Holy Quran , New Sciences and Development of Human Embryo

Ever since the dawn of human life on this planet, Man has always tried to understand Nature, his own place in the scheme of Creation and the purpose of Life itself. In this quest for Truth, spanning many centuries and diverse civilizations, organized religion has shaped human life and, to a large extent, has determined the course of history. While some religions have been based on written text, claimed by their followers to be divinely inspired, others have relied solely on human experience. Al-Qur'an, the main source of the Islamic faith, is a book believed by its followers, the Muslims, to be completely of Divine origin. Muslims also believe that it contains guidance for all humankind. Since the message of the Qur'an is believed to be for all times, it should be relevant to every age. This article highlights different stages of formation of the human embryo along with the description of every stage of the embryonic development as mentioned in the Quran. This study shows that God creates a child in a mother's womb and brings about the child chronological evolution to full life, while the parents only play an instrumental role in this creative process. The Quran says: We have created man out of an extraction of clay (the origin of semen). Then we turn it into semen and settle it in a firm receptacle. We then turn semen into a clot (‘alaqah) (literally, something hanging, that is, from the womb) which we then transmute into a lump (mudghah). We then create bones which we clothe with flesh. Then, we transmute it into a new mode (of ensoulment)-blessed be then Allah, the best of creators. (Al-Quran, Surah (Chapter) Al-Mu'minun (23): 12-14, see also Al-Hajj (22): 5).