Adam came only 6000 years ago according to Islamic Traditions

1st Proof: Authentic Ahadith 

According to the largest Salafi Fatwa website, IslamQA (http://islamqa.info/en/20907 ), which provides "Authentic Prophetic Traditions," there are specific gaps between different prophets from Muhammad to Adam. By combining these gaps, it is estimated that Adam came about 6000 years ago, as per Islamic belief.

Here are the calculated gaps:

1. The gap between Jesus and Muhammad: 600 years, as mentioned in Sahih Bukhari. The Bible also confirms the same as according to the bible Jesus came about 2000 years ago, and Prophet Muhammad came about 1400 years ago. 

2. The gap between Adam and Noah: 10 centuries, i.e., 1000 years, supported by an authentic tradition in Sahih Ibn Habban. It is the same in the Bible too, which states it was 1056 years. 

3. The gap between Noah and Abraham: 10 centuries, supported by Mustadrak al-Hakim and graded as "Sahih" by Saudi Grand Mufti Albani. The Bible (link) also confirms a similar gap.

4. The gap between Moses and Jesus: Approximately 1500 to 1700 years, as per accounts by al-Tabqaat and Ibn Hajar al-Asqallani, which aligns with the Bible's timeline.

5. The gap between Abraham and Moses: The Bible states a gap of 245 years (6 Generations: Abraham-Jacob-Levi-Kohath-Amran(Imran)- Moses), and Islamic sources such as Ibn Kathir (link) and Ibn Jarir Tabari (link) record exactly the same genealogy from Abraham to Moses as mentioned in the Bible.

By adding up these gaps, it is estimated that even within Islamic teachings, Adam came into existence around 6000 years ago, with a variation of +/-10%.

2nd Proof: Al-Tabari, the age of the universe is 6000 years

Al-Tabari is the most important Muslim historian. He recorded the following Traditions regarding the creation and age of the universe:

Hitory of Tabari, Vol. 1, pp. 172-173 (Link):

According to Ibn Humayd -Yahya b. Wadih -Yahya b. Ya'qub -Hammad -Sa'id b. Jubayr -Ibn 'Abbas: This world is one of the weeks of the other world-seven thousand years. Six thousand two hundred years have already passed. (The world) will surely experience hundreds of years, during which there will be no believer in the oneness of God there.
Others said that the total extent of time is six thousand years.
Those who said this
According to Abu Hisham -Mu'awiyah b. Hisham -Sufyan -al-A'mash -Abu Salih -Kab : This world is six thousand years.
According to Muhammad b. Sahl b. 'Askar -Ismail b. 'Abd al-Karim -'Abd al-Samad b. Ma'qil i -Wahb : Five thousand six hundred years of this world have elapsed. I do not know which kings and prophets lived in every period (zaman) of those years. I asked Wahb b. Munabbih: How long is (the total duration of) this world? He replied: Six thousand years.

History of Tabari, Vol. 1, pp. 183-184 (Link):

All these facts taken together make it clear that of the two statements I have mentioned concerning the total extent of time, the one from Ibn 'Abbas, and the other from Kab, the one more likely to be correct in accordance with the information coming from the Messenger of God is that of Ibn 'Abbas transmitted here by us on his authority: The world is one of the weeks of the other world-seven thousand years.'
Consequently, because this is so and the report on the authority of the Messenger of God is sound-namely, that he reported that what remained of the time of this world during his life was half a day, or five hundred years, since five hundred years are half a day of the days, of which one is a thousand years-the conclusion is that the time of this world that had elapsed to the moment of the Prophet's statement corresponds to what we have transmitted on the authority of Abu Tha'labah al-Khushani from the Prophet, and is 6,500 years or approximately 6,500 years. God knows best!
Our statement about the duration of the periods (azman) of this world from its very beginning to its very end is the most firmly established of all the statements we have, on account of the testimony to its soundness as explained by us. Information has (also) been transmitted on the authority of the Messenger of God to prove the soundness of the statement that all of this world is six thousand years. If its chain of transmitters were sound, we would have to go no further. It is Muhammad b. Sinan al-Qazzaz'43 -'Abd al-Samad b. 'Abd al-Warithf -Zabban -'Asim' -Abu Salih-Abu Hurayrah: The Messenger of God said: AI-hugb is eighty years. The day of them is one-sixth of this world."" According to this tradition, it is clear that all of this world is six thousand years. That is because, if one day of the other world equals one thousand years and a single such day is one-sixth of this world, the conclusion would be that the total is six of the days of the other world, and that is six thousand years.

What does "Qaran قرن" means?

Modern Islamic apologists claim that the difference between Noah and Abraham was 10 "Qaran قرن", which in Arabic means:

1. Either a Century
2. Or a Generation. 

They calculate that, considering Noah's age of more than 950 years, 10 Qaran would equate to about 10,000 years.

However, this argument faces several challenges:

1. All dictionaries (link) unanimously define Qaran as Century, with "generation" being a less common meaning, if used at all.
2. The choice of Noah's age as the standard for a generation is arbitrary. Why not consider Abraham's age, who lived for 175 years?
3. Muhammad was addressing people of his era, for whom the average generation span was not more than 100 years. The Quran and Hadith were revealed in simple language to suit the understanding of that time.
4. Even if we interpret "Qaran" as "generation" and apply it only to Noah, it still does not reconcile with scientific evidence of human fossils dating back much older, around 300,000 years.

It appears that the majority of Salaf (early) Islamic scholars held the view that 'Qaran' means 'century,' and the current trend of interpreting it as 'generation' seems to be a recent attempt by Islamic apologists to avoid contradictions between science and religion.

A tradition from Tabqat Ibn Sa'ad supports this perspective, stating that there were ten Qarns between Adam and Noah, where each Qarn was a span of one hundred years. Similarly, there were ten Qarns between Noah and Abraham, each spanning one hundred years.

Tabqat Ibn Sa'ad, Account of Generations and period between Adam and Muhammad (online Link):

He (Ibn Sa`d) said: Muhammad Ibn `Umar Ibn Waqid al-Aslami informed us on the authority of more than one scholar; they said: There were ten qarns between Adam and Nuh and every qarn is a span of one hundred years. There were ten qarns between Nuh and Ibrahim and a qarn was of the span of a century. Between Ibrahim and Musa Ibn `Imrán ,there was a span of ten qarns and a qarn was equal to one hundred years. 

3rd Proof: The "Stone Age" contradicts the claim that Adam existed before 10 thousand years ago

Islamic apologists, in response to evidence from modern human fossils, attempted to push back Adam's arrival to around 300 thousand years ago. However, the "Stone Age" undermines their argument.

The Stone Age is a significant period in human history, spanning from approximately 2.5 million years ago until just 10 thousand years ago.

_{www.ancient.eu/Stone_Age/}

The Stone Age is also divided into three different periods. Paleolithic or Old Stone Age: from the first production of stone artefacts, about 2.5 million years ago, to the end of the last Ice Age, about 9,600 BCE. This is the longest Stone Age period.

According to modern science, various hominids, including modern humans, Neanderthals, and Homo erectus, lived during the Stone Age. They relied solely on tools made of stones or bones for hunting and other activities until just 10 thousand years ago.

If we were to accept the premise that Adam arrived 300 thousand years ago, as suggested by modern human fossils, it raises questions that Islamic apologists must address. For instance:

• Why didn't Adam teach his descendants to use more advanced tools than simple stone tools?
• Why did his progeny continue to remain in the Stone Age for the next 290 thousand years, only emerging from it relatively recently?

This line of reasoning highlights the apparent inconsistency in the apologist's argument, particularly when considering the overwhelming evidence supporting the theory of evolution.

This theory of Islamic apologists (i.e. Adam came 300,000 years ago) becomes so ridiculous only while they have to deny the Theory of Evolution. 

4th Proof: Both the Bible and the Quran lack any knowledge of our ancestors' hunter-gatherer lifestyle that endured for approximately 290,000 years

Like the Stone Age, our ancestors also stayed as Hunter-gatherers for at least 290 thousand years, and they started to make settlements only 10 thousand years ago. 

