Table of Contents
The Messenger And Divine Revelation
“Say (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã): ‘I am only a human being like you. It is inspired in me that your God is One God, therefore take Straight Path to Him (with true Faith Islamic Monotheism) and obedience to Him, and seek forgiveness of Him. And woe to those who join gods with Allah.” (Fussilat, 41: 6)
If we are to talk about the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and the Divine Revelation, we have to clearly know what is an inspiration. Inspiration is informing in secrecy. Meaning, to inform a person with something and none else perceive it except you and him. It is a revelation in secrecy between the inspiring person and the person inspired. Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, inspired all His Prophets, in other words, all celestial messages were revealed through Divine Inspiration.
In this regard, The Truth [Al-Haqq: one of the Beautiful Names of Allah], all praise and glory be to Him, says (what means):
“Verily, We have inspired you (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) as We inspired Nuh (Noah) and the Prophets after him; We (also) inspired Ibrahim (Abraham), Isma’il (Ishmael), Ishaque (Isaac), Ya‘qub (Jacob), and Al-Asbat [the twelve sons of Ya‘qub (Jacob)], ‘Issa (Jesus), Ayub (Job), Yunus (Jonah), Harun (Aaron), and Sulaiman (Solomon), and to Dawood (David) We gave the Zabur (Psalms).” (An-Nisâ’, 4: 163)
And the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“Then We inspired Musa (Moses) (saying): ‘Strike the sea with your stick.’ And it parted, and each separate part (of that sea water) became like the huge, firm mass of a mountain.” (Ash-Shu‘arâ’, 26: 63)
But was Divine Inspiration limited to prophets and messengers alone? No, Allah inspired angels, mankind and bees, as well as inanimate objects as informs the Noble Qur’an. Allah inspired the angels at the Battle of Badr, when Allah wanted to give firmness to the believers and grant them victory on the first battle fought against the chiefs of disbelief. The Most Exalted says (what means):
“(Remember) when your Lord inspired the angels, ‘Verily, I am with you, so keep firm those who have believed. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who have disbelieved, so strike them over the necks, and smite over all their fingers and toes.’” (Al-Anfâl, 8: 12)
Allah also inspired the mother of Musa (may Allah be pleased with her) when He commanded her to cast her son into the river. The Most Exalted says (what means):
“And We inspired the mother of Musa (Moses), (saying): ‘Suckle him [Musa (Moses)], but when you fear for him, then cast him into the river and fear not, nor grieve. Verily! We shall bring him back to you, and shall make him one of (Our) Messengers.’” (Al-Qasas, 28: 7)
At receiving Divine Inspiration it completely masters the mind and admits no room for human deliberation. Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, inspired the mother of Musa, who was terrified lest Pharaoh and his soldiers should kill her infant son. Pharaoh ordered that every son born to Banu Israel should be killed, after the fortunetellers told him that a man from Banu Israel would put an end to his sovereignty.
Had human reason interfered, the mother of Musa would not have done it. How could she throw an infant son in a box into the sea to save him from death!! What if the tumultuous waves rolled and tossed about the box carrying the child and overturned it. What if a strong wind or a storm raged, or rain filled the box and it sank down. Or the sea carried it away at a distant place and he perished of hunger and thirst.
Reason and logic dictate that the mother of Musa should hide her son away from people’s eyes, or move him to a remote place to hide him there, or seek a cave in a mount or any other refuge where she may hide Musa from the eyes of Pharaoh’s men. But casting him into the sea would seem as though saving him from a looming death to a certain one.
But when the Divine Command came, and the Almighty said (what means):
“Behold! We sent to Your mother, by inspiration, the message: ‘Throw (the child) into the chest, and throw (the chest) into the river: the river will cast him up on the bank, and he will be taken up by one who is an enemy to Me and an enemy to him.’” (Tâ-Hâ, 20: 38-39)
The mother of Musa did not think about all this, but only executed the Command given by Divine Inspiration. But after executing it and the Inspiration had gone away from her, she awakened; therefore she hurried to his sister asking her to follow the box carried by the river.
