A Memorable Incident of the Holy Qur'an

By:
Professor Muhsin Qara'ati
A man extracted a piece of bone from underneath a wall and after pulverizing it brought to the Holy Prophet and putting on airs insolently said: "Who can bring back this decayed and powdered bone to life?" Allah says in the Holy Qur'an:
He has said, 'Who will give life to the bones which have become ashes'. (Muhammad), tell him, 'He who gave them life in the first place will bring them back to life again. He has the best knowledge of all creatures '. (Surah Ya Sin, 36:78, 79)
If a maker of something says that he can re-assemble the broken parts of his product he will not be in the wrong because making a thing is more difficult than assembling its parts.
The deniers of Resurrection had doubts about two things:
(i) "How can decayed bones come to life?" The Holy Qur'an says:
He has said, 'Who will give life to the bones which have become ashes? (Surah Ya Sin, 36:78)
(ii) If the powdered bones are accepted to come to life again then who will return them to life? The Holy Qur'an says:
(Muhammad), tell him, 'He Who gave them life in the first place will bring them back to life again'. (Surah Ya Sin, 36:79)
If a brick-maker claims that after pulverizing the brick he can re-make it, can anybody doubt it? Certainly not.
Why do these people who consider the decomposed parts of the dead coming back to life as a very strange phenomenon not doubt the very creation of their life? Obviously to create life in the first instance is more difficult than to re-create it. Is it more difficult to make an air-plane or to re-assemble it after dismantling it? If a maker of planes claims that he can disintegrate its parts and then re-assemble it, can anybody doubt his statement? No, certainly not, because re-assembling the parts is easier than making a thing. Thus when one accomplishes a difficult task he can also do the easier one but for Almighty Allah nothing is difficult. The Holy Qur'an says:
And He it is Who originates the creation, then reproduces it, and it is easy to Him, and His are the most exalted attributes in the heavens and the earth, and He is the Mighty, the Wise. (Surah ar-Rum, 30:27)

Other Examples in Proof of Resurrection
In support of the proof that coming of the dead to life again is not a difficult or impossible thing, the Holy Qur'an has provided many examples and among them are the two incidents related to Prophet Uzayr and Prophet Ibrahim.
(i) Once Prophet Uzayr, while on a journey, passed through a deserted place, and there he thought to himself, not by way of disbelief but out of inquisitiveness: 'How will Allah bring them back to life after they have been dead for so many years?"
The Almighty Allah kept him dead for 100 years and after reviving him asked, "How long have you been here?" The Prophet replied, "Half an hour or so" Allah said, "No, you have been here for 100 years. Now you look at your donkey, your animal of riding and also your food that you had with you. Now wonder at the Greatness and Power of Allah, how your donkey died and perished into dust and the food which should have decayed in a day or two is still fresh after 100 years. Now if you want to witness the coming of the dead into life again you may look at the decayed bones of the donkey from which We will bring it back to life again fully intact with its skin, flesh and soul, so that it may serve as a good lesson for the coming generations". (Vide: Surah al-Baqarah, 2:259)
As soon as Prophet Uzayr saw his donkey coming back to life and the food remaining fresh for 100 years he exclaimed, "I know Allah has the Power to do every thing".
(ii) Once Prophet Ibrahim was passing by the bank of a river when he saw a corpse, one portion of which was in water and the other was on the ground. The land and marine animals and birds flocked round it, and every animal was eating practically every bit of the dead body. Prophet Ibrahim after seeing this asked Allah, "How will you bring back the dead to life on the Day of Judgement when this corpse has almost been eaten up by the animals and it has been assimilated in their bodies as their integral part". Allah asked Prophet Ibrahim, "Do you have no faith in My Power and belief in resurrection". He replied, "Why not! But I want to satisfy myself by seeing this phenomenam with my own eyes". (Discussions and argumentation satisfy the mind while experience and observation satisfy the heart)
Allah then asked Prophet Ibrahim, "Take four different kinds of birds. Slaughter them and mix up their flesh together and put them on different mountains. Thereafter, call out each bird one by one and see for yourself how various portions of the mixed flesh get separated and go to bring back each bird in its original form". Prophet Ibrahim did as he was directed. He slaughtered a pigeon, a chicken, a peacock and a crow, mixed up their flesh together in one whole put them on the top of ten different mountains. Then he called out each animal and each one of them appeared before him in its original form. (Vide Surah al-Baqarah, 2:260)
Infact, Prophet Ibrahim the chosen Messenger of Allah, is passed through special test and trial and is put on an exalted position while on the other hand there are people like us who have not even passed an initial stage of recognizing preliminary things as conviction, ascension etc.
We give some simple examples further to elaborate how scattered particles can form together to a complete being.
(i) A cow grazes grass which on assimilation yields milk.
(ii) A man eats a piece of bread which goes to form various component tissues and organs of his body. e.g. blood, bones, hair, nails, flesh etc.
(iii) Many cloths are made of fibres which are produced from petroleum.
(iv) When a metal is melted its impurities are separated in the foam.
(v) When milk or curd is churned its cream is separated on top.
Now you admit that the digestive function of a cow yields milk from grass. Many fibers from petroleum and cream from milk or curd can be obtained. But when you hear that Allah will shake the earth in a quake, the decayed bone particles wherever they are, will form together in original shape, you do not believe it! (Vide: Surah Zilzal, 99:1—2)
We quote here some more verses of the Holy Qur'an:
As He brought you forth in the beginning, so shall you also return. (Surah al-A'raf, 7 29)
And certainly you know the first creation, then why do you not reflect? (Surah al-Waqi'a, 56:62)
Let man reflect from what he was made of: He was created of spurting water issuing from the loins and ribs, Allah has the Power to resurrect him. (Surah at-Tariq, 86:5—8)
Does man think that he will be left to himself, alone? Wasn't he once just an emitted drop of semen? Then formed into an embryo? Then he fashioned, shaped and proportioned and assigned it sexes, male and female. Doesn't He then have the power to bring the dead back to life. (Surah al-Qiyamah, 75:36—40)
Did We fail to accomplish the first creation? And yet they are still in doubt about a new creation. We created man and surely know what doubts arise in his mind. (Surah Qaf, 50:15)
Don't they realize that Allah Who has created the heavens and the earth has the power to create the like of them? There is no doubt that He has fixed a term for them. Even then the wicked turn away in disbelief (from Our Revelation). (Surah Bani Isra'il, 17:99)
Does not man remember that before We created him he was nothing? (Surah Mar yam, 19:67)
Though we are giving proofs from the Holy Qur'an yet it advises us to apply our wisdom and reasoning. Can anybody still be in doubt after seeing the clear proof of Allah's doing all the year round?
Since our discussion requires brevity and simplicity we are not quoting other examples that are mentioned in the Holy Qur'an, for instance the story about the People of the Cave (ashabul kahaf) and of that young man who awoke from his sleep after 309 years.
We have said that there are three stages of any work that is to be performed. First the possibility of its happening, which we have already dealt with.
Now comes the second stage which pertains to the cause of that happening, that is, the proof of Resurrection, because the possibility of coming back to life is not sufficient. For instance man can perform many functions and there is a possibility of their performance too, but he needs the cause and justification for that also. It is possible for everybody to drink water but unless we feel thirsty we do not take it. Similarly other things, talking, walking and some other similar work that are possible, but we do not do them unless we have some reason to do them.
Thus every possible work needs the justification for its being done. At this point we will very briefly discuss the reasons for Resurrection because on this subject numerous books have been written in detail. May Allah bless the writers as well as the readers of those books.