• When becoming humiliated, remember the Prophet [PBUH] in Ta'if.
• When being starved, remember the Prophet [PBUH] tying two stones to his stomach in the battle of Khandaq.
• When becoming angry, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s control of anger on the martyrdom of his beloved Uncle Hamza.
• When losing a tooth, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s tooth in the battle of Uhud.
• When bleeding from any part of the body, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s body covered in blood on his return from Ta'if.
• When feeling lonely, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s seclusion in Mount Hira .
• When feeling tired in Salaat, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s blessed feet in Tahajjud.
• When being prickled with thorns, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s pain from Abu Lahab's wife.
• When being troubled by neighbours, remember the old woman who would empty rubbish on the Prophet [PBUH].
• When losing a child, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s son, Ibrahim.
• When beginning a long journey, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s long journey to Madinah.
• When going against a Sunnah, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s intercession, (Ummati, Ummati, Ummati) (My Ummah).
• When sacrificing an animal, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s sacrifice of 63 animals for his Ummah.
• Before shaving your beard, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s face rejecting the two beardless Iranians.
• When falling into an argument with your wife, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s encounter with Aisha and Hafsa.
• When experiencing less food in the house, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s days of poverty.
• When experiencing poverty, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s advice to Ashaab-e-Suffa (People of Suffa).
• When losing a family member, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s departure from this world.
• When becoming an orphan, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s age at six.
• When sponsoring an orphan, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s sponsor for Zaid ibn Haritha.
• When fearing an enemy, remember the Prophet [PBUH]'s saying to Abu Bakr in Mount Thour .
• Whatever situation you may find yourself in, remember your role model, the best of creation: Prophet [PBUH] Muhammad.
Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History by Michael H. Hart
My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world's most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels. Of humble origins, Muhammad founded and promulgated one of the world's great religions, and became an immensely effective political leader. Today, thirteen centuries after his death, his influence is still powerful and pervasive. The majority of the persons in this book had the advantage of being born and raised in centers of civilization, highly cultured or politically pivotal nations.
Muhammad, however, was born in the year 570, in the city of Mecca, in southern Arabia, at that time a backward area of the world, far from the centers of trade, art, and learning. Orphaned at age six, he was reared in modest surroundings. Islamic tradition tells us that he was illiterate. His economic position improved when, at age twenty-five, he married a wealthy widow.
Nevertheless, as he approached forty, there was little outward indication that he was a remarkable person. Most Arabs at that time were pagans, who believed in many gods. There were, however, in Mecca, a small number of Jews and Christians; it was from them no doubt that Muhammad first learned of a single, omnipotent God who ruled the entire universe.
When he was forty years old, Muhammad became convinced that this one true God (Allah) was speaking to him, and had chosen him to spread the
true faith. For three years, Muhammad preached only to close friends and associates. Then, about 613, he began preaching in public. As he slowly gained converts, the Meccan authorities came to consider him a dangerous nuisance. In 622, fearing for his safety, Muhammad fled to Medina (a city some 200 miles north of Mecca), where he had been offered a position of considerable political power.
This flight, called the Hegira, was the turning point of the Prophet's life. In Mecca, he had had few followers. In Medina, he had many more, and he soon acquired an influence that made him a virtual dictator. During the next few years, while Muhammad s following grew rapidly, a series of battles were fought between Medina and Mecca. This was ended in 630 with Muhammad's triumphant return to Mecca as conqueror. The remaining two and one-half years of his life witnessed the rapid conversion of the Arab tribes to the new religion.
When Muhammad died, in 632, he was the effective ruler of all of southern Arabia. The Bedouin tribesmen of Arabia had a reputation as fierce warriors. But their number was small; and plagued by disunity and internecine warfare, they had been no match for the larger armies of the kingdoms in the settled agricultural areas to the north. However, unified by Muhammad for the first time in history, and inspired by their fervent belief in the one true God, these small Arab armies now embarked upon one of the most astonishing series of conquests in human history.
To the northeast of Arabia lay the large Neo-Persian Empire of the Sassanids; to the northwest lay the Byzantine, or Eastern Roman Empire, centered in Constantinople. Numerically, the Arabs were no match for their opponents. On the field of battle, though, the inspired Arabs rapidly conquered all of Mesopotamia, Syria, and Palestine. By 642, Egypt had been wrested from the Byzantine Empire, while the Persian armies had been crushed at the key battles of Qadisiya in 637, and Nehavend in 642.
