Are the embryological stages a scientific miracle of Islam, or an imitation?

- Muslims say that the embryological stages in the Quran are a scientific miracle of Islam and that the Quran has a divine origin.
- However, critics claim that it is scientifically incorrect and influenced by Greek theories that were prevalent at the time, is that true?

Dear Brother / Sister,

The earliest period of true religions is the time of the Prophet Adam. The Prophet Adam, the first human being, was also the first prophet.

And there never was a people, without a warner having lived among them (in the past). (See Fatir, 35/24)

Therefore, if a beauty or characteristic seen in a nation or culture is also found in Islam, it shows that they are derived from the same revelation. Those who understand this subtlety and truth realize that all truths and realities were actually given to humanity through prophets.

Besides, if some of the miracles mentioned in the Quran were observed in ancient nations, it does not mean that they were imitations, but rather that Allah had informed them of some scientific miracles too.

Moreover, it is not certain that Greek philosophy possessed the scientific basis that was claimed.

Islam was revealed in the early 600s, that is, in the seventh century. A look at the world of science and philosophy before that time will provide sufficient information regarding the issue.

Until the 1800s, all sciences were taught under the umbrella of philosophy. In other words, they were not separated into science and philosophy. It is impossible for us to discuss all philosophical thoughts from every era here, nor is it necessary. Anyone who wishes can consult historical books.

The period beginning in the 8th century BC and continuing until the 5th century AD is called Antiquity. In the early phase of Antiquity, the main issue addressed by philosophers was existence and being. The “arche” (first being) was accepted as the primary being from which all physical objects originated. The nature and formation of this arche are debatable.

Aristotle, who lived between 384 and 322 BC, dominated the scientific world for two thousand years. According to Aristotle, Allah creates His works purposefully; there is no randomness or coincidence. Aristotle argued for the immutability of living species and classified plants and animals based on their visible external characteristics.

Neither Aristotle nor other philosophers provided much information about the internal structures of living beings. Besides, the invention of the microscope dates back to the 1670s, and only after that, in the 1900s, the cellular structures, reproduction, and embryological processes of living beings were understood to a certain extent.

Those who make such a claim know very well that it is untrue. However, they attack from all sides to alienate and distance young people from Islam. They attack the Quran, the hadiths, great figures, saints, in short, anything you can think of that is against this country and Islam, by slandering it. As the saying goes, “Mud sticks.” That is exactly what they are doing. Since young people do not have the opportunity to research and understand every issue, things that have no basis or foundation are put out there under the guise of scientific research.

In fact, the Quran has been challenging those who have claimed for 1,400 years that it is not the word of Allah, inviting them to produce chapters similar to those in the Quran. As a matter of fact, verses 23 and 24 of the chapter of al-Baqarah are as follows:

“And if ye are in doubt as to what We have revealed from time to time to Our servant, then produce a Sura like thereunto; and call your witnesses or helpers (If there are any) besides Allah, if your (doubts) are true. But if ye cannot- and of a surety ye cannot- then fear the Fire whose fuel is men and stones,- which is prepared for those who reject Faith.”

It means that the ancestors of today’s deniers, 1,400 years ago, could not produce anything similar to even a single verse or word of the Quran, and the Quran itself declared this challenge 1,400 years ago, stating that they would not be able to do so in the future either. If any verse or word of the Quran had been identical to those in the writings of the philosophers of the ancient world, the deniers of that time would certainly have put it forward.

Note: The 696-page book “Bilimlerin Işığında Yaratılış (Creation in the Light of Sciences)”, published for the second time in 2017 by Üsküdar University, contains an excellent article regarding the issue by Prof. Dr. Mustafa Nutku. We kindly request that you read the article titled “What is Life?” below, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask us on our website.

WHAT IS LIFE?

A FAMOUS WESTERN NOVELIST said, “How sad it is to be both human and to understand life less than animals.” While understanding life less than animals might seem like a great insult to us, humans, unfortunately, that is the case for the majority of people.

Statements made with pretentious and assertive introductions such as “My view of life, life as I see it, my philosophy of life,” etc. generally fall far short of answering the question, “What is life?”

When we try to move beyond a superficial examination of this issue and delve deeper, we gradually begin to grasp the truth in the words of that Western novelist, which initially struck us as a grave and unjust insult.