When the river carried the box to the palace of Pharaoh, the mother of Musa was greatly distressed: instead of hiding her son away from Pharaoh’s men, she actually handed him over to Pharaoh himself. But Almighty Allah has a Wisdom, which shows us that by His Might and Majesty that reigns Supreme, He made the enemy, Pharaoh, bring up and shelter the son who would end his sovereignty.
The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, inspires the angels, the Messengers and whomever he wills from his servants just as He inspired the mother of Musa. He also inspires His righteous servants, as He inspired the Disciples, who were not prophets but faithful followers of the Prophet ‘Issa (Jesus, peace be upon him). In this regard, Almighty Allah says (what means):
“And when I (Allah) inspired the Disciples [of Jesus] to believe in Me and My Messenger, they said: ‘We believe. And bear witness that we are Muslims.’” (Al-Mâ’idah, 5: 111)
Almighty Allah also inspired the bees, as informs the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“And your Lord inspired the bee, saying: ‘Take you habitations in the mountains and in the trees and in what they erect.’” (An-Nahl, 16:68)
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, also inspired inanimate beings in the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“When the earth is shaken with its (final) earthquake. And when the earth throws out its burdens, and man will say: ‘What is the matter with it?’ That Day it will declare its information (about all what happened over it of good or evil). Because your Lord has inspired it.” (Az-Zalzalah, 99: 1-5)
It follows that Divine Inspiration is not restricted to Prophets only, but to whomever Allah, the Exalted and Ever-Majestic, wills to inspire.
Inspiration is a Mercy of Allah towards His servants. Allah does not convey His Law directly to His Messengers, because human nature cannot bear it, unless it is an Inspiration. About Divine Inspiration, Almighty Allah says (what means):
“It is not given to any human being that Allah should speak to him unless (it be) by Inspiration, or from behind a veil.” (Ash-Shûra, 42: 51)
When Musa (peace be upon him) wanted to see his Lord, he said (as relates the Noble Qur’an):
“O my Lord! Show me (Yourself).” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 143)
The Truth, all glory be to Him, replied (saying what means):
“‘You cannot see Me, but look upon the mountain if it stands still in its place then you shall see Me.’ So when his Lord appeared to the mountain, He made it collapse to dust, and Musa (Moses) fell down unconscious.” (Al-A‘râf, 7: 143)
We can see that human nature and the nature of man’s creation from clay make him unable to endure the Light of Allah. The request of Musa to see his Lord could be probable, if he wanted his Lord to prepare him in a special way so that he could see Him. Without this, it will not be possible in the life of this World. But as to the Hereafter, Allah changes the nature of His Creation to grant them eternal life.
The Wisdom Of Choosing The Prophet Illiterate
Before divinely inspiring His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, cleared him of any suspicion that the Revelations he would receive from Heaven pertain to any human knowledge, whether to the civilization of previous nations or could have read them in books or other sources.1
Therefore Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, chose His Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) illiterate. To be illiterate means to remain as his mother gave birth to him, without receiving any knowledge from humans. This illiteracy was an honor bestowed upon the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Why? Because Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, Who chose him to be the Last of the Prophets, wanted to teach him by Himself. He wanted His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to receive heavenly knowledge only.
Therefore, Allah chose him to be illiterate. It is from the excellence of the preparation that the Truth, Blessed and Exalted be He, conferred on His Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). If the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) knew how to read or write they would have claimed that he received knowledge from what he read, or the books of the ancients, or the civilizations of contemporary nations. Therefore, Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, chose him to be illiterate, with pure instinct, so that the acquisition of knowledge is through his Almighty Lord, Alone, and all the knowledge and teachings he possesses are from Allah, so that all people learn well that the entire knowledge of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) came from Heaven.
