Could Man See God?

By Dr Sayyid Zahid Ali Wasti

Medicine and Knowledge of God*

*It is an English translation of an Urdu article published in the monthly al-Ma'arif, Lahore, for April, 1978. - Ed

The question often arises in the minds of men: However could man see God? Now for seeing a thing the following predicates are essential: the thing to be seen, directions and dimensions, some spatial fixity, hue and appearance. It is also necessary that the rays of light should fall upon it and, having fallen upon it, they should hit the retina. Further, the image has to be transmitted through the optic nerve upon the image-making screen of the brain. Is God to be visualized like, this? No, never. Is He to be found fixed spatially? Does He have dimensions? Certainly not. If then man thinks God can be seen in this manner it only shows his ignorance. But God and His Divinity can be seen in many ways, through which reflect His Epiphany, His Light and His Manifestation. The Qur’an says:

"And God is the Light of the heavens and the earth; the likeness of His Light is as a niche in which there is a lamp."

Qur'an 24:35

It is beyond any argument that the Epiphany of God is manifest in everything in the cosmos. All these manifestations lead one towards an understanding of God and serve as guidance to man. But this guidance is only comprehensible if the perception of His Attributes is taken to be equivalent to the comprehension of His Essence (Dhat). If the Attributes of God are regarded qua Attributes only, then this concept that separates His Essence from His Attributes would rather clog understanding. For what are these plants and minerals, the sky and the earth, in fact, all the things of beauty which we see in the universe? Are they not the manifestations of His Essence? God Himself has said:

"If ye wish to enumerate the favours of Allah ye will not be able to count them."

Qur'an 16:18

Creation of Man

Eminent scientists and scholars who, on the basis of teleology ontology, constructed philosophical premises, and biologists, physicists, mathematicians who reflected upon the nature of creation, the place of man in the Animal Kingdom, and the relation of man to the other living beings, have at last admitted this much that the world must have a Prime Mover from whom all motion derives, that the universe is subject to certain laws which are marked by remarkable precision, and, finally, that the structure and functioning human body itself has more to offer than the accumulated wisdom contained in the books of all the libraries of the world.

The birth of man is not only the apogee of the creation of the cosmos but is, theologically speaking, the finale of genesis. That is why he has been designated as the Khalifat Allah fi’l-ard (the Vicegerent of God on earth). And if we keep all the causes and reasons before us we could legitimately call man the manifestation of the Grace of God. From the Qur’anic point of view, man, both spiritually and physically, is the best of creation.

"And we have created man in the best of moulds."

Qur'an 95:4

Creating man in the best of moulds means that he has been granted a body that has not been given to any other creature, and that he alone has been endowed with heights of wisdom and thought, perception and grasp, among the living creatures.

Man begins his life from material elements and gradually climbs up till he is measured through perception and wisdom. Therefore God in His Wisdom and Omnipotence created man from clay, as He Himself says:

"And we have created man from the ringing loam from thin mud moulded into shape."

Qur'an 15:26

The ancient Greek physicians believed the corporeal part of man to comprise four elements (clay, water, fire, and air) and the Arabs followed them. The latter also regarded these four elements to be the basic constituents of the human body.

Towards the end of the 18th century Western scientists showed that earth and water are compounds, and within a short while some 80 elements like oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, silicon, etc., were discovered and details about their properties worked out. The analysis of the human body has shown that some of these elements are present in the body, out of which nitrogen, oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, calcium, sulphur, and phosphorus stand out. Besides, other elements like iron, manganese, zinc, cobalt, and copper are also to be found. These elements are not found as simples within the body. Simples of these elements are resolved within the body during the function of digestion and are then resynthesised. They thus become part of the body. This is known as the process of compounding.

The conversion of carbon dioxide into smoke, and urea into ash leads to the release of energy and this is the process of separation. In other words, the process of synthesis, which requires energy, is anabolism, while that of breakdown is catabolism. The sum total of these two processes is metabolism. The formula is: catabolism + anabolism = metabolism. It is this metabolic process that is another name for life.

Life is the proportional arrayment of the (five) elements, while, death is their disintegration.

The Qur’an while explaining the Divine Attribute of Cherishing through the manifestation of existence and the occurrence of phenomena, describes the beauty of the universe, unity within multiplicity, and the benefits that man derives from existence.

