Islam denies the Christian belief in the deity of the Holy Spirit. However it would seem that the they need to answer from their own Qur’an how it is possible for Allah to “blow from his ruh”, for the ruh to strengthen persons, and in the light of Muhammad explicitly denying knowledge of the ruh himself, how exactly are we saying the the ruh is not itself Allah and God in Islam too? This appears to be the true meaning of the Holy spirit in Islam from a close reading of the text. Further in another article we will ask how it might be that Jesus, himself being called that Spirit from God and God’s Word himself could himself also fail to be God. But the Spirit for now.
Headings
The Holy Spirit in Christianity
Throughout even the Old Testament of the Christian Scripture, it implicit that the Holy Spirit is God himself; this is because the Holy Spirit comes down upon some of the main Biblical characters in order to fill them with the power of God, and by which they are able to perform great feats. This leaves the options of it either being a case of “possession”, that of one being inhabiting another and thereby endowing them with power, which in the New Testament we only see demons performing, or it is God himself who inhabits that person. Angels are simply not given to perform miracles through persons. In addition we have numerous indications that when the “Holy Spirit” is used, is cannot be other than God, even though distinct from God in some way. All that is covered in some detail here https://onchristianity.net/2022/01/24/the-holy-trinity-in-judaism/
The ruh is in Allah/is itself Allah, it cannot be an angel
For Adam: “When I have fashioned (Adam) (in due proportion) and breathed into him from my spirit (wanakafhtu fihi min ruhi)…” (Q 15:29)
and: “But He fashioned him in due proportion, and breathed into him of/from His spirit (min ruhihi) ” (Q32:9)
And for Isa: “…we breathed into her (fiha) from (min) our spirit (ruhina)”(Q 21:91)
and: “…and in Mary, Imran’s daughter, who preserved her chastity, and we breathed into it (fihi) of/from (min) my spirit (ruhi)” (Q 66:12)
In the four Qur’anic verses mentioned above (29:91, 66:12, 15:29, 32:9), Allah is said to blow “from his spirit”, using the preposition min which has only two possible meanings, “of” or “from”. The simple implication is that either Allah has a spirit within him, or himself is the spirit. There way to blow of/from something unless that thing is itself in the person. Take the example of how we blow air of/from our “lungs”, or excrete from our “kidneys” and so on, those organs are inside us, irrespective of what is being moved out of our bodies (in this case “air”, and so on). Switching between the two alternative translations of min does not make a difference to the meaning. Were it the intention of the author to state that Allah had wanted to “blow his spirit” rather than “blow from his spirit” the wording would have been fanafakhna ruhina (blew my spirit) or fanafakhna ruhan minhu/minni/minna (blew a spirit from him/me/us) rather than fanafakhna min ruhihi (blow from my spirit).
It cannot be referring to the spirit of another (like Gabriel) as Allah’s spirit, else the verse becomes “Allah breathed into him of/from his Gabriel”, which is absurd, nor could it relate to a human soul, or it would read “Allah blew from the soul of Isa into Maryam” which is also absurd. Neither also an “attribute” of Allah- it would be absurd that some attribute of God were residing in a person as though it had an independent existence inside them.
Jesus as God of the Bible speaks in exactly the same sense:
“He breathed on them and told them “Receive the Holy Spirit”…” (John 20:22)
It is obvious that Jesus is speaking directly as God here, no one other than God could possibly breathe a Spirit of strength and authority upon others, whichever way the verse is interpreted. And from the Islamic perspective this is directly mirrored in the syntax of the Qur’an too, Allah “breathed of his spirit…”. In both cases we have the Deity breathing, and that which is breathed is inherent to the Deity itself. In the next section we also see also the divine strength and efficacy of this entity that is breathed- the act of strengthening.
A note that there is in verse 66:12 what one can only call a blasphemy which it bears to one’s conscience that it not be glossed over. The Arabic states in 66:12 “Mariam protected her genitals (farjaha) and I (referring to the Qur’anic Allah) blew (fanafakhna) into it (fihi) of my spirit (min ruhi)”. In 21:11 it is “blew into her (fiha) of our spirit (min ruhina)”.
Arabic language does have a neuter gender, and “farjaha” is a masculine noun still used today in formal Arabic which also can stand for “aperture/ gap/ hole”. Whichever way one looks at it, it is the genitals that are being alluded to here. Further, and quite apart from the blasphemous nature of the verse, the fact that a physical part is being alluded to necessitates that the point of contact is physical and this is not a spiritual description.
