Is the human being a mini universe? Alternatively, is the universe a gigantic human being?

We observe many similarities between human beings and the universe…

Humans have bones 🦴, the universe has rocks and stones.

Humans have hair, the universe has trees and plants. 🌴

Humans have biological fluids like blood, saliva, mucus, etc… The universe has rivers, streams, and oceans. 🌊

The physical aspect of the human body resembles the physical side of this universe while the human soul resembles the world of souls (the world where souls are gathered before they are born into this world) . (See The Flashes/The Thirtieth Flash/The Sixth Point/Fifth Ray/His Third Duty)

So what is the significance behind the human being a mini universe or the universe being a gigantic human?

Before we answer these questions, let’s do a quick recap of what it means for the names of God to appear or manifest themselves in this universe.

God has many names, including for instance The Compassionate (ar-Raheem), The Powerful (al-Qaadir), The Fashioner (al-Musawwir), etc…

In order for us to understand these names, He makes them appear in this universe and manifests them for us to see. For example, He gives mercy to mothers so they can take care of their children. By looking at mothers, we understand the concept of mercy, which in turn allows us to understand (to some degree at least) what it means for God is be The Merciful (ar-Rahman). Also, for example, God gave us numerous favors like eyes, legs, clothes, food, loved ones, and so on. These are also appearances of the name ar-Raheem (The Compassionate) in this universe that teach us about this name.

To see a more detailed discussion about these manifestations and appearances of the names of God, see the video over here.

Most names of God appear in every being, some names being more pronounced than others. Now, their is something in human nature that makes them equivalent to or perhaps even greater than the universe when it comes to manifesting the names of God.

Let’s first look at some examples.

al-Hakeem (The all-Wise)

The name al-Hakeem means The One Who has ultimate wisdom. The One Who does things in the most suitable and appropriate way possible. Basically, He does nothing in vain and there is a great wisdom in everything He does.

We can see this name appear in many beings throughout the universe:

• The entire universe is filled with wisdom. There is a reason why thunderstorms occur, why lightnings 🌩 strike, why planets orbit the sun ☀, why flowers 💐 have petals, why birds have beaks and lions have sharp teeth, and so on. All these occurrences are necessary for nature to function as it does: they all happen for a reason and are created in the most suitable and appropriate way. From atoms ⚛ to stars ✨ and galaxies, everything is in perfect harmony. (For instance, a fish is created in the most suitable way to survive in water, while penguins are created in a way that is most appropriate for their climate.)
• The same is true for animals as well. Every animals is created in the most appropriate way, with ultimate wisdom and balance. For instance, fish are created in the most suitable way to survive in water, while penguins are created in a way that is most appropriate for their climate. In fact, the wisdom of God becomes even more apparent in animals compared to other nonconscious beings. Why? Because in addition to the complex nature that they have like other beings, they also have a complex brain and consciousness. They are mobile and social beings. Also, they have a level of wisdom of their own. For example, animals may come up with a plan to search for food: there is a reason behind the actions they carry out. There is a level of wisdom in what they do.
• In comparison to animals and all other beings, humans are given a level of wisdom that no other being has. Due to the complexity of our brain, we have complex thought processes and come up with intricate plans and agendas. When we do things, we do them for a reason. Our wisdom is above all other creatures in this universe due our superior intelligence.

al-Musawwir (The Fashioner)

God is al-Musawwir (The Fashioner). He is the One Who gives a certain shape and fashion to each of His creatures.

• God gives each creature a certain shape and fashion, such as giving wings to birds and scales to fish. Furthermore, not only are these shapes and fashions functional but aesthetically pleasing as well. The planets in space, waterfalls, mountains, canyons, flowers, and animals are all breathtakingly beautiful. Just looking at these leaves us in complete awe.
• That God is The Fashioner (al-Musawwir) is most apparent in human beings. In addition to fashioning humans in the best form, God gave us the ability to adorn ourselves with various types of clothing and jewelry 💍. Furthermore, humans are given the ability to fashion things themselves, such as creating artwork 🎨, constructing buildings, or designing a website.

al-Qaadir (The Powerful)

God is The Powerful (al-Qaadir). He has ultimate power and can do anything He wills.

• The power of God is visible everywhere in this universe. Even majestic beings like oceans and volcanoes or even planets and stars abide by the rules set upon them by their Creator. Nothing transgresses the boundaries of science, thereby obeying the Creator of science and everything else.
• Again, the power of God is most visible in human beings. Indeed, creating such complex beings with consciousness, intricate thought processes, the ability to articulate their ideas and have deep conversations with one another, the ability to make discoveries and come up with new inventions and so on, can only be the creation of The Most Powerful Creator. In addition to making their Creator’s power apparent, humans are also given the ability to come up with inventions and tools that makes them more powerful than animals. This further manifests the power of their Creator, since only a Powerful God can create such powerful creatures.

Conclusion

Most of the names of God appear in every single being in this universe, of course in a more pronounced way when viewing the entire universe. Nonetheless, the level of manifestation and appearance of God’s names is no less in humans when compared to the universe. Yes that’s right, the level of manifestations or appearances of God’s names are no less than the entire universe. In a sense, we can call a human a “mini universe”, since every name that is manifested in the universe is also manifested in the human being. Or we may call this universe a “giant human being” for the same reason.

So, for instance, a Creator Who is powerful enough to create a human being should be powerful enough to create the entire universe, due to the high level of complexity of the human being and because the human is dependent on the universe (and intricately interconnected with the rest of the universe) . Similarly One Who can fashion the human being in the most perfect form – allow the human body to move via the nervous system, and make all body parts so cooperative with each other that numerous textbooks are necessary to explain them – should certainly be capable of fashioning this universe 🌌. The list goes on.

Now, a question may come to mind: how is it that the level of these manifestations or appearances is no less in human beings when humans too are a part of this universe? Well, humans are just “summaries” of the universe. For example the DNA of an animal is a ‘summary’ of the animal, so all the names that appear in animals are also apparent in just the DNA (in a more concise manner). Similarly, the names appearing in a tree or a fruit also appear in the seed. The same is true for humans in regards to this universe.

In fact, the same can be said about every being in this universe: we can say, for instance, that an apple is a summary or seed of this universe (see the footnote in The Words/The Tenth Word/The Seventh Truth). Again, this follows from the complexity in the creation of an apple and its dependence on the universe. For example, The One Who created the apple, must be The One Who created the tree. It follows then, that The One Who created the tree must be The One Who created the sun, air, soil, and water that the tree depends on, and so on.

So while everything in the universe is a “summary” of this universe, a human being is the most outstanding when it comes to being a summary of this universe and manifesting the names of God. (see The Words/The Thirty-third word/The Thirty-first Window/First Point).

Basically, the level that the names of God appear and are manifested in humans is no less than the universe. For this reason humans are said to have a “comprehensive nature” that “summarizes” everything in this universe and “includes” the appearances and manifestations of God’s names in other beings within the universe. In a sense, humans are “mini universes”. Put another way, the universe is a “gigantic human”.

Reference

Posts on this blog are insights from The Risale-i Nur Collection by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi