Creation and Evolution

Islam and Science as one

Arrassi A. Zakaria (72427)
[email protected]
July 9, 2008

Contents

Abstract

There is a heavy debates between believers and nonbelievers about the origin of man. Science has discovered that man originated from water and gradually
evolved, through intermediary states, to the human being that we know nowadays classified as Homo sapiens
sapien. Believers, from different religions, argue that
mankind was created by God and placed on earth after
Adam and Eve ate from the fruits of the forbidden tree.
They reject any scientific prove about evolution.
This paper tries to show to the interested reader, that religion, and in this case Islam, is not in contradiction with
the theories emerging from scientific research. On the
contrary, it supports and reinforces the theories proving
that mankind is searching in the right direction concerning creation and evolution.
As Al-Ghazali, a famous Muslim philosopher said:
Two sides can only debate if they both agree to put
aside their prejudices and discuss with an open mind
searching for the truth. The main concern of believers
is that accepting apes as their forefathers, is that they
think scientist want to depict Adam and Eve as apes.
However, we will see in this paper, that Adam and Eve
are the first kind of Homo sapiens sapiens, which are
fully fledged humans, and not monkey-like.
We will see what, prominent, Muslim scientists had to
say about evolution long before Darwin had described
his theory. Most of this heritage, however, is lost and
is slowly disappearing in books as, only a few people,
even in the Muslim world, are aware of it.
Another heritage that, in contrary to ordinary books,
will not vanish is the Quran. We will see what God tells
us about His creation. We will analyze some verses regarding the origin of mankind and its evolution through
the ages.
In the end we will try to understand why, with all this
knowledge in accordance to modern science, most muslims still deny the theory of evolution.

Introduction

Pre-Darwinism in the medieval Muslim

world

The origin of Man in the Quran

Adam and Eve in the Quran

The location of the garden of Eden

On the Forbidden Tree

On free-will, predestination and chance

events

Summary and conclusion

10

Introduction

This paper has a strange structure. We start by studying

what ancient Muslim savants had to say about evolution
of the humankind from other species. We will see that
their opinions and ideas align with the modern theory of
evolution and Darwinism.
Next, we have a look at what the Quran has to say
about the creation of humankind and evolution. Since
the Quran has many different interpretation, we had to
filter and select only a few to show in this paper. Some
verses of the Quran are points toward modern scientific facts while other are more symbolic. We will use
the symbolic verses as a transition to from science to
philosophy and the concepts of human knowledge and
free-will. From there we try to summarize the idea of
the paper in a few sentences.
In this clear that we only scratch the surface of the topic.
The literature is broad and the ideas divergent. We tried,
however, the condense, all this in a readable package for
the novice user.
1

Pre-Darwinism in the medieval

Muslim world

Khaldun concludes his view on the origin of races

as follows:[muq, a]Physical circumstances and the
environment are subject to changes that affect later generations; they do not necessarily remain unchanged.
His point of view is that species are not fixed, but are
subject to change according to the environment. He
believed that the physical characteristics of organism
are determined by their essence. He believed that the
active nature 2 has the ability to generate and change
essence[muq, b].