A hunter-gatherer is a human living a lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging (gathering edible wild plants) and hunting (pursuing and killing wild animals), in the same way, that most natural omnivores do. In contrast to agricultural societies, which rely mainly on cultivating crops and raising domesticated animals for food production

But there is no mention of Hunter-gatherers in the Bible or in the Quran or any other religious book, while all these religions are much younger than 10 thousand years and their founders didn't know about the history of their ancestors.

The evolution and domestication of the following 3 animals played a vital role at the beginning of Herding Culture:

• Domestication of Sheep (around 11 thousand years ago)

• Domestication of Cows (around 10.5 thousand years ago)

• Domestication of Dogs (around 15 thousand years ago)

As compared to domestic sheep and cows, we have fossils of millions of other animals which go back millions of years ago. And we also have cave paintings of a lot of animals, which go up to 50,000 years ago (link). For example, look at this cave painting from the Cave of Altamira, Spain.

But as far as domestic sheep and cows are concerned, then neither there exists any fossil of them nor any cave painting of them which is older than 11,000 years. The same is true about the dogs and neither any fossil of a dog is present, nor any cave painting present which is older than 14000 years. 

Islamic stories portray Adam and his descendants as cultivators of crops and herders of domesticated animals, which sets them apart from the hunter-gatherer lifestyle. A specific verse (5:27) in the Quran and the commentaries of all Muslim Mufassirin present various traditions describing how Qabeel (son of Adam) offered a part of his crops as a 'sacrifice' to Allah, while his brother Habeel presented a sheep for the same purpose. These accounts reinforce the belief that Adam's lineage engaged in agricultural and herding practices rather than hunting and gathering.

For example, Ibn Kathir recorded this tradition and declared it to have a better than a good chain of narration (link):

وقال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا الحسن بن محمد بن الصباح حدثنا حجاج عن ابن جريج، أخبرني ابن خثيم قال أقبلت مع سعيد بن جبير، فحدثني عن ابن عباس، قال نهى أن تنكح المرأة أخاها توأمها، وأمر أن ينكحها غيره من إخوتها، وكان يولد له في كل بطن رجل وامرأة، فبينما هم كذلك، إذ ولد له امرأة وضيئة، وولد له أخرى قبيحة دميمة، فقال أخو الدميمة أنكحني أختك، وأنكحك أختي، فقال لا، أنا أحق بأختي، فقربا قرباناً، فتقبل من صاحب الكبش، ولم يتقبل من صاحب الزرع، فقتله. إسناد جيد.

Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn Abbas said -- that during the time of Adam -- "The woman was not allowed in marriage for her male twin, but Adam was commanded to marry her to any of her other brothers. In each pregnancy, Adam was given a twin, a male and a female. A beautiful daughter was once born for Adam and another one that was not beautiful. So the twin brother of the ugly daughter said, `Marry your sister to me and I will marry my sister to you.' He said, `No, for I have more right to my sister.' So they both offered a sacrifice. The sacrifice of the one who offered the sheep was accepted while the sacrifice of the other (the twin brother of the beautiful daughter), which consisted of some crops, was not accepted. So the latter killed his brother.'' This story has a better than good chain of narration.

Tafsir Tabari, under verse 5:27 (link):

