The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 1) — Page cccxliv
GENERAL INTRODUCTION eternal souls to enter into human bodies at the appropriate time. The second theory is that souls are created and not self-existing but God created the requisite number of them at the same time as He created the universe, and that these souls are kept in reserve and out of this reserve God causes some to enter into human bodies from time to time. The Quran is the first and only Scripture which puts forward the correct view on this matter. It teaches that the birth of the soul is the ultimate stage of the evolution of the human body in the course of its creation. It does not enter the body from outside but is born as a consequence of the changes that the body goes through in the course of its development. Yet it is something distinct from the body. It is not merely the motive power of the human body but is a distinct and permanent entity distilled from the substance of the body, just as alcohol and vinegar, though distilled from corn or fruit, are nevertheless distinct from the substances from which they are manufactured. By bringing this truth to light the Quran has entirely revolutionized the attitude of man towards the relationship between the body and the soul. Those who believe that human souls are self-existing and eternal or that they were all created in a bunch at the inception of the universe and are sent down to the earth as required from time to time, repudiate any suggestion that physical conditions and physical development have any effect upon the development of the soul. On the other hand, the Quran, by revealing the truth and reality, has emphasized that the condition and development of a person bear the closest relationship to his spiritual condition and physical development. It is true that even under the Quranic teachings every human body is bound at a certain stage to develop a soul, but the teaching of the Quran draws pointed attention to the principle that if care is devoted to the development of the human body along healthy and hygienic lines, the personality resulting therefrom will be more dynamic and more intelligent than if such development is neglected. By drawing attention to this fact the Quran has opened up new avenues for man's intellectual and spiritual development. Some people assert that the soul possesses no faculties of its own and can therefore not be affected by any changes in the body. This is not correct. To say that the soul possesses no faculties is meaningless. If it possesses no faculties it can have no independent existence. It certainly possesses faculties but is able to manifest them only through the body. There are instances even in the material universe in which we find that certain things can manifest themselves only through coarser substances. For example, we are almost every moment brought up against the phenomenon that electricity can manifest itself only through other substances. In the same way, the faculties of the soul find expression in various ways through the body. The Quran deals with all these and similar other subjects, but for obvious cccxviii