In this post, I am going to present
some of the evidence showing that the Quran and hadiths affirm that the sin of
Adam and Eve affected the whole human race, and creation in general, by
corrupting their descendants and causing them to be expelled from paradise.
Note, for example, what the following Quranic text states with
respect to the punishment of Adam and Eve for their disobedience:
But the Satan made them both fall from
it, and caused them to depart from that (state) in which they were; and We
said: GET DOWN, ALL OF YOU (ihbitoo), with
enmity between YOURSELVES (ba’dukum), and there is for YOU (wa lakum) in
the earth an abode and a provision for a time. Then Adam received from his Lord
words (of revelation), and He relented toward him. Lo! He is the relenting, the
Merciful. We said: GO DOWN, ALL OF YOU (ihbitoo jami’an), from
hence; but verily there cometh unto YOU (yatiyannakum) from Me
a guidance; and whoso followeth My guidance, there shall no fear come upon THEM
(alayhim) neither SHALL THEY GRIEVE (hum yahzanoona). S.
2:36-38
The Arabic employs the plural all
throughout, which refers to three or more, as opposed to the dual, even though
Adam and Eve are only two.
The following verse also uses the
plural:
God said, ‘GO FORTH (ihbitoo), SOME
OF YOU (ba’dukum) will be enemies of others. And for YOU (wa lakum) there
is an abode on the earth and a provision for a time.’ S. 7:24
The words that we have capitalized and
italicized are all in the plural, not in the dual. This shows that Adam’s sin
had a negative impact on all future generations of mankind.
Here is another version that actually
uses both the dual and the plural together!
We had already, beforehand, taken the
covenant of Adam, but he forgot: and We found on his part no firm resolve. When
We said to the angels, “Prostrate yourselves to Adam”, they prostrated
themselves, but not Iblis: he refused. Then We said: “O Adam! verily, this is
an enemy to thee and thy wife: so let him not get you both out of the Garden,
so that thou art landed in misery. There is therein (enough provision) for thee
not to go hungry nor to go naked, Nor to suffer from thirst, nor from the sun’s
heat.” But Satan whispered evil to him: he said, “O Adam! shall I lead thee to
the Tree of Eternity and to a kingdom that never decays?” In the result, they
both ate of the tree, and so their nakedness appeared to them: they began to
sew together, for their covering, leaves from the Garden: thus did Adam disobey
his Lord, and allow himself to be seduced. But his Lord chose him (for His
Grace): He turned to him, and gave him Guidance. He said: “GET YE DOWN, BOTH
OF YOU (ihbita), – all together (jami’an), from the Garden, with
enmity ONE TO ANOTHER (ba‘dukum liba‘din): but if, as is sure, there comes
to you Guidance from Me, whosoever follows My Guidance, will not lose his way,
nor fall into misery. S. 20:115-123 Y. Ali
The word ihbita is a 2nd person
masculine dual imperative verb whereas ba‘dukum is a 2nd person
masculine plural possessive pronoun.(1)
The context makes it certain that the
plural cannot be including Satan since he had already been expelled from
paradise and stands condemned to hell. He will, therefore, not follow the
guidance which will come from Allah to those who have fallen from grace. In
light of this fact, the plural must be referring to the entire human race, to
all of Adam’s offspring, thereby implying that Adam stood in the place of all
mankind as their father and representative, thereby corrupting them and causing
them to incur Allah’s wrath and displeasure.
In other words, according to the Quran
when Adam sinned his unborn offspring also sinned. And when he was expelled
from the garden they were expelled as well.
