When we were dead

A human passes through four time stages mentioned by the Qur'an :

 

I will only talk about the first stage (time of first death).

The first death stage

[وَكُنْتُمْ أَمْوَاتًا فَأَحْيَاكُمْ ثُمَّ يُمِيتُكُمْ ثُمَّ يُحْيِيكُمْ (28) البقرة]

wa kuntum amwaatan fa ahyaakum summa yumeetukum summa yuhyeekum

and You were dead then Made you alive then He will make you die then He will make you alive

[when you were dead and He gave you life, then He will put you to death, then He will bring you to life (28) Baqara]
and you were dead and He gave you life? Again He will cause you to die and again bring you to life
ye were without life, and He gave you life; then will He cause you to die, and will again bring you to life
ye were dead and He gave life to you! Then He will give you death, then life again

[قَالُوا رَبَّنَا أَمَتَّنَا اثْنَتَيْنِ وَأَحْيَيْتَنَا اثْنَتَيْنِ (11) غافر]

They will say, "Our Lord, you made us die twice, and twice you gave us life (11) ghafir
[They say: Our Lord! Twice hast Thou made us die, and twice hast Thou made us live.
They will say: "Our Lord! twice hast Thou made us without life, and twice hast Thou given us Life!
They shall say: Our Lord! twice didst Thou make us subject to death, and twice hast Thou given us life]

First death period

From the time we were dust, until days or weeks have passed while we were in our mother’s wombs. Then we tasted life for the first time.

Phases of (first death stage)

The phase of the drawn or designed or portrayed (dead creation), before the prostration of angels

God created all people from the phase of soil (a non-depicted non-designed dead material) into a new nature or phase (human creation thing as in the knowledge of God), and then God shaped or designed those (human creation things) with the shapes and images which humans have become in this world, [BEFORE] the angels [prostrate] to Adam.

So, the dead creation of humans and there design, has already finished BEFORE the angles made sujood (prostration) to Adam.

[وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ صَوَّرْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ (11) الأعراف]

[We created you, then We shaped you, then We said to the angels, "Bow down before Adam;" (11) A'raf ]

And We created you, then fashioned you, then told the angels: Fall ye prostrate before Adam!
It is We Who created you and gave you shape; then We bade the angels prostrate to Adam, and they prostrate;
And certainly We created you, then We fashioned you, then We said to the angels: Prostrate to Adam.

At that moment the angles prostrated to every human (Adam and all dead created designed people inside him). At that moment every human (except Adam) was nothing but a dead fully designed thing (as in the knowledge of God). We can say that the unique image or design or drawing of every human was inserted inside his (dead creation thing). It is like a house (not built yet), but all its materials were brought, all its designs, drawings and plans were made.

During that time (except Adam) all people were dead (but they were already created and portrayed).
This (dead portrayed creation) will remain without life until God grant it life in the womb. This (dead portrayed creation) has been made or happened or completed or executed for all people (passed people, current people, future people until the Day of Resurrection = happened to all, from first human to last human).

But how did God shape and portray us before we were in our mother’s wombs and before we were born? This (portrayed dead creation which is something in the knowledge of God), is made in a state of inactivity, stagnation, subsidence or inertness (inside of Adam’s loin and loins of men after him). It awaits the order of its activation and operation (its building or execution and revival) at the appointed time.

These examples to simplify what we mean:

(1) the seed of a tree: All that relates to the tree (its creation and portrayal), God has already estimated, drew, designed, shaped and placed all the needed raw materials inside that dead seed, before that dead seed became a tree. You just put that dead (created and designed) seed into the soil with some water and the seed will automatically start building its self into a large tree (because the creation and design is already made inside the dead seed).

(2) Human or animal genes (the design, plan, instructions, and programming are already existing within the DNA genes, before fetal development begins).

(3) Designing the machines, before making them.

Transferring our (dead portrayed creation) through our fathers

After God - through his knowledge - created all people (while they are in the state of dead portrayed creation) inside Adam’s loin, God made their (transfer) through Adam’s fluid and fluids of all men after him. This stage has happened for us and for humans before us. And the process of transferring the dead offspring (the created and portrayed matter of the rest of people) still continues to happen for those humans who will come after us.

They said, "Yes, we testify"

وَإِذْ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِنْ بَنِي آدَمَ مِنْ ظُهُورِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ قَالُوا بَلَى شَهِدْنَا (172) الأعراف

[And when Your Lord summoned the descendants of Adam, and made them testify about themselves. "Am I not your Lord?" They said, "Yes, we testify." (172) A'raf]

God addressing the human offspring in their father’s backbones, does not indicate that they were alive at that moment. That’s simply because God can address the dead [ for example in the same way God addressed the fire that surrounded Ibrahim, or the earth and the sky “Then He turned to the sky, and it was smoke, and said to it and to the earth, "Come, willingly or unwillingly." They said, "We come willingly." (11) Fussilat”, or Hell “On the Day when We will say to Hell, "Are you full?" And it will say, "Are there any more?" (50) Qaf” and the Earth speaks its news (verse 4/ Surah Al-Zalzalah), the shadow prostrates, the stone descends from fear of God, and all inanimate beings praise God.

(Dead portrayed creation) is built and made alive inside the womb

وَبَدَأَ خَلْقَ الْإِنسَانِ مِن طِينٍ {7} ثُمَّ جَعَلَ نَسْلَهُ مِن سُلَالَةٍ مِّن مَّاء مَّهِينٍ 8 ثُمَّ سَوَّاهُ وَنَفَخَ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِهِ {9} السجدة.

and He began the creation of man from dust (7) Then He made his progeny of an extract, of water held in light estimation (8) Then He made him complete and breathed into him of His spirit (9) As-Sajda

God says in surat AL-WAQI'AH,verse 62: And ye certainly know already the first (Nash'ah).
The Arabic word (Nash'ah), is from verb (Nash'a) which has meanings like (arise, emerge, grow, happen, start, come, form, shape, ..). The Quranic verse means by (first Nash'ah) our first form which is the Nutfah (sperm and ovum). God is reminding us of something we know very well (we began as a Nutfah).

ثُمَّ أَنشَأْنَاهُ خَلْقًا آخَرَ {14} المؤمنون

summa ansanahu halqan ahar

Then the development in our mother’s wombs from phase to phase until the final emergence (final Nash'ah = ansanahu) which is the completion development of embryo

Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then of that clot We made a (foetus) lump; then we made out of that lump bones and clothed the bones with flesh; then we developed out of it another creature (-and then produced it as another creation= summa ansanahu halqan ahar).(14) Al-Muminun

When the soul breathes into the fetus, the first stage of death ends.

Hamed Al Awlaqi