Womanhood in Islam (1/3)

Fear of God and honoring one's fellow men -  this is  the  twin  foundation  of  Islam laid  down  in  the Qur'an  in  these words:

 “Mankind,  fear your  Lord  who  created you  from  one  soul  and created man's  mate from the same soul, from these two scattering on  earth many men  and women.  Fear God, in whose name you entreat one another, and be careful not to sever your ties of kinship. Allah is watching over what you do.”[1]

The words, "and created man's mate from the same soul" have been explained as meaning that  first Adam was created from earth; then a rib was taken from his body, out of which Eve - his  mate -  was formed. But there is nothing in the Qur’an to support this theory. It is a biblical explanation, not a Qur'anic one. Here is what the Book of Genesis has to say about the creation of Eve:

And  the Lord  God  caused a deep  sleep to fall upon  Adam, and he  slept: and  he  took  one  of his  ribs, and  dosed  up  the  flesh instead  thereof;

And  the  rib, which  the  Lord God  had  taken  from  man,  made he  a woman,  and  brought  her  unto  the  man.  And  Adam  said, This  is now bone  of my bones,  and  flesh of my flesh: she shall be  called Woman,  because she was taken  out  of  man.[2]

From this biblical tradition comes the theory that Eve was created from Adam’s rib. This story has been given credence by some commentators of the Qur’an, who have used it to explain Eve's creation "from the same soul as Adam."  But this notion does not stand up in the face of established fact, and it has been proven that, over the centuries, the Bible has been subjected to alterations and additions.  Its present form is no longer as the prophets originally taught it. Along with prophetic inspiration, it has received a fair injection of human interpolation. For this reason, one cannot rely on explanations given in the Bible, nor is it proper to explain verses of the Qur'an   in the light of biblical statements.

Neither in the verse of the Qur’an quoted above, nor in any other verse of the Qur’an, is there any mention of Eve having been created from Adam's rib. The Qur’an   says only that Eve was created from "it," What this "it" refers to is the point in question. Most of those commentators who have penetrated deep into the meaning of the Qur’an have taken "it" to refer to "species": Eve was created - not from Adam himself - but from the same species as Adam. This is the explanation given - among others - by Abu Muslim Asfahani, and it is this explanation that fits in with other verses of the Qur'an.

In several verses of the Qur'an the word for "soul" (nafs) has been used to mean "species." Such verses provide a clear elucidation of the verse quoted above. A selection of them is given here:

“God has created for you spouses, of your own kind.”[3]

“And of His signs is that He has created for you - of your own kind - spouses, that you might take comfort in them.”[4]

 “Creator of the heavens and the earth: He has made for you spouses of your own kind, and the cattle He has also created in pairs.”[5]

From a perusal of these verses, one can see that the same word has been used for the spouses of ordinary human beings as was used for Adam's spouse in the verse quoted above. Just, as Eve was created from Adam’s nafs, so other women have also been created from the same nafs - or kind - as their male counterparts.

Clearly there is no question, in these other verses, of inferring that every female spouse has been created from the body of the male. There is no alternative but to take the word Nafs, occurring in these verses, as meaning ‘kind.'  God has created for you spouses of your own kind, the Qur'an is telling us, in order that they may provide you with true companionship in your journey through life.

To summarize, women and men are from the same species. Biologically speaking, women have not been extracted from the bodies of their male counterparts.  God  fashioned them according to  His  Will,  just  as  He  fashioned  men  in accordance with  His Almighty Will  and  Power.

(Continued)