Table of Contents
Preparing The Universe For The Message Of Muhammad
“Our Lord! Send amongst them a Messenger of their own, who shall recite unto them Your Ayat and instruct them in the Book (this Qur’an) and Al-Hikmah (full knowledge of the Islamic laws and jurisprudence or wisdom or Prophethood, etc.), and sanctify them. Verily! You are the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 129)
If we want to write about the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), we will certainly need many tomes because the biography of the Messenger of Allah – may Allah bless him and grant him peace – and the aspects of grandeur in it are endless. But we will try in this book to offer glimpses or thoughts about his scented memoir followed by rays of light as Allah may bestow on us to say, while summoning the greatness of the man most nobly mannered.
Before we start talking about the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) we shall discuss how the universe was prepared to receive the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, prepared the entire universe to receive the Message of the Last of the Prophets (peace be upon them all) and His Law, which His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) would convey to mankind, as established by the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“O Messenger (Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã)! Proclaim (the Message) which has been sent down to you from your Lord. And if you do not, then you have not conveyed His Message. Allah will protect you from mankind.” (Al-Mâ’idah, 5:67)
Since the beginning of creation and his name is Muhammad [literally, the worthy of praise and the highly praised, may Allah bless him and grant him peace] and then followed the preparation for his Message. Since Adam (peace be upon him) and Islam is the established Law; the doctrine that Adam came down to the earth with and he directly received from the Truth [Al-Haqq: one of the Beautiful Names of Allah], all praise and glory be to Him. Islam is the doctrine of totally submitting oneself and resigning one’s affairs to Allah, Alone. It is the heavenly doctrine since time began till the Last Hour befalls. Enjoining that which blesses humanity and forbidding that which harms it has been the Law around which revolved all the Divine Messages as states the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“And We said: O Adam! Dwell you and your wife in the Garden and eat you freely (of the fruits) thereof where you will; but come not nigh this tree lest you became wrongdoers.” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 35)
All the Prophets who came with celestial Messages followed the course of ‘Do and Do Not Do,’ and gave the glad tidings of the approaching Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) that gathers all the heavenly revealed values.
When we recite the Noble Qur’an we find that Almighty Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, says (what means):
“And (remember) when Allah took the Covenant of the Prophets, saying: ‘Take whatever I gave you from the Book and Hikmah (understanding of the Laws of Allah, etc.), and afterwards there will come to you a Messenger (Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) confirming what is with you; you must, then, believe in him and help him.’ Allah said: ‘Do you agree (to it) and will you take up My Covenant (which I conclude with you)?’ They said: ‘We agree.’ He said: ‘Then bear witness; and I am with you among the witnesses (for this).’” (Âl-‘Imrân, 3: 81)
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, informs us through these glorious Ayat that He took the Covenant of all the Prophets that they should announce the glad tidings of the arrival of His Messenger, Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and that they should confirm his Message. And if Allah took that Covenant at one time from all the Prophets prior to birth on earth [i.e., when Allah extracted from Adam (peace be upon him) all of his descendants who would be born, generation after generation, until the end of the world and made them bear witness that He is their Lord], it is also confirmed that Allah took a Covenant from every Prophet that he should inform his followers and believers in his prophecy about the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, brought forth from the loins of the Children of Adam (peace be upon him) their offspring, one of the other, that will continue to come till the Day of Resurrection, and made them testify that He is their Creator and the only true God worthy of worship, as says Allah in the glorious Ayah (what means):
]“And (remember) when your Lord brought forth from the Children of
Adam, from their loins, their seed (or from Adam’s loin his offspring) and made them testify as to themselves (saying): ‘Am I not your Lord?’ They said: ‘Yes! We testify.’ lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection: ‘Verily, we have been unaware of this.’” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 172)
A hadith narrated on the authority of Ibn Sa‘d said that a man asked the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) saying, “O Messenger of Allah! When were you a Prophet?” The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, “While Adam was between the soul and body, when the Covenant was taken from me.”
