The terms Darul Islam, Darul Harb, and Darul Kufr do not occur in the Quran or Hadith. There were invented for the first time by Muslim jurists, during the Abbasid period. According to this terminology, the world was divided into two large regions. The part of the world, ruled by Muslims, was called by the Muslims Darul Islam. The rest of the world ruled by others was called by Muslims Darul Kufr or Darul Harb (the land of kafirs or the land of war). For the Muslims, there were, therefore, these two distinct spheres of influence: the land of Islam, which meant the land where Muslims had full freedom to practice their religion, and the land of war, which meant a place where Muslims had no such freedom. The land of war indicated those areas of the world where Muslims found themselves in unfavourable circumstances and war was imminent at any point in time. The jihad of present-day Muslims is, in fact, a legacy of this early, potentially unstable situation.
According to this division spelled out in Islamic law (fiqh), Muslims have come to feel, consciously or unconsciously, that in those countries where Muslims are not in a position of power, they are always in danger; and that a war with non-Muslims could be in the offing at any given time. According to this division, Darul Harb (lit. territory of war) was, in fact the Darul A’da (the land of the enemies). That is why the idea took root in the minds of the Muslims that those potential enemies should be fought and subjugated so that they were no longer a threat to them.
Muslim thinking continued along these lines over a period of a thousand years. In present times, Muslims have had certain bitter experiences at the hands of other nations. This has caused them to think that their enemies have rallied and united against them. This idea has come to be so firmly entrenched in the Muslim psyche that a certain section of Muslims have started an armed jihad on the grounds that all nations other than Muslim nations are the enemies of Islam.
This whole problem has nothing to do with the tenets of Islam. In fact, Islam is a universal religion revived by the Prophet of mercy for mankind (The Quran, 21:107). Rather it is the creation of early Muslim jurists. If, in ancient times, Muslims had to practice their religion in defiance of, or under the dire threat of religious coercion, they now had ample opportunities to follow their religion in an atmosphere of complete religious freedom. That is to say, what had formerly been possible only in Darul Islam, now became equally possible in Darul Harb and Darul Kufr. This denotes a sea-change in present-day circumstances, which calls for a revision of the terms of the Abbasid period in order to bring them in line with the latest developments.
Now, with the altered situation, the whole world, in terms of religious freedom, is Darul Islam. Those circumstances no longer exist which necessitated the world being divided into three separate categories. After the establishment of religious freedom on a global scale, the entire world has become one, and now only one phrase Darul Amn (the abode of peace) or Darul Insaan (the abode of human beings) may properly be applied to it.
Source: The Prophet of Peace
The Quran says: 'Do great jihad with the help of the Quran.' (25: 52) ‘Jihad’ refers to the peaceful mission of spreading the ideology of the Quran. The message of the Quran is given in Chapter Jonah in these words: “Wallahu yadu ila dar as-salam.” (10: 25) That is, ‘And God calls to the home of peace.’
Peace is the central theme of the Quran. Where there is peace there is a peaceful mind, and where there is a peaceful mind there is positive thinking. Positive thinking helps in the building of a positive personality. A peaceful society is composed of members who are positive-thinking individuals.
Islam has nothing to do with violence. The Islamic target is peace, and peace can be established only by peaceful methods. The Islamic mission referred to in the Quran as dawah ilallah is the peaceful dissemination of the divine message. Jihad refers to the peaceful spirit of this mission, that is, to exert one's utmost effort to spread this peaceful message.
Modern Muslim militancy in the name of jihad is a total distortion of Islam. This phenomenon is a twentieth-century concept. Muslim writers such as Sayyid Abul Ala Mawdudi (1903-1979) of Pakistan and Syed Qutb (1906-1966) of Egypt, provided a political interpretation of Islam. Those influenced by this interpretation tried to establish an Islamic state in Muslim countries. This being the age of communication it spread rapidly throughout the Muslim world.
The aim of establishing such a state began as a literary campaign. Its proponents sought to overthrow existing regimes led by secular Muslims and establish in its place what they called Khilafah or Hukumat-e Ilahiyyah (Divine Rule). They totally failed in this endeavour. They assumed the Muslim masses were on their side and oblivious that the secular Muslim rulers were supported by the West. They developed negative thinking against the West. De-stabilizing the Western world seemed to be the only way to achieve their target. 9/11 was a result of this thinking. Suicide bombings by Muslims throughout the world are also an example of this thinking. The genesis of current Muslim militancy lies squarely in this political interpretation of Islam.
