A piece of paper cuts your finger…
Before you even realize what happened, an invisible alarm goes off beneath your skin. Damaged cells release distress signals. Blood begins to clot. Immune cells are summoned to the area, and the repair process is set into motion.
However, the truly remarkable part is this: our skin does not repair every wound in exactly the same way. Depending on the depth of the damage, different repair mechanisms are activated.
If the wound is only on the surface layer, skin cells called keratinocytes migrate toward the cut. They close the gap and, most of the time, form new skin without leaving a scar.
But if the wound reaches deeper, a much more comprehensive repair begins. New capillaries form. Fibroblasts arrive at the site. Collagen is produced to strengthen the healing tissue of the wound, and the tissue is remodeled. If the damage is extensive, a scar may remain.
In other words, the same cells do not work in the same amounts or for the same duration for a minor scratch as they do for a deep cut. It is as if an invisible center detects the damage and prepares a customized repair plan for each specific wound.
Yet, these cells do not possess a mind of their own. They cannot think or calculate how deep a wound is, nor can they decide on their own how many blood vessels need to form or how much collagen must be produced.
Who, then, created this damage-detection system and this orderly repair process? Can this precise coordination—which ensures different duties are fulfilled across the layers of the skin and cells move into action at the exact right moment—be a coincidence?
The skin is not just an ordinary layer covering our body. With its layers, cells, and repair mechanism, it is a living system created by God. The activation of different processes for every single injury, from a minor scratch to a deep wound, is proof of God’s artistry in creation, manifested within our own bodies.
“He Who created and moulded; He Who determined and guided."
(Surat al-A'la, 2–3)