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Muhammad (SAW) Of The Quran
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Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is someone, whom Shias and Sunnis,
Muslims alike, revere and respect and follow in their own ways. However there
are some contradictory views related to the position of Prophet Muhammad (SAW)
and thus this article deals only with the merits of Prophet (SAW) and not with
his life history.
We all see Prophet Muhammad (SAW) through our own eyes. Some consider him to be a prophet only, some consider him infallible and some consider him to be an ordinary human. We all are free to have our views, but for believers, it is necessary to follow the Quran.... are our views related to Muhammad (SAW) the same as Quran has for the honored messenger? Have we created a Muhammad (SAW) of our own in our mind or do we believe in Muhammad (SAW) of the Quran?
O Prophet! surely We have sent you as a
witness, and as a bearer of good news and as a Warner, And as one inviting to
Allah by His permission, and as a light-giving torch
Quran [33:45-46]
What is the Quran?
These are verses of the Book of Wisdom. A
guidance and a mercy for the doers of goodness;
Quran [31:2-3]
Verily Quran is the words of Allah Almighty. But seeing it from an atheistic angle, what prove do we have of it’s authenticity? For they are only narrations of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). God did not reveal the Quran in a book form, neither did anyone see the angels. I am not arguing about Quran’s authenticity.. for miracles in the book should be self sufficient. But visually, Quranic verses are nothing but narrations of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) himself. He is the only link between God and man.
For example, the prophet said (visually):
I swear by the star when it goes down. Your
companion does not err, nor does he (Muhammad) go astray;
Nor does he speak out of desire.
It is naught but revelation that is revealed, The Lord of Mighty Power has
taught him;
Quran [53:1-5]
These wordings of the Prophet (SAW) were directed to be a part of the Quran, where as everything else he said was a revelation revealed to him and not necessarily a part of the Quran. The ahadith of Prophet (SAW) are at par with Quranic verses, the only problem with the ahadith is their authenticity, if the Prophet really said that or no. Ahadith are another issue and trying not to go off-topic, every revelation was not a part of the Quran.
For example,
And when the prophet secretly communicated
a piece of information to one of his wives -- but when she informed (others) of
it, and Allah made him to know it, he made known part of it and avoided
part; so when he (Muhammad) informed her (Ayesha) of it, she said: Who informed
you of this? He said: The Knowing, the one Aware, informed me.
Quran [66:3]
Allah revealed to prophet the act of Ayesha but its not mentioned in Quran exactly what the act was... as the Quran speaks as a 3rd person (narrative) and not really telling prophet Muhammad about what his certain wives did.
And it behoves not a believing man and a
believing woman that they should have any choice in their matter when Allah and
His Messenger have decided a matter; and whoever disobeys Allah and His
Messenger, he surely strays off a manifest straying.
Quran [33:36]
Allah and his messenger decide certain matters, not mentioned in Quran. The decision of Prophet (SAW) could be recorded historically but most of them are not a part of the Quran. Thus what ever the Prophet (SAW) said was a part of the revelation revealed to him. To conclude the above point, Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was the only authority and the only narrator of the revelations. If he ever lied or if he ever gave a wrong order/advice/opinion, he would loose credibility.
If you believe in the authenticity of the Quran, then you must agree to the infallibility of the Prophet (SAW).
And if he (Muhammad) had fabricated
against Us some of the sayings, We
would certainly have seized him by the right hand,
Then We would certainly have cut off his aorta.
And not one of you could have withheld Us from him.
And most surely it is a reminder for those who guard (against evil).
Quran [69:44-48]
Say: I (Muhammad) am not the first of the messengers, and I
do not know what will be done with me or with you: I do not follow anything
but that which is revealed to me, and I am nothing but a plain warner.
Quran [46:9]
I swear by the star when it goes down. Your companion
does not err, nor does he (Muhammad) go astray; Nor does he speak out of
desire. It is naught but revelation that is revealed,
Quran [53:1-4]
Thus if we have firm faith in the Quran, we know that Prophet Muhammad’s aorta was not cut off which is proof in itself that he did not fabricate any of his saying, all that he said and did was a revelation revealed to him. This in itself is a proof of Infallibility of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). Some people attribute weaknesses in the prophet’s character and attribute mistakes (not sins) to him which is very wrong according to the text written above.
It is not meet for a mortal that Allah
should give him the Book and the wisdom and prophet hood, then he should say to
men: Be my servants rather than Allah's; but rather (he would say): Be
worshippers of the Lord because of your teaching the Book and your reading (it
yourselves).
Quran [3:79]
As Muslims, our prime motive is to worship Allah. Worship literally means “to render religious reverence and homage to”. Islamically, worshipping Allah in strict terms also includes obeying of every order he commanded, for if we worship Allah, we have to save ourselves from Zina because we are forbidden to go near it. How are we supposed to know what Allah had ordered for us to follow?
