2,743
edits
Embryology in the Quran: Difference between revisions
no edit summary
| [checked revision] | [checked revision] |
Lightyears (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
Lightyears (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
||
| (9 intermediate revisions by 3 users not shown) | |||
| Line 45: | Line 45: | ||
Embryology in the Quran is often criticised from a modern scientific perspective. More details including references are given throughout this article, but the main criticisms are as follows: | Embryology in the Quran is often criticised from a modern scientific perspective. More details including references are given throughout this article, but the main criticisms are as follows: | ||
#A number of verses<ref>{{Quran|23|13}}, {{Quran-range|70|20|22}}, {{Quran-range|80|18|19}} See discussion in the Nutfah Stage section.</ref> | #A number of verses<ref>{{Quran|23|13}}, {{Quran-range|70|20|22}}, {{Quran-range|80|18|19}} See discussion in the Nutfah Stage section.</ref> demonstrate a belief that man is created from semen itself, as a fluid which is placed in the womb for a known term, and undergoes various further stages of development (as also taught by Galen and in the Jewish Talmud). See [[Greek and Jewish Ideas about Reproduction in the Quran and Hadith|this article]] for the most comprehensive explanation and evidence. Furthermore, there is no sign that the author of the Quran was aware of the female egg (ovum).<p>In reality, a single sperm cell penetrates and fuses with the female ovum. This fertilised egg, called a zygote, is then pushed down the fallopian tube for a few days. On the way, cell division begins, and this multi-celled cluster, now called a blastocyst, implants in the uterus (womb).<ref>{{cite web| url=https://crh.ucsf.edu/fertility/conception | title=Conception: How it Works | publisher=University of California San Francisco - Center for Reproductive Health | accessdate=27 January 2019}}</ref></p> | ||
#The embryo is then said to be congealed blood. <ref>{{Quran|23|14}}, {{Quran|22|5}}, {{Quran|40|67}} See discussion in the 'Alaqah Stage section.</ref> All the classical [[Tafsir|tafsirs]] (exegetical commentaries) understood the meaning of 'alaqah to be blood or congealed blood, and clotted blood is a definition of the word in classical Arabic dictionaries. Regardless of alternative meanings for this Arabic word, it does not make sense to use a word whose main definitions include an explicit biological meaning (clotted blood) in a description of a biological process (embryology) if that is not the intended meaning; certainly, from the point of divine authorship of the Qur'an, such imprecise meaning would throw into doubt the Qur'an's claim to be "clear." The choice of word now causes a well justified suspicion of inaccuracy, and for centuries misled people into thinking that the embryo is at one stage congealed blood (in reality an embryo is at no point blood nor a clot of blood<ref>{{cite web| url=https://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php/Timeline_human_development | title=Timeline human development | publisher=University of New South Wales | author=Dr Mark Hill| accessdate=27 January 2019}}</ref>). Similarly, for the same reason it would not make sense to use this word while intending blood clot as a mere visual analogy. | #The embryo is then said to be congealed blood. <ref>{{Quran|23|14}}, {{Quran|22|5}}, {{Quran|40|67}} See discussion in the 'Alaqah Stage section.</ref> All the classical [[Tafsir|tafsirs]] (exegetical commentaries) understood the meaning of 'alaqah to be blood or congealed blood, and clotted blood is a definition of the word in classical Arabic dictionaries. Regardless of alternative meanings for this Arabic word, it does not make sense to use a word whose main definitions include an explicit biological meaning (clotted blood) in a description of a biological process (embryology) if that is not the intended meaning; certainly, from the point of divine authorship of the Qur'an, such imprecise meaning would throw into doubt the Qur'an's claim to be "clear." The choice of word now causes a well justified suspicion of inaccuracy, and for centuries misled people into thinking that the embryo is at one stage congealed blood (in reality an embryo is at no point blood nor a clot of blood<ref>{{cite web| url=https://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php/Timeline_human_development | title=Timeline human development | publisher=University of New South Wales | author=Dr Mark Hill| accessdate=27 January 2019}}</ref>). Similarly, for the same reason it would not make sense to use this word while intending blood clot as a mere visual analogy. | ||