Is it not truly tragic for the most advanced and conscious beings like humans to be alive yet unaware of their own existence? So, what is life? Let us reflect a bit on this important matter and try to delve into its depths:

Biology, taught as a subject in schools from primary school onwards, means life Science. If you examine biology textbooks written at the high school, college, and postgraduate levels within the school education system, you will see that this field of science, whose name means “Life Science”, fails to fulfill its primary duty: explaining the nature of life. If we asked thousands of biology professors around the world today, “What is life?”, we would not receive a satisfactory answer from any of them. Instead of explaining what life is, they would only talk about the signs and manifestations of being alive.

It is astonishing that someone holding the highest academic titles in a scientific field may not even be able to provide a satisfactory explanation of the name of that field. It is not the case in other scientific fields (physics, chemistry, geology, etc.). The meaning and nature of the names of those fields can be explained even in elementary school textbooks.

Biology means the science of life but the fact that those engaged in this science have been unable to explain the nature of life, which is their primary task, and indeed, even setting aside scientific explanations, or even to put forward a philosophical view on the nature of life that could be discussed, makes the question “What is life?” extraordinarily intriguing.

1. Since Science and Philosophy Cannot Explain the Nature of Life

Since life, from its lowest level, considered to be plant life, through animal life and human life, has existed for thousands of years, and yet human sciences and philosophies have been unable to explain its nature, this situation compels us to seek an explanation for the undeniable truth of life outside of science and philosophy. The only source we can turn to for an explanation of life outside of science and philosophy is religion. Religion is based on revelation. The divine religions are what Allah has revealed to us through His prophets, scriptures, and books. Among them, Islam, the last, uncorrupted, most perfect religion that will endure until the Day of Judgment, explains the nature of life in the verses of the Quran.

2. Life is the Soul, Light, Essence, Foundation, and Ultimate of the Universe.

Allah (swt) is Yuhyi, meaning the giver of life. Life is the most honorable, purest, and greatest blessing of all realities; it is the greatest, most subtle, and most wondrous miracle of eternal power. Since both its outer and inner aspects are pleasant, it has no ugly side that would be displeasing to humans. Therefore, when Allah (swt) manifests His attribute of Yuhyi, He has not placed any causes or means between Himself and the Creator, as a veil of His power, in the eyes of human intellect. (Nursi, B.S. Lem’alar. Envar Neşriyat, Istanbul, 1996, pp. 329-331)

Therefore, sciences and philosophies that do not rely on revelation, especially biology (the science of life), cannot find the reasons and means upon which to base their explanations for the nature of life, and hence they cannot explain the nature of life.

Another attribute of Allah (swt) is Yumit, which means the one who gives death. Since the apparent aspect of death is often unpleasant to people, Allah has appointed the causes of death, which act as a veil for His power in the eyes of human intellect, although He is, in reality, the one who kills, and above those causes, Azrael, one of the four great angels, as the angel of death. When a relative or friend dies, people mostly focus on those causes and means; almost nobody speaks against the glory and majesty of Allah (swt). There are countless causes and means for death: various illnesses, old age, various accidents, wars, blows, and Azrael, who is the veil for Allah’s act of killing.

Although Allah (swt) is the one who gives life and death, it is a manifestation of His wisdom that when He gives life, He places no apparent cause or intermediary as a veil before the human intellect, yet when He creates death, He uses various causes and intermediaries as veils before the human intellect. Even though the true agent who gives life and takes it away is Allah (swt), the fact that while Azrael is appointed as the angel of death, no angel’s name has been heard as the angel of life, is evidence that there is no apparent cause between life and divine power.

3. Those fish that are in the sea do not know the sea.

A poet says, “Those fish that are in the sea do not know the sea.” Humans are also in the sea of life, but they do not know life! In fact:

The soul, light, essence, foundation, result, and summary of the universe are life. He who gives life is also the Creator of the entire universe. He who gives life is undoubtedly the Ever-Living and Self-Sustaining One...

Life is the greatest blessing Allah (swt) has bestowed upon us. Worldly life is an opportunity of test, given to us to earn the life of the hereafter. Eternal happiness in the hereafter is attained through belief; however, there is no belief without life. In other words, one cannot succeed in a test without taking it!

People are generally heedless; they live and die in this world without knowing who gave them this life, why, and for what purpose, how they should live it, or what awaits them after this life. It is far stranger than the state of fish that live in the sea but do not know the sea because fish do not have consciousness; so, they cannot know the sea in which they live. Humans, however, have been given consciousness, and with this consciousness comes the responsibility of using it well. The most important example of how every right and blessing given also imposes the responsibility of using that right and blessing well is the responsibility imposed on humanity with the giving of this life. With the end of the world, the Day of Judgment, all people’s tests will be completed, people will be resurrected and gathered in the field of resurrection, the results of all people’s tests in this world will be seen in the Great Court, and those who pass this great test will be separated from those who fail.