But even these enormous conquests-which were made under the leadership of Muhammad's close friends and immediate successors, Abu Bakr and 'Umaribn al-Khattab - did not mark the end of the Arab advance. By 711, the Arab armies had swept completely across North Africa to the Atlantic Ocean There they turned north and, crossing the Strait of Gibraltar, overwhelmed the Visigothic kingdom in Spain. For a while, it must have seemed that the Moslems would overwhelm all of Christian Europe.
However, in 732, at the famous Battle of Tours, a Moslem army, which had advanced into the center of France, was at last defeated by the Franks. Nevertheless, in a scant century of fighting, these Bedouin tribesmen, inspired by the word of the Prophet, had carved out an empire stretching from the borders of India to the Atlantic Ocean-the largest empire that the world had yet seen. And everywhere that the armies conquered, large-scale conversion to the new faith eventually followed. Now, not all of these conquests proved permanent.
The Persians, though they have remained faithful to the religion of the Prophet, have since regained their independence from the Arabs. And in Spain, more than seven centuries of warfare 5 finally resulted in the Christians reconquering the entire peninsula. However, Mesopotamia and Egypt, the two cradles of ancient civilization, have remained Arab, as has the entire coast of North Africa. The new religion, of course, continued to spread, in the intervening centuries, far beyond the borders of the original Moslem conquests.
Currently it has tens of millions of adherents in Africa and Central Asia and even more in Pakistan and northern India, and in Indonesia. In Indonesia, the new faith has been a unifying factor. In the Indian subcontinent, however, the conflict between Moslems and Hindus is still a major obstacle to unity.
How, then, is one to assess the overall impact of Muhammad on human history? Like all religions, Islam exerts an enormous influence upon the lives of its followers. It is for this reason that the founders of the world's great religions all figure prominently in this book . Since there are roughly twice as many Christians as Moslems in the world, it may initially seem strange that Muhammad has been ranked higher than Jesus.
There are two principal reasons for that decision.
First, Muhammad played a far more important role in the development of Islam than Jesus did in the development of Christianity. Although Jesus was responsible for the main ethical and moral precepts of Christianity (insofar as these differed from Judaism), St. Paul was the main developer of Christian theology, its principal proselytizer, and the author of a large portion of the New Testament.
Muhammad, however, was responsible for both the theology of Islam and its main ethical and moral principles. In addition, he played the key role in proselytizing the new faith, and in establishing the religious practices of Islam. Moreover, he is the author of the Moslem holy scriptures, the Koran, a collection of certain of Muhammad's insights that he believed had been directly revealed to him by Allah. Most of these utterances were copied more or less faithfully during Muhammad's lifetime and were collected together in authoritative form not long after his death.
Webmaster's note: Mr Hart writes, "he is the author of the Moslem holy scriptures" which is INCORRECT. Prophet Muhammad was the person to whom the Quran was revealed by its Author - God.
The Koran therefore, closely represents Muhammad's ideas and teachings and to a considerable extent his exact words. No such detailed compilation of the teachings of Christ has survived.
Since the Koran is at least as important to Moslems as the Bible is to Christians, the influence of Muhammed through the medium of the Koran has been enormous It is probable that the relative influence of Muhammad on Islam has been larger than the combined influence of Jesus Christ and St. Paul on Christianity.
On the purely religious level, then, it seems likely that Muhammad has been as influential in human history as Jesus. Furthermore, Muhammad (unlike Jesus) was a secular as well as a religious leader. In fact, as the driving force behind the Arab conquests, he may well rank as the most influential political leader of all time. Of many important historical events, one might say that they were inevitable and would have occurred even without the particular political leader who guided them.
For example, the South American colonies would probably have won their independence from Spain even if Simon Bolivar had never lived. But this cannot be said of the Arab conquests.
Nothing similar had occurred before Muhammad, and there is no reason to believe that the conquests would have been achieved without him.
The only comparable conquests in human history are those of the Mongols in the thirteenth century, which were primarily due to the influence of Genghis Khan. These conquests, however, though more extensive than those of the Arabs, did not prove permanent, and today the only areas occupied by the Mongols are those that they held prior to the time of Genghis Khan.
