Signs & Science: Natural Biology of Procreation

Friday, July 8, 2022

Natural Biology of Procreation

Transhumanism - III: bypassing the womb?

In the first ayat of the Surah titled An-Nisa` (The Women), The Quran commands us to guard the uterus/womb, being conscious of our duty towards it, as it is the specialised organ in women through which Allah increases the population of men and women in this world.

The Quran was revealed on Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) . The forty seventh surah bears his name. Surah Muhammad begins with the statement that those who disbelieve/reject, and avert people from the way of Allah, He will waste their deeds. It gives glad tidings to those who believe and do acts of righteousness/reform, and believe in what has been sent down upon Muhammad, and it is the truth from their Lord, that He will remove from them their misdeeds and amend their condition. ... Later on, in ayat 22 , it questions:

Transhumanism aims to transcend the natural biology of human procreation with the help of technology. It intends to 'liberate' women from their biological window, increase the number of eggs available to them by artificially growing eggs, and sperms, from skin cells, eliminating the need for a partner, as well as the need for sexual relations, and so on. Some of the buzz words of transhumanism are: Designer babies, Artificial Wombs, Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ARTs), Selective Reproductive Technologies (SRTs), ART survivorship, Oocyte preservation, and Sperm banks.

In The Torah / Old Testament, we read in Adam's story:

[The Contemporary Torah, Genesis Bereshit 3 16]

[The Old Testament, Genesis 3 16]

Allah's decrees cannot be changed. Conjugal relations between husband and wife, conception, and child birth, should be allowed to happen naturally. Believers must observe the sanctity of the marriage institution, the specialised organ: uterus/womb in which the baby is shaped by Allah as He wills, and the normal process of birth. So, we read early on in The Quran:

Human Germ-Line Genetic Enhancement, or simply Designer Babies, aims to genetically manipulate human nature. The Quran is very clear that there should be no change in the human nafs and the human fitrat. Many ancient civilisations were destroyed when they made changes in the nafs.

Satan is the enemy. In Surah an-Nisa`, ayat 119, he has vowed to command humans to make changes in the creation of Allah: ( (... وَلَآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُغَيِّرُنَّ خَلْقَ اللَّهِ ...) literal translation: '... and surely I will order them so they will surely change (the) creation (of) Allah ...' ).

In Surah ar-Ra'd we read the rule:

The underlined phrase in Arabic is: حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ . It is generally translated as change. The root of the word يُغَيِّرُوا is used in ayat 15 of Surah Muhammad to describe that, in the Gardens of Eternity, the milk's taste will not change. Notice that the same root is used in Q4:119, Q8:53, and Q13:11. Milk goes sour due the action of lactic acid bacteria causing chemical change in the milk. So, it seems we are being warned against inflicting chemical changes in our Nafs.

Jesus (عليه السلام) was a sign for the people (Q19:21). He was conceived through a word from Allah, which was blown into Mary's body. Modern computing technology proves that wireless, verbal commands can be given to machines, and special programs in them respond by recognising and processing speech.

Jesus' conception, speaking when just a baby, the miracles he performed when he grew up, and his ascension, all are miraculous, supernatural acts that Allah showed through him. Yet, his mother had to endure pregnancy and labour pains when delivering him: