Musings
Insects of the Qur' an
OLFAT
N
EARLY A FIFTH OF THE EARTH'S
s. EL-MALLAKH
5 BILLION
PEOPLE IS
Mus-
lim (Bassiouni 1988). These people hold the belief
that Muhammad, son of Abdullah, is one of the
prophets of God, as Moses and Jesus were before h.im. They
believe that the revelations of God were transmitted to Muhammad through the archangel Gabriel and ultimately recorded in the Qur'an. Because Muhammad was illiterate, the
Qur'an was written entirely by his close followers. All the
Qur'an's Surahs (chapters) were revealed before the prophet's death (some time between 610-632 A.D.) and are consequently believed to be an accurate reflection of his teachings.
Muhammad was born in 570 or 571 in Mecca, near the
western coast of Saudi Arabia. A member of the then powerful tribe of Quraysh, Muhammad is also believed to be a
descendant of Ishmael, son of Abraham. His father, Abdullah, died before Muhammad's birth, and Muhammad was
protected first by his grandfather, Abu' Muttalib, and subsequently by his uncle, Abu Talib, with whom he frequently
traveled to Syria in merchant caravans. As a young man, he
married a wealthy widow 15 years his senior, Kbadijah, a
move that rapidly gave him wealth and rank in Mecca.
It is believed that at the age of 40, during one of his frequent solitary meditations in a cave called Hira., outside
Mecca, Muhammad was contacted by the archangel Gabriel
in the first of a lifetime of revelations. This launched Muhammad's preaching career. But preaching a message of a
single God in a city ruled by idol worshipers placed Muhammad in some danger. On 20 June 622, learning of a plot to
murder him, Muhammad fled from Mecca to Yathrib (now
Madinah, meaning city), 200 miles to the north, where Muslim refugees and a community of Jewish scholars welcomed
him. This event, called the hegira (meaning migration),
marks the beginning of the Islamic community and, consequently, is used as the beginning of the Islamic calendar.
Over the ensuing years Muhammad's political strength
grew steadily. He declared war on Mecca, and through a series of military campaigns and treaties, reentered the city in
629. He died three years later, but the political power he created, fueled by religious fervor, continued to grow throughout the Arabian Peninsula and beyond.
There are several mentions of insects within the text of the
Qur'an and other instances where insects appear to have
played a role in Muhammad's life.
82
AND RIF
S. EL-MALLAKH
We reviewed English translations of the Qur'an and scholarly interpretations of the text (Pickthall Koran; Princeton
Qur'an, Ali 1984) for references to insects. We then reviewed
the appropriate passages in the original Arabic language of
the text to confirm the use and to develop a more accurate
appreciation of the context in which the insects are mentioned. For passages referring to biblical stories, we also reviewed the English Christian and Jewish Bibles as well as the
original Hebrew writings.
Five insects and an arachnid are recorded in a single passage each within the text of the Qur'an: gnat, locust, lice, bee,
ant, and spider. With the exception of the bee (probably Apis
melifera because of the reference to honey production) and
the locust (probably Schistocerca gregaria because of the reference to Moses), there is insufficient information to identify
the insects further. Additionally we identified one chapter in
which insects are not specifically mentioned but that Islamic
scholars believe involves bees, and one historical occurrence
that involves termites.
The Gnat
Surah II, "The Cow," gets its name for the incidental
mention of a cow. It is one of the most important chapters of
the Qur'an. The Surah presents many of Islamic rules of
self-conduct and worship. The gnat is mentioned in verse
26:
Lo! Allah disdaineth not to coin the similitude even of
a gnat. Those who believe know that it is the truth
from their Lord; but those who disbelieve say: What
doth Allah wish [to teach] by such a similitude? He
misleadethmany thereby,and the guideth many thereby; and He misleadeth thereby only miscreants;
In the passage the gnat is used as an example of a low creature that, while deserving disdain, is not shunned by Allah
(God).