It is generally agreed that Darwins The Origin of

Species (1859) is the pivotal work in evolutionary biology. The book introduced the theory that populations
evolve over the course of generations through a process
of natural selection. This statement shocked the JudeoChristian population in the West and is still today a controversial subject.
Muslim scholars had long recognized that human beIf Ibn Khaldun lived in our time, he would replace the
ings had an ancestral link to apes. Ibn Khaldun, a
word essence by DNA. He also describes the transforMuslim historiographer and social scientist wrote in his
mation of species into other species as a change in of
1
Muqaddimah :
the essence:
One should then look at the world of creThe essences at the end of each particuation. It started out from the minerals and prolar stage of the worlds are by nature prepared
gressed, in an ingenious, gradual manner to
to be transformed into the essence adjacent to
plants and animals. The last stage of minerthem. This is the case with the simple maals is connected with the first stage of plants,
terial elements; it is the case with the palms
such as herbs, and seedless plants. The last
and vines (which constitute) the last stage of
stage of plants such as palms and vines is conplants, in their relation to snails and shellfish,
nected with the first stage of animals, such
(which constitute) the (lowest) stage of anias snails and shellfish which have only the
mals. It is also the case with monkeys, creapower to touch. The word connection with
tures combining in themselves cleverness and
regard to these created things means that the
perception, in their relation to man, the belast stage of group is fully prepared to being who has the ability to think and to recome the first stage of the next group. The
flect. The preparedness (for transformation)
animal world then widens, its species become
that exists on either side, at each stage of the
numerous, and, in a gradual process of creworlds, is meant when (we speak about) their
ation, it finally leads to man, who is able to
connection.[muq, c]
think and reflect. The higher stage of man is
reached from the world of monkeys, in which
According to Al-Biruni (973-1048), Islams greatest geboth sagacity and perception are found, but
ologist, man gradually evolved from other organisms
which has not reached the stage of actual rethrough the struggle for survival of the fittest as we can
flection and thinking. At this point we come
read in his book, Kitab al-Jamahir3
to the first stage of man (after the world of
Man reached his maximum degree of permonkeys). This is as far as our (physical) obfection
compared to other animals below him
servation extends.[Khaldun, 1967]
(in the evolutionary ladder). He ascended to
Ibn Khaldun described in the above passage a hierarchy
the present state from other kinds of beings
of species with links between them. It starts from the
such as dog-like, bear-like, ape-like etc. Then
lowest form of life which are minerals and goes up
finally he became man.[Al-Biruni, 1934]
to more complex life-form. In the above passage we
4
read the first stage of man showing that Ibn Khaldun Abu Bakr Ibn Tufail (1095-1138), a poet and physiknew about other hominoid species more advanced cian born in Guuadix, Spain was known to have influwas the teacher
than monkeys but not equal to the modern man. He enced Jewish and Christian thinkers and
5
[Shavanas,
2005].
of
the
great
philosopher
Ibn
Rushd
than stated that he arrived to this conclusion with his
Ibn
Tufail
is
remembered
through
his
famous
work,
own physical observation of the world.
The
Journey
of
the
Soul
(The
Story
of
Hai
bin
According to the Muqaddimah, Ibn Khaldun, and
Yaqzan).[Tufail,
1138].
The
book
is
a
fictional
biograother Muslim scholars, believed that a series of
transmutations from one species into another resulted phy about a child born without parents and place the
in evolution of life. This evolution from primitive
2 kiyan - arabic
3 Book of the Reunion - translation is mine
organisms forms a bush with numerous branches. Ibn
4 Latin
1 An

5 Latin

Introduction to History

name: Abu Bazer

name: Avveroes

wander world. The idea is that the child has no knowledge of the environment and no education. He must
learn by observing nature and make his own conclusion
without any bias or interference due to previous knowledge,6 Simon Ockely undertook the translation of the
book in 17087 . Henry Fairfield Orborn8 summarizes the
story as follows:

The West heavily used Arabic books in the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance to rebuild the science
it had lost during the Dark Ages. Many books that
were used as school books, or canon, have Muslim authors. It is fair to think that Darwin, following Roger
Bacons advice to learn Arabic and Arabic science for
progress[Briffault, 1928], might have known the muslim theory of evolution.

There happens to be under the equator an

island, where Man comes into the world without father and mother; by spontaneous generation he arises, directly in the form of boy,
from the earth, while the spirit, which, like
the sunshine, emanated from God, unites with
the body, growing out of a soft, unformed
mass. Without any intelligent surroundings, and without education, this Natureman through simple observation of the outer
world, and through the combination of various appearances, rises to the knowledge of the
world and of the Godhead. First he perceives
the individuals, then he recognizes the various species as independent forms; but as he
compares the varieties and species with each
other, he comes to the conclusion that they all
sprung from a single animal spirit, and at the
same time that the entire animal race forms a
single whole. He makes the same discovery
among the plants; finally he sees the animal
and plant forms in their unity, and discovers
that among all their differences they have sensitiveness and feeling in common; from that
he concludes that animals and plants are on
and the same.[Osborn, 1908]

The origin of Man in the Quran

In contrast with the Bible, the Quran does not have a

chapter on the genesis of human life. However, there
are many verses in various surah10 that indicate how
the origin of life originated. The Quran itself asks to
meditate and research the origin of life as stated:
Truly in the creation of heavens and the
earth, and in the alternations of the night and
day are signs for those have acumen, who utter (the name of) God, standing, sitting, and
on their sides, and ponder over the creation
of the heavens and the earth, (saying), Our
Lord, You have not created these in futility,
Glory be to You:guard us then from the torment of the fire.(Quran 3:190-191)
in another surah:
On the earth are signs for those who
have sure faith (in the meaningfulness of all
things), as also (there are signs) in your own
self: will ye not, then, observer? (Quran
51:20-21)

The boy, according to Osborn, concludes that plants and

animals all sprang from one common origin.

The two verses above God urges mankind to search for

signs of His existence in physicals events, like the alternation of the night and day or our own self.

We have seen that Darwinism was already spread in

the Muslim world long before Darwin was born. The
problem is that the actual Muslim world has lost much
of its scientific heritage, as the Europeans did when
they abandoned the knowledge of Greeks and Rome
during the Middle Ages. Books are rarely re-read with
a critical eye to build new theories from the one the
ancestors layed out for us. All Muslims are proud of
their scientific heritage but only a few really know
what that heritage means9 when it comes to content of
biology, history, geology or medicine.

