Islamic Jurisprudence and Embryology: Holy Scriptures Versus Jewish and Greek Physicians Islamitische jurisprudentie en embryologie: Heilige Schriften versus Joodse en Griekse artsen

Abstract

This article unravels a hitherto unstudied chapter in the relationship between science and religion in the Islamic tradition. The main focus here is the discourse of the 13th-century Muslim jurist al-Qarāfī on the development of embryos during pregnancy; the opinions of four other jurists are also outlined. These juristic discussions show that religious rulings relevant to embryology were drafted not only with the help of relevant references in the Islamic holy scriptures but also by consulting medical writings. The medical works attributed to Hippocrates as well as those of Jewish physicians proved to be influential in these juristic discussions.