Did the early Muslim scholars discuss the miraculous nature of the Qurʾān?

Yes, early Muslim scholars recognized and highlighted the miraculous nature of the Qurʾān, particularly in its accurate description of human prenatal development, which corrected widespread misconceptions held by ancient thinkers. For instance, the Aristotelian misconception that male sperm alone causes the development of the embryo from menstrual blood in the female uterus persisted among ancient physicians for centuries. However, early Muslim scholars rejected it, instead basing their views on the teachings of the Qurʾān. Ibn Ḥajar stated: “Many anatomists claim that the male fluid has no effect on the creation of the child except for the coagulation of [menstrual] blood, and that the child is formed from blood. However, the Prophet (PBUH)’s tradition on this subject refutes this claim.”¹ This is a vivid example of how the Qurʾān and Sunnah took precedence over the beliefs held by non-Muslim thinkers for centuries. As earlier stated, at the time when the Qurʾān was revealed, non-Muslim thinkers believed that the embryo is fully created from the man’s sperm alone, and that it subsequently grows after entering the uterus. This misconception persisted until the 18th century, when the invention of the microscope demonstrated that both sperm and ovum are necessary for conception—a discovery made many centuries after it was revealed in the Qurʾān. Allāh says: {˹For˺ indeed, We ˹alone˺ created humans from a drop of mixed fluids} (Qurʾān 76:2). Al-Qurṭubī commented on this verse, saying: “They claim that the human embryo is created from the man’s ejaculate alone and that menstrual blood nourishes it in the womb. However, the truth is that both male and female fluids participate in the creation of the embryo, for this verse is entirely clear and cannot be interpreted otherwise.”² Hence, while many ancient physicians believed that the role of male semen in the creation of the embryo was limited to coagulating menstrual blood, and while the preformation theory prevailed in Europe for two centuries (from the late 17th century to the late 18th century), exegetes of the Qurʾān and Ḥadīth (Prophetic traditions) did not fall into error. Instead, they corrected numerous erroneous ideas regarding the creation of Man by providing the Qurʾānic account of each stage of prenatal development.