At what point in evolution did humans receive a soul?

Humans received their soul at the moment they truly became human and distinct from the animals.

The Holy Qur’an does not describe the creation of man as a single moment. The first verse above says that God created human beings in different forms and conditions. This fits a long process of becoming.

Along this path, man shared life with the animals for a long time. He breathed, felt and was aware of his surroundings, just as they were. But he did not yet have a soul in the full sense, one that lives on after death without the body.

Then came a point at which man became something new. He could reflect on himself, ask about the meaning of life and come to know God. This is when he received his soul. The Holy Qur’an describes it as God breathing His spirit into him, as the third verse above says.

The second verse shows a similar pattern in each individual in the womb. After several bodily stages, it says that God developed him into another creation. Something that resembles other living beings becomes a human being.

With the soul a new journey began. Until then, life had developed mainly in its bodily form. From that point on, what matters is the growth of the soul, on its way back to God, from whom everything began.