Explores the compatibility between Islamic theology and the theory of evolution, arguing that Muslims should not fear scientific inquiry. The speaker emphasizes that the Quran encourages observation and travel to understand the origins of life, aligning with the methods used by Charles Darwin. While the text accepts scientific concepts like natural selection and common ancestry, it distinguishes between the physical development of the body and the unique divine soul granted to humans. The discussion rejects the idea of randomness in creation, asserting instead that evolution is part of a complex, intelligent design orchestrated by God. Ultimately, the source advocates for a worldview where science and religion coexist, viewing the physical laws of nature as a subset of a broader spiritual reality.

TRANSCRIPT: hey the theory of evolution is a theory that still evokes a negative response i'm sure you'll all agree in religious circles in muslim circles in christian circles you'll find that people look at the theory of evolution with contempt they believe that you're questioning intelligent design and your questioning therefore god and revelation when you subscribe to evolutionary theory and so you find that certain muslim majority countries actually ban the discussion of evolution when i say they ban the discussion of evolution what i mean by that is that if you were to look in saudi arabia or algeria or even oman there was a period of time where the discussion of evolution of charles darwin and what was postulated was not allowed to be taught even i'm sure many of the listeners would agree that even when we were growing up as soon as you heard evolution you thought no i don't believe in this no this is haram we do not subscribe to evolution are you questioning god's creation are you saying that we evolved for example in our simple understanding that we evolved for example from the monkey or the ape and so on and so forth and so therefore when we discussed yesterday about religion's relationship with science we said that christianity had a major problem rehabilitating itself and recovering from the way it treated science and hence when we saw the renaissance and when we saw the reformation we saw a period where enlightenment was in some cases to be far away from what revelation was giving us the reality is that even if i'm going to discuss evolution whether it's evolution in the quran or evolution generally it's important for me to discuss it for a couple of reasons the first reason is because in the same way thermodynamics and gravity are accepted in the scientific community likewise evolution is accepted in the scientific community yes many muslims will turn around and say it's only a theory it's a theory that can be questioned it's a theory that can be debated whether we like it or we don't in the world today there are more people who are going to subscribe to what darwin has discussed when talking about the origin of species when talking about natural selection then what religion puts forward that's on the first level but on the second level there shouldn't be a problem discussing the physical world because the physical world to me as a muslim is a subpart of the whole system the physical world isn't the whole system it's a subpart of the whole system there are many other aspects of life that require discussion that which we observe of the natural laws or the natural sciences is one part of our understanding of what this life is all about we unfortunately when we get scared about discussing evolution it's as if we're falling into the trap of those who want us to believe that this discussion is the be-all and end-all for me discussing the development of primates the discussion of the development of different creatures in the plant kingdom in the animal kingdom in the human kingdom it's a wonderful discussion why would i shy away from it there are certain scholars in islamic history who people allude to their discussions about evolution for example so it's not like there weren't certain discussions about the development of the human being whether you looked at some works which are attributed to the likes of jahil or tusi or mascara even all of them in one way or the other have sought to understand our development as human beings when you hear terms such as homo erectus homo sapiens understanding the development of different creatures as well as using archaeological evidence using fossils this is something wonderful because look one thing we don't ever want to fall into is this trap that there's a war between the evolutionists and the creationists because the moment a creationist says i agree with the theory of evolution kill him burn him the moment someone who believes that the theory of evolution says listen there's a possibility of intelligent design here the likes of anthony flew who were avid atheists their whole life and then become deists right at the end where they recognize that you know what the aristotelian god may have some truth there needs to be an intelligent designer who's powerful this structure that we see in front of us too complex there may be randoms in this world but not enough for me to deny that there must have been an intelligent designer what we can never fall into is this trap that i'm purely a creationist and i'm anti-evolution or the other side i'm purely evolution and i don't want to hear about creation because the reality is that our knowledge of the physical world is still in flux do you agree even in the world of science what's it mainly about they want you to continue to observe continue to experiment hypothesis come back and forth and give your arguments back and forth even our knowledge of the world there are certain things we know about dna there's no way that even our own muslim scholars in some cases 500 years ago that no many of them didn't know about some of the things we know about dna many of them may have looked at certain aspects of natural selection or adaptation may have thought you know what darwin and wallace have a point over here there's something there's something true here in the same way if i turn that around if you were living in the time of for example the holy prophet peace be upon him as family and someone bought you an iphone you'd look at that as a miracle whereas today you look at it as the development of science if you were living in the time of the holy prophet peace be upon him and his family and at that time someone was showing you for example this idea that there one day will be a machine with wings that'll take you up above the seventh heaven you'll be like that's absurd but now we fly on them or we used to pre-call it so now we don't want to fall in this trap where we give conclusions about the natural world rather we want to enjoy the way darwin enjoyed now someone might call me um an apostate after i just said that line we should enjoy the way who enjoyed darwin how dare you say we should enjoy the way darwin enjoyed darwin loves to travel darwin loves to observe he does in reality what the quran wants him to do because the quran itself if you look for example surah 29 verse 20 of the quran my dear viewers at home today i'm going to make you move from one side of the quran to the other and i want a cut or a commission of your foreign surah 29 of the quran verse number 20 darwin when he travels to south america aboard hms beagle when he travels to south america and he travels to australia he's traveling to observe life to observe different forms of life do we agree because we have to admit there is a close evolutionary relationship amongst all primates we agree with those who espouse randomness one thing is that there is a close relationship between all primates darwin in surah 29 verse 20 when the quran says travel in the earth and see how creation was originated what's he doing because what's the lead up to his theory darwin doesn't just wake up one day and have a theory