Say: If you love Allah, then follow me (Muhammad), Allah will love you
and forgive you your faults, and Allah is
Forgiving, Merciful. Say: Obey Allah and the Messenger; but if they turn
back, then surely Allah does not love the unbelievers.
Quran [3:31-32]
Our only way to love Allah, worship him and follow him is to follow Muhammad (SAW) in everything he said, did and ordered us to perform. If Muhammad (SAW) orders to stop theft, then not committing theft is loving Allah, if Muhammad (SAW) tells us to fast in Ramadan, then fasting in Ramadan is loving Allah, and if Muhammad (SAW) makes Ali a mawla over all believers, then considering Ali (AS) to be a mawla is a way to love and follow Allah, and if we love and follow Allah, only then will he forgive our faults.
Following/Loving Allah, the only way is to follow whatever the prophet says whether it be a revelation or not as we can never know, only the prophet knows if it was a revelation or out of his own will. Even if the Prophet (SAW) said something out of his own will, it is our duty to please him.
Indeed We see the turning of your (Muhammad's) face to heaven, so We shall surely turn you to a Qiblah which you shall like; turn then your face towards the Sacred Mosque, and wherever you are, turn your face towards it, and those who have been given the Book most surely know that it is the truth from their Lord; and Allah is not at all heedless of what they do.Quran [2:144]
The changing of Qiblah to the Holy Kaaba was what prophet (SAW) desired. Allah did as the Prophet desired in order to please him.
To
you they swear by Allah. In order to please you: But it is more fitting that
they should please Allah and His Messenger, if they are Believers.
Quran [9:62]
Thus we have to please prophet (SAW) as well in order to worship Allah and follow him. Thus unquestionable obedience to Prophet (SAW) in all times under and circumstances is compulsory as that is obedience and strengthens your faith.
I will list some examples which will explain to you the level of obedience required.
Quran [4:80]
Prophet (SAW) is the only link between man and God and doubting infallibility of Prophet (SAW) is as if doubting Islam, questioning Prophet’s (SAW) orders is negating Islam. Some people consider prophet (SAW) to be fallible and error-prone in order to prove he was a human and not an angel
. Yes, Muhammad (SAW) was a human. And they (Pagans) say: What is the matter with this Messenger (Muhammad) that he eats food and goes about in the markets; why has not an angel been sent down to him, so that he should have been a Warner with him?Quran [25:7]
Prophet (SAW) was given birth to, he ate and drank, he slept, he married and had children, he went through the trials of life, he died. This is what makes him a human, flesh and blood, bones and heart. His infallibility or noble character did not make him an angel.
And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger and goes beyond His limits, He will cause him to enter fire to abide in it, and he shall have an abasing chastisement.Quran [4:14]
Similarly, those who consider Muhammad (SAW) to be an ordinary human, or consider him (SAW) to be like their elder brother, they too are transgressing against Islamic limits. For only the pagans considered Prophet Muhammad (SAW) as a ordinary mortal.
Their hearts trifling; and those who are unjust counsel together in secret:
He (Muhammad) is nothing but a mortal like yourselves; what! will you then
yield to enchantment while you see?
Quran [21:3]
For the believers, Muhammad (SAW) was a lot more than that, yet a mortal.
O you who believe! be not forward in the presence of Allah and His
Messenger, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah; surely Allah is Hearing,
Knowing. O you who believe! do not raise your voices above the voice
of the Prophet, and do not speak loud to him as you speak loud to one
another, lest your deeds became null while you do not perceive.Surely those who lower their voices before Allah's Messenger
are they whose hearts Allah has proved for guarding (against evil); they shall
have forgiveness and a great reward. (As for) those who call out to you (Muhammad) from behind
the private chambers, surely most of them do not understand. And if they wait patiently until you come out to them, it
would certainly be better for them, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
Quran [49:1-5]
These verse are self explanatory.
Do not hold the Messenger's calling (you) among you to be like your calling
one to the other; Allah indeed knows those who steal away from among you,
concealing themselves; therefore let those beware who go against his order lest
a trial afflict them or there befall them a painful chastisement.
Quran [24:63]
If Muhammad (SAW) was a normal human being like us, then his calls for us would be like anyones calls, but Quran says elsewise.
Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but he is the Messenger of
Allah and the Last of the prophets; and Allah is cognizant of all things.
Quran [33:40]
Interpreting the above verse, one can also say that Muhammad (SAW) would not do anything out of fatherly love, but only what is revealed to him. His respect and affection for Fatima (AS) or his grandsons Hassan (AS) and Hussain (AS) was not out of his own fatherly desire but a prophetic act.
But Muhammad (SAW) is dead today. He is not physically present amongst us today. Then how is he still benefiting us today?
