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THE
AWAITED PROPHET
Owing
to the numerous predictions of his coming, the Prophet Muhammad,
upon him be peace and blessings, was awaited by all of
humankind. In that dark era of human history, the whole of
creation was waiting for one who would destroy the order of
unbelief and breathe new life into the world. Judaism and
Christianity, being God-revealed religions in origin, had no
more to offer mankind. Everyone was expecting him, especially
those who had studied the old books without prejudice. Among
them was Bahira, whose story we mentioned in the previous
chapter. In Makka itself, there were many in expectation of him.
Zayd ibn ‘Amr, the uncle of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, was one of
the foremost among them. He had rejected the worship of idols,
was leading a pure life and used to address people in this way:
There
is no good in the idols you worship. I know of a religion
which will soon be taught and spread. It will be
proclaimed no later than a few years from now, but I do
not know whether I will live long enough to witness it.
The
same Zayd, according to ‘Amr ibn Rabi‘a, gave a detailed
description of the expected Prophet:
I
am expecting a Prophet, who is about to come. He will
appear among the descendants of Ishmael and the grandsons
of ‘Abd al-Muttalib. He is of middle height, neither too
tall nor too short. His hair is neither curly nor
straight. His name is Ahmad. His birthplace is Makka.
However, his people will force him to leave Makka, and he
will emigrate to Yathrib (Madina), where his religion will
spread. I have travelled from place to place in quest of
the religion of Abraham. However, all the Jewish and
Christian scholars I spoke to advised me to wait for him.
He is the Last Prophet; no Prophet will come after him. I
may not live long enough to see him, but I have believed
in him.
At
the end of his introduction of the Last Prophet, upon him be
peace and blessings, Zayd made this request to ‘Amr ibn Rabi‘a:
‘If you live long enough to see him, say my greetings to him.’
Years
passed before the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and
blessings, declared his Prophethood and ‘Amr ibn Rabi‘a,
after having declared his faith to the Prophet, explained what
Zayd had told him, and conveyed his greetings to him. Muhammad,
upon him be peace and blessings, returned his greetings and
added: I saw Zayd in Paradise, trailing his robes.1
Among
the people who lived the inward anguish of seeking the truth was
Waraqa ibn Nawfal. He was a Christian scholar and a paternal
cousin of Khadija, wife of Muhammad, upon him be peace. When the
first Revelation came to the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace
and blessings, Khadija went to Waraqa and told him what had
happened. Waraqa replied: ‘Muhammad is a truthful man. What he
saw is that which occurs at the beginning of Prophethood. The
being who came to him is Gabriel, who also came to Moses and
Jesus. Muhammad will be a Prophet. If I live long enough to
witness his declaration of Prophethood, certainly I will believe
in him and support him.’2
One
of those seeking the Last Prophet was ‘Adbullah ibn Salam. The
Jews had great confidence in this scholar, whom they called ‘the
lord, son of a lord’. Such was his greatness that he could
match even the greatest companions like Abu Bakr and ‘Umar,
and God would consider his testimony to the Qur’an as equal to
the testimony of a people in the verse:
Say:
‘Have you considered? If it be from God, and you
unbelieve in it, and a witness from among the Children of
Israel bears witness to its like, and believes, and you
wax proud, God guides not the people of the evildoers.’
(al-Ahqaf, 46.10)
This
great Companion describes how he found him:
When
God’s Messenger emigrated to Madina, I went to see him,
as did everyone else. He was sitting amidst a group of
people when I went in, and saying: Give food to others and
offer them a greeting! His speech was so sweet and his
face so charming that I said to myself: ‘I swear by God
that one with such a face cannot lie’. Without delay I
declared my belief in him.3
Those
who sincerely sought him, found him; and whoever seeks him
sincerely will certainly find him. But those who have not been
able to give up obstinacy and escape the temptations of the
evil-commanding self, have drowned in unbelief and hypocrisy.
Mughira ibn Shu’ba narrates:
One
day I was with Abu Jahl in Makka. God’s Messenger came
near us and invited us to accept Islam. Abu Jahl rebuked
him, saying: ‘If you are making this invitation so that
we should testify before God in the other world that you
performed your mission of Prophethood, we will do it.
Leave us then, O man, to ourselves!’