#The Quran claims that bones are formed before being clothed with flesh.<ref>{{Quran|23|14}} See discussion in the Bones and Clothing with Flesh Stages section.</ref> In fact cartilage models of the bones start to form at the same time as and in parallel with surrounding muscles, and this cartilage is literally replaced with bone.<ref>See discussion and scientific references in the sub-sections to the Bones and Clothing with Flesh Stages section.</ref> | #The Quran claims that bones are formed before being clothed with flesh.<ref>{{Quran|23|14}} See discussion in the Bones and Clothing with Flesh Stages section.</ref> In fact cartilage models of the bones start to form at the same time as and in parallel with surrounding muscles, and this cartilage is literally replaced with bone.<ref>See discussion and scientific references in the sub-sections to the Bones and Clothing with Flesh Stages section.</ref> | ||
| Line 59: | Line 59: | ||
نسل nasl - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000286.pdf Lane’s Lexicon] Suppliment, page 3032</ref><ref>Lo! the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust [turabin تُرَابٍ], then He said unto him: Be! and he is.<br>{{Quran|3|59}}</ref><ref>We created man from sounding clay [salsalin صَلْصَٰلٍ], from mud [hamain حَمَإٍ] molded into shape;<br>{{Quran|15|26}}</ref> This was also the opinion of classical scholars such as Ibn Kathir. | نسل nasl - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000286.pdf Lane’s Lexicon] Suppliment, page 3032</ref><ref>Lo! the likeness of Jesus with Allah is as the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust [turabin تُرَابٍ], then He said unto him: Be! and he is.<br>{{Quran|3|59}}</ref><ref>We created man from sounding clay [salsalin صَلْصَٰلٍ], from mud [hamain حَمَإٍ] molded into shape;<br>{{Quran|15|26}}</ref> This was also the opinion of classical scholars such as Ibn Kathir. | ||
Verses like these refer to Adam specifically, that [[Creation of Humans from Clay|man was made ''from'' clay]] (min مِّنْ means 'from' or 'of'), and that clay was a building material which was moulded and shaped, and not a catalytic compound as some apologetics claim in an attempt to link the Quran with one theory about the origin of all life on Earth. | Verses like these refer to Adam specifically, that [[Creation of Humans from Clay|man was made ''from'' clay]] (min مِّنْ means 'from' or 'of'), and that clay was a building material which was moulded and shaped, and not a catalytic compound as some apologetics claim in an attempt to link the Quran with one theory about the origin of all life on Earth. Yet another verse ({{Quran|55|14}}) adds that Allah created man "from clay like [that of] pottery" (min ṣalṣālin kal-fakhāri مِن صَلْصَٰلٍ كَٱلْفَخَّارِ). | ||
While again not strictly related to embryology, another claim on some Islamic websites is that clay and humans have similar compositions. The Chambers Dictionary of Science and Technology defines clay as, "a fine textured, sedimentary, or residual deposit. It consists of hydrated silicates of aluminum mixed with various impurities". The essential elements in clay are thus silicon, aluminum, hydrogen and oxygen. Silicon and Aluminum have extremely limited, if any, roles to play in the maintenance of life.<ref>Fenchel, Tom 2003. The origin and Early Evolution of Life. Oxford University Press. Page 27.</ref> Other human-required elements (such as nitrogen, sodium etc) are only found in trace amounts in clay and can be regarded as contaminants. There is no similarity between the compositions of clay and humans. | While again not strictly related to embryology, another claim on some Islamic websites is that clay and humans have similar compositions. The Chambers Dictionary of Science and Technology defines clay as, "a fine textured, sedimentary, or residual deposit. It consists of hydrated silicates of aluminum mixed with various impurities". The essential elements in clay are thus silicon, aluminum, hydrogen and oxygen. Silicon and Aluminum have extremely limited, if any, roles to play in the maintenance of life.<ref>Fenchel, Tom 2003. The origin and Early Evolution of Life. Oxford University Press. Page 27.</ref> Other human-required elements (such as nitrogen, sodium etc) are only found in trace amounts in clay and can be regarded as contaminants. There is no similarity between the compositions of clay and humans. | ||