It is imperative to dispel this interpretation and completely eradicate this political thinking from the Muslim mind. We have to provide them with the peaceful literature of Islam. Only this can root out the menace of Muslim militancy.
UNESCO says, ‘Violence begins from the mind.’ The present Muslim militancy begins from the wrong interpretation of Islam. This militancy can be countered by spreading literature that represents the true ideology of Islam based on peace and put to end Muslim militancy.
Using rational argument, it has to be shown how the political interpretation of Islam is wrong and has no ideological base. This would be the cure to end the scourge of Muslim violence.
Source: Spirit of Islam July 2015
Some Muslims perpetrated acts of violence in France and Denmark. As usual, these acts were performed in the name of Islam. After these incidents, the US administration organized a three-day conference in Washington during February 17-19, 2015. The theme of the meeting was: Countering Violent Extremism. Sixty nations participated in the conference. A number of Muslim organizations were also among the participants.
Speaking on this occasion President Barack Obama said that Islam as a religion was not responsible for the recent violence. It was rather an external ideology—not based on Islamic teachings—that was behind these acts. Those who commit violence draw inspiration from this external ideology.
The political interpretation of Islam has become an ideology that promotes violence.
What is this ideology? President Obama did not mention this. It is the political interpretation of Islam, devised in the twentieth century. There were two champions of this ideology: Sayyid Qutb (1906-1966) in the Arab world and Syed Abul Ala Mawdudi (1903-1979) in the Indian subcontinent. For various reasons, this ideology spread widely amongst Muslims.
It is important to understand why the political interpretation of Islam foisted an ideology that promoted violence. It made Islam a subject of imposition, whereas earlier Islam was regarded as a subject of adherence or following. If Islam is subject to be followed, then the goal is to focus on oneself—one must discover God, lead a God-oriented life, and try to spiritually elevate oneself. With such a goal, there can be no question of violence. But when Islam is considered a subject of imposition, the goal then becomes the external political system. The aim now is to dethrone the political rulers so that the political system of choice may be imposed on all. Here lies the root of violence.
The political ideology is inherently violent. It is imperative to come up with a counter-ideology to eradicate violence—one that is sound and robust. The wrong notion that Islam is a political system must be dispelled and instead clearly establish it as non-political. The objective of Islam is Islamization of the individual and not Islamization of the state.
In 1917 the Communist government was formed in Russia and the USSR was established in its wake. This situation was perceived as a threat by the United States of America. America countered the problem not with violence but through a sound counter ideology. Anti-communist literature was published on a wide scale and the entire world was flooded with it. One example of this is mentioned below: “Yugoslavia’s Communist politician, Milovan Djilas (1911-1995) wrote a powerful book New Class: An Analysis of the Communist System (1957) criticizing the Communist system. It was introduced in Reader’s Digest under the heading, Milovan Djilas and the Book that is Shaking the Communist World.” (Eugene Lyon, October 1957)
The political interpretation of Islam is inherently a violent ideology that has no basis in Islam’s original sources—Quran and Sunnah. Therefore, a counter-ideology is required to face this violent ideology. Given these historic precedents, the need to publish strong and powerful literature against the terrorist ideology is imperative—powerful enough to shake the terrorists at their very roots. So that a commentator may be able to remark: ‘This is the book that is shaking the terrorist world.’ This is the only solution to rid violence in the name of Islam that plagues the world today. No other solution will work in this regard.
I have prepared literature based on Islamic sources that is acting as a counter-ideology in the form of books like The Age of Peace, The Prophet of Peace, and The Political Interpretation of Islam.
Source: Spirit of Islam June 2015
The root cause of violence perpetrated in the name of Islam is the erroneous political interpretation of Islam that has been developed by some Muslim scholars. According to this interpretation, a central place was bestowed on politics in the religion. For those scholars who gave such an interpretation, the religion or deen was tantamount to establishing its political domination. They saw this as the very purpose or goal that God wants His servants to strive towards. Naturally then, in this understanding of Islam, the rest of deen came to be subordinated to politics. Politics assumed the central place, through which every aspect of deen could be understood and its importance ascertained. In this way, in their understanding of Islam, every aspect of it acquired a political hue. This naturally resulted in a major deviation.