But in spite of that Divine Choice and its wisdom, disbelieving minds remained blind to it and claimed that only a human taught him, and further claimed that the knowledge he brought are only tales of the ancients.
Allah, Blessed and Exlated be He, answers by reminding them of the illiteracy sign in His Messenger, saying (what means):
“Neither did you (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) read any book before it (this Qur’an), nor did you write any book (whatsoever) with your right hand. In that case, indeed, the followers of falsehood might have doubted.” (Al-‘Ankabût, 29: 48)
Thus, Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, is informing the entire humanity that He chose His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) illiterate. An answer back to the false accusations made by the advocators of falsehood and the enemies of Faith, who spitefully alleged that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) forged this Qur’an. Therefore, Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, says to His Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in this Ayah what means: Had you known how to read or write before Prophethood, the supporters of falsehood could have claimed that you forged this Qur’an, but you neither can read nor write; you have never read a single word in your whole life before the Message, nor written a single word. For Words are conveyed to you uttered by the Voice of Heaven, as proven by the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“And be not in haste (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) with the Qur’an before its revelation is completed to you, and say: ‘My Lord! Increase me in knowledge.’” (Tâ-Hâ, 20: 114)
Therefore, their dispute is sheer falsehood. It is only a stubborn resistance to faith and a vain pretext for disbelief, but their lies recoiled upon them. Bearing on that, Almighty Allah tells His Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to answer back the false allegations of the followers of falsehood saying (what means):
“Say (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã): ‘If Allah had so willed, I should not have recited it to you nor would He have made it known to you. Verily, I have stayed amongst you a life time before this. Have you then no sense?’” (Yunus, 10: 16)
The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, told His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to answer them saying that he stayed amongst them for forty years, which is quite a long time, during it he never said that he was divinely inspired or brought up words of his own. Had they thought of the long years that the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) had spent amongst them before being divinely inspired, and that he never invented anything, it would have sufficed as a conclusive proof for believing him. If someone still claims that genius might appear in a servant of Allah, though uneducated and cannot read, we wonder saying: what kind of genius may suddenly appear at the age of forty?
Genius usually appears at young age and does not wait for forty years to manifest itself. If someone claimed that genius might have appeared at young age but was suppressed by the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) till the age of forty, we answer by saying that Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was not certain the he would live till the age of forty, especially that his father died before his birth and his mother died while he was still a child, and he was brought up an orphan of both parents.
The idea he conceived of death would be its seizure of people at young age, just as it had seized his parents, so would it be plausible that he would suppress his genius till the age of forty? Had his parents, who are the dearest to him, lived till the age of sixty or forty we would have said that he might have expected to live as long as they did, but such an early death of his parents could not leave within his soul any trust that he would live till he attain that age.
Therefore, illiteracy was an honor to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and a necessity to answer back false allegations, and an assurance to the believers that all what the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) had brought is a Divine Revelation. Regretfully, these false allegations still revolve in the minds of some freethinkers for the purpose of detested fame and repulsive arrogance that quickly dies away because they are ways of falsehood, and falsehood is of no avail against the truth.
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, willed that Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) be raised an orphan, so that none would dare say that he availed himself of his father’s authority or was backed by some power other than that of Allah. While still a child his mother brought him before the wet nurses to have him raised as a strong man in the desert life; but the women who came to choose the children they would nurse looked for a child who had a living father, to be generously paid by him. Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was offered to all wet nurses, but as soon as they were told that he was fatherless, they refused to take him, because each wished for the reward the father would give them. So, the moment a wet nurse learned that he was fatherless she withdrew, all except Halimah As-Sa‘diah (may Allah be pleased with her), who was among the wet nurses and did not find a baby whom she could suckle.
When Halimah found herself the only one who did not win a child to nurse she said to herself, “By Allah, I hate to return amongst my companions without a baby. By Allah, I will return to that orphan and take him; it may be that Allah will grant us blessings through him.” Halimah added, “What made me take him is that I did not find another child.”
