Prophet Muhammad---the Last Messenger !

Discussion in 'Religious places & Spiritual people' started by Yumna, Feb 16, 2020.

  1. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    Stories of the prophets


    From Aaminah to Halimah

    So the first thing we know of Prophet Muhammad peace be upon Him’s life after his birth is that his mother gave him to be raised away from the house in the desert.

    This seems strange to us, but it was a general custom of the elite of the Arabs, so that they might grow up in the free and healthy surroundings of the desert among the Bedouins; whereby they would acquire the pure speech as they were noted for chastity of their language.

    Also, the infant mortality was very high back then. So to protect the child, so that there are only few people interacting with the child because plagues and diseases are were frequent those days.

    [[ Ibn Ishaq states that Haleemah narrated that she along with her husband and a suckling babe, set out from her village in the company of some women of her clan in quest of children to suckle. Of course desert dwellers do not get much income - so they went to Makkah and adopted children from the noble and the rich for money. Not even a single woman amongst us accepted the Muhammad (peace be upon Him), as soon as they were told that he was an orphan, they refused him. We had fixed our eyes on the reward that we would get from the child’s father. An orphan! What are his grandfather and mother likely to do? So we spurned him because of that. Every woman who came with me got a suckling and when we were about to depart, I said to my husband: " I do not like to go back along with the other women without any baby. I should go to that orphan and I must take him”. He said, "There is no harm in doing so and perhaps Allah might bless us through him." So I went and took him because there was simply no other alternative left for me but to take him”.

    The tradition is explicit on the point that Haleemah’s return journey and her subsequent life, as long as the Prophet (peace be upon Him) stayed with her, was encircled with a halo of good fortune. The donkey that she rode when she came to Makkah was lean and almost foundered; it recovered speed much to the amazement of Haleemah’s fellow travellers. By the time they reached the encampments in the country of the clan of Sa‘d, they found the scales of fortune turned in their favour. The barren land sprouted forth luxuriant grass and beasts came back to them satisfied and full of milk. Muhammad (peace be upon Him) stayed with Haleemah for two years until he was weaned as Haleemah said:

    We then took him back to his mother requesting her earnestly to have him stay with us and benefit by the good fortune and blessings he had brought us. We persisted in our request which we substantiated by our anxiety over the child catching a certain infection peculiar to Makkah.[Ibn Hisham 1/162-164] At last, we were granted our wish and the Prophet (peace be upon Him) stayed with us until he was four or five years of age. ]] Book Source : Sealed Nectar


    In-Sha-Allah...To Be Continued !
     
    Last edited: Apr 21, 2020
    Viswamitra, SuperLily and kkrish like this.
  2. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    As related by Anas in Sahih Muslim,one day when Prophet (peace be upon Him) was playing with other children; Angel Jibra’eel came down and ripped his chest open and took out the heart. He then extracted a blood-clot out of it and said: "That was the part of Satan in you." And then he washed it with the water of Zamzam in a gold basin. After that the heart was joined together and restored to its place. The boys and playmates came running to Halimah and said: "Verily, Muhammad (peace be upon Him) has been murdered." They all rushed towards him and found him all right only his face was white.

    His foster brother and foster sister Shayma ran away, screaming to their mother, "Our brother has been killed!" Halimah runs outside and finds the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) sitting with a pale face. He is sitting there with fear and terror but not screaming. And when they saw him, they saw the lines on his chest.

    [Anas ibn Malik said, "I could see the traces on his (prophet’s) chest." And this is Anas relating when the Prophet (peace be upon Him) was around 60 of age. It clearly demonstrate that something physical had happened.]

    After this event, Halimah was worried about the boy and returned him back to his mother.

    The spiritual benefits we can derive are that the Prophet peace be upon Him is being prepared to live the most respected and pure life. And this is because it's the sunnah of Allah that the characteristics of the prophets are impeccable - they are innocent from major sins. They can commit minor infractions and get angry like Prophet Musa (peace be upon Him) did, do hasty things like Prophet Yunus (peace be upon Him) did, but they cannot commit major sins. So this was a spiritual cleansing that was done physically.

    In respect of the memory of her late husband, Aaminah decided to visit his grave in Yathrib (Madinah). She set out to cover a journey of 500 kilometers with her son, woman servant Umm Ayman and her father-in-law ‘Abdul-Muttalib. They spent a month there and then took their way back to Makkah.

    But on the way back, in a small settlement called Abwa', Aaminah became ill and passed away right then and there. Ummi Ayman had her buried by the people of the village, Abwa, and her grave is still there.

    ‘Abdul-Muttalib (grand father) brought the boy to Makkah. He had warm passions towards the boy, his orphan grandson, whose recent disaster (his mother’s death) added more to the pains of the past. ‘Abdul-Muttalib was more passionate with his grandson than with his own children.

