What is life ???
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Does this sound like a strange question to you?
Of course we all know what is meant by the word "life," but, how would you define it?!Do all living things move? Do they all eat and breath? Even though we all seem to know what is meant by saying something is "alive", for most people on earth, it's not very easy to describe what "life" really is. Especially for non-believers, its almost as hard as describing where life came from! As a matter of fact, even biologists (people who study life) have a tough time describing what life is! However, after many years of studying "living things", from the mold on your old tuna sandwich, to monkeys in the rainforest, biologists have determined that all "Living Organisms", or "Contiguous living systems", do share some things in common -- And here they are
1 ) Living things are cellular (consist of cells). Each one of their cells is bounded by its own outer membrane & contains full set of instructions for operation & reproduction.
2 ) Living things need to acquire energy and materials, otherwise they can't survive. The cells of the organisms use energy to grow, move particles, and heal injured parts.
3 ) Living things get rid of waste, such as toxins - Metabolism processes are collectively used to convert materials and energy for its needs, which creates waste products
4 ) Living things are mostly made up of water. All known forms of life depend on water, it is vital both as a body solvent & an essential part of many metabolism processes.
5 ) Living things grow with time & develop even more complex organisms to produce more energy and make new cells by multiplying through the process of Cell Division.
6 ) Living things reproduce & pass their traits onto their offspring. Both Sexuals and Asexuals have the encoded instructions & machinery necessary for self-reproduction.
7 ) Living things respond to their environment, and adapt . If I were to turn of the lights everyone would be silent, that's how all living things respond to there environment.
8 ) Most living things use oxygen to release energy from complex organic molecules such as glucose. Humans and Animals use oxygen to breath, thus, take in O2 and produce CO2, whereas plants exhale oxygen by taking in CO2 and producing O2. A minority of living things use sulfur or other chemicals as their prime oxidising agent and can survive in the total absence of oxygen; anaerobic bacteria such as sulfabacter are killed by oxygen. Still! As we all know, if there's Oxygen, there's life.
9 ) All Living things die. By living in a constant state of breakdown (injury, infection, desease, short life span, etc), balanced by a constant state of repair and /or growing. Eventually, the ability of an organism to maintain all the necessary functions and structures fails. When it fails, it dies. All living things die. Why? Because they live. We cannot prevent this chain of wisdom; for to prevent death is to not have a life! Death is a natural part of life. As a matter of fact, death is what gives life it's significance. Furthermore, the death of one sustains the life of another.
Now that we have revised these basic biological properties of life, we conclude that, from a scientific point of view, in order for something to be considered a "living thing" or "have life" as we know it, it must possess these specific characteristics. Interessting piece of information indeed, but not nearly enough to satisfy our thirst for knowledge, huh?! Actually, we haven't defined life yet! We haven't explained "why" living things exist! Or, to be more specific, what is the purpose of this period (of existence) between birth and death of a living thing on planet Earth?! What we have defined above is the condition that distinguishes living organisms (organic matter Humans, Animals, and Plants) from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death. So let's start from scratch. The real question is Why do we live? What is the meaning of it all (this existence)? What is the point of life when we come to the end? What is the purpose of life? How did it all start in the first place?!
To be continued InchaALLAH )
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This might answer some of your Questions
The Original purpose of our creation?
http//free-minds.org/forum/index.php?topic=9603282.0 -
From Quranic point of view
2130True are the Words of ALLAH SWT This goes in-line with
4 ) Living things are mostly made up of water. All known forms of life depend on water, it is vital both as a body solvent & an essential part of many metabolism processes.
& I'm sure there are more verses concerning the topic in question (such as 3185; 3019; 228; 1523; 1665; ...) SubhanALLAH
This might answer some of your Questions
The Original purpose of our creation?
http//free-minds.org/forum/index.php?topic=9603282.0I fully agree with you. The Glorious Qur'an does indeed teach us that "humans," as free-willed beings, are "expected" to be "morally" good (righteous) as "khalifa" on Earth... Thus, from a Quranic point of view (which is the correct perspective), life is a finite test. and the "purpose" of our existence (on Earth) is to "choose" to do good instead of evil. This sounds very reasonable (and true) to me
http//quran.com/30/19-25
Infinite Glory and Praise be to ALLAH (Subhanahu wataala) who bestowed upon us all kinds of favours and honoured us by making us muslims (which is the highest blessing) and valued us by giving us intelligence so we can understand HIS Glorious Verses and respond to HIS call by following the perfect form of guidance, the Glorious Qur'an. AlhamduliLLAH for everything.
Peace be unto you and thank you for your answers my brothers.
SLM
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Short, but interesting.
-Most our live depending on water, water contain oxcigen for breathing, for irrigate corps, and for human n animals drinks etc
-Human if not eat for days, can still survive, but if not drink for days..... -
I was looking for the source of life on our brain. I think it is the mid brain, at first I though it was the brain stem but now I think it is the mid brain, because the mid brain that felt all of the sensation our brain generate. If we understand how the brain work and how life can be exist, why not reviving the dead? Of course it is almost imposible, but hey, current researcher able to create a cell that detect a parasite and turned yellow. And they design it using a computers.