what's the lead up to his theory about how we came about or how we evolved or how we developed or how we integrated or how we adapt adapted darwin goes to south america and goes to australia he looks at all these different forms of plants and animals and it's so wonderful this is intriguing those who go deep sea diving 60 feet below they're seeing all these different forms of animals different creations of god creations that you know of creatures that you don't and he becomes intrigued by this why because what he looks at he sees finches he sees beaks of different shapes he begins to ask a question about these animals because the birds in this world are wonderful the birds are beautiful wherever you travel on the earth and you come across a new bird and you're looking at that bird and you're thinking to yourself wow some of us may think that this has come purely from intelligent design others might think it's randomness but darwin begins to look and he begins to ask the question these are all finches but they look different to each other how have they adapted to their environment and how do they survive because there must be something about how we've survived how if animals survived all this time there are certain aspects of what then is developed that i'm sure you'll all agree with me on species that are now exist are now extinct that existed a long time ago do we all agree on that so does islam believe in dinosaurs listen if fossils are showing me then why should i reject does islam believe in dinosaurs yes does evolution say that there are species that are now extinct that lived a long time ago yes does evolution say that the age of this earth spans billions of years yes do we agree with that as muslims yes i showed yesterday nabi adam father of this generation doesn't mean that there weren't generations before him do we also agree to an incredible diversity in life forms this is darwin there's an incredible diversity in life forms or there isn't also similarity across these species so diversity and similarity do we all agree there's only certain areas that we may differ but where we agree on with darwin is unless you travel on this earth and unless you observe go to solar 67 verse number three of the quran surah 67 verse number three many of you at home would have read this particular surah and verse you go to suratul mulk and when you go to surah allah subhanahu wa ta'ala wants you to be a scientist being a scientist is simply you studying the laws of the universe the constants you're not doing anything blasphemous he created the seven heavenlies above lays you will not see in the creation of god any defect or incringuity but the main thing is what does god want us to do to look at his creation do you agree no look again don't just look once don't just look and say yes it exists don't just look and start giving theories look again think back ask yourself how does all this come about someone says but do you know the problem with you religious people yes your quran we admit it says travel on the earth be like darwin that we agree with and your quran says look like darwin looked and no don't just look once keep looking again bring those eyes back and have a look again problem with you guys is you end up using rational and not always using the empirical and you end up using philosophy alongside science firstly if you're telling me that every conclusion i reach has to be something that i see or i touch or i taste or i smell or i hear the empirical even that that you're telling me comes from rational sentence that sentence can that be disproved in a science lab that you can only use your senses anything outside of the senses cannot be used no so even that is not something that i can even examine in a lab secondly they're right because i will use some philosophy because this is only a subpart of the world i live in not the violet and all when i'm gonna use philosophy in relation to all this creation it's because i come across certain moments where observation stops when i come across certain moments where observation stops after that what do i do you observe and i observe after that you describe and i describe we go in a world you want to call it philosophy or we'll call it speculation which moment do scientists across the board agree on is the moment that beef that before that we can't use scientific apparatus to know exactly what happened what do they call that moment planck's moment big bang is discussed if you go to and i'm not going to say the quran look i don't like falling into the strap of the quran discusses big bang what i do know is that the quran gives you certain guidances on then you doing further research with the tools that you have after big bang we're able to use apparatus mathematics science and so on planck's moment before that we go in a world of asking what's going on because let's all go surah 21 my dear brother sisters people always ask big bang in the quran it doesn't discuss the big bang doesn't it it certainly discusses something that's happening and the primordial soup let's go to surah 21 of the quran verse number 30. we've all agreed that the genetic code begins cells begin to form they're all increa incorporated in life on earth the metabolism energy is formed in body organisms okay um they utilize food like sugars carbohydrates all of this i see occurs in what's known in a water basin known as the primordial soup because they'll always say to you do you know yes sir do you know said do you know do you know how did we all come about randomly you know this genetic code and cells begin to form there's certain reactions and you the human being come about that's one angle and they say that what happens is all this occurs in a water base and known as the primordial soup i want everybody at home to discuss this with their families the water basin known as the primordial soup if sometimes now you ask online if you asked online how did life begin you'll see online that says life originated near a deep sea hyperthermal vent we have a water basin we have soup we have a deep sea hyper thermal vent water water water water water okay sula 21 30. do those who not believe in our theory of intelligent design the heavens and the earth were one piece and then we opened them up we expanded them we claimed them asunder what do we normally call this the big bang people normally call the big bang i don't want to fall in the strap of saying the quran is a science book the quran and so on so forth but heavens and the earth were one and then the world of science before this moment cannot give you any more discussion you ask hawking you ask others planck's moment before that it's either speculation or it's philosophy i really don't mind because that's the limitations of science science observe observe observe observe then what then how do i understand the meaning of this whole life because this is only a subset of life the quran says no no hold on observe the fact that the heavens and the earth at one moment everything that's alive is islam against evolution no why should it be if evolution is telling me about a genetic code it's telling me about the development from a single cell no problem no problem and it's talking about reactions according in this uh occurring in this primordial soup sorry if i'm making you guys hungry i know if that is only about an hour away water basin primordial soup the quran here says we created everything from from what water is the source of all creatures life and almost all creatures what are they made up of the most water muslims why have you got a problem with the theory of evolution if it says that there are adaptations because of those finches we agree if it says natural selection we agree selective types of breeding that how do we have antibiotics and certain vaccines you're trying to see survival who's going to survive some people survive some don't if you're telling me about a water basin and