It is far different with the conquests of the Arabs. From Iraq to Morocco, there extends a whole chain of Arab nations united not merely by their faith in Islam, but also by their Arabic language, history, and culture. The centrality of the Koran in the Moslem religion and the fact that it is written in Arabic have probably prevented the Arab language from breaking up into mutually unintelligible dialects, which might otherwise have occurred in the intervening thirteen centuries.
Differences and divisions between these Arab states exist, of course, and they are considerable, but the partial disunity should not blind us to the important elements of unity that have continued to exist. For instance, neither Iran nor Indonesia, both oil-producing states and both Islamic in religion, joined in the oil embargo of the winter of 1973-74. It is no coincidence that all of the Arab states, and only the Arab states, participated in the embargo. We see, then, that the Arab conquests of the seventh century have continued to play an important role in human history, down to the present day. It is this unparalleled combination of secular and religious influence which I feel entitles Muhammad to be considered the most influential single figure in human history.
Muhammad, however, was born in the year 570, in the city of Mecca, in southern Arabia, at that time a backward area of the world, far from the centers of trade, art, and learning. Orphaned at age six, he was reared in modest surroundings. Islamic tradition tells us that he was illiterate. His economic position improved when, at age twenty-five, he married a wealthy widow.
Nevertheless, as he approached forty, there was little outward indication that he was a remarkable person. Most Arabs at that time were pagans, who believed in many gods. There were, however, in Mecca, a small number of Jews and Christians; it was from them no doubt that Muhammad first learned of a single, omnipotent God who ruled the entire universe.
When he was forty years old, Muhammad became convinced that this one true God (Allah) was speaking to him, and had chosen him to spread the
true faith. For three years, Muhammad preached only to close friends and associates. Then, about 613, he began preaching in public. As he slowly gained converts, the Meccan authorities came to consider him a dangerous nuisance. In 622, fearing for his safety, Muhammad fled to Medina (a city some 200 miles north of Mecca), where he had been offered a position of considerable political power.
This flight, called the Hegira, was the turning point of the Prophet's life. In Mecca, he had had few followers. In Medina, he had many more, and he soon acquired an influence that made him a virtual dictator. During the next few years, while Muhammad s following grew rapidly, a series of battles were fought between Medina and Mecca. This was ended in 630 with Muhammad's triumphant return to Mecca as conqueror. The remaining two and one-half years of his life witnessed the rapid conversion of the Arab tribes to the new religion.
When Muhammad died, in 632, he was the effective ruler of all of southern Arabia. The Bedouin tribesmen of Arabia had a reputation as fierce warriors. But their number was small; and plagued by disunity and internecine warfare, they had been no match for the larger armies of the kingdoms in the settled agricultural areas to the north. However, unified by Muhammad for the first time in history, and inspired by their fervent belief in the one true God, these small Arab armies now embarked upon one of the most astonishing series of conquests in human history.
To the northeast of Arabia lay the large Neo-Persian Empire of the Sassanids; to the northwest lay the Byzantine, or Eastern Roman Empire, centered in Constantinople. Numerically, the Arabs were no match for their opponents. On the field of battle, though, the inspired Arabs rapidly conquered all of Mesopotamia, Syria, and Palestine. By 642, Egypt had been wrested from the Byzantine Empire, while the Persian armies had been crushed at the key battles of Qadisiya in 637, and Nehavend in 642.
But even these enormous conquests-which were made under the leadership of Muhammad's close friends and immediate successors, Abu Bakr and 'Umaribn al-Khattab - did not mark the end of the Arab advance. By 711, the Arab armies had swept completely across North Africa to the Atlantic Ocean There they turned north and, crossing the Strait of Gibraltar, overwhelmed the Visigothic kingdom in Spain. For a while, it must have seemed that the Moslems would overwhelm all of Christian Europe.
However, in 732, at the famous Battle of Tours, a Moslem army, which had advanced into the center of France, was at last defeated by the Franks. Nevertheless, in a scant century of fighting, these Bedouin tribesmen, inspired by the word of the Prophet, had carved out an empire stretching from the borders of India to the Atlantic Ocean-the largest empire that the world had yet seen. And everywhere that the armies conquered, large-scale conversion to the new faith eventually followed. Now, not all of these conquests proved permanent.