    It's said that Abdul Muttalib would have a raised platform in front of and connected to the Ka'bah. Around Asr (before evening) time when the shadow of the Ka'bah shade the platform, he would sit and discuss the affairs of the Quraysh. This is the platform equal to the king's throne, so no one sits on it. Not even his sons or grandsons. And it's recorded that once, the Prophet (peace be upon Him) as a young boy came running and jumped onto the platform to be next to Abdul Muttalib. His uncles pulled him back down, but Abdul Muttalib stopped them and said, "Leave him. He can remain on the platform." So out of all his grandchildren, the only one that he allowed to be on the platform was Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him).

    At the age of 8, for the third time, the Prophet (peace be upon Him) became an orphan once again, as his grandfather Abdul Muttalib passed away.

    And one of the things Abdul Muttalib did on his deathbed was to entrust the Prophet (peace be upon Him) to his son - Abu Talib. Because Abu Talib was the full brother of Abdullah, the father of the Prophet (peace be upon Him).

    Abu Talib took the charge of his nephew in the best way possible.


    In-Sha-Allah...To Be Continued !


     
    Viswamitra and SuperLily like this.
  3. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) as a young man:

    The next phase in the Prophet's life was when he was a young man, around 14-15 of age.

    We have very little information about the Prophet at this age. The early life of the Prophet is the most undocumented. We have almost nothing from the time he was 9-15.That is because nobody is witnessing and recording the incidents & nobody knew that he was going to be a prophet of God. We only know about his childhood through people who narrated the incident or people who lived long enough to narrate the story and they were few.

    It was reported that he worked as a shepherd for Bani Sa‘d and in Makkah.

    In another narration Prophet (peace be upon Him) to reported to have said, "Musa and Dawud were sent when they were shepherds, and I was sent when I was a shepherd in the valley of Ajyad."

    This shows us there is no dishonor in working for your own money. The Prophet (peace be upon Him) said, "The purest money you can earn is that which you earn with your own hands."

    At the age of 25, he went to Syria as a merchant for Khadijah [peace be upon Her].

    Ibn Ishaq reported that Khadijah, daughter of Khwailid was a business-woman of great honour and fortune. She used to employ men to do her business for a certain percentage of the profits. Quraish people were mostly tradespeople, so when Khadijah was informed of Muhammad (peace be upon Him), his truthful words, great honesty and kind manners, she sent for him. She offered him money to go to Syria and do her business, and she would give him a higher rate than the others. She would also send her hireling, Maisarah, with him. He agreed and went with her servant to Syria for trade. [Ibn Hisham 1/187,188]

    When he returned to Makkah, Khadijah noticed, in her money, more profits and blessings than she used to. Her hireling also told her of Muhammad’s good manners, his honesty and sincerity.

    She had been married twice and her second husband was a wealthy merchant and the two of them did not have any children. After the death of her husband, Khadija (peace be upon Her) was single.

    The details differ about how the proposal came about, but they agree that Khadija (peace be upon Her) was the one who instigated it and arranged it. It is permissible and nothing wrong if the women expresses an interest (with certain guidelines).

    Khadija’s uncle Amr ibn Assad and Abu Talib performed the nikah of Prophet Muhammad and Khadija (peace be upon them); which is recorded in the early books.

    He gave mahr (wedding dowry)of 12 nuggets of silver and some silver coins to Khadija.

    The common opinion is that she was 40 years old at the time of marriage to Prophet and she died when she was 65.

    This is the opinion of one of the classical scholars of Islam, al-Waqidi. Scholars unanimously agreed that they were married for 25 years, and that the Prophet (peace be upon Him) was 25 years old when he got married. However, there are more authentic reports that Khadija's age was not 40 when she got married. Academically speaking, there are two problems with this age:

    1. Al-Waqidi is not of the caliber as other scholars who report a different age. So we have al-Bayhaqi, Ibn Kathir and others who report that she died in her 50s. Thus this changes everything, as it implies she was around 25-35 when she was married. Another early authority, Hisham al-Kalbi says: Khadija married when she was 28 years old. And we have from al-Hakim that Ibn Ishaq says: She was 28 years old. The people reporting she was 28 are more in quantity and in quality in terms of knowledge. Ibn Ishaq is THE authority when it comes to seerah and so did Ibn Kathir, al-Bayhaqi etc.

    2. The Prophet (peace be upon Him) and Khadija (peace be upon Her) had at least 6 children, maybe more. And for a woman in her 40s, it would be very difficult if not impossible. But for a woman at 28, this is very reasonable and makes a lot more sense and it seems to be the more correct opinion.

    In-Sha-Allah...To Be Continued !



     
    Viswamitra likes this.
  4. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    All the children of the Prophet(peace be upon Him) were through Revered Khadija. There were at least six. The first child was al-Qasim (hence the Prophet was also known as Abu-Qasim). And it is said that he had reached the age where the boys could ride on the camel (7-8 years old) and then he passed away. That's all we know. And the Prophet(peace be upon Him) had Zaynab, Ruqqayyah, Ummi Kulthum ,Fatima and Abdullah(peace be upon them). Some people add two more, but the stronger position is that Abdullah had two nicknames: Tahir and Tayyib i.e. the names of the supposed two extra children. Abdullah was born after the revelation began, and died in infancy. The four daughters all lived to maturity ; three of them died in his own life time. Only Fatima (peace be upon Her) outlived him.