In this worldly test, which has no make-up or compensation, what those who truly live wisely, rather than those who merely pretend to be wise, must do is to live in a way that will ultimately benefit them, and to strive keeping from any state that will lead to eternal loss. They must know their Creator, His messenger, and His book, understand who they are, where they come from, how they come to being, where they are going, and the nature of death; they must consider living with this understanding as their foremost duty.

The Quran, the Word of Allah (swt), provides the answer to the question “What is life?”, an answer not found in the sciences or philosophies developed by humans. With this answer, it also addresses humanity’s curious questions regarding who they are, where they come from, and where they are going, as well as issues related to death and the afterlife. Verse 28 of al-Baqara, one of those verses, is as follows:

“How can ye reject the faith in Allah?- seeing that ye were without life, and He gave you life; then will He cause you to die, and will again bring you to life; and again to Him will ye return.”

No sane person would ever claim that he came into this world of his own free will, that he created his body, limbs, consciousness, feelings, memory, reasoning, and all the elements of a human being. Anyone making such a claim would be regarded as insane. Just as a human being could not have created his own existence, neither could his parents, nature, chance, universal consciousness, etc., have done so. The sole doer of this act is the one and only (Wahid) Allah. Since man has been granted the opportunity to be to some degree free and autonomous in this world through his intellect and will, as part of the mystery of the test, this freedom and autonomy can be misused to stray into heedlessness and aberration. However, what does the Creator say? To be curious about Him, to try to understand and live by His teachings could be the most correct choice for man when using his intellect and will. Let us pay attention:

“The Quran reads the universe in the vast mosque of creation. Let us listen to it. Let us be illuminated with that light. Let us act according to its guidance. And let us recite it constantly. Yes, the Qur’an is the word. That is what they say of it. It is the Qur’an which is the truth and comes from the Truth and says the truth and shows the truth and spreads luminous wisdom.” (Nursi, BS Sözler. Diyanet Vakfı Publications-600, Ankara, 2nd edition, 2016, pp. 41-42)

4. A Scientist Who Acknowledges the Truth

In 1984, I went to visit a friend of mine who was an associate professor (now a professor) in the Department of Histology and Embryology at Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine. He showed me some pages from an English-language embryology book he had borrowed from the university library. The book was a large-format scientific work by Prof. Dr. Keith L. Moore, Chair of the Department of Anatomy at the University of Toronto in Canada and a member of various scientific institutions. (The full title of the book is: Moore, KL; The Developing Human-Clinically Oriented Embryology, 3rd Ed. Philadelphia, WB Saunders Co, 1982)

According to the science of embryology, this valuable work, which describes in detail the development of the human being from a single cell, discusses the history of human embryology on pages eight and nine. The section that extensively discusses how scientific progress was slow during the Middle Ages and how significant information regarding human development from a single cell was provided only in the Quran, the holy book of Muslims, was particularly noteworthy.

Although I am not from this department, at the request of a friend who asked me to address this issue, I sent a very short article that was published in the September 1984 issue of Zafer magazine. I briefly stated the following in that article:

“When the historical development of various scientific disciplines is examined, it is seen that during the Middle Ages, when research methods and tools were far more inadequate compared to today, people generally could not go beyond making new predictions and assumptions based on the analysis of previous knowledge, theories that were later proven to be wrong.

The information provided in the Quran, which was revealed to humanity 14 centuries ago during the period known as the Middle Ages, regarding human development from a single cell through the initial 40-day stages of nutfa, alaqa, and mudgha is confirmed and validated by today’s modern science of embryology."

5. The Quran’s Description of Human Creation is Also Observed by Medical Science.

Turkish readers of Zafer magazine in Toronto, Canada, who read this article, visited this professor in their city and discussed the matter at length. After a long program with him on Canadian radio, Professor Moore made extensive statements published in two daily newspapers, The Gazette and The Globe and Mail, on November 22-23, 1984, and also addressed the issue in a scientific article. In his scientific article, titled “Miracles in Embryology,” Professor Moore showed posters he had prepared with Quranic verses and hadiths in their original form and English translations to journalists at a press conference, posing for photos, and included those posters, reduced in size to fit the page, in his scientific article.

In this scientific article, Prof. Dr. Keith L. Moore pointed out the miracles he identified in the Quran and hadiths regarding embryology as follows:

“First studies about embryology started at, as much as we know, in the 4th century BC and developed embryos of chicks were searched in order to come to a comparative conclusion. For approximately 2000 years after this study, there had not been any remarkable progress in the science of embryology. And after the invention of the telescope in the 17th century, the embryologic stages in the human started to be determined. I examined the human’s embryologic progress by working on the Quran and hadiths for a few years and I was astonished to see the information which is completely in harmony with the scientific facts in this divine book, which was sent to humankind in the 7th century.”