In another verse God is even more focused by saying

that mankind should find signs of His existence in the
creation and origin of man:
Say: Go all over the earth and behold
how [wondrously] He has created [man] in
the first instance: and thus, too, will God
bring into being your second life - for, verily.
God has the power to will anything! (Quran
29:20)

6 Each human has an education and an environment were he grows

up. Because of that our knowledge is always biased and we are
trapped in our own perspective of the world.
7 A century before Darwin was born
8 1883-1890, professor of comparative anatomy at Princeton from
1883 to 1890 and joined Columbia University in 1891 were he became
professor of biology and then professor of zoology in 1896.
9 Except maybe for the fields of mathematics were it remained
strong because everyone still refers to numbers as Arabic numbers

Analyzing the first part of the verse we see that God asks
men to travel the earth and search how man was created. This indicates that the origin of man happened on
earth and not in the Heaven as many scholars indicate.
10 A

book

group of verses form a surah. It corresponds a chapter in a

to a human; and (c) the newly formed object or creature with its characteristic feature
were nonexistent before its original birth (to
bring a thing into existence from a state of
non-existence). In this process the new creature becomes a prototype. Therefore, the classical12 meaning of the Arabic word khalaqa
ca be summarized as; To bring a thing into
existence according to a certain measure or
proportion, so as to make it equal to another
thing that is not pre-existing.

Also, if God ask men to search for signs of creation

those signs must understandable by human. Hence, the
origin of man is something divine, but that can be explained by science.
Muhammad Asads comments in his translation of the
Quran, are the following:
. . . which alludes to mans coming into existence out of most primitive elements, and
gradually evolving into a highly complex being endowed not only with a physical body
but also with a mind, with feelings, and instincts

Now, indeed, We create man out of the

essence of clay, and then we cause him to remain as drop of sperm in [the wombs] firm
keeping, and then We create out of the drop
of sperm a germ-cell, and then We create
out of the germ-cell an embryonic lump, and
then We create within the embryonic lump,
bones, and the We clothe the bones with flesh
- and then We bring [all] this into being as a
new creation: hallowed, therefore, is God, the
God, the best of artisans!(Quran 23:12-14)

The following is another verse where God explains the

creation of man:
Now, indeed, We create man out of the
essence of clay, and then we cause him to remain as drop of sperm in [the wombs] firm
keeping, and then We create out of the drop
of sperm a germ-cell, and then We create
out of the germ-cell an embryonic lump, and
then We create within the embryonic lump,
bones, and the We clothe the bones with flesh
- and then We bring [all] this into being as a
new creation: hallowed, therefore, is God, the
God, the best of artisans!(Quran 23:12-14)

Going back to verse 23:12-14 about the evolution of the

embryo in the womb. The verse uses many times the
word create. If we use the classical meaning of the word
as in making something ex nihilo, the verse would not
have any sense. It would say that each step in the process is not depended of the previous phase. Using the
another meaning the sense is clear by saying that each
has a link with the previous step.

This verse specifies the origin of man and also, describes, with much detail, the evolution of an embryo
in the womans womb11 .

Interesting for us is the first part: We create man out of

In the book; LHomme dou vient-il?13 written by Dr.
the essence of clay. According to Lane, the verb create,
Maurice Bucaille, he stresses the classical meaning of
khalaqa, apart form the classical meaning create, means
khalaqa:
proportioning a thing into another thing and to bring
a thing into existence according to a certain measure,
A lintention de mes lecteurs arabophones
or proportion, and so as to make it equal to (another
et arabisant, je souligne a` propos de la trathing). In proportion a thing into an original and
duction donnee ici de la reference n* 2 que
previously non-existing thing, it also signifies the origlusage voudrait que le mot arabe khalaqa
inating, or to bring a thing into existence from a state of
soit traduit par creer. Mais il faut savoir
non-existence.[Edward William, 1993]
que le sens primitif du verbe est comme il
est precise dans lexcellent dictionnaire de
For [Shavanas, 2005] the meaning of khalaqa according
Kazimirski, donner une mesure a` une chose
to [Edward William, 1993] is threefold:
ou la faire dune certaine mesure ou quantite. Pour Dieu (seul), on a simplifie en
[. . . ], there are three components to the
traduisant en utilisant le mot creer, cestmeaning of the word khalaqa: (a) shapa` -dire donner lexistence a ce qui netais pas.
ing an original substance or entity into anCe faisant, on evoque le term de laction, mais
other object (proportioning a thing to ansans preciser la notion de mesure qui sy atother thing); (b) the newly formed object
tache. Il serait peut-etre plus exact dutiliser
or creature must have its own peculiar charune expression comme faonner ou former
acteristics so that it can be identified separately from its original source-not like father
and son, but like a tree to a canoe or an ape

