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Just recently, I read the following in Wiki with reference to Islamic belief:
"In Islam, all souls are believed to have been created in adult form (before earthly life) at the same time God created the father of mankind, Adam. The Quran recounts the story of when the descendants of Adam were brought forth before God to testify that God alone is the Lord of creation and therefore only he is worthy of worship so that on the Day of Judgement, people could not make the excuse that they only worshipped others because they were following the ways of their ancestors. Humans do not remember, as they are born with an undeveloped mind (leaving only an innate awareness that God exists and is one, known as the Fitra) and he decreed at which point each and every human would be born into the physical world."
I have never heard a Muslim state this before, so I'm curious as to whether you believe it or not. (I'm not intending this thread to be a debate. I'm just looking for information.)
Just recently, I read the following in Wiki with reference to Islamic belief:
"In Islam, all souls are believed to have been created in adult form (before earthly life) at the same time God created the father of mankind, Adam. The Quran recounts the story of when the descendants of Adam were brought forth before God to testify that God alone is the Lord of creation and therefore only he is worthy of worship so that on the Day of Judgement, people could not make the excuse that they only worshipped others because they were following the ways of their ancestors. Humans do not remember, as they are born with an undeveloped mind (leaving only an innate awareness that God exists and is one, known as the Fitra) and he decreed at which point each and every human would be born into the physical world."
I have never heard a Muslim state this before, so I'm curious as to whether you believe it or not. (I'm not intending this thread to be a debate. I'm just looking for information.)
The explanation given here through Wiki cannot stand when the issue is studied deeply. The point mentioned in the Qur’an is in the verses 7:172 and 7:173. In context, it is answer to anyone who doesn’t want to believe in God and wants to carry on as his/her ancestors did (such as worshiping idols).
[7.172] And when your Lord brought forth from the children of Adam, from their loins, their descendants, and made them bear witness against their own souls: Am I not your Lord? They said: Yes! We bear witness. Lest you should say on the day of resurrection: Surely we were heedless of this.
وَإِذْ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِنۢ بَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ مِن ظُهُورِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ ۖ قَالُوا۟ بَلَىٰ ۛ شَهِدْنَآ ۛ أَن تَقُولُوا۟ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ إِنَّا كُنَّا عَنْ هَـٰذَا غَـٰفِلِينَ
[7.173] Or you should say: Only our fathers associated others (with Allah) before, and we were an offspring after them: Wilt Thou then destroy us for what the vain doers did?
أَوْ تَقُولُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَآ أَشْرَكَ ءَابَآؤُنَا مِن قَبْلُ وَكُنَّا ذُرِّيَّةً مِّنۢ بَعْدِهِمْ ۖ أَفَتُهْلِكُنَا بِمَا فَعَلَ ٱلْمُبْطِلُونَ
The verse 7:173 tells us that following your ancestors won’t be an acceptable excuse on the Day of Judgment.
In the Wiki statement, if it is about the original created souls before the creation of this world and that’s when the question was put to them then it won’t make any sense when 7:173 is taken into account. At the time, those souls had no ancestors.
Therefore, the question was put to the descendants of the children of Adam after they were already born and living on this earth (not before their birth). This sequence has carried on through the history of mankind to tell every nation as to who is their Creator that they should worship rather than anyone or anything else.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said,
There was an argument between adam and moses (peace be upon both of them) in the presence of their Lord.
adam came the better of moses.
moses said:
Are you that adam whom Allah created with His Hand and breathed into him His sprit,
and commanded angels to fall in prostration before him and He made you live in Paradise with comfort and ease.
Then you caused the people to get down to the earth because of your lapse.
adam said:
Are you that moses whom Allah selected for His Messengership and for His conversation with him and
conferred upon you the tablets, in which everything was clearly explained and granted you the audience in order to have confidential talk with you.
What is your opinion, how long Torah would have been written before I was created?
moses said:
Forty years before.
adam said:
Did you not see these words:adam committed an error and he was enticed to (do so).
He (moses) said:
Yes.
Whereupon, he (adam) said:
Do you then blame me for an act which Allah had ordained for me forty years before He created me?
Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: This is how adam came the better of moses.
Thank you all for your answers. I appreciate your responding to my question. For a while, I thought nobody was going to. It was actually the first sentence that intrigued me most since that's what my religion teaches:
"In Islam, all souls are believed to have been created in adult form (before earthly life) at the same time God created the father of mankind, Adam."
I definitely do recognize the fact that Wiki is not always the best source of information. That's why I like to hear from actual practitioners of the faith.
Thank you all for your answers. I appreciate your responding to my question. For a while, I thought nobody was going to. It was actually the first sentence that intrigued me most since that's what my religion teaches:
"In Islam, all souls are believed to have been created in adult form (before earthly life) at the same time God created the father of mankind, Adam."
I definitely do recognize the fact that Wiki is not always the best source of information. That's why I like to hear from actual practitioners of the faith.
Genuine enquiring minds are always welcome here.
Souls are created neither in adult form at creation nor in infant form. Soul of each person is given to him/her in clean form (like a clean slate or clean piece of paper to write on). In perfect form (it has potential to do good and be kept clean). In untainted form (it is not tainted until the person does something evil/wrong). It is up to the person, how to keep that soul (self or personal character) particularly during the person's adult life and be accountable for it.
Basically, a soul is reflected through his/her personality/character. Good personality, good soul. Evil personality, tainted/corrupted soul.
In Islam, each soul is given guidance as to how it can be kept purified and also instructions not to corrupt it.
That's nice to know. I have a number of Muslim friends and I have a great deal of respect for them.
