The case of Sir David Attenborough astounded me, so I wanted to write about him and snippets of his awe-inspiring documentaries. In the Quran, God emphasizes his oneness and advises his servants to pay attention to their surroundings in an effort to comprehend his greatness enshrined in his varied creatures. Yes, God’s creatures are varied and are of different kinds, colours, shapes, and sizes.
Sir David Attenborough must have seen and observed God’s wonders as he has documented thousands of varied animal species. He is an English broadcaster and natural historian who is considered to be the world’s most famous naturalist. He has crisscrossed the globe to document all kinds of creatures, both on land and at sea. Sir David Attenborough turned 100 on 8 May 2026; he was born on 8 May 1926.
Despite his immense experience with animal species, he does not substantiate whether God exists and calls himself an agnostic, meaning being someone who neither denies nor confirms the supremacy of God. And that is quite strange in relation to his firsthand experience with thousands of varied creatures. Don’t they inspire him and lead him to God’s artistic creation? He is skeptical about God’s existence, even though he has closely observed God’s miraculous works.
Sir David adores nature and what it contains, but does not pay attention to the creator of that beautiful nature. In other words, he dwells on the natural world but ignores the supernatural being, which is God. The two are inseparable, though. Asserting God’s power but denying it at the same time, Sir David says,“Every breath of air we take, every mouthful of food that we take, comes from the natural world. And if we damage the natural world, we damage ourselves.” Absolutely right. The naturalist is correct on that statement, but the provider of these provisions must be appreciated. And that is God, who is behind the universe and all that it contains.
Over his career, which spanned 70 years, he documented thousands of animal species and living beings ranging from mammals, prehistoric fossils, insects, and plants. His natural history documentary career began with Zoo Quest in 1954. Subsequently, he has crafted and put together iconic, thematic documentaries that revolved around “Life on Earth, The Blue Planet, and Planet Earth.”
His documentaries have covered both marine and non-marine animal species. Among the most marvellous marine species that he observed and documented were blue whales and orcas(killer whales). They weigh 300,000 and 12,000 pounds, respectively. They are giant marine mammals and could serve as signs of God’s existence. In the land where camels live, Sir David deftly described the awe-inspiring creation of camels, calling them resilient animals capable of surviving difficult times and terrains and adapting to harsh climates and environments. I am not sure if the naturalist has come across the verse in the Quran in which God urges people to look at the camel and contemplate how it was created. Among other instances, camels’ physical structure is a testament to God’s existence. “Do they not look at the camels – how they are created?” (Quran 88:17)
Like Charles Darwin, whose theory of evolution has lost traction lately, Sir David rejects the Creation Story and leans toward scientific advancements. When asked the power behind creation, he responded, “My response is that when Creationists talk about God creating every individual species… I tend to think instead of a parasitic worm that is boring through the eye of a boy… [I ask them], ‘Are you telling me that the God you believe in… created this worm that can live in no other way than in an innocent child’s eyeball?'”
For his environmental conservation achievements, Sir David Attenborough was knighted twice, in 1985 and 2022. The knighting (British honour bestowed by the monarchy) process is practised in the United Kingdom. And to knight someone is to give them a rank of honour. Despite being 100 years old, he is physically and mentally active and still produces documentaries. He has outlived his wife, his older and younger brothers, but his children (son and daughter) are still alive. Sir David’s conservation experience is amazing, but his intricate perspective on God is strange.