Surely Allah and His angels bless the Prophet; O you who believe! call for (Divine) blessings on him and salute him with a (becoming) salutation. Surely (as for) those who speak evil things of Allah and His Messenger, Allah has cursed them in this world and the here after, and He has prepared for them a chastisement bringing disgrace.Quran [33:56-57]
Thus praising Prophet (SAW), defending his honor, sending blessings on him and following his message, loving him and his family and dissociation from his enemies is still an act of worship. We testify in kalimah, “Muhammad is Rasool of Allah”. He is still the prophet of Allah and will remain so till space and time exist.
If i sit in a room and i start sending blessings on Prophet Muhammad (SAW), I am performing an act of worship because i am following an order of Allah. This act of worship involves no mentioning of Tauheed, or doing good to others. This is the status of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). By sending blessings on him, we are performing an act of great worship. I wonder what reward does helping him bring.
And (remember) when Allah took the covenant of the Prophets, saying: "
Take whatever I gave you from the Book and Hikmah, and afterwards there will come to you a Messenger 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 Isri'' They said: "We agree.'' He said: "Then bear witness; and I am with you among the witnesses.'')Quran [3:81]
Ali bin Abi Talib and his cousin `Abdullah bin `Abbas said, "Allah
never sent a Prophet but after taking his pledge that if Muhammad were sent in
his lifetime, he would believe in and support him.''
Allah commanded each Prophet to take a pledge from his nation that if Muhammad
were sent in their time, they would believe in and support him. Tawus, Al-Hasan
Al-Basri and Qatadah said, "Allah took the pledge from the Prophets that they
would believe in each other'', and this statement does not contradict what `Ali
and Ibn `Abbas stated.
As the hardcore Ibne Kathir explains, all the prophets were
granted their status of prophets, and the knowledge of the book on one
condition, they will lend their support to Muhammad (SAW). Muhammad (SAW) is he
that if all the prophets existed in his time, they all will be of his Ummat, or
Ummatis. Jabir bin Abdullah Ansaari narrates: One day Umar bin Khatab
came before the Prophet of Allah and said: "O Prophet of Allah, when we hear the
ahadith from the Jews we find them very pleasant. If you would approve of it, we
are willing to write them down". The Prophet of Allah replied: "Are you
astonished and lost like the Jews? Even though I have brought a luminous
Shari'ah among you? If Hazrat Musa had been alive he would have been a
follower of mine". Thus, if Rasool (SAW) made
Ali (AS) a mawla of all those who considered him (SAW) their mawla, then
that made Ali (AS) a mawla over all of his (SAW) Ummatis. The reward which all the prophets got
for agreeing to assist rasool (SAW), was their office of prophethood. And We did not send any messenger but that he should be obeyed by Allah's
permission; and had they (hypocrites), when they were unjust to themselves,
come to you (O Muhammad) and asked forgiveness of Allah and the Messenger had
(also) asked forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah Oft-returning (to
mercy), Merciful. But no! by your Lord! they do not believe (in reality)
until they make you (O Muhammad) a judge of that which has become a matter of
disagreement among them, and then do not find any straitness in their hearts
as to what you have decided and submit with entire submission. Even today, if we want to ask
forgiveness for ourselves, we have to use the wasila of Prophet Muhammad (SAW)
and through his intercession and for the sake of his merits and nobility, we can
reach Allah and be forgiven. Similarly, there are disputes amongst many sects of
Islam. Why not make Muhammad (SAW) a judge? Why do we follow our fathers or
biasness and not make Muhammad (SAW) the judge? The Quran and his sunnat/shariat are
very clear on every issue. Why not refer to history and see if the shias
following Ali (AS) was as directed by the prophet (SAW) or not? And We have not sent you (O Muhammad) but as a mercy to the worlds. The prophet is a still a mercy for the
worlds. Which worlds are we talking about? As Allama Talib Johri state,
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.
Wherever and whenever the Unity and
authority of Allah exists, mercy of Rasool Allah will exist. Only Allah is your Vali and His Messenger and those who believe, those
who keep up prayers and pay the poor-rate while they bow. And whoever takes Allah and His messenger and those who
believe for a guardian, then surely the party of Allah are they that shall be
triumphant. Allah nominated Rasool (SAW) a Vali/Guradian
for all the believers. He is still our Vali/Guardian today. How? Through
Tawassul. Say: I do not say to you, I have with me the treasures of Allah, nor
do I know the unseen, nor do I say to you that I am an angel; I do not
follow aught save that which is revealed to me. Say: Are the blind and the
seeing one alike? Do you not then reflect?
Surely Muhammad (SAW) can intercede, perform miracles. He can have the knowledge
of unseen. These attributes are not independent from Allah. The prophet has as
much authority as Allah wills him to have. And say: Work; so Allah will see your work and (so will) His Messenger and
the believers; and you shall be brought back to the Knower of the unseen and
the seen, then He will inform you of what you did. How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness (on
resurrection) and bring you (O Muhammad) as a witness against these?
Therefore, Muhammad is the Final Prophet
until the Day of Resurrection. He is the greatest Imam, who if he existed in any
time period, deserves to be obeyed, rather than all other Prophets. This is why
Muhammad led the Prophets in prayer during the night of Isra' when they gathered
in Bayt Al-Maqdis (Jerusalem). He is the intercessor on the Day of Gathering,
when the Lord comes to judge between His servants.
This is Al-Maqam Al-Mahmud (the praised station) ﴿refer to 17:79﴾ that only
Muhammad deserves, a responsibility which the mighty Prophets and Messengers
will decline to assume. However, Muhammad will carry the task of intercession,
may Allah's peace and blessings be on him.
Tafisr Ibne Kathir, Tafsir of Surah 3, Verse 81
Mishkaat Shareef volume 1 page 51
Quran [4:64-65]
Quran [33:36]
Quran [21:107]
Quran [1:2]
Quran [5:55-56]
Quran [6:50]
Quran [9:105]
Quran [16:89]
Quran [4:41]
How can the Prophet (SAW) be a witness over every witness and nation if he has not witnessed their acts? And how can the Prophet still see our acts if he is dead and is not omnipresent? How can the Prophet be a witness over nations past before him if his creation was not before the creation of the universe? The answers to these questions lie within the questions and the above mentioned Quranic verses themselves.
And when they said: O Allah! if this is the truth from Thee, then rain upon us stones from heaven or inflict on us a painful punishment.
But Allah was not going to chastise them while you (Muhammad) were among them, nor is Allah going to chastise them while yet they ask for forgiveness.Quran [8:32-33]
How can Allah punish us if Rasool (SAW) is still amongst us, in the form of his (SAW) praise, his remembrance, mentioning of his eulogy, in the form of durood on our lips, in the form of our obedience to him (SAW), in the form of honest and sincere love which we have for him (SAW), in the form of our desire which we must have that we do not humiliate ourselves on the day when we are presented before Allah and his witnesses?
And you (Muhammad) did not recite before it (Quran) any book, nor did you transcribe one with your right hand, for then could those who say untrue things have doubted.Quran [29:48]
Factually speaking, Prophet Muhammad (SAW) did not know how to read and write before the revelations
, thus the Quran brought by an “illiterate” man was a miracle in itself. However after the revelations, the same could not be said,And were it not for Allah's grace upon you (O Muhammad) and His mercy a party of
them (hypocrites) had certainly designed to bring you to perdition and they do
not bring (aught) to perdition but their own souls, and they shall not harm you
in any way, and Allah has revealed to you the Book and the wisdom, and He has
taught you what you did not know, and Allah's grace on you is very great.
Quran [4:113]
Allah taught the Prophet (SAW) everything which he did not know before the revelations. Thus still considering prophet (SAW) to be illiterate is ignorance in itself. This also explains the asking of the Prophet to bring him a pen and a paper so he could write on his own, somethings for muslims.
The final merit of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) lies in the event of Miraj, where he achieved what no other mortal could before him, and no other will after him.
And he is in the highest part of the horizon. Then he (Muhammad) drew near, then he bowed So he was the measure of two bows or closer (to Allah)
still. And He revealed to His servant what He revealed.
Quran [53:7-10]
Prophet’s physical and spiritual closeness with Allah should be proof enough of his divinity, nobility, authority, infallibility and difference with other normal humans.
So far, I have come across only 2 sins which burn all of our previous deeds.
These are
they who disbelieve in the communications of their Lord and His meeting, so their deeds become null, and therefore We will not set up a balance for them on the day of resurrection.Quran [18:105]
That is because they follow what is displeasing to Allah and are averse to His pleasure, therefore He has made null their deeds.
Quran [47:28]
O
you who believe! do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet, and do
not speak loud to him as you speak loud to one another, lest your deeds became
null while you do not perceive.
Thus previous deeds of all those people will be nullified
and rendered useless, people who; As punishment for both the sins is similar, we can conclude that both the
sins are of similar magnitude. Now you should realize the importance and honor
of Prophet (SAW). Talking loudly infront of Prophet (SAW) is as if rejecting the
communications of Allah. Does this minimize the message of Islam? Or does this
hype up the position of Prophet (SAW)? For I believe that Islam owes Prophet (SAW) which is the reason for the
amount of respect, honor and obedience he (SAW) is bestowed with. Surely We have given you (Muhammad) Kausar, Therefore pray to your Lord and make a sacrifice.
Surely your enemy is the one who shall be without posterity;
This is the Muhammad (SAW) of the Quran. Those who still believe else wise
follow their own opinions and that is one thing which doesn't matter in the
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Quran [49:2]
Quran [108:1-3]
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