Judaism
Genesis
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
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ParallelsA comparative study
JudaismChristianityIslamHinduism
On Made in the Image
The concept of humanity bearing a divine likeness serves as a foundational anthropological axiom across Abrahamic traditions, grounding human dignity in a metaphysical connection to the Creator. While Genesis establishes a corporate image shared by all humanity, Islamic theology emphasizes the divine breath as a unique infusion of spirit, and Hindu thought posits an ontological identity between the individual self and the ultimate reality. Scholarly debate persists regarding whether these parallels represent historical diffusion or independent theological responses to the human condition.
What every account tells.
- iHumanity possesses a unique ontological status distinct from the rest of creation.
- iiThe divine presence is immanent within the human constitution.
- iiiThis divine connection serves as the basis for human dignity and ethical obligation.
- ivCreation involves a specific divine act of imparting life or form to humanity.
How each tradition tells it.
Judaism
The image is understood as a functional capacity for moral agency and dominion rather than a physical resemblance. Rabbinic exegesis often distinguishes between the potential for the image and its actualization through ethical conduct.
Christianity
The image is Christologically reinterpreted as being fully realized in Jesus, who is the perfect image of the invisible God. This introduces a soteriological dimension where the restoration of the image is tied to redemption.
Islam
The divine likeness is linked specifically to the breathing of God's spirit into the clay, emphasizing a direct spiritual infusion rather than a static structural image. This act distinguishes the human from the jinn and angels, granting a unique status of vicegerency.
Hinduism
The concept shifts from a created image to an inherent identity where the individual self (Atman) is ontologically identical to the ultimate reality (Brahman). This non-dualistic perspective contrasts with the creator-creature distinction found in the other traditions.
Read the passages as one.
Christianity
Colossians
“Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:”
Islam
Surah 15: Al-Hijr (The Rocky Tract)
فَإِذَا سَوَّيۡتُهُۥ وَنَفَخۡتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِي فَقَعُواْ لَهُۥ سَٰجِدِينَ
“And when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My [created] soul, then fall down to him in prostration”
Islam
Surah 38: Sad (The Letter "Saad")
فَإِذَا سَوَّيۡتُهُۥ وَنَفَخۡتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِي فَقَعُواْ لَهُۥ سَٰجِدِينَ
“So when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My [created] soul, then fall down to him in prostration”
Hinduism
Upanishads
“The Self-existent has pierced the holes of the senses outwardly; therefore one looks outward, not within himself. Some wise man, seeking immortality, with eyes closed, saw the Self within.”