Ruh / رُوحُ

Revisiting Human: Body or Soul?  Part I: Ruh / رُوحُ

Note: In 2017, I published a post titled Human: Body or Soul?. In this series, I intend to restudy the ayaat to improve the understanding, and to increase in submission, in sha Allah  

DRAFT

Search results: 

https://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=rwH#(32:9:6) 

From the original post: 

RUH 

فَإِذَا سَوَّيْتُهُ وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِي فَقَعُوا لَهُ سَاجِدِينَ

[Al-Quran 15:29] So, when I have fashioned him and [I] breathed into him of My RUH, then fall down to him prostrating."

Ar-RUH, generally translated as spirit (Q32:9, Q97:4) or soul (Q17:85), is from the AMR (commands, decrees) of Allah:  

وَيَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الرُّوحِ قُلِ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّي وَمَا أُوتِيتُم مِّنَ الْعِلْمِ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا

And they ask you about the RUH. Say: The RUH is one of the commands of my Lord, and you are not given aught of knowledge but a little. 

[Al-Quran 17:85, Translator: Shakir] 

In Surah al-Qadr, we read: 

تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ

The angels and the RUH descend therein, by the permission of their Lord, with all decrees. 

[Al-Quran 97:4, Translator: Pickthall] 

People believe that we are essentially our SOUL while the body is just a vessel that we inhabit temporarily. Contrary to popular belief, the Quran does not support this belief about the SOUL, or even acknowledge its existence independent of the body. It simply states that the RUH is from the commands of God.  

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living nephesh. 

[Bible, Genesis 2:7 ; Transliteration ; Arabic Bible] 

Who made good everything that He has created, and He began the creation of man from dust. Then He made his progeny of an extract, of water held in light estimation. Then He made him complete and breathed into him of His RUH, and made for you the ears and the eyes and the hearts; little is it that you give thanks. And they say: What! when we have become lost in the earth, shall we then certainly be in a new creation? Nay! they are disbelievers in the meeting of their Lord. Say: The angel of death who is given charge of you shall cause you to die, then to your Lord you shall be brought back. 

[Al-Quran 32:7 – 11, Translator: Shakir]   

Allah commands through His Words:  

He (is) the One Who gives life and causes death. And when He decrees a matter, then only He says to it, "Be," and it is. 

[Al-Quran 40:68] 

Mary conceived Jesus when she received the Command of Allah. Quran 3:45, 19:17 and 66:12 use the word ruh to convey what was breathed into Mary.  As explained in Virgin Birth, speech can be transferred wirelessly (breathed in).  

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From Q38 71-88 || Q12 

The Command of Prostration 

فَإِذَا سَوَّيْتُهُ وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِي فَقَعُوا لَهُ سَاجِدِينَ

So when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My spirit Ruh, then fall down to him prostrating."
[Al-Quran 38:72; translation edited to retain the word Ruh]

إِذْ قَالَ يُوسُفُ لِأَبِيهِ يَا أَبَتِ إِنِّي رَأَيْتُ أَحَدَ عَشَرَ كَوْكَبًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ رَأَيْتُهُمْ لِي سَاجِدِينَ

قَالَ يَا بُنَيَّ لَا تَقْصُصْ رُؤْيَاكَ عَلَىٰ إِخْوَتِكَ فَيَكِيدُوا لَكَ كَيْدًا ۖ إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لِلْإِنسَانِ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ

وَكَذَ‌ٰلِكَ يَجْتَبِيكَ رَبُّكَ وَيُعَلِّمُكَ مِن تَأْوِيلِ الْأَحَادِيثِ وَيُتِمُّ نِعْمَتَهُ عَلَيْكَ وَعَلَىٰ آلِ يَعْقُوبَ كَمَا أَتَمَّهَا عَلَىٰ أَبَوَيْكَ مِن قَبْلُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَإِسْحَاقَ ۚ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ

 لَّقَدْ كَانَ فِي يُوسُفَ وَإِخْوَتِهِ آيَاتٌ لِّلسَّائِلِينَ

When said Yusuf to his father, "O my father! Indeed, I I saw one ten (i.e eleven) star(s) planet(s) and the sun and the moon; I saw them to me prostrating."
He said, "O my son! (Do) not relate your vision to your brothers lest they plan against you a plot. Indeed, the Shaitaan (is) to man an enemy open.
And thus will choose you your Lord and will teach you of (the) interpretation (of) the narratives and complete His Favor on you and on (the) family (of) Yaqub as He completed it on your two forefathers from before - Ibrahim and Ishaq. Indeed, your Lord (is) All-Knower, All-Wise."
Certainly were in Yusuf and his brothers signs for those who ask.
[Al-Quran 12:4-7; Translation edited in italics for clarity]

The angels were ordered to prostrate to the bashr that Allah was going to create only after Allah blew His Ruh into it. Allah creates with materials, and commands with His Words. Surah as-Sajdah (The Prostration, Q32:7-9) mentions the order: clay (طِين), progeny from water (سُلَالَةٍ مِّن مَّاءٍ مَّهِين), shape/proportion/fashion (سَوَّاهُ), and then breathing in the command (نَفَخَ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِهِ).  
Note: Q17:85 informs us that The Ruh (الرُّوحِ) is from the commands/matters (أَمْرِ) of our Lord-Sustainer, that is Allah, and we haven't been given except very little knowledge about it. 

At the tenth week of development, the embryo transitions into a fetus, and it is called so until birth. At the same tenth week, the fetus starts to breathe, and fetal breathing is detectable. However, regular and continuous breathing begins only after delivery. As the fetal lung matures, there is some correlation between the development of respiratory and sleep centres of the central nervous system, as indicated by breathing measurements made during REM and NREM periods. REM (rapid eye movement) sleep is associated with dreams, and associated brain patterns are similar to those made while awake. REM state is generally detected in the third trimester of fetal development.  

Jacob interpreted Joseph's vision of prostration to mean that Allah will choose Joseph to complete His favours upon the family of Jacob, as He did upon Abraham and Isaac before.  

Surah Yusuf (Joseph) takes us through the various phases of Joseph's life till he is finally well-established.

  

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