Who deceives you about your Lord the Noble...

Who deceives you about your Lord the Noble, Who created you and fashioned you in due proportion and gave you any form He willed." --sura 71, verse 14: "(God) fashioned you in (different) stages." Along with this very general observation, the text of the Qur'an draws attention to several points concerning reproduction which might be listed as follows: fertilization is performed by only a very small volume of liquid. the constituents of the fertilizing liquid.

the implantation of the fertilized egg. the evolution of the embryo. Fertilization is Performed by Only a Very Small Volume of Liquid. The Qur'an repeats this concept eleven times using the following expression: --sura 16, verse 4: "(God) fashioned man from a small quantity (of sperm)." The Arabic word nutfa has been translated by the words 'small quantity (of sperm)' because we do not have the terms that are strictly appropriate.

This word comes from a verb signifying 'to dribble, to trickle'; it is used to describe what remains at the bottom of a bucket that has been emptied out. It therefore indicates a very small quantity of liquid. Here it is sperm because the word is associated in another verse with the word sperm. --sura 75, verse 37: "Was (man) not a small quantity of sperm which has been poured out?" Here the Arabic word mani signifies sperm.

Another verse indicates that the small quantity in question is put in a 'firmly established lodging' (qarar) which obviously means the genital organs. --sura 23, verse 13. God is speaking: "Then We placed (man) as a small quantity (of sperm) in a safe lodging firmly established." It must be added that the adjective which in this text refers to the 'firmly established lodging' makin is, I think, hardly translatable. It expresses the idea of a firmly established and respected place.

However this may be, it refers to the spot where man grows in the maternal organism. It IS important to stress the concept of a very small quantity of liquid needed in the fertilization process, which is strictly in agreement with what we know on this subject today. The Constituents of the Fertilizing Liquid.

The Qur'an describes the liquid enabling fertilization to take place in terms which it is interesting to examine: a) 'sperm', as has been stated precisely (sura 75, verse 37) b) 'a liquid poured out'.