حدثنـي موسى بن هارون، قال: ثنا عمرو بن حماد، قال: ثنا أسبـاط، عن السديّ، فـيـما ذكر عن أبـي مالك، وعن أبـي صالـح، عن ابن عبـاس. وعن مرّة، عن ابن مسعود، وعن ناس من أصحاب النبـيّ صلى الله عليه وسلم: كان لا يولد لآدم مولود إلا ولد معه جارية، فكان يزوّج غلام هذا البطن جارية هذا البطن الآخر، ويزوّج جارية هذا البطن غلام البطن هذا الآخر. حتـى ولد له ابنان يقال لهما: قابـيـل، وهابـيـل، وكان قابـيـل صاحب زرع، وكان هابـيـل صاحب ضرع. وكان قابـيـل أكبرهما، وكان له أخت أحسن من أخت هابـيـل. وإن هابـيـل طلب أن ينكح أخت قابـيـل، فأبى علـيه وقال: هي أختي ولدت معي، وهي أحسن من أختك، وأنا أحقّ أن أتزوّجها. فأمره أبوه أن يزوّجها هابـيـل فأبى. وإنهما قرّبـا قربـاناً إلـى الله أيهما أحقّ بـالـجارية، وكان آدم يومئذ قد غاب عنهما إلـى مكة ينظر إلـيها، قال الله لآدم: يا آدم، هل تعلـم أن لـي بـيتاً فـي الأرض؟ قال: اللهمّ لا قال: فإن لـي بـيتاً بـمكة فأته فقال آدم للسماء: احفظي ولدي بـالأمانة، فأبت. وقال للأرض فأبت، وقال للـجبـال فأبت، وقال لقابـيـل، فقال: نعم تذهب وترجع وتـجد أهلك كما يسرّك. فلـما انطلق آدم قرّبـا قربـاناً، وكان قابـيـل يفخر علـيه، فقال: أنا أحقّ بها منك، هي أختـي، وأنا أكبر منك، وأنا وصيّ والديّ. فلـما قرّبـا، قرّب هابـيـل جذعة سمينة، وقرّب قابـيـل حُزمة سنبل، فوجد فـيها سنبلة عظيـمة ففركها فأكلها. فنزلت النار فأكلت قربـان هابـيـل، وتركت قربـان قابـيـل، فغضب وقال: لأقتلنك حتـى لا تنكح أختـي فقال هابـيـل { إنَّـمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الـمُتَّقِـينَ }.

Translation:

It was narrated from as-Suddi, in his narration from Abu Maalik and from Abu Saalih from Ibn ‘Abbaas, and from Murrah from Ibn Mas‘ood, and from some of the companions of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): No son was born to Adam but a daughter would be born with him, and the boy from this pregnancy would marry the girl from another pregnancy, and the girl from this pregnancy would marry a boy from another pregnancy. This continued till two boys Qabeel and Habeel were born. Qabeel was a grower of crops, and Habeel kept the livestock of animals. Qabeel was the elder one, and the sister that was born along with him was more beautiful than the girl who was born along with Habeel. When Habeel wished to marry the sister of Qabeel, then Qabeel refused to accept it and said: "She is my sister as she was born along with me, and she is more beautiful than your sister, and thus I have more right to marry her. But his father (i.e. Adam) ordered him to let Habeel marry her, but Qabeel still refused. And both of them offered a sacrifice to see who had more right upon that girl ... Habeel offered a fat lamb as offering, while Qabeel offered a sheaf of corn, but took out a big corn from it and ate it. Fire came down (from heaven) and consumed the offering of Habeel, but not that of Qaabeel [i.e., Haabeel’s offering was accepted and Qaabeel’s was not]. Upon that Qabeel became angry and he said: "I will certainly kill you, and you will not be able to marry my sister. 
Grade: Sahih (Albani)

5th Proof: Agriculture also started only 10 thousand years ago

The practice of agriculture, including the cultivation of crops, began only around 10 thousand years ago during the Neolithic Period, which followed the end of the ice age.

Despite this historical evidence, both the Bible and the Quran assert that Adam initiated agriculture upon his arrival on Earth. In verse 5:27 of the Quran, along with its commentary by Ibn Jarir Tabari (link), multiple traditions are recorded describing how Qabeel (son of Adam) offered a part of his crop as a 'sacrifice' to Allah, while his brother Habeel presented a sheep for the same purpose. Similarly, other traditions mentioned by Ibn Kathir discuss the sacrifice of sheep and crops by the sons of Adam.

Thus, the cultivation of crops and the presence of domestic sheep also prove that the story of Adam cannot be older than 10 thousand years. 

6th Proof: The Bible, Quran, and other religious texts make no mention of the 'Ice Age.'

The Ice Age (link), which concluded approximately 10 thousand years ago, finds no reference in these ancient scriptures.

The absence of such knowledge can be attributed to the fact that these religious texts were authored much more recently than 10 thousand years ago. Consequently, their human creators lacked awareness of events that transpired thousands of years before their time, including the Stone Age and the Ice Age.

7th Proof: Adam vs Iron Age

8th Proof: Prophet Idris vs. Writing with the Pen

According to Islamic tradition, Prophet Idris (Enoch in the Bible) lived during the era of Adam and he is believed to have been one of the first people to write with a pen.

