaks of all men as being created in a similar fashion, thus signifying that the bodies of the progeny of Adam are composed of various organic and inorganic substances such as those found within the soil (M. Asad, Message, 520). An apt verse that summarizes the process of human creation is: «From the [earth] did we create you, and into it shall we return you, and from it shall we bring you out once again» (q 20:55).
Stages and materials of human creation are mentioned in numerous qurʾānic sūras: q 6 ("Cattle, " Sūrat al-Anʿām), q 22 ("The Pilgrimage, " Sūrat al-Ḥajj), q 23 ("The Believers, " Sūrat al-Muʾminūn), q 40 ("The Believer, " Sūrat al-Muʾmin), q 30 ("The Romans, " Sūrat al-Rūm), q 32 ("The Prostration, " Sūrat al-Sajda), q 55 ("The Beneficent, " Sūrat al-Raḥmān), q 77 ("The Emissaries, " Sūrat al-Mursalāt), and q 86 ("The Morning Star, " Sūrat al-Ṭāriq). The qurʾānic vocabulary in each relevant passage, however, varies in both its mention and its ordering. For example, the stages of dust (turāb), sperm (nuṭfa), a material that clings (ʿalaqa, see blood and blood clot; anatomy) and a lump of flesh (muḍgha) are mentioned in q 22:5, while in q 23:12 clay (ṭīn) is mentioned instead of dust (turāb).¶ In q 55:14 only the dry clay (ṣalṣāl) is mentioned while the materials and stages of dust (turāb), cla y(ṭīn), sperm (nuṭfa), blood clot (ʿalaqa) and chewed lump (muḍgha) are omitted. As with q 6:2, which refers to clay (ṭīn), q 30:20 refers to dust (turāb) and to the fully formed human stage but none of the other materials or stages is mentioned.
- Conception and fetal development
In Qurʾān 23:12-4 reference is made to fetal development and growth. There is again reaffirmation, at the beginning of this passage, of human origin from clay. Explanations of these verses express the view that «sperm» and «firm lodging» refer to sperm within the female reproductive tract, more specifically within the uterus. Prior to fertilization, sperm bind to the zona pellucida or outer covering of the ovum. Following such lines of interpretation, ʿalaqa could be a reference to this, i.e. to sperm «clinging» to the ovum. However, ʿalaqa is also interpreted by some exegetes as «blood clot» and taken to refer to «something that clings» to the uterus (M. Būṭī, Taḥdīd al-nasl, 69). For those modern commentators who then extrapolate this interpretation scientifically, the «blood clot» could be taken to represent the fertilized ovum or early embryo implanting itself in the endometrium or uterine lining. The «chewed lump» could then be reference to the cleaved embryo and organogenesis, the «fashioning of bones and flesh.» Some exegetes and jurists (fuqahāʾ) are of the opinion that «another act of creation» signifies the fetus being imbued with a soul (q.v.; cf. M. Madkūr, Janīn, 84).
A second passage, q 22:5, follows in much the same vein as the first except that early fetal development is further explained and specified with the phrase «formed and unformed» (mukhallaqa wa-ghayr mukhallaqa). ¶ Furthermore, the statement that "We cause whom we will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, " is understood as a recognition that not all fertilized ova (or embryos) complete the full fetal cycle. Some are aborted and this citation exemplifies God’s prerogative and power over birth, life and death (see abortion; birth control).
A third passage, q 32:7-9, makes clear reference to the creation of Adam from clay and to the conception of his progeny by natural reproductive process, i.e. «an extract of despised fluid.» The paradox in this latter phrase is noteworthy in that a pure form, the human being, is created from impure fluid (ʿA.Y. ʿAlī, The holy Qurʾān, 1094). According to Islamic law, semen is a polluting substance, one of the bodily emissions that necessitates a major ablution before the ritual prayer (q.v.; see also ritual purity; purity and impurity). The comment by ʿAbdullāh Yūsuf ʿAlī, a well-known translator of the Qurʾān, connects this situation of legal impurity with its consequence in the act of conception. Finally, q 39:6 points out that fetal development within the womb proceeds in three veils of darkness(ẓulumāt thalāth). The three veils of darkness are, according to qurʾānic exegetes, the abdominal wall, the uterine wall and the embryonic sacs which surround the fetus (Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr, iv, 46; Ṭabarī, Tafsīr, x, part 23:125-7; see also blood and blood clot).