“I shall now examine the verses I have selected from the Qur’an in the light of the latest findings in embryology.”

The idea that man developed in the womb in stages was put forward in 1942 but the latest information that is still valid today was accepted by everybody in 1974.

However, the Quran indicates in verse 6 of az-Zumar in an obvious way that the creation of human happens in three dark areas by saying:

“He (Allah) created you (all) from a single person: then created, of like nature, his mate; and he sent down for you eight head of cattle in pairs: He makes you, in the wombs of your mothers, in stages, one after another, in three veils of darkness. such is Allah, your Lord and Cherisher: to Him belongs (all) dominion. There is no god but He: then how are ye turned away (from your true Centre)?”

Thus, it is clearly stated that human development takes place in three dark regions. These regions, which fully conform to the latest findings of embryology, are: the uterine wall, the peritoneum (the mother’s abdominal lining), and the amniochorionic membrane, formed by the fused embryo and croyons. These three anatomical regions protect the embryo from external influences and harm. Verses 12-14 of al-Mu’minun, while describing the developments in the first weeks, also provide a complete description of the human embryo, stating that it transforms from a climbing, leech- like form into a morsel of flesh.

“We created man from clay, from a lineage. Then We made his offspring into fluid poured out in the womb, a secure dwelling place. Then We made that fluid into a clot of blood, and that blood into a piece of flesh. From that piece of flesh We made bones, and We covered the bones with flesh. Then We made him into another form. Allah is Most High in Knowledge, Power, and Might, the Most Excellent of Creators.”

Despite the fact that we did not understand these verses at first, we were thunderstruck when we compared the shape of the 24-day old human embryo with the Arab leeches. That shape of the embryo looked like the leeches very much. And this stage was the stage when the embryo climbs the wall of the womb, which is in compliance with the phrase climbing leech, one of the lexical meanings of the word alaqa.

For centuries, people believed that a miniature shape of human was in the sperms of male and that it grew up in the womb without changing its shape. In the same way, the other group alleged that the ovum of female contained the model of human in it. So, for centuries, the cells of sperm and ovum were dealt with separately. We learned the fact that man was created from a single cell called zygote, and that zygote came into existence by the insemination of the ovule only in the 18th century by the results of the experiments of Spallanzani. However, verse 37 of the chapter of al-Qiyamah and verse 8 of the chapter of as-Sajda state how the zygote -mentioned as “Nutfa”- came into existence eleven centuries earlier than this discovery; and verse 19 of the chapter of Abasa stated clearly that the zygote carried the characteristics and life program of the developing human. This fact which was discovered at the end of the 19th century was stated in the Quran centuries ago and it is interesting that those verses were in the form that could be understood even by the people of that century.

Although it was discovered in the last century that the sperm was the factor that provided insemination in recent centuries, the verses of the Quran did not only describe insemination but also stated the properties of the sperm centuries ago. The fact that only very few of the millions of ejaculated sperms were able to reach the womb where the ovum waited and that only one of them united with the ovum was discovered in the 18th century. However, Allah explained this creation stage of human 1200 years ago by saying, “Was he not a drop of sperm emitted (in lowly form)?” in verse 37 of the chapter of al-Qiyamah and “And made his progeny from a quintessence of the nature of a fluid despised” in verse 8 of the chapter of as-Sajda. It is stated that not all semen result in making a child in a hadith related to this.

Dr. Moore narrates his other similar determinations which he qualifies as miracles as follows:

“According to research, the embryo descends to the womb after ten days. It resembles to a human in the 8th week. 50-55 days after arriving in the womb, the embryo becomes a human with everything. However, the ears and eyes start to shape up in the 4th week. 6 weeks later, they become quite distinct.”

In a hadith, Prophet (pbuh) states the following: When forty-two nights pass after the semen gets into the womb, Allah sends the angel and gives him shape. Then he creates his sense of hearing, sense of sight, his skin, his flesh, his bones, and then says: My Lord, would he be male or female? The Prophet (pbuh) described the event that would be discovered after 1100 years by giving even the correct number of the days; which word can describe this other than the word miracle?

“There is one more subtlety in this hadith. Why does the angel ask the gender of the baby? It is very stunning to view the answers of this hadith by the scientific knowledge of today: For, until the forty-second day, even though the embryo’s bones and flesh are completed, and the character and senses are settled, the gender of it is not specified at that time and this was stated perfectly in the hadith 1200 years ago.”