    Khadija(peace be upon Her) was the first woman whom the Messenger (peace be upon Him) married. He did not married any other women until after she had died.

    Prophet faced the most traumatic issues. Indeed there is no greater difficulty than losing parents or children. And the Prophet(peace be upon Him) had to go through both. He (peace be upon Him) was orphaned multiple times. And then losing his children one after another. It was as if Allah is giving him the most difficult tragedies; that your purpose in life is to be tested and afflicted - because through these trials that one's relationship with Allah is established. Also, living through these trials develops the utmost patience, and the Prophet (peace be upon Him) needed this to fulfill his mission


    Rebuilding Ka‘bah

    The incident of the rebuilding of the Ka'bah took place when the Prophet(peace be upon Him) was around 35 years old, after 10 years of marriage with Khadija and 5 years before prophethood. The structure was damaged by a fire and then a flood.

    As Makkah is in the basin of a lot of mountains, it used to be prone to floods once in a while. (In 1947/1948, people were swimming for tawaf, as the Ka'bah was flooded. In our times, there are measures to prevent all that.

    Quraish decided they needed to rebuild the entire Ka'bah as the structure was more or less gone.

    When the Ka'bah was destroyed, there was news of a sale going on in the city of Juddah (later Jeddah). The Caesar of Rome had sent supplies to one of the cities of Yemen to rebuild a church destroyed by the Persians. He got the best wood, marble, craftsmen etc. and sent them all to Yemen on a ship.The ship was damaged in the sea, but somehow it made to Juddah. All of the cargo - the most expensive marble, wood etc is now in Juddah .

    Note that Arabia didn't have such building material or craftsmen at all. So the people of the ship decided to sell the material as they had to raise enough money to go back to Rome. So when the Quraish heard about this, they gathered all of their wealth, and the chiefs of Quraish decided to use only licit money in rebuilding Ka‘bah, so all money that derived from harlotry, usury or unjust practices was excluded and they went to Juddah, and purchased all of this merchandise, along with hiring the craftsmen, who had been educated in the palaces of Caesar. They bring all of the goods back to Makkah.

    Now they are wondering, "Shall we destroy the House of Allah?

    Finally one among them,Walid ibn al-Mughira said, "I will do it," and he took the axe and broke down one of the walls of the Ka'bah. Nobody lifted a finger to help. Word got around and the inhabitants of Makkah decided to use Walid ibn al-Mughira as a 'litmus test.' They thought if he survives the night, they will join him the next day. So they basically didn't help him until the next morning when Walid ibn al-Mughira woke up just fine. From the next day, everyone helped him dismantle the Ka'bah and rebuild it.

    They divided all of the sub tribes of the Quraish into four groups. Each group gets one wall. The tribes collected stones and started work. The man who laid the stones was a Roman mason called Baqum.

    The work went on in harmony till the time came to put the sacred Black Stone in its proper place. Then strife broke out among the chiefs, and lasted for four or five days, each contesting for the honor of placing the stone in its position. Daggers were on the point of being drawn and great bloodshed seemed imminent. Luckily, the oldest among the chiefs Abu Omaiyah bin Mugheerah Al-Makhzumi made a proposal which was accepted by all. He said: "Let him, who enters the sanctuary of Ka’ba first from the major door decide. Now this meant that it's the matter of luck whoever walked in would obviously choose his own tribe; so whoever walks in, whatever tribe he belongs to will basically win.

    It was then Allah’s Will that the Messenger of Allah(peace be upon Him) should be the first to enter the Mosque. On seeing him, all the people said with one voice: "Al-Ameen (the trustworthy) has come. We are content to abide by his decision.

    Muhammad (peace be upon Him) asked for a mantle which he spread on the ground and placed the stone in its center. He then asked the representatives of all the tribes among them, to lift the stone all together. When it had reached the proper place, Muhammad (peace be upon Him) laid it in the proper position with his own hands. This is how a very tense situation was eased.




    In-Sha-Allah...To Be Continued !

     
    Viswamitra and SuperLily like this.
  5. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    The Character of The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him)

    God combined in HIS final Prophet, the most illustrious qualities, ensuring by that the confidence of his audience. His person sparkled from every angle and was thus seen as admirable in everyone’s eyes. Those who considered lineage crucial – though it is not in God’s eyes – found Muhammad(peace be upon Him) descending from a nobility that was the purest of the pure. Those who practiced physiognomy (assessing a person’s character based on physical appearance) felt that Muhammad's (peace be upon Him) face glowed with integrity. Those who experienced him firsthand, or later read his biography, found in Muhammad (peace be upon Him) a lifestyle of extraordinary sincerity and conviction.

    His Honesty

    The Prophet (peace be upon Him) was not merely a person whose honesty was testified to, rather his clansmen had officially titled him as-Sādiq, al-Amīn (the Truthful, the Trustworthy).
    Even afterwards,when they persecuted him and rejected his message, they still trusted him with their most precious possessions.

