This episode discusses the scriptural evidence or lack thereof for Adam having biological parents. In other words, is it possible that Prophet Adam (a), though the first full human being with all of humanity’s metaphysical qualities, had biological parents or could have descended from an evolutionary tree? The main evidence against this lies in the discussion about the dhuhur or prima-facie meaning of the Qur’anic verse that compares Prophet Adam (a) to Prophet Isa (a) i.e. Jesus and his miraculous conception.
References:
Qur’anic References: Q.15:28-30, Q.7:11, Q.3:59, Q.2:117
Dr. Yadullah Sahebi, Quran Majid: Takamol va Khelqat Ensan (Iran: Sherkat Sehami Enteshar, 1387).
ʿAllāmah Ṭabātābaʾī trans. Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi, Tafsir al-Mizan, Volume 6, (Tehran: WOFIS, 1986).
1 ʿAllāmah Ṭabātābaʾī trans. Sayyid Saeed Akhtar Rizvi, Tafsir al-Mizan, Volume 6, (Tehran: WOFIS, 1986), 39.
ʼAyātullah Jawādī ʼĀmulī , Tafsir Tasnim, Volume 14, accessed February 20, 2015, http://www.aviny.com/quran/tasnim/jeld-14/tasnim-06.aspx#59.
1 Ayātullah Jawādī ʼĀmulī, Ṣūrat va Sīrat ʼInsān Dar Qur'an, accessed February 20, 2015, http://malakooti313.tebyan.net/post/7.
Sayyid Mahmud Taleqani, Portoye az Qur'an, accessed February 20, 2015, http://library.tebyan.net/newindex.aspx?pid=102834&ParentID=0&BookID=78609&MetaDataID=2464&Volume=1&PageIndex=113&PersonalID=0&NavigateMode=CommonLibrary&Content=#p71,
Shaykh Al-Ṣadūq aka Muhammad b. Husayn b. Babawayh al-Qummi, Al-Khiṣāl. Edited by Ali Akbar Ghaffari. Vol. 2. Qom: Jami’ah Mudarrisin, 1983 https://hadith.inoor.ir/hadith/316190?SourceID=0&PageType=ViewTranslate&HadithID=316190&FilterGroupID=0
“Becoming Bani Adam: Exploring Twelver-Shii Discussions on Human Ancestry” is a new podcast series which is an audiobook version of a long paper written by Ustadha Fatemah Meghji on the topic of human evolution in Twelver-Shii tradition with a focus on exegetical literature i.e. from tafsir. How does a person of faith grapple with evolution in today’s world? The audiobook is narrated by Br. Justin Mashouf and each episode includes an introduction by the author herself with a summary of previous episodes and at times, brief helpful explanations. Each episode spans between 10-20 minutes.