﷽

Abu Musa reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى خَلَقَ آدَمَ مِنْ قَبْضَةٍ قَبَضَهَا مِنْ جَمِيعِ الْأَرْضِ فَجَاءَ بَنُو آدَمَ عَلَى قَدْرِ الْأَرْضِ فَجَاءَ مِنْهُمْ الْأَحْمَرُ وَالْأَبْيَضُ وَالْأَسْوَدُ وَبَيْنَ ذَلِكَ وَالسَّهْلُ وَالْحَزْنُ وَالْخَبِيثُ وَالطَّيِّبُ

"Verily, Allah Almighty created Adam from a handful which He took from the earth, so the children of Adam come in accordance with the earth. Some come with red skin, white skin, or black skin, and whatever is in between: thin, thick, sullied and pure." (Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2955)

According to some scholars, the explanation of this ḥadīth is as follows. The Prophet ﷺ explains the manner in which Adam عليه السلام and his progeny were created. He said: “Indeed, Allah created Adam from a handful which He took from the entirety of the earth.”  That is, that the origin of human creation began from a handful taken by Allah, exalted is He. A “handful” (qabḍah) refers to that which is gathered and held within the palm. The phrase “from the entirety of the earth” signifies that it was taken from all its regions and constituents: from its pure and impure soils, and from its various colors and qualities. This accords with the Divine saying: ⁠“From it We created you, into it We shall return you, and from it We shall bring you forth once again.” (Qurʾān 20:55)