that is dry, from what is cold and moist. This involves an even greater opposition of qualities, for combining heat with moisture is easier than combining heat with dryness: moisture can undergo changes that dryness cannot. Thus, heating air and water is easier than heating earth, even though fire itself is hot and dry, since it is a simple body.

Dryness is the opposite of moisture. Moisture can mean wetness, as in water, or readiness to undergo change, in which sense air is included ن. Likewise, dryness can mean the absence of wetness, in which case fire is dry; or it can mean slowness to change shape and undergo change, in which case earth is dry but fire is not. Earth therefore possesses dryness in both senses, unlike fire.

An animal, however, which possesses heat and moisture, is formed from three elements: earth, water, and air. As for the fiery component, there are two views. According to one, it contains fiery heat, even if it contains a portion of fire. According to the other, it does indeed contain a portion of fire.

In either case, the formation of an animal from the elements is more readily possible than the formation of fire from a green tree. Thus, One who has the power to create fire from a green tree is all the more capable of creating an animal from earth. The latter is familiar, although it involves adding components of air and water to the earth. The point is the combination of these elements in generated bodies.

Then He said:

“Is not He who created the heavens and the earth able to create the likes of them?”
Yā Sīn: [81]

This is a self-evident premise. Hence, He expressed it through a question eliciting acknowledgment, indicating that this