| Line 109: | Line 109: | ||
Many apologists claim that 'alaqah in the Quran means a leech (in a metaphorical sense), and that this is similar to an embryo. However, unlike a leech, which simply sucks blood from its host, the embryo circulates and exchanges gases, nutrients and waste products with its mother. Most significantly, the placental membrane or barrier ensures that the embryo does not take from or exchange blood with its mother, who may have a different blood type.<ref>Barry Mitchell & Ram Sharma 2009. Embryology: An Illustrated Colour Text. Second Edition. Churchill Livingstone ElSevier. Page 10-12</ref> Furthermore, a leech attaches itself directly to the surface of its host. In contrast, the [[w:Blastocyst|blastocyst]] stage embryo implants into the uterine wall ([[w:Endometrium|endometrium]]) by means of an outer cell layer surrounding it, called the [[w:Syncytiotrophoblast|syncytiotrophoblast]]. It is the syncytiotrophoblast which invades the endometrium, burying the entire embryo within the wall (unlike a leech), establishes a circulatory connection, and will later form the outer layer of the [[w:Placenta#Development|placenta]]. | Many apologists claim that 'alaqah in the Quran means a leech (in a metaphorical sense), and that this is similar to an embryo. However, unlike a leech, which simply sucks blood from its host, the embryo circulates and exchanges gases, nutrients and waste products with its mother. Most significantly, the placental membrane or barrier ensures that the embryo does not take from or exchange blood with its mother, who may have a different blood type.<ref>Barry Mitchell & Ram Sharma 2009. Embryology: An Illustrated Colour Text. Second Edition. Churchill Livingstone ElSevier. Page 10-12</ref> Furthermore, a leech attaches itself directly to the surface of its host. In contrast, the [[w:Blastocyst|blastocyst]] stage embryo implants into the uterine wall ([[w:Endometrium|endometrium]]) by means of an outer cell layer surrounding it, called the [[w:Syncytiotrophoblast|syncytiotrophoblast]]. It is the syncytiotrophoblast which invades the endometrium, burying the entire embryo within the wall (unlike a leech), establishes a circulatory connection, and will later form the outer layer of the [[w:Placenta#Development|placenta]]. | ||
A leech has many characteristics such as size, behaviour, shape, color, appearance. It makes no sense for the author to have used 'alaqah in a metaphorical sense when his listeners could not be expected to know in what respect the analogy applies. It is no more than a Texan Sharpshooter fallacy<ref>"The Texas sharpshooter fallacy is an informal fallacy in which pieces of information that have no relationship to one another are called out for their similarities, and that similarity is used for claiming the existence of a pattern. This fallacy is the philosophical/rhetorical application of the multiple comparisons problem (in statistics) and apophenia (in cognitive psychology). It is related to the clustering illusion, which refers to the tendency in human cognition to interpret patterns where none actually exist. The name comes from a joke about a Texan who fires some shots at the side of a barn, then paints a target centered on the biggest cluster of hits and claims to be a sharpshooter."<br> | A leech has many characteristics such as size, behaviour, shape, color, appearance. It makes no sense for the author to have used 'alaqah in a metaphorical sense when his listeners could not be expected to know in what respect the analogy applies. It is no more than a Texan Sharpshooter fallacy<ref>"The Texas sharpshooter fallacy is an informal fallacy in which pieces of information that have no relationship to one another are called out for their similarities, and that similarity is used for claiming the existence of a pattern. This fallacy is the philosophical/rhetorical application of the multiple comparisons problem (in statistics) and apophenia (in cognitive psychology). It is related to the clustering illusion, which refers to the tendency in human cognition to interpret patterns where none actually exist. The name comes from a joke about a Texan who fires some shots at the side of a barn, then paints a target centered on the biggest cluster of hits and claims to be a sharpshooter."