We
present to you Dr. Marshall Johnson, Professor Emeritus of Anatomy and Developmental
Biology at Thomas Jefferson University Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. There for 22
years he was Professor of Anatomy, the Chairman of the Department of Anatomy, and the
Director of the Daniel Baugh Institute. He was also the President of the Teratology
Society. He has authored more than 200 publications. We first met with Professor Johnson
at the 7th Saudi Medical Conference, where a special committee was formed to investigate
scientific signs in the Quran and the Sunnah.
When we met together with the
committee, Professor Johnson asked us what our committee was doing. We told him that the
subject of our study was the relationship between what the Quran and Sunnah contained 1400 years ago and what
modern scientists tell us. He asked: "Like what?" We said: ‘For example,
modern science tells us that the human prenatal development goes through several stages
whereas the Quran mentioned
these stages to us 1400 years ago.’
Professor Johnson was appalled
when he heard this. He
expressed his feeling by simply saying: ‘No’ no, no! What kind of talk is
that?’
We understood the effect of such
statements upon him. We knew he was one of the foremost scientists in the United States.
He knew, of course, that after the discovery of the microscope in the 16th century,
physicians throughout the 17th century believed that a human being’s origin began
entirely in the male’s semen, specifically in the male’s sperm. This picture
(not shown) was the evidence used by scientists in the 17th century, and partly in the
18th century, to support their belief that the human being was created wholly from the
male sperm, but after the discovery of the ovum was larger than the sperm of the male. In
this way they ignored the role of the man in the 18th century, just as they had ignored
that of the woman in the 17th century.
It was not until the middle of the
19th century when the scientists began to discover that the human embryonic development
took place in several successive stages. It was for this reason when Professor Johnson was
told that this information has been in the Quran for 1400 years that he stood up and shouted: ‘No,
No!’ So we in turn handed him a copy of the Quran and showed him the following verse which he read in the
English translation:
"What
is the matter with you, that you are not conscious of Allah’s Majesty. Seeing that it
is He who has created you in diverse stages?" [Quran 71:13-14]
Then we showed him
this verse: "He creates
you in the wombs of your mother, in stages, one after another, in three veils of
darkness." [Quran 39:6]
At this, Professor Johnson sat
down and said: "But this
could be explained in three possibilities. The first is that it can be mere
coincidence."
So we collected more than 25 texts
and presented them to him. Then we asked him: ‘Is it possible that these texts are
coincidence?’ Moreover, the Glorious Quran has given each of these stages a name: the first being the nutfah,
or the drop of water, the second being the ‘alaqah, a leech-like substance,
the third being the mudghah, or a chewed-like lump, the fourth being bones, and
then the clothing of the bones with flesh. Can all this be a coincidence? He flatly said:
"No."
Then we asked him: ‘Then what
remains?’ He said: "The
other possibility is that Muhammad had hold [of a] powerful microscope."
We said: "You know
that this sort of minute and specialized knowledge, which has been contained in the Quran, can only be obtained by very powerful microscopes. And anyone possessing
such powerful microscopes must also possess very high technology, which must be reflected
in his daily living, his house, his food, his control and management of war and quest for
peace…etc. And you know that technological advancement is a process of cumulative
inheritance, passed in and proved upon from one generation to the other."
Fig.
8
Professor Johnson laughed and
said: "In fact I saw the
first microscope invented in the world. It does not magnify more than 10 times and does
not even show a clear picture."
The Prophet Muhammad ( PBUH), never had possession of scientific
equipment or microscopes. The only thing that remains for us to say that he was a
Messenger from Allah. After this, Professor Johnson began to take interest in the study of
scientific signs in the Quran, concentrating in some of his research on the stages of
embryonic development. While Dr. Moore and others discussed the external fetal appearance,
Professor Johnson concentrated his presentation on the Quran’s detailed descriptions of the internal as well as
external of the fetus.
Fig.
9
Professor Johnson: In summary, the
Quran describes not only the development of external form, but
emphasizes also the internal stages, the stages inside the embryo, of its creation and
development, emphasizing major events recognized by contemporary sciences.
For example, this drawing of the
mudghah [Fig. 10], or the
chewed-like structure, is one of the things that Professor Johnson used as evidence.
Fig. 10
This picture of the
mudghah shows the external appearance of the embryo with its curved structure, and with
visible protuberances and grooves resembling teeth-marks, we notice the swallows and the
grooves, we also notice the curved surface, all which give the embryo its distinctive
features while the embryo at this stage is only one centimeter in length.
If we were to make
an incision in the embryo and dissect the internal organs, we would find that most of them
are already formed, as it is apparent here. You can also see from this picture that some
of the cells have already formed, while others are not yet completely formed.
How then would we describe this
embryo? What do we say? Could we say it is the complete creation? Then we are describing
the part which is already created, and if we say it is an incomplete creation, then we are
describing the part which is not yet created, the question would be: Is it a complete
creation or is it an incomplete creation? There is no better description of that stage of
embryologenesis than the Quranic
description which says: …mudghah (chewed-like structure) partly formed and partly
unformed… [Quran 22:5]
Fig.
11
Here is Professor Marshall Johnson
giving the conclusion of his research: "As a scientist, I can only deal with things which I can specifically see. I
can understand the words that are translated to me from the Quran. As I gave the example
before, if I were to transpose myself into that era, knowing what I knew today in
describing things, I could not describe the things which were described. I see no evidence
for the refutation of the concept that this individual, Muhammad, had to be developing
this information from some place. So I see nothing here in conflict with the concept that
Divine Intervention was involved in what he was able to write."
Fig. 12
Yes, it is
the Revelation. The only way left to mankind is to follow the example of those great
scientists, acknowledging that Allah has revealed to Muhammad (PBUH), a Book from
Allah’s knowledge. Allah has further promised that mankind will, over time, come to
discover the signs which prove that the Quran is truly a Book revealed by Allah.
Allah, may He be Exalted
and Glorified, said in the Quran:
"And you
shall certainly know the truth of it (all) after a while." [Quran 38:88]
Allah also said:
"For every
prophecy is a limit of time, and soon shall you know it." [Quran 6:67] |
