The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 3) — Page 436
CH. 16 AN-NAHL PT. 14 خَلَقَ الْإِنْسَانَ مِنْ نُّطْفَةٍ فَإِذَا He has created man from a. 5 هُوَ خَصِيمٌ مُّبِينٌ mere drop of fluid, but lo! he is an open disputer. 1806 "18:38; 22:6; 23:13-14; 35:12; 36:78; 40:68. requirements of wisdom) may mean that heavens and earth have their allotted tasks in the spiritual regeneration of man so that both jointly produce the desired result. Or it may mean that God has created the heavens and the earth so that they may serve to turn man's attention to God, and he may see that nothing is perfect by itself except God. The heavens stand in need of the earth for the performance of their work, and likewise the earth is dependent on heavens and both are subject to the will of God. So the purpose of the creation of the heavens and the earth is to demonstrate to man the fact that nothing is perfect in itself except God. The words, Exalted is He above all that they associate with Him, mean to say that he who does not believe that the heavens and the earth have been created with a definite purpose will necessarily fall a victim to the sin of setting up equals with God. No wise man can say that God has created this universe without purpose. If it has been created by God, it must have a purpose. If it be supposed to have no purpose, it would mean that it has not been created by God but is self- existent, which is tantamount saying that every atom in this universe is equal to God for it is deemed to be self-existent or co- existent with God. to Another meaning of the expression is that the matter of which the heavens and the earth were made was created by God and therefore He has the right of control and interference. The reference here is to the view wrongly held in some quarters that God is not the Creator of matter or of soul though He is the author of their combination. Read in this sense the verse would signify that God's creation of the heavens and the earth was not an arbitrary act of power but something He had every right to perform, being the Creator of the primordial matter of which they were made. 1806. Important Words: ab (drop of fluid) is noun-infinitive means, the water نطف الماء نطف from sperm of a flowed little by little. ab means, the man or [ovum of] a woman; clear water whether much or little; (Lane & Aqrab). Commentary: The verse means to say that after God had created the heavens and the earth according to a definite system of laws, He created man and sent down His revelation for his guidance. But notwithstanding the fact that after having created man from an apparently contemptible seed, God endowed him with highest faculties, yet he, instead of acting upon the 1644