The Persians, though they have remained faithful to the religion of the Prophet, have since regained their independence from the Arabs. And in Spain, more than seven centuries of warfare 5 finally resulted in the Christians reconquering the entire peninsula. However, Mesopotamia and Egypt, the two cradles of ancient civilization, have remained Arab, as has the entire coast of North Africa. The new religion, of course, continued to spread, in the intervening centuries, far beyond the borders of the original Moslem conquests.
Currently it has tens of millions of adherents in Africa and Central Asia and even more in Pakistan and northern India, and in Indonesia. In Indonesia, the new faith has been a unifying factor. In the Indian subcontinent, however, the conflict between Moslems and Hindus is still a major obstacle to unity.
How, then, is one to assess the overall impact of Muhammad on human history? Like all religions, Islam exerts an enormous influence upon the lives of its followers. It is for this reason that the founders of the world's great religions all figure prominently in this book . Since there are roughly twice as many Christians as Moslems in the world, it may initially seem strange that Muhammad has been ranked higher than Jesus.
There are two principal reasons for that decision.
First, Muhammad played a far more important role in the development of Islam than Jesus did in the development of Christianity. Although Jesus was responsible for the main ethical and moral precepts of Christianity (insofar as these differed from Judaism), St. Paul was the main developer of Christian theology, its principal proselytizer, and the author of a large portion of the New Testament.
Muhammad, however, was responsible for both the theology of Islam and its main ethical and moral principles. In addition, he played the key role in proselytizing the new faith, and in establishing the religious practices of Islam. Moreover, he is the author of the Moslem holy scriptures, the Koran, a collection of certain of Muhammad's insights that he believed had been directly revealed to him by Allah. Most of these utterances were copied more or less faithfully during Muhammad's lifetime and were collected together in authoritative form not long after his death.
Webmaster's note: Mr Hart writes, "he is the author of the Moslem holy scriptures" which is INCORRECT. Prophet Muhammad was the person to whom the Quran was revealed by its Author - God.
The Koran therefore, closely represents Muhammad's ideas and teachings and to a considerable extent his exact words. No such detailed compilation of the teachings of Christ has survived.
Since the Koran is at least as important to Moslems as the Bible is to Christians, the influence of Muhammed through the medium of the Koran has been enormous It is probable that the relative influence of Muhammad on Islam has been larger than the combined influence of Jesus Christ and St. Paul on Christianity.
On the purely religious level, then, it seems likely that Muhammad has been as influential in human history as Jesus. Furthermore, Muhammad (unlike Jesus) was a secular as well as a religious leader. In fact, as the driving force behind the Arab conquests, he may well rank as the most influential political leader of all time. Of many important historical events, one might say that they were inevitable and would have occurred even without the particular political leader who guided them.
For example, the South American colonies would probably have won their independence from Spain even if Simon Bolivar had never lived. But this cannot be said of the Arab conquests.
Nothing similar had occurred before Muhammad, and there is no reason to believe that the conquests would have been achieved without him.
The only comparable conquests in human history are those of the Mongols in the thirteenth century, which were primarily due to the influence of Genghis Khan. These conquests, however, though more extensive than those of the Arabs, did not prove permanent, and today the only areas occupied by the Mongols are those that they held prior to the time of Genghis Khan.
It is far different with the conquests of the Arabs. From Iraq to Morocco, there extends a whole chain of Arab nations united not merely by their faith in Islam, but also by their Arabic language, history, and culture. The centrality of the Koran in the Moslem religion and the fact that it is written in Arabic have probably prevented the Arab language from breaking up into mutually unintelligible dialects, which might otherwise have occurred in the intervening thirteen centuries.
Differences and divisions between these Arab states exist, of course, and they are considerable, but the partial disunity should not blind us to the important elements of unity that have continued to exist. For instance, neither Iran nor Indonesia, both oil-producing states and both Islamic in religion, joined in the oil embargo of the winter of 1973-74. It is no coincidence that all of the Arab states, and only the Arab states, participated in the embargo. We see, then, that the Arab conquests of the seventh century have continued to play an important role in human history, down to the present day. It is this unparalleled combination of secular and religious influence which I feel entitles Muhammad to be considered the most influential single figure in human history.
