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This article analyzes what the [[Islam and Scripture|Islamic texts]] have to say regarding [[embryology]].
This article analyzes what the [[Islam and Scripture|Islamic texts]] have to say regarding [[embryology]], particularly with regard to a famous hadith on the sequence and timing of the main Quranic stages. For a full discussion of Quranic embryology, see [[Embryology in the Quran]].


==The Qur'an and Sahih Hadith==
==The Qur'an and Sahih Hadith==


“Islamic embryology” is derived from both the [[Qur’an]] and the [[hadith]], and is quite consistent across all the contributing sources. The core of the story can be found in the Qur’an, 22:5.  
“Islamic embryology” is derived from both the [[Quran]] and the [[hadith]], and is quite consistent across all the contributing sources. The core of the story can be found in the Qur’an, 22:5.  


{{Quote|{{Quran|22|5}}|'''Yusuf Ali:''' “O mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We created you out of dust, then out of sperm, then out of a leech-like clot, then out of a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, in order that We may manifest (our power) to you; and We cause whom We will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, then do We bring you out as babes…”  
{{Quote|{{Quran|22|5}}|'''Yusuf Ali:''' “O mankind! if ye have a doubt about the Resurrection, (consider) that We created you out of dust, then out of sperm, then out of a leech-like clot, then out of a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, in order that We may manifest (our power) to you; and We cause whom We will to rest in the wombs for an appointed term, then do We bring you out as babes…”  
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There are a handful of additional ayaat that deal with this subject, and none of them disagree with this basic scenario. Yet there is more to learn from the hadith, particularly that of Bukhari and Muslim. Again, the accounts are quite consistent, and the additional information they provide is important. The first of these tells us about developmental timing:  
There are a handful of additional ayaat that deal with this subject, and none of them disagree with this basic scenario. Yet there is more to learn from the hadith, particularly that of Bukhari and Muslim. Again, the accounts are quite consistent, and the additional information they provide is important. The first of these tells us about developmental timing:  


{{Quote|{{Bukhari|4|54|430}}|Narrated 'Abdullah bin Mus'ud:  
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||3208|darussalam}}|Narrated 'Abdullah bin Mus'ud:  


“Allah's Apostle, the true and truly inspired said, "(The matter of the Creation of) a human being is put together in the womb of the mother in forty days, and then he becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period, and then a piece of flesh for a similar period.”}}  
“Allah's Apostle, the true and truly inspired said, "(The matter of the Creation of) a human being is put together in the womb of the mother in forty days, and then he becomes a clot of thick blood for a similar period, and then a piece of flesh for a similar period.”}}  


These exact details are also given in {{Bukhari|4|55|549}}, {{Bukhari|8|77|593}}, {{Bukhari|9|93|546}}, and {{Muslim|33|6390}}.  
These exact details are also given in {{Bukhari|||3332|darussalam}}, {{Bukhari|||6594|darussalam}}, {{Bukhari|||7454|darussalam}}, and {{Muslim||2643a|reference}}.  


The key information gained from all these ahadith are that the three phases (nutfah, alaqah and mudghah) each takes 40 days, for a total period of 120 days from conception to the point at which the embryo becomes a fetus.  
The key information gained from all these ahadith are that the three phases (nutfah, alaqah and mudghah) each takes 40 days, for a total period of 120 days from conception to the point at which the embryo becomes a fetus.  
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One additional piece of testable scientific information is available in the hadith. It has to do with the point at which gender is determined. A representative hadith would be the following from Sahih Bukhari:   
One additional piece of testable scientific information is available in the hadith. It has to do with the point at which gender is determined. A representative hadith would be the following from Sahih Bukhari:   


{{Quote|{{Bukhari|8|77|594}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:  
{{Quote|{{Bukhari|||6595|darussalam}}|Narrated Anas bin Malik:  


“The Prophet said, "Allah puts an angel in charge of the uterus and the angel says, 'O Lord, (it is) semen! O Lord, (it is now) a clot! O Lord, (it is now) a piece of flesh.' And then, if Allah wishes to complete its creation, the angel asks, 'O Lord, (will it be) a male or a female?”}}  
“The Prophet said, "Allah puts an angel in charge of the uterus and the angel says, 'O Lord, (it is) semen! O Lord, (it is now) a clot! O Lord, (it is now) a piece of flesh.' And then, if Allah wishes to complete its creation, the angel asks, 'O Lord, (will it be) a male or a female?”}}  