When
God’s Messenger left us, I asked Abu Jahl whether he did
not truly admit the Prophethood of Muhammad. ‘I admit
it,’ replied Abu Jahl and then added: ‘I know that he
is truly a Prophet. Nevertheless, we have so far competed
with the Hashimites in everything. They have been boasting
of providing food and water to the pilgrims. Now, if they
begin to boast of having a Prophet, I will not be able to
endure it at all.’4
This
is typical of the thoughts cherished by the Abu Jahls of the
past and the present. Free-thinking persons who are not
prejudiced and whose will-power is not paralyzed cannot help but
believe in Islam and God’s Messenger. In this respect, God
says to His holy Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings:
We
know well that their talk grieves you; in truth they deny not
you, but it is the signs of God that the evildoers condemn. (al-An‘am,
6.33)
Jews
and Christians of that time recognized God’s Messenger as they
recognized their sons
All
the Jews and Christians of that time recognized God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings. As stated in the Qur’an,
They recognize him as they recognize their sons (al-Baqara,
2.146). After his conversion, ‘Umar asked ‘Adbullah ibn
Salam if he had recognized God’s Messenger. ‘I recognized
him’, Ibn Salam answered and added, ‘I may doubt my children
- my wife might have deceived me; but I have no doubt about God’s
Messenger being the Last Prophet.’5
Especially
the Jews in Madina were awaiting the coming of a Prophet and
expected that he would appear in Madina. Whenever a conflict
appeared between them and the Arab people of Madina - the Aws
and Hajrac tribes - they threatened them that they would destroy
them when the Prophet appeared. However, although they
recognized the Prophet Muhammad as they recognized their sons,
they rejected him only because he did not belong to their tribe:
When
there comes to them a Book from the presence of God,
confirming that with them - though before that they were
expecting a triumph over those who unbelieve - and when
there came to them what they recognized, they unbelieved
in him. The curse of God is on unbelievers. (2:89)
Most
of the Jews and Christians recognized him, most were envious of
him and, because of their prejudice and envy, were left deprived
of belief.
When
there came to them a Book from God confirming what was
with them - and they aforetime prayed for victory over the
unbelievers - when there came to them what they
recognized, they unbelieved in it; and the curse of God is
on the unbelievers. (al-Baqara, 2.89)
After
his conversion, ‘Adbullah ibn Salam said to God’s Messenger,
upon him be peace and blessings: ‘O Messenger of God, hide me
in a corner and then summon all the Jewish scholars in Madina to
ask about me and my father. Their assessment will certainly be
positive. Then let me come out to declare my conversion.’
God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, accepted this
suggestion. Ibn Salam hid in a corner and, when the Jewish
scholars gathered, God’s Messenger asked them what they
thought of Ibn Salam and his father. All of them answered
unanimously: ‘Ibn Salam and his father are among the noblest
and most learned of us.’ Upon this, God’s Messenger asked
again: ‘How will you react if he affirms me?’ They
responded: ‘It is impossible that he will affirm you!’ Ibn
Salam came out at this point and declared his conversion,
whereupon the Jewish scholars immediately changed their attitude
and retorted: ‘Ibn Salam is the most wicked among us and the
son of the most wicked.’6
The
conversion of Salman al-Farisi
The
Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, was one who
had been sought for centuries. Salman al-Farisi was one of those
seekers. Originally he was a Magian, a fire worshipper. However,
he was inwardly burning to find the eternal truth, and left
home. Before embracing Islam, he had worked for several
Christian monks, the last of whom advised Salman on his
deathbed:
Son,
there is nobody left to whom I can commend you. But according to
what we read in our books, the Last Prophet is about to appear.
He will come with the pure creed of Abraham and will appear in
the place to which Abraham migrated. Nevertheless, he will
emigrate to another place and settle there. There are explicit
signs of his Prophethood. For example, he will not eat of
charity, but will accept gifts, and the seal of Prophethood will
be between his two shoulders.
Now,
let us leave it to Salman himself to narrate the rest of his
story:
I
joined a caravan heading for the place that the late monk
had mentioned. When we arrived at Wadi al-Qura’, they
sold me to a Jew as a slave. When I saw gardens of date
palms, I thought that that place would be where the
Prophet would emigrate. While I was working there, another
Jew from Banu Qurayza bought me and took me to Madina. I
began working in the Jew’s date palm garden. There was
no news yet of God’s Messenger, upon him be peace and
blessings. However, one day I happened to be harvesting
dates in a tree when a cousin of my Jewish owner came up
hurriedly. He said to the Jew in anger: ‘Damn it all!