Thus, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) testified to the Oneness of the Lordship of the Supreme Creator together with all the creatures, while Adam was between the soul and body [meaning: when Adam was in the state in which the soul was about to enter the body]. In the time between Adam (peace be upon him) and Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) came the procession of the Prophets, guiding to the path of Truth; so that none would come on the Day of Resurrection arguing that there was not a reminder of the Law of Allah or givers of glad tidings and warners of what man would meet in the Hereafter.
Adam (peace be upon him) conveyed the Doctrine of Allah to the earth by the Command of Allah, all praise and glory be to Him. It was the duty of Adam to teach his Children the Divine Doctrine, and in turn his Children would teach it to their posterity and so forth. But negligence came upon the Children of Adam, who strayed from the Law, forgot it or distorted it. They prostrated themselves to others than Allah, so Heaven had to intervene with a procession of Messengers so that man awakes from his inattention and remembers that Allah is the only worshipped God and is the Sole Creator.
Therefore,
all the celestial Massages came in one procession heralding Islam. All had Islam as their doctrine: that mankind should worship the one and only True God, Who has no partner, and that they should adopt His Law as the course of their life to save them from torment. In Surat Al-A‘râf, Almighty Allah says (what means):
“Indeed, We sent Nûh (Noah) to his people and he said: ‘O my people! Worship Allah! You have no other God but Him. Certainly, I fear for you the torment of a Great Day!’” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 59)
“And to ‘Ad (people, We sent) their brother Hûd. He said: ‘O my people! Worship Allah! You have no other God but Him. Will you not fear (Allah)?’” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 65)
“And to Thamud (people, We sent) their brother Salih (Saleh). He said: ‘O my people! Worship Allah! You have no other God but Him.’” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 73)
Thus, all the processions of Messengers came agreeing upon the summit of Faith, that there is no God but Allah, Alone, Who has no partner, the one and only True God, and none should be worshipped but Him, then they conveyed the Divine Law.
Ibrahim’s Glad Tidings Of Muhammad
When Ibrahim (Abraham, peace be upon him) stood raising the foundations of the Sanctified House (the Ka‘bah at Mecca) he lifted his hands towards Heaven praying:
“Our Lord! Send amongst them a Messenger of their own, who shall recite unto them Your Ayat and instruct them in the Book (this Qur’an) and Al-Hikmah (full knowledge of the Islamic laws and jurisprudence or wisdom or Prophethood, etc.), and sanctify them. Verily! You are the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 129)
Answering the supplication of Ibrahim was the announcement made to mankind about the Last of the Prophets, and the glad tidings of his arrival are given in every Book that preceded the Noble Qur’an.
The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, informs in the Torah about Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). The Almighty says, while addressing Musa (Moses, peace be upon him), what means:
]“Those who follow the Messenger, the Prophet who can neither read
nor write (i.e. Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) whom they find written with them in the Torah and the Gospel, – he commands them what is just and forbids them what is evil; he allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them from what is bad (and impure); He releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them. So those who believe in him (Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã), honour him, help him, and follow the light (the Qur’an) which has been sent down with him, it is they who will be successful.” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 157)
Also, ‘Issa (Jesus, peace be upon him) gave the glad tidings of the approaching Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), as states the glorious Ayah (which means):
“And (remember) when ‘Issa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), said: ‘O Children of Israel! I am the Messenger of Allah unto you confirming the Torah [which came] before me, and giving glad tidings of a Messenger to come after me, whose name shall be Ahmed.’” (As-Saff, 61: 6)
Not only did the Prophet ‘Issa (peace be upon him) give the glad tidings of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), but also his descriptions were accurately stated in the Torah and the Gospel, in a way that permitted the Jewish rabbis and Christian monks to easily know the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) without a guide.