    In the history of humanity, many imposters have claimed prophethood, and they have all been found void of virtuosity and unethically opportunistic. This is endemic to and expected from, imposter prophets – for they have embraced being the most sinister of liars. Lying itself is a worst attribute.But lying about your friends is worse than lying about a random person, and just as lying about your parents is worse than lying about your friends, there is nothing uglier than a person lying about God--the Creator. Therefore, when a man with the undisputed honesty of Muhammad(peace be upon Him) lives for forty years without ever lying, then claims to be God’s Prophet, this should be seen as a sign of the veracity of his claim.


    His Austerity and Asceticism

    The simple, austere lifestyle of the Prophet(peace be upon Him) is a major indication that his mission could not have been self-serving. After all, this was a man who controlled all of Arabia by the end of his life. Even before that, he had thousands of followers throughout his stay in Madinah; followers who obsessed over him, and would have loved to do anything in the world for him. With all that considered, we find no luxury in any sphere of his life. Rather, we find in his apartment a straw mat that would leave marks on his side, and a hanging leather water skin.

    For weeks, no fire would be kindled for cooking in his home, and his family had to be content with dates and water.

    In the time of his greatest power, he maintained the same simplicity of manners and appearance as in the days of his adversity. So far from affecting a regal state, he was displeased if, on entering a room, any unusual testimonials of respect were shown to him.”


    His Bravery

    The great bravery of the Prophet(peace be upon Him) meant that he was not only truthful, but certain of his truthfulness. Some orientalists, though all are derisive in depicting Islam, choose to argue that Muhammad(peace be upon Him) was not consciously lying, but suffered from a mental illness that subjected him to delusions of grandeur. This claim crumbles at the feet of the Prophet’s documented bravery, because someone who “hears voices” and has psychological disorders would be inconsistent, reluctant, and incapable of achieving all of the triumphs he achieved. More importantly, a mentally disturbed person would never come up with a complete system of beliefs and laws that would earn the respect of thousands of historians, philosophers, and other men of wisdom.

    The Prophet(peace be upon Him) never fled in battle; rather, he fought fearlessly on the front lines. It would have been perfectly understandable for the Prophet(peace be upon Him) to shield himself behind the army, for his death would mean the end of the message.

    His Perseverance

    The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) did not only display bravery at specific junctions in his life, but rather showed exemplary endurance and consistency throughout. Consider a man who never knew his father firsthand, hardly enjoyed the compassion of his mother, and then lost his grandfather, and then his uncle and dearest wife simultaneously. Consider a man who lived to witness every single one of his children die save for one, who was treated like a menace and fugitive after decades of building a flawless reputation among his people. Consider a man who experienced physical abuse until he would faint, was starved for years by his own people, and faced countless campaigns of character assassination. Consider a man who was driven out of his home, sent fleeing to Madinah for shelter, only to find hypocrites there awaiting every opportunity to betray him.

    Only God could have empowered him(peace be upon Him) to have compassion for the heartless, forgiveness for his enemies, and concern for the arrogant. Only God could have kept his heart grateful at times when others could not even be patient, and his heart merciful at times when others could not even be just.


    His Optimism

    It is remarkable how the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) never lost hope in the support and victory of Allah, regardless of how apparently hopeless his situation would sometimes become. This optimism tells of a heart laced with supreme faith.


    Source: Yaqeen Institute


    In-Sha-Allah...To Be Continued !
     
    Viswamitra likes this.
  6. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    The commencement of the Divine Inspiration:

    Divine Inspiration to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him)started in the form of good dreams which came true like bright day light, and then the love of seclusion was bestowed upon him. All this started when he had reached the age of 40.

    The Prophet used to seclude himself in the Cave of Hira,a cave in the mountain of Jabal al-Nour (Mountain of Light) - When you sit in the cave, there is only space for one person. And you are forced to face the Kaabah and you can see the Kaabah and city around from there even in our time.

    It is narrated in Ibn Ishaq that Abdul Muttalib had discovered that cave and that he also used to go there to meditate. The Prophet (peace be upon Him) would go there with some food and water, to just sit there to contemplate and meditate for a number of nights. When he ran out of food and water, he would go back to replenish and to take care of some of the family affairs for a few days, and then go to Hira again after some days.

    The Prophet (peace be upon Him) would dream as true as the sun rose means as certain as you know the sun will rise tomorrow." That is, whatever he sees happening in his dreams would all come true. He mentioned this to Khadija (peace be upon Her) and she said, "This is a good sign from Allah." Again this shows the wisdom of Khadija. And it's mentioned in Bukhari that this period of dreams lasted for six months.


    The Beginning Of The Revelation Of Qur'an

    Finally in the month of Ramadan, during its last ten days and one of its odd dates (21,23,25,27,29), which is reported to be “Night of Decree”…we don’t know the exact date but one of these five odd dates.

    On this particular day, while he was contemplating in the cave; suddenly he saw a strange figure emitting light appearing in front of him from nowhere and held him tightly in both of his arms and squeezed him so tightly that he could hardly breathe and then released him.