The political interpretation of the religion of Islam led to a new view about life and the universe in which politics had a pre-eminent place. While accepting that God has given free will to mankind, and the world is a testing ground on one hand, the proposers of the political interpretation contradict themselves by saying that people must establish the divinely revealed Shariah which was conveyed through God’s messengers. This law covers a wide gamut of issues, including beliefs, morals, society, civilization, and politics. In addition, the political theory finds it necessary to accept God as the Emperor, Ruler, and Lawmaker. They further go on to say that, if someone simply accepts God and believes Him to have no partners, but at the same time, claims to be fully independent in the sphere in which humans have free will, he actually revolts against God.
According to them, such people should be set right through guidance, instruction, exhortation, and preaching, but if these methods fail to get them the desired result of establishing Divine Government, then a believer is compelled to take to war so that he can remove the hurdles in the path of this task.
The above interpretation of deen presents God’s sending of the prophets to the world in a particular political light. Assuming that the prophets’ concern was to acquire power and that they had acquired it, is absolutely wrong, for the very mission of the prophets was to guide people to goodness and what is right.
When Islam is made out to be a political ideology, then quite naturally, the Islamic community is made out to be a political party. Amongst such a party, worship is reduced to a preface to politics. Piety and spiritual excellence come to be shaped in a distinctly political mould. Witnessing to the truth becomes a political act. In other words, in this political interpretation of Islam the whole of the religion of Islam wrongly comes to be seen as a collection of parts whose individual and collective significance cannot be understood without linking them with politics.
The above-mentioned two reasons of historical exigency and the political interpretation develop the mindset of militancy in its followers. The solution to this is to present Islam as it is from the original sources, the Quran, and the life and teachings of the Prophet. I have written many articles and books that show that this political interpretation of Islam has no basis in Islamic sources—the Quran and Sunnah.
Source: Spirit of Islam March 2018
Islam holds suicide bombings to be totally Unislamic. Muslims are not permitted to commit suicidal bombings in order to destroy the enemy. Strapping explosives onto oneself and hurling oneself upon the civilian settlements of even those with whom one is at war, for the purpose of destroying the enemy, and in the process killing oneself deliberately, is totally un-Islamic. This can in no way be termed ‘Shahadah’ (martyrdom). According to Islam, we can become martyrs, but we cannot court a martyr’s death deliberately.
Religion-based terrorism is perhaps the most dangerous phenomenon in Muslim history. Throughout Islamic history, that is, until very recently, action has always meant result-oriented action. But in modern times, for the first time, the Muslim mentality has become so distorted that, on occasion, fruitless action has also come to be considered desirable. Suicide bombing, which shows a preference for death over life, falls into this category. While in the early history of Islam, this was an alien concept, in modern times, for Muslims, it has acquired the position of a superior course of action.
How has the act of suicide come to rate so highly as a solution to political problems? The reason is not traceable to some special devotional attachment to Islam but is due rather to an inimical attitude towards man. As the suicide bomber ties the bombs onto his body, it is not pro-Islamic, but rather anti-humanity sentiments, which motivate him to adopt such a deadly course. This is a reality that no one in his senses can deny.
According to the Quran, a Muslim is one who is man’s well-wisher. But the greatest weakness of the Muslims of today is that they do not in their hearts possess any feelings of well-wishing towards others. They hold all nations to be their foes. This animosity has so increased that they are ready to cross all moral limits when it comes to attacking their supposed enemies. If they think they can harm them by killing themselves, they are willing to take the extreme step of suicide bombing.
The truth is that suicide is totally forbidden (haram) in Islam. It is forbidden to the point where, if someone is dying, and it is certain that he will not survive, even in his final moments Islam does not allow him to take his own life.
An incident, which illustrates this, has been recorded in Sahih Muslim. It took place in the lifetime of the Prophet during the Battle of Khaybar, one of the defensive battles fought between the companions of the Prophet and their enemies. A soldier from the Muslim side, by the name of Quzmaanuz Zufra, fought very bravely and his death. The Muslims said that he was a martyr and would go to Paradise. But the Prophet said that he would go to hell. The companions were astonished.