- Birth
According to q 80:20, God lets the birth (q.v.) of the baby take place through the birth canal. Embryological science explains this by the sequence of events which occur just before birth and that enable the baby to be born through the birth canal: The ovaries and placenta secrete a hormone which loosens the ligaments of the pelvic joints and softens the cervix. ¶ This is followed by uterine contractions, the rupture of the bag of water, which helps in providing a smooth and slippery surface for the fetus to glide down, and, finally, birth. q 46:15 also makes reference to this process, including the pangs of pregnancy, the actual birth and the subsequent period of lactation and weaning. Commentaries on this verse explain that since the minimum period of pregnancy is six months and the maximum period for breast-feeding is two years, the qurʾānic reference to a thirty month «carrying period» is an allusion to this entire process (Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr, iv, 157; Ālūsī, Rūḥ, ad loc.).
- Growth and maturation
The full cycle of human creation and development is described thus in the Qurʾān: «It is God who created you in [a state of] weakness, then gave [you] strength after weakness, then after strength, gave [you] weakness and a hoary head. He creates as he wills, and it is he who has all knowledge and power» (q 30:54). Qurʾānic commentary on this verse sees both a succinct expression of the human life cycle and an affirmation of divine power over all things. A baby is born weak and slowly begins to grow, becomes a youth and then an adult — this is what is meant by strength after weakness. Thereafter the human reaches middle-age, then old age and finally senility — this is what is meant by weakness after strength. In other words, during old age, one’s determination, movement, courage and other faculties are weakened (Ṣābūnī, Tafsīr, ii, 531). Moreover, the Qurʾān mentions that it is within God’s prerogative to allow some of his creation to undergo the entire cycle from birth to old age and to end the lives of others before old age is attained (ibid., i, 567). For example, according to q 6:2, the duration of one’s existence on this earth is decreed by God alone.¶
- Death
According to the Qurʾān life does not end with death. Death is not the total annihilation of human life. The Qurʾān uses the word barzakh (q.v.; q 23:100) to signify the state that human beings enter into upon death. Barzakh is a screen or partition which separates this world from the next until the day of resurrection (q.v.; cf. Ṭabarī, Tafsīr, ad q 23:100). In affirming human resurrection, the Qurʾān asserts that all human beings will be brought back to life to stand in judgment before their Creator (see last judgment). The Qurʾān contains innumerable passages confirming the day of resurrection and the belief that humankind will be raised from the dead, e.g. q 22:7. Further, at the time of resurrection, an individual’s deeds will be assessed and judgment will be rendered about whether entrance will be to paradise (q.v.) or hell (q.v.) as a permanent abode. This would then be the final stage of life, i.e. life after death (q 4:121-2 and 168-9).
- Primary
Ālūsī, Rūḥ, repr. Beirut n.d.
Būṭī, Muḥammad Saʿīd Ramaḍān, Taḥdīd al-nasl, Damascus 1976
Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr, ed. ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Ghunaym et al., 4 vols., Beirut 1388/1979
M.S. Madkūr, al-Janīn wa-l-aḥkām al-mutaʿalliqa bihi fī l-fiqh al-islāmī, Cairo 1969
Ṣābūnī, Tafsīr
Ṭabarī, Tafsīr, 12 vols., Beirut 1400/19804
- Secondary
M.A. Albar, Human development as revealed in the holy Qurʾān and ḥadīth, Jeddah 19923
ʿA.Y. ʿAlī, The holy Qurʾān. Text, translation and commentary, Lahore 1969
M. Asad, The message of the Qurʾān, Gibraltar 1980
M. Bucaille, The Bible, the Qurʾan and science, Indianapolis 1978
A.F.M. Ebrahim, Abortion, birth control and surrogate parenting. An Islamic perspective, Indianapolis 1991
K.L. Moore, The developing human, Jeddah 19833
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