Halimah took the orphan boy and after that her house was filled with blessings. Her cattle grew fat and strong, whereas other people’s grazing cattle found no pasturage on the barren ground of Banu Sa‘d. The sheep that belonged to Halimah gave milk abundantly, whereas other people’s sheep hardly gave a drop of milk, which made people say to their shepherds, “Go to the pastureland where the sheep of Halimah graze.”
Marvels and miracles continued to manifest themselves. One day two men dressed in white clothes came while the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was playing with ‘Abdullah bin Al-Harith, the son of Halimah, the wet nurse of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and his brother by suckling. They took the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and opened his stomach and chest, and then extracted from his heart something that resembled a black clot. Then they washed his chest with something that resembled snow. Then one of them said to his companion, “Weigh him against ten people of his nation.” And the scale of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) outweighed. Again he said, “Weigh him against one hundred of his nation.” And the scale of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) outweighed. And again he said, “Weigh him against one thousand of his nation.” And the scale of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) outweighed. Finally he said, “By Allah, if you weighed him against his whole nation, still his scale would outweigh.”
It is said that the two angels purified the heart of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) while still a child from Satan’s share that is in every human, so that in his heart there only remains belief in the Oneness of Allah. Thereupon, ‘Abdullah hurried to his mother and father extremely terrified and told them that two men dressed in white took his Quraishy brother and opened his stomach and chest. Upon hearing that, Halimah and her husband hurried terrified, but they found the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) standing safe and sound. After that incident Halimah feared lest something might happen to Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), so she decided to return him to his mother.
God’s Elect, Chosen From The Choicest Descent
This way Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was raised fully prepared to receive the Message and the Divine Revelations. Allah made him a human because the humanity of the Messenger is a necessity to convey the Divine Law to his people. He sent him as a Messenger from amongst his own people, to be well known amongst them by his noble manners and honesty. And he made him an orphan so that none would claim that he used his father’s authority or high standing. He made him illiterate so that none would claim that he received his knowledge from human culture. And He chose him from the best, of the noblest descent.
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:
“Verily, Allah has created His creatures and chose from the creatures the Children of Adam, and chose from the Children of Adam the Arabs, and chose from the Arabs Mudar, and chose from Mudar the Quraish, and chose from Banu Quraish Banu Hashim, and chose me from Hashim. So I am the chosen from the choicest (origins) from the choicest (descent). Thus, whoever loves the Arabs by loving me loves them and whoever hates the Arabs by hating me hates them.”
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) also said:
“Verily, Allah has selected from the Children of Ibrahim (Abraham) Isma‘il (Ishmael), and selected from the Children of Isma‘il (Ishmael) Banu Kinanah, and selected from Banu Kinanah the Quraish, and selected from the Quraish Banu Hashim, and selected me from Banu Hashim.”
Here we must stop at the statements of some orientalists who claimed that there exists contradiction between the sanctified hadith and the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“And (remember) when Ibrahim (Abraham) said to his father Azar: ‘Do you take idols as gods? Verily, I see you and your people in manifest error.’” (Al-An‘âm, 6: 74)
The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was descended from the family of our Prophet Isma‘il (peace be upon him), the son of the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), Khalilu Allah (i.e., the close dear servant to Allah). Some people think that Azar was the father of our Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him). The answer we give is that among the customs of the Arabs is that the son used to call his uncle: “My father so and so” but when calling his father he only said, “Father” and did not mention his father’s name. When Khalilu Allah, Ibrahim, called Azar he did not just say, “Father” but he said, “My father Azar.”