Ibn Kathir discussed Prophet Idris in his book "Stories of the Prophets" (قصص الأنبياء). In this text, Ibn Kathir mentions various attributes and contributions of Idris, including his wisdom, knowledge, and his introduction of writing and other sciences. Here is an excerpt from Ibn Kathir's "Stories of the Prophets" related to Idris:

"وذكر ابن إسحاق: أن إدريس كان أول من خط بالقلم، وقد أُلهِم علم النجوم والحساب." قصص الأنبياء، ابن كثير

"Ibn Ishaq mentioned that Idris was the first to write with a pen and he was inspired with the knowledge of the stars and mathematics." [Reference: Stories of the Prophets, Ibn Kathir]

Here is another relevant excerpt:

"ويقال: إن إدريس عليه السلام أول من كتب بالقلم، وأول من خاط الثياب ولبس المخيط، وأول من نظر في علم النجوم والحساب." قصص الأنبياء، ابن كثير

"It is said that Idris (peace be upon him) was the first to write with a pen, the first to sew garments and wear stitched clothing, and the first to study the science of stars and mathematics." [Reference: Stories of the Prophets, Ibn Kathir]

But we know that humans first started to write about 6000 years ago. 

History of writing - Wikipedia

3400 and 3100 BCE (i.e. about 6000 years ago CE)

Sumerian cuneiform and Egyptian hieroglyphs are generally considered to be the earliest examples of true writing systems. Both gradually evolved from proto-writing between 3400 and 3100 BCE. The Proto-Elamite script is also believed to have been in use during this period.

9th Proof: The challenge of Noah's Ark for Muslims

According to the bible, the gap between Adam and Noah was 1056 years.

And this gap is the same according to Islam too. Saudi Salafi Mufti at Islam Question Answer wrote (link):

The period between Adam and Nooh (peace be upon them both): it was narrated from Abu Umaamah that a man said: “O Messenger of Allaah, was Adam a Prophet?” He said, “Yes, and Allaah spoke to him.” The man asked, “How much (time) was there between him and Nooh?” He said, “Ten centuries.” Narrated by Ibn Hibbaan in his Saheeh, 14/69; and by al-Haakim, 2/262. He said it is saheeh according to the conditions of Muslim, and al-Dhahabi agreed with him. Ibn Katheer said in al-Bidaayah wa’l-Nihaayah (1/94): this is (saheeh) according to the conditions of Muslim, even though he did not narrate it. 

On one hand, the fossils of modern humans and other homos compel Muslims to claim that Adam came at least 300,000 years ago, but on the other hand, they are unable to tell how Noah could have constructed such a massive vessel using only stone and bone tools..

In the Quran, Noah's Ark is described as being made of "planks and nails" (Quran 54:13), implying that it was not a primitive construction from the Stone Age. Instead, it suggests the use of more advanced materials like wood, indicating a level of technology beyond that of the Stone Age.

Quran 54:13:
And We carried him on (ark) made of planks and nails,

Remember, Muhammad came only 1400 years ago, and till his time, iron nails were available and used for naval shipbuilding. 

The dilemma arises from the immense size of the ark, which was tasked with carrying pairs of animals from across the entire world, along with their food and water. Such an undertaking would require modern technology and tools, and even with today's technology, the largest wooden ship is only about 100 meters long. Furthermore, modern ships of this size rely on iron nails and steel wires to hold the planks together.

Even with the modern technology of today, the biggest ship, which is made out of wood, is only 100 meters long (link), even though not only a lot of iron nails have been used in it, but they also had to use steel wires in order to keep the planks together. 

The question remains: how could Noah have built such a colossal ark 300,000 years ago without access to the technology we have today, including iron wires or ropes? This paradox raises intriguing challenges for Muslims seeking to reconcile the traditional timeline with the account of Noah's Ark as described in their religious texts.

The oldest naval Ship is only 5 thousand years old

One of the issues faced by Muslims is related to the age of the oldest naval ship.

According to scientific discoveries (link), the oldest known naval ship is approximately 5 thousand years old, and it was built by the ancient Egyptians. These early Egyptian ships were quite rudimentary, constructed with planks for the hulls and tied together with ropes since the technology for making nails was not yet available.