"Verily, there is great wisdom in this for him who has a heart in his side and an ear to hear, and earnestly witnesses (the truth)."

Qur'an 50:37

The Mind

The mind has, in many respects, superiority over the other organs. It will not be remiss to call it the repertory of secrets. It is the mind that decides between the appetitive soul and the censuring or reproaching soul. This wonderful instrument of Nature, because of its biological function, keeps us balanced in the face of possible external accidents and occurrences. The continuity of existence, in the midst of the endless chain of sharp physiological, chemical and psychological changes, rests upon the mind. The mind controls cooperation and coordination between our conscious deeds and acts and the movements of our muscles and ligaments as well as the functions of other organs such as the heart, lungs, liver, stomach, kidneys, and glands. The main function of the brain is, therefore, to coordinate. The muscular, vascular and the neuromotor systems are connected with each other through the medium of the brain.

Let us see what the brain is like. It weighs about one kilogram and is safely fortified by means of various membranes. It is joined through the neuromotor system with each and every cell of the body. This is indeed miraculous workmanship. The brain comprises minute nerve-cells known as neuron's which, on a conservative estimate, number 13,500,000. From the functional point of view, the neuron's are the centres for receiving, sorting, and dispatching information, and the work does not take more than 1/1000th of a second. Digestion, respiration, and circulation of the blood are conducted by the neuron's. This is the reason why the brain is regarded as evolution-prone, since it is the brain that makes the distinction between man and animal. It harbours centres for coordinating movements of the legs and the hands and other organs. Besides, it has centres that trigger the sensations of smell, taste, sight, hearing, and thought and the body is controlled from here. Billions of neurones thus act through their particular organs extremely swiftly. Near the temples is the centre for memory. It intervenes in diseases like apoplexy and adversely affects memory of past events. The centre for sight is situated posteriorly. Likewise, there is a site for controlling the auditory function. Very often the capacity and strength of the upper brain decline; and this is manifested through the low capacity for mental work and consequent enervation. This is either due to the shrinkage of the brain arteries or advanced age.

On the lower surface is situated a wonderful gland which is the size of a pea. It is round and is enclosed in a membrane. It is called the pituitary gland. It is a proof of the indescribably clever Workmanship of God. It is, comparatively speaking, the smallest of the body’s glands, but God has granted it characteristics which determine man’s external appearance, his growth, and certain physiological functions. Its poor functioning leads to dwarfism, and an adult attains a height of 2½-3 feet, with his growth coming to a stop. Together with reduction in size, man also is mentally retarded. If, on the other hand, this gland grows and functions immoderately, it generates a remarkable change in man, e.g. tallness up to 7-8 feet, with the limbs becoming disproportionate, the face becoming oblong and the body misshapen. It also exercises a remarkable effect upon lactation and sex.

Secretions from the posterior part of this gland join up with the blood and mix up with secretions from the ductless glands. It thus keeps the blood pressure and the peristaltic movement of the intestines in a proper state. Besides secretions from it control the functioning of the other glands. From this point of view, the pituitary gland is called the "band master" of the glands.

The Tongue

Sound is the prerogative of other animals also, but their sounds express crude emotions, eg. the desire to mate, calls sent to the companions, asking for food etc. The art of articulation, ie. the expression of inner feelings, is particular to man only. In the Surah al-Balad (90:9) God says He has granted the tongue to man. But if is not merely an instrument of speech. If voice were the measure, then the beasts of pray and fowls also give out sounds. But in man we find language and sound as the articulation of his inner self. This makes man superior to the other creatures. In the Surah al-Rahman God has said:

"That is, He has taught man to speak."

Qur'an 55:4

This is to say, speech is a gift valuable beyond measure from God. God has gifted man with other characteristics as well. Let us see what wonders the gift of the tongue has.