So the Prophet asked them to find out the cause of his death. On inquiry, it was discovered that he had indeed fought very bravely for the Muslims and then had fallen down gravely wounded. But then, finding the pain of his injury unbearable, he ended his life with his own sword. (Fathul Bari, Commentary Sahih Bukhari, Kitabul Maghazi, 7/540)
The Prophet’s disapproval of his action makes it clear that suicide bombing is not lawful in Islam under any circumstances. According to Islam, life is so precious that it can never be terminated at will on any pretext. Islam is a harbinger of life. It gives no license for premature death. That is why the virtue of patience—sabr—is given the utmost importance in Islam. Patience means tolerating the severest affliction rather than taking any such step as putting an end to one’s life.
Source: The True Face of Islam
The root cause of suicide bombing is that in present times, the Muslim community has come to think of the world as being divided between Muslims and kafirs (non-believers); that, besides Muslims, everyone else is kafir; that the countries ruled by Muslims are dar as-salam (Land of Islam) whereas the countries ruled by people other than Muslims are dar al-kufr (Land of Disbelief). Due to this mindset, Muslims think that any heinous act may be perpetrated with impunity against supposed disbelievers.
It is because of this negative mentality of the Muslims of the present day that the ulama, or Muslim scholars, have become emboldened to publicly declare suicide bombing as lawful—an act that has always been unlawful in the absolute sense.
Moreover, there are certain Muslim scholars who have gone to the extent of openly issuing fatwas or verdicts, claiming that suicide is lawful. They have coined a new term—istishhad (to seek martyrdom)—to give justification for suicide bombing.
Such fatwas are undoubtedly wrong. And it is strange that the entire community of religious scholars has not openly condemned this patently wrong fatwa.
The method of suicide bombing—known as hara-kiri—was first adopted in a big way by Japan. Traditionally practiced in that country, it was a ritual form of suicide carried out by slashing one’s abdomen. As we know, the method of hara-kiri adopted by Japan in the Second World War turned out to be totally ineffective, and it was subsequently abandoned.
The practice of suicide bombing by Muslim militants has likewise become totally ineffective. By such attacks, they put an end to innocent lives, but this fails to produce any positive results. The question then arises as to why this deadly method of suicide bombing still continues.
The reason is that Muslims on their own have developed a baseless belief that a believer killed in a battle becomes a martyr, and therefore goes straight to heaven. This is a false belief. According to Islamic teachings, there is absolutely no doubt about the fact that those Muslims who kill themselves in suicide bombings will die an unlawful death. No heaven is waiting to welcome them.
Islam believes that the whole world including the Muslim world is dar al-insaan (the abode of human beings). It is Muslims’ bounden duty to regard all human beings as God’s creatures. Once, in Madinah, the Prophet of Islam, on seeing the funeral procession of a Jew, stood up in deference to it. When one of his companions asked him why he did so, he replied:
‘Was he not a human being?’(Sahih, Al-Bukhari, Hadith No. 1312)
The Prophet Muhammad thus recognized a commonality between himself and a Jew—that the God who had created him had also created the Jew. This is the real basis of human equality.
Source: The Age of Peace
In the present day, suicide bombing is a unique and terrible manifestation of violence. The deadliest instance of such violence took place in New York, commonly referred to as 9/11 when the famous Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre (WTC) were destroyed by a group of Muslim militants. They hijacked four passenger airplanes, two of which were flown into the towers of the WTC. The attack resulted in the death of about 3,000 people and brought down the 110-story buildings, besides causing severe damage to surrounding buildings and structures.
It is apparent that Muslims top the list of those using such deadly methods of suicide bombing. Yet, suicide is completely forbidden in Islam. According to a tradition recorded in Sahih al-Bukhari, a Muslim having been badly injured in a battle, could not bear the consequent pain, so he killed himself with his own sword. This was the first case of suicide in Islam. The Prophet said of this person to his companions that he would be among the people of Hell. (Sahih, Al-Bukhari, Hadith No. 3062)
The truth is that suicide is totally forbidden (haram) in Islam. It is forbidden to the point where, if someone is dying, and it is certain that he will not survive, even in his final moments Islam does not allow him to take his own life.