Researchers have come across numerous paintings depicting these early naval ships, which are around 5 thousand years old. However, there is a significant absence of any paintings representing more advanced ships older than 5 thousand years. Additionally, there are no 'cave paintings' featuring any type of naval ship, despite the existence of cave paintings dating back as far as 50,000 years.

As a result, this raises questions for Muslims seeking to reconcile the age of the oldest naval ship with their historical and religious beliefs. The evidence points to the fact that advanced shipbuilding techniques and representations of such ships did not exist before the time of the early Egyptian vessels, further challenging traditional narratives.

Here is an image of an Egyptian boat from about 4 thousand years ago.

These Egyptian boats were the most advanced boats in the world from 4000 to 5000 years ago. 

Conclusion:

According to Islamic traditions, Adam came to the earth about 6,000 years ago. But science refuted this Islamic story, as it found thousands of human fossils which were way older than 6,000 years and the oldest human fossils are 300,000 years old. 

Thus, modern Muslims were compelled to deny their own traditions and come up with the new claim that Adam came at least 300,000 years (or even earlier). 

But again, Science refuted this Islamic claim, while the "Stone Age" ended only 10,000 years ago, and the first time "Cultivation of Crops" also started only 10,000 years ago after the end of the Ice Age.

While according to the Islamic story, Adam was able to cultivate the crops and his son Qabeel offered the sacrifice of the grains of the crop, while another son Habeel sacrificed a sheep for Allah. 

Another problem occurred with the Arch of Noah. According to Authentic Islamic Tradition, Noah came 10 Centuries (1,000 years) after Adam. But then how was Noah able to build that grand Naval Ship with "Stone Tools"? 

• The "Stone Age" means humans were able to make primitive tools out of stones or bones only.
• While the "Bronze Age" started 5,500 years ago only. There are no bronze tools which are older than 5,500 years.
• And the "Iron Age" started 3,500 years ago only. There are no iron tools present which are older than 3,500 years. 
• And the first Naval Ship is only 5,000 years old according to scientific research. 
• The "Ice Age" also ended 10,000 years ago, but Islam has absolutely no "clue" about the ice age. Also, the bible has no clue about the ice age. 
• Again Quran/Bible have zero clue about the dinosaur. 
• Scientists have found thousands of human fossils and stone tools which are much older than 6,000 years (and going back up to 300,000 years).  Link.
• And scientists also found cave paintings by human beings which are much more than 50,000 years old. Link.

In light of these scientific findings, the newer claims made by modern Muslims regarding Adam and Noah are once again refuted.

Shia Islam also claims Adam (as) came about 6000 to 7000 years ago

Please see the Tafsir al-Mizan by Shia Alim Tabatabai (link).

A reply by a Shia Scholar

Link:

There is no inconsistence between these two. If we have heard that Prophet Adam has been created six to seven thousand years ago, this might refer to a different and new generation of human beings which started with Prophet Adam (A.S.) and might have been preceded by numbers of generations of human beings who have gone extinct. There is a lot of evidence in hand that suggests a whole different generation of humans unlike Prophet Adam existed before him.

This is also in accord with the teachings of the Quran and Islamic Hadith. [1]

Allamah Tabatabai (R.A.) comments under the first ayah of surah Nisa’: “The surface meaning of the verse suggests that the term “ نفس واحدة ” is referring to Adam and “ زوجها ” to Eve, who are the mother and father of mankind. We also are from this generation [2] of humans and judging by the Quran, mankind’s species goes back to them. The noble verse implies that the existing generation of human beings goes back to Adam and Eve and that nobody else has played any part in producing this generation.

In the history of the Jews we read that the human species we know of doesn’t surpass a history of approximately seven thousand years which seems to be reasonable. Therefore, logic suggests the same as what history dictates. But geological experts believe the history of human beings to be millions of years.

This is their point of view, but the proof they present isn’t convincing. We don’t have a reason that proves that these fossils belong to the ancestors of this chain of human beings we witness today. We also have no reason to believe that these fossils don’t belong to a generation or kind of beings who lived before Prophet Adam (The Father of Mankind) and were instinct way before our ancestor and were never connected to the chain of human beings we are from.

The Holy Quran has not explicitly explained the emergence of mankind on the planet earth, in terms of whether we were the only generation of mankind or if there were other generations before us making us the last generation.