The Noble Qur’an stated the name “Azar” to clarify that he is not the father of Ibrahim, but his uncle. The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, further clarifies this to us through the glorious Ayah saying (what means):
“Or were you witnesses when death approached Ya‘qub (Jacob)? When he said unto his sons, ‘What will you worship after me?’ They said: ‘We shall worship your God and the God of your fathers, Ibrahim (Abraham), Isma‘il (Ishmael), and Ishaque (Isaac). The One (True) God: to Him we bow (in Islam).’” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 133)
We can clearly see from the aforesaid Ayah that Ibrahim was the grandfather, whereas Ishaque was the father of Ya‘qub, and Isma‘il was the uncle of Ya‘qub, but the glorious Ayah stated together Ibrahim, Isma‘il and Ishaque and described them all as fathers. Therefore, the nephews used to call their also uncle by father; but they differentiated between the real father and the uncle by adding the uncle’s name when calling him, saying: “Our father so and so.” Accordingly, Azar was the uncle of Ibrahim and there is no contradiction between the sanctified hadith and the Glorious Qur’an.
The forty years that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) lived before the Divine Revelation marked God’s election, for as a child his behavior was characterized by equanimity, not fun and playing. When he was a child the grown people were pleased to hear his wisdom. His grandfather, ‘Abdul-Mutalib, used to favor him over his children, saying, “This son of mine will be a man of great importance.” And he loved him more than his own children, and used to say, “Truly, Muhammad is blessed.”
Of all people he was the most chivalrous, the most armed with patience and the most truthful. He used to tend the sheep, which was a practice of patience, meekness, compassion and sympathy towards different natures. The work of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) before the Message was all good and righteous.
Men asked for the hand of Lady Khadijah in marriage, hopeful to marry her, but upon hearing of Muhammad’s impressive credentials, who was popularly known as Al-Ameen, which means the Honest, the Reliable and the Trustworthy, Khadijah, the rich merchant, asked Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to take some merchandise for trade to Syria, thus Allah granted her much more profit and blessings. Soon after this trip she proposed marriage to Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) through a relative, and Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) accepted the proposal.
Thus, Allah destined for him a wife full of motherly tenderness, and endowed with wisdom and sagacity. She was the woman of the greatest honor and fortune among her people. All this came as a preface that would help lighten the burden of the great Divine Revelation entrusted to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), the future Prophet.
A prior preparation was necessary before the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) received the Divine Revelation. That preparation was his habit of deep meditation and speculation over all aspects of creation around him.
Therefore, before the Message and upon the arrival of the month of Ramadan the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) used to retire to the Cave of Hira’, meditating on the universe around him and calling upon his Lord. By such retirement he was far away from the impurities of life, and in close communion with the Unseen Power that lies behind all aspects of existence in this infinite universe. In his seclusion in the Cave of Hira’ he could see the Ka‘bah. And all along the long hours he used to spend in retirement his gaze was fixed on the Sacred House of Allah. Spiritual serenity surrounded the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) during his stay in the Cave, where silence prevailed. Such serenity gave him the power needed for what was yet to come, meeting the Divine Revelation.
The miracle to be given to the Last of the Prophets had to be the greatest. Indeed, the Noble Qur’an was the greatest of all miracles. The revelation of the glorious Ayat to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) had to be entrusted to a Messenger close to Allah, who would descend upon Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), conveying the Noble Qur’an. Jibril (Gabriel, peace be upon him) was the Angel entrusted by Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, to send down the Divine Revelations upon His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).
Universal And Special Miracles
öAs Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, Who has created this infinite universe, chose Muhammad as His Messenger, He also chose Jibril to be the honorable Angel descending with the Qur’anic Message. This is because human nature cannot receive revelations directly from Allah. All the Prophets of Allah were humans, and all of them could not receive the revelations directly from Allah, because the created is not in the status of receiving directly from the Most Generous Creator.
Allah willed that the miracles brought by Messengers defy all the laws and natural forces of life He established. And the miracle of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is the one supreme, because every miracle supporting a messenger was restricted to his people. A miracle perceptible by the senses; those who saw it believed in it and those who have not seen it were informed about it. Had not the miracles of the messengers been stated in the Glorious Qur’an, belief in them would have been subjected to the choice of man’s reason, either to believe in them or not. But Allah, Blessed and Exalted be He, stated them in His Glorious Qur’an and thus we surely believe in them. The miracles of the previous Messengers were either tangible or phenomenal, seen by those who lived at the time of their revelation. We could not now bring the staff of the Prophet Musa (peace be upon him) and say that this was his miracle or summon the miracles of bringing the dead to life, or healing him who was born blind, and the leper, which the Prophet ‘Issa (Jesus, peace be upon him) came with.