A personal being, but something other than angel
There are verses in which “ruh” is spoken of as distinct from the angels. Some would argue that this is only manner of speaking about prominent personages in crowd eg. “William Wallace and the Scotsmen”. I am not convinced because in the Islamic angelology Gabriel has no specified superiority over the other angels. Further, apart from not being an angel, it is obvious from these verses that the ruh is a personal being, rather than an emotion or attribute:
“He sends down the angels with the Spirit (bil-ruhi) of His command upon whomsoever He will among His servants, saying: Give you warning that there is no God but I; so fear you Me!” (Q 16:2)
“ The Day that the Spirit (l-ruhu) and the angels will stand forth in ranks, none shall speak except any who is permitted by (Allah) Most Gracious, and He will say what is right.” (Q78:38)
The angels and the spirit (wal-ruhu) ascend unto him in a Day the measure whereof is (as) fifty thousand years…” (Q 70:4)
“Whoever is an enemy of Allah, His angels and His messengers, and Gabriel and Michael; Allah is indeed the enemy to the disbelievers.” (Q 2:98)
If you both turn to Allah, then indeed your hearts are already inclined; and if you back up each other against him, then surely Allah it is who is his Guardian, and Jibreel and -the believers that do good, and the angels after that are the aiders” (Q 66:4)
But in some verses, ruh might be the angel Gabriel after all…
This verse, if linked to the original in Luke 26 would imply that the ruh is Gabriel from inference, since we know that it was Gabriel that was sent to Mary in the Christian Scripture:
“…Then We sent to her our ruh, and he represented himself to her as a well-proportioned man.” (Q 19:17)
The combined effect of these two verses again, is to imply that Jibril is the “Ruh-Qudoos”:
“Say: ‘Whosoever is an enemy to Gabriel — he it was that brought it down upon thy heart by the leave of God, confirming what was before it, and for a guidance and good tidings to the believers.” (Q 2:97)
“And when We exchange a verse in the place of another verse and God knows very well what He is sending down (…) Say: ‘The Holy Spirit sent it down from thy Lord in truth, and to confirm those who believe, and to be a guidance and good tidings to those who surrender.’ (Q 16:101-102)
Apart from the above, “ruh qudoos” is only used in three other places (2:253, 5:110, 16:110) and each time in relation to Jesus and the phrase “we supported him with the Holy Spirit” as we see next.
An entity God “Strengthens” with Cannot be an Angel
God does not strengthen persons by making an angel go and live inside their body. Such a concept is not seen in any of the Abrahamic religious traditions. Demons and malicious beings invade a person’s body with evil intent, and this is seen in both Islam and Christianity.
The ruh strengthens Isa, and other persons. Three times for Isa. “Qudoos” (holy) is specifically mentioned in relation to the ruh in two instances, Q 78:38 and 70:4. Here we see the use of the definite article, it is “the” Holy Spirt. That means that this cannot be interpreted as an abstract attribute, rather it must be a personal entity. I’ve had Muslims counter that angels could still offer some form of assistance and this might be the meaning of the verse. However in 5:110 the angel actually causes Isa to “speak to the people in childhood”. This is referring to Q19:29-32: “So she (Maryam) pointed to him. They said, “How can we speak to one who is in the cradle a child?” [Jesus] said, “Indeed, I am the servant of Allah. He has given me the Scripture and made me a prophet. Blessed He has made me, wherever I may be; and He has enjoined me to pray, and to give the alms, so long as I live, and likewise to cherish my mother; He has not made me arrogant, unprosperous. Peace be upon me, the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised up alive!'”
It would seem absurd that Jesus was “given this miracle” by God acting through an angel, rather than directly. Angels do not increase human beings in wisdom and cause essential changes in them, that is only through the act of God’s own grace working in his creature:
“say “we strengthened/ supported (wa-ayyadnāhu) him with the holy spirit”) And We did certainly give Moses the Torah and followed up after him with messengers. And We gave Jesus, the son of Mary, clear proofs and supported him with the Pure Spirit (birūḥi l-qudusi)” (Q 2:87)
also 2:253 also uses birūḥi l-qudusi:
“We gave Jesus son of Mary the clear signs, and confirmed him with the Holy Spirit”
And a third verse:
“then will God say: “O Jesus the son of Mary! Recount my favour to thee and to thy mother. Behold! I strengthened thee with the Holy Spirit, so that thou didst speak to the people in childhood and in maturity…” (Q 5:110).
And once for other persons. Here the ruh from Allah seemingly strengthens all believers and so it is unlikely to be Jibril. Here one could putatively make the claim God is strengthening persons with his “mercy” or “grace”. Its still a rather unlikely construction and I would argue much more likely to simply be reflection of the Holy Spirit coming up on persons in the OT:
“Thou wilt not find any people who believe in Allah and the Last Day, loving those who resist Allah and His Messenger, even though they were their fathers or their sons, or their brothers, or their kindred. For such He has written Faith in their hearts, and strengthened them with a spirit from Himself. And He will admit them to Gardens beneath which Rivers flow, to dwell therein (for ever). Allah will be well pleased with them, and they with Him. They are the Party of Allah. Truly it is the Party of Allah that will achieve Felicity.” (Q 58:22)
The Muslim Response: Is it “Mercy”?
Muslims might read this mysterious strengthening as “mercy” to avoid obvious implication- this is taken from the parallel usage in the Bible of the Holy Spirit strengthening persons which is a feature throughout the Bible from the OT to the NT. However Allah is said to be strengthening people with “the” Holy Spirit so “mercy” doesn’t really fit. Here are the NT usages, the OT ones are in the link:
“even before his birth he (John the Baptist) will be filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Luke 1:15b) and of Jesus himself “Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Luke 4:1), and OT instances here: https://onchristianity.net/2022/01/24/the-holy-trinity-in-judaism/#The_Holy_Spirit_in_the_Old_Testament
Is it Gabriel?
