of his short ribs from his left side. "And He sent down for you," meaning: He created for you, "of the cattle eight kinds," [of which] each one is a pair; these are the eight pairs mentioned in Surah al-An'am. "He creates you in the bellies of your mothers, creation after creation," meaning: a drop (nutfa), then a clinging clot ('alaqa), then a chewed-like lump (mudgha), then bones, then He clothes the bones with flesh, then hair, then He breathes the spirit into him, "in three darknesses," meaning: the belly, the placenta, and the womb. "So how are you deluded?" meaning: where are you being led away so that you worship other than Him, while you know that He created you and created these things?!
من أضلاعه القُصيري من جنبه الْأَيْسَر ﴿وَأنزل لكم﴾ أَي: وَخلق لكم ﴿مِنَ الأَنْعَامِ ثَمَانِيَة أَزوَاج﴾ أَصْنَاف الْوَاحِد مِنْهَا زوجٌ , هِيَ الْأزْوَاج الثَّمَانِية الَّتِي ذكر فِي سُورَة الْأَنْعَام ﴿يَخْلُقُكُمْ فِي بُطُونِ أُمَّهَاتِكُمْ خلقا من بعد خلق﴾ يَعْنِي: نُطْفَة ثمَّ علقَة ثمَّ مُضْغَة ثمَّ عظامًا ثمَّ يُكسي الْعِظَام اللَّحْم ثمَّ الشّعْر ثمَّ ينْفخ فِيهِ الرّوح ﴿فِي ظُلُمَاتٍ ثَلَاث﴾ يَعْنِي: الْبَطن والمشيمة وَالرحم ﴿فَأَنَّى تصرفون﴾ أيْ: أَيْنَ يُذْهَبُ بكُمْ فتعبدون غَيره وَأَنْتُم تعلمُونَ أَنَّهُ خَلقكُم وَخلق هَذِه الْأَشْيَاء؟!
