Is there a soul in plants like that of humans and animals, such that cutting trees and picking herbs transfers this soul to a barzakh life, similar to what happens when a human dies?
[AR_ID:1893]
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1 Answer
Peace be upon you.
There is no indication in the Holy Quran that when plants (trees, vegetables, fruits, etc.) die, their soul—assuming we accept that plants have a soul—transfers to a barzakh life, preparing them for resurrection on the Day of Judgment.
The Quran indicates that everything in the heavens and the earth glorifies Allah, but we do not understand their glorification. However, this does not imply that every being that glorifies Allah will be resurrected. There are various interpretations of glorification, not all of which confirm that the glorifiers possess consciousness.
There are two discussions here:
The first discussion: Is it correct to seek this question in the Quran?
The second discussion: What is certain is that there will be a return on the Day of Judgment.
The first discussion: Is it correct to seek this question in the Quran?
After agreeing that the Holy Quran is a clarification of everything and contains details of all matters, there are two theories regarding the comprehensiveness of the Quran for knowledge:
The first: That the clarification and detail of everything is absolute; the Quran contains all sciences, even if humans do not directly discover this from the apparent words; for the Quran has seven layers, even seventy layers...
The second: That the clarification and detail of everything pertains to the guidance of humans; the Quran does not neglect anything that leads humans to guidance. If you ask a friend if they have seen certain companions, and they reply that they have seen no one, it means they have not seen any of the companions, not that they have seen no one at all. Since the Quran was revealed for a specific purpose mentioned by Allah multiple times, which is the guidance of people, when it states that it has not neglected anything, it means it has not neglected anything related to guidance.
If the first theory is correct, we cannot benefit from it because that knowledge is from the hidden aspects of the Quran, which is not accessible to everyone. If the people of knowledge—other than the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the Imams (peace be upon them)—claim to possess knowledge of the hidden, they often lack evidence for the validity of their claims, as the epistemic authority is limited to those who have attained that knowledge themselves. Thus, it is almost of no benefit.
If the second theory is correct—an opinion held by Allameh Tabatabai (may his soul rest in peace)—then it is not appropriate to inquire about the life of plants and their transition to another world, as this is unrelated to human guidance. If it were relevant, it would have been mentioned.
The second discussion: What is certain is that there will be a return on the Day of Judgment.
There is no doubt that every human will return on the Day of Judgment for accountability. Allah created death and life to test people as to who is best in deeds, and then He rewards those who do good with goodness, and for those who disbelieve, there is the punishment of Hell, and what a terrible fate.
The return of humans serves the purpose of accountability. They are held accountable because they are responsible. It has been established that all people will return, even the fetus and the insane. Anyone who is recognized as a human will inevitably return.
As for non-humans, such as animals, plants, and inanimate objects, we have no evidence that plants return. However, there is evidence that animals will be resurrected; ﴿And there is no creature on earth, nor a bird that flies with its wings, but they are communities like you. We have not neglected anything in the Book; then to their Lord they will be gathered﴾ [Al-An'am: 38]. We do not know what will happen to them, but Allameh Tabatabai inferred that the verse indicates that animals will be held accountable, as they are communities like us, and there is a record in which nothing has been neglected. Just as humans have a record that does not overlook anything, no small or large deed is omitted.
The apparent meaning of the Holy Quran is that animals will be resurrected, as it has established that they are communities like us. We would not have known this without revelation.
As for plants (the subject of the question), there is no Quranic evidence that they return. Allah knows best.
It may be argued that reason proves—based on the substantial motion proposed by Sadr al-Muta'allihin—that plants return, similar to humans. However, the resurrection of plants is a resurrection that suits their nature. Sadr al-Muta'allihin (may Allah have mercy on him) stated: We have a separate treatise on this subject in which we explained the resurrection of all existing things, including inanimate objects and plants, to the Hereafter...) [The Four Journeys, Vol. 5, p. 198]. Please refer to it for further elaboration.