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com/wiki/Quran_and_Semen_Production 1
1 The Verse
2 Introduction
Several Islamists promulgate the quranic pseudo-science of semen production
from between the sulb and the tara’ib. There are at least seven distinct classes
of Islamic explanations, all of these can be proven false. There are some
excellent articles debunking these Islamic assertions, for example, those of Sam
Shamoun's found here and here.
http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/Quran_and_Semen_Production 3
This article aims to summarize the case against the various Islamic claims, so
that a comprehensive review can be made of this important issue.
The seven (contradictory) Islamic explanations are as follows:
1. Drs Maurice Bucaille and A.K. Giraud: Sulb and tara’ib refer to the sexual
areas of the man and woman.
2. Ahmed A. Abd-Allah: Accepts and extends Bucaille’s assumption, and
claims that all the acknowledged translations and tafsirs are in error, as
sulb and tara’ib does not refer to a man’s backbone and ribs, but to the
man’s “hardening” (i.e. penis) and a woman’s erogenous zones (not
including the vagina).
3. Dr Zakir Naik: Sulb and tara’ib refers to the backbone and ribs of both
sexes, however the verses refer only to the gonads in the embryonic
stage, and not to adults in the act of sexual reproduction.
4. Dr Jamal Badawi: The verses refer not to semen production but to the
blood of the aorta as the ‘gushing fluid poured forth’.
5. Tafsir Ibn Kathir: Sulb refers to the man’s backbone, and tara’ib refers to
the woman’s chest.
1. Tafsir al-Jalalayn - issuing from between the loins, of the man, and
the breast-bones, of the woman.
2. Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs- (That issued from between
the loins) of a man (and ribs) the ribs of a woman.
6. Muhammad Asad: Sulb refers to the man’s loins and tara’ib refers to the
woman’s pelvic arch.
7. Moiz Amjad, the “Learner”, makes three claims;
• Sulb and tara’ib refers to the blood supply of the testes emanating from
between the man’s back and ribs,
• The embryonic gonads originate in the area as per Dr Zakir Naik, and
• The sulb and tara’ib region is a euphemism for the male sexual organ
.
http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/Quran_and_Semen_Production 4
3 Analysis
Dr. Maurice Bucaille
While there is evidence that sulb can mean “hardening” and thus, the penis,
there is no evidence that tara’ib can mean the vagina. Bucaille and Giraud
appear to have assumed that tara’ib means the ’sexual areas of the woman’,
without providing supporting evidence. Even if tara'ib means what Bucaille and
Giraud want it to mean, the term, 'sexual areas of the woman' is too vague to be
meaningful. To assume that it means the vagina is merely an assumption, and
may constitute the logical fallacy of equivocation.
Therefore, Bucaille is debunked.
Ahmed A. Abd-Allah
Note that 'sulb' is *singular*. In the dictionary by Wehr you cite below, you will
see that its meaning of backbone is *only* when we take the *plural* word of sulb
(aslaab). In its singular form, it means hardening.
Ahmed A. Abd-Allah
http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/Quran_and_Semen_Production 5
I do find it surprising that almost all the commonly available translations of the
Quran refer to sulb as the backbone, though some refer to loins. Even Ibn Kathir
accepts backbone. Is Wehr a more authoritative and knowledgeable authority on
the Arabic language than Ibn Kathir? This is difficult to believe.
Regardless, Abd-Allah’s proposition collapses with his own definitions of tara’ib.
He failed to show that his tafsirs and dictionaries explain tara’ib to mean vagina.
Instead, tara’ib is defined as breasts, eyes, legs and chest. Any person (sexually-
experienced or not) would know that while erogenous zones are important in
foreplay, the sexual act really must be consummated through the vagina.
Further Abd-Allah’s reference to Ibn Kathir’s tafsir is disingenuous as he only
mentions the one half of the description which supports his case (i.e. tara’ib
refers to the woman), while leaving out the other half that debunks it (i.e. tara’ib is
the woman’s ribs). This selective quoting may be construed by many readers to
be deceptive and deceitful, something thats not so surprising, once you learn that
Islam promotes such behaviour.