The Messenger of Allah Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is the Last of the Prophets, therefore Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, made his miracle his doctrine and law, that is the Noble Qur’an, giving us in each age a new miracle. All the celestial messages that came before the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) were for a limited time and place, but Islam came to all mankind in every time and place, apart from other tangible and phenomenal miracles that accompanied the childhood, youth and prophethood of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, chose for the outset of this religion the first House that was placed to mankind for worship on land. Before the mission, Allah bestowed on Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) the power that Yusuf (Joseph, peace be upon him) possessed in the interpretation of dreams, for any vision he saw came true. Allah also bestowed on him innate and absolute truthfulness that made every word he uttered truthful. Allah also endowed him with the power to see the entire universe with faith-born intuition and not with a dark heart that the people of his time had.
All this came as preparations to receive the Noble Qur’an, days passed and Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in the Cave of Hira’ engaged in worship and mediation until his soul transcended and he saw the light of truth. The honorable Angel Jibril came to Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), who was surprised by the Angel powerfully embracing him and saying to him, “Read.” It was the meeting of light, from which the Angel was created, and the humanity that formed the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). That meeting caused a violent shake through the body of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). When Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) could not bear it any more, the Angel would release him to allow the human body to rest from the powerful meeting with the Angel’s light. Again Jibril embraced him forcefully until he was exerted to the utmost. He asked him to read and the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied with his instinctive, innate truthfulness, “I am not a reader.”
The Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was no more able to bear the meeting of the human body with the Angel’s light. Soon after the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) rested and restored his strength, the Angel forcefully embraced him for the third time and said (what means):
“Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists).” (Al-‘Alaq, 96: 1)
The command to read would not be given unless the commanded person could do it. By commanding Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to read Allah, Be ever gloried His Majesty and Might, is giving a Command to his pure innate nature and the sublime virtues and values it held, wherein dwelt the Purpose of Allah. The command imparts the capability of the commanded person to execute the command, if the Commander has prepared him to do it since eternity, which happened.
All the strength of Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was exerted to the utmost and he poured with sweat, for he could no longer bear another meeting. The human body was overfatigued. There, Angel Jibril (peace be upon him) departed, leaving the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in the Cave.
This meeting, which is the noblest in humanity, demands more than a pause for contemplation. The question is: Why did Jibril (peace be upon him) descend and ask the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to read, though Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was illiterate, unable to read or write? Surely, Allah, Who prepared Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) illiterate, possessed full knowledge of that. Why did the Angel say: “Read,” when the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not know how to read? The answer given by the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) “I am not a reader” was natural, but we wonder why did Jibril (peace be upon him) command him to read?
We reply by saying that when Jibril said: “Read,” it was the truth and when the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied: “I am not a reader” it was also the truth. But how could that be if the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not comply with the command? We say: the Angel Jibril brought down the first Ayat of the Islamic Call upon Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) saying to him:
“Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists).” (Al-‘Alaq 96: 1)
Meaning: O Muhammad, Allah knows that you cannot read or write but with this pure nature of yours, you are to be taught reading by Providence, so “Read! In the Name of your Lord.” Which means that Allah Himself is the One Who will teach you, so that you, O illiterate Messenger, become the tutor of guidance, true knowledge and light to whole mankind. On you, O illiterate Prophet, Allah will bestow from knowledge what surpasses the knowledge that all mankind possess, for you retreated into the Cave and adhered to monotheism, whereupon Allah revealed to you the destined Light of Truth.