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I was looking for the source of life on our brain. I think it is the mid brain, at first I though it was the brain stem but now I think it is the mid brain, because the mid brain that felt all of the sensation our brain generate. If we understand how the brain work and how life can be exist, why not reviving the dead? Of course it is almost imposible, but hey, current researcher able to create a cell that detect a parasite and turned yellow. And they design it using a computers.
Salam Farabi,
The "body" of a human being cannot function without any of its vital organs which are there for a specific purpose that contribute to existence.
I'd like to point out that, all organs are ultimately related/connected to each other (directly or indirectly) and work together to allow the body to function normally. The brain, for instance, cannot survive without the heart supplying oxygen by pumping blood to it. and of course, the heart cannot function without the brain telling it what to do either. Both are vital to "keeping" us - I wont say "alive" but rather - "functioning" properly. I'm not sure why you associate the "source of life" with the mesencephalon! the theory seems to be based on assumption rather than scientific consensus -- at least from this side of the screen.From a Quranic point of view; the existence of mankind started when the Supreme Creator, ALLAH (SWT), created/shaped Adam (as) from the element of earth (clay), and gave life to him by "breathing" ( خ HIS "spirit" ( ح into the body of Adam. I believe this "Spirit of God" ( ‎ to be none other than the Archangel Galbriel/Jibril (as), mentioned also in the miraculous birth of Jesus (as) see 2191 and 6612. And, the moment when the angels (and ibliss) were ordered to bow/prostrate themselves before our Father Adam is when the later turned into a "human being," and started "experiencing life" for the first time. This, of course, is my humble understanding and ALLAH knows best.
3209 -
1529 -
3872 -.... why not reviving the dead? ....
I'm afraid thats impossible my brother Giggle
ALLAH (Subhanahu wa Ta'ala) ALONE can revive and resurrect the dead, the exception being if God HIMself willed otherwise. After all, according to the Qur'an, Jesus (as) was empowered by God to perform miracles/signs such as curing the sick and reviving the dead by the permission/will of God..., see
and He (God) will make him (Jesus) a messenger to the children of Israel (saying) 'I have come to you with a sign from your Lord that I fashion for you, out of clay, the likeness of a bird, and I breathe into it, and it becomes a bird by permission of God. I heal him who was born blind, and the leper, and I raise the dead by permission of God. And I announce unto you what ye eat and what ye store in your houses. 'Lo! Herein verily is a sign for you, if ye are to be believers.' 349
Infinite Glory and Praise be to ALLAH, the LORD of the Worlds
Thank you for your thoughts on the subject and peace be unto you my brotherSLM
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Yes its true it is my opinions. I just saw a few documentary about human development and make a conclusion from it. Im just curious where all of the signal generated from the brain sent. One part of the brain must be the real us, who can feel this and that. If we can found it, why not we change our body like we change our socks?
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1529 -
Sorry, maybe it's little off topic.
1529 ?Then when I complete him, my ruh to him...."
What's the meaning of Allah's Ruh in 1529?It's like Allah has ruh/soul like human like in the Bible teaching?
Salaam
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What's the meaning of Allah's Ruh in 1529? It's like Allah has ruh/soul like human like in the Bible teaching?
Sorry for the late reply my brother,
The Qur'an does not teach us that ALLAH (SWT) has (or is in need of) a "Soul" (Nafs, Ar س like human beings do! In my humble understanding, the "Spirit of God" ( ِ, or simply "the Spirit" (ح, is none other than the archangel Jibrael/Gabriel (peace be upon him). Quoting from the Verbatim Word of God
1917 -
And she took, in seclusion from them, a screen.
Then WE sent to her OUR SPIRIT , then he manifested himself to her as a well-proportioned human being.
2191 -
And she who safeguarded her chastity, so WE breathed into her through OUR SPIRIT and made her and her son a sign to the worlds.
6612 -
And Mary the daughter of 'Imran, who guarded her chastity; and WE breathed into it (her chaste body) of OUR SPIRIT ;
and she believed in the (truthful) words of her LORD and HIS Books, and she was, indeed, one of the devout (servants).
AND (OF COURSE) ALLAH KNOWS BEST CONCERNING HIS SPIRIT (1785).
Hope this helps ) Peace be unto you
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Peace hicham9.Thank you for your explanation.
As you know the verse of 1529 contain ambiguity meaning
There are two different intepretation Allah'ruh like human's soul or The Ruhul-Qudus Gabriel.
Yes by looking surrounding verses, the ruh is actually that Gabriel. -
Peace Family,
Of course the body is physical, which is part of the physical creation, but it is the soul
that animates us, curiously, my question is why do we refer to our bodies in terms
of ownership? We say "my body" or "my eye" or "her lips" describing ownership.
Therefore "we" are souls who own or as some say, borrow these bodies for a perod of
time. We animate these biological bodies and the Quran refers to us as such.
2/48 3/61 4/107. Therefore to answer the question "What is life." Life is comprised
of the biological necessities to live in an earthbound environment as described by
hicham9 as well as the animation component called the soul. How this animation
aspect works in the physical creation in other than humans is a topic for another
discussion.He shaped him and blew into him from His spirit.
And He gave you the hearing, the eyesight, and the brains; rarely are you thankful.God Bless
peace