With regard to that, The Truth, Blessed and Exalted be He, says (what means):
“Those to whom We gave the Scripture (Jews and Christians) recognise him (Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) as they recongise their own sons. But verily, a party of them conceal the truth while they know it – [i.e. the qualities of Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã, which are written in the Torah and the Gospel].” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 146)
The Monk Bahira Identifies The Messenger
We thus can see that the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), even his outward appearance, was known and heralded in the celestial Books. Furthermore, the Jewish rabbis and Christian monks recognized him even before his mission; they knew the time of his Message and were sure of his birth.
Abu Talib, the uncle of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), traveled with a trade caravan to Syria, having in his company the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), who was still a boy. The caravan reached Busra [which was a part of Syria, in the vicinity of Howran under the Roman domain], where lived a monk called Bahira, who devoted himself to worship in his hermitage. Many a time the caravans passed by his place, but monk Bahira never talked or socialized with them.
But this time he prepared for them a banquet, and then he descended from his hermitage and said to them, “I prepared food for you, O people of Quraish, and I would love to entertain you all, the young and old, the slaves and the free.” So, the people wondered saying, “We used to pass by often but you prepared for us nothing, so what has happened?”
The monk replied, “I liked to welcome you.”
So, all the people gathered around the table except the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) who kept sitting under a tree. Monk Bahira asked, “O People of Quraish, did any of you miss my banquet?” They replied, “None missed it except a boy, who is the youngest amongst the people.” He said, “Call him.” Afterwards, Bahira went to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), embraced him and then kept looking for the sign (the seal) of Prophethood in his body (which is found between his shoulders).
After the people finished eating and parted, Bahira said to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), “I ask you in the name of Al-Lat, and Al-‘Uzza [two idols of the pagan Arabs], to tell me what I seek to know from you.” Bahira used to hear the Quraish swearing by Al-Lat, and Al-‘Uzza in their talk, but the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said to him, “Do not ask me in the name of Al-Lat, and Al-‘Uzza, for by Allah, I have never hated anything more than them.”
Bahira said, “Then in the Name of Allah, tell me what I seek to know from you.”
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said, “Ask me about whatever you like.” Bahira kept asking and the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) answering, and Bahira finding all the statements of the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) exactly as in the Book, then he looked at his back and saw the seal of Prophethood between his shoulders.
Upon concluding his questions, his uncle Abu Talib arrived, so Bahira asked him, “What this boy is to you?”
Abu Talib replied, “He is my son.” Bahira said, “He is not your son, and the father of this boy should not be alive.” Abu Talib said, “He is my nephew.” Bahira asked, “What happened to his father?’ Abu Talib replied, “He died while his mother was pregnant with him.”
Bahira said, “You told the truth and I have seen the clouds shading him while he was sitting in front of the hermitage and that is why I invited you. Return with your nephew to his country and guard him against the Jews, for by Allah if they saw him and learned from him what I did they would seek to harm him. This nephew of yours will be a person of great importance and influence.”
When Abu Talib heard these words he hurried back to Mecca with the precious child, Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).
Another hadith, on the authority of Ibn Salam2 – one of the Jewish rabbis – narrates that he came to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) after embracing Islam and said, “Ashadu ana La ilah illa Allah, wana Muhammadan rasul Allah [I testify that there is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah]. By Allah I know that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah as I know my own son and my knowledge of Muhammad is even greater.” Then he said to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), “The Jews are a people (inclined to) slander and falsehood, and if they should come to know about my reversion to Islam before you ask them about me, they would tell a lie about me.”
When Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) asked the Jews, “What kind of man is Ibn Salam amongst you?” They replied, “He is our master and the son of our master, and he is our venerable rabbi.” Then the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) asked, “What would you say if ‘Abdullah bin Salam embraced Islam.” They replied, “May Allah protect him from this!” Whereupon, ‘Abdullah came out and said, “I testify that there is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.” Thus, the Jews said, “He is the evilest among us, and the son of the evilest amongst us,” and disparaged him. On that ‘Abdullah said, “That is what I was afraid of, O Messenger of Allah.”