    And this figure commanded him,”Iqra” which means to “READ”.

    It is either used to read something from somewhere written”, or “to read from the memory” for both meanings the word “Iqra” is used.

    And to this Prophet (peace be upon Him) replied, ”I don’t know how to read”.

    Prophet Muhammad does not know how to read and write. He was an unlettered person.

    The figure squeezed him the second time, even harder than the first time and released him and commanded,” READ” once again.

    The Prophet replied what he had already replied that I don’t know how to read.

    The figure squeezed him the third time and this time Prophet Muhammad was commanded:

    “Read! In the name of your Lord who created:

    HE created man from a clot.

    Read! And Your Lord is the Most Generous.

    Who taught by means of the pen;

    Who taught man what he did not know. [Qur’an 96:1-5]


    The figure disappeared and it marked the beginning of Revelation.


    The Prophet was struck with fear as any other human being would. In a cave of a mountain, where no one was around and suddenly a being appeared from nowhere. He was terrified and immediately ran to his home and asked his wife Khadija to cover him up.

    She covered him with a blanket until his fear was over and after that he told her everything that had happened and said, "I fear that something may happen to me."

    Khadija replied, "Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your kith and kin, feed the poor and help the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the deserving calamity-afflicted ones."

    After Prophet calmed down, Khadija then accompanied him to her first cousin Waraqa ibn Naufal ibn Asad. Who was a Monk , a knowledgeable person in the scriptures and a dream interpreter and he belonged to a group of few people of Makkah who followed the monotheist religion of Ibraheem (peace be upon Him) and was among the true followers of Prophet Eesa (peace be upon Him). He was the only Christian left in Makkah by that time among that group who followed the religion of Ibraheem (peace be upon Him). It is said He used to write the writing with Hebrew letters. He would write from the Gospel in Hebrew as much as Allah wished him to write. It is said that at that time he was a very old man and had became blind.

    Khadija said to Waraqa to listen to what her husband Muhammad (peace be upon Him)had to say.

    Waraqa asked Prophet What have you seen?" {Waraqa assumed that he had seen some dream)

    Allah's Apostle described whatever he had seen.

    Waraqa became over joyed and exited and said, "This is the same Namoos ( the bearer of secrets (angel Jibra’eel) whom Allah had sent to the previous prophets and you are the predicted Prophet.

    Waraqa said,” I wish I was young, and could live up to the time when your people would turn you out."

    Prophet asked, "my people will drive me out?" {Prophet Muhammad could not imagine that his own people who love him and respect him so much could do such a thing with him}

    Waraqa replied in the affirmative and said, "Anyone who came with something similar to what you have brought that there is no God worthy of worship but Allah was treated with hostility; and if I should remain alive until the day when you will be turned out, then I would support you strongly with everything I have." {It is not you that they reject but the message. This was what happened with all the messengers}

    But after a few days to this incident, Waraqa passed away.

    So actually he was the first man to believe in the prophet hood of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him).



    IN-SHA-ALLAH...TO BE CONTINUED !
     
    Viswamitra likes this.
  7. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    The Prophet(peace be upon Him) then continued to narrate his story, "The revelation stopped for a while [after the first revelation]."

    Ibn Abbas says the Prophet (peace be upon Him) would wander Makkah and its valleys wanting to see Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him) again.

    Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri said, "This period lasted for many days, for around a month [40 days]."

    And this is when he says, "I was worried for myself" - meaning, he thought he was hallucinating. And he would go to the Mountain of Hira expecting to see Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him) again, but every day he would go and there would be nothing.

    What is the wisdom of these 30-40 days pause? The scholars say one wisdom is to prepare him for the second revelation. To make him recover and recollect energies and make him feel enthused.

    Until finally one day the Prophet (peace be upon Him) was coming down the mountain and he heard his name being called. He looked in front and behind and couldn't see anyone. Then the Prophet(peace be upon Him) looked up and there was the same angel he had seen at Hira, sitting on a throne between the heavens and the earth." The Prophet(peace be upon Him) began to tremble out of fear. He wanted to see Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him)but when he did saw him; he trembled.

    Indeed the Prophet (peace be upon Him) was coming to the mountain every day hoping to meet Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him). But despite this preparation he still became terrified when he saw him. All of this shows us the human nature and human reaction of the Prophet (peace be upon Him)

    So he rushes home again saying, "Cover me , cover me," and this was when the second revelation was revealed.


    O You, wrapped in your cloak !

    arise and warn!

    Proclaim the greatness of your Lord;

    And your garments Purify!

    Keep away from all filth;

    And give not a thing in order to have more;

    And be patient for the sake of your Lord. 74: 1-7


    This second revelation came in the house of Khadija (peace be upon Her).

    Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him) appeared and addressed Prophet, "O you who is wrapped up in a garment".