12 Befitting with the overall reading of the Quran because it is

based on the true language that was prevalent among the natives of
the Arabian Peninsula at the time of the Prophet Muhammed and not
upon modern Arabic
13 Where does Man come from? - translation is mine

11 Remember,

the Quran was revealed around 622 J.C to an illiterate person, Muhammad, in the middle of the desert.

the environment within which the prototype

of all living matter originated; (2) among all
the innumerable - existing or conceivable liquids, only water has the peculiar properties
necessary for the emergence and development
of life; and (3) the protoplasm, which is the
physical basis of every living cell - whether
in plans or in animals - and represents the
only form of matter in which the phenomena
of life are manifested, consists overwhelmingly of water and is, thus, utterly dependent
on it. Read together with the preceding statement, which alludes to the unitary origin of
the physical universe, the emergence of life
from and within an equally unitary element
points to the existence of the unitary plan underlying all creation and, hence, to the existence and oneness of the Creator.

avec la mesure voulue. On serait ainsi plus

pres du sens primitif du mot en arabe. Aussi
jutliserai souvent pour ce mot le sens de former dans ma traduction, en sous-entendant
le sens primitif en arabe.
(To my arabic speaking lecturer, I stress
the importance of the translation of the word
given as reference n* 2 that the world khalaqa
is translated as created. One must know
that the primitive verb is, like it is described in
the excellent Kazimirski dictionnary as, giving a measure to something or doing it by a
certain measure or quantity. Only for God,
weve simplified the word and translated it as
created, that is, give existence to something
that did not exist before. We evoke the action, without precising de notion attached to
it. It would maybe be better to use a more precise expression like fashion or form given
a certain mesure. We would be more related
to the sense of the primitive word in arabic.
As such, I will use the for this word as in
form in my translation implying the primitive sense of the arabic word - translation is
mine) [Cre, ]

In another verse, the Quran, emphasizes again that all

living creatures originate from water:
And it is God who has created all animals
out of water; and [He has willed that] among
them are such as crawl on their bellies, and
such as walk on two legs, and such as walk on
four. God creates what He wills: for, verily,
God has the power to will anything.

we are ready to further analyzing other verse from the

Quran about the origin of man.

The term all animals comes from the arabic dabbah

and denotes: every corporal being endowed with both
life and spontaneous movement hence in its widest
sense, it comprises the entire animal world, including
man[Asad, 2003].

Modern biology discovered that all life originates from

water as written in the verse:
Are, the, they who are bent on denying the
truth not aware that the heavens and the earth
were [once] one single entity, which We then
parted asunder? - and [that] We made out of
water every lining thing? Will they not, then,
[begin to ] believe? (Quran 21:30)[Asa, a]

The grammatical structure of the verse is of capital importance because it indicates that the verse englobes
rational, man, and irrational, animals, creatures as explained in [Shavanas, 2005]:

The origin of earth14 and man.

It is made clear that water plays a crucial role for the
creation, and sustainer, of life as [Asad, 2003] comments:

If the noun dabbah (animals) were applied only to rational or irrational creatures
separately, the two phrases, fa min-hunna or
fa-min-ha, would have been used in proper
Arabic grammar. Instead, the Arabic use the
phrase fa min hum in the verse conveys the
Arabic noun dabbah (animals) in the verse refer to both rational and irrational creatures.
Therefore, the verse states that a rational animal that walks on two legs was also created
from water.

The statement that God made out of water every living thing expresses most concisely a truth that is nowadays universally accepted by science. It has a threefold meaning: (1) Water -and, specifically, the sea - was
14 . . . the above unmistakable reference to the unitary origin of the
universe - metonymically described in the Quran as the heavens and
the earth - strikingly anticipates the view of almost all modern astrophysicists that this universe has originated as one entity from one
single element, namely, hydrogen, which became subsequently consolidated through gravity and then separated into individual nebulae,
galaxies and solar systems, with further individual parts progressively
breaking away to form new entities in the shape of stars, planets and
the latters satellites.[Asad, 2003]

Human is the most rational of all creatures. Therefore,

the creature walking on two legs referred in the verse indicates human. This is in accordance with the previous
verse (21:30) and with modern science.
5

Adam and Eve in the Quran

those who are bent on denying the truth regard other powers as their Sustainers equal
(hadala)

The main-stream of Muslims believe that Adam was

created from nothing and Eve from his rib. The Quran
does not state anywhere this procedure. However, it
tells us that Adam was created, with the classical Arabic meaning of the word, and then fashioned and shaped
into perfection as the following verses states :

Here we see that both translators agree upon the meaning of hadala as making a thing, here other powers or
others, equal to another thing, Lord or Sustainer. Therefore, we can assume that the same meaning can be applied to the verses 82:6-7. We replace the words khalaqa and hadala with the classical Arabic meaning and
obtain using the translation from [Khatib, a]:

O man! What is it that lures thee away

from thy bountiful Sustainer, who has created
(khalaqa) thee, and formed (khalaqa) thee
in accordance with what thou art meant to
be, and shaped thy nature in just proportions
(hadala). Quran 82:6-7[Asa, b]

O you man, what deluded you concerning your Munificent Lord, who shaped you
from a pre-existing thing (khalaqa), sculpted
(sawwa) you transformed you to [distinctly
identifiable] perfect human shape (hadala).
(Quran 82:6-7)[Khatib, a]

and in another translation:

O you man, what deluded you concerning your Munificent Lord, who created (khalaqa) you, fashioned (sawwa) you and shaped
you in perfection (hadala). (Quran 82:67)[Khatib, a]

As for the perfect human shape, [Shavanas, 2005] refers

to Homo sapien sapiens.

To further stress the importance of the words; create (khalaqa) and fashioned (sawwa) we find the
verse:

Yea, indeed, We have shaped you from a

preexisting thing (khalaqa), and then sculpted
or perfected you to become distinguished
with modern human (first Homo sapien
sapiens or Adam and Eve) characteristics
(sawwarra); and then We said unto the angles, Prostrate yourselves before Adam! whereupon they [all] prostrated themselves,
save Iblis: he was not among those who prostrated themselves. (Quran 7:11)[Asa, c]

The same exercise can be applied to the verse Quran

7:11 and we would read:

Yea, indeed, We have created (khalaqa)

you, and then formed (sawwarra) you; and
then We said unto the angles, Prostrate yourselves before Adam! - whereupon they [all]
prostrated themselves, save Iblis: he was
not among those who prostrated themselves.
(Quran 7:11)[Asa, c]

We see that the first Homo sapien sapiens we shaped

from a preexisting thing. The evidence is again
to be found in the Quran were God explicitly tells
mankind that the modern man evolved from earlier hominids.

[Khatib, a] translated the verb hadala as shaped you

in perfection and [Asa, b] as shaped thy nature in
just proportions. Both translation differ in their meaning. Lanes lexicon[Edward William, 1993] gives yet
another meaning to the word: rate a thing as equal to
a thing of another kind so as to make it like the latter.
This means that the verb indicated the transformation
from a thing into another distinctly identifiable thing.
As proof he quotes the Quranic verse:

And thy Sustainer alone is self-sufficient,

limitless in His grace. If He so wills, He
may put an end to you and thereafter cause
whom He wills to succeed you - even as He
has brought you into being out of other peoples seed. (Quran 6:133)[Asa, d]

All praise be to God who created the

heavens and the earth, and ordined darkness
and light. Yet the unbelievers make others equal (hadala) of their Lord. (Quran
6:1)[Khatib, b]
and the
reads:

translation

from

Muhammed

The attentive reader would then ask the question: Who

are those other people?
Al-Biruni called them; animal man. We call them Homo
sapien, Homo erectus and other human likes who preceded the Homo sapiens sapien.

Asad

All praise is due to God, who has created

the heavens and the earth, and brought into
being deep darkness as well as light: and yet,

To end this part I would like to quote and article from

the leading journal in the scientific field, Science, summarized the latest studies as follows:
6

In the beginning, there was mitchondiral Eve-a woman who lived in Africa between
100,000 and 200,000 years ago and was the
ancestor to all living humans. Geneticists
traced her identity by analyzing DNA passed
exclusively from mother to daughter in the
mitochondria, energy-producing organelles in
the cell. To test this view of human origins, scientists have been search ever since
for Eves consort: Adam, the man whose Y
chromosome) was passed on to every living
man and boy. Now, after almost a decade of
study, two international teams have found the
genetic trail of Adam. and it points to the
same time and place where mitochondrial Eve
lived.

from unsullied springs by which their minds

will not be clouded and which will not make
them drunk; and with fruit of any kind that
they may choose, and with the flesh of any
fowl that they may desire. (Quran 56:1721)[Asa, f]
The words; and with fruit of any kind that they may
choose refers to the fact that no forbidden fruit is located in the Paradise. This is different from the Garden
of Eden were the the forbidden tree was located.
As such, the Garden of Eden could not have been Paradise. Another verse to rule out the possibility of the
Garden being Paradise:
And He imparted unto Adam the names
of all things; then He brought them within the
ken of the angels and said: Declare unto Me
the names of these [things], if what you say is
true.
They replied: Limitless art Thou in Thy
glory! No knowledge have we save that
which Thou hast imparted unto us. Verily,
Thou alone art all-knowing, truly wise.
Said He: O Adam convey unto them the
names of these [things].
And as soon as [Adam] had conveyed unto
them their names, [God] said: Did I not say
unto you, Verily, I alone know the hidden reality of the heavens and the earth, and know
all that you bring into the open and all that
you would conceal?
And when We told the angels, Prostrate
yourselves before Adam! - they all prostrated themselves, save Iblis15 , who refused
and gloried in his arrogance: and thus he became on of those who deny the truth. (Quran
2:31-34)[Asa, g]

This scientific evidence does not contradict the Quranic

assertion that humankind was created from a single pair
of a male and a female.