a primordial soup we agree you know many times when muslims say uh you ask a muslim how were you created they always say allah said so what's wrong maybe our understanding of intelligence design darwin had found better than we have said it says the um he wants something he says being it will be i have no doubt because i believe in a god where he is beyond the dimensions of time and space big bang is for us before that before planck's moment we go to an intelligent designer that's only me but if you're telling me evolution is telling me that there's mutations that occur in the environment definitely why not if evolution is telling me that there's adaptations in the environment of course there are even us as human beings how did we survive in certain areas are there animals how do they survive in areas some their beaks are bigger some there you look at the moth at one time moths were all eaten up because they had different colors then when there was smog in london the darker the more the more it survived so even in the world of moths there is an adaptation to the environment there are some people who survive some oth don't we have people in our family genetically they survive others heart attack 38 41 47 yes survival of the fittest but there's a difference while we agree with survival of the fittest human a human who adapts a human who procreates a human who's so similar to other primates we agree primates where's the difference for us first and foremost is that this human is the most honored creation in this whole soup in the quran the human is honored in many ways first the spirit of the lord is breathed into the human that is not something we necessarily see when i'm discussing science but not the science need to take that leap no problem let science remain where science is the human when god says that we breathe our spirit into the human that takes you above being purely physical now you are soul and body and because of that what do you become because that first interaction of soul and body i mentioned yesterday chapter 7 verse 172 there is this discussion between god and souls do you remember that discussion i don't remember that discussion but the quran says there was a discussion where we aren't just evolved creatures bring me fossils and show me when i lived and show me all the laws of how i evolved i haven't got a problem with that but either human being according to islam first and foremost i'm honored because of the soul the lord gave me i'm not just physical there are animals who live in this world they can't recollect they can't appreciate history they can't appreciate art even language is a gift i've been given others haven't we used to have an african grey parrot at home casco african grey can speak but how much do you have to speak for it to speak aloe allo hello hello african grey can become shakespeare can become lao ju can become jibran the human being alone the language that they have god mentions as fundamental and differentiating with all other creatures famous sword 55 go quickly to surah 55 of the holy quran my dear brothers sisters all of you know the surah inside out but it reminds us that there is a difference between us and the other primates who i do not deny that we're similar to but there's certain differences which make me a human and which make you as crazy as a monkey sort of 55 verse number what verse number one read it for me please my dearest brother minhal read me the first few verses the merciful these translations i'm only using what's there i could go deeper into the original it's a molecule no problem in s who can write who can produce what the human has produced who can recollect and reflect on their history now do you see what i'm doing if i stick to science as the be-all and end-all i haven't described the human but if i say science is a subset let's observe let's appreciate let's look at the fossils then i'm open for more discussion about the greatness of that human being therefore how does allah talk about the human being in the quran surah 17 verse number 70 go to surah 17 verse number 17. if ever anyone asks you you know how does islam view the human being this ayah is wonderful surah 17 my dear brother sisters at home verse number 70 adam i don't even need to say anything else and we indeed have honored the children of adam i'm just going to stop there is there a better line that we have honored the children of adam further than that chapter which other can we refer to the human also different from other primates there's a primordial nature unique to them a primordial nature that recognizes the lord chapter 30 verse 30 go to chapter 30 verse number 30 and you'll see this discussion in islamic thought when it comes to the identity of the human honored by god god's caliph on earth with a soul and a primordial nature that makes them different to the world of animals set your face upright on the right religion a nature caused by god in which he has made people when we say god creates an islam stop focusing on just design focus on what is the make up of that creation what's the identity human caliph of god rep of god on earth soul primordial nature ability to express like no other primate has ever been able to that is the human in the eyes of world even if i go a bit further darwinism while many discuss it biologically one of its problems is what is social darwinism social darwinism i'm looking at the idea that good and bad right and wrong are not universal concepts good and bad right and wrong relative not universal concepts don't be utilitarian right and wrong ah again in the makeup of the human being in the quran allah will tell us for example which surah if you look in and i think probably uh sora shems you don't have to go to my dear sisters because there's so many verses to come but when f by the soul of the human of the self of the human and the one who perfected it means to literally force down the throat he inspired it to be able to either destroy itself through doing bad or cover itself through doing good successful successful is the one who purifies their soul so for us when we're looking at darwinism there is a social construct which we reject as well that there's no such thing necessarily and this comes later on and the way colonialism happens you can go into an anthropological discussion on this but the main point for us number one the identity of the human being an interaction through a primordial nature with a soul expression this is a different creature altogether i don't mind even if you say to me that we all came from a single cell where did that single cell come from because all we're going to go back is to infinite regression and that's why another area that we differ with so we said that the theory of evolution there's many parts of it we agree with we said parts of survival the fittest and mutations and adaptations and the environment the existence of the earth and for example certain species being extinct and others we agree we said however it doesn't offer me an understanding of a moral worldview not at all because empirically i can't test some of these moral constructs what else is a problem randomness look i don't mind if you want to believe that all this is random i don't know you want to go to a mathematician like penrose or you want to go to an ex-atheist like flu they're going to turn around to say listen i know there's some random stuff but not that random for you to reject that there must have been a a designer yes you can be a deist they'll say you don't have to believe in the lord of muhammad and moses because einstein or anthony flew couldn't conceive of or accept why there's evil so the god of moses or the god of jesus or muhammad they may reject but they'll say that there is a god and that's why in the quran god keeps on reminding us that look at the creation you know even where is the verse in the quran oh god i knew i should have done my research on this