The Jews of Medina even knew the time at which Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) would be commanded to deliver the Message. They used to tell Al-Aws and Al-Khazraj [two tribes in Medina, later two sections of the Ansar (Supporters)], “There has come the time of a Messenger whom we shall follow, and we, along with him, shall exterminate you, just as the nations of ‘Ad and Iram (people) were exterminated.”
Preparing The Universe For The Message Of Islam
We can see that the entire universe was spiritually being prepared to receive the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). But some may ask, “What good will it do to herald the arrival of the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to people who will die before his birth?”
We say that Allah willed that none of the believers, who did not live during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), should die without being given the glad tidings of his arrival and being trustful of his coming. That spiritual preparation of the universe to welcome the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) also mirrors the honorable status of the Last of the Prophets in the Sight of The Lord, be ever gloried His Majesty and Might.
That spiritual preparation was part and parcel of preparing the entire universe for receiving the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). The last act in preparation came on the birth year of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, willed by it to inform the entire earth that the last of all Prophets would be born and He Himself would guard his Message. That this Prophet would knock down the pillars of injustice in the entire universe, and if his doctrine is justly followed, it would leave no trace of oppression and bring about absolute justice.
There was a sign in the year of his birth and another on the day of his birth. As for the sign that happened in the year of his birth, it was the Elephant Incident. Abrahah – one of the Abyssinian leaders – wanted to destroy the Ka‘bah, the Sacred House of Allah in Mecca. It is narrated that Abrahah was a powerful tyrant who invaded Yemen. When he heard that people made pilgrimages to the Sacred House of Allah, he wanted to build a house in Yemen that people would visit instead of Mecca.
It happened that an Arabian came and threw garbage in that house, which wildly enraged Abrahah. He decided to retaliate by destroying the Ka‘bah and Satan adorned that heinous deed in his eyes. For that is the diabolic stratagem in adoring falsehood, which the Noble Qur’an illustrates to us through the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“Remember Satan made their (sinful) acts seem alluring to them, and said: no one among men can overcome you this day, while I am near to you: but when the two forces came in sight of each other, he turned on his heels, and said: Lo I am clear of you; lo I see what you see not; Lo I fear Allah; for Allah is severe in punishment.’ (Al-Anfâl, 8: 48)
The Noble Qur’an shows us through this glorious Ayah how the devil adorns evil to mankind, a solemn warning to us against him. The devil whispered to Abrahah saying, “You are strong and brave, and those are merely nomad Arabs, with neither might nor power. Go and destroy the Sacred House, you will find no one to defend it.” So, Abrahah prepared a powerful army built of elephants and mighty men, and he marched on to destroy the Sacred House of Allah, filled with pride at his strength.
When they arrived at Mecca and its people saw that mighty army and its force of elephants they fled to the mountains, deserting the House, undefended. There was a Divine wisdom behind this desertion, because if the people of Mecca surrounded the House to defend it and defeated Abrahah, it would have been said that a heroic minority defeated Abrahah’s army. Furthermore, if only one defender remained in front of the House, legends would have been fabricated about him.
But Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, wanted that all people leave His House unprotected. Thus, Abrahah stood with his huge army and no human rose to defend the Sacred House.
There the miracle happened and the sky was covered with birds, and suddenly the birds started to cast small stones that annihilated Abrahah’s army and crushed it. Thus, the mighty army perished in no time. The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, relates this event saying (what means):
“Have you (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) not seen how your Lord dealt with the Owners of the Elephant? [The elephant army which came from Yemen under the command of Abrahah Al-Ashram intending to destroy the Ka‘bah at Mecca]. Did He not make their plot go astray? And sent against them birds, in flocks, striking them with stones of Sijjîl (baked clay). And made them like an empty field of stalks and straw, (of which the corn) has been eaten up.” (Al-Fîl, 105: 1-5)
Some scientists tried to account for the destruction of the elephant and Abrahah’s army by hypothesizing that the birds might have been carriers of infectious diseases that caused the destruction of the marauding army, which is absolutely false! Because the mission of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) started when he was forty and the Elephant Incident happened in the year of his birth. If Surah Al-Fîl [The Elephant: 105] was revealed without the real occurrence of this incident, the people of Mecca who were fifty, sixty, seventy years old or more, amongst whom were disbelievers who heatedly desired to impugn Islam, those would have said, “We have lived the year of the Elephant Event, but we neither saw flocking birds nor stones of perdition.”