Those who devote their lives to reading and writing and have attained superior knowledge will come to you, O Prophet who can neither read nor write, to acquire knowledge from you about this world and the Hereafter. They will be your students, and you the teacher who was not taught by humans. The All-Knowing, All-Wise, Almighty Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, is the One Who taught you, taught you what the entire humanity is ignorant of.
That was the first meeting between the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and Jibril, wherein the Angel told him that he would convey knowledge to all mankind.
As for the second meeting, it was for receiving the Miraculous Qur’an over days and time.
The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, says (what means):
“Say (O Muhammad Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã to mankind). ‘If the sea were ink for (writing) the Words of my Lord, surely, the sea would be exhausted before the Words of my Lord would be finished, even if we brought (another sea) like it for its aid.’” (Al-Kahf, 18: 109)
This Prophet who can neither read nor write a word would become the tutor of the entire humanity, and these were the first meanings of the miracle given to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). The Truth, all praise and glory be to Him, says (what means):
“Similarly (to complete My Blessings on you) We have sent among you a Messenger (Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) of your own, reciting to you Our Ayat (the Qur’an) and sanctifying you, and teaching you the Book (the Qur’an) and the Hikmah (i.e. Sunnah, Islamic laws and Fiqh – jurisprudence), and teaching you that which you used not to know.” (Al-Baqarah, 2: 151)
Waraqah Bin Nawfal And His Glad Tidings To The Prophet
The eyes of the Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) kept roving about the Cave, and then he hastened home to Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her), his noble body shivering. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) entered with his heart beating severely. Upon seeing him Khadijah felt that something great has happened. She wanted to talk to him but his state did not allow talk. He just said, “Cover me! Cover me!”
Then when awe had subsided and the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) regained calmness, he said, “O Khadijah! What has happened to me? I feared for myself.” Then he related to Khadijah the incident of the Cave. Khadijah said, “Nay! But receive the glad tidings! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you, for by Allah, you keep good relations with your kith and kin, speak the truth, help the poor and the destitute, entertain your guests generously and assist those who are stricken with calamities.”
On the day of the descent of Revelation Khadijah awaited the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) for long but he was late. She sent her servants but they returned without finding the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Soon after Khadijah heard what the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said she accompanied him to her cousin, Waraqah bin Nawfal bin Asad bin ‘Abdul ‘Uzza bin Qusai. Waraqah was the son of her paternal uncle, i.e., her father’s brother, who during the Pre-Islamic Period became a Christian and used to write the Arabic writing and used to write of the Gospels in Arabic as much as Allah wished him to write. He was an old man and had lost his eyesight. Khadijah said to him, “O my cousin! Listen to your nephew.” Waraqah asked, “O my nephew! What have you seen?” The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) told him what he had seen.
Waraqah said, “This is the same Namus (i.e., Gabriel, the Angel entrusted with Divine Secrets) whom Allah had sent to Musa (Moses). I wish I were young and could live up to the time when your people would turn you out.” The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) asked, “Will they turn me out?” Waraqah replied, “Yes! Never did a man come with something similar to what you have brought but was treated with hostility. If I were to remain alive till your day (when you start preaching) I would support you strongly.”
In another narration Waraqah said, “By Him in Whose Hand is Waraqah’s soul; you are the Prophet of this nation. And you would be called a liar and ill-treated. I wish I would be alive at the time your people would turn you out.”
Lailatul-Qadr: The Night Of Decree
The night of the Revelation of the Noble Qur’an was the first meeting between the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and the Angel Jibril (Gabriel, peace be upon him). A meeting in the Cave of Hira where the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) used to spend a long time in worship and meditation; a meeting between the Words of Allah and the noblest among all creatures of Allah. It was on Lailatul-Qadr (The Night of Decree) which Allah made “Better than a thousand months” i.e., spending its night in offering prayers and worship earns the same reward offered for devoting oneself to worship for more than eighty-three years. Allah has greatly honored that night because it is the night on which the Noble Qur’an started its mission on earth. The Noble Qur’an says what means:
“Verily! We have sent it (this Qur’an) down in the night of Al-Qadr (Decree). And what will make you know what the night of Al-Qadr (Decree) is? The night of Al-Qadr (Decree) is better than a thousand months (i.e. worshipping Allah in that night is better than worshipping Him a thousand months, i.e. 83 years and 4 months). Therein descend the angels and the Spirit [Jibril (Gabriel)] by Allah’s Permission with all Decrees. Peace! (All that night, there is Peace and Goodness from Allah to His believing slaves) until the appearance of dawn.” (Al-Qadr, 97)
They debated for long the fact that the Noble Qur’an was revealed on Lailatul-Qadr; saying that the Noble Qur’an is the Words of Allah, and His Words are related to His Divine Attributes, but the Words of Allah are eternal then how is it said that the Noble Qur’an was revealed on that night? The answer is that the Words of Allah are inscribed in Al-Lauh Al-Mahfûz (The Preserved Tablet) since eternity. On the night of the descent of the Angel Jibril (peace be upon him), the Noble Qur’an was brought down to the lower heaven to fulfill its mission on earth. It came down to the lower heaven all at the same time, then Jibril revealed it piecemeal as Allah willed, to keep firm the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and convey to him the Divine Law according to the occasions decreed by Allah for the revelation of these glorious Ayat. The descent of the noble Revelation with the first glorious Ayah [“Read! In the Name of your Lord…(Al- ‘Alaq, 96: 1)”] heralded guidance to mankind.
Allah has chosen Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) as a messenger to convey His Last Message, holding the complete Divine Law for man’s journey in this world till the Day of Resurrection. Since this Divine Message is the last Message it must embrace all what fulfils the meanings conducive to goodness in the movement of life, leaving no disease without a remedy. This Law did not come to only cure diseases at the dawn of its mission on earth, but it came to cure them till the Day of Resurrection. Therefore, the Noble Qur’an embodied a miracle at the time of its revelation and will continue a miracle to this very day, and offers marvels and miracles to posterity till the Last Hour.
The Noble Qur’an has established the Laws that through them only will the World have all goodness. Because Allah, Blessed and Exalted be He, is the All-Knower, and nothing on the earth or in the heavens is hidden from Him, He is the Sole Highest Lawmaker; the only One capable to make the Laws for all times and places. When humans pass their own laws they see certain matters but are ignorant of many others. Therefore, manmade laws undergo continual change and substitution. Seldom one finds a worldly matter or a passed law that does not need modification or alteration after a while, because with the passage of time problems appear, unnoticed by those who passed such laws.
Therefore, manmade laws suffer endless alteration, substitution, deletion and innovation. But when the Supreme Lawmaker creates Laws, nothing is hidden from Him because He is the All-Knowing of everything in His Universe, the All-Knowing of everything that will happen in it till the Day of Judgment and the All-Knowing of the human souls He has created, therefore the Divine Laws are perfect to all times and places, created by the All-Wise, All-Knowing, All-Powerful God.
Allah, all praise and glory be to Him, is the All-Wise, Who puts everything perfectly in its place most wisely, ably and efficiently so that the entire world become a land of justice.
When the justice of the new Message emerged, the golden dawn of Islam started to shine on the whole world to rule its eras and way of life.
1 As no illiterate man could come up with such a beautifully accomplished and complete text. Also, stories of the prophets, narrated in the Qur’an – from Adam to Jesus – could not have been read by Muhammad in the Old or New Testament. This as he could not read in the first place! [Trans. n.]
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
وَمَاۤ اَرۡسَلۡنٰكَ اِلَّا رَحۡمَةً لِّـلۡعٰلَمِيۡنَ ﴿21:107﴾
“We have only sent you (O Muhammad, Õáì Çááå Úáíå æÓáã) as a mercy to the worlds.”
(Al-Anbiyâ’, 21: 107)