Prophethood and the Early Muslims
It was in the month of Ramadan when an incident took place, which would change the rest of Muhammad’s life and the course of human history. The Prophet (pbuh) was forty years old and until now he had lived a relatively normal life. Until this day, he wasn’t well known for anything apart from his honesty and good character.
The Prophet (pbuh) had dedicated a few days to Allah, away from the world, in seclusion. Muhammad (pbuh) was alone in a cave in mount Hira, on the outskirts of Makkah when suddenly the angel Jibrael appeared to him in the form of a man. The angel said to the prophet ‘IQRA’ which means to read, repeat or recite. The prophet (pbuh) was shocked and terrified when he saw the angel before him because he had been alone in the cave until then. The Prophet (pbuh) replied to the angel “I can not read.” The angel grabbed the prophet (pbuh) and squeezed him, repeating the same words to the prophet (pbuh) – Iqra. The Prophet (pbuh) again replied, “I can not read!”
As we know very few people could read and write at this time in Arabia. Most people had very little education and this was also true for our beloved Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). The word Iqra has a few meanings and this is the character of the Arabic language. Each word is taken from a root word that defines the meaning of this word.
The angel squeezed the prophet (pbuh) a second time and then repeated ‘IQRA’ for a third time. The Prophet (pbuh) replied with the same words “I can not read!” The angel squeezed the Prophet (pbuh) a third time and said Iqra, bismi rabi kalla zi….:
Read in the name of your lord who created
He created man from a clot of blood
Read and your lord is most bountiful
He who has taught by the pen
Taught man that which he knew not
The prophet (pbuh) afterwards talked of this experience and recalled how it was – as if these words were written on his heart. The prophet (pbuh) was scared and confused. He could not believe what had happened and he ran from the cave towards the house. On the way he heard a voice above him saying you are Muhammad (pbuh) the messenger of Allah and I am Jibrael.
Muhammad (pbuh) turned around and saw the angel standing astride, filling the whole horizon. The prophet (pbuh) turned away and wherever he turned he could see the angel. The prophet (pbuh) heard the same words as before that you are Muhammad (pbuh) the messenger of Allah and I am Jibrael. Finally, the angel disappeared from the horizon and the prophet (pbuh) descended down the slope and ran home.
The prophet (pbuh) went home straight to his wife. He got home and said to Khadija ,“Cover me, cover me.” The prophet (pbuh) was trembling as he lay on the couch, covered by a cloak. He re-told the whole story to Khadija who listened to every word. She reassured him that he was a good man and that he was good to the orphans and helped the poor and needy. He looked after his guests and was always kind and generous to all. Allah did not want anything bad for such a person.
She then went to her cousin Waraqah who was old and had lost his sight. He was amazed at what he heard. He said this was the same Namus (i.e. Angel Jibrael) who had come to Musa. He also said that Muhammad (pbuh) was the messenger of Allah and that he would have joined him if he were young and able. Waraqah also said that the people would doubt you, ill treat you and drive you away from your home.
Many aspects of the life of the final messenger (pbuh) was foretold in the religious scripture of different religions. This is one of the reasons why some people accepted Islam very quickly. They could see the qualities and events about the prophet (pbuh) as described in their books. In many cases, they were waiting for a prophet (pbuh) to come.
Muhammad (pbuh) later received more verses from the Qu'ran which was followed by a period when there was no revelation coming to him. The Prophet (pbuh) was concerned that he might have said or done something to incur this silence from Allah. Khadija re-assured him that Muhammad (pbuh) was a good person and he did not do anything wrong.
After a while, the messages returned to the Prophet (pbuh) and he continued to practice Islam. Muhammad (pbuh) began to tell some of his close companions about what had happened and asked them to keep it a secret.
After Khadijah, the people that believed in the prophet (pbuh) were Ali and Zayd. Ali was only ten years old and Zayd was a slave who had no influence in the Makkan Society. After them Abu Bakr, from the tribe of Taym, accepted Islam. He was a well-mannered and liked person who was well respected by the Arabs of Makkah. He was also a successful merchant. He used to tell some of his close friends whom accepted Islam at his hands.