This detail is repeated in {{Bukhari|4|55|550}} and {{Muslim|33|6397}}, and all of them are quite clear that the embryo is neither male nor female until after the mudghah phase is reached, some 80 days (by Islamic counting) after conception.  
This detail is repeated in {{Bukhari|||3333|darussalam}} and {{Muslim||2646|reference}}, and all of them are quite clear that the embryo is neither male nor female until after the mudghah phase is reached, some 80 days (by Islamic counting) after conception.  


So, then, these are the details of embryology as reflected in the Qur’an and the hadith.  
So, then, these are the details of embryology as reflected in the Qur’an and the hadith.  
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===Description of Islamic Phases===  
===Description of Islamic Phases===  
 
{{Main|Embryology in the Quran}}
The three Islamic phases of development are described in a very visual way, allowing for an informed evaluation of the accuracy of those descriptions. Considering that at Muhammad's time, only objects of such a scale that would be visible to the unaided could be imagined, this is perhaps unsurprising.  
The three Islamic phases of development are described in a very visual way, allowing for an informed evaluation of the accuracy of those descriptions. Considering that at Muhammad's time, only objects of such a scale that would be visible to the unaided could be imagined, this is perhaps unsurprising.  


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By day 40 of actual embryonic development (when the “drop” stage should be just ending and the “clot” stage beginning) the embryo is actually very well advanced. Measuring some 11 millimeters long, and the nervous system is well along its development. The embryo has eyes and ears, all four limbs have begun to form, the heart bulge is prominent. It bears no resemblance at this point to either a “drop of seed” or a “leech-like clot.”  
By day 40 of actual embryonic development (when the “drop” stage should be just ending and the “clot” stage beginning) the embryo is actually very well advanced. Measuring some 11 millimeters long, and the nervous system is well along its development. The embryo has eyes and ears, all four limbs have begun to form, the heart bulge is prominent. It bears no resemblance at this point to either a “drop of seed” or a “leech-like clot.”  


====The “Leech-Like Clot” Phase (Alaqah)====  
====The Blood-Clot” Phase (Alaqah)====  


The word “alaqah” is a bit more ambiguous than “nutfah,” and so has been translated a bit more flexibly by [[apologists]]. Although consistently translated as a “clot of blood” by multiple translators, there are a handful of instances where it is rendered as “a leech-like clot.” This is the phase that (according to Bukhari and Muslim) should last from about day 41 to day 80 after conception.  
The word “alaqah” is a bit more ambiguous than “nutfah,” and so has been translated a bit more flexibly by [[apologists]]. Although consistently translated as a “clot of blood” by multiple translators and interpreted as such in all classical tafsirs, there are a handful of instances where translators have rendered it as “a leech-like clot.” This is the phase that (according to Bukhari and Muslim) should last from about day 41 to day 80 after conception.  


Among the many images of Allah’s creative power reflected in the Qu’ran and the hadith, the image of man having been created from a clot of blood is one of the most common, showing up over a dozen times in the Qu’ran, Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim alone.  
Among the many images of Allah’s creative power reflected in the Qu’ran and the hadith, the image of man having been created from a clot of blood is one of the most common, showing up over a dozen times in the Qu’ran, Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim alone.  
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The period of development covered by the “alaqah” stage includes from week six until week eleven after conception. The first two weeks of this “phase” actually encompass the final two weeks of embryonic development, for at that point the baby is essentially completely formed, and from here on out is known as a fetus.  
The period of development covered by the “alaqah” stage includes from week six until week eleven after conception. The first two weeks of this “phase” actually encompass the final two weeks of embryonic development, for at that point the baby is essentially completely formed, and from here on out is known as a fetus.  


Interestingly, at no time during this period (or any period for that matter) does the embryo or fetus resemble a “clot.” And while dependence of the placenta might be described as being vaguely “leech-like” in that it is attached to the uterine wall, no one would ever confuse the embryo or fetus with a leech.  
Interestingly, at no time during this period (or any period for that matter) is the embryo or fetus a “blood clot.” nor resemble one. And while dependence of the placenta might be described as being vaguely “leech-like” in that it is attached to the uterine wall, no one would ever confuse the embryo or fetus with a leech.