The Locust
Locusts are mentioned in Surah VII, "The Heights." The
Surah recounts the stories of various opponents to God
through time. Verse 133 is part of the retelling of the story of
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Moses and the plagues that befell Egypt for Pharaoh Ramses'
refusal to free the Jewish people:
133. So We sent them the flood and the locusts and the
vermin and the frogs and the blood-a succession of
clear signs. But they were arrogant and became guilty.
The locust, probably the desert plague locust S. gregaria,
more frequently erupts into problem populations in Arabia
than Egypt (Uvarov 1977). It is very likely to have been
a familiar animal to the Arabian listeners or readers of
Muhammad's
time. The view of the locust as a curse or just
punishment for acts against God, as reflected in this passage
and in its predecessor, the Bible, is not at all dissimilar from
current views of its gregarious hoards as plagues.
Lice
Within the same verse of the seventh Surah, the English
translation of the Qur'an says that Egypt was sent "the flood
and the locusts and the vermin .... " However, the original Arabic language term used in the Qur'an for the vermin is qaml
which translates literally into "lice" but can also be used
collectively to indicate any sort of parasitic insect. The choice
of use of the word vermin may have been influenced by the
translator's knowledge of the Christian version of the Biblical
account that refers to flies and mosquitoes or gnats. Interestingly, the original Hebrew version of the story of Moses clearly refers to keneem (lice), while some of the Jewish English
translations alternately refer to lice or vermin.
Bees
Muhammad was quite fond of honey and there are several
references to honey in accounts of his life. It is thus appropriate
that Surah XVI is named "The Bee." The Surah generally deals
with the glory of God and man's relationship to Him. In verses
68 and 69, the bee is used asan example of God's greatness:
68. And the Lord inspired the bee, saying: Choose
thou habitations in the hills and in the trees and in that
which they thatch;
69. Then eat of all fruits and follow the ways of thy
Lord, made smooth (for thee). There cometh forth
from their bellies a drink diverse of hues. Wherein is
healing for mankind. Lo! herein is indeed a portent for
people who reflect.
Then, as now, insects were viewed as a lower form of life.
Thus, for God to be able to direct this creature to produce a
drink that "is healing for mankind,"
is great indeed. The
passage indicates a general knowledge of the source of honey
and the processing of nectar by bees. It also suggests that the
people of Arabia may have ascribed healing powers to honey
as have many other cultures. Finally, it suggests that the
Arabs of the 7th century may have developed apiculture, for
the bee may dwell "in that which they thatch."
Although Surah XVI is the only one in which either bees or
honey are directly mentioned, they play an important role in
the background
and meaning of Surah LXVI. That Surah,
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called the "Banning" or "The Prohibition,"
addresses the
relationship of man and God and generally states that the
laws of God supersede the activities of humans. It describes
an event in which Muhammad's
wives tricked him and
caused him to denounce something that Allah had made
legal. It reproaches both Muhammad and his wives for their
actions. Although the narrative of the text is vague in the
description of the actual circumstances, one widely accepted
tradition deals with the Prophet's love for honey. Apparently,
one of Muhammad's
wives used a gift of honey she had
received from a relative to woo him into staying with her
longer than was the practice. His other wives, miffed by these
events, plotted to convince him that the honey must have
been gathered by the bees from a foul smelling plant, and
now had resulted in the Prophet's emitting a horrible odor.
Dismayed by the events, the Prophet vowed never to drink
honey again. With the unveiling of the truth, there is reproach for both the Prophet and his wives.
The Ants
Surah XXVII was named "The Ants" because of verses 18
and 19:
18. Till, when they reached the Valley of the Ants, an
ant exclaimed; 0 ants! Enter your dwellings lest Solomon and his armies crush you, unperceiving.
19. And (Solomon) smiled, laughing at her speech, and
said: My Lord, arouse me to be thankful for Thy favor
wherewith Thou hast favored me and my parents, and
to do good that shall be pleasing unto Thee, and include me in (the number of) Thy righteous slaves.