But the birds did come and threw stones of clay, baked with Hellfire, and none could deny what the glorious Ayat narrate. We have to believe that Allah is mightily Able to do anything, so we should neither introduce interpretations that belittle the Might or Power of Allah, Whose Majesty reigns supreme, nor subject the Divine Miracles to the worldly principles of cause and effect, nor to what is within our limited reasoning power for they are enormously higher above it.
But what is the meaning of that incident? It clearly signifies that Almighty Allah wants us to carefully bear in mind that His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) who would be born in that year would bring a doctrine mightily guarded by Heaven, even if all mankind deserted him. No human would be able to remove, change, replace or conceal anything from the Noble Qur’an…the doctrine of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Because it is a doctrine mightily guarded by the Power of Allah, The Most Exalted and Ever-Majestic, and what Allah guards can never be within reach of humans.
With real wonder, we ourselves witness that at the time the strength of faith is in decline the curve of preserving the Noble Qur’an is rising up. We even find that Almighty Allah is subjecting to the service of preserving the Noble Qur’an those who do not believe in it. So, we may find a Japanese scholar writing the whole Qur’an in one page, and a Japanese institution producing luxurious Copies of the Noble Qur’an. All over the world are non-Muslims serving the Noble Qur’an, who do not offer the same as to their books.
We also find that some of those who are rivaling for enhancing the Copies of the Noble Qur’an and publishing them in beautiful designs only memorize few Ayat from the Noble Qur’an. This upward curve of faith is from Allah Who will guard His Noble Book against the abuse of mankind till the Day of Resurrection, as declared by the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“Verily We: It is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur’an) and surely, We will guard it (from corruption).” (Al-Hijr, 15: 9)
Now we move to the birthday of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). On that day the strongholds of injustice were shaken all over world, and all of a sudden the sacred fire that the Magi worshipped died down; Lake Sawa, which the Persians sanctified, sank down; and Kisra’s palace, the fortress of oppression and disbelief, cracked and its balconies fell down.
Was there an operating hand behind these events? Or did they happen by the Power of Allah, Alone?
Of course, they happened by the Power of Allah, Alone, for us to learn that the truth whose Prophet was born on that day would destroy the strongholds of injustice in the whole world. And the Law that this Noble Messenger would be sent with, if followed truthfully and out of sincere faith, would leave no trace of injustice on the earth. They served as universal signs to the monotheistic religion, and the sublime message it bears to this universe.
And marvels truly happened, for at the time of the revelation of the Noble Qur’an the Arabs were a disunited nation, warring tribes with neither might nor power, killing one another and feuds were unabating between them. They lived in a barren desert, coveted by none. Then, Islam came to make the Arabs master the whole world and defeat the greatest two powers at that time: the Persians and the Romans.
But how was all this realized? Did the Noble Qur’an give the Arab an atomic bomb, or a new secret weapon? Or a scientific discovery that none has ever known before?
Nothing of that, but the Noble Qur’an brought a Law from Allah, be ever gloried His Majesty and Might, if man follows it, he will surely govern the whole world and be the master of this universe. The Arabs followed the Law of Allah; therefore, in a few years they became the masters of the earth, owners of civilization and power. Their word obeyed and their force feared, pioneers of progress and civilization in all domains.
That is the Law of Allah, whoever truthfully follows it will be superior, and whoever abandons it will miserably fail.