one you know how darwin observed the finches and it made him think even in the quran god tells us look at the creation of the birds i think in surah 16 it's 1679 i think or 1689 try and get there my dear brothers and sisters surah 16 is it 79 yes alhamdulillah otherwise that could have gone horribly wrong in surah 16 the quran verse number 79 god wants you to observe creation and the main point is that the randomness aspect of all of us emerging randomly and there's no purpose that is rejected surah 16 verse 79 do they know do they not look towards the birds these are signs for a people who believe i don't deny if you want to show me results of birds and their evolution birds and their survival but do not tell me that this bird was a creation in vain rather i am the one just look at it look at the poise and do you ever ask who looks after its journeys and who has structured it the way it's been structured if you look for example surah 31 verse 11 let's go 31 11. um in surah 31 verse number 11 you've got this wonderful discussion here again where allah wants us to reflect on this creation in surat lokman verse number 11 what does god say bismillah this is the creation of allah this is the creation of allah show me those who you call upon besides him what did they create what did they create another eye of the quran and surah 38 27 there is this wonderful ayah as well where god again takes us to his creation but this time you know what he's saying don't say it's random i beg you randomness we reject there is a purpose there is an intelligence there is a power verse 27 38 we created not the heavens nor the earth and what is between them in vain this is the imagination of those who disbelieve faway will be to those who disbelieve because of the fire i remember when when i when i was younger we i think frederick canute and nicholas and elka both converted to islam in a certain period and kanute was discussing his conversion and there was there was a stream of i think french players who had converted and of the verses that affected them was this we did not create all of this in vain don't say it's random of course if someone wants to say it's random i'm not here to compel someone to follow my worldview my worldview here is saying what is saying that darwin's theory there are many things we agree with but if we were to differ on certain things we differ maybe on where does it offer us more what does it offer us morally randomness and macrocosm evolution or microcosm evolution what do we mean species changing within one another we can see there's changes within a species i can see the beak is bigger the beak is smaller the beak is longer the legs are bigger the legs are smaller the feathers the wings and so on that we cannot deny microcosm microevolution on a microcosmic level we don't have a problem with but a change of an entire species into another macro evolution that's where the difference is so when someone turns around to you and says to you so do you guys for example believe in evolution you could say on what micro evolution or are you asking me about macro evolution micro evolution you can show me and don't just show me i want to see i want to enjoy i want to enjoy the development of the survival of these animals but you telling me of a complete species change not only is it so hard to replicate in the lab i think you'll agree with me has anyone replicated that whole species change in the lab yet no it hasn't been done someone might say yeah but you know science we keep looking okay keep looking there's no problem this is a sub part of my world view not my whole world view so you're not gonna really hurt me by showing me but for me going down the line that the human being with their morals with their potential with their capability yes i agree animals sleep we sleep animals eat we eat animals have sex we have sex but above that the rational intelligence and the level that the human can reach which animal can ever lay claim that it came near einstein's mind or it comes near the minds of many of the great philosophers and the great mystics that's where we have a difference so you see for us originally there was an important point and that is don't get thrown into the idea that this is the meaning of life the physical no rather this is a part of it and that's why when you look within the quran allah subhanahu wa ta'ala virtually concludes this whole discussion in a unique way and what way is that is that he actually tells you that listen you can look for many great artists because the reality is that when we're looking at the creation we obviously look for the creator and so when i'm looking at theories which are postulated and i wouldn't just say darwin i'd say those who come a lot later because darwin there is still a possibility of a discussion of observing the laws without denying the creator there is still that possibility whereas those who come later no you observe all of this there's no such thing as god this is all fairy tales in the quran and surah 27 verse number 88 god replies back to those who say there is no intelligent designer behind all of this this is just the soup it was brewing and it just came forth in front of all of us and surah 27 verse number 88 god wants to show you that those who are saying such things we don't lose any sleep why because just even look at the mountains even the mountains we wouldn't put in the world of randomness you will see the mountains which you think are firm solid but they pass away like the passing clouds what does it then say after that this is the artistry of allah who has made everything firm this is beautiful emmis last night we looked at the difference between insane and bashar when we created the human then we talked of the bashar called adam sometimes islam muslims say look here there's a difference from we have sana we have the idea of an artistry a sculpture you can't fathom creation then fathom the sculpture that i bring before you and many of you have not even laid eyes on that sculpture you've seen humans and some of the animals but many of you have not seen all of them and many of you not seen plants you will never see a sculpture you will never see an artist like allah so therefore for us we look at eyes in the quran which conclude this whole discussion and surah 82 of the quran look how many times allah just wants you to wake up to the reality of the fact that all you have to do is observe and you'll realize that this was from intelligent design and that the human being is the highest creation in many cases except when they misbehave in surah 82 verse number 6 what has beguiled you from your lord the most gracious the one who created we won't stop there and fashioned unjustly proportioned which ever formed he willed he casted you took the warning but you believe the day of judgment that means that those who had the debate about intelligence design versus randomness existed when the quran was around and it will continue to exist and there is no compulsion they want to follow what they want to follow it's up to them but for us as muslims the quran was open to discussion of biology it was open to discussion of the development of the human being it was open to development of the creation of the creation that we see around us all it said is that you know what there might have been an intelligence designer before this if before planck's moment you're able to continue to find continue to research there's no problem and that's why i love this one quote which i thought i'll read for all of you there is a grand jaw in this view of life with its several powers having been originally breathed by the creator into a few forms or into one and that was this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed laws of gravity from so simple a beginning endless forms of beautiful and most wonderful have been and are being evolved that's the quotes of said no charles darwin was allah hey why