    The symbolism here is, "O you who are living in comfort and ease, stop this life of ease, stand up, be active, leave this sheltered life, and go out and warn the people." And, "While you are doing so, praise and glorify your Lord." And, "Make sure your garments are clean - in a literal sense: make sure you don't have any impurity on your clothes and have a presentable appearance; and make sure you have no sins to pollute you, make sure you have a pure soul and a good heart." And, stay away from all the filth of every kind", "Don't remind people of the favors that you've done" - meaning, when you do good, don't do it to get the favors back from people or to be re-paid. Again this goes back to the concept of sincerity - when somebody does something purely for the sake of Allah, nobody can challenge that person's intention; but when somebody has other intentions then it tarnishes that person's reputation.


    Revelation is called Wahi (secret/swift instruction) in Arabic.

    Allah says in the Quran:

    It is not given to any human being that Allah should speak to him except through revelation,or from behind a veil, or that a messenger (an angel) be sent to him who reveals to him by Allah's leave whatever HE wishes. HE is All-High, Most Wise. {42:51}

    Both the Quran and Hadih (sayings of Prophet) confirms that the Prophet (peace be upon Him) was given instruction by all these methods:

    Means of Revelation:

    1. True dreams: Lowest form of inspiration is true dreams. This is the only form of inspiration that is still open to mankind. And anyone can get this. The Prophet (peace be upon Him) saw these before and after his prophet-hood. True dreams are not restricted to prophets.


    2. Divine inspiration of the angels other than the angel Jibra’eel - this is called Ilhaam .

    For example, Allah says in the Quran:

    And your Lord inspired the bee, saying: "Take you habitations in the mountains and in the trees and in what they erect.

    Another place, it says: "WE inspire the mother of Musa"


    This type of inspiration does not make a person a prophet. It comes from Allah through the angels - the angels give this type of message to the heart…this is what we call intuition.


    3. To see the angel in human form in front of you directly, and to speak directly. Sometimes the companions of Prophet (peace be upon Him) would see him, and sometimes they don't. This is what happened many times.

    Usually when Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him) would come to the Prophet (peace be upon Him), he would come in the form of a companion called Dihyah Kalbi, an Ansari, who was considered to be the most handsome of all companions. Many times people thought they saw Dihyah when actually it was Jibra’eel . Aisha (peace be upon Her), on more than one occasion, saw the Prophet (peace be upon Him) talking to Dihyah and later asked, "What did Dihyah want from you?" But the Prophet (peace be upon Him) said, "That wasn't Dihyah, that was Jibra’eel." This was easier for the Prophet (peace be upon Him) to bear compared to the next form of Wahi.


    4. A bell would ring in the prophet’s ear before revelation, and then the angel Jibra'eel would start delivering revelation. This was the extreme type of revelation by which the prophet would sweat even in winter. If he was riding a camel, it would sit down due to pressure of the revelation.

    In this state, Aisha (peace be upon Her) said, "I have seen him on multiple times, that when the Wahi was coming down in this form, even on a cold day, he would break into sweat" – it was the most difficult form of Wahi for the Prophet.

    The wisdom behind it was that Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon Him) would draw attention to it by diverting from other things.


    5.The Prophet (peace be upon Him) would see Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him) in his real form created by Allah. Then he would reveal to Prophet and this happened at least 2 times during the lifetime of Prophet (peace be upon Him).

    What is Jibra’eel's original form? All we know is that he was so big that he blocked the horizon, and he has 600 wings (the most number of wings of an angel).


    6.The highest form of Wahi possible: Allah's direct speech. This was how Allah would speak to Prophet Musa (peace be upon Him).That only happened once to the Prophet (peace be upon Him) in the journey of al-Isra' wal-Mi'raj.




    In-Sha-Allah...To Be Continued !
     
    Viswamitra likes this.
  8. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !



    During the early days, the invitation was not ‘secret’; but rather the better word to use would be ‘private’. When the verse "arise and warn" [74:2] was revealed, we only have a few brief stories as to what the Prophet (peace be upon Him) did. He preached to his immediate friends and family.


    Early Persons who accepted Islam:

    The first was Khadija bint Khuwaylid (peace be upon Her) ,wife of Prophet. She accepted without even knowing what she is accepting, which shows how much faith she had in her husband. She said, "Allah is never going to humiliate you. Allah is never going to cause you to go astray. You are a person who is kind and truthful.

    The second one to attest and accept was Waraqa ibn Nawfal (peace be upon Him). He reverted without even saying the shahada (words to testify and formally accept Islam). But he testified to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) that you are a prophet.

    The 3rd,4rth and 5th to accept was Ali (son of Abu Talib) paternal cousin of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him),who was still a child around 10 yrs age; Abu Bakr (a close friend of Prophet Muhammad) and Zayd ibn Harithah ( freed slave)…(peace be upon them)

    And many others continued to join with time.

    In the early stage, the Prophet (peace be upon Him) only preached privately. He only invited his friends and acquaintances. Thus there was no public opposition. For three years, the Prophet (peace be upon Him) did not preach to the masses.

