Yaseen (Yaseen)

36. “Glory be to Him Who created pairs (of) all things, of what the earth grows, and of their selves and of what they do not know.”

One of the scientific miracles of the Qur’an is the statement of the law of matrimony in all things: plants, human beings, and that which people did not know at that time and now they know.

This holy verse talks about the glorification of Allah and nullifies the polytheism of the polytheist about which the former verse referred to and shows all human beings the way of Monotheism.

It says:

“Glory be to Him Who created pairs (of) all things, of what the earth grows, and of their selves and of what they do not know.”

Yes, the Lord, Who created these all pairs in the expanse of the world of existence, whose Knowledge and Power are infinite, and there is no defect and blemish in His Essence, has no partner, no like, and no equal. So if some groups of people have counted some pieces of the stone, wood and other creatures of His like, He is far off from these undue attributes.

It is evident that Allah does not need to glorify Himself. This is an instruction for the servants and it is a prescription for paving the path of development.

Commentators have rendered the Qur’anic term /’azwaj/ (pairs), mentioned here, into different meanings. What is certain is that the term /’azwaj/ is the plural form of /zauj/ which is called to the two genders of masculine and feminine, whether they are in the world of animals, or other than them.

Then, this word has been expanded and every two beings which are companions to each other, or even they are opposite to each other, are called /zauj/. This word is used even for two similar rooms in a house, or two halves of a door, or two fellow-members. And, thus, it considers a pair for any being in the world.

However, it is not impossible that matrimony here is used with the same specific sense of masculine gender and feminine gender, and, in this verse, the Qur’an informs of the existence of matrimony in the world of all plants, human beings, and other beings that people are not aware of.

These beings may be plans that the vastness of the scope of matrimony had not been discovered yet at that time.

Or it may point to the animals in the depth of the seas of which on that day nobody was aware and today a part of it has been discovered for human beings.

Or it points to other living creatures that live in other heavenly spheres.

Or they are very small living creatures, although the modern scientists do not know any masculine and feminine among them; but the world of these living creatures is so mysterious and secret that the knowledge of man has not found a way to this part of it.

Even, as we said, the existence of matrimony in the world of plants was unknown at the time of the revelation of the Qur’an, except some special instances, like the trees of dates and the like, and the Qur’an uncovered it. In the present centuries, by the way of science, this meaning has been proved that the subject of matrimony in the world of plants is a general and common subject.

This probability has also been delivered that ‘matrimony’ here refers to the existence of positive and negative particles inside the centre of atom and the electrons which rotate around it and which has been proved.

Some have also believe that it refers to the combination of the things from ‘matter’ and ‘form’, or ‘substance’ and ‘accident’ while some others consider that it is an implicit declaration of different kinds of plants, human beings, animals, and other beings in the world.

But it is clear that when we can adapt these words to the real meaning (masculine and feminine genders) and there is not any frame of reference contrary to it, why do we refer to the allusive meanings; and, as was said, there are several interesting commentaries for the real meaning of matrimony here.

However, this verse is one of the verses that state that man’s knowledge is limited and which shows that there are a great deal of facts in this world which are not known to our knowledge.¹