“The Qur’an also clarifies the implantation process of the human’s blastocyst. Verse 223 of the chapter al-Baqara likens the state of the blastocyst in the womb to a seed thrown into ground by saying ‘Your wives are as a tilth unto you’. This verse is also very meaningful. For, as ground conceals seed, the epithelium of the womb conceals the blastocyst which clings to it. And blastocyst immediately starts to generate the fibrils named chorionic villi in order to feed itself. Just like the seeds taking root under the ground in order to feed themselves.”

Dr. Moore narrates another astonishing finding of him as follows:

Why do the verses we quoted before mention the shape of the four-week-old human embryo as “chewed flesh” (mudgha)? When we examine this 4-week-old embryo, named as mudgha by the Quran, we see that a pattern like a chain of beads appear on it and we noticed with astonishment that the structure actually looked like teeth marks. We made a model of four-week-old human embryo out of plastic and we chew it, leaving our teeth marks on it. The shape looked extremely like the real embryo and it explained very well why the Quran mentioned it as mudgha (chewed flesh). The conformity between the information given in the Quran and the result of the embryological researches today about mudgha does not consist of this only. The following is stated in verse 14 of the chapter of al-Muminun:…We made out of that lump bones and clothed the bones with flesh; then We developed out of it another creature… These changes, which are stated to have been made in mudgha, were determined to be in the same way as it is stated in the verse as a result of the embryological studies that were made; it was even observed that the organs like the brain and heart started to form in this stage.”

The Canadian Professor Keith L. Moore, who attracts attention to the miracles in the Quran and hadiths through a press conference and his books by comparing the findings of the science of embryology today and the Quran and hadiths, states the following as a conclusion:

“I think I will be able to evaluate better the facts of the verses of the Quran and hadiths confirmed by today’s exact sciences as my knowledge increases. I believe that the gap that has formed between science and religion for years can be bridged as the truths of the Quran and hadiths are understood.”

We do not know whether Professor Keith L. Moore embraced Islam or not. If he viewed those miracles related to his professorship in the Quran and hadiths only from a purely scientific perspective, and did not go beyond that, and did not embrace Islam, then that is his problem; servitude in this world is a test. His lack of belief, despite these proofs, does not weaken our belief. On the contrary, according to the principle “The most certain truth is that which even its enemies are compelled to acknowledge,” even an enemy of Islam will acknowledge the truth of the belief we adhere to, thus strengthening our faith.

Believers do not actually need to take lessons from a Canadian professor to believe in Allah (SWT), that Islam is the true religion, that the Quran is the word of Allah (swt), and that our Prophet (pbuh) is the messenger of Allah (swt), the envoy He sent to us, and to strengthen this belief. It is because a true believer believes that the Quran is “the most authentic guide.”

6. Life is not limited to this earthly life alone.

As we mentioned earlier, in verse 28 of al-Baqara, while the answers to the questions of what life is and how it came into being are given, the answers to the most important questions regarding where man comes from and where he is going are also given. This verse states that life is given by Allah (swt), that death in this worldly life is not caused by the passage of time but by Allah (swt), that after death in this world, life will be given a second time in the hereafter by Allah (swt), that when the process of purification takes place on the Day of Resurrection, opposites will be separated from each other, causes and means will disappear, and after the veil and covering in between are lifted, everyone will see their Creator and know their true Master. Let us reread this verse, each word of which conveys very important truths about what life and man are, where man comes from and where he is going, and what his duty is in this world, in a very short and concise way:

“How can ye reject the faith in Allah- seeing that ye were without life, and He gave you life; then will He cause you to die, and will again bring you to life; and again to Him will ye return.” (al-Baqara, 2/28)

Belief is the highest truth in the universe. The six pillars of belief were revealed to our Prophet (pbuh) by the Angel Jibril (Gabriel) and summarized in the sacred hadith of “Amantu”, which we memorized in childhood. As we transition from childhood to adulthood and maturity, our duty is to engage with this highest truth of the universe in a manner commensurate with its value. We must use our developing intellect, feelings, and abilities to grasp the subtleties and depths of truth, and in our immediate environment, family, work, friends, etc., we must take a stand against unnecessary, useless, and harmful pursuits, living, explaining, and striving to ensure that matters of belief are prioritized.

I would like to conclude this with the second verse of al-Baqarah, which states that Allah has sent the Quran as a guide for us mankind:

“This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear Allah.”

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