The tongue basically comprises muscular textures, and we can, therefore, turn it any way we like. The upper layer of the tongue is made up of a salivary membrane which has innumerable small raised structures running into several hundreds of thousands. These are called the taste buds. Within the cavities of these raised structures are groups of cells having sensation, for taste buds are not affected if a thing is not a fluid. If the object is not a fluid, the taste buds make it so through the release of saliva. If the tongue is entirely cleansed of the saliva, and, if salt or sugar is placed upon it, no taste will be produced. Although there are different kinds of food, with each food having a particular taste, there are four basic kinds of taste–sweet, sour, saltish, and bitter. Of these the extremity of the tongue feels the taste of the sweet and saltish edibles very sharply. The bitter edible is tasted by the posterior extremity of the tongue, while the sour sensation is felt by the edges of the tongue. It is indeed nothing short of wonder that taste and smell are closely inter-related. If a foul tasting medicine, e.g. castor oil, has to be drunk, the nose is usually covered. Colds also mask taste and the degree of enjoyment is reduced. The good taste of biryani (rice cooked with spices and meat), for instance, is due to its flavour. Can any one else but God create so many diversification's in this barely 4-inch long piece of flesh? Certainly not!

The Eye

The creation of the eye and the ratio and proportion which we find in it are something which on reflection, defy description. What would have the human face been like if there were one eye in place of the two or if they were on the back of the head. God says:

"And all that we have created is in measure."

Qur'an 54:49

The eye is a wonderful gift (from the Creative Attribute) of God. The eye has been fixed in a socket within the skull. All the bones around it, except for the front, guard it. Frontal protection is provided by the eye-lid, which has numerous glands secreting a lubricating fluid. This secretion keeps the surface of the eye smooth and lubricated, so that the eye can move easily. The extremities of the eyelids have long hairs–the eye lashes, which protect the eye from foreign matter.

The eye has six muscles, which make it possible to turn the eyeball in all directions. The eye is connected with the brain through the optic nerve. It has several coats, and one innermost coat, which is called the retina, is situated at the uttermost extremity of the optic nerve. The surface of the retina does not absorb the rays of light uniformly. In between the external coats is the lens, which is enclosed, in a transparent membrane. In form it is convex, and the coatings outside the lens reduce or increase its thickness, resulting in increase or decrease in the focal length. This is called the dioptre. We can thus see distant and close objects within clear focus. When the rays of light pass through the lens, through refraction they converge at one point, making the image of the object clear. The optic nerve transmits the image to the brain, and therein produces a sense of sight. The images, which form in the eye, persist for ^l/8th of a second, and pictures, as on the cinema screen, are formed to make the sight linger for longer periods.

Eyes have been given to the beasts of burden also. But in man the eye performs the role of bringing the phenomenal changes of the universe within the purviews of perception and comprehension and of doing numerous other things. More other they extract work from the eyes of the other animals also. The Qur’an

has:

"Indeed, have We not given two eyes to man."

Qur'an 90:l0

And further:

"Say: It is God who has created you and given you ears and eyes and heart."

Qur'an 67:23

The Heart

Although each cell of the body is a manifestation of Creation, yet the beauty of the heart is that it keeps the organisation of the body and the pulsation of life functioning until the time fixed by its Creator. The hand of man is totally incapable of imitating it.

The heart is a kind of pumping machine whose function is, on paper, the simplest, ie. it takes the blood from one side and pumps it on to the other. But it is a wonderful creation, for no machine of this size can perform such a gigantic task. It is situated between the lungs and is carrot-like in appearance. It is hollow from inside and is encased in a two-layer membrane, which is full of liquid. The heart can accommodate blood up to 140 cc and has only four chambers.

The heart has holes between the right and the left chambers. Likewise there are holes between the upper and lower chambers. In between these chambers are valves which regulate the follow of blood in and out in one direction only.

An insight into these Divine handiwork's sets the train of one’s suspicions on the line that it is the heart which is the seat of all appetites and where plans spelling virtues like ethics, honesty, trust-worthiness, nobility, justice and compassion, love, and sympathy–and evils like meanness, mental depravity, cruelty, polytheism gnosticism, sin and deviation from faith, are formed, but which we cannot feel or know. During the incipient stages of circulation the impure blood while being transmitted through the lungs by way of capillaries is cleansed by the oxygen, which has been breathed in. The purified blood is sent back to the heart by a vein wherefrom it is retransported to the body through the different branches of the aorta. The arteries become branched off and form into very thin arteries which further subdivide into arterioles thinner than the hair; these are the capillaries. The latter are so thin that they can be seen only with the aid of a microscope. It is through the agency of the capillaries that the nutritious material and gas are exchanged between the bodily texture and the blood. After the exchange has been effected, these capillaries join together and form veins, which are larger. These veins turn into bigger ones, until only two veins remain, which open into the ascending vanacava and postcava. These transport the used impure blood to the lungs and continue the cycle. If all the blood vessels are stretched lengthwise, they would be so long as to cover the distance between Lahore and Multan!