The early converts were people who knew the prophet (pbuh) very well. They knew his character and his good qualities. They also knew that he had always been truthful and did not doubt his word when he told them that revelation had come to him. They knew that he had never composed any words or poems in the past and the verses of the Qu’ran were a true master piece.
Another well known story, of conversion was that Uthman son of Affan, was sleeping in the desert whilst on a trade journey, when he heard a loud voice saying, “Sleepers, awake, Ahmad has come forth in Makkah.” Uthman then hurried to Makkah where he met Talha on the way. Talha said that when he was in Syria, he met a monk, who had asked if Ahmad had come to the people of the sanctuary. When Talha quizzed the monk about Ahmad, the monk replied that Ahmad was the son of Abdullah the son of Abdul Muttalib.
Both Uthman and Talha went to Abu Bakr, who was known to be close to the Prophet (pbuh). They both related their stories. Abu Bakr then took them to the Prophet (pbuh) and both young men accepted Islam. These were some of the earliest converts to Islam.
One of these remarkable people who accepted Islam in the earliest stages was a young boy by the name of Ibn Masood. He attended sheep on the outskirts of Makkah when he was a young lad. One day, the prophet (pbuh) and Abu Bakr were passing by and asked the boy for some milk. Ibn masood refused them milk saying that they were not his sheep. The prophet (pbuh) asked him to bring him a young sheep that did not bear any milk. When Ibn Masood brought the sheep over, the prophet (pbuh) did a prayer and the udder was full of milk. The prophet (pbuh) and Abu Bakr drank the milk and afterwards the udder dried up. A few days later Ibn Masood accepted Islam and became one of the leading authorities in Islam with the regards to the Qu'ran.
The angel Jibrael appeared to Muhammad (pbuh) one day and taught him about Wudhu and salah. The angel cast his heel on the ground causing a spring to start gushing from the ground. The angel then showed the prophet (pbuh) how to wash up for prayers (wudhu) and also showed Muhammad (pbuh) how to pray to Allah. It showed the prophet (pbuh) how to perform the Salah with all the different positions of bowing and sitting. The angel also told him what to say in the Salah. From then on the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) began to perform Salah.
Everything was going well for the prophet (pbuh). There were a few Muslim coverts now but they were his close friends and family. What would happen when Allah asked him to deliver the message to the Makkans? The Makkans were war-like and stubborn, how would they react? Would they get angry and try to kill the Muhammad (pbuh) or would they accept Islam? What trials and tribulations would the Muslims face?
The Prophet (pbuh) had dedicated a few days to Allah, away from the world, in seclusion. Muhammad (pbuh) was alone in a cave in mount Hira, on the outskirts of Makkah when suddenly the angel Jibrael appeared to him in the form of a man. The angel said to the prophet ‘IQRA’ which means to read, repeat or recite. The prophet (pbuh) was shocked and terrified when he saw the angel before him because he had been alone in the cave until then. The Prophet (pbuh) replied to the angel “I can not read.” The angel grabbed the prophet (pbuh) and squeezed him, repeating the same words to the prophet (pbuh) – Iqra. The Prophet (pbuh) again replied, “I can not read!”
As we know very few people could read and write at this time in Arabia. Most people had very little education and this was also true for our beloved Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). The word Iqra has a few meanings and this is the character of the Arabic language. Each word is taken from a root word that defines the meaning of this word.
The angel squeezed the prophet (pbuh) a second time and then repeated ‘IQRA’ for a third time. The Prophet (pbuh) replied with the same words “I can not read!” The angel squeezed the Prophet (pbuh) a third time and said Iqra, bismi rabi kalla zi….:
Read in the name of your lord who created
He created man from a clot of blood
Read and your lord is most bountiful
He who has taught by the pen
Taught man that which he knew not
The prophet (pbuh) afterwards talked of this experience and recalled how it was – as if these words were written on his heart. The prophet (pbuh) was scared and confused. He could not believe what had happened and he ran from the cave towards the house. On the way he heard a voice above him saying you are Muhammad (pbuh) the messenger of Allah and I am Jibrael.
Muhammad (pbuh) turned around and saw the angel standing astride, filling the whole horizon. The prophet (pbuh) turned away and wherever he turned he could see the angel. The prophet (pbuh) heard the same words as before that you are Muhammad (pbuh) the messenger of Allah and I am Jibrael. Finally, the angel disappeared from the horizon and the prophet (pbuh) descended down the slope and ran home.
