لَقَد خَلَقنَا الإِنسانَ في أَحسَنِ تَقويمٍ

We certainly created man in the best of forms.

EXEGESIS

The word used for forms in the verse is taqwīm, an infinitive derived from the verb qawwama, which means to balance or remove deviation from something;^{‎[1]Al-Rāʾid, under q-w-m.} as such, in this verse it means to prepare the human being for guidance and spiritual elevation,^{‎[2]Ahsan al-Hadith, 12/279.} which is ultimately balancing and guiding him to the right path. It also signifies that humans, being distinguished by their intellect and understanding, differ from animals.^{‎[3]Raghib, p. 693.}

EXPOSITION

This verse is the point for which the previous oaths were stated and hence it must be very important. It emphasises the fact that man has been created in the best of forms such that he has superiority over the rest of creation.^{‎[4]Qaraati, p. 530.}

Taqwīm means to make something in an appropriate form, fashioning its parts in a good and proportionate manner to become an organised and balanced system. The scope of the meaning of the word includes the physical, spiritual, intellectual, and all the potentials of the human being who has been fashioned in this way,^{‎[5]Nemuneh, 27/144.} such that a human being is able to reach the highest levels of growth. In another verse it is stated that God has honoured man in his creation: Certainly We have honoured the Children of Adam and carried them over land and sea, and provided them with all the good things, and given them an advantage over many of those We have created with a complete preference (17:70).

The definitive al in al-insān (man) signifies the genus of human being and indicates universality.^{‎[6]Mizan, 20/540.} So, the human being, in general, has the potential to reach the highest stations of development and closeness to God and has therefore been equipped with the necessary capabilities^{‎[7]Mizan, 20/540.} as the Quran states, By the soul and Him who fashioned it, and inspired it with its virtues and vices (91:7-8).

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.^{‎[8]Ecclesiastes 7:29.}
2. I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.^{‎[9]Isaiah 45:12.}
3. God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.^{‎[10]Genesis 1:27.}

[1] Al-Rāʾid, under q-w-m.
[2] Ahsan al-Hadith, 12/279.
[3] Raghib, p. 693.
[4] Qaraati, p. 530.
[5] Nemuneh, 27/144.
[6] Mizan, 20/540.
[7] Mizan, 20/540.
[8] Ecclesiastes 7:29.
[9] Isaiah 45:12.
[10] Genesis 1:27.