Source: The Age of Peace
Human destiny, by Islamic lights, is a matter of man having been placed on this earth by God, so that he may be put to the test—the test being of his capacity to make correct moral choices. It is for this purpose that man has been given complete freedom, for without such freedom, the divine test would have no meaning and no validity.
It is required of man that he should lead his life on earth following a regimen of strict self-discipline. Wherein should he find the guiding principles for such a course? The answer, according to Islam, is in prophethood. Throughout the history of mankind, God appointed certain human beings—prophets—who would be the recipients and conveyors of His guidance as sent through His angels. The last in the series was the Prophet Muhammad.
When God created human beings, He also arranged for a series of prophets for their guidance. In every age and in every nation God has sent prophets so that they may convey God’s messages to people. So far as material resources were concerned, a person could find these on his own, but so far as life’s principles were concerned, God continued to send prophets for the purpose of conveying them to mankind.
Every prophet was an equally true representative. But, with the passage of time, the books brought by the previous prophets were either forgotten by their followers or had interpolations made in them by human beings. Ultimately, God sent the Final Prophet with the Quran, and God took it upon Himself to preserve this guidebook in its totality so that it might be a source of authentic guidance for people in every age.
The sum and substance of the reality revealed by Almighty God through His prophets is that every person has to receive whatever reward befits his deeds. Nobody can save himself from the fate resulting from his deeds and nobody other than himself can be his saviour. There are none more foolish in this world of God than those who are not affected by this prophetic warning.
So far as a person’s affairs in relation to God are concerned, everyone is responsible for his own deeds. No one can share in the consequences of the actions of others, nor can anyone be of help in any way to others. In the world of God, everyone will be rewarded according to what he has done for himself. As he sows, so shall he reap. No one’s efforts or deeds shall be of any benefit to others.
Source: Principles of Islam
When a machine is produced it is accompanied by a set of instructions for its use. An engineer is also commissioned to give a practical demonstration of how the machine functions. Man is an even more intricately designed but animate machine. When he is born, he suddenly finds himself in a world where no mountain bears an inscription answering questions concerning the nature of the world, or explaining how he should live on earth. No educational institution produces experts who know the secret of life or who can provide man with practical guidance.
To satisfy this need felt by man, God sent His prophets to the world, every one of whom brought with him the word of God. In the scriptures revealed to them, God has explained the reality of life to man, and has made it clear what man should and should not do. They showed man what sentiments and ideas he should adopt; how he should remember his Lord; how he should live with his fellows, what he should associate himself with and disassociate himself from. The prophets’ lives are a practical demonstration of how a person should live a God-fearing life.
God has given everyone the power to distinguish between right and wrong. He has also placed countless signs in space and on Earth from which man can learn. Moreover, His revelations have been set down in human language and several of His servants chosen from amongst mankind as prophets, so that there should be no doubt as to the true path.
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
The focus of the Prophet’s Last Sermon (Khutbah al-Hajjat al-Wida) was to instill in his Companions the spirit to undertake planning for dawah work. Human beings need guidance to make their lives successful in this world and the Hereafter. Prophets and messengers were sent by God for the purpose of guiding people on the path of spirituality and wisdom. The Prophet’s Last Sermon marked the end of an era and the beginning of a new one; The culture of fighting and bloodshed, which was prevalent in the tribal age, was to be completely abandoned. Now, a new era was to begin in which believers were to strive to impart the message of God to people. During his final Hajj, the Prophet while addressing his Companions said:
“O People! No prophet or messenger will come after me and no new faith will be born. All those who are listening to me should pass on my words to those who are not present.” (Ibn Hisham)
Therefore, those who return from performance of Hajj must be imbued with the spirit to act on this prophetic advice and should henceforth make it their goal to devote their lives to God’s cause so that they can fulfil the prophetic mission of having the word of God reach every home on the planet.
Source: Spirit of Islam September 2018
The Prophet had performed Hajj towards the end of his life. On this occasion, all of the Prophet’s Companions gathered in the plain of Arafat, which is 20 kilometres east of Makkah.