The location of the garden of

Eden

Many Muslims believe that Adam and Eve were created

in Paradise. After eating the fruit of the forbidden they
were expelled, send down, to earth. There is a great debate the location of the garden.
According to Ibn Kathir and Ar-Razi four interpretations about the location prevail:
the Garden is Paradise itself located in the heavens
the Garden is a separate Paradise for Adam and
Eve and is not the paradise in heaven.
the Garden is located on earth

it is best for Muslims not to be concerned about the We read above that God learned all names to Adam.
According to Asad the meaning of names can be more
location
related to the essence of all things:
The following Quranic verse discards the possibility
that the garden is in Paradise itself:
...
And [as for all such believers,] no human
being can imagine what blissful delights, as
the knowledge of all the names denotes
yet hidden, await them [in the life to come]
here mans faculty of logical definition and,
as a reward for all that they did. (Quran
thus conceptual thinking.[Asa, g]
32:17)[Asa, e]
The basic knowledge needed to start deducing.
The words; no human being denotes all mankind, fol- The rest of the story is found in another surah as:
lowed by; can imagine indicate that no living soul, in[And God] said: What has kept thee
cluding Adam and Eve, have seen the Paradise.
[Iblis] from prostrating thyself when I comIn another verse:
manded thee?
Answered [Iblis]: I am better than he: Thou
Immortal youths will wait upon them with
15 Satan
goblets, and ewers, and cups filled with water
7

Therefore, the original sin is for both man and woman.

Also, regarding the symbolism of Adam and Eves becoming conscious of their nakedness, Asads commentary clarify as: of their utter helplessness and, hence,
their dependence to God.

hast created me out of fire, whereas him Thou

has created out of clay.
[God] said: Down with thee, then, from this
[state] - for it is not meet for thee to show arrogance here! Go forth, then: verily, among
the humiliated shalt thou be!
Said [Iblis]: Grant me a respite till the Day
[of Judgement] when all shall be raised from
the dead.
[And God] replied: Verily thou shalt e
among those who are granted a respite.
(Quran 7:12-15)[Asa, h]

Now, that we have put this problem aside, we must

study in more details the story of the Forbidden Tree. It
holds in its content, the key to humankind as we know
it now. It also gives allusion to the concept of free-will
as rule of the Universe, which will be explained more
in details in the next section.

After the refusal of Iblis to bowe down before Adam,

he was expelled from the Garden and given respite until
they would be raised up from death on the Day of Continuing the study of the Quran, we look
Judgement. Hence Adam and Eve lived in a place were at explanation for the Forbidden Tree given by
death and decay were a reality and they knew that their [Asad, 2003]
time was limited.
This symbolic tree is designated in the
Bible as the tree of life and the tree of
knowledge of good and evil, (Genesis ii, 9),
while in the [above] Quranic account Satan
speaks of it as the tree of life eternal (alkhuld). Seeing that Adam and Eve did not
achieve immortality despite their tasting the
forbidden fruit, it is obvious that Satans suggestion was, as it always is, deceptive. On the
other hand, the Quran tells us nothing about
the real nature of that tree beyond pointing
out that it was Satan who described it - falsely
- as the tree of immortality: and so we may
assume that the forbidden tree is simply an allegory of the limits which the Creator has set
to mans desire and actions:

Another point is that after the expellation of Satan, he

was still able to dwell in the Garden of Eden, which
makes this place clearly different from Paradise were as
the Quran points out:
No empty talk will that hear there [in Paradise], nor any call to sin, but only the tiding
of inner soundness and peace. (Quran 56:2426)[Asa, i]
The Paradise described in the previous verse has no call
to sin. Hence, this Paradise is different than the Garden
of Eden from the story of Adam and Eve. This shows
us, that the Garden of Eden was located on earth.

On the Forbidden Tree

...