Quote:
Souls are created neither in adult form at creation nor in infant form. Soul of each person is given to him/her in clean form (like a clean slate or clean piece of paper to write on). In perfect form (it has potential to do good and be kept clean). In untainted form (it is not tainted until the person does something evil/wrong). It is up to the person, how to keep that soul (self or personal character) particularly during the person's adult life and be accountable for it.
Basically, a soul is reflected through his/her personality/character. Good personality, good soul. Evil personality, tainted/corrupted soul.
In Islam, each soul is given guidance as to how it can be kept purified and also instructions not to corrupt it.
I guess my question is... does the soul (or spirit) pre-exist the physical body?
That's nice to know. I have a number of Muslim friends and I have a great deal of respect for them.
I guess my question is... does the soul (or spirit) pre-exist the physical body?
Soul (nafs in Arabic language) and spirit (ruh in Arabic language) are not the same thing. Even many Muslims do not understand the difference between the two or are confused.
According to the Qur'an, spirit (ruh) is a command of God. Therefore it would be with God all the time. When God says "kun" ("be" or "come into existence") it is, or life is given. In other words, it is spirit of creation. The same way, when the command is reversed, death comes to the living being.
Soul (nafs) on other hand is created for individuals to become eventually an individual personality. Every detail of the personality is part of that individual soul. This soul is taken away (but not the spirit) during the individual's sleep and it returns when the person wakes up and carries on living until the appointed time of death. If the person is to die during the sleep then both the soul and the spirit depart from the person during the sleep.
Spirit obviously pre-exists the physical body but when is the soul created by God for each individual is a matter only known by God, whether at the same time as Adam or 40 years before that or at the time of each creation. The creation of souls hasn't been witnessed by anyone and, therefore, it can be a matter of only speculation or individual assumption.
Soul (nafs in Arabic language) and spirit (ruh in Arabic language) are not the same thing. Even many Muslims do not understand the difference between the two or are confused.
According to the Qur'an, spirit (ruh) is a command of God. Therefore it would be with God all the time. When God says "kun" ("be" or "come into existence") it is, or life is given. In other words, it is spirit of creation. The same way, when the command is reversed, death comes to the living being.
Soul (nafs) on other hand is created for individuals to become eventually an individual personality. Every detail of the personality is part of that individual soul. This soul is taken away (but not the spirit) during the individual's sleep and it returns when the person wakes up and carries on living until the appointed time of death. If the person is to die during the sleep then both the soul and the spirit depart from the person during the sleep.
Spirit obviously pre-exists the physical body but when is the soul created by God for each individual is a matter only known by God, whether at the same time as Adam or 40 years before that or at the time of each creation. The creation of souls hasn't been witnessed by anyone and, therefore, it can be a matter of only speculation or individual assumption.
Thank you. That actually is quite similar to what I believe. Of course, while I am a Christian, I am not part of the traditional Christian community, and most Christians believe differently.
Thank you. That actually is quite similar to what I believe. Of course, while I am a Christian, I am not part of the traditional Christian community, and most Christians believe differently.
What I stated here is my understanding of "soul" and "spirit" after studying the Qur'an. Bases of each of my statements are in the verses of the Qur'an. Most other Muslims these days base their understanding on hadith books instead of the Qur'an. To me, the Qur'an is the main and the first for any Islamic understanding. This is why I can differentiate "soul" from the "spirit".
[39.42] God takes the souls at the time of their death, and those that die not during their sleep; then He withholds those on whom He has passed the decree of death and sends the others back till an appointed term; most surely there are signs in this for a people who reflect.
ٱللَّهُ يَتَوَفَّى ٱلْأَنفُسَ حِينَ مَوْتِهَا وَٱلَّتِى لَمْ تَمُتْ فِى مَنَامِهَا ۖ فَيُمْسِكُ ٱلَّتِى قَضَىٰ عَلَيْهَا ٱلْمَوْتَ وَيُرْسِلُ ٱلْأُخْرَىٰٓ إِلَىٰٓ أَجَلٍ مُّسَمًّى ۚ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَـَٔايَـٰتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
It is explained here that the soul is taken away from humans at time of (a) sleep and at time of (b) death. In the latter case, it does not come back again as spirit too has been withdrawn from the body (at death). But in the former case, only the soul is taken away during the sleep but not the spirit as the death has not been pronounced on the person. So sleep is not real death but a minor death in which body is still alive but without awareness. When awake after the sleep, one is aware of his/her personality, the same personality that one had before sleeping. It means you have the same soul on waking up as one had before sleeping. In between the two, one has no soul, no awareness and no consciousness but just a body with spirit but without soul.
Original soul is the same (pure like a completely clean slate) for everyone. Our personalities (souls) develop with our actions/conduct. We can keep our soul pure or corrupt/taint it. God will know what we have done with our souls. This is how each person is also often called a soul (my father was a good soul).
Too often, people get mixed up in understanding "soul" and "spirit". And that is how, with the passage of time, spirit had become another person out of the three person in one Godhood. Human mind put God with "spirit" from God and a human with that spirit as eternal Godhood. We don't overstretch our minds that far to understand the essence of God. We know that no human is God. Every soul (personality) will die but God will never die.
My view of individual human life on earth is quite simple:
It is for a purpose. Do humans know what is purpose of their life on earth?
What are we to do during our temporary life on earth to meet that purpose?
Are we as individual meeting that purpose?
Regardless of what we call ourselves (Jewish, Christian, Muslim), if we don't serve the purpose for which we were created, we have failed our souls. Without becoming good humans (good souls), we cannot become good Jews, good Christians or good Muslims.
Becoming good human is of paramount importance for each one of us. This is the only way for us humans to have peace on earth and humanity to flourish on earth; the purpose we were created for.
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