The prophet (pbuh) went home straight to his wife. He got home and said to Khadija ,“Cover me, cover me.” The prophet (pbuh) was trembling as he lay on the couch, covered by a cloak. He re-told the whole story to Khadija who listened to every word. She reassured him that he was a good man and that he was good to the orphans and helped the poor and needy. He looked after his guests and was always kind and generous to all. Allah did not want anything bad for such a person.
She then went to her cousin Waraqah who was old and had lost his sight. He was amazed at what he heard. He said this was the same Namus (i.e. Angel Jibrael) who had come to Musa. He also said that Muhammad (pbuh) was the messenger of Allah and that he would have joined him if he were young and able. Waraqah also said that the people would doubt you, ill treat you and drive you away from your home.
Many aspects of the life of the final messenger (pbuh) was foretold in the religious scripture of different religions. This is one of the reasons why some people accepted Islam very quickly. They could see the qualities and events about the prophet (pbuh) as described in their books. In many cases, they were waiting for a prophet (pbuh) to come.
Muhammad (pbuh) later received more verses from the Qu'ran which was followed by a period when there was no revelation coming to him. The Prophet (pbuh) was concerned that he might have said or done something to incur this silence from Allah. Khadija re-assured him that Muhammad (pbuh) was a good person and he did not do anything wrong.
After a while, the messages returned to the Prophet (pbuh) and he continued to practice Islam. Muhammad (pbuh) began to tell some of his close companions about what had happened and asked them to keep it a secret.
After Khadijah, the people that believed in the prophet (pbuh) were Ali and Zayd. Ali was only ten years old and Zayd was a slave who had no influence in the Makkan Society. After them Abu Bakr, from the tribe of Taym, accepted Islam. He was a well-mannered and liked person who was well respected by the Arabs of Makkah. He was also a successful merchant. He used to tell some of his close friends whom accepted Islam at his hands.
The early converts were people who knew the prophet (pbuh) very well. They knew his character and his good qualities. They also knew that he had always been truthful and did not doubt his word when he told them that revelation had come to him. They knew that he had never composed any words or poems in the past and the verses of the Qu’ran were a true master piece.
Another well known story, of conversion was that Uthman son of Affan, was sleeping in the desert whilst on a trade journey, when he heard a loud voice saying, “Sleepers, awake, Ahmad has come forth in Makkah.” Uthman then hurried to Makkah where he met Talha on the way. Talha said that when he was in Syria, he met a monk, who had asked if Ahmad had come to the people of the sanctuary. When Talha quizzed the monk about Ahmad, the monk replied that Ahmad was the son of Abdullah the son of Abdul Muttalib.
Both Uthman and Talha went to Abu Bakr, who was known to be close to the Prophet (pbuh). They both related their stories. Abu Bakr then took them to the Prophet (pbuh) and both young men accepted Islam. These were some of the earliest converts to Islam.
One of these remarkable people who accepted Islam in the earliest stages was a young boy by the name of Ibn Masood. He attended sheep on the outskirts of Makkah when he was a young lad. One day, the prophet (pbuh) and Abu Bakr were passing by and asked the boy for some milk. Ibn masood refused them milk saying that they were not his sheep. The prophet (pbuh) asked him to bring him a young sheep that did not bear any milk. When Ibn Masood brought the sheep over, the prophet (pbuh) did a prayer and the udder was full of milk. The prophet (pbuh) and Abu Bakr drank the milk and afterwards the udder dried up. A few days later Ibn Masood accepted Islam and became one of the leading authorities in Islam with the regards to the Qu'ran.
The angel Jibrael appeared to Muhammad (pbuh) one day and taught him about Wudhu and salah. The angel cast his heel on the ground causing a spring to start gushing from the ground. The angel then showed the prophet (pbuh) how to wash up for prayers (wudhu) and also showed Muhammad (pbuh) how to pray to Allah. It showed the prophet (pbuh) how to perform the Salah with all the different positions of bowing and sitting. The angel also told him what to say in the Salah. From then on the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) began to perform Salah.
