This article is located at: http://www../Quran/Science/semenproduction.htm

And it is authored by Mr. Sam Shamoum

 

 

HE WRITES:

Since the verse is speaking of the moment of adult reproduction it can't be talking about the time of embryonic development. Moreover, since 'sulb' is being used in conjunction with 'gushing fluid', which can only be physical; and 'tara'ib' which is another physical word for chest or thorax or ribs, it can't be euphemistic. Therefore, we are left with the very real problem that the semen is coming from the back or kidney area and not the testicles.

The Quran implies that semen production takes place in the kidney or back area:

"Now let man but think from what he is created! He is created from a drop emitted - Proceeding from between the backbone and the ribs:" S. 86:5-7

 

 

My Response :

 

Did you notice the spin?

 

The Quran does not mention ‘semen production’ in verses 86:5-7.  Nor anywhere else!

 

Another spin!

 

Verses 86:5-7 do not mention ‘kidney’. Nor does any other verse!  No such word in the Quran.

 

The Quran simply states that man is created from the ejaculated fluid, which is emitted from within the abdomen.  (From “between the ribcage and the spine”)

 

No mention of ‘semen production’ or ‘kidneys’

 

Mr. Shamoum emphasized this sentence:

 

“Therefore, we are left with the very real problem that the semen is coming from the back or kidney area and not the testicles.”  

Does the above sentence not suggest that Mr. Shamoum thinks semen comes from the testicles?  He seems to criticize the fact that the Quran disagrees with that!

One wonders!  Does Mr. Shamoum think the semen is produced in the testicles?  Or does he think that the semen comes from the testicles during coitus?

It does not matter!  He would be wrong whether he meant the former, or the later!

Semen DOES NOT COME from the testicles, period!  It is neither produced in the testicles, nor does it come from the testicles during the time of coitus!

 

And that is a scientific fact!  Thirteen centuries ago even the scientific community thought that semen is produced in the testicles.  A pity!  Mr. Shamoum thinks so even today.

 

The semen contains many things.  Between 95 to 98% of it consists of fructose, prostaglandin hormones, metal and salt ions, lipids, steroid hormones, enzymes, basic amines, and amino acids.  All those are produced from the glands located in abdomen.   Between 2 to 5% of it consists of the sperms produced in the testicles. 

 

Does the Quran say the semen is produced in the kidneys?

 

Absolutely not!

 

It says simply that man is created from the liquid that is ejaculated.  During coitus that liquid springs from the abdomen (“between the ribcage and the spine”).  That is a scientific fact!

 

1400 years ago, even doctors thought semen springs from the testicles during coitus.  They were wrong of course!  Recent discoveries have proven them wrong!

 

Semen is stored in vesicles that lie in the abdomen.  From there it is ejaculated during coitus.  Lay people still think that the ejaculate comes from the testicles. 

 

The Quran does not say where semen is produced.  Just where it comes from during coitus!

 

In fact, if the Quran had said that the semen is produced in the abdomen, (“between the ribcage and the spine”), and not the testicles, it would still be accurate.  At least 95 to 98% accurate!  Only 2-5% of the semen is contributed by the testicles.  The rest is produced in the glands located in the pelvic cavity.

 

But the Quran does not say where the semen is produced, because the Quran is not 98% accurate.  It is 100% ACCURATE!

 

What does the Quran really say?

 

Question:   What is it that man is created from?  Answer:

 

(He is) created from the surging fluid!  87:6

 

The Exact Arabic words are just four: “Khuliqa minm Maain  Daafiq”

 

Khuliqa = created ;  Minm  = from

 

Maain =  liquid, fluid, juice, water ;  Daafiq =  anything that flows out, gushes out, pours out, wells out, sheds.  (From the Hans Wehr Arabic to English Dictionary)

 

The Standard Arabic to Arabic dictionaries also mention: anything that surges or bounces. For instance a “daafiq” ball would be a “bouncing ball”

 

“Maain Daafiq” is a surging fluid, gushing water, the liquid that pours out, or any combination of the words for “maain” and “daafiq” mentioned above.

 

Famous translators have rendered these four words as:  

 

“Created from a drop emitted” (Yusuf Ali). “Created from a gushing fluid” (Pickthal). “Water pouring forth” (Shakir). “Created from a fluid poured forth” (Zafraullah khan). “Spurt of water” (Hamidullah).

 

Arabic speakers can really appreciate the beauty of these four words!

 

The Quran does not use the word ‘sperm’, nor the word ‘semen’, nor does it say anything about the production of semen or sperm.

 

The emphasis is clearly on the word ‘daafiq’, the surging, the welling out, the pouring forth, the shedding, and the flowing out of the fluid.

 

Simply put, it is the ejaculate that fertilizes.  And that is the simple truth. The simple scientific truth!

 

Please do not wave away this poignant statement!

 

Can the Sperm alone fertilize the human ovum?

 

Sperm alone cannot even move very well.  They need energy to swim to the egg and penetrate it.  That is provided by fructose, a sugar produced by the seminal vesicles.

 

Prostaglandin hormones are needed to suppress an immune response by the female against the foreign semen.

 

Zinc is needed to stabilize the DNA of the sperms.

 

Metal and salt ions are needed to make the pH of the vaginal cavity favorable for the sperm to survive.

 

Lipids, steroid hormones, enzymes, basic amines, and amino acids are also needed to perform vital functions.