    Private invitations did not result in any confrontation between the Muslims and the Quraysh. No torture, ridicule etc.; because there was no threat. If someone was accepting Islam – he was simply minding his own business and not getting involved with the society at a religious level. So for the first three years, there was no persecution etc. The Muslims were being taught their religion, concentrating on the teachings of Islam. In fact, this is what prepared them with the spiritual boost they needed to face the torture later on.

    Salah (namaz)and Ablution were legislated. Angel Jibra’eel (peace be upon Him) taught the Prophet (peace be upon Him) how to do ablution and how to pray, though at this stage prayer was voluntary and not obligatory - it was made obligatory in the night of decree (al-Isra' wa al-Mi'raj )when the five prayers a day were made obligatory. Also in this early stage all the prayers were of only two units.

    Now we move on to the next stage, which is open preaching with no public conflict from Muslim side. This open preaching took place three years after first revelation came down. Allah revealed a number of verses which commanded the Prophet (peace be upon Him) to preach openly.

    Two of them are the most important: 15:94, "Don't hide, go forth and proclaim what WE have commanded you, and turn away from the ignorant people." So the Prophet (peace be upon Him) understood this was a command to go public. Then a verse came down which was even more explicit.

    "And warn your tribe (O Muhammad) of near kindred." [Qur'an, 26:214].

    In the beginning, the Makkan leaders did not care much about Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) and took no heed of his teachings. At first, they thought that Muhammad (peace be upon Him) was merely a religious philosophist like Omaiyah , Quss bin Saidah, ‘Amr bin Nufail and their ilk who used to philosophize on godship and religious obligations. But this attitude of indifference soon changed into real apprehension. The polytheists of Quraysh began to watch Prophet Muhammad’s movements closely and anxiously for fear of spreading his Call and producing a change in the prevalent mentality. {Paragraph Source: Sealed Nectar}

    The first stage: He went public to his immediate tribe that is Banu Hashim. The Prophet (peace be upon Him) invited his immediate tribe - his immediate uncles and aunts, over 40 of the adults, to his house. Soon after they ate;Abu Lahab (uncle of Prophet Muhammad and a leader) sensed and became scared that Prophet (peace be upon Him) would make public what was until now a private matter. Abu Lahab immediately gave an excuse and said he needs to leave and some other elders also left with him.

    A few days later the Prophet (peace be upon Him) invited them again and this time, he immediately stood up and began preaching.

    "O Children of Abdul Muttalib, "I celebrate Allah ’s praise, I seek HIS help, I believe in HIM, I put my trust in HIM, I bear witness that there is no god to be worshipped but Allah with no associate. A guide can never lie to his people. I swear by Allah , there is no god but HE, that I have been sent as a Messenger to you in particular and to all the people, in general. I swear by Allah you will die just as you sleep, you will be resurrected just as you wake up. You will be called to account for your deeds. It is then either Hell forever or the Paradise forever."


    Abu Talib replied: "We love to help you, accept your advice and believe in your words. These are your kinspeople whom you have collected. Do what you have been ordered. I shall protect and defend you, but I can’t quit the religion of ‘Abdul-Muttalib."

    Abu Lahab then said to Abu Talib: " I swear by Allah that this is a bad thing. You must stop him before the others do." Abu Talib, however, answered: "I swear by Allah to protect him as long as I am alive."

    Before this time, they might have heard that the Prophet (peace be upon Him) is preaching, but they were not approached directly. This was the first time the message of Islam openly reached many of their ears. Abu Lahab became irritated and said to the people around the Prophet (peace be upon Him), "This seems to be an unworthy message, we have our ways of forefathers. Who does this young man think he is to come and oppose the ways of our forefathers”.


    In-Sha-Allah...To Be Continued !
     
    Viswamitra likes this.
  9. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !



    A few days/weeks later,the Prophet (peace be upon Him) went public to the whole city of Makkah.

    Reported in Bukhari (authentic statements of Prophet): "The Prophet (peace be upon Him) climbed the Mountain of Safa which was the closest mountain to the Ka'bah." It was much taller than it is now. So for a person in Makkah to climb to the top of Safa, this was the equivalent of, "I have an announcement to make." The Prophet (peace be upon Him) climbed to the top of Safa and began calling the people. We have to realize Makkah had a small population; we can say like a little village. People stopped doing what they were doing and they came to listen. The Prophet (peace be upon Him) waited for everyone to assemble and then he said, "If I were to inform you about something, do you trust me?" And they said, "We know nothing but good from you, you are our son and the son of our brother, you are our nephew etc. We have heard nothing but good. You are al-Amin (trust worthy)." And then the Prophet said, "If I were to tell you that there is an army coming to attack, would you believe me [without any checking, just with my word]?" And they said, "Yes, we have never heard you ever say a lie." This is when the Prophet (peace be upon Him) said, "Then know therefore, I am a Warner sent by Allah, to proclaim the coming of a severe punishment on the Day of Judgement unless you turn to Allah and leave your idolatry. O tribe of Murrah ibn Ka'b, tribe of Abd Manaf, tribe of Abdul Muttalib etc; save yourselves from the Fire of Hell, I will not be able to help you.

    until he got to, "O tribe of Hashim," and then he began mentioning his uncles and aunts by name. And he concluded with the person who was the dearest & the most beloved to him, "O Fatima daughter of Muhammad, you need to save yourself from the Fire of Hell, I will not be able to help you on the Day of Judgment." And with Fatima he (peace be upon Him) added one phrase, "Except that in this world I will give you all that I have, (I'm your father, you ask me anything that I have, it is yours. But in the hereafter, I cannot save you from Allah's punishment)."