<br>[[w:Texas sharpshooter fallacy|Texas sharpshooter fallacy]]</ref>, typical of Islamic miracle claims, to choose one characteristic - shape - which to a very and arbitrarily limited degree has similarity with that of an embryo (in their eyes) and to then draw any conclusions. This is particularly so given that the early embryo passes through a wide range of shapes and that both a leech and human embryo are biological organisms. Moreover, when depicting the embryo such apologetics have to conveniently ignore the embryo's yolk sac, which gradually becomes incorporated into its developing gut. | ||
Above and beyond all of this, "leech" is not the most common meaning of this word; clot works much better here, and most translators including Arberry, Pickthall, and Sahih international all translate it this way. The translation of "leech", "leech-like embryo" or "embryo" only appeared in the modern age after the discoveries of embryology, and were not known in pre-modern translations. | Above and beyond all of this, "leech" is not the most common meaning of this word; clot works much better here, and most translators including Arberry, Pickthall, and Sahih international all translate it this way. The translation of "leech", "leech-like embryo" or "embryo" only appeared in the modern age after the discoveries of embryology, and were not known in pre-modern translations. | ||
| Line 158: | Line 158: | ||
The scientific evidence shows that the development of cartilage/bone and muscles is contemporaneous. | The scientific evidence shows that the development of cartilage/bone and muscles is contemporaneous. | ||
A very detailed account of musculo-skeletal development in the human limb by clinical-geneticist Robert Jan Galjaard covers this subject.<ref>Galjaard, R.J.H. [http://repub.eur.nl/res/pub/10474/030924_Galjaard,%20Robert-Jan%20Harmen.pdf Mapping Studies of Congenital Limb Anomalies]. Ablasserdam: Haveka, B.V., 2003, page 16 [ | A very detailed account of musculo-skeletal development in the human limb by clinical-geneticist Robert Jan Galjaard covers this subject.<ref>Galjaard, R.J.H. [http://repub.eur.nl/res/pub/10474/030924_Galjaard,%20Robert-Jan%20Harmen.pdf Mapping Studies of Congenital Limb Anomalies]. Ablasserdam: Haveka, B.V., 2003, page 16 ([https://web.archive.org/web/20220409030333/https://repub.eur.nl/pub/10474/030924_Galjaard,%20Robert-Jan%20Harmen.pdf archive])</ref> It details that muscle precursor cells migrate from the somites into the limb buds (ca. day 26). This is well before the condensing core of mesenchyme has started to chondrify into cartilage bone models in the upper part of the upper limb (ca. day 37), followed by the lower part (ca. day 41). The myoblasts have grouped into distinct dorsal and ventral masses by that stage (they do so in the upper limb by day 36 and the start of chondrification according to Sivakumar et. al<ref>Sivakumar, B. et. al. ''Congenital Hand Differences'' in Farhadieh, R. et. al. (ed.) Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery: Approaches and Techniques, Chichester: Wiley, 2015, p.660 [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=tCq9BgAAQBAJ&pg=PA660#v=onepage&q&f=false Google books preview]</ref>). The upper limbs later start to ossify (ca. day 54). Chondrification of mesenchyme, the grouping of myogenic masses, and ossification all occur in a proximal-distal order (upper to lower part of each limb). The digits of the hands only start to chondrify ca. day 51. | ||
Professor Peter Law concurs that myoblasts are found in the limb buds day 26.<ref>Law, Peter et al., ''Pioneering Human Myoblast Genome Therapy as a Platform Technology of Regenerative Medicine.'' In: Stem Cell Therapy. Erik Greer (Editor). Nova Science Publishers, Inc. 2006. Page 3.</ref> | Professor Peter Law concurs that myoblasts are found in the limb buds day 26.<ref>Law, Peter et al., ''Pioneering Human Myoblast Genome Therapy as a Platform Technology of Regenerative Medicine.'' In: Stem Cell Therapy. Erik Greer (Editor). Nova Science Publishers, Inc. 2006. Page 3.</ref> | ||
| Line 260: | Line 260: | ||
