Following heterosexual vaginal intercourse, the sperm begin their arduous journey into the uterus. Fertilization of the mature ovum must occur within forty-eight hours of ovulation. The process is an extremely important one in human development. Not only does it lead to the ultimate growth of a new person, but the genetic traits of the new individual are determined at the time of conception. Both male and female gamates contain twenty-three chromosomes, each with its genetic information stored in the molecular configuration of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). In the fusion of gamates, the chromosomal number is restored to forty six and the unfolding of a unique genetic entity is initiated. The pairing of sex chromosomes- XX for female and XY for male- also occurs at the time of conception.
Of some 300-500 million released in a single ejaculation, only a few thousand sperm manage to reach the fallopian tube. The chances of conception are greater with healthier, more numerous and motile sperm. Once in contact with the ovum, the sperm is believed to secrete a proteolytic enzyme that helps to go through the zona pellucida, the outer membrane of the ovum. The ovum normally allows entry of a single sperm and then it becomes impermeable to the rest. The sperm disintegrates after fertilizing the ovum and the spermhead , containing the father’s share of genetic material, fuses with the nucleas of the ovum. The cell resulting from this fertilization ins known as zygote.
The zygote undergoes a series of mitotic cell divisions and continues to move towards the uterus. Within three days of fertilization, the rapid cell division produces a solid, spherical mass called the morula. In the next two days, it develops a fluid-filled cavity and is identified as the blastula. Within a week after conception, the enzymes secreated by the blastula help it burrow into the endometrium – the uterine lining. It eventually reaches the underlying blood vessels and firmly implants itself in the uterine wall. At this stage, it may be called an embryo. The figure illustrates the stage of foetal development and the accompanying changes in discrete anatomical structures
The uterine milieu differs from the external environment. In these congenial surroundings, the foetus remains alive and viable inside the uterus all through the pregnancy, where it is fed and where it breathes in its own way for the duration of the period of its life. If, however, the foetus is stripped of the uterine environment it will die. The same is true of the situation after birth. A newborn is not fed the way a grown-up child is fed. It is different, therefore, the question of viability applies even to the newborn-he or she will not be viable if the mother fails to suckle the infant. In other words, viability should be understood as a relative concept as opposed to an objective criterion.
The Quranic statements manifest that there is perpetual life which is only molded from one form into another during this period of growth.
“ Now, indeed, We create man out of the essence of clay, and then We cause him to remain as a drop of sperm in (the womb’s) 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 then We clothe the bones with flesh-and then We bring (all) this into being as a new creation: hallowed, therefore, is Allah, the best artisans.( Surah al- Muminun 23: 12-14)
Many suwar (Sing. surah) in the Qur’an have been interpreted by both classical and contemporary mufassirum(exegetes) as alluding to the biological creation of human beings. For instance, the creation of human beings out of dust and the creation in phages has been mentioned : al - Kahf 18 : 37, al – Rum 30 : 20, al- Fatir 35 : 11 and Ghafir 40:67. However, it is not limited to and by these alone. According to the Qur’an:- “We have created [everyone of] you out of dust, then out of a drop of sperm, then out of a germ- cell, then out of an embryonic lump complete[in itself] and yet incomplete, so that We might make [your origin] clean unto you. And whatever We will [to be born] We cause to rest in the [mother’s] wombs for a term set [by us].” Surah al- Hajj 22:5.
This rendering conforms with the interpretation of the phrase mukhallaqah wa-ghayr mukhallaqah by Ibn ‘Abbas and Qatadah ( the latter quoted by Tabari and the former by Baghawi), alluding to the various stages of embryonic development. In addition, Tabari explains the expression ghayr mukhallaqah as denoting the stage at which the embryonic lump(mudghah) has as yet no individual life- or, in his words, ‘when no soul has yet been breathed into it.( La yunfakh fiha ar-ruh). As regards the expression ‘created out of dust’, it is meant to indicate men’s lowly biological origin and his affinity with other ‘earthy’ substances. And, with regard to the affirmation:
“ Was he not once a [mere] drop of sperm that had been split, and thereafter became a germ-cell-whereupon He created and formed [it] ia accordance with what [it] was meant to be, and fashioned out of it the two sexes, the male and the female?” Surah al-Qiyamah 75 : 37-8.
Muhammed Azad argues that, ‘ The stress of Allah’s creating man after he had been a germ-cell is a metonym for His endowing the (originally) lowly organism with what is described as a ‘soul’. Furthermore, on the Quar’anic statement: “ So let man think what he is created. He is created from a gushing fluid that comes from in between the loins and the ribs” Surah Al Tariq: 5-7
The above interpretation of the Quranic Ayat is purely philosophical. So let us now see what the modern anatomical and embryological science say about this :-
The sperms and the ova are the most important constitutes of the sperm and the follicular fluids. In females, the follicular fluids come forth from the ovaries, which do actually lie in between the loins and the ribs as told in the Holy Quran. But in male it slightly differs. The sperms are produced in the testes and not from in between the loins and the ribs. Here it is not the sperms but the testes themselves are produced in a site which is in between the loins and the ribs.