In recounting the events of Solomon waging war with
Egypt, this Surah presents the account of Solomon's army in
the Valley of the Ants. While some scholars accept the literal
meaning and suggest a miracle in communicating
with ants,
others believe "The Ants" was the name of a human tribe
that Solomon encountered.
The Spider
The content of Surah XXIX was revealed to the prophet at
a time of Muslim persecution. The Surah was written to
reinforce the followers' beliefs and support them through a
difficult time. The name "The Spider" comes from verse 41,
where an analogy is made between a fragile spider's web and
idol worship:
41. The likeness of those who choose other patrons
than Allah is as the spider when she taketh unto herself
a house, and lo! the frailest of all houses is the spider's
house, if they but knew.
Termites
As Muhammad's
following increased so did his opposition. In Mecca, a group of powerful political and economic
leaders drew up and signed a document outlining a plan for
83
the social and economic boycott of Muhammad's entire clan.
The document was deposited in the Ka'bah (the holy place
believed to have been a temple built by Abraham, which,
then as now, was the object of pilgrimages). So significant
was this document, that Muhammad and his family fled the
city and lived in hiding. When, after three years the document was retrieved for revision, tradition says that the elders
were astounded to see that it had been destroyed by "white
ants" with the exception of a segment bearing the words "In
Thy name, 0 God" (Pickthall). Interpreting this as a miracle,
the City's elders removed the ban, and allowed Muhammad
and his family to reenter the city.
Muhammad
was not a scholar, had no formal education,
and was illiterate. Nonetheless,
he was certainly a worldly
man who traveled extensively and frequently communicated
with the scholars of his day. One might expect his knowledge
and opinions regarding insects to reflect the general Arabian
knowledge and attitudes of his time. Analysis of the instances
where insects are mentioned
in the Qur'an and ancient
Islamic traditions suggests that the general view of insects in
Arabia 1,400 years ago is not too different from today. With
the exception of bees, insects were seen as low life forms
whose interactions with man are mainly destructive. Because
the mention of insects is coincidental to the presentation of
historical events or religious instructions,
it is understandable that the range of insects mentioned is quite limited.
Of interest is the discovery that English translations of the
Qur'an erroneously translate "lice" to the more generic "vermin" in the retelling of the story of Moses. This appears to be
related to translators' earlier knowlege of the Christian Biblical version of the story where flies and mosquitoes or gnats
are said to have descended onto Egypt. The fact that the
Qur'an more accurately reflects the original Hebrew texts is
understandable,
as Muhammad
had extensive contact with
Jewish scholars.
Host Regulated
Developmental Mechanisms
in Vector Arthropods
Proceedings of the Third Symposium
Vero Beach. Florida. February 1993
Edited By
Dov Borovsky
Andrew Spielman
Thl 1993 edition of
Vero Beach Sympo lum senltS dttlCf1lbes
latest tud
be
on
vector rthropod
Ali, A. 1984. AI Qur'an: A contemporary translation. Pr~nceton
University Press, Princeton, NJ.
Bassiouni, M. C. 1988. Introduction to Islam. Rand McNally,
Chicago.
Pickthall, M. M. (not copyrighted). The meaning of the glorious
Koran. Mentor, New York.
Uvarov, B. 1977. Grasshoppers and locusts. a handbook of general
acridology. Volume 2. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge,
Pleasesend
copi of the 1993edition.
ESA Members:$21; Book Dealers: 28; Nonmembers:$35
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Olfat S. El-Mallakh is an instructor of religious studies at Illinois
Benedictine College in Lisle, IL. She specializes in religious traditions of the Middle East, particularly Coptic Christianity and Islam.
Rif S. EI·Mallakh is a psychiatrist who directs mood disorders research at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. He has
done graduate work in medical entomology. This article evolved
from a project being conducted with Donald Baumgartner investigating the role of insects as archeological artifacts. Address correspondence to Rif S. EI·Mallakh, Director, Mood Disorders
Research Programs, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral
Sciences, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville,
KY 40292.
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