Thursday, March 19, 2020

CIRA International delve into the semitic pattern; Islam and sinful human nature?

In answer to the video "Adam, Eve, Satan and The Fall in the Quran - The Islamic Original Sin Dilemma"

As to the Quran, does it even remotely hint to such a concept of transmitted sin from Adam?

As already alluded to, Adam and Eve were always meant to go to the earth, prior to even their creation. In God's plan they were meant to be His temporary trustees on the earth, not in Heaven, and as mortals who would live and die on the "turab" from which they originated 2:30,35:39,38:71. It is precisely this aspect of their nature, their mortality, that Iblis seized upon to lure them into transgression, promising them immortality 7:20,20:120.

Humanity's goal was thus always to live on earth, Adam ad Eve's garden was therefore a temporary abode, just like the world outside the garden where they and their descendants are meant to exercise their vicegerency for a decreed time until they are returned to Allah for account. 

After the incident of the tree, their sincere repentence and God's forgiveness they were not kept in the Garden but sent to earth through a reiteration of the order to leave the garden that was stated prior to their repentance 2:36-8. Their repentance was accepted and they were nevertheless made to leave the garden, meaning it was not by way of punishment but as a matter of course. Had not the order to leave been repeated after their repentance was accepted, one would have erroneously concluded that Adam and Eve were expelled from the garden because of their mistake. The couple being expelled from the garden had therefore nothing to do with a fall at all, and was God's plan from the beginning as demonstrated earlier.

The garden was thus an earthly transition place where man got acquainted with his self and his future responsibilities resulting from his capacity of freewill, this is why Iblis was allowed to play a part in it and why temptation was made possible.

Without getting into too much details of that very deep and intricate Quranic story, we jump right to the part when both Adam and Eve eat from the tree. After they ate from the tree and saw that their condition didnt change as promised to them by Iblis (they didnt become immortal angels), Adam and Eve realized their transgression as often happens when a sincere person comes back to his senses after a mistake or a sin, or when caught doing something wrong. They realized the importance of God's advise in regards to Iblis. Iblis was certainly not their well wisher as he was trying to portray himself. He had instead deceived them into inappropriately showing their nakedness

7:20-2"So, the shaytan whispered/waswasa to the two of them..And he swore to them both: Most surely I am a sincere adviser to you. So, he lured/fadallahuma them with falsehood.."  
4:120"He gives them promises and excites vain desires in them; and the Shaitan does not promise them but to deceive".
From a linguistic perspective, dallahuma stems from d-l-w used for the dangling of the bucket in a well to pull out water from it. It implies the anticipation of good results since succeeding in getting water is a good result and good expectation. It is also used in the context of animal hunting, slowly making it approach, attracted by a bucket at the end of a rope which is progressively drawn closer. Through the use of this word, as well as of waswasa, what transpires is that Iblis' deception succeeded only after many persistent and gradual exhortation.

As their senses came back to them, they realized what his true purpose was, and now knowing that the exposition of one's private parts is an unnatural, evil inspired deed, began immidiately piling up tree leaves upon themselves and sewing them
7:22"he mislead them through deceit; so when they tasted of the tree, their private parts became manifest to them, and they began to cover themselves with pieced-together leaves from the garden".
As stated in the HB
Gen3:7"And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig leaves and made themselves girdles". 
They were then called out and confronted for their transgression
7:22"Did I not forbid you both from that tree and say to you that the Shaitan is your open enemy?".
They were told that although they had now lost all advantages they had in the garden in regards to general physical comfort, they would still find provision on the Earth until an appointed time 2:36,7:24. Adam and Eve accepted the consequences of their disobedience and took on themselves the full responsibility of their act, and immidiately asked God to forgive them 7:23.

In the Bible, they began immaturely fingerpointing eachother and refused to repent after which God banished them from the Garden.

This actually is one of the Quran's lessons from the story, when you blame Allah (as for example many do today when pointing to the alleged incompatibility of pre-knowledge and freewill, and as many did in the past as in Muhammad's time) you are like Iblis. But when you express genuine, humble curiosity you are like the angels who become worthy of being educated by God Himself. Another positive response is taking responsibility for a mistake, as did Adam and Eve, and thus earned God's guidance, were shown the way to His mercy, taught how to invoke His forgiveness
2:37,7:23,20:122"Then his Lord chose him, so He turned to him and guided (him)"
(as a side note, the HB speaks of there being proper ways to seek forgiveness from God, and the possibility of not knowing that proper way Isa47:11).

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