The Universality Of The Message
After
the spiritual preparations that Allah has made in His Universe to receive His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), through the glad tidings given by all the Prophets (peace be upon them all) about his arrival, and after stating his full description in the celestial Books that preceded the Noble Qur’an, and after the Elephant Event that captured and directed the attention of the Arabs at the time of its occurrence, to the Mighty Power of Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, and the entire world as well by depicting it in the Noble Qur’an, and after the highest strongholds of injustice on the face of the earth were mightily shaken, we must answer two important questions:
The first question: Why was the Message of the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) sent to the worlds or to the entire universe, and was not sent particularly to his people? Because, the Prophets who came before the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) were sent to their own people in order to remedy certain vices in the world. Moreover, at one time there was more than a Prophet. Ibrahim (Abraham, peace be upon him), the father of the Prophets, and Lut (Lot, peace be upon him), both of them were sent at the same time: Ibrahim to remedy the vice of idolatry and Lut to remedy sodomy that spread among his people.
Communities during the times of the preceding Prophets lived in isolation from one another. In addition, means of transportation were slow and difficult, almost nonexistent. People living anywhere, knew nothing about those living in other distant places.
The Wisdom of Heaven dictated that every Messenger was sent to his own people to remedy a certain vice or vices in a particular community. Surely, Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, eternally possesses absolute knowledge about His universe and how it would be unified. How the Most Exalted would reveal to mankind from the secrets of His Universe what would render transportations easy and distances short, in a way that unifies the problems of the world, and that is exactly what we now see.
In seconds the whole world knows about any incident that takes place in whatever spot on the earth. A disease that appears in America is quickly transmitted to Europe, and in a quicker pace to Africa, Asia and the rest of countries, until the problems from which the world suffers became almost one. For instance, the entire world suffers from violence and terrorism. Drugs not only threaten the youth of a certain country, but their evil also extends to all the countries of the world. Diseases became one in the whole world, which necessitated the appliance of one remedy. Because the problems of the world are one, it follows that the medicine should be one.
Therefore, Islam, the Message of the Last of the Prophets and Messengers, came to remedy the diseases of the entire world. After all these preludes people should have appreciated the value of Islam, and the Law brought by the Noble Qur’an. Regretfully, instead of that many people on the earth, who hear about Islam and the Noble Qur’an, never seek an enlightening reading about them that may shine within and show the way before them.
Any tourist is so caring about the trip he will undertake, reading the smallest details about the country he is going to visit and asking those who have visited it before, but he never tries to learn about his religion (Islam) or understand the teachings of Islam on which life is established.
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, created this universe and prepared it for man before creating him. He made man the master and made the entire universe serve him, and subjected it to him. But many never question themselves about He, The God, Who has subjected and created.
The second question: Why was Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) the Last of the Prophets? Because, his mission (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is the completion of all Messages and the perfection of all blessings, and in these two lies utmost contentment. For by their grace the canopy of Islam flies over the Worlds. Allah, the Almighty, has perfected the religion, completed His grace and Favour upon those who follow guidance, and the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) has conveyed the Message. Allah says in the Noble Qur’an (what means):
“This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.” (Al-Mâ’idah, 5: 3)
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said, “My similitude in comparison with the other Prophets before me, is that of a man who has built a house nicely and beautifully, except for the place of one brick in a corner. The people go about it and wonder at its beauty, but say, ‘Would that this brick be put in its place!’ So I am that brick and I am the last of the Prophets.’”
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, made the miracle of His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) his very doctrine, to keep the doctrine guarded by the power of the miracle till the Day of Judgment. In the past, Allah entrusted His servants with the duty of guarding the previous celestial Books, but what did they do with them? They forgot them, and the parts unforgotten were distorted, and those undistorted were hidden and those unhidden were substituted and changed.