The expansion and contraction of the arteries–the pulse and the palpitation if the heart are in unison. The rate of cardiac palpitation is 72 times per minute, but with physical labour and fever it increases. Faster palpitation leads to a fast pulse. The velocity of the circulation of the blood determines, amongst other things, heart-beat and pulse.

It would perhaps be in order to speak a little about blood. Blood is one of the most important ingredients in the process of creation. It is nearly ¹/12th the weight of the body. If we see blood with a microscope, we would see innumerable corpuscles, which are globular in shape swimming in a colourless liquid. The corpuscles are red and white, and each drop contains more than 5,000,000 corpuscles whose function is to supply energy to the body and to send the absorbed oxygen to every part of it. This process generates energy in the body. You must have seen people dying through excessive loss of blood in accidents. The red corpuscles within the body are reduced, as is the energy to that extent, and consequently death results.

The Kidneys

The kidneys appear insignificant objects but are a miraculous piece of God’s craftsmanship. Their functioning is among the prime manifestations of the Creative Powers of God Almighty. Although man has, through remarkable ingenuity succeeded in making artificial kidney, nevertheless anyone who has seen the artificial kidney, which measures 15sq ft as against the natural kidney which measures only 5sq in could easily see how superior the natural kidney is to the artificial kidney which functions on a limited scale, its task being, like the natural kidney’s, to flush off waste matter from the body. But the dialyzer has nothing to offer the natural kidney’s beauty of operation.

The two kidneys are situated within a cavity in the stomach on the right and left of the spinal chord. If the kidney is dissected vertically, two layers will be seen, the outer layer being known as the cortex and the inner layer the medulla. Urine is transported from the medulla to the gallbladder through a long slender canal. There are empty spaces within the cortex. These empty spaces have tapering surfaces, which, on being out, would reveal several curved canals. The function of these canals is to absorb the waste matter and to transport it to the void spaces where the tapering surfaces are situated. These canals fan out towards the external surfaces of the kidneys and become spheroid. Here they form a collection of capillaries. These spheroids form the units of the kidney’s mechanism. In a kidney there are more than a million nephrons or spheroidal bodies, each of them being an independent machine, having different parts geared to different functions. The kidney has a 3cm long canal. If the length of the canals within both kidneys is measured, it comes to 40 miles! The working of the kidneys is really amazing.

Blood courses through the kidneys at the rate of 1,300 cu cm per minute. The aim is to pass through the bunch of these slender canaliculi, where the waster matter of the blood is passed out through the medium of urine. Within a period of 24 hours thus, on average, 170 litres blood passes through the kidneys. When the kidneys are subject to some kind of disease, it is the basic unit of kidneys that is affected, with the result that the particles of blood together with a few essential items of energy e.g. sugar and fat, begin to be discharged along with the urine and deleterious substances like urea, uric acid, and several salts which ought to have been discharged, return to the blood.

Food and Nutrition

The second Law of Thermodynamics states that it is impossible to construct a perpetual machine that would function without fuel. This law is true of the human body also. Machines run on fuel–solar energy, kerosene, gasoline or water to drive a turbine, etc. Man’s fuel is his food. We eat all kinds of good food and send it as fuel to the body. And just as the parts of a machine wear out so do our organs.

Our sources of energy are carbohydrates, proteins and fats. They provide growth to the young and repair the bodies of the old. Salts and vitamins in themselves do not provide any energy, but their presence is necessary to our bodily metabolism. And the metabolic process is a constant one.

All these phenomena are the miracles wrought by God and manifestations of His Creative Attributes. Meditation of these wonders affords us a remarkable insight into our knowledge of God, the best of the Creators.

Surah 23:14

With Best Compliment

Hamdard Islamicus Karachi