Absolute Justice, Kindness and Kinship — Page 122
The Role of the Three Creative Principles in the Shaping of Religion 121 black mud wrought into shape; So when I have fashioned him in perfection and have breathed into him of My Spirit, fall you down in submission to him. ' (S u rah al- H ijr; Ch. 15: Vs. 29, 30) A similar mention is found in reference to the Holy Prophet sa in Surah al-Kahf. The verse runs as follows: … Say, 'I am only a man like yourselves. It is revealed to me: Verily your God is only One God. ' … (S u rah al-Kahf; Ch. 18: V. 111) The prerequisite for the breath of God is Taqw a , that is the fear of Allah. The one who fears Allah in the true sense of the word is the one who is worthy of becoming the recipient of His revelation. Hence, it is Taqw a and Taqw a alone which is the mark of honour. The expression Nafkh-i-R uh , (S u rah al- H ijr, V. 30) 'a breath of life from God' is invariably used in application to human beings alone, never in relation to other animals. To do Nafkh means to breathe into something. The primary meaning of this term would simply be the breath of life, but in this context it is a specific term for human life alone. All living things have an ego and a centre of consciousness, but this consciousness in itself is not capable of outliving the physical 'life'. The term R uh should be translated as 'soul' as against 'life' which all animals possess, whereas the soul is granted only to humans.