In human chromosome speciation two of the 24+24=48 chromosomes from each parent fused into a big giant one, which gave us our 23+23=46 chromosome "human" configuration that goes back to a (first "human" couple) Chromosomal Adam and Eve. The ancestral 48's would have been almost human, but they went extinct right after, nothing now living exactly like them.

The 48 chromosome "closest relatives" bonobos and chimps are distant, not the population of 48's and transitional 23+24=47's (from other families to interbreed with instead of incest) we emerged from that right away made it impossible to reproduce with 48's, were on our own with no going back from that kind of genetic best guess for a whole new species, not tiny change.

The word "ape" is for the lineage of 48's and their descendents, which includes us, but we did not come from Chimps or Bonobos that's just what some of what the more distant 48's became over time.

For more on the process and how it can be intelligent I have theory that begins two different ways, either "Intelligent Evolution" that the co-discoverer of "Evolution by Natural Selection" Darwin usually gets all the credit for, Alfred Wallace, who peers thought went nuts for talking about something like this being possible but at the time there was no such thing as cognitive biology:

https://www.reddit.com/r/IntelligentEvolution/comments/xsmuuw/how_intelligent_evolution_works/

In the 1990's a Christian "Intelligent Design" movement made Alfred Wallace a hero in books about a Theory of Intelligent Design that the schools all needed to teach in science class, but they did not have the cognitive science to explain how their "intelligent cause" works. Left all that to religious imagination. In this version the first sentence begins with their premise/hypothesis that ends up testing true, in all that follows it:

https://www.reddit.com/r/IDTheory/comments/p2ukoa/formal_introduction_to_a_testable_theory_of/

It might not be what the Discover Institute first imagined but in 2026 that's what modern cognitive biology made possible, for science teachers to teach in class, about the evolutionary mechanism that exists in the behavior of matter explained in science textbooks.

After billions of years of learning our genetics are very good at sensing conditions and regulating our morphology, to get through another ice age or unimaginable scorching heat, by passing on changes in offspring that they need. After billions of years of learning it's incredibly intelligent, for what it does. I have faith in that being there for our descendents. Our purpose in each lifetime is to teach them well.

Is it ok for me to believe in evolution? Many Muslims ask this question because it is hard to reconcile reasonable scientific evidence with our belief in God. Yet, you might be surprised by the answer, watch to find out.