Here the Prophet delivered a sermon while being mounted on his camel. This sermon is famously known as Khutbah Hajjatul Wida, or ‘The Sermon of the Farewell Pilgrimage’.
At this juncture, the Prophet addressed his contemporary believers thus: “God has sent me for all mankind, so convey [my message] on my behalf.” When the Prophet issued this call, the Companions went forward in whichever directions their horses were facing, so that they could reach out to those people who were still unaware of the message of God brought by the Prophet. The efforts of the Companions helped in conveying the teachings of Islam to the inhabited world of that time.
Source: Spirit of Islam September 2017
After having consolidated the power of Islam in Arabia, the Prophet set out to perform Hajjatul wada‘, his Farewell Pilgrimage. It was the last year of his life. He left Madinah for Makkah accompanied by Madinan Muslims. When the news spread that the Prophet was going to perform the pilgrimage, various tribes living in Arabia began pouring into Makkah.
Therefore when the Prophet of Islam performed his first as well as his last pilgrimage, he was joined by nearly 125,000 Muslims. During this pilgrimage, the revelations about the rules of the hajj were given to him. These are followed by all Muslims to this day.
When the Prophet arrived at Mount Arafat, he imparted some teachings to the people present on that occasion. These are preserved in the form of the “Final Sermon.”
During the Sermon of Arafat the last passage of the Quran was revealed:
“Today I have completed your religion for you, and completed My blessings upon you. I have chosen for you Islam as your religion.” (Al Ma’idah, 5:3)
This proved to be his last visit, that is why it came to be called the “Farewell Pilgrimage”. Only three months after his return to Madinah, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ fell ill and, with the consent of all of his wives, stayed in the house of Aishah. He had fever and headache. He remained ill for about two weeks and breathed his last on 12 Rabiul Awwal, 632 A.D. He continued leading prayers till he became too weak to go to the mosque. But before his death, he said his last prayer in the Prophet’s Mosque and made Abu Bakr, his closest companion, the Imam of this prayer.
The Prophet died in the room attached to the Prophet’s Mosque. He was buried in the same place. Later when Abu Bakr and Umar died, they were also buried to the right and left side of the Prophet.
Source: The Life of Prophet Muhammad
Prophet Muhammad always considered himself accountable to God Almighty. We learn from a tradition that once when the Prophet of Islam was at home with his wife Umm Salmah, he sent her maidservant on an errand of some urgency. She took some time to come back. So Umm Salmah went to the window and saw that the maid was watching some children playing a game in the street. When she eventually came back, signs of anger appeared on the Prophet’s face. At that time the Prophet had a miswak (a small twig used as a toothbrush) in his hand.
“If it wasn’t for the fear of retribution on the Day of Judgement, I would have hit you with this miswak,” said the Prophet to the maid. (Al-Adab al-Mufrad, Hadith No. 184)
The Prophet of Islam warned the people of the chastisement of Doomsday. This incident shows that this warning was not just meant for others. He too always went in fear of it. He wanted people to live in this world in such a way that the fear of God’s chastisement should be embedded in their hearts. The same applied to the Prophet himself. The impending Doomsday was a matter of grave concern to everyone including himself. His prophethood did not in any sense exempt him from accountability in the life Hereafter.
In the Quran the Prophet Muhammad is described as being of “sublime character.” (68:4) Here are two sayings of the Prophet, which throw light on what this “sublime character” consists of:
Never debase your character by saying that if people treat you well, you will treat them well, and if they harm you, then you will do worse to them. Rather, become accustomed to being good to those who are good to you, and not wronging those who harm you. (Sunan Al Tirmidhi, Hadith No. 2007)
Join hands with those who break away from you, forgive those who wrong you, and be good to those who harm you. (Musnad Ahmad, Hadith No. 7725)
The sublime character described here was displayed in its noblest form by the Prophet himself Such character is required of ordinary Muslims as an accessory, but with the Prophet it was a basic requisite.
There are two levels of character, an ordinary and a superior level. An ordinary character is based on the principle: do as you have been done by. Such a character might be termed a “knee-jerk character,” for those possessed of such a character offer only reflex responses to treatment by others, breaking with those who break with them, wronging those who wrong them, and harming those who harm them.