Therefore, mankind was untrustworthy of guarding the Law of Heaven, because whims and caprice interfered and worldly greed changed and substituted the Divine Law. Hence, it is Almighty Allah Himself Who guards the Noble Qur’an against any change or corruption.
The Noble Qur’an… A Miracle Ever-Renewing
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, made the doctrine of His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) an everlasting miracle. To every generation the Noble Qur’an has something new to offer. There are matters that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) has accurately clarified, explained and detailed, which are the matters connected with worship. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) left no rule related to worship without explaining it in detail.
But there are Ayat that were beyond the grasp of the contemporaries of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), which the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) left as Qur’anic miracles to every generation. Thus, no time passes without the manifestation of a new Qur’anic miracle, which we have not known before.
Almighty Allah says (what means):
“Say (O Muhammad Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã to mankind). ‘If the sea were ink for (writing) the Words of my Lord, sooner would the sea be exhausted than would the words of my Lord, even if we brought (another sea) like it for its aid.” (Al-Kahf, 18: 109)
When they discovered that the earth is globe-shaped, it became evident how the Noble Qur’an was the first to clearly indicate that truth in the creation of the night and day. The Noble Book indicates the spherical shape of the earth and its rotation on its axis in one glorious Ayah, in which The Most Exalted says (what means):
“And it is He Who made the Night and the Day to follow each other:
for such as have the will to celebrate His praises or to show their gratitude.” (Al-Furqân, 25: 62)
A thing that succeeds another means to exactly follow close upon it like patrols, one after another; or as work shifts in a factory, each succeeding the other. But there is always a beginning in all this, where the first night patrol does not have a preceding one, and the first shift upon start of work in a factory, does not come after another shift, simply because it is the beginning of work at the factory. But The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, says (what means):
“And it is He Who made the Night and the Day to follow each other.” (Al-Furqân, 25: 62)
Night must follow day from the moment of creation, which cannot be unless night and day were together created on the face of the earth, which also cannot be unless the earth is globe-shaped. At the moment of creation, night and day both existed on the earth at the same instant, so that each becomes the successor of the other. Night and day cannot succeed one another unless the earth rotates on its axis. Had the earth been still, the part subjected to light would have remained day forever and the dark part would have remained night forever. Therefore, the axial rotation of the earth is a must-be fact. Another marvel found in the Noble Quran about the rotation of the earth, is the glorious Ayah in which Almighty Allah says (what means):
“And you see the mountains and think them firmly fixed; but they pass along as the clouds pass: (such is) the Artistry of Allah, Who perfected all things.” (An-Naml, 27: 88)
After the revolution witnessed in science, scientists became able to film the baby within its mother’s womb, but the Noble Qur’an has already scientifically depicted the phases of embryonic development with amazing accuracy. Then medicine discovered that the sensory-perception in man is the skin, because nerve endings (receptors) lie directly beneath the skin, and again they find the Noble Qur’an stating that truth, in the glorious Ayah speaking about the eternal torment that the inhabitants of Hellfire will taste:
“As often as their skins are roasted through, We shall change them for other skins that they may taste the punishment.” (An-Nisâ’, 4: 56)
The Noble Qur’an is richly plenteous in miracles, some Allah has willed to be unveiled, and many others are to be revealed to the future generations. All this serves to keep the Noble Qur’an an everlasting rejuvenating miracle, in a way that offers to every age a new miracle.
The whole universe rejoiced at the birth of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), because he came with a doctrine that would bring back the harmony man lost with the universe and with his own self. Although, the whole universe is made to obey, except mankind and the jinns who are given free will, none should think that Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, imposed such subjection on the universe. But the Justice of Allah dictated that such subjection be of its own choice. Had it been a compulsory matter, Allah would not have given the universe the freedom to choose.