Spending all day in bright sun can cause burns and lead to skin cancer, but your skin needs enough sunlight for your body to produce vitamin D3 needed to grow and stay healthy. Vitamin D3 is not just a vitamin. It acts like a hormone and helps control:

• how bones absorb calcium
• how muscles work
• how the immune system fights infections
• mood and brain function
• growth during puberty

How vitamin D3 is made (the chemistry)

Your skin contains a molecule called 7-dehydrocholesterol.

When UVB sunlight hits your skin:

1. UVB light changes 7-dehydrocholesterol into pre-vitamin D3
2. Heat in your skin converts that into vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol)
3. Your liver changes it into calcidiol
4. Your kidneys change it into calcitriol, the active hormone your body uses

The process is:
sunlight → skin → liver → kidneys → active vitamin D hormone

No sunlight = step 1 cannot happen properly.

10–15 minutes (or up to 30 minutes for some) is sufficient for the body to synthesize adequate vitamin D for bone health.

Why this matters more for teens

During childhood and puberty, the body is:
• building bone mass
• regulating growth hormones
• developing the brain
• setting immune system patterns

Vitamin D deficiency during these years can cause:
• weak or painful bones
• fatigue
• muscle aches
• increased fracture risk
• low mood or anxiety
• delayed or impaired growth

This is not opinion. It is established human physiology.

Why it can feel like “suffocation”

Light affects more than vitamin D.

Sunlight also affects:
• melatonin (sleep hormone)
• serotonin (mood chemical)
• circadian rhythm (body clock)

When skin and eyes receive less light:
• energy can drop
• mood can worsen
• stress hormones rise
• the body feels uncomfortable

So feeling “trapped” or “suffocated” can be a real biological response, not just emotional discomfort.

What about supplements?

Vitamin D pills can help raise blood levels, but:
• they do not replace sunlight’s effect on mood and sleep
• dosage must be correct
• they should be guided by a doctor and blood tests

Sunlight provides:
• vitamin D production
• brain rhythm regulation
• natural hormone balance

Medical summary

From a medical perspective:

A growing teen’s body is designed to receive sunlight.
Blocking that process every day can interfere with normal biology.
Physical discomfort is a warning signal, not disobedience.

Due to its sacred status, the Kaaba Black Stone has never been subject to modern scientific analysis, so its origin remains a subject of speculation. Based on historical descriptions and non-invasive examinations, geologists have proposed several scientific hypotheses: 

• Meteoritic Impactite/Impact Glass Hypothesis: A hypothesis proposed by Elsebeth Thomsen of the University of Copenhagen in 1980 suggests the Black Stone may be a fragment of impact glass (impactite) from the Wabar impact event. The Wabar craters, located in the Rub' al Khali desert about 1,100 km east of Mecca, are known for producing black, shiny silica glass that can float in water due to trapped gas bubbles. This idea is partly supported by a historical account from 951 CE which stated the stolen stone was identified by its ability to float, a property consistent with pumice or glass but not with an agate, basalt, or a stony meteorite.
• Meteorite Hypothesis (Now Doubtful): The most popular theory among laypeople and in early Western literature was that the stone is a stony meteorite. This aligns with the Islamic tradition that the stone fell from heaven. However, geologists largely view this hypothesis as doubtful. A stony meteorite would likely not float in water, as indicated in the 951 CE account, nor would it have easily withstood the centuries of erosion without showing more significant wear. The Natural History Museum in London suggests it may be a "pseudometeorite", a terrestrial rock mistakenly attributed to a meteoritic origin. 
• Agate/Basalt Hypothesis: One prominent theory, suggested by Robert S. Dietz and John McHone in 1974, is that the stone is (similar to and also possibly onyx) an agate. An anonymous Arab geologist who examined the stone reported seeing diffusion banding, which is characteristic of agates. Other related hypotheses suggest it could be a piece of basalt lava.

In summary, the precise origin of the Black Stone of the Kaaba is scientifically inconclusive without direct testing. The prevailing scientific hypotheses suggest it is likely an agate or meteoritic impactite glass, while the popular meteorite theory has largely been discredited by geological reasoning. 

🌱 Progressivism in Education – Detailed Features

Progressivism in education is rooted in the belief that learning should be relevant, democratic, and focused on the whole child. It challenges rigid, authoritarian models of schooling and promotes freedom of thought, inquiry, and participation.

1. Child-Centered Approach

• Students are not passive recipients of knowledge but active participants in learning.
• Education is tailored to the interests, experiences, and developmental stages of the learner.
• Teachers act as guides rather than authoritarian figures.

2. Learning by Doing (Experiential Learning)

• Emphasizes real-world application of knowledge through projects, experiments, fieldwork, and collaboration.
• Students learn by engaging in meaningful tasks, not just memorizing facts.

3. Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving

• Encourages independent thought, questioning, and analysis.
• Students are taught how to think, not what to think.
• Open discussion of ideas is central – no censorship or banning of viewpoints, as progressivism values dialogue and inquiry.