 

The ejaculated fluid has all that is needed, including the sperms (2-5% sperms, 95-98% other ingredients).  The statement of the Quran is absolutely correct!

 

Where does the semen spring from during coitus?

 

During coitus semen is ejaculated from the two storage areas called the seminal vesicles, and NOT FROM THE TESTICLES.

 

Let man look at (and bear in mind) the substance he is created from!  (He is) created from the surging fluid, which springs from between the spine and the ribs!  86:5-7

 

What is definitely excluded is the scrotal pouch, which is below the spine!   Semen does not spring from there during coitus!

 

Also excluded is the thorax, since it is not between the ribcage and the spine, but is rather inside the ribcage.

 

The area not excluded is the abdomen and the pelvic cavity!  The Quran is 100% correct.  Semen is stored in the seminal vesicles to be ejaculated during coitus.

 

The exact words of the Quran

 

The exact Arabic words: Bain usSulbe watTaraib

 

Sulb = backbone, loin, lower back; Taraib = ribs, breastbone, chest.

 

Bain = between, among, amidst

 

It is a phrase in Arabic that is similar to the English phrase, “somewhere between the front and the back”

 

It would mean that the semen springs from “somewhere between the front and the back” of the body.  In other words, somewhere from inside the body!

 

If one was to insist upon the literal meaning, one would still find that the Quran is 100% correct literally, too.  The seminal vesicles are anterior to the sacrum and coccyx (lower back, loin) and the ribs are anterior to the seminal vesicles.

 

If one was to draw a line from the tip of the coccyx, to the upper portion of the seminal vesicle _ either one of the two_ and extend the line forward it will catch the ribcage.

 

The seminal vesicles from which the semen spurts out during coitus, lies between the ribs and the coccyx!

 

(He is) created from the surging fluid!  Which springs from between the spine and the ribs!  86:6-7

 

Why does the Quran simply not say, Abdominal cavity?

 

Only a creator of the universe can reveal words that remain precise and accurate for thousands of years even in this changing world.   Every generation feels as if the Quran was revealed specifically for them, and only yesterday.

 

That is the miracle of the Quran!  Its words seem always to be in agreement with what science has observed and determined with certainty.

 

An example!

 

The Quran asked the believers to say the following before mounting a horse, a camel or any other animal. 

 

“Supreme is He Who tamed this for us. We could not have done it (otherwise).  And we are certainly going to return to our Lord!” 43:13-14

When we get aboard a plane we get a feeling that these words were revealed in the jet age!  The above is just a translation.  The original Arabic words are more poignant!

 

The statements of the Quran about the creation of the world, and about the relativity of time and space are amazingly the modern concepts.

 

People in the seventh century AD had their own ideas about how human beings are conceived.  Ibn Ishaq and others who lived in those times found the words of the Quran in compliance with the scientific knowledge of their time. 

 

Ibn Kathir, was a scholar of the 13^th century AD, and scientific perceptions had changed by then.  The wordings of the Quran still seemed in sync with the latest scientific knowledge of his time.

 

Dr. Bucaille, a non-Muslim scholar was amazed at what he found in the Quran.

 

In the modern times we find the words of the Marvelous Majestic Quran amazingly in agreement with the 21^st century knowledge.

 

That is possible because the words of the Quran exist exactly as revealed.   The language of the Quran is alive and well!  It is one of the six official languages of the United Nations.   The original language of the bible was Aramaic which is dead as a doornail.

 

The Hindu and the Buddhist scriptures were originally written in languages whose names too have been forgotten!

 

Poetic license?

 

No literature in any language can equal the diction and eloquence of the Quran!  It has rhythm, meter, and a sing-song quality.  Yet it is not the work of a poet!

 

Poets achieve excellence by resorting to exaggeration.  The Quran achieved the highest standard of eloquence and diction without any exaggeration.  Everything is literally accurate! 

 

That is what fills the believer with confidence.  Just like the discourse of the Quran about the matters of this life, its description of the afterlife HAS TO BE just as accurate.

 

Consider chapter 86 of the Quran (surah Najam).

 

This chapter has 17 very short verses; each verse has between 2 to 6 words.  They have a rhythm and meter, and they rhyme in a specific manner.  Yet the subject discussed is so profound!  The Quran does not stray one bit from its message.

 

This is the subject matter of the 86^th chapter, a total of less than 65 words in Arabic.

 

In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Beneficent

 

By the sky, and the night star!  How would you know what the night star is?  A bright star!  There is no soul without a guardian over it.  Let man look at the substance he is created from!  Created from the surging fluid which springs from between the spine and the ribs!  Indeed, He is capable of bringing man back to life (after his death). 

That day secrets would be laid bare.  (That day) man shall have neither strength, nor any helpers.  (I swear) by the sky that repeatedly sends rain down.  And by the earth that splits (and lets plants emerge).  Indeed, this Qur’an is the statement that sifts (right from wrong).  It is not an idle tale! They are hatching a nefarious plot.  But I, too, shall devise a scheme!  So give the unbelievers a little respite. Deal with them gently for a while.

Remember, this is just a translation!  The original words can put a believer in an ecstatic state.

 

Mr. Shamoum quoted the translation of just about 15 of these words.  These words ask you to look at how insignificant is the beginning of man.  Would God have any difficulty resurrecting such an insignificant being?

 

The entire world of diction and eloquence should fall prostrate before these words!  Leave aside the rest of the verses in that chapter, or the rest of the chapters of the Quran! That is not an exaggeration either.