Answer
Short Answer:
- Think how would humans live if dinosaurs were still alive? Only Allah is free from death. Only He lives forever.
- So, if dinosaurs or other beings created by Allah die and disappear from the earth, it is because their nature demands it, and it cannot be otherwise…
- In Allah’s scheme of creation, all things — whether big or small — have their place; though we may not be aware as to how and to what extent each being contributes to the whole.”
Salam,
Thank you for your rather interesting question.
Everything Dies Except Allah
The great difference between Allah and His creations is that Allah is Ever-Living, without beginning and without end.
Whereas all His creations are with a beginning and end. This means that the creations of Allah cannot but cease to exist.
Only Allah is free from disease, decay, and death. Only He lives forever.
So, if dinosaurs or other beings created by Allah die and disappear from the earth, it is because their nature demands it, and it cannot be otherwise.
Only the ignorant among humans would consider Allah a murderer for this.
The One Who gives life can take it back too.
We Have No Right to Question the Creator
Allah is the Almighty Creator, the Sovereign Ruler, and the unquestioned Owner of everything in the universe.
And it is out of His will that He chooses to create things or beings; and it is out of His will that He decides to destroy some creatures and creates some other creatures.
We have no right to question Him; and have no way of knowing Allah’s will, except for what He Himself has allowed us to know through His revelations through His prophets.
But Allah has granted us powers of rationality, observation, understanding, and analytical skills.
If we use these faculties to understand Allah’s creative power and figure out the rationale behind His choices in the light of His revelation, we may be able to get some knowledge about the nature of His creation.
Only Humans Have a Reasoning Mind
Of Allah’s creation, it is only humans who were invested with reason and freedom.
Only humans have been appointed Allah’s vicegerents — ambassadors — on earth.
Making use of the freedom Allah has given, only humans can ask questions of the kind asked by your friend.
In the Quran, Allah has clearly stated that everything on earth has been created for the benefit of us humans:
He it is Who created for you all that is in the earth. Then turned He to the heaven, and fashioned it as seven heavens. And He is knower of all things. (Quran 2:29)
This verse clearly lays stress on the fact that the best of Allah Almighty’s creation is humans.
This means that there is a great difference between humans and other creatures.
And for this reason, there is no comparison between the fate of other creatures and humans.
How Would Humans Live If Dinosaurs Were Still Alive?
The answer to the question, why Allah created dinosaurs, is the same as the answer to the question, why Allah created the tiniest microbes or bacteria.
In Allah’s scheme of creation, all things — whether big or small — have their place; though we may not be aware as to how and to what extent each being contributes to the whole.
This has been recently established by the new science of ecology.
For instance, we now know that the destruction of forests in one part of the planet may adversely affect the climate of a far distant region.
Another point to note: If Allah had created the dinosaurs and allowed them to multiply in large numbers until eternity, where would the place for humans have been?
If dinosaurs had been eating humans, the question of your friend would then be: “Why doesn’t Allah destroy the dinosaurs?”
Nothing happens without the knowledge of Allah Almighty, and nothing happens without good reason, and all things and beings are interconnected in mysterious ways.
The present system may be one out of a number of possible scenarios, and we may take some time to realize the rationale behind it, or we may never know.
I hope this helps. Please keep in touch.
(From Ask About Islam archives)
Salam.
(From Ask About Islam’s archives)
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