Messengers

Messengers

Allah chose from mankind prophets and messengers to guide and invite people to the way of Allah. The first of them was Adam and the last of them and their Seal was Muhammad (Peace be on Him), after whom there shall be no prophet. They are all brothers-in-faith and inviters unto the Lord of the Worlds. Although their laws were different they share the same faith as described in the verse bellow:

And We did not send any apostle before you (O Muhammad) but We revealed to him that there is none who has the right to be worshipped but I (Allah) so worship Me (alone and none else) [21:25].

All of the messengers are protected from attributing to Allah something of their own invention, judging according to their own desires, falling into major sins and adding to or diminishing from the religion. They are directed by Allah to be upright in the disposition of their affairs. As they were human, they could make mistakes in matters not pertaining to religion, but Allah did not endorse any erroneous judgment they may have made. They were human beings like we are, experiencing sickness, pain and death just like their fellow human beings. The following verses from Quran shows this meaning:

He, (Allah) protects them until He sees that they (the apostles) have conveyed the message of their Lord and He surrounds all that which is with them and He keeps account of all things [72:3].

Say (O'Muhammad) I am but a man like yourselves; the revelation has come to me that your Lord Is One [41:6].

It is only because they achieved full submission to Allah, that He honored them with the Divine assignment. They are the most perfect in belief, most God-fearing and most knowledgeable among the believers. Not one of them called people to magnify himself rather they called all people to worship Allah alone. Of the unseen the messengers knew only that which Allah revealed to them. They made public what they learned, and they concealed nothing of what was revealed to them, as described by the verses bellow:

It is not (possible) that a man to whom is given the book and wisdom and the Prophetic office should say to people: Be you my worshippers rather than Allah's (on the contrary he would say): Be you worshippers of Him Who is truly the cherisher of all [3.79].

He (alone) knows the unseen. He does not make anyone acquainted with His mysteries [72:26].

Who is Muhammad?

Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the final prophet and the one who was elected by ALLAH to deliver His last message to mankind. He was born in 570 C.E in Mecca. He is the son of Abdul’– Allah ibn Abdul’-Muttalib and Amina. Orphaned at an early age, Muhammad (peace be upon him) was raised by his uncle, Abu Talib. In his youth, Muhammad (peace be upon him) was known among all people as “assadik”, “al amine” meaning, the trustworthy and the faithful.

Muhammad (peace be upon him) neither glorified nor believed in the gods that his Quraysh tribe worshipped at that time. However, he used to isolate himself in a cave called Hira where he sought meditation and contemplation. Only at the age of forty had Muhammad (peace be upon him) received the first revelation from Almighty by the angel Gabriel, in the month of Ramadan. Having experienced such an exceptional moment, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was scared but reassured and supported by his wife Khadijah who is considered to be the first to believe in his prophecy.

Three years later, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) began preaching the words of Allah to the public. In essence, Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) message states that there is no god but Allah, Islam is the religion of Allah, and Muhammad (peace be upon him) is His messenger. These proclamations had been totally rejected by most of Quraysh tribe who did not hesitate to intimidate, harass, persecute, and torment anyone who followed the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Despite all kinds of hardships, Allah’s messenger stood firmly and carried on, conveying his message to all people. Indeed, Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his followers received a sign from Allah to immigrate to Medina, an event known as El hijra, where they formed a muslim community. Then, they returned to Mecca and defeated meccan forces. Muhammad (peace be upon him) succeeded in converting people in Arabia to Islam.

From the first revelation until his death, at the age of sixty three, prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) spent his life communicating Allah’s message to humanity, hence, spreading Islam to other parts of the globe even after his death. As a matter of fact, Muhammad (peace be upon him) came to re – establish Islam since it is the religion of Adam, Noah, Abraham, and Jesus (peace be upon them). Muhammad is more than a prophet, he is the affectionate father in taking care of orphans and looking after the poor as well as the elderly, he is the loving husband in respecting his wives and treating them equally, he is the caring leader in reforming the society, stressing the equality of all men, rejecting slavery, and securing women’s rights; he is the noble person in answering unkindness by goodness. His pure generosity, gentleness, and virtuous manners did exceed the mere abstract level of words to reach deeper significance when everything becomes valuable be it an animal, a tree, or even a plant.



In a word, Muhammad (peace be upon him) is truly a great man. He is the teacher of all teachers. His Sunnah is the model to be followed in order to live a peaceful and stable life where faith, ethics, and belief are the keys to true happiness.



Useful Quotations about Muhammad

v “….A mass of detail in the early sources show that he was an honest and upright man who had gained the respect and loyalty of others who were like-wise honest and upright men.” Encyclopedia Britannica (Vol.12).

v “I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it the much needed peace and happiness.” George Bernard Shaw.

v “I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to the Europe of today.” George Bernard Shaw.

v “I have always held the religion of Muhammad in high estimation because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion, which appears to me to possess that assimilating capacity to the changing phase of existence which can make itself appeal to every age.” George Bernard Shaw.

v “ My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world’s most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels.” Michael H. Hart. The 100: A Ranking of the most influential persons in history. New York, 1978, p33

v “ It was the first religion that preached and practiced democracy; for, in the mosque, when the call for prayer is sounded and worshippers are gathered together, the democracy of islam is embodied five times a day when the peasant and king kneel side by side and proclaim: “ God Alone is Great…”

v “ I have been struck over and over again by this indivisible unity of Islam that makes man instinctively a brother.” Sarojini Naidu. Ideals of Islam. Madras, 1918, p 169

v “ If greatness of purpose, smallness of means and astounding results are the three criteria of human genius, who could dare to compare any great man in modern history with Muhammad,” Alphonse de Lamar tine. The renowned Historian.