The Traits That Make The Human, Human

Then He shaped him and breathed into him of His spirit. He created for you the ears and the eyes and the hearts. How little you give thanks.” (Al-Sajda/ The Prostration 32/7-9)

The human usually is defined as a creature able to speak. In this aspect the most important feature that divides the humans from the animals is their reason. But, in the Qur’an it is related about the speaking of ants and birds and about the evaluation the do by using their reason. The previous verse says that the main features that divide the humans from the animals should be searched in the ears, the eyes and the hearts. These ate the verses in relation with the ants and birds:

 

“Hosts of jinn, men and birds were marshaled to Suleiman. They were kept in order.
They came to the valley of the ant, an ant said: O you ants! Enter your houses! (So that) Suleiman and his arms may not crush you. They won’t realize (it).
So he smiled, wondering at her speech, and said: My Lord! Grant me that I should be grateful for Your favor which You have bestowed on me. And the favor You have bestowed on my parents. (Lead me) so I should do well such as You are pleased with. Make me enter, by Your mercy, into Your good servants, the good ones.
Suleiman inspected the birds’ host. Then said: How can’t I see the hoopoe. Is he of the absentees?

Saying: “Exalt not yourselves against me. Come to me and submit.
She said: O Leaders! Advice me the right in this affair! I never decide an affair except in your presence.” (An-Naml/ The Ant 27/17-32)

 

In these verses the reasonable speech of the ants and birds has been related. If you analyze these verses you will see that the main difference between the animals and the humans is not the reason. This is a related verse: “We have created for hell many of the jinn and men. They have hearts with which they do not understand. They have eyes with which they do not see. They have ears with which they do not hear. They are as a cattle (an’am), nay, they are even inferior. These are the neglectful ones.” (A’raf/Purgatory 7/179)

It is important to notice that the comparison has not been done between the humans and the animals but between the humans and the ‘an’am’, which are to be the farm animals such as the sheep, the cow and the camel and to notice that these farm animals have been considered superior to the infidels. The inferiors of these animals are the crow. In fact such people are considered to be crows. The Glorified Allah commands: “And the parable of those who disbelieve is as the parable of a crow which cries out to what it hears as a call and a cry (but does not understand). They are deaf, dumb (and) blind. They are void of wisdom.[1]” (Al-Baqara/ The Cow 2/171)

 

The ‘an’am’ posses a heart too, but their hearts have no other function besides pumping blood. The human heart, at the same time has the function of making decisions; it is the main commanding centre of the body. The mind identifies the truth. While, the heart effected by people’s personal profits, expectations and emulations accepts or denies them. The human reason is like an adviser input near the heart. If the heart decides not in accordance to the reason it means that it hadn’t been using the logical device. This is even shown in the conditioning of true faith with the heart’s approval. Thus no reason ever could infer that what the Prophet claims is not true. This is why the Qur’an always points to the logic. Although the pharaoh never admitted Musa as a Prophet his mind was sure about this. This can be noticed in the related verses: “So when Our clear evidences came to them, they said: This is clear enchantment.
And they denied them unjustly and arrogantly while their soul had been convinced of them.” An-Naml/The Ant 27/13-14)     

 

The verse below shows that the people of hell commit their sins conscientiously. “For those who disbelieve in their Lord is the punishment of hell. And evil is their destination.
When they are cast therein, they will hear a moaning. It will be boiling.
Almost bursting with rage. Whenever a group is cast into it, its keepers will ask them: Did no warner come to you?
They shall say: Indeed the warner came, but we denied (him) and said: Allah has not revealed anything to you; you are only in a great error.
And they shall say: Had we but listened or used our reason, we should not have been among the companions of the blazing fire.
So they then will confess their sins. But far will be (forgiveness) from the companions of the blazing fire.” (Al-Mulk/Kingship 67/6-11)

The ‘an’am’ are equipped with eyes but they lack perception of sight, which is stressed in the verse and means to comprehend the seen object. What would have happened if the ‘an’am’- sheep, cows, and camels- would comprehend that the person coming toward it with a knife in his hand was going to kill it? Would a bull continue to eat grass as nothing had happened if a bull close to him was just slaughtered? But people don’t allow a criminal to pass as nothing had happened.

Hearing is the comprehending and categorizing of the sounds that come to the ear. The ‘an’am lacks this.

The warning of the queen ant and the evaluation of the hoopoe bird shows them to be owners of sighting and hearing. But they lack the commanding centre, which gives the decisions for the life direction; the heart. This is what places them at the same category with the ‘an’am.

Humans are different; they give direction to their life in accordance with what they sense. Two are the ways in front of them; to live in compliance with the truth or shape the truths to become in compliance with them. If they have been enslaved from an idea or mentality they can’t make a free decision. The universal truths are replaced from the personal truths or from the truths of the community they are part of. This is the real blindness and deafness. The Glorified Allah commands: “Have they not traveled in the land so that they should have hearts with which to understand, or ears with which to hear? For surely it is not the eyes that are blind, but blind are the hearts which are in the breasts.” (Al-Hajj/Pilgrimage 22/46)

The eyes and the ears are the advisers of the heart. The eyes see the truths and the ears hear them but the might not take them in consideration. Then seeing and hearing lose their significance. The heart might even start to detest seeing and hearing the truths. This is why not the seeing and hearing, but the heart and the faith inside it- the admitting with all your heart- have been stressed so powerfully. The Glorified Allah commands: “Is it not clear to those who inherit the earth after its (former) residents that if We please We would afflict them on account of their faults and set a seal on their hearts so they would not hear.” (Al-A’raf/Pilgrimage 7/100)

 

So the trait that divides the humans from the animals is not the word, the hearing or the reason. It is their capability to shape their life in accordance to the knowledge obtained from these limbs. But, he who loses the feature of making free decisions loses the feature of being human too. As he is conscientious for his mistake, he is pressured from the weight of the truth. The despair, anxiety and depression of people are related with the right or faulty decisions they make. This is why there is no other responsible beside the people for the devastation of the world around us. The Glorified Allah commands: “Corruption has appeared in the land and the sea on account of what the hands of men have wrought, that He may make them taste a part of that which they have done, so that they may return.” (Ar-Room/ The Romans 30/41)

The positioning of the personal right instead of the universal ones together with the spreading ofdisorder and sedition belong to people just like the defending of these universal truths with their life if necessary is a feature that can be found only in the people as well. The Glorified Allah commands: “[2],[3],[4],And among men is he whose speech about the life of this world causes you to wonder, and he calls on Allah to witness as to what is in his heart, yet he is the most violent of adversaries.
[2.205] And when he turns back, he runs along in the land that he may cause mischief in it and destroy the tilth and the stock, and Allah does not love mischief-making.
[2.206] And when it is said to him, guard against (the punish ment of) Allah[5]; pride carries him off to sin, therefore hell is sufficient for him; and certainly it is an evil resting place.
[2.207] And among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah; and Allah is Affectionate to the servants.” (Al-Baqara/The Cow 2/204-207  

In the light of this knowledge the human can be defined as: “A creature that can shape his attitude with evaluation of the knowledge obtained from his limbs.”

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