The Real Story behind Adam and Eve

Prophet Adam

Stories from Quran, Dec 7, 2017

Introduce the topic of Adam and Eve and provide a biblical background.

Adam and Eve

The Holy Qur'an says: Remember when your Lord said to the angels,

'I am appointing someone as my deputy on earth ', they said (almost protestingly), 'Are you going to appoint one who will commit corruption and bloodshed therein, even though we (are the ones who) commemorate Your Name and glorify You?' The Lord said, 'I know that which you do not know '.

(Surah al-Baqarah, 2:30)

And we said to Adam:

‘Both you and your spouse (Eve) live in the garden and enjoy the edible therein, but not to approach a certain tree lest you become one of the transgressors?

(Surah al-Baqarah, 2:35)

Discuss the origins of the story of Adam and Eve.

Almighty Allah created the earth in two days* and planted huge mountains on it and brought into existence all the amenities of life for its inhabitants in two days also. Thereafter, He created the heavens, Empyrean; the sun, and the moon. Then He brought into existence the angels who commemorate and glorify Him all the time.

Then the Lord of the universe by His wisdom willed to create Adam and his progeny so that they informed the angels that soon He was going to create another creature who will be roaming about on the earth and will ultimately spread on it. They will eat things that will be grown on earth; they will dig out the earth and extract from its minerals and will unearth its hidden treasures. Some of them will be acting as successors to some others.

The angles are such a creation whom Allah chose for His worship. He bestowed on them His bounties and ordained that they shall worship Him. The angles did not like the idea that Allah should create yet another creature and they feared that perhaps some lapse on their part might have been the cause of this Divine decision, or it was due to some gross Divine disobedience that might have been committed by someone amongst them. Thus in their defense they said,

“O Lord! Why are you creating another creatures while we are already busy in worshipping You and glorifying Your Name all the time? There creatures will fight among themselves over the bounties of the earth and will create discord and rebellion on earth”.

The angels said these things so that they should hear the reply of Allah and whatever doubts they had should have been removed. Besides, they were hoping, that Allah would make them His deputy as they thought themselves to be more deserving of it, because of their being endowed with Allah's bounties before any other creation.

Introduce the topic of Adam and Eve, and discuss their role in the history of humanity.

The angels raised this question not because of their disobedience or doubt against the wisdom of Allah nor was it because of their intention of pointing out the faults of Adam or his progeny, for after all the angels belong to the cast of Allah's most exalted creatures and while addressing themselves to Allah they do not become guilty of any lapses on their part and they truthfully follow Allah's commands.

However, Allah gave them a reply which satisfied them. Almighty Allah replied to the Angels: " I know that which you do not know. There is My wisdom in making him as. My deputy which yiu do not know. The creature that I have willed to create I will soon create him and make him My deputy You will then see by yourself things that you do not know now. After I have created him I will infuse My spirit in him and you should then prostrate yourselves before him".*

Look at the impact of the fall on humanity, and consider the consequences of Satan’s actions.

Allah made the body of Adam from a special clay and He infused Hus spirit into it. A life-giving pleasant soul stirred in his body and he was transformed into a prefect human being. The. Allah commanded the angels to lay prostrate before Adam. They with all humility and submission obeyed the command of Allah and paid homage and respect to Adam. They prostrated themselves before him, with their foreheads touching the ground. But Satan dis-obeyed the command of Allah as he refused to lie prostrate before Adam. Allah asked Satan the reason of his being rebellious and refusing to obey His command of prostrating himself before Adam. Allah said to Satan, "What prevented you from prostrating before Adam! Do you consider yourself arrogant and highly exalted?"

Satan thought that the ingredients of which he was made, was superior to Adam. You have created me from fire while You have created Adam from clay".

The Satan openly committed the sin of transgression and exposed himself with an air of rebelliousness and haughtiness and daringly flouted the Divine command Thus by not lying in prostration before Adam, Satan became a rebel and infidel.