In fact, this is precisely how some of
the expositors explained the use of the plural in these passages. For instance,
here is the commentary of Ibn Kathir regarding Q. 2:38-39:
Allah informs of His warning to Adam,
his wife and Satan, THEIR OFFSPRING, when he ordered THEM to
descend from Paradise. He says he will send messengers with Scriptures, signs
and proofs… (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Part 1, Surah Al-Fatiah Surah Al-Baqarah,
ayat 1 to 141, Abridged by Sheikh Nasib Ar-Rafa‘i [Al-Firdous Ltd., London:
Second Edition 1998], pp. 109-110; bold and capital emphasis mine)
The late Abdullah Yusuf Ali said
something similar in reference to Q. 2:36:
“… Note the transition in Arabic from
the singular number in ii. 33, to the dual in ii. 35, and the plural
here [2:36], which I have indicated in English by ‘All ye people.’ Evidently
Adam is the type of all mankind, and the sexes go together in all spiritual
matters. Moreover, the expulsion applied to Adam, Eve, and Satan, and
the Arabic plural is appropriate for any number greater than two.” (The Quran: Translation and
Commentary *:
Bold and capital emphasis mine)
And here is what Ibn Kathir wrote
concerning Q. 2:34:
This Ayah mentions the
great honor that Allah granted Adam, and Allah reminded Adam’s offspring of
this fact. Allah commanded the angels to prostrate before Adam, as this Ayah and
many Hadiths testify, such as the Hadith about
the intercession that we discussed. There is a Hadith about
the supplication of Musa, “O my Lord! Show me Adam who caused us and
himself to be thrown out of Paradise.” When Musa met Adam, he said to him,
“Are you Adam whom Allah created with His Own Hands, blew life into and
commanded the angels to prostrate before?” (Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Abridged)
(Surat Al-Fatihah to Verse 252 of Surat Al-Baqarah), abridged by a group of
scholars under the supervision of Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri
[Darussalam Publishers & Distributors, Riyadh, Houston, New York, Lahore;
First Edition: January 2000], Parts 1 and 2, Volume 1, p. 193; bold emphasis
mine)
These scholars weren’t the only ones to
interpret the plural in relation to Adam, Eve, and their offspring:
Then Satan, Iblīs, caused them to slip,
he caused them to be removed (fa-azallahumā: a variant reading has fa-azālahumā:
he caused them to be away from it) therefrom, that is, from the Garden, when he
said to them, ‘Shall I point you to the tree of eternity’ [cf. Q. 20:120], and
swore to them by God that he was only giving good advice to them, and so they
ate of it; and brought them out of what they were in, of bliss; and We said, ‘Go
down, to earth, both of you AND ALL THOSE COMPRISED BY YOUR SEED; some of you,
of your progeny, an enemy to the other, through your wronging one another;
and in the earth a dwelling, a place of settlement, shall be yours, and
enjoyment, of whatever of its vegetation you may enjoy, for a while’, [until]
the time your terms [of life] are concluded. (Tafsir al-Jalalayn Q.
2:36; bold and capital emphasis mine)
And:
Said He, ‘Go down, that is, Adam
and Eve, WITH ALL THOSE YOU COMPRISE BY YOUR SEED, each of you,
each seed, an enemy to the other, on account of the wrong each does to the
another. There will be for you on earth an abode, a place of settlement, and
enjoyment for a while’, [until] your terms [of life] are fulfilled. (Tafsir
al-Jalalayn Q.
7:24; bold and capital emphasis mine)
Moreover, all the major hadith
collections affirm that Adam’s offspring share in the guilt and judgment of
Adam for the sin that he committed while in the garden, which is why none of
them are dwelling in it now. The narrations even go so far as to say that
mankind is in a state of misery because of Adam’s transgression:
Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah’s Apostle said, “Adam and Moses
met, and Moses said to Adam “You are the one who made people MISERABLE and
turned them out of Paradise.” Adam said to him, “You are the one whom Allah
selected for His message and whom He selected for Himself and upon whom He
revealed the Torah.” Moses said, ‘Yes.’ Adam said, “Did you find that written
in my fate before my creation?’ Moses said, ‘Yes.’ So Adam overcame Moses with
this argument.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 260)
Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah’s Apostle said, “Adam and Moses
met, and Moses said to Adam “You
are the one who made people MISERABLE and TURNED THEM OUT OF PARADISE.”
Adam said to him, “You are the one whom Allah selected for His message and whom
He selected for Himself and upon whom He revealed the Torah.” Moses said,
‘Yes.’ Adam said, “Did you find that written in my fate before my creation?’
