2,743
edits
Embryology in the Quran: Difference between revisions
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
A summary section is needed for those who want a quick reference of the main errors
| [checked revision] | [checked revision] |
Lightyears (talk | contribs) (Moved gamete section to more logical position) |
Lightyears (talk | contribs) (A summary section is needed for those who want a quick reference of the main errors) |
||
| Line 9: | Line 9: | ||
There are already [[Embryology in the Quran#External links|many responses]] available. So here we will collate some of the best points, concentrating solely on the Qur'anic verses, because inclusion of the [[hadith]]s would clearly show up the [[Embryology in Islamic Scripture|unscientific nature of Qur'anic embryology]]. | There are already [[Embryology in the Quran#External links|many responses]] available. So here we will collate some of the best points, concentrating solely on the Qur'anic verses, because inclusion of the [[hadith]]s would clearly show up the [[Embryology in Islamic Scripture|unscientific nature of Qur'anic embryology]]. | ||
==Summary of the Main Errors in Qur'anic Embryology== | |||
The main errors can be summarised as follows and are further discussed in the rest of this article. | |||
* A number of verses collectively demonstrate a belief that the earliest, nutfah stage of development is made of semen, perhaps mixed with a female fluid, which is placed in the womb for a period determined, and where it undergoes various stages of development (as also taught by Galen and in the Jewish Talmud). Futhermore, there is no indication of the female egg (ovum). | |||
: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). | |||
* The embryo is then congealed blood, which is how all the classical tafasirs (commentaries) understood the meaning of 'alaqah, and is a definition of the word in classical Arabic dictionaries. Regardless of alternative meanings for this arabic word, it would be foolhardy to even use a word that has an explicit biological meaning in a description of a biological process if that meaning was not the one you intended. 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 (an actual embryo is at no point blood or a clot of blood). Similarly, for the same reason it would also be foolish to use this word while intending blood clot as a mere visual analogy. | |||
* Bones are formed before being clothed with flesh. 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. | |||
==Analysis== | ==Analysis== | ||