From paying attention to some verses of the Quran, we can slightly deduce that before the creation of Prophet Adam (The Father of Mankind) and his generation there were other human beings who lived here, where He says: “…And when your Lord said to the angels: I am going to place in the earth a khalif (representative), they asked: Will you place in it someone who will make mischief in it and shed blood”. [3]

Allamah Tabatabai says: “We can slightly deduce from ayah 30 of surah Al-Baqara that before the creation of Prophet Adam (A.S.) there was a different generation of human beings who caused the angels to ask: Will you place in it someone who will make mischief in it and shed blood .” [4]

This ayah implies that another generation of human beings was created before the generation of human beings we know and are part of what was created, which the angels were initially familiar with.

In some traditions coming from the imams (A.S.), we witness proof of the existence of eras of human beings prior to the current era.

Sheikh Saduq (A.S.) has narrated a hadith in which the imam tells the narrator: “You might believe that God Almighty has not created humans other than you. Well this is false because he has created millions of humans and you from the last generation of them.” [5]

In Khisal, Sheikh Saduq also narrates that Imam Baqir (A.S.) has stated: “From the time He created the earth, God Almighty has created within it, seven worlds (and made all of them instinct), none of which were of the generation of of Prophet Adam. God created all of them from the crust of this earth and created generation after generation with corresponding worlds for all generations till finally Prophet Adam was created and reproduced his descendants solely from him. [6] , [7]

On this account, if we conclude that the line of history for mankind extends to a million years based on fossils found perhaps in caves, they don’t belong to the current generation of human beings, because the story of Prophet Adam appears to be about 7000 years old. [8]

For more information on this topic, please refer to:

1. The Physical Creation of Prophet Adam, Question number: 399(415).

2. Quran and the Creation of Mankind, Question number: 5356(5578) .

Answer:

Certainly, there is a contradiction between Science and Islam regarding the origins of humanity.

The Quran does not provide any evidence of humans existing before Adam. The interpretation by this Shia scholar attempting to deduce pre-Adam human beings in the Quran is based on conjecture, which is itself considered impermissible in Shia Islam. The Quran asserts in several places that it is clear and easy to understand. So, the question arises, is there really a clear verse about humans before Adam?

The scholar presented two Ahadith, neither of which explicitly states that there were humans on earth before Adam.

The first hadith is:

Sheikh Saduq (A.S.) has narrated a hadith in which the imam tells the narrator: “You might believe that God Almighty has not created humans other than you. Well this is false because he has created millions of humans and you are from the last generation of them.”

In this tradition, the Shia Imam is not talking about the creation of humans before Adam. Instead, he is discussing the creation of humans before the man he was speaking with.

The second hadith is:

In Khisal, Sheikh Saduq also narrates that Imam Baqir (A.S.) has stated: “From the time He created the earth, God Almighty has created within it seven worlds (and made all of them extinct), none of which were of the generation of Prophet Adam. God created all of them from the crust of this earth and created generation after generation with corresponding worlds for all generations till finally Prophet Adam was created and reproduced his descendants solely from him.”

Again, the Imam is not referring to humans on this earth, but to humans on other earths.

The Quran mentions seven heavens and seven earths, and people have always wondered where the remaining six earths are and if there are people living on them. The Shia Imam, in this tradition, claims that Allah created humans who live on these other six earths as well.

Thus, according to this hadith, Adam and his descendants are alone on this earth.

Consider also that human beings have lived for 290,000 years in the Stone Age (the oldest human fossils are 300,000 years old, while the Stone Age ended only 10,000 years ago).

How is this possible?

If Allah was sending prophets to the so-called generations before Adam, how could they remain in the Stone Age for such a long period of time?

Additionally, human beings were hunter-gatherers until 10,000 years ago (no cultivation of crops, etc.).

Thousands of cave paintings exist, some about 50,000 years old, yet none show anyone praying to Allah or depict mosques. Why?

If Adam came only 6,000 years ago, we should find abundant archaeological evidence from 6,000 to 4,000 years ago worldwide, but there is no evidence of a monolithic God, his prophets, or mosques in cave paintings, skin paintings, or stone writings, except in the small area where Jews lived. Why?