For long, the story of the Forbidden Tree has been taken
become free of al all limitations and thus,
literally by believers. In Christianity, the Tree is responin the last resort, of the very concept of God
sible for the original sin blamed on women because, ac- the only concept which endows human life
cording to the story, Eve ate the fruit first.
with real meaning and purpose.[Asa, k]
In Islam the dual form16 is used. This verse conforms
that the eating of the fruit has been performed by Adam
as well as Eve.
We have a transition in state, from irrational, only knowing what was given to him, into a rational creature with
And so the two ate [of the fruit] thereof:
the ability of choice17 . This transition denotes a step
and thereupon they became conscious of their
from animal without reason into a fully fledged human.
nakedness and began to cover themselves
Hence, the first thing given to human is the ability to
with pieced-together leaves from the garden.
make a mistake, which opened the doors to the ability
And [thus] did Adam disobey his Sustainer,
to distinguish between good and bad deeds.
and thus did he fall into grievous error.(Quran
20:121)[Asa, j]
16 Arabic

17 Therefore,

has a special plural form that is used when talking about

exactly two persons.

edge

the Forbidden Tree is also called the Tree of Knowl-

On free-will, predestination and

chance events18

heedless say. If that were so, He would not

have said in the Quran, 41:40:Do what you
wish but would have said:Do what I have
destined you to do. Nor would He have said
in the Quran, 18:29:Whoever wills shall believe and whoever wills shall disbelieve but
would have said:Whoever I will shall believe
and whoever I will shall disbelieve.

There has always been an important debate about actions and their consequences, and if, yes or no, we have
free-will or if our future is predestined.
We have seen that free-will, or at least, rational thinking, started with Adam and Eve eating from the fruits
of the Forbidden Tree. And that the, bad, action, of going against the will of God, opened a pandora box, of
possibilities for human.

The fundamental purpose of the Quran, and the

Prophets authentic tradition, is to make us aware of
heaven and hell and of the moral or immoral decisions
that we could make by the use of our free-will in an
unpredictable world.[Sha, ]

Going back to the Quran we study the importance of

the word; vicegerent.

Many Muslims believe that because evolution is based

on chance events22 it is in contradiction with Islamic
teachings. If we agree with the idea that the universe
has been created in a deterministic fashion, we fall into
grave moral issues.

And lo! Thy Sustainer said unto the angels: Behold, I am about to establish upon
earth one who shall inherit it. They said:
Wilt Thou place on it such as will spread
corruption thereon and shed blood - whereas
it is we who extol Thy limitless glory, and
praise Thee, and hallow Thy name? [God]
answered: Verily, I know that which you do
not know. (Quran 2:30)[Asa, l]

First, nobody would have the possibility to act differently of what was predicted. Hence, Marc Dutroux23
would not had acted based on his personal decisions but
would had followed what was predestined for him. And
this case, he is not responsible for his actions24 because
he only followed Gods plan.

The importance of the word, vicegerent, resides in its

definition. It is a; person excersing delegated power on
behalf of a sovereign or ruler. As God speaks to all Second, as God made us His vicegerent, and thus
mankind [Asa, m] all men a Gods delegate. Hence, the delegates the responsibility of the earth to us, we take
responsibly of the earth has been given to us.
decisions according to what we know.

If we have delegated19 power we cannot but have free- The main verse that predestinationism uses as argument
will. If God had pre-destined everything he would not is:
have made us His vicegerent but merely puppets playing
God has sealed their hearts and their heara long act called life.
ing, and over their hearts and their hearing,
Caliph Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (647-70520 ), the 5th
and over their eyes is a veil; and awesome sufUmayyad Caliph, agreed with the concept of predestifering awaits them. (Quran 2:7)[Asa, n]
nation. Imam al-Hasan al-Basri (642 - 728)21 , a wellReading it literally we see that God has sealed the heart
known Muslim theologian replied:
of persons in such a way that they cannot but change
their destiny. However, it is their own actions that led
O Commander of the faithful: do not alter
them to that state. [Asa, o] has this to say about the
it or interpret it falsely. God would not openly
verse:
prohibit people from something and destine
them to do it secretly as the ignorant and the
A reference to the natural law instituted
18 This chapter has been written to respond to the paradoxiby God, whereby a person who persistently
cal title of the book: Dieu ou le hasard? Il faut choisir
adheres to false beliefs and refuses to listen
- God or chance? One need to choose - from AbdelKhaled
to the voice of truth gradually loses the abilAbdelkrim[Abdelkrim, 2002]. Paradoxical because God who created
ity to perceive the truth so that finally, as it
everything also created chance and choosing between the two is not
were, as seal is set upon his (Raghib). Since
consistent.
19 Entrust a task or responsibility to another
it is God who has instituted all laws of nature
20 Reigned

as Caliph from 685 to 705

was still fresh and taken very seriously by the rules and
savants; More important still was the creation of great monumental buildings, themselves a public statement that the revelation given
thought Muhammed to mankind was the final and most complete one,
and that its kingdom would last for ever.[Hourani, 2005]

22 Not only chance - note added because my professor of philosophy

might be furious if I did not clarify this.
23 A notorious Belgian pedophile who raped and killed innoncent
little girls, Julie Lejeune and Melissa Russo and others, in 1995.
24 Try explaining this to the parents of the children.

