In the Qur'an, Allah reveals that the creation of the human is a miracle. The first human being was created by Allah shaping clay into human form and breathing a soul into it:
Your Lord said to the angels, "I am going to create a human being out of clay. When I have formed him and breathed My Spirit into him, fall down in prostration to him!" (Qur'an, 38:71-72)
Then inquire of them: Is it they who are stronger in structure or other things We have created? We created them from sticky clay. (Qur'an, 37:11)
When the human body is examined today, it may be discovered that many elements present on the earth are also to be found in the body. Living tissues contain 95% carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulphur, with a total of 26 different elements.91 In another verse of the Qur'an we are told:
We created man from an extract of clay. (Qur'an, 23:12)
The Arabic word "sulala," translated as "extract" in the verse, means "representative example, essence." As we have seen, the information revealed in the Qur'an 1,400 years ago confirms what modern science tells us-the fact that the same elements are employed in human creation as those found in the soil.
Below is a diagram showing the distribution of the elements in a 70-kilo human being.
Element | Symbol | Main Function | % | Weight |
Macro-minerals | Gram | |||
Oxygen
Carbon | O
C | Respiration of cells/tissues, a component of water Organic structure Component of water/tissue Component of protein/tissue Bones and teeth Bones and teeth Intracellular electrolyte Amino acids (hair and skin) An electrolyte when in the form of chloride Intracellular electrolyte Electrolyte of metabolism Connective tissue/bone | 65.0 18.5 9.5 3.3 1.5 1.0 0.35 0.25 0.15 0.15 0.05 0.05 | 43,000
12,000 |
Macro-minerals | % | Miligram | ||
Iron
Copper | Fe
Cu | Carrier of hemoglobin/oxygen Content of enyzme/DNA synthesis, immunity support Enzyme cofactor Bone structure Essence of B12 vitamin Fat metabolism Thyroid hormone Enzyme, antioxidant, immunity support Metallic enzymes Enzyme cofactor Glucose-tolerant facto | 0.01
0.01 | 4,200
90 |
91. Kevin Griffin, “The Elemental Composition of Life,” www.ldeo.columbia.edu/dees/ees/life/lectures/lect21.html.