Man Created From A Drop Emitted From Between The Back Bone And The Ribs
“Now let man but think From what he is created! He is created from A drop
emitted – Proceeding from between The back bone and the ribs.” [Al-Qur’aan
86:5-7]
In embryonic stages, the reproductive organs of the male and female, i.e. the
testicles and the ovaries, begin their development near the kidney between the
spinal column and the eleventh and twelfth ribs. Later they descend; the female
gonads (ovaries) stop in the pelvis while the male gonads (testicles) continue
their descent before birth to reach the scrotum through the inguinal canal. Even
in the adult after the descent of the reproductive organ, these organs receive
their nerve supply and blood supply from the Abdominal Aorta, which is in the
area between the backbone (spinal column) and the ribs. Even the lymphatic
drainage and the venous return goes to the same area.
Dr Zakir Naik
Firstly, Dr Naik’s embryology is a little askew as the original position of the cells
destined to develop into spermatogonia (sperm producing cells) is not ventro-
medial to the kidneys (where they undoubtedly develop) but in the wall of the yolk
sac:
http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/Quran_and_Semen_Production 6
Testes and ovaries are derived from the mesodermal epithelium (mesothelium)
lining the posterior abdominal wall, the underlying mesenchyme and the
primordial germ cells. The primordial germ cells form in the wall of the yolk sac
during week 4. They later migrate into the developing gonads at week 6 and
differentiate into the definitive germ cells (oogonia / spermatogonia).[3]
The Developing Human, 6th ed., p. 323, fig. 13-28
Even if we accept Dr Naik’s assertion that the verse refers to the embryonic
testes, it is unclear whether the gonads are located where he claims, i.e.
between the spinal column and the eleventh and twelfth ribs.
This cross-sectional diagram of the human embryo shows the gonads at or
around the level of the placenta:
It should also be noted that the developing gonads are ventro-medial to the
mesonephros (i.e. the embryonic kidney) and not the metanephros (which would
Hence it would seem that Zakir Naik does not know the embryology of the
urogenital system and cannot differentiate between the mesonephros and the
metanephros.
Even if we were to accept Naik’s implied association between embryonic and
adult anatomical positions, he is also wrong because in the condition of
cryptorchidism where the testes is undescended, the highest position of the
undescended testes is below the kidney. [4]
Note that the inferior pole of the kidney lies around L3 (the third lumbar vertebra),
thus the embryonic testes must be below L3. The twelth rib does not extend
below L2. Since the testes are below the kidneys, there is no possibility that the
testes were ever between the ribs and the backbone either in the embryonic or
the adult (as with cryptorchidism) stage.
Badawi must assume that "gushing fluid poured forth" refers to the aorta which
according to a book cited by him, Clinical Anatomy, supplies the testes and
ovaries with the necessary nutrients and this is what the Quran refers to.[5]
Dr. Badawi’s proposition is debunked with the same explanation given for Naik’s
blood circulation proposition.
http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/Quran_and_Semen_Production 8
2. Ibn Kathir
Modern medical science suggests that semen does not emanate from a man’s
backbone, nor do a woman’s sexual secretions emanate from her ribs
Muhammad Asad
(5) Let Man, then, observe out of what he has been created:
(6) he has been created out of a seminal fluid
(7) issuing from between the loins [of man] and the pelvic arch [of woman].
The plural noun tara'ib, rendered by me as "pelvic arch", has also the meaning of
"ribs" or "arch of bones"; according to most of the authorities who have
specialized in the etymology of rare Quranic expressions this term relates
specifically to female anatomy (Taj al-'Arus).[7]
Muhammad Asad
3. Moiz Amjad
4 Conclusion
The various Islamic attempts to show that the Quran correctly describes semen
production are not supported by modern scientific knowledge.
These Islamic propositions are frequently conflicting, for instance, Ibn Kathir
refers to tara’ib as a female organ, while other tafsirs claim it belongs to the man.
[8]
Another conflict is the definition of sulb to mean either the backbone or the
‘hardening’ or the loins.
A point often missed, though alluded to by Dr Campbell, is the phrase “min bain”
which literally means “from between”. If this interpretation is accepted, which
seems to be the case from a reading of the commonly available translations, then
one must also note that semen emanates from the penis, and not from between
the penis and the vagina. To be strictly correct, semen emanates from the penis
into the vagina. This point seems to rule out tara’ib as being anything to do with
the female sexual partner.
http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/Quran_and_Semen_Production 10
5 References
6 See also
7 External Links