21 Islam

that do not even adhere to a self-evident moral proposition.

- which, in their aggregate, are called Sunnah

Allah (the way of God) - this sealing is attributed to Him: but obviously a consequence
of mans free choice and not an act of predestination.

Now, that we have established that free-will is given

to mankind as a way to choose between possibilities
and that the small amount of predestination is only adeApparently, there is some kind of attractor on the way quate in very rare cases26 we can widened our analysis
of God. A person falls too far from the way, as a to chance events.
consequence of his own actions, there is no turning The concepts of predestination, free-will and chance
back.
events are closely related. If modern Muslims ac-

Behold, as for those who are bent on

denying the truth - it is all one to them
whether thou warnest them or dost not
warn them: they will not believe. (Quran
2:6)[Asa, p]

cept predestination as the governing rule of the world,

chance events cannot happens. In that case we live in
universe created as a clock that is deterministic without
any ability for change and adaptation. As the whole future of mankind would be predetermined and the only
role of God would be to observe time go by.
In that case the attribute of God; Al-Muakh-khir27
looses all meaning and cannot be given to a God who
from the start has fixed everything

In this verse, the frequently occurring word al-kafirun

(those who deny the truth), is not used but the past
tense is used; alladihnia kafaru indicating conscious
intent, and is therefore, appropriately rendered as
those who are bent on denying the truth[Asa, q]

Chance events, as with evolution, are a reality of this

world. However, many Muslim reject it as we will see
in the next section were we will try to understand why
so many Muslims reject the modern discoveries about
creation and evolution.

However, we need to study for whom these verses are

meant. The response is the verse preceding it.

It is then important to further analyze the expression

kafr because, as most Muslims think, it does not mean
not believing, but has another more general meaning explained by the verse.

Summary and conclusion

We have taken a long trip from the creation of

mankind28 whove evolved from an irrational to a
rational creature and given the ability to think, reflect
and distinguish between good and bad.
We have tried to understand why the mainstream of
modern Muslims do not agree with modern scientific
discovery. Even when savant Muslims from the Middle
Ages whom are given hugely respected by the community (umma) have written long passages in their books
about it. Are Muslims entering a Dark Age, like the
European Middle Ages? Is it possible that high Muslim
authorities, like the Christian Middle Age priests, hold
information back from the masses. Those questions
need to be answered to avoid stubborn and meaningless
debates between believers and non-believers about
science and religion being not compatible.
To be clear I would like to say that I only support
evolution as a theory and not yet as a fact. The point
Im trying to prove here is that science and religion
can, and should be, reconciliated. The Quran is not
a book of science. However, a book claiming to be
from God should resist the test of time. That is, in the
beginning of Islam the Quran was regarded, and is still

not of ease, for all who [now] deny the

truth! (Quran 74:10)
This is the first time the word kafir25 has been used in
the Quran. According to [Asad, 2003] the word indicates; one who denies [or refuses to acknowledge]
the truth in the widest, spiritual sense of this latter
term; that is, irrespective of whether it relates to a cognition of the supreme truth - namely, the existence of
God - or to a doctrine or ordinance enunciated in the divine writ, or to a self-evident moral proposition, or to an
acknowledgment of, and there fore gratitude for, favors
received.[Asa, s].
Also, the term is kafir cannot , as many Muslim theologians of post-classical times and practically all Western translator of the Quran have done, with unbeliever: or infidel in the specific, restricted sense of
one who rejects the system of doctrine and law promulgate in the Quran and amplified by the teachings
of the Prophet - but must have a wider, ore general
meaning.[Asa, r]
Hence, the term indicate only the core of unbelievers,

26 Cases

obtained by ones free will to do so.

Delayer, the Retarder, The One who puts things in their right
places. He makes ahead what He wills and delays what He wills.
28 Creation of the Universe is also explained in the Quran.
27 The

25 The

root of the word comes from kafara; he [or it] covered [a

thing][Asa, r]

10

regarded, as the highest literature text in Islam. That

alone was sufficiant to convert many non-believers to
Islam because they realised that the book could not
have been written by prophet as he was an illiterate.
Now we live in a world that is based on scientific facts.
Everything needs to be provable and sound. My paper
shows that the Quran easily adapts to our time. By
shifting our point of view, we can see how the Quran
support modern scientific research and results. This is
what Dr. Zendani Abdelmajid understood better than
no one. In his book, Ceci est la verite and talks
he confronts top scienticts with the scientific truth
from the Quran. As such, he takes the example of the
Prophet confronting the highest respected poets from
his time. The convertion of those highly influencial
people adds weight to the message because of their
respected position.
In the end, Islam is a religion of science and will,
thanks to the Quran and its Prophet stressing the
importance of it, always find a way prove wrong
theories from people who read to literally or are bent
on defending their opinion without any valid arguments.

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