In
the Holy Qur'an, God speaks about the stages of man's embryonic
development, 1,400 years before modern day scientists 'discovered'
important information on creation of man and his development:
{We created
man from an extract of clay. Then We made him as a drop in a
place of settlement, firmly fixed. Then We made the drop into
an alaqah (leech, suspended thing, and blood clot), then We
made the alaqah into a mudghah (chewed-like substance)...} (Qur'an
23:12-14)
Literally
the Arabic word alaqah has 3 meanings:
(1) leech; (2) suspended thing; and (3) blood clot.
1. "In comparing a leech to the embryo at the alaqah stage,
we find similarity between the two." [The Developing Human
p.8).
"Also, the embryo as this stage obtains nourishment from
the blood of the mother, similar to the leech which feeds on
the blood of others." [Human Development as Described in
Qur'an and Sunnah p.36).
2.
The second meaning of the word alaqah is 'suspended thing'.
The suspension of the embryo, during the alaqah stage, in the
womb of the mother very appropriately fits this description.
3.
The third meaning of the word alaqah is 'blood clot'. We find
that the external appearance of the embryo and its sacs during
the alaqah stage is similar to that of a blood clot. This is
due to the presence of relatively large amounts of blood present
in the embryo during this stage. Also during this stage the
blood in the embryo does not circulate until the end of the
third week. So the embryo at this stage is like a clot of blood.
By examining a diagram
of the primitive cardiovascular system in an embryo during the
alaqah stage we would notice the external appearance of the
embryo and its sacs is similar to that of a blood clot due to
the presence of relatively large amounts of blood present in
the embryo [The Developing Human, p. 65)
So the three meanings of the word alaqah
correspond accurately to the descriptions of the embryo at the
alaqah stage.
The next stage mentioned in the verse
is the mudghah stage. The Arabic word mudghah means "chewed-like
substance." If one were to take a piece of gum and chew
it in his mouth, and then compare it with the embryo at the
mudghah stage, we would conclude that they would be almost identical
because of the somites at the back of the embryo that 'somewhat
resemble teeth marks in a chewed substance.'
How could Muhammad, peace be upon him,
have possibly known all this 1,400 years ago when scientists
have only recently discovered this using advanced equipment
and powerful microscopes which did not exist at that time? Hamm
and Leeuwenhoek were the first scientists to observe human sperm
cells using an improved microscope in 1677 A.D. (more than 1,000
years after Muhammad, peace be upon him]. They mistakenly thought
that the sperm cell contained a miniature preformed human being
that grew when it was deposited in the female genital tract
[The Developing Human, p.9)
Professor Keith Moore is one of the world's
prominent scientists in the fields of anatomy and embryology
and is the author of the book entitled the "Developing
Human", which has been translated into eight languages.
This book is considered a scientific reference work and was
chosen by a special committee in the United States as the best
book authored by on person. Dr. Keith Moore is a Professor of
Anatomy and Cell Biology at the University of Toronto, Toronto,
Canada. In 1984, he received the most distinguished award presented
in the field of anatomy in Canada, the J.C.B. Grant Award from
the Canadian Association of Anatomists. He has directed many
international associations, such as the Canadian and American
Association of Anatomists and the Council of the Union of Biological
Sciences.
In 1981, during the Seventh Medical Conference
in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, Professor Moore said; "It has
been a great pleasure for me to help clarify statements in the
Qur'an about human development. It is clear to me that these
statements must have come to Muhammad from God, or Allah, because
almost all of this knowledge was not discovered until many centuries
later. This proves to me that Muhammad must have been the messenger
of God, or Allah [The reference for this statement is on 'This
is the Truth' (video tape). For a copy of this video tape please
contact us].
Consequently, Professor Moore was asked
the following question, "Does this mean that you believe
that the Qur'an is the Word of God?" He replied; "I
find no difficulty in accepting this."
During one conference,
Professor Moore stated, "... because the stagein of human
embryos is complex, owing to the continuous process of change
during development, it is proposed that a new system of classification
could be developed using the terms mentioned in the Qur'an and
the Sunnah (sayings of Muhammad, peace be upon him). The proposed
system is simple, comprehensive, and conforms with present embryological
knowledge. The intensive studies of the Qur'an and Hadeeth (reliably
transmitted sayings and reports of Prophet Muhammad, peace be
upon him) in the last four years have revealed a system of classifying
human embryos that is amazing since it was recorded in the 7th
century A.D. Although Eric Statle, the founder of the science
of embryology, realized that chick embryos developed in stages
from his studies of hen's eggs in the fourth century B.C., he
did not give any details about these stages. As far as it is
known from the history of embryology, little was known about
the stagein and classification of human embryos until the twentieth
century. For this reason, the descriptions of the human embryo
in the Qur'an cannot be based on scientific knowledge in the
7th century A.D. The only reasonable conclusion is that these
descriptions were revealed to Muhammad from God. He could not
have known such details because he was an illiterate man with
absolutely no scientific training." [This is the Truth
-video tape]
