of the parent body which, having separated itself, develops into a
new organism. From the biological point of view, man is on the
same level as the animals. His body is subject to natural laws, and the
natural processes of growth, decay, procreation and regeneration
occur in it. Man’s self, however, exists and functions on a higher
plane. It is not subject to natural laws and is untouched by natural
division. It is an indivisible unity and can suffer no processes. It is
not a part of the parents’ self, nor can it donate a part of itself to the
offspring. It obeys its own inner laws and develops on its own lines.
Its activity is creative but not procreative. It creates new qualities and
powers which, however, enrich and expand its own nature.
Procreation is a bodily function, and creation is the function of the
self. The verse we are considering makes it clear that personality is
not the product of physical or biological laws which cannot go
beyond procreation or reproduction.
The fourth and last verse, “There is none comparable to Him,”
refers to another Divine attribute which man, owning a self, can also
share. Every self is unique. No self is the exact copy or replica of
any other self. In the realm of self, there is no room for duplication.
No general laws are applicable to any self, which is a law unto itself.
Similarly, a society composed of free individuals is unique. No other
kind of society is comparable to it. Man lives by developing and the
same is true for human society.
IV. ManSince the entire edifice of deen, as expounded in the Qur’an, is
firmly based on the view which it takes of human personality, its
account of the creation of man deserves careful study. Significant
references to the origin of man are dispersed over the pages of the
Qur’an. In the course of evolution, a stage was reached when living
creatures began to multiply by means of reproduction. Man too, like
the animals, is first conceived in the mother’s womb. The Qur’an
puts it in a picturesque way:
Verily We created man from a production of wet earth, then placed
him as a drop (of seed) in a safe lodging; then fashioned We the drop
into a clot; then fashioned We the bones; then clothed the bones with
flesh, and then gave it another creation (23:12-14)
Islam: A Challenge to Religion 81