Study in order to understand life as one homogeneous organism. The Qur’ān is full of verses exhorting man to study nature – the planetary system; the terrestrial elements; the fauna and flora on earth. The real purport of this repeated appeal in the Qur’ān is to give credence to the existence of Godhead as the primeval originator of the universe; but the point that concerns us here is that the creation of animals takes a very prominent place in such citations as His portents. Here are a few of the numerous such verses:
“Human beings and the wild and domestic animals are too, comprised of various colours. Thus, only those among His creatures who humble themselves unto God, are truly the people of knowledge.” (Qur’ān 35:28)
“Verily! In the heavens and the earth, there are portents for the believers. And in your own creation, as well as in the creation of all the animals pervading the earth, there are portents for those who believe.” (Qur’ān 45:3, 4)
“Behold! Everything We have created is in due measure and proportion.” (Qur’ān 54:49)
“Allah knows what every female bears and by how much the wombs may fall short [of gestation], and how much they may increase – for with Him everything is in due measure and proportion.” (Qur’ān 13:8)
Two words in the last verse are significant. The Arabic word Unthā denotes a female of any species, whether human or animal. Secondly, the Arabic word for measure is ‘Miqdār’, which is used in all such verses. It means ‘in accordance with the particular purpose for which a thing has been created, the exigencies and the role which it is meant to play within God’s plan of creation.11
“And the earth – We have spread out its expanse and cast on it mountains in stable equilibrium, and caused life of every kind to grow on it, justly weighed.” (Qur’ān 15:19)
“We created man, and gave him the faculty of speech. The sun and the moon rotate in ordered orbits, the plants and the trees, too, do obeisance. The firmament – He raised it high, and set the balance of everything, so that you [mankind] may not upset the balance. Keep up the balance with equity, and fall not short in it. And the earth – He spread it out for all living beings: with its fruits, blossom-bearing palms, chaff-covered grain, and fragrant plants. Which, then, of the bounties of your Lord will you deny?” (Qur’ān 55:3-13)
The following saying of the Holy Prophet Muḥammad(s) shows how much importance was attached to the conservation of nature:
“[Even when the world is coming to an end] On Doomsday, if anyone has a palm-shoot in hand, he should plant it.”12
Thanks to modern scientific research, we have started appreciating the fact that the ecological and environmental balance of our planet is of paramount importance for life on earth. This balance rests on very complex and interwoven laws of nature. The denizens of the forest, if left on their own, generally adapt themselves to those laws and learn to abide by them. One seldom sees environmental damage being done by animals living in their natural habitats, such as in the tropical forests. It is only the human species who have the idiosyncracy to flout those laws and to upset the balance of nature. And it is the humans, of all the species on earth, who need to have religious and secular education to make them realise that they are here to harness nature instead of leaving behind them a trail of wanton destruction for posterity.
Contrary to certain scientific theories, the Islamic concept is that, in this Divine design of animated nature, there are some fine differences providentially created and preserved in the origin of species to keep them distinct one from the other. Territorial, climatic and other such evolutionary processes may change their ethological characteristics or anatomical structures. In their struggle for existence, animals may learn how to camouflage themselves to distract attention or to deceive by impersonation and manipulation of their environment; but no species can transgress beyond the orbit of its genetic origin.
Wherever the Qur’ān speaks of creation, it speaks of it in terms of opposite pairs. According to the Qur’ān, not only animal life, but also every kind of flora has been created in male and female sexes. We know it scientifically now that plants, like animals, possess generative organs, i.e. male stamens and female pistils – comprising ovary, style and stigma. Botanical definitions explain stigma as that part of the style or ovary-surface that receives pollen in impregnation. Style is defined as the narrowed extension of the ovary which supports the stigma.
Keeping in mind that the Qur’ān was revealed more than fourteen centuries ago, it could not have been clearer in expression on such scientific subjects. The following verses emphasize the salient point that each species has been conditioned biologically to procreate in order to continue its heterogeneity and, thus, to go on playing its assigned part in the theatre of nature. Our scientific dexterity can bring about genetic mutations, but we shall never be able to CREATE even one germ-cell. Once a particular species is exterminated, its germ-cell is launched into eternity – as dead as the dodo – and no human skill can re-create it. Recently some scientists have expressed hopes that they might be able to bring back to life those extinct species whose dead bodies still contain some live tissues. Even if they do succeed in doing that, the fact still remains true that the re-generation of those extinct species would be dependent on the tissues containing the germ-cells which were originally created by God. The following verses of the Qur’ān bring out the significance of the law of parity in nature and, hence, the significance of an uninterrupted sequence of species:
“Glory be to Him Who created all the progenetive pairs of that which the earth grows; and of themselves [human beings], too; and of that which they do not know [yet].” (Qur’ān 36:36)
“And all things We have created in pairs, that you may reflect.” (Qur’ān 51:49)
“[My Lord is He] Who spread out for you the earth like a carpet; and made paths therein for you, and sent down water from the cloud. Then, thereby, We have produced diverse pairs of plants – each distinct from the other.” (Qur’ān 20:53)
“And We cause flora of every kind to grow as spouses.” (Qur’ān 31:10)
“And it is He who spread out the earth… and of all fruit He produced therein, as spouses of two and two…”. (Qur’ān 13:3)
“[God is] The Originator of the heavens and the earth. He has created mates for you from among yourselves, and mates of the cattle too, multiplying you thereby…” (Qur’ān 42:11)
“And He did create in pairs – male and female.” (Qur’ān 53:45)
The story of Noah’s Ark is well known. The Qur’ān tells it in Chapter 11, Verses 36-48: When the deluge came and the flooding of the whole area was imminent, there was the danger that some of the species of animals and birds might be exterminated. Even at such a time, God showed His concern to save at least one pair of each species, along with the faithful followers of Noah(s) by giving him the following instructions:
“… load in the Ark two of all species – one male and one female of each kind…” (Qur’ān 11:40)
All these observations of the Qur’ān lay down two basic principles. Firstly, that the preservation of species is of paramount importance. Secondly, that the Divine scheme of regeneration works through the opposite, but complementary, forces of nature – not only in animals and plants, but also in inorganic matter. In the elements of nature, for example, we find that every atom possesses a positively charged
