Are Humans and Animals One and the Same Being?

Since the Creator made beautiful all that He created, the first act of creation—the source of all the works of creation—is the beautiful work of the Lord, the One who creates beautifully. Thus the primordial substance of creation is one: divine beauty. In other words, creation sprang from a single source, divine beauty; as creation unfolded, its later shoots and stages took shape through the faculties of free will and choice, giving rise to the diversity of existence.

النور : 45 و الله خلق کل دابه من ماء فمنهم من یمشی‏ على‏ بطنه و منهم من یمشی‏ على‏ رجلین و منهم من یمشی‏ على‏ أربع یخلق الله ما یشاء إن الله على‏ کل شی‏ء قدیر

And God created every living creature from water. Some of them crawl on their bellies, some walk on two legs, and some walk on four. God creates whatever He wills. Surely God has power over all things.

و خلق الشی‏ء الذی جمیع الأشیاء منه و هو الماء الذی خلق الأشیاء منه فجعل نسب کل شی‏ء إلى الماء و لم یجعل للماء نسبا یضاف إلیه‏

الکافی (ط - الإسلامیه)، ج‏8، ص: 94

And He created the thing from which all things came: water, from which He created all things. He traced the origin of everything back to water, but did not assign water an origin in anything else to which it might be attributed.

السجده : 7 الذی أحسن کل شی‏ء خلقه و بدأ خلق الإنسان من طین

He is the One who made beautiful all that He created, and began the creation of humankind from clay. (7)