415. Cloning is a possibility.
The verses (3:46, 19:21, 19:29,30, 21:91, 23:50) of the Quran guide us regarding our comprehension of what is known today as cloning. Prophet Isa was born of a virgin mother without the participation of a male sperm. The Quran mentions this not just a historical event, but encourages to ponder about it and says, ‘this is a testimony’. When there is a doubt about the possibility of a certain happening, the question to ponder about it does not arise. This verse talks of pondering over this happening because the chances of it becoming a reality exists when put on trial. In today’s world it has been discovered organisms can be created from stem cells.
For example when a goat gives birth to a kid, the offspring does not necessarily resemble the mother or the male in all aspects, characteristics etc. It resembles the mother in some aspects and the male parent in others, or in some cases, the offspring is entirely different from the parents altogether.
But the goat created from the genetic material of one would resemble it in all aspects. This kind of creation from the genetic material is known as cloning.
We need to understand the reason as to why the resultant kid is entirely similar to the one from which the genetic material was sourced. The genetic material for the fetus is formed, when the sperm of a male and the egg of a female fuse giving rise to a fertilized egg.
Since the genetic material becomes a mixture from both the parents, the resultant offspring need not necessarily represent the parents in all aspects.
At the same time the genetic material is present in all the cells of the body of a person, which are separated for all kinds of studies and analyses. The age of a person is the same as the age of the genetic material.
Hence the baby created from the genetic material of a person by cloning appears exactly a copy of the person.
The egg of a female and the sperm of a male are placed in a test tube, and developed into a fertilized egg containing genetic material from both the parents, and allowed to grow and develop for a period of time. Later the genetic material from this developed egg is removed and replaced with the genetic material of the person who needs to be cloned, and placed in a test tube for a certain period to develop sufficiently and is later placed in the uterus of a female to develop into a normal baby.
Though this trial has not been carried out on humans, the scientists have succeeded in animals like buffaloes, goats and pigs.
And the scientists have computed the consequences of cloning humans.
According to them if the genetic material of a twenty-five year old is cloned the resultant baby would possess the characteristics, intelligence, and thinking capacity of a twenty-five-year old.
Taking these details into consideration let’s delve into the Quran’s claim on Prophet Isa’s birth.
If the Almighty decided to create a being without a male participation, He would have done it by a command ‘Be’ and it comes into being, but we find in the Quran mentioned as, the Almighty sends an angel in human form to blow into Prophet Isa’s mother Maryam. From this incident mentioned in the Quran it needs to be concluded that a genetic material created with the power of the Almighty has been blown into Maryam (AS), and also to establish the fact that whatever the way a baby is created, a womb is a necessity. Another aspect that needs to be considered is, the mention in the Quran, about Prophet Isa talking at his birth.
It did happen, to prove his miraculous birth he spoke a few words and continued as an infant, but he was also declared a messenger of God at the time when he was an infant.
We are aware that a messenger of God needs to comprehend the messages himself first, and deliver the same to the people
The fact that Prophet Isa started talking at his birth, and his ability to comprehend the messages from God, and deliver it to people confirm the view of scientists about cloning.