However, cell differentiation occurs throughout the embryonic stage, and even into the fetal period, for example as discussed above regarding bone and muscle development. | However, cell differentiation occurs throughout the embryonic stage, and even into the fetal period, for example as discussed above regarding bone and muscle development. | ||
==Classical Commentaries== | |||
As mentioned in the opening section, classical commentators understood the verses in accordance with incorrect scientific theories at the time. Critics note how naturally they did so, and that the commentaries have value as linguistic evidence for the relevant Arabic words. Two of the major [https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/23.14 tafsirs] translated into English (on Islamic websites) state the following regarding {{Quran|23|14}}: | |||
{{Quote|{{cite web|url=https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/23.14 | name=Ibn Kathir| title=Tafsir Ibn Kathir 23:14}}|...(Then We made the Nutfah into a clot,) meaning, `then We made the Nutfah, which is the water gushing forth that comes from the loins of man, i.e., his back, and the ribs of woman, i.e., the bones of her chest, between the clavicle and the breast. Then it becomes a red clot, like an elongated clot.' `Ikrimah said, "This is blood.'' | |||
(then We made the clot into a little lump of flesh,) which is like a piece of flesh with no shape or features. | |||
(then We made out of that little lump of flesh bones,) meaning, `We gave it shape, with a head, two arms and two legs, with its bones, nerves and veins.' | |||
(then We clothed the bones with flesh,) meaning, `We gave it something to cover it and strengthen it.' | |||
(and then We brought it forth as another creation.) means, `then We breathed the soul into it, and it moved and became a new creature, one that could hear, see, understand and move.}}{{Quote|{{cite web|url=https://quranx.com/Tafsirs/23.14 | name=Al-Jalalayn | title=Tafsir Al-Jalalayn 23:14}}|Then We transformed the drop [of semen] into a clot, congealed blood. Then We transformed the clot into a [little] lump of flesh (mudgha), a piece of flesh, about the size of what one would be able to chew (mā yumdagh). Then We transformed the lump of flesh into bones. Then We clothed the bones with flesh (a variant reading in both instances [instead of the plurals ‘izāman and al-‘izāma, ‘the bones’] is [singular] ‘azman [and ‘al-‘azma], ‘the bone’; and in all three instances above khalaqnā, means ‘We made it become’ [as opposed to ‘We created’]). Then We produced him as [yet] another creature, by breathing into him [Our] Spirit. So blessed be God, the best of creators!, that is, [the best of] determiners (the specificier noun for ahsana, ‘the best’, has been omitted because it is obvious: khalqan, ‘in terms of creation’).}} | |||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||
*[[Sources of Islamic Theories of Reproduction]] | |||
*[[Semen Production in the Quran]] | |||
*[[Embryology in Islamic Scripture]] | |||
*[[Scientific Miracles in the Quran]] | *[[Scientific Miracles in the Quran]] | ||
==External Links== | |||
== | *[https://embryologyinthequran.blogspot.com Embryology in the Quran: Much Ado about Nothing] ''- Captain Disguise and Martin Taverille'' | ||
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4EIapJ7Ivk Greco-Roman Embryology in the Quran Part I], [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaYpxz63E8Y Part II], and [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dUhNSFmBQM Part III] - The Urdu Free Thinker - Youtube.com (videos) | |||
*[http://web.archive.org/web/20060214032231/http://www.geocities.com/freethoughtmecca/embryo.html Quranic Embryology (archive)] ''- Dr. Yusuf Needham and Dr. Butrus Needbeer, FreeThought Mecca'' | |||
*[http://answering-islam.org/Quran/Science/embryo.html Embryology in the Quran] ''- Dr. Lactantius, Answering Islam'' | |||
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20121107040710/http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2011/11/23/islamic-embryology-overblown-b/ Islamic embryology: overblown balderdash (archive)] ''- Dr. PZ Myers' response to Hamza Andreas Tzortzis’ paper, Embryology in the Quran'' | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
| Line 282: | Line 295: | ||
[[Category:Reproductive sciences]] | [[Category:Reproductive sciences]] | ||
[[Category:Dawah]] | [[Category:Dawah]] | ||
[[ar:علم_الأجنّة_في_القرآن]] | |||