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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books 180 Questions Enquiries About Islam Volume Two: Various issues Is the theory of evolution inconsistent with theism? ======================================================== The Qur’an contains a concise discussion in connection with the creation of man which it has presented in a nutshell since its prime aim had been issues that were educative in essence.

This topic has been presented in numerous places in the Qur’an such as Suratul Sajdah, Suratul Mu’minun, Surat Sad and some other chapters.

However, we do know that the Qur’an is not a book of natural sciences but rather, a book for human development, and hence it should not be expected that details of these sciences such as issues relating to evolution, anatomy, embryology, botany and the like should be contained within it; nevertheless, it is quite acceptable that in relevance to educative discussions, brief allusions are made to different aspects of these sciences in the Qur’an.

Having taking this into consideration, there are two discussions which we consider essential to present before you: Evolution of species from the scientific point of view. Evolution of species from the Qur’anic point of view.

At the outset, we shall pursue the first topic and discuss the issue without reference to the verses and the traditions, only taking into consideration the criteria associated with the natural sciences: We know that amongst scholars in this field there are two theories that are prevalent in connection with the creation of the living entities, irrespective of whether they are plants or animals: The theory of evolution, which states that in the beginning, the various living entities did not possess the form that they presently possess, rather, the beginning of entities started with a single cell, which came into being as a result of mutation amid mud and slime, in the depths of the oceans; some non-living entities found themselves in special conditions and from them came into existence the first living cells.

These microscopic entities gradually underwent evolution - changing forms from one species to another, and shifting from the seas to the wild and from there to the air - and in this fashion, various species of plants, land and sea animals, and birds came into existence.