But the higher level of character is based on the principle: do as you would be done by. Those possessed of such a character deal with both friend and foe in the same principled manner, irrespective of how they have been treated. They are reconciliatory, even joining with those who break with them. They are compassionate, even to those who seek to harm them. They are forbearing, even towards those who wrong them.
According to the French philosopher, Voltaire (1694–1778), “No one is a hero to his valet.” The reason for this is that a valet has access to a person’s private life, and in private life no one is perfect. Those close to a person usually do not hold him in such high esteem as those who are further off. That is why they cannot come to think of him as a hero. But this does not hold true for the Prophet Muhammad. History shows that the closer one came to him, the more one was impressed by his fine qualities.
Source: Life of Prophet Muhammad
The Prophet of Islam, Muhammad ibn Abdullah, was born in Arabia on 22 April 570 AD, and died on 8 June 632 AD. He grew up orphaned and his childhood gave indications of the sublime and dynamic personality that was to emerge. As he grew up, the nobility of his personality, soft-spoken and genial disposition made him a benevolent member of society. A balanced personality—tolerant, truthful, perspicacious, and magnanimous—he presented the highest example of human nobility. According to Daud ibn Husayn, he became known as the most chivalrous among his people, tolerant and forbearing, truthful and trustworthy, and always an epitome of good behaviour. He would stay aloof from all quarrels and quibbles and never indulged in foul utterances, abuse or invective. People even left their valuables in his custody, for they knew that he would never betray them. His unimpeachable trustworthiness won for him the title of al-Amin, an unfailing trustee, and of al-Sadiq, the truthful.
The Prophet of Islam discovered Truth in the fortieth year of his arduous life. If was an attainment that was not to usher in ease and comfort, for this Truth was that he stood face to face with an Almighty God. It was discovery of his own helplessness before the might of God, of his own nothingness before the supernatural magnitude of the almighty. With this discovery it became clear that God’s faithful servant had nothing but responsibilities in this world; he had no rights.
The meaning that life took on for the Prophet after the Truth came to him can be ascertained from these words:
Nine things the Lord has commanded me. Fear of God in private and in public; Justness, whether in anger or in calmness; Moderation in both poverty and affluence; That I should join hands with those who break away from me; and give to those who deprive me; and forgive those who wrong me; and that my silence should be meditation; and my words remembrance of God; and my vision keen observation. (Jami ul-Usool, Hadith No. 9317)
These were no just glib words; they were a reflection of the Prophet’s very life. Poignant and wondrously effective words of this nature could not emanate from an empty soul; they themselves indicate the status of the speaker; they are an outpouring of his inner being, an unquenchable spirit revealed in verbal form.
Source: Life of Prophet Muhammad
The historian Tabarani tells us on the authority of Masar ibn Makhramah, of how on one occasion the Prophet addressed the Companions with these words: “God has sent me as a mercy for all, so pass on what you have heard from me. God will make manifest His mercy. And do not quarrel with one another, as the disciples quarreled over Jesus, the son of Mary. He called on them to perform the same mission as I am entrusting to you now. But those who lived far away did not like the idea, and asked not to go, and Jesus remonstrated with his Lord over this matter.” “We will pass on your message,” the Companions assured him in response. “Send us wherever you please.”
Internal friction is the greatest thorn in the side of a community, preventing its members from pursuing a constructive course of action. The Companions did not let themselves sink into the quagmire of petty controversies. Fear of God had imbued them with a profound sense of responsibility. They concentrated on discharging these responsibilities and had no time for quarrels, which would have prevented them from doing so. Even during the Prophet’s lifetime, they had taken Islam to the borders of the Arabian Peninsula. After his demise, they continued to act as if at his behest. Blind to all thoughts of self—aggrandisement, they dispersed in the neighbouring lands. Their homes were just like small schools, in which they imparted to people knowledge of the Arabic language, the Quran, and the Prophet’s Sunnah. In this way, they passed on what they had heard from the Prophet.