Moses said, ‘Yes.’ So Adam overcame Moses with this argument.” (Sahih
al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 260 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=60&translator=1&start=0&number=260)
Narrated Abu Huraira:
The Prophet said, “Moses argued with
Adam and said to him (Adam), ‘You are the one who got the people out of
Paradise by your sin, AND THUS MADE THEM MISERABLE.’ Adam replied, ‘O
Moses! You are the one whom Allah selected for His Message and for His direct
talk. Yet you blame me for a thing which Allah had ordained for me before He
created me?’” Allah’s Apostle further said, “So Adam overcame Moses by this
Argument.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 262 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=60&translator=1&start=0&number=262)
It is narrated on the authority of Abu
Huraira and Hudhaifa that the Messenger of Allah said: Allah, the Blessed and
Exalted, would gather people. The believers would stand till the Paradise would
be brought near them. They would come to Adam and say: O our father, open for
us the Paradise. He would say: What turned you out from the Paradise
WAS THE SIN OF YOUR FATHER ADAM. I am not in a position to do that; … (Sahih
Muslim, Book 001, Number 0380 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=001&translator=2&start=0&number=0380)
Abu Huraira reported that God’s
messenger told of Adam and Moses holding a disputation in their Lord’s presence
and of Adam getting the better of Moses in argument. Moses said, “You are Adam
whom God created with His hand, into whom He breathed of His spirit, to whom He
made the angels do obeisance, and whom He caused to dwell in his garden; then
BECAUSE OF YOUR SIN caused MANKIND to come down to the earth.” Adam
replied, “And you are Moses whom God chose to deliver His messages and to
address, to whom He gave the tablets on which everything was explained, and
whom He brought near as a confidant. How long before I was created did you find
that God has written the Torah? Moses said, “Forty years.” Adam asked, “Did you
find in it, ‘And Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred’?” On being told that he
did, he said, “Do you then blame me for doing a deed WHICH GOD HAD DECREED
THAT I SHOULD DO forty years before He created me?” God’s messenger said,
“So Adam got the better of Moses n the argument.” Muslim transmitted it. (Mishkat
Al-Masabih English Translation With Explanatory Notes by Dr. James
Robson, Volume I [Sh. Muhammad Ahsraf Publishers, Booksellers & Exporters,
Lahore-Pakistan, Reprint 1990], p. 23; bold and capital emphasis ours)
Yahya related to me from Malik from
Abu’z-Zinad from al-Araj from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah said,
“Adam and Musa argued and Adam got the better of Musa. Musa rebuked Adam, ‘You
are Adam WHO LED PEOPLE ASTRAY and brought them out of the Garden.’ Adam
said to him, ‘You are Musa to whom Allah gave knowledge of everything and whom
he chose above people with His message.’ He said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘Do you then
censure me for a matter WHICH WAS DECREED FOR ME BEFORE I WAS CREATED?‘”
(Malik’s Muwatta, Book 46, Number 46.1.1 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=46&translator=4&start=0&number=46.1.1)
The traditions also blame Eve for
causing God’s curse to fall on all future generations of women. The ahadith
further hold the Jews responsible for food becoming stale and the decay of
meat!
Narrated Abu Huraira:
The Prophet said, “Were it not for Bani
Israel, meat would not decay; and were it not FOR EVE, no woman would
ever betray her husband.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 4, Book
55, Number 611 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=55&translator=1&start=0&number=611)
Hammam b. Munabbih said: These are some
of the ahadith which narrated to us from Allah’s Messenger, and one of these
(this one): Allah’s Messenger said: Had it not been for Bani Isra’il, food
would not have become stale, and meal would not have gone bad; and had
it not been FOR Eve, a woman would never have acted unfaithfully toward her
husband. (Sahih Muslim, Book 008, Number 3472 https://www.searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=008&translator=2&start=0&number=3472)
Al-Tabari goes so far as to narrate a
story that holds Eve accountable for women being stupid!
