Tafseer of The Clot · Al-Alaq · 96:2
Created man from a clinging substance.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
Then He clarified what He created, saying: خَلَقَ الإنْسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ ("He created man from a clot of blood") — that is: from blood. He said "min ʿalaq" ("from ʿalaq"), while what is meant by it is "min ʿalaqa" ("from a clot of blood," singular), because He used the plural (collective) form, just as one says: shajara (a single tree) and shajar (trees, collective), and qaṣaba (a single reed-stalk) and qaṣab (reed, collective), and likewise ʿalaqa (a single clot of blood) and ʿalaq (collective). And He said precisely "min ʿalaq" while "al-insān" (man) is in the singular form, because it carries the meaning of a plural, even though it is in the singular form; therefore it was said: "min ʿalaq."