Source: Life of Prophet Muhammad
We find an example of keeping a positive attitude from the life of a Companion of the Prophet. Khalid ibn al-Walid was an extremely brave and able soldier, who remained commander of the Muslim army in Syria from the time of the Prophet right throughout the caliphate of Abu Bakr. ‘Umar, however, disapproved of some of Khalid’s habits and asked Abu Bakr to remove him from his command. Abu Bakr did not act on ‘Umar’s advice, but ‘Umar was so set in his opinion that, on becoming Caliph, he dismissed Khalid. The commander of the Muslim army was demoted to the rank of an ordinary soldier.
When the order came, Khalid was laying all low before him as the Muslims’ triumphant march through Syria continued. All of a sudden came the news of his dismissal and the appointment of Abu ‘Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrah in his place. The news shocked Khalid’s army, and a group of soldiers gathered in their leader’s tent. They assured him of their support and urged him to defy the Caliph’s orders. Khalid sent them away, telling them that he did not fight for ‘Umar’s cause; he fought for the cause of ‘Umar’s Lord. Before he had fought as commander; now he would fight as an ordinary soldier.
Only a person who rises above grudges and rancour can act in this manner—one who has a positive attitude to life and refrains from reacting adversely. Khalid’s words show how deeply involved he was in doing the will of God. So much so that he took ‘Umar’s decision completely in his stride.
Source: Life of Prophet Muhammad
Yes. Muslims must take lessons from the lives of the Companions and emulate them. The Companions of the Prophet—the Sahabah—stand alongside him in history just as they stood alongside him during his lifetime, for they were the ones selected by God to assist His messenger. They joined with him in seeing his divine mission through to its proper conclusion. As ‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ud said: “God chose them to accompany His Prophet, and to establish his religion.”
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
The prophethood chain ended with the last prophet, the Prophet Muhammad, but the prophetic mission continues as before. After the last prophet, God’s message must continue to be conveyed to humanity in every age and generation, which must continue until the Day of Judgment. This task is for the ummat-e-muhammadi, the followers of the Prophet Muhammad, to undertake. This witnessing continues the Prophet’s mission after he leaves this world. This task can be carried out properly only in a spirit of honesty and well-wishing. Honesty means nothing should be added to or mixed with the divine message. Well-wishing here means that those who witness Truth must be impelled, even on a purely unilateral basis, by a concern for the genuine well-being of the madu, those whom they call towards God so that the latter can have no reasonable ground to deny this call. This responsibility of the ummah of the Prophet Muhammad is explained in the Quran as follows: “Thus We have made you a middle nation so that you may act as witnesses for humanity, and the Messenger may be a witness for you.” (2:143) From this, we learn that as a ‘middle nation,’ the ummah of the Prophet Muhammad is an intermediary between the last prophet and later generations. It takes God’s religion from the last of the prophets and conveys it to later generations without expecting any recompense and engaging in this task until the Day of Judgment. This conveying of God’s religion is not a simple announcement. Instead, the religion must be conveyed, as the Quran (4:63) says, in such terms as will address people’s minds.
Source: Dawah Made Simple
A prophet is one who has been selected to represent God on earth. When God chooses a human being as His messenger, His angel comes to him to inform him of this selection. In this way, he is left in no doubt that he is indeed God’s messenger. Afterwards God sends him His teachings through the angel so that he may inform all human beings of God’s will. The prophet is an intermediary between God and man. He takes from God His message and conveys it to human beings.
God has bestowed human beings with reason but, through reason alone, an individual cannot understand the deeper realities of the present life. So far as God and the world Hereafter are concerned, this is totally related to the invisible world and as such, these things are beyond human reason and understanding. What the prophet does is fulfill this need of every individual. The Prophet informs a person of the realities of life and of the world Hereafter. In this way, he enables people to plan their life in the full light of divine knowledge.
From the time that people inhabited this world, the prophets started arriving in every age. They told humans of God’s will but, there are no authentic records of the teachings of the prophets of ancient times. The later circumstances failed to authenticate their personalities as factually historical and their books also suffered the same fate.
Finally, God chose the Prophet Muhammad as His Messenger. He was born at a time when world history had begun to be put on record. Subsequently, with the invention of the printing press, he became widely acknowledged as a historically established figure, and the Book divinely revealed to him, was preserved for all eternity. Ultimately, there was no possibility that any changes could be made in this divine book he had brought to the world. The Prophet Muhammad was the final messenger to humanity. No prophet will come after him.
Source: The Spirit of Islam
