Al-Muminoon (The Believers)

14. “Then We created of the sperm a clot, then We made the clot a lump of flesh, then We made the lump of flesh bones, then We clothed the bones with flesh; thereafter We produced it as another creation. So blessed be Allah, the Best of the creators!”

This verse points out to the wonderful process of embryo gestation in the mother’s womb and different states of creation which appear one after another in that secure place that up until very recently remained hidden from our eyes and beyond the reach of human interference.

It says:

“Then We created of the sperm a clot, then We made the clot a lump of flesh, then We made the lump of flesh bones, then We clothed the bones with flesh...”

The stage of being a sperm and these four subsequent stages comprise five stages of development of the human embryo. Each stage itself is so wonderful that in the field of embryology it has been the subject of a great deal of research and opinion and many good books have been written about it.

What is even more amazing than the actual stages of the development of the fetus in the womb is the fact that the Holy Qur’an had mentioned these different stages and marvels of embryonic development when the science of embryology did not yet exist and intimate knowledge of the human body was primitive to say the least.

The verse mentions the last and the most important stage of human creation with a meaningful phrase:

“...thereafter We produced it as another creation. So blessed be Allah, the Best of the creators!”

Blessed be that Unique Power that draws such an unprecedented and marvelous picture with a drop of liquid in the dark room of the womb.

Blessed be that Knowledge and Wisdom that creates all those talents, capabilities and potentials in such an apparently insignificant creature. Glorified be Him (s.w.t.) for His unique creation.

Also we must be aware that the Arabic word /xaliq/ is derived from the word /xalq/, which originally means measuring. When a piece of leather is measured for cutting, an Arab speaker would use the word /xalq/. Since in creation the issue of measurement is more important than anything else, the word /xalq/ has been used to refer to it.

The usage of the phrase ‘the Best of the creators’ raises the question: Is there another creator other than Allah?

Some of interpreters have offered different justifications for this verse, but these explanations are not necessary. The word /xalq/, meaning measurement and creation, is true for beings other than Allah, but Allah’s creating is different from the creation accomplished by others in many respects.

Allah creates the substance and the form of things, while if man intends to create something, he can only give a new form to it using the existing materials of this world as its substance. For example, he can build a house with brick and wood and produce a car with iron and steel.

Another difference is that Allah’s creations are unlimited in number;

“He is the Creator of all things...”1 ,

but man’s creations are very limited. Man, as a creator, often exhibits his deficiencies and weaknesses in the things that he creates which must be corrected and completed during the course of their creation and action. Allah’s creations, on the other hand, have no faults and deficiencies within their own parameters.

When man is able to create something, this ability is by Allah’s permission and command, for without His permission no leaf can stir on a tree.

We read about Jesus (as) in Sura Al- Ma‘idah, No. 5, verse 110:

“...and when you did make of clay (a thing) like the shape of a bird by My permission...”

The Following Points Should Be Noted:

1- The Arabic word /xalq/ is used to describe creation during the five stages of the embryonic development of man in the above mentioned verse. When the process has reached its last stage, however, and a complete and independent being which the verse terms ‘another creation’ is formed, the Qur’anic word /ansha’a/ is used.

This word, as philologists have said, means ‘to create something along with providing its education and training.’ This word shows that the last stage is completely different from the previous stages. This is a consequential stage that the Holy Qur’an mentions generally and not in detail.

It says only:

“...thereafter We produced it as another creation...”

and immediately following it the Qur’an says:

“...So blessed be Allah, the Best of the creators”.

This final stage is the most important one. This is the stage when the embryo becomes a fully formed human being and which becomes conscious and can move and feel. In Islamic narrations, this phase is called the phase of ‘emoulment’, that is the breathing of the soul into the body.

Imam Baqir (as) said:

“The purpose of /xalqan ’axar/ is the breathing of the soul into the body.”2

In this stage, man leaves vegetative life far behind and with a great movement steps into the world of animals and more importantly into the world of humanity. This stage is so far away from the previous one that using the Qur’anic phrase ‘thumma khalaqna’ would have been inadequate to comment on it, so the phrase ‘humma ansha’na’ was used.

It is in this stage that man is graced with a special structure that distinguishes him from the rest of creation in the world. It gives him the competence to be the vicegerent of Allah in the earth, a responsibility that the mountains and skies could not bear. Indeed Allah truly deserves the praise,

“...So blessed be Allah, the Best of the creators.”

All of the realities of the macrocosm with all its wonders become reflected in the form and content of this ‘small body’ on its physical completion. In this context, Imam Ali (as) said:

“Do you suppose that you are only a small body, while the macrocosm is placed within you?”3

In other words, you are an exemplar of the world of existence.

2- The writer of the commentary ‘fi Zilal’ makes an interesting statement in interpreting this verse, he says:

“When the embryo passes the stages where it appears as a blood-clot and as a lump, many of its cells change into bony ones, then gradually they are covered by flesh and muscles. Therefore, the sentence:

“then clothed the bones with flesh”

is a scientific miracle of which no one in the age when the Qur’an was sent down was aware. The Holy Qur’an does not say: We changed the lump into bones and flesh, but it says:

“Then We made the clot a lump of flesh, then We made the lump of flesh bones, then We clothed the bones with flesh.”

This indicates that the lump is at first changed into bones and then it is covered by flesh. Therefore, man was ugly, exactly like a skeleton, and thus it became beautiful.

Furthermore, just as garments protect the body, muscles protect the bones.

If there were no muscles, blows landed on the body would constantly hurt the bones or they would easily break. Moreover, just like a garment protects the human body against heat and cold, the flesh protects the bones, the real pillars of body. These all show how precisely the Holy Qur’an chooses its sentences and phrases.”