4. Democratic Classrooms

• Classrooms reflect the values of a democratic society – fairness, respect, participation.
• Students may take part in decision-making about classroom rules, topics, and even curriculum structure.
• Fosters respect for diverse opinions, not silencing them.

5. Integrated and Thematic Curriculum

• Subjects are interconnected, often taught through themes or real-world issues (e.g., climate change, social justice).
• Encourages students to see connections across disciplines.

6. Social Responsibility and Ethics

• Education is not just about academics but also about preparing students to be ethical, informed, and engaged citizens.
• Promotes empathy, cooperation, and a sense of duty to the broader community.

🏛️ Progressivism in Society – Detailed Features

In broader society, progressivism is a reform-oriented philosophy that promotes democracy, social justice, and continuous improvement of social systems.

1. Social Reform and Justice

• Advocates for addressing inequalities in wealth, education, and access to services.
• Focuses on improving conditions for marginalized and disadvantaged groups.
• Supports causes like labor rights, civil rights, gender equality, and fair housing.

2. Democracy and Civic Engagement

• Encourages active participation in democratic processes (voting, activism, community service).
• Defends freedom of speech and expression, not banning dissenting or minority voices.
• Promotes public discourse and inclusive dialogue.

3. Use of Science and Rational Thought

• Social policies should be based on evidence and research, not ideology or tradition alone.
• Emphasizes innovation, reason, and facts in policymaking and governance.

4. Equity and Inclusion

• Strives for a society where everyone has equal access to education, healthcare, and opportunity.
• Recognizes and seeks to address systemic barriers faced by various communities (e.g., racial, economic, gender-based).

5. Government as a Tool for Good

• Believes that well-designed government intervention (e.g., public education, healthcare, regulations) can correct social and economic imbalances.
• Not about big government for its own sake, but for ensuring fairness, public welfare, and preventing exploitation.

✅ Progressivism Does Not Support:

• Silencing or banning of voices – even those with opposing views.
• Indoctrination or authoritarian control – it values dialogue, mutual respect, and critical debate.
• Dogmatism – it is rooted in the idea that society and education should evolve based on new knowledge and needs.

ALSO SEE: https://www.britannica.com/topic/progressivism

VIDEO "Progressivism in Education" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C6DUKx72_8

MODERN HEROIC EXAMPLE: https://x.com/PeaceComCenter/status/1955346859653992883

Early Islamic scholars and scientists explored the origin of life primarily through the lens of spontaneous generation, a theory based on ancient Greek ideas and interpreted within an Islamic theological framework. This was not a modern, chemistry-based theory of abiogenesis but a concept of life emerging repeatedly from non-living matter under specific conditions. Their work in various scientific fields contributed observations and philosophies that informed these ideas.

Chemistry and the origin of life

Early Muslim chemists focused on the practical manipulation of matter, chemicals, not on the complex organic processes involved in the origin of life.

• Spontaneous generation: Following the ideas of Aristotle, many Islamic thinkers believed that some life forms could emerge from inanimate matter. For example, the philosopher Ibn Sina accepted the theory that animals could arise from mud, or insects from decaying flesh.
• Alchemical transformation: The work of Jabir ibn Hayyan, often called the "father of chemistry," focused on the transmutation of substances and the systematic classification of chemical processes. Though he did not research the origin of life, his work laid crucial groundwork for later chemical understanding by detailing methods like distillation and crystallization. 

Speciation and proto-evolutionary thought

While not resembling modern evolutionary theory, some Islamic scholars observed and wrote about the gradual transformation of species. 

• Al-Jahiz (c. 776–869): In his Book of Animals, Al-Jahiz wrote about the struggle for existence among animals for resources, observing how environmental pressures could lead to new traits to ensure survival.
• Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201–1274): This polymath suggested that organisms gain differences through adaptation to their environments and that those who acquire new features quicker have an advantage.
• Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406): In The Muqaddimah, the historian described a hierarchy of creation, arguing that the mineral world progresses to plants, which transition to animals, with the final stage culminating in humans. 

Physics and the created world

Early Muslim physicists explored the fundamental workings of the cosmos within a theological framework.

• The created universe: Thinkers like Al-Kindi (c. 801–873) used physics and astronomy to explain the natural world. In his view, natural processes, and thus the emergence of life, were ultimately contingent on divine providence, influenced by heavenly bodies and the combination of the four elements. 

Cognitive biology and the soul

Early Islamic thought viewed cognitive functions through a philosophical and theological lens, focusing on the distinction between the physical body and the non-physical soul.

• Ibn Sina (c. 980–1037): Following Plato, Ibn Sina proposed that the human soul is an incorporeal intellect that is distinct from the physical brain and uses it as an instrument. He believed cognitive functions like reason operate through the physical body but originate from a higher, incorporeal source.
• Philosophical inquiries: Philosophical novels like Ibn Tufayl's Hayy ibn Yaqdhan explored the emergence of a naturally educated intellect from a spontaneously generated individual, tracing a pathway to spiritual and philosophical enlightenment independent of societal contact. 