According to Yunus – Ibn Wahb – Ibn
Zayd (commenting on God’s word: “And he whispered”): Satan whispered to Eve
about the tree and succeeded in taking her to it; then he made it seem good to
Adam. He continued. When Adam felt a need for her and called her, she said: No!
unless you go there. When he went, she said again: No! unless you eat from this
tree. He continued. They both ate from it, and their secret parts became
apparent to them. He continued. Adam then went about in Paradise in flight. His
Lord called out to him: Adam, is it from Me that you are fleeing? Adam replied:
No, my Lord, but I feel shame before You. When God asked what had caused his
trouble, he replied: Eve, my Lord. Whereupon God said: Now it is My
obligation to make her bleed once every month, as she made this
tree bleed. I ALSO MAKE HER STUPID, although I had created her
intelligent (halimah), and must make her suffer pregnancy and birth
with difficulty, although I made it easy for her to be pregnant and give birth.
Ibn Zayd said: Were it not for the affliction that affected Eve, the
women of this world would not menstruate, AND THEY WOULD BE INTELLIGENT and,
when pregnant, give birth easily. (The History of Al-Tabari: General
Introduction and From the Creation to the Flood, translated by Franz
Rosenthal [State University of New York Press (SUNY), Albany 1989], Volume 1,
pp. 280-281; bold and capital emphasis ours)
According to this reference, Eve was not only made to bleed for
her sin but she was also made stupid with the result being that all women now
bleed and are basically stupid!
Nor is this an isolated opinion from some obscure, unknown
Muslim historian since Muhammad himself taught that women were morally and
intellectually deficient in comparison to men, which is why the majority of the
people burning in hell are women!
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri:
Once Allah’s Apostle went out to the Musalla (to offer the prayer)
on ‘Id-al-Adha or Al-Fitr prayer. Then he passed by the women and said, “O
women! Give alms, as
I have seen that THE MAJORITY of the dwellers of Hell-fire were you (women).”
They asked, “Why is it so, O Allah’s Apostle?” He replied, “You curse frequently
and are ungrateful to your husbands. I have not seen anyone more deficient in intelligence
and religion THAN YOU. A cautious sensible man could be led astray by some of
you.” The women asked, “O Allah’s Apostle! What is deficient in
our intelligence and religion?” He
said, “Is not THE EVIDENCE OF TWO WOMEN EQUAL TO THE WITNESS OF ONE MAN?” They
replied in the affirmative. He
said, “This is the deficiency in her intelligence. Isn’t it
true that a woman can neither pray nor fast during her menses?” The women
replied in the affirmative. He said, “This is the deficiency in her religion.”
(Sahih al-Bukhari,
Volume 1, Book 6, Number
301: http://searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=6&translator=1&start=0&number=301;
see also Volume 2, Book 24, Number 541)
And:
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: The Prophet said, “Isn’t the witness
of a woman equal to half of that of a man?” The women said, “Yes.” He said, “THIS IS BECAUSE OF THE DEFICIENCY
OF A WOMAN’S MIND.” (Sahih
al-Bukhari, Volume 3, Book 48, Number 826: http://searchtruth.com/book_display.php?book=48&translator=1&start=0&number=826)
Unlike Muhammad and his god, nowhere will one find a single
verse in the Holy Bible where the true God revealed in the Lord Jesus Christ
teaching that women have become stupid as a result of the Fall, or that they
are the majority of those who end up in hell.