Everything was going well for the prophet (pbuh). There were a few Muslim coverts now but they were his close friends and family. What would happen when Allah asked him to deliver the message to the Makkans? The Makkans were war-like and stubborn, how would they react? Would they get angry and try to kill the Muhammad (pbuh) or would they accept Islam? What trials and tribulations would the Muslims face?
Muhammad's Early Job, Marriage to Khadijah
MUHAMMAD'S EARLY JOB:
Muhammad (Peace be upon him), had no particular job at his early youth, but it was reported that he worked as a shepherd for Bani Sa‘d and in Makkah. At the age of 25, he went to Syria as a merchant for Khadijah (May Allah be pleased with her) Ibn Ishaq reported that Khadijah, daughter of Khwailid was a business-woman of great honour and fortune. She used to employ men to do her business for a certain percentage of the profits. Quraish people were mostly tradespeople, so when Khadijah was informed of Muhammad (Peace be upon him), his truthful words, great honesty and kind manners, she sent for him. She offered him money to go to Syria and do her business, and she would give him a higher rate than the others. She would also send her hireling, Maisarah, with him. He agreed and went with her servant to Syria for trade.
HIS MARRIEAGE TO KHADIJAH:
When he returned to Makkah, Khadijah noticed, in her money, more profits and blessings than she used to. Her hireling also told her of Muhammad’s good manners, honesty, deep thought, sincerity and faith. She realized that she homed at her target. Many prominent men had asked for her hand in marriage but she always spurned their advances. She disclosed her wish to her friend Nafisa, daughter of Maniya, who immediately went to Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and broke the good news to him. He agreed and requested his uncles to go to Khadijah’s uncle and talk on this issue. Subsequently, they were married. The marriage contract was witnessed by Bani Hashim and the heads of Mudar. This took place after the Prophet’s return from Syria. He gave her twenty camels as dowry. She was, then, forty years old and was considered as the best woman of her folk in lineage, fortune and wisdom. She was the first woman whom the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) married. He did not get married to any other until she had died.
Khadijah bore all his children, except Ibrahim: Al-Qasim, Zainab, Ruqaiyah, Umm Kulthum, Fatimah and ‘Abdullah who was called Taiyib and Tahir. All his sons died in their childhood and all the daughters except Fatimah died during his lifetime. Fatimah died six months after his death. All his daughters witnessed Islam, embraced it, and emigrated to Madinah.
Muhammad (Peace be upon him), had no particular job at his early youth, but it was reported that he worked as a shepherd for Bani Sa‘d and in Makkah. At the age of 25, he went to Syria as a merchant for Khadijah (May Allah be pleased with her) Ibn Ishaq reported that Khadijah, daughter of Khwailid was a business-woman of great honour and fortune. She used to employ men to do her business for a certain percentage of the profits. Quraish people were mostly tradespeople, so when Khadijah was informed of Muhammad (Peace be upon him), his truthful words, great honesty and kind manners, she sent for him. She offered him money to go to Syria and do her business, and she would give him a higher rate than the others. She would also send her hireling, Maisarah, with him. He agreed and went with her servant to Syria for trade.
HIS MARRIEAGE TO KHADIJAH:
When he returned to Makkah, Khadijah noticed, in her money, more profits and blessings than she used to. Her hireling also told her of Muhammad’s good manners, honesty, deep thought, sincerity and faith. She realized that she homed at her target. Many prominent men had asked for her hand in marriage but she always spurned their advances. She disclosed her wish to her friend Nafisa, daughter of Maniya, who immediately went to Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and broke the good news to him. He agreed and requested his uncles to go to Khadijah’s uncle and talk on this issue. Subsequently, they were married. The marriage contract was witnessed by Bani Hashim and the heads of Mudar. This took place after the Prophet’s return from Syria. He gave her twenty camels as dowry. She was, then, forty years old and was considered as the best woman of her folk in lineage, fortune and wisdom. She was the first woman whom the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) married. He did not get married to any other until she had died.
Khadijah bore all his children, except Ibrahim: Al-Qasim, Zainab, Ruqaiyah, Umm Kulthum, Fatimah and ‘Abdullah who was called Taiyib and Tahir. All his sons died in their childhood and all the daughters except Fatimah died during his lifetime. Fatimah died six months after his death. All his daughters witnessed Islam, embraced it, and emigrated to Madinah.
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