This is as good a point as any to point out that embryonic development is essentially over by day 56, or in less than one half of the time described by Islamic embryology.  
This is as good a point as any to point out that embryonic development is essentially over by day 56, or in less than one half of the time described by Islamic embryology.  


For over three weeks of the supposed “alaqah” phase, rather than a “leech-like clot” the fetus is actually a fully formed human being, ranging in size from 35 mm to about 80 mm in length.  
For over three weeks of the supposed “alaqah” phase the fetus is actually a fully formed human being, ranging in size from 35 mm to about 80 mm in length.  


====The “Lump of Flesh” Phase (Mudghah)====  
====The “Lump of Flesh” Phase (Mudghah)====  
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===Gender===  
===Gender===  


According to multiple ahadith, it is only after the mudghah phase (days 81-120) that an angel of the Lord determines the gender of the baby. But in fact, modern genetics shows that the gender of the baby is determined at the moment of conception, nearly four months before the Islamic date of gender differentiation.  
According to multiple hadiths, it is only after the mudghah phase (days 81-120) that an angel of the Lord determines the gender of the baby. But in fact, modern genetics shows that the gender of the baby is determined at the moment of conception, nearly four months before the Islamic date of gender differentiation.


==The interpretations of Dr. Keith Moore==  
==The interpretations of Dr. Keith Moore==  
{{Main|Keith L. Moore}}


In articles published widely across Islamic websites, [[Dr. Keith Moore and the Islamic Additions|Keith L. Moore]] goes on the record to provide a favorable assessment of the Qur’an and hadith in the light of modern knowledge about embryology. But a review of his “analysis” shows the incredible liberality he has to afford Islamic scriptures and modern science in order to get an interpretation that allows the “facts” to correlate:
In articles published widely across Islamic websites, [[Dr. Keith Moore|Keith L. Moore]] goes on the record to provide a favorable assessment of the Qur’an and hadith in the light of modern knowledge about embryology. His analysis is perhaps the best possible execution of an "Islamic" understanding of embryology possible but it exhibits the tell-tale signs of being a hypothesis fitted after the fact to known facts rather than a truly predictive, scientific framework:
 
1. He translates Arabic into terms that no Arabic speaker would consider justified, but that allows him to pretend the Arabic is closer to truth than it really is. For example, in spite of the fact that almost three dozen translations of “alaqah” found on line never once exclude the word “clot,” Moore writes instead that “The word "alaqah" refers to a leech or bloodsucker.”


2. He ignores the timing of phases dictated by the hadith, for to consider them renders even his mistranslation unintelligible. For example, after mistranslating “alaqah” to mean “a leech or bloodsucker,” he then compares it to the human embryo at 24 days gestation. But 24 days is still firmly within the “nutfah” phase, when the embryo should actually look like a “drop of seed.” He does the same with “mudghah,” comparing it with the embryo at 28 days, still in the “nutfah” phase and only four days later than he had assigned to “alaqah.”
1. He translates Arabic into terms that no Arabic speaker would consider justified, but that allow him to claim that the Arabic is closer to truth than it really is. For example, in spite of the fact that almost all translations of “alaqah” agree that its meaning in the Qur'an is “clot,” Moore writes instead that “The word "alaqah" refers to a leech or bloodsucker”, which may be true in some other circumstances but is almost certainly not the case here.


{{Core Science}}
2. He ignores the timing of phases dictated by the hadith, for to consider them renders even his mistranslation unintelligible. For example, after mistranslating “alaqah” to mean “a leech or bloodsucker,” he then compares it to the human embryo at 24 days gestation. But 24 days is still firmly within the “nutfah” phase, when the embryo should actually look like a “drop of seed.” He does the same with “mudghah,” comparing it with the embryo at 28 days, still in the “nutfah” phase according to the Islamic sources and only four days later than he had assigned to “alaqah.”


==See Also==
==See Also==
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[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Islam and Science]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[Category:Qur'an]]
[[bg:Ембриологията в ислямското писание]]
[[Category:Apologetics]]
[[Category:Reproductive sciences]]
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