Initially the gonads e.g. the two testes appear in a four week old embryo as a pair of longitudinal ridges, on each side of the mid line between the mesonephros and dorsal mesentary. The urogenital ridge which constitutes the mesonephros and the genital ridge extends from the cervical to the upper lumber region. The ridges covers the upper lunber and the thorasic segments. There the gonads mature, to be called testes. This site is in between the loins below and the thorax above and also the loins behind and the ribs in front. Thus the site of growth of testes is in between the loins and the ribs.
Now a question arises, why the testes do not stay at the site these are formed, and why they come out of the body cavity? And this is the only viscus in man and most other mammals which lie outside the body cavity, why? The reason for this only viscus coming outside the body cavity is that, for normal spermatogenesis, the temperature needed is 2 to 4 degree centigrade lesser than the inner body temperature. This is why the testes cannot remain inside the body cavity and, therefore have to come out. Moreover, the sectoral sac is covered by dartos muscles which react spontaneously with the change of temperature, contracting or shrinking at lower temperature and relaxing or expanding at higher temperature and thereby maintaining in the serotum, the optimum temperature needed for normal spermatogenesis.
From the biochemical viewpoint, menstrual blood is different from ordinary human blood. The former is toxic compounds and contains long chain fatty acids that cause uterine contractions with the resultant discharge of menstrual blood. One of the female sex hormones, estrogen, is also known to increase during menstruation with a rise in mucopolysaccharide level.
Now the Qur’an articulates the Islamic viewpoint: “And they will ask thee about (woman’s) monthly courses. Say: ‘It is a vulnerable condition. Keep, therefore, aloof from woman during their monthly courses, and do not draw near unto them until they are cleansed; and when they are cleansed, go in unto them as Allah has bidden you to do. Verily, Allah loves those who turn unto Him, and He loves those who keep themselves pure.” –Surah al-Baqarah 2:222
The Qur’anic ruling on menstruation is unambiguous: a menstruous is in a state of uncleanliness only for the actual duration of menstruation and sexual intercourse with such a woman is forbidden til she has purified herself. The dominant concept behind the Qur’anic prohibition against intramenstrual coitus is that of purification and cleanliness.
Now let us see what clinical pathologists say about menstruation specially about menstrual blood. They say, menstruation is the result of degeneration and decomposition of corpus loteum and the two inner layers of the uterus. The menstrual blood is, therefore, nothing but decomposed cells which is surely impurity. Intercourse during such impurity is surely hygienically harmful to both man and his wife. Moreover, it stands a great risk of causing hurt and wound to the uterus which become sensitive during menstruation. Thus what the modern science tells us today on human embryology, was already told in the Holy Qur’an more than thirteen hundred years ago.
Of some 300-500 million released in a single ejaculation, only a few thousand sperm manage to reach the fallopian tube. The chances of conception are greater with healthier, more numerous and motile sperm. Once in contact with the ovum, the sperm is believed to secrete a proteolytic enzyme that helps to go through the zona pellucida, the outer membrane of the ovum. The ovum normally allows entry of a single sperm and then it becomes impermeable to the rest. The sperm disintegrates after fertilizing the ovum and the spermhead , containing the father’s share of genetic material, fuses with the nucleas of the ovum. The cell resulting from this fertilization ins known as zygote.
The zygote undergoes a series of mitotic cell divisions and continues to move towards the uterus. Within three days of fertilization, the rapid cell division produces a solid, spherical mass called the morula. In the next two days, it develops a fluid-filled cavity and is identified as the blastula. Within a week after conception, the enzymes secreated by the blastula help it burrow into the endometrium – the uterine lining. It eventually reaches the underlying blood vessels and firmly implants itself in the uterine wall. At this stage, it may be called an embryo. The figure illustrates the stage of foetal development and the accompanying changes in discrete anatomical structures
The uterine milieu differs from the external environment. In these congenial surroundings, the foetus remains alive and viable inside the uterus all through the pregnancy, where it is fed and where it breathes in its own way for the duration of the period of its life. If, however, the foetus is stripped of the uterine environment it will die. The same is true of the situation after birth. A newborn is not fed the way a grown-up child is fed. It is different, therefore, the question of viability applies even to the newborn-he or she will not be viable if the mother fails to suckle the infant. In other words, viability should be understood as a relative concept as opposed to an objective criterion.
The Quranic statements manifest that there is perpetual life which is only molded from one form into another during this period of growth.
