A017
Surah: 071 - Ayah: 017
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71:17
Vegetative Soul
Q. 1. What is the name given to the soul which exists in trees, brake, bramble and all kinds of vegetation? Is there only one soul in vegetation?
A. The soul which exists in every growing thing is called the vegetative soul. It is also called the growing soul. Yes, there is only one soul in vegetation.
(Note: Regarding the vegetative soul, it is said: “And Allah has caused you to grow as a vegetable from the earth” (71:17))
Further, regarding the benevolent function of the vegetative soul, which was in the pure personality of Hazrat Maryam, God says: “He made her grow a goodly growth” (3:37).
However, it is necessary to understand what Rumi has said and the way he has said it. Rumi has mentioned the different stages of human creation in the light of the holy Qur'an. In the Qur'an it is said everywhere that man is created out of clay, which is undoubtedly from among the minerals. Then it is said: “And Allah has caused you to grow as a growth from the earth.” (71:17). It is also mentioned in the Qur'an that men drink the milk of lawful animals (16:66) and eat their flesh (35:12). This shows that man’s body, and his animal soul, are created from minerals, vegetables and animals. It is in this sense Rumi has said about himself that first he was [in the form] of a mineral, then vegetable, then animal, and then was transformed into man. The sense in which men are Adam’s children is that the human soul comes from Adam and Eve and continues from generation to generation.
This verse has been referred 1 times.