Human Conception

I've been reading about the first two verses of Surah Al-Alaq (The Clot) from the Quran.

http://quran.com/96/1 : Recite in the name of your Lord who created
http://quran.com/96/2 : Created man from a clinging substance.

The second verse describe the creation of human from Alaq. Alaq is defined as

The linguistic definition of ′alaq علق (singular 'alaqah علقة) is "leech", "medicinal leech", "coagulated blood", "blood clot", or "the early stage of the embryo".[1] ′Alaq is also a derivative of 'alaqa which means "attached and hanging to something." [2] Professor Abdul Haleem mentions that "′alaq can also mean anything that clings: a clot of blood, a leech, even a lump of mud. All these meanings involve the basic idea of clinging or sticking."[3]

But that's not all. There are other verses that eloborate conception of human in the womb. Look into Surah Al-Mu'mineen

http://quran.com/23/12 : And certainly did We create man from an extract of clay.
http://quran.com/23/13: Then We placed him as a sperm-drop in a firm lodging.
http://quran.com/23/14: Then We made the sperm-drop into a clinging clot, and We made the clot into a lump [of flesh], and We made [from] the lump, bones, and We covered the bones with flesh; then We developed him into another creation. So blessed is Allah , the best of creators.

I think the most striking verse is verse 14 of Surah al-Mu'mineen. The description of the human conception in that verse is no different than what we understand now (the process of human fertilization and pregnancy).

And I think this is a big deal for the simple fact that in most of the human history, right up to 18 and 19 century, we actually didn't really know how the human conception worked (fertilization and the growth of the baby in the mother's womb). That was until we could verify and validate via ultrasound or IVF.

So, the next question would be, if we didn't know how the baby formed, then what did people actually think was happening in the mother's womb for more than 9 months?

Here's one idea of human creation (Preformationism) and it is absolutely wrong!

In the history of biology, preformationism (or preformism) is the idea that organisms develop from miniature versions of themselves. Instead of assembly from parts, preformationists believe that the form of living things exist, in real terms, prior to their development.[1] It suggests that all organisms were created at the same time, and that succeeding generations grow from homunculi, or animalcules, that have existed since the beginning of creation.

A lot of big philosophers and scientists of the old days subscribed to this idea that human were already in their miniature form (mini me) before the birth. The main problem was that the people couldn't even imagine that human could evolve from single cells (one or two part to form a highly complex multi cell organism). Until people were convinced via science, they didn't think it was possible that something as simple as a blood clot can turn into what the Quran defined as the other creation.

Still, the idea that unorganized matter could ultimately self-organize into life challenged the mechanistic framework of Cartesianism, which had become dominant in the Scientific Revolution. Because of technological limitations, there was no available mechanical explanation for epigenesis. [6] It was simpler and more convenient to postulate preformed miniature organisms that expanded in accordance with mechanical laws. So convincing was this explanation that some naturalists claimed to actually see miniature preformed animals (animalcules) in eggs and miniature plants in seeds.[3] In the case of humans, the term homunculus was used.

Here's the link again if you are interested to read more about this.

References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Alaq
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preformationism