AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Dr. Atsushi Kamal Okuda, a distinguished Japanese scientist, has announced his conversion to Islam, citing the profound influence of a Qur’anic verse that reshaped his understanding of life and creation.
Born in secular Japan, Dr. Okuda achieved significant recognition in fields including physics, biology, and cosmology. Despite these accomplishments, he continued to search for deeper answers about the purpose of existence and the origins of creation. His exploration led him to the study of religious texts, where his first encounter with the Qur’an became a turning point.
Approaching the Qur’an through a scientific lens, Dr. Okuda was struck by the alignment between its teachings and modern scientific discoveries. He highlighted verse 30 of Surah Al-Anbiya: “أَوَلَمْ يَرَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَنَّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ كَانَتَا رَتْقًا فَفَتَقْنَاهُمَا ۖ وَجَعَلْنَا مِنَ الْمَاءِ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ حَيٍّ ۖ أَفَلَا يُؤْمِنُونَ” (Have the faithless not regarded that the heavens and the earth were interwoven and We unravelled them, and We made every living thing out of water? Will they not then have faith?).
He found remarkable parallels between this verse, the Big Bang theory, and the scientific understanding of water as the basis of life.
After years of reflection, he embraced Islam and adopted the name “Kamal.” Through lectures and writings, Dr. Okuda now advocates that faith and reason can coexist, presenting Islam as a framework that harmonizes spirituality with scientific inquiry.
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