01The sign
In the Quran God brings the living from the dead, and brings the dead from the living. Skeptics claim that whoever wrote the Quran made a mistake; bringing the living form the dead is impossible. Today scientists confirm that dead organisms recycle back into living organisms.
02Scientific evidence
"Nutrient Cycle The nutrient cycle is nature's recycling system. All forms of recycling have feedback loops that use energy in the process of putting material resources back into use. Recycling in ecology is regulated to a large extent during the process of decomposition. Ecosystems employ biodiversity in the food webs that recycle natural materials, such as mineral nutrients, which includes water. Recycling in natural systems is one of the many ecosystem services that sustain and contribute to the well-being of human societies."
Nutrients recycle back into living organisms. This was known recently, however this was portrayed in the Quran 1400 years before it was discovered.
03Qur'an passage · Quran 6:95
إِنَّ اللَّهَ فَالِقُ الْحَبِّ وَالنَّوَىٰ ۖ يُخْرِجُ الْحَيَّ مِنَ الْمَيِّتِ وَمُخْرِجُ الْمَيِّتِ مِنَ الْحَيِّ ۚ ذَٰلِكُمُ اللَّهُ ۖ فَأَنَّىٰ تُؤْفَكُونَ ٩٥
It is Allah Who splits the grain and the seed. He brings the living from the dead, and He brings the dead from the living. Such is Allah. So how could you deviate?
04Reflection
The seeds are organic matter and Allah brings the living from the dead, and brings the dead from the living. Today we know what it is; this is nutrient cycle.
Additional references
Original article: Miracles of Quran. The Wikipedia excerpt is credited to Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; our translations of that excerpt use the same license. The summaries below are separate additions.
Additional references
English Quran translation: Talal Itani, ClearQuran.com (Allah edition), CC BY-ND 4.0. Other languages provide independently worded meanings of the Arabic.
Additional evidence — summary
يُخۡرِجُ ٱلۡحَيَّ مِنَ ٱلۡمَيِّتِ وَيُخۡرِجُ ٱلۡمَيِّتَ مِنَ ٱلۡحَيِّ وَيُحۡيِ ٱلۡأَرۡضَ بَعۡدَ مَوۡتِهَاۚ وَكَذَٰلِكَ تُخۡرَجُونَ ١٩
He brings the living from the dead and the dead from the living, and gives the earth life after its death. In this way you too will be brought forth.
Quran 30:19 brings together life, death and the revival of the earth, and points to resurrection. This gives a wider Quranic setting for reflecting on renewal in nature. It does not describe the steps of microbial decomposition.
Additional evidence — summary
Ibn Kathir explains 6:95 through plants growing from grain and fruit stones, and also mentions the chicken and egg. These are examples in Islamic interpretation. Reading the verse alongside nutrient cycling is a modern reflection, rather than the only meaning given in tafsir.
Additional evidence — summary
The USDA Soil Biology Primer explains that soil organisms drive decomposition and nutrient cycling. Bacteria, fungi and other soil life help return nutrients to the food web and support plant growth. Matter is reused; this does not mean a dead individual comes back to life. These sources do not establish the original article’s claim about when people first knew this.
05 · Ponder