All the people are flocking to Quba. A man from Makka, who
claims Prophethood, has come, and they imagine him to be a
real Prophet.’
I
began to tremble with excitement. I climbed down from the
tree and asked the man: ‘What are you talking about?’
My owner saw my excitement and slapped me on the face with
the back of his hand, saying: ‘It does not concern you,
mind your own business!’
On
the same day, as the sun set, I went to him in Quba and
presented to him as alms the food that I had brought with
me. God’s Messenger did not himself touch it, but said
to those around him, ‘Help yourself to this’. ‘This
is the first sign,’ I told myself.
On
another occasion, I presented something, but this time as
a gift. He accepted it and ate it with his Companions. ‘This
is the second sign,’ I told myself.
Once,
after one of his Companions passed away, I attended the
funeral, and I came close to God’s Messenger in the
cemetery. After greeting him, I stood behind him in the
hope of seeing the seal of Prophethood. His shoulders were
bare. The seal was just as the monk had described it. I
couldn’t help kissing it in tears and I told him my
story. He was very pleased and wanted also his Companions
to hear my story.7
They
called Muhammad al-Amin (the Trustworthy)
How
could they dare to accuse him of telling lies? He was known by
everybody as a truthful one. The testimony of one of his
bitterest enemies, ‘Utba ibn Abi Rabi’a, is enough to prove
that even his enemies admitted his truthfulness.
The
leaders of the Quraysh assembled once more to discuss how to
prevent the spread of Islam and arrived at the decision of
sending ‘Utba to God’s Messenger. ‘Utba went to him in the
hope of persuading him to stop preaching Islam and asked: ‘O
Muhammad, are you, or was your father, better?’
God’s
Messenger did not answer, probably because silence is the best
answer to an idiot question. ‘Utba continued: ‘If your
father was better than you, he cannot have been following the
religion you are now preaching. If, by contrast, you are better
than your father, then I am ready to listen to what you will
say.’
God’s
Messenger asked ‘Utba: ‘Is that all you intend to say?’
‘Utba said, ‘Yes’, and stopped. Then, God’s Messenger
knelt and began reciting from the beginning of the Chapter
called al-Fussilat (Distinguished). By the time he
reached the thirteenth verse, But if they turn away, then say
‘I warn you of a thunderbolt [as fell in times past upon the
tribes] of ‘Ad and Thamud, ‘Utba was trembling as if caught
by fever. He had to put his hand on the lips of God’s
Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, and said: ‘Please
stop, for the sake of the God in whom you believe!’
‘Utba
returned home in bewilderment. The leaders of the Quraysh had
been waiting for him anxiously. Fearing that ‘Utba might have
accepted Islam, Abu Jahl knocked at his door and, when admitted,
angered ‘Utba by saying:
-
I heard that Muhammad treated you very generously and
banqueted you, and in return you believed in him. This is
what the people are gossiping about.
‘Utba
was angered and responded to Abu Jahl, saying: ‘You know well
that I do not need his banqueting. I am the richest among you.
But the words of Muhammad shook me. They were not poetry, nor
did they resemble the words of a soothsayer. I do not know how I
should respond. He is a truthful person. While I was listening
to his recitation, I feared that what happened to ‘Ad and
Thamud might befall us.8
They
had been long expecting the Prophet and knew his character very
well. They had never heard him tell a lie and accordingly called
him ‘the Trustworthy One’. They were charmed by his
personality and the eloquence of the Qur’an. However, they
could not overcome their pride and arrogance, their feelings of
envy and rivalry, that they might believe in him, nor were they
able to change their habits and lifestyle to submit themselves
to his Message. Is the same not true of all who, although they
have known the truth, have since persisted in unbelief all over
the world?
1.
I. Kathir, al-Bidaya, 2.223.
2. Bukhari, Bad’u l-Wahy, 3.
3. I. Hanbal, 5.451.
4. Kanz al-‘Ummal, 14.39-40; I. Kathir, 3.83.
5. Mukhtasar Tafsir Ibn al-Kathir, 1.140.
6. Bukhari, al-Anbiya’, Bab Khalq Adam, 2.
7. Ibn Hisham, Sira, 1.228-34.
8. I. Kathir, 3.80-81; I. Hisham, 1.313.
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