the womb and the darkness of the abdomen. In the second creation, they will not be in a woman’s womb or be nourished with blood, nor will any of them be a drop of fluid from a man and a woman that then becomes a clinging clot. Rather, they will be brought into being through another creation, with dust as its material, as He says:

“From it We created you, into it We shall return you, and from it We shall bring you out once again.”

The Most High also says:

“There you will live, there you will die, and from there you will be brought forth.”

And He says:

“Allah caused you to grow from the earth like plants.”

“Then He will return you into it and bring you forth once again.”

The hadith states:

“The earth will receive rain like men’s semen, and they will grow in their graves as plants grow.”

As the Most High says:

“Such will be the emergence.”

“Such will be the resurrection.”

“Thus do We bring forth the dead, so that you may take heed.”

It is thus clear that the two creations are two kinds within one genus: they agree, resemble one another, and are alike in one respect, while differing and constituting distinct kinds in another. Hence, what is restored is regarded both as the original itself and as something like it. Insofar as the original and the restored coincide, it is the very same thing; insofar as the two creations differ, it is something like it. The same applies to everything that is brought back.

The term “restoration” thus entails an original and something restored. This applies equally to the restoration of bodies and of accidents, as in repeating a prayer or other acts. For:

“The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) passed a man praying alone behind the row and ordered him to repeat the prayer.”

One says to a man, “Repeat what you said.” It is also said, “So-and-so repeated so-and-so’s very words,” and, “He repeats the lesson.” The words are the same words, even though the second speaker’s voice and movements differ from the first’s; nor