The creation of man is a peculiar topic and probably the one that would generate the most questions with the least amount of accurate answers. The creation of man as a special type of creation above the animal should by definition be something of a stupendous type of achievement but one which does not put limits to the creative abilities of the GREAT UNKNOWN (GOD)!
It seems man was created in stages with the spiritual stage first and then, for convenience sake, a molded body from the ‘clay of the Earth’ came next. These would be classified as the approved stages of man. Anything else would be considered the unapproved stages which of course would lead to corruption.
The creation of the stars can give us a hint at the expansive evolution of the creation of man. It gives just a hint but not total awareness. As scientists know, stars are born and, given a great deal of time according to our understanding, they eventually evolve into bright shining objects and finally given some more expansive time they die and get born again, once again, over immense time periods.
It is ALLAH WHO begins (the process of) creation; then repeats it; then shall you be brought back to HIM. Quran (30:11)
The molded part of man, that is the part made from potter’s clay as opposed to his spiritual sense, would be the correct form or format to be utilized for GOD’s own purpose and design.
And GOD said, Let us make man in OUR image, after OUR likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth {as vicegerents in contrast to ordinary life in order to test them as to their fealty (faithfulness/steadfastness) towards ME}.
So GOD created man in HIS own image; in the image of GOD HE created him; male and female HE created them. Genesis (1:26-27)
Lo, this only have I found, that GOD has made man upright {pure at first, created in a state of Fitra}; but {meanwhile as time went by} they have sought out many inventions {turning these things perversely against HIM for their own conceited and impure desires}. Ecclesiastes (7:29)
What kept men {in any age and culture, known or unknown} back from belief when Guidance came to them, was nothing but {just} this: they said, “Has ALLAH {the CREATOR HIMSELF} sent {just an ordinary} MAN (who acts and looks like us) to be (HIS) Messenger {showing us guidance while bringing back a remembrance of HIM to us}?” Q (17:96)
The key words here seem to be ‘in OUR image, after OUR likeness’.
GOD is SPIRIT, and those who worship HIM must worship in spirit and truth.” John (4:24)
Now the LORD is that SPIRIT: and where the SPIRIT of the LORD is, there is liberty. 2 Corinthians (3:17)
But a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will {rejoice in the} worship the FATHER in spirit and in truth {as was originally directed of them to do so in the beginning}, for the FATHER is seeking such as these to worship HIM {as HE is collecting those for HIS KINGDOM}. John (4:23)
It seems that the notion of a five fingered image on each hand and a five toed image on each foot would naturally come to mind first with a certain race or skin color thrown into the mix when one thinks of GOD and the creation of man. However, that would be an egocentric view and very immature due to the concept of one trying to make GOD into one’s own image! Indeed! That would be a very foolish thing to do.
In all probability and according to scriptural fit, which would be necessary to even start a concept nearly impossible to comprehend, the concept of the ETERNAL GOD reigning in the VOID before time or space was created with what can be called broken strands likened, for our visual purposes only, unto strands of DNA/RNA-like objects come to mind.
First there was GOD and nothing else!!!
Then these ‘broken strands of non-thinking material’ would eventually became the ‘collective consciousness- awareness/perception called GOD’s SPIRIT or eventually known by us as the spiritual-man only when assembled into complete spiritual forms and then brought to an awakening of conscious life only through ALLAH’s Command of saying, “BE” and it (the action desired) became!
The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of GOD {our collective consciousness as a unified nondescript mass} was hovering over the face of the waters. Genesis (1:2)
So, we were created as hypothesized, in the beginning, from something like broken strands of non-intelligible material resembling broken DNA/RNA strands put together and infused with a ‘functional life’ to form that which is known above as the ‘Spirit of GOD’.
This is important for a variety of reasons. It shows that it is fruitless to pigeonhole GOD as being like man in size or shape/form in the physical sense. So, as to what GOD is really like as to HIS REAL SELF IMAGE is in fact UNKNOWN and won’t be known until HE reveals HIMSELF to the specially chosen ones on the Last Day of Judgment!
This also opens up the fact that mankind is not necessarily found only on planet Earth but can exist in the physical-spiritual sense in different shapes and sizes and still be ‘made in HIS IMAGE’ if that image is in the SPIRITUAL SENSE. And we are not exactly aware of what the ‘spirit’ in reality is as to its shape and being-ness.
Taking this into consideration, this notion tends to make certain hadiths about the creation more sensible and more relatable and easier to digest and less self-centered.