    He called them to testify to the Oneness of Allah and believe that he is the Messenger of Allah and to believe in the Day of Resurrection.

    When the Prophet (peace be upon Him) finished this message, this is when Abu Lahab stood up, picked up some sand and through it in the direction of the Prophet (peace be upon Him). This was meant to say "What is this [message]? It's not even worth this sand I am throwing!" It was a sign of great arrogance. Then he said, "May you be perished! Is this why you called us here?!"

    And this is when Allah revealed the aayah (verse) that very time.

    "Perish the two hands of Abi Lahab..." [ Qur'an 111:1]


    Abu Lahab was the first person to publicly oppose and ridicule the message.

    This is the way of Allah –that never has a messenger been sent except he has to face struggles and hardships against his own people.

    From this point onwards, the Prophet (peace be upon Him) started preaching everywhere. In public places; near the Ka'bah, when visitors n pilgrims would come to Makkah, marketplaces of Mina etc.

    This was when the preaching became public, and this was
    when the public opposition began as well.


    In-Sha-Allah,To Be Continued...!
     
    Viswamitra likes this.
  10. Yumna

    Yumna Platinum IL'ite

    Messages:
    1,212
    Likes Received:
    1,629
    Trophy Points:
    283
    Gender:
    Female
    In the Name of God,the Most Beneficent,the Ever Merciful !


    Opposition from the Quraysh (the tribe of Prophet):

    {Note: Events aren't necessarily chronological}


    1: The first thing they did that they tried to appeal to the highest authority which was Abu-Talib.

    Recall there is no ruler in Makkah. What they had was a group of senior people none of whom was in charge, but had a big say in the matters of the community. They were the representatives of each of the sub-tribes of Makkah. Each of the sub-tribe had a ruler. The affairs of that one tribe will be in accordance with what each chieftain says. The leader of tribe of Hashim was of course Abu Talib.

    It was the way that the leader of each tribe was never disobeyed. He is given the utmost respect. And then when he dies, one of his sons takes over (just like when Abdul Muttalib died, Abu Talib took over).

    So when the Prophet (peace be upon Him) started preaching, they went to Abu Talib and to attach a serious and earnest stamp to their demand, they chose to touch the most sensitive area in Arabian life, viz., ancestral pride. They addressed Abu Talib in the following manner: "O Abu Talib! Your nephew curse our idols, find faults with our way of life, mocks at our religion and degrades our forefathers; either you must stop him, or you must let us get at him. For you are in the same opposition as we are in opposition to him; and we will rid you of him."

    Abu Talib tried to appease their wrath. He simply sidetracked hoping that the matter would go away. But it didn't.

    Few weeks later, they came to Abu Talib again. As more and more people converted to Islam, as more of the pilgrims would go back to their places bearing the news. This time they increased the pressure on Abu Talib. They try to threaten, bribe, and cajole him.

    Attention!

    The Prophet (peace be upon Him) never cursed their forefathers - they're his own forefathers. He (peace be upon Him) is inviting to worshiping ONE GOD. But they exaggerated it by saying, "Well if it's foolish, this means our forefathers were foolish. And if they were foolish, this means you're cursing them," etc.

    And of their accusations was, "Your nephew is cursing our idols." But the Prophet (peace be upon Him) never cursed any of their idols and neither it is allowed in Islam to do so.

    Allah says in the Glorious Quran:

    "And do not curse those they invoke other than Allah" { 6:108]

    Yet they falsely accused Him.


    And Abu Talib had never been confronted by his people in this manner.They could not harm their own tribesmen unless the chief allows it. This was the law of the Arabs.

    This is when Abu Talib went to the Prophet (peace be upon Him) and said to him, "O my nephew, my people have come to me and said such and such, so be merciful to yourself and be merciful to me, do not place me in a situation I cannot bear."

    This was one of the most difficult encounters for the Prophet (peace be upon Him). Abu Talib loved the Prophet more than his own children, and remember Abu Talib is the Prophet's uncle - and the Prophet (peace be upon Him) had the same love for Abu Talib, like a father.

    And this is when the Prophet (peace be upon Him) said, "O my uncle, By Allah, if they were to give the sun in my right hand, and the moon in my left hand, I cannot give up this message until I succeed in what I am doing or I die a death in this path preaching what I am preaching."

    In another version, he said to his uncle, "Do you see the sun, O my uncle; I have no more power to stop preaching than you do to light your stick with this sun."

    When Abu Talib saw this persistence and sincerity, he said, "Do what you will, I will never come again to stop you."




    In-Sha-Allah,To Be Continued...!

     
    Viswamitra likes this.

Share This Page