In light of the foregoing, it is
abundantly clear that the reason why Muhammad employed plural verbs, adjectives
etc., in narrating the rebellion and subsequent punishment of Adam and Eve,
instead of the dual, is because he saw them as standing in the place of and
representing all their descendants. This can be further seen from the immediate
context of this particular story:
It is He Who has created you from a
single person (Adam), and (then) He has created
from HIM HIS wife [Hawwa (Eve)], in order
that HE might enjoy the pleasure of living with HER. When HE had
sexual relation with HER, SHE became
pregnant and SHE carried it about lightly. Then when it
became heavy, THEY BOTH invoked
Allah, THEIR Lord (saying): “If You give US a Salih (good
in every aspect) child, WE shall indeed be among the
grateful.” But when He gave THEM a Salih (good in
every aspect) child, THEY ascribed partners to Him (Allah) in
that which He has given to THEM. High be Allah, Exalted above
all that THEY ascribe as partners to Him. (Tafsir
At-Tabari, Vol.9, Page 148). Do they attribute as partners to
Allah those who created nothing but they themselves are created? No help can
they give them, nor can they help themselves. And if you
call them to guidance, they follow you not. It is the same for you whether you
call them or you keep silent. Verily, those whom you call
upon besides Allah are slaves like you. So call upon them and let
them answer you if you are truthful. Have
they feet wherewith they walk? Or have they hands wherewith they hold? Or have
they eyes wherewith they see? Or have they ears wherewith they hear? Say (O
Muhammad): “Call your (so-called) partners (of Allah) and then
plot against me, and give me no respite! Verily, my Wali (Protector,
Supporter, and Helper, etc.) is Allah Who has revealed the Book (the Qur’an),
and He protects (supports and helps) the righteous. And those whom you call
upon besides Him (Allah) cannot help you nor can they help
themselves.” S. 7:189-197 Hilali-Khan
It is not a coincidence that the
author(s) immediately turn(s) his/her/their focus to those who associate
partners with Allah right after mentioning the shirk of the
first human beings. They obviously saw a connection between the shirk committed
by Adam and Eve and the rest of their offspring. This is sufficient to explain
why the author(s)/editor(s) of the Quran chose to use the plural when speaking
of the shirk, rebellion, and punishment of the first human couple.
In conclusion, it is abundantly clear
that the Quran and ahadith accuse the first human parents of committing the
unforgivable sin of shirk and of plunging the whole entire
human race into sin, depravity and outright misery. It is also obvious from the
so-called authentic sources of Islam that Muhammad believed that Adam and Eve
share in the responsibility of every act of shirk and act of
defiance that have been and will ever be committed. Muhammad expressly taught
that every individual is affected by the actions of Adam and Eve since all
human beings are descended from them.
So much for the Muhammadan assertion that Islam does not hold to
a doctrine of original sin.
Further Reading
Original Forgiveness – Did
Original Sin Really End with Adam? Pt. 1 (https://answeringislamblog.wordpress.com/2018/11/19/original-forgiveness-did-original-sin-really-end-with-adam-pt-1/),
Pt. 2 (https://answeringislamblog.wordpress.com/2018/11/20/original-forgiveness-did-original-sin-really-end-with-adam-pt-2/)
Islam and the Doctrine of Original Sin
(https://answeringislam.net/Responses/Osama/zawadi_original_sin.htm)
Divine Sovereignty,
Predestination, Salvation and Human Free Will (https://answeringislam.net/Quran/Contra/predestination.html)
Divine Love: A Biblical and Quranic Perspective (https://answeringislam.net/Responses/Shabir-Ally/gods_love.htm)
Endnotes
(1) The variation
in wording in the story of Adam and Eve’s expulsion introduces another major
problem for Muhammadans. The Quran is believed to be the divinely dictated
speech of Allah and, as such, it is supposed to have only one author. Muslims
emphatically deny that Allah incorporated the human personality and/or words of
Muhammad. Muhammad’s role was to simply recite the words of the Quran to the
masses as he received them from Allah through Gabriel.
Muslims also contend that Allah is
all-knowing, and is therefore capable of perfectly recalling everything that
has occurred in the past.
In light of this, we would expect that
Allah would be able to correctly remember and recall the exact words of his
conversation with Adam and Eve. We’d expect that Allah would be able to retell
this story in the same way with the exact same details every time.
However, this is not what we find in
the Quran since Allah narrates the conversation he had with Adam and Eve by
using different words each time he retells it!
For instance, did Allah actually use
the 2nd person masculine plural imperative verb, ihbitoo,
or did he employ the 2nd person dual imperative verb, ihbita?
Did Allah say, “Go down, both of you,” or did he really say, “Go down, everyone
of you”?
He obviously didn’t say both, so then
why didn’t Allah inform Muhammad what the exact words of his conversation were?
Why did he narrate the exact same speech with variations in wording?
More importantly, since Allah is
supposed to be omniscient wasn’t he able to recall the exact words he used
every time he retold the same story in the Quran?
However, seeing that he clearly didn’t
do so this means that either Allah is not an omniscient being, and therefore is
not God, or the Quran is not the word of God.
IHS
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