You might also hear it said that this is Gabriel, it is Gabriel that is being sent to strengthen persons. Here once again 58:22 is an outlier because it does not contain the definite article, it is ” spirit”, making it possible that this is actually only with regards to God’s mercy being sent. However that’s a stretch, because it is a very similar construction to the other verses bout Jesus. But if that were the case then it is highly unlikely that Gabriel goes around strengthening all Muslims believers, which is what 58:22 applies to. This is not even Muslim belief.
Further it the interpretation of it being Gabriel strengthening Jesus is also quite unlikely since in 5:110 is says that this “strengthening” caused Jesus to speak to the people in his childhood. Angels don’t give persons these abilities. What’s more it is only Isa, out of all the Qur’anic figures that is strengthened by THE ruh qudsi (holy spirit), yielding yet another unique attribute and special case for Jesus, and once again which makes is much more likely that rather than in the Qur’an, the explanation for this is to be found in the Gospel of Luke.
The Ruh is God’s Revelation?
In these verses it seems that the ruh is somehow being used as a word for revelation. How can revelation be “spirit”? Once again this is a stretch from the acknowledged Semitic semantic range of the word which covers “spirit”, “wind”, “breath”, “soul” (see appendix). Once again, it makes more sense to see this as borrowed Biblical usage God sending the Holy Spirit upon persons to give them prophecy. Again, these verses are quoted in the article https://onchristianity.net/2022/01/24/the-holy-trinity-in-judaism/#The_Holy_Spirit_in_the_Old_Testament, particularly under the section “Spirit speaking through the Prophets”:
(Q 42:52) “Even so We have revealed to thee a Spirit of Our bidding (or “command”). Thou knewest not what the Book was, nor belief; but We made it a light, whereby We guide whom We will of Our servants. And thou, surely thou shalt guide unto a straight path –“
(Q 40:15) “He sends the spirit from His command on whomever He chooses from his servants to warn.”
(Q 16:2) “He sends the angels with the spirit from His command on whomever He chooses from his servants to warn that there is only God but Him.”
The Ruh is Jesus too?
I’ve discussed this in a separate article here ().
Mohammed admits he does not know what the ruh is
Here Mohammed seemingly admits that he has not been told what exactly the Spirit is. Given all the possibilities we have discussed, this should not come as a surprise:
“They will question thee concerning the Spirit. Say: ‘The Spirit (l-rūḥu) is of the bidding (command) of my Lord. You have been given of knowledge nothing except a little.’” (Q 17:85)
“The Quraish said to the Jews: ‘Give us something that we can ask this man about.’ So he said: ‘Ask him about the Ruh.’ So they asked him about the Ruh. So Allah Most High, revealed: They ask you concerning the Ruh. Say: The Ruh is one of the things, the knowledge of which is only with my Lord. And of knowledge, you have been given only a little (Q 17:85). They replied: ‘We have been given immense knowledge, we were given the Tawrah, and whoever has been given the Tawrah, then he has indeed been given a wealth of knowledge.’ So the following was revealed: Say: ‘If the sea were ink for the Words of my Lord, surely the sea would be exhausted (before the Words of my Lord would be finished.) (18:109)'” (Tirmidhi Vol. 5, Bk.44, no. 3140 [Arabic: Bk. 47, no. 3433])
Appendix: Why is “ruh” both breath and spirit?
The Semitic languages do not actually have a separate word for “spirit” and “breath” and “wind”. The root of all these words are all the same form the simple reason that breath is like wind, and breath gives life and so it is like “spirit”, something intangible and divine. This phenomenon of a single linguistic form being employed with multiple meanings is called polysemy (from Greek: πολύ-, polý-, “many” and σῆμα, sêma, “sign”). It is a linguistic limitation, and the meaning is gleaned from the context. The NetBible explains the choice of translation for Genesis 1:3- “the Spirit (רוּחַ- ruach) of God hovered above the waters”: “The traditional rendering “Spirit of God” is preserved here, as opposed to a translation like “wind from/breath of God” (cf. NRSV)” Elsewhere in the OT the phrase refers consistently to the divine spirit that empowers and energizes individuals (see Gen. 41:38; Exod. 31:3; 35:31; Num. 24:2; 1 Sam 10:10; 11:6; 19:20, 23; Ezek. 11:24; 2 Chr. 15:1; 24:20) (hence the choice of “spirit” rather than “wind- my addition)”. Again the explanation of “hovered” rather than “blew” is given “The Hebrew verb has been translated “hovering” or “moving” (as a bird over her young, see Deut 32:11). The Syriac cognate term means “to brood over; to incubate.” (…) the verb does depict the presence of the Spirit of God moving about mysteriously over the waters, presumably preparing for the acts of creation to follow.” A good example is Psalm 104:29,30 “you take away their breath (ר֭וּחָם- rū-ḥām) they die, you send forth your spirit (ר֭וּחֲךָ rū-ḥă-ḵā) they are created”