In this regard, The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, says (what means):
“Truly, We did offer Al-Amânah (the trust or moral responsibility or honesty and all the duties which Allah has ordained) to the heavens and the earth, and the mountains, but they declined to bear it and were afraid of it (i.e. afraid of Allah’s Torment). But man bore it. Verily, he was unjust (to himself) and ignorant (of its results).” (Al-Ahzâb, 33: 72)
Thus, we see that Almighty Allah offered the trust or freedom of choice to all His creatures, but these creatures, other than mankind and jinns, feared lest they should not be able to fulfill and honor the trust and said, “O Lord! We have chosen to be subjected.” But as for man he was misled by his reason and asked for free choice.
So, the whole universe is a glorifier of Allah except mankind, as some are glorifiers and others are not. In this regard, The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, says (what means):
“See you not that to Allah prostrates whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth, and the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and the mountains, and the trees, and Ad-Dawâb (moving living creatures, beasts, etc.), and many of mankind? But there are many (men) on whom the punishment is justified.” (Al-Hajj, 22: 18)
The glorious Ayah shows that upon mentioning mankind obedience varied, but as for the rest of creatures they are all glorifiers. True indeed, for the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) heard the glorification of the pebbles; and the longing of the date-palm trunk on which he used lean while preaching, and the moan it uttered when a pulpit was built for him to deliver sermons from, instead of it. Also, the clouds that used to shade him and the camel that complained to him of man’s cruelty and the water gushing forth from his fingers.
All these glorifiers rejoiced at the Message of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), but man whom Allah made the master of this universe and created for him all these blessings, is the one who opposed and disbelieved. Therefore, all what exist in the universe from inanimate beings, plants and animals curse the disbeliever, even the human body that Allah has subjected to serve man, whether an obeyer or a disobeyer.
The tongue can utter the Shahadah [The Testimony of Faith: There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah)] or the word of disbelief, Allah forbid. Similarly, the hand obeys its owner when it assaults people and also obeys him when helping someone rise on his feet, or helping a cripple or a blind man cross the road.
But on the Day of Resurrection all the organs of the human body will come to testify against the sinner and curse him, as substantiated by the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“On the Day when their tongues, their hands, and their legs or feet will bear witness against them as to what they used to do.” (An-Nûr, 24: 24)
The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, willed that the Islamic Message should be send down in Mecca, that blessed stretch of land, which Allah has chosen as His House. Although it is a small spot from the spacious land that Allah has created, man with his disbelief stubbornly insisted on defiling that Sanctified House and worshiping in it others than Allah. Within the House of Allah, chosen by Allah Himself, man set up idols that were worshipped instead of The Most Exalted.
The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, willed that Islam starts with purifying His House and that the first Call of Faith be cried within the ears of the chiefs of the Quraish, to whom the House had given mastery over all the Arabs; those chiefs who were the leaders of disbelief and the establishers of the idols within the Sacred House of Allah; who tyrannized over the world. Their society was widely estranged from the Worship of Allah, a society that approbated sins, disbelief and polytheism. Then came the Cry of Faith to mightily shake them all and restore to life the eternal values springing from this very blessed place that is connected with the continents of the earth by land and sea, for it constituted the outset and from its land the Message was conveyed to the Worlds.
Before discussing the Message, we have to talk about the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and his descriptions as given by his contemporaries, and why was he of superb manners? And why did Allah, Blessed and Exalted be He, chose him a human? And why illiterate? And why an orphan?
2 Abdullah bin Salam was from amongst these same Jews. His name was Al-Husayn bin Salam, (the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, gave him the name ‘Abdullah) and held the post as a Jewish Rabbi. Because of his piety, religious knowledge and good conduct, he was widely respected by both Jews and non-Jews. During his study of the Torah, he came across the verses which spoke of the coming of the final Prophet. He deeply studied this prophecy, and anxiously awaited his coming. He would continually convey the characteristics of this Prophet to his family and prayed that he would one day meet him. [Trans. n.]
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلى خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ
“And verily, you (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) are on an exalted standard of character.”
(Al-Qalam, 68: 4)
Ayah quoted by trans.