As to our current shape, we do know that there was one object for this planet that was ‘built’ by our LORD to conform to this orb called Earth. That was the original formation of the clay-like object called Adam in the physical form we can recognize today. And HE only made that one individual that would operate down through the ages as the conformity of the ‘human race’ as we know it.
Related to this topic is the idea of those special bird-like objects that seem to defy our earthly knowledge and logic which will be sent to cart away the dead bodies of the fallen Gog and Magog. Think about it!
A bird-like creature able to carry away a 150 to 200 pound hypothetical man (Gog and Magog-types) and dump them some place in order that the survivors may regroup and start their lives off without the stain of corrupt flesh boggles the mind but it is absolutely true!
The Islamic description of these creatures shows that ‘they’ are not original inhabitants of this planet (so far no one has ever seen one and for obvious reasons they could not possibly be missed if they were to appear today in our skies). It logically figures then that they must come from some place and fortunately return to their place of origin once the deed is done!
One does not envision the CREATOR LORD busily working on creating ‘new things’ like a storied Santa Clause in his workshop laboring away at building new creations. Concerning these bird-like creatures found in a lengthy hadith:
An-Nawwas bin Sam`an reported that One morning the Messenger of ALLAH (pbh) made a mention of Dajjal, and he described him to be insignificant and at the same time described him so significant that we thought he was on the date-palm trees (i.e., nearby). When we went to him (the Prophet (pbh)) in the evening, he perceived the sign of fear on our faces. He said, “What is the matter with you?” We said: “O Messenger of ALLAH, you talked about Dajjal this morning raising your voice and lowering it until we thought he was hiding in the palm-trees grove: He said: “Something other than Dajjal make worry about you. If he appears while I am with you, I will defend you against him. But if he appears after I die, then every one of you is his own defender. ALLAH is the ONE WHO remains after me to guide every Muslim. Dajjal will be a young man with very curly hair with one eye protruding (with which he cannot see). I compare (his appearance) to that of Al-`Uzza bin Qatan. He who amongst you survives to see him, should recite over him the opening Ayat of Surat Al-Kahf (i.e., Surat 18: Verses 1-8). He will appear on the way between Syria and Iraq and will spread mischief right and left. O slaves of ALLAH! Remain adhered to the truth.” We asked: “O Messenger of ALLAH! How long will he stay on the earth?” He said, “For forty days. One day will be like a year, one day like a month, one day like a week and the rest of the days will be like your days.” We said: “O Messenger of ALLAH! Will one day’s Salat (prayer) suffice for the Salat of that day which will be equal to one year?” Thereupon he said, “No, but you must make an estimate of time and then offer Salat.” We said: “O Messenger of ALLAH! How quickly will he walk upon the earth?” Thereupon he said, “Like cloud driven by the wind (i.e., very quickly). He will come to the people and call them to his obedience and they will affirm their faith in him and respond to him. He will then give command to the sky and it will send its rain upon the earth and he will then send his command to the earth and it will grow vegetation. Then in the evening their pasturing animals will come to them with their humps very high and their udders full of milk and their flanks stretched. He will then come to another people and invite them, but they will reject him and he will leave them, in barren lands and without any goods and chattels! He would then walk through the waste land and say to it: `Bring forth your treasures’, and the treasures will come out and follow him like swarms of bees. He will then call a person brimming with youth and strike him with the sword and cut him into two pieces and make these pieces lie at a distance, which is generally between the archer and his target. He will then call that young man and he will come forward, laughing, with his face gleaming out of joy; and it will be at this very time that ALLAH will send `Isa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary) who will descend at the white minaret in the eastern side of Damascus, wearing two garments lightly dyed and placing his hands on the wings of two angels. When he will lower his head, there would fall drops of water from his head, and when he will raise it up, drops like pearls would scatter from it. Every disbeliever who will find his (i.e., `Isa’s) smell will die and his smell will reach as far as he will be able to see. He will then search for Dajjal until he will catch hold of him at the gate of Ludd (village near Jerusalem), and will kill him. Then the people, whom ALLAH will have protected, will come to `Isa son of Maryam, and he will wipe their faces and will inform them of their ranks in Jannah (Paradise), and it will be under such conditions that ALLAH will reveal to `Isa these words: `I have brought forth from amongst my slaves such people against whom none will be able to fight, so take these people safely to the mountain {top}.’ And then ALLAH will send Ya’juj and Ma’juj (Gog and Magog people) and they will swarm down from every slope. The first of them will pass the Lake Tabariyah (near the Dead Sea in Palestine) and drink all its water. And when the last of them will pass, he will say: `There was once water there.’ Prophet `Isa (pbh) and his companions will then be so much hard-pressed that the head of an ox will be dearer to them than one hundred dinar, and `Isa along with his companions, will make supplication to ALLAH, Who will send insects which will attack their (Ya’juj and Ma’juj peoples’) neck until they all will perish like a single person. Prophet, `Isa and his companions will then come down and they will not find in the earth as much space as a single span which would not be filled with their {these peoples} corpses and their stench. Prophet `Isa and his companions will then again beseech ALLAH, Who will send birds whose necks will be like those of Bactrian camels, and they will carry them and throw them where ALLAH desires. Then ALLAH will send down rain which will spare no house in the city or in the countryside. It would wash away the earth until it appears like a mirror. Then the earth will be told to bring forth its fruit and restore its blessings; and as a result of this, there will grow such a big pomegranate that a group of people will eat from it and seek shelter under its skin. Milk will be so blessed that the milk of one she-camel will suffice for a large company and the cow will give so much milk, that it will suffice for a whole tribe. The sheep will give so much milk that the whole family will be able to drink out of that, and at that time {many centuries later}ALLAH will send a pleasant wind which will soothe people even under their armpits, and will take the life of every Muslim and true believer, {and the Quran will be lifted up such that nothing of it will remain on Earth} and only the wicked {people} will survive {the last kingdom – the kingdom of evil with Satan as their god}. They will commit adultery in public like asses and {other evil criminal acts of debauchery and sin} and {after some time} the Resurrection Day will be held.” (Muslim)
And on the seventh day GOD ended HIS work which HE had done, and HE rested {GOD does not sleep or slumber (Quran 2: 255) but rested here means completed what was to be made or set in motion what was to come about} on the seventh day from all HIS work which HE had done {thus allowing the certain appointees or principalities to work in perfection flawlessly to insure that flawlessness in HIS creations was orderly maintained} Genesis (2:2)
HE it is WHO created the heavens and the earth in six Days – and HIS Throne was over the waters – that HE might try you, which of you is best in conduct. But if you were to say to them, “You shall indeed be raised up after death”, the Unbelievers would be sure to say, “This is nothing but obvious sorcery!” Quran (11:7)
In other words, a certain amount of time went into the creations and then when everything was set in place by the PERFECT CREATOR to be that flawless order, that perfect concept we call creation, then things were finished and not left unfinished or incomplete or so the records tell us as to that which is contained in HIS BOOK – written down before the dawn of creation and kept secure in the Heavens.
So, one can logically assume that these bird-like creatures are real and that they come from some place/dimension that we know nothing about and will return to their ‘area of origin’ once they fulfill the COMMAND of their LORD!
Why not? All things belong to ALLAH!
We can gain some insight into this notion when we look at the story of when the Kabbah was attacked during pre-Islamic times from Yemen in the battle using elephants. Suffice it to say that small birds, in this case, arrived in massive numbers and dropped small pellets of stones from the air thus driving the elephants mad into stampeding against their owners.
If these birds came, for example, two days earlier, then the dropping of these small projectiles would accomplish no purpose. However, if they were to come two days after the elephants showed up, their dropping of the stones, acting like little missiles, would also be of no useful effect because the Kabbah would have already been destroyed!
The moral of the story is that it occurred on time and as planned and in the manner plannedeven before those elephant creatures were born because the PENS (of Qadar), or that what Muhammad (pbh) had heard in his heavenly journey as to writing out destiny, had written it so!!!
These delightful thoughts put man in a proper perspective of being humbled and smallish and a creature totally dependent on the ONE ENTITY WORTHY OF OUR WORSHIP!
That is ALLAH, your LORD! There is no god but HE, the Creator of all things: then worship you HIM: and HE has POWER {MAGNIFIED} to dispose of all affairs.
No vision can grasp HIM, but HIS grasp is over all vision: HE is above all comprehension, yet {HE} is acquainted with all things. Quran (6:102-103)
No just estimate have they made of ALLAH such as due to HIM: on the Day of Judgment the whole earth will be but HIS handful, and the Heavens will be rolled up in HIS Right Hand: GLORY TO HIM! HIGH is HE above the partners that they attribute to HIM! Quran (39:67)