“ Now, indeed, We create man out of the essence of clay, and then We cause him to remain as a drop of sperm in (the womb’s) 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 then We clothe the bones with flesh-and then We bring (all) this into being as a new creation: hallowed, therefore, is Allah, the best artisans.( Surah al- Muminun 23: 12-14)
Many suwar (Sing. surah) in the Qur’an have been interpreted by both classical and contemporary mufassirum(exegetes) as alluding to the biological creation of human beings. For instance, the creation of human beings out of dust and the creation in phages has been mentioned : al - Kahf 18 : 37, al – Rum 30 : 20, al- Fatir 35 : 11 and Ghafir 40:67. However, it is not limited to and by these alone. According to the Qur’an:- “We have created [everyone of] you out of dust, then out of a drop of sperm, then out of a germ- cell, then out of an embryonic lump complete[in itself] and yet incomplete, so that We might make [your origin] clean unto you. And whatever We will [to be born] We cause to rest in the [mother’s] wombs for a term set [by us].” Surah al- Hajj 22:5.
This rendering conforms with the interpretation of the phrase mukhallaqah wa-ghayr mukhallaqah by Ibn ‘Abbas and Qatadah ( the latter quoted by Tabari and the former by Baghawi), alluding to the various stages of embryonic development. In addition, Tabari explains the expression ghayr mukhallaqah as denoting the stage at which the embryonic lump(mudghah) has as yet no individual life- or, in his words, ‘when no soul has yet been breathed into it.( La yunfakh fiha ar-ruh). As regards the expression ‘created out of dust’, it is meant to indicate men’s lowly biological origin and his affinity with other ‘earthy’ substances. And, with regard to the affirmation:
“ Was he not once a [mere] drop of sperm that had been split, and thereafter became a germ-cell-whereupon He created and formed [it] ia accordance with what [it] was meant to be, and fashioned out of it the two sexes, the male and the female?” Surah al-Qiyamah 75 : 37-8.
Muhammed Azad argues that, ‘ The stress of Allah’s creating man after he had been a germ-cell is a metonym for His endowing the (originally) lowly organism with what is described as a ‘soul’. Furthermore, on the Quar’anic statement: “ So let man think what he is created. He is created from a gushing fluid that comes from in between the loins and the ribs” Surah Al Tariq: 5-7
The above interpretation of the Quranic Ayat is purely philosophical. So let us now see what the modern anatomical and embryological science say about this :-
The sperms and the ova are the most important constitutes of the sperm and the follicular fluids. In females, the follicular fluids come forth from the ovaries, which do actually lie in between the loins and the ribs as told in the Holy Quran. But in male it slightly differs. The sperms are produced in the testes and not from in between the loins and the ribs. Here it is not the sperms but the testes themselves are produced in a site which is in between the loins and the ribs.
Initially the gonads e.g. the two testes appear in a four week old embryo as a pair of longitudinal ridges, on each side of the mid line between the mesonephros and dorsal mesentary. The urogenital ridge which constitutes the mesonephros and the genital ridge extends from the cervical to the upper lumber region. The ridges covers the upper lunber and the thorasic segments. There the gonads mature, to be called testes. This site is in between the loins below and the thorax above and also the loins behind and the ribs in front. Thus the site of growth of testes is in between the loins and the ribs.
Now a question arises, why the testes do not stay at the site these are formed, and why they come out of the body cavity? And this is the only viscus in man and most other mammals which lie outside the body cavity, why? The reason for this only viscus coming outside the body cavity is that, for normal spermatogenesis, the temperature needed is 2 to 4 degree centigrade lesser than the inner body temperature. This is why the testes cannot remain inside the body cavity and, therefore have to come out. Moreover, the sectoral sac is covered by dartos muscles which react spontaneously with the change of temperature, contracting or shrinking at lower temperature and relaxing or expanding at higher temperature and thereby maintaining in the serotum, the optimum temperature needed for normal spermatogenesis.
From the biochemical viewpoint, menstrual blood is different from ordinary human blood. The former is toxic compounds and contains long chain fatty acids that cause uterine contractions with the resultant discharge of menstrual blood. One of the female sex hormones, estrogen, is also known to increase during menstruation with a rise in mucopolysaccharide level.
Now the Qur’an articulates the Islamic viewpoint: “And they will ask thee about (woman’s) monthly courses. Say: ‘It is a vulnerable condition. Keep, therefore, aloof from woman during their monthly courses, and do not draw near unto them until they are cleansed; and when they are cleansed, go in unto them as Allah has bidden you to do. Verily, Allah loves those who turn unto Him, and He loves those who keep themselves pure.” –Surah al-Baqarah 2:222
The Qur’anic ruling on menstruation is unambiguous: a menstruous is in a state of uncleanliness only for the actual duration of menstruation and sexual intercourse with such a woman is forbidden til she has purified herself. The dominant concept behind the Qur’anic prohibition against intramenstrual coitus is that of purification and cleanliness.
Now let us see what clinical pathologists say about menstruation specially about menstrual blood. They say, menstruation is the result of degeneration and decomposition of corpus loteum and the two inner layers of the uterus. The menstrual blood is, therefore, nothing but decomposed cells which is surely impurity. Intercourse during such impurity is surely hygienically harmful to both man and his wife. Moreover, it stands a great risk of causing hurt and wound to the uterus which become sensitive during menstruation. Thus what the modern science tells us today on human embryology, was already told in the Holy Qur’an more than thirteen hundred years ago.
