* According to some scholars, the star also refers to Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), when he ascended to the ends of the Heavens to meet Allah during the Night of Ascension and then descended back to the world. It is stated by Imam Ja‘far b. Muhammad al-Sadiq, al-Akhfash, al-Tustari, al-Sulami and others. See: al-Baghawi, al-Qurtubi, al-Khazin, Abu Hafs al-Hanbali, al-Tha‘labi, al-Shawkani, al-Alusi and others.
* Imam al-Bukhari has reported a hadith in al-Jami‘ al-Sahih supporting these meanings from the venerable Companion Anas b. Malik. Moreover, ‘Abd Allah b. ‘Abbas, Imam al-Hasan al-Basri, Imam Ja‘far b. Muhammad al-Sadiq, Muhammad b. Ka‘b al-Qurazi, al-Dahhak and many other leading exegetes hold the same view. See: al-Tabari, Ibn Kathir, al-Baghawi, al-Razi, al-Khazin, Abu al-Sa‘ud, al-Qurtubi, al-Tha‘labi, Abu Hafs al-Hanbali, al-Suyuti, and others.
* These meanings are based on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas, Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, ‘Ikrima, al-Hasan al-Basri, Muhammad b. Ka‘b al-Qurazi, Abu al-‘Aliya al-Riyahi, ‘Ata’ b. Abi Rabah, Ka‘b al-Ahbar, Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal, Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash‘ari and many others.
As for Allah’s Grace, there are no limits. He can grant whatever He wills to whomever He pleases, as stated in Sura al-Nur, verse 38: “So that Allah may reward them for the best of what they have performed and give them more out of His grace. And Allah provides for whomever He pleases without any measure.”
* In Arabic, the word ‘al-nutfa’ is mentioned, and it refers to a zygote, which is a mixture of male and female gametes. It is the new single cell formed after the union of a sperm and ovum.