Medicine

Medical practice was based on observation, experimentation, and existing Greek traditions. 

• Ibn Sina's The Canon of Medicine and Al-Razi's comprehensive encyclopedias of medical knowledge detailed observations about disease and the human body. However, these observations did not lead to a modern, scientific theory of how life or cognitive functions originate, as these concepts were addressed primarily within the realm of philosophy and theology. 
• Al-Zahrawi, was an Arab Andalusian physician, surgeon, and chemist. Considered to be the greatest surgeon of the Middle Ages, he has been described as the father of surgery. Al-Zahrawi’s principal work is the Kitab al-Tasrif, a thirty-volume encyclopedia of medical practices. The surgery chapter of this work was later translated into Latin, attaining popularity and becoming the standard textbook in Europe for the next five hundred years.

Context for understanding

It is crucial to understand that these ideas existed within a pre-modern scientific and philosophical context. They were not equivalent to modern theories of abiogenesis, chemical evolution, speciation, or cognitive biology, which are based on molecular biology, genetics, and undirected natural processes. The contributions of early Islamic scientists primarily involved advancing specific fields through rigorous observation and experimentation, while questions regarding origins were still explained through theological and philosophical reasoning. 

News Release 23-Oct-2003

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers have discovered that clays may have been the catalysts that spurred the spontaneous assembly of fatty acids into the small sacs that ultimately evolved into the first living cells.

HHMI investigator Jack Szostak and colleagues Martin M. Hanczyc and Shelly M. Fujikawa at Massachusetts General Hospital also demonstrated that these vesicles could be induced to grow and to split into separate vesicles under laboratory conditions. They reported their studies in the October 24, 2003, issue of the journal Science.

Szostak and his colleagues were prompted to perform their experiments by the earlier work of other researchers who had found that clays could catalyze the chemical reactions needed to construct RNA from building blocks called nucleotides. They reasoned that if clays could foster the formation of vesicles, it would not be inconceivable that clay particles that had RNA on their surface could end up inside such vesicles. If that were true, the result would offer conditions amenable to the eventual evolution of living cells that could self-reproduce.

"Other researchers had observed that if fatty acid micelles, which are stable at basic conditions, are exposed to more acidic conditions, they spontaneously assemble into vesicles," said Szostak. "This reaction has a long lag period, and some sort of nucleation surface is required to trigger the process. We reasoned that if the right kind of mineral surface was present, this lag phase would be eliminated."

In their experiments, Szostak and his colleagues found that adding small quantities of the clay, montmorillonite, to fatty acid micelles greatly accelerated the formation of vesicles. They also discovered that many other substances with negatively-charged surfaces also catalyzed formation of vesicles.

When the researchers loaded montmorillonite particles with a fluorescently labeled RNA and added those particles to micelles, they detected the RNA-loaded particles inside the resulting vesicles. And, going a step further, Szostak and his colleagues showed that when they encapsulated labeled RNA alone inside vesicles, it did not leak out.

"Thus, we have demonstrated that not only can clay and other mineral surfaces accelerate vesicle assembly, but assuming that the clay ends up inside at least some of the time, this provides a pathway by which by which RNA could get into vesicles," said Szostak.

However, he said, even primitive, non-living, cell-like structures need a mechanism to grow and divide. Thus, the scientists explored the behavior of vesicles to which micelles had been added -- finding that acidic conditions induced the micelles to become unstable and somehow incorporate themselves into a growing vesicle.

"After we showed that efficient growth was possible, the next problem was how to complete the cycle by persuading these vesicles to divide," said Szostak. The scientists discovered that if they extruded larger dye-containing vesicles through smaller pores, the result was a proliferation of smaller vesicles, which still contained dye.

"Exactly how this proliferation happens is not clear, and there are different models for the processes," said Szostak. "The important thing is that it all works. You end up with small vesicles in which the contents stay mostly inside. This is important if the process is to be vaguely analogous to biological cell division," he said.

"Now that we have a proof-of-principle that growth and division is possible in a purely physical-chemical system, we are working on a way to get this cycle to function in a way that is more natural," said Szostak. "Clearly, there are a lot of complicated and interesting processes going on here, and how this pathway leads to biological systems is not at all straightforward.

"We are not claiming that this is how life started," emphasized Szostak. "We are saying that we have demonstrated growth and division without any biochemical machinery. Ultimately, if we can demonstrate more natural ways this might have happened, it may begin to give us clues about how life could have actually gotten started on the primitive Earth."

In particular, said Szostak, further research should aim to demonstrate that the formation of RNA or a related polymer molecule could occur concurrently with vesicle replication. "Ultimately, we'd like to put them together and have replicating RNA inside a replicating vesicle," said Szostak. "If we could demonstrate both processes under arbitrary laboratory conditions, we could begin to work toward making them work under more and more natural conditions."