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8. Prophets Nabī and Rasūl The next article of faith in Islam is belief in the prophets. The Arabic word for prophet is nabī, which is derived from naba’, meaning ‘an announcement of great utility imparting knowledge of a thing’, and the word naba’ is applied only to such information as is free from any liability to untruth.1 A nabī is the man who gives information about God.2 This has been further explained as “the man to whom God gives information concerning His Unity and to whom He reveals secrets of the future and imparts the knowledge that he is His prophet”.3 A nabī is also called a rasūl, which means ‘a messenger’ (lit., ‘one sent’). The two words nabī and rasūl are used interchangeably in the Holy Quran, the same person being sometimes called nabī and sometimes rasūl; while occasionally both names are combined. The reason seems to be that the prophet has two capacities: he receives information from God, and he imparts the message to mankind. He is called a nabī in his first, and a rasūl in his second capacity, but there is one difference. The word rasūl has a wider significance, being applicable to every messenger in a literal sense4 and the angels are called Divine “messengers” (rusul, plural of rasūl5 because they are also bearers of Divine messages to carry out the Divine will. Faith in Divine messengers It has already been stated that a faith in Divine revelation is one of the essentials of Islam, and since revelation must be communicated through a man, faith in the messenger is a natural sequence, and is mentioned in the Quran along with faith in the revealed books.6 In fact, there is a deeper significance underlying faith in the prophets, and hence the greater stress is laid upon this article of faith. The prophet is not only the bearer of the Divine message but he also shows how that message is to be interpreted in practical life; and therefore he is the model to be followed. It is the prophet’s example that inspires a living faith in the hearts of his followers and brings about a real transformation in their lives. That is why the Holy Quran lays special stress on the fact that the prophet must be a human being: “Their messengers said to them: We are nothing but mortals like yourselves…” — 111 and the Holy Prophet Muhammad is told to say to people: “I am only a mortal like you.” — 1110, 46 The reformation of human beings can only be accomplished through human prophets. God incarnate would serve no purpose in the reformation of man, even if it were possible that He should come in the flesh, considering that man has to face temptations at every step, but there is no temptation for God. Universality of the institution of prophethood Just as God has granted His gifts of physical sustenance to all alike, so His spiritual gift of prophethood, through which a spiritual life is awakened in man, is also a free gift to all the nations of the world. It is not among the Israelites alone that prophets were raised as would appear from the Bible. According to the Holy Quran, there is not one nation in the world in which a prophet has not appeared: “There is not a people but a warner has gone among them.” — 324 “For every nation there is a messenger.” — 147 The Holy Prophet was further told that there had been prophets besides those mentioned in the Quran: “And We sent messengers We have mentioned to you before, and messengers We have not mentioned to you.” — 164 It is, in fact, stated in a hadith that there have been 124,000 prophets, while the Quran contains only about twenty-five names, among them being several non-Biblical prophets, Hud and Salih in Arabia, Luqman in Ethiopia, a contemporary of Moses (generally known as Khidr) in Sudan, and Dhu-l-Qarnain (Darius I, who was also a king) in Persia; all of which is quite in accordance with the theory of the universality of prophethood. And as the Holy Book has plainly said that prophets have appeared in all nations and that it has not named all of them, which in fact was unnecessary, a Muslim may accept the great luminaries who are accepted by other nations as having brought light to them, as the prophets of those nations. A Muslim must believe in all the prophets The Quran, however, not only establishes the theory that prophets have appeared in all nations; it goes further and renders it necessary that a Muslim should believe in all those prophets. In the very beginning we are told that a Muslim must: “believe in what has been revealed to you [O Prophet] and what was revealed before you” — 4 Further on, Muslims are made to declare: “We believe in Allah and in what has been revealed to us and in what was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and in what was given to Moses and Jesus, and in what was given to the prophets from their Lord; we do not make any distinction between any of them and to Him we submit.” — 136 Here the word prophets clearly refers to the prophets of other nations. And again, the Holy Quran speaks of Muslims as believing in all the prophets of God and not in Prophet Muhammad alone: “…but righteous is the one who believes in Allah and the Last Day and the angels and the Book and the prophets.” — 177 “The Messenger believes in what has been revealed to him from his Lord, and so do the believers; they all believe in Allah and His angels and His Books and His messengers; [they say] we make no distinction between any of His messengers.” — 285 In fact, to believe in some prophets and reject others is condemned as unbelief (kufr): “Those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers, and desire to make a distinction between Allah and His messengers and say: We believe in some and disbelieve in others, and desire to take a course in between — these are truly disbelievers.” — 15151 A belief in all the prophets of the world is thus an essential principle of the religion of Islam, and though the faith of Islam is summed up in two brief sentences, There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His Messenger, yet the one who confesses belief in Prophet Muhammad, in so doing, accepts all the prophets of the world, whether their names are mentioned in the Quran or not. Islam claims a universality to which no other religion can aspire, and lays the foundation of a brotherhood as vast as humanity itself. The Divine scheme whereby prophets were raised for the regeneration of the world, as disclosed in the Holy Quran, may be briefly summed up as follows. Prophets appeared in every nation but their message was limited to that particular nation and in some cases to one or a few generations. All these prophets were, so to speak, national prophets, and their work was limited to the moral upliftment and spiritual regeneration of one nation only. But while national growth was of necessity the first step, when each nation lived almost an exclusive life and the means of communication were wanting, the grand aim which the Divine scheme had in view was the upliftment and unification of the whole human race. Humanity could not remain forever divided into water-tight compartments of nationality, formed on the basis of blood or geographical limitations. In fact these divisions had, through jealousy, become the means of discord and hatred among different nations, each looking upon itself as the only chosen nation, and despising the rest. Such views tended to extinguish any faint glimmerings of aspirations for the unity of the human race. The final step, therefore, in the institution of prophethood was the coming of one prophet for all the nations, so that the consciousness of being one whole might be brought to the human race. The day of the national prophet was ended; it had served the purpose for which it was meant, and the day of the world-prophet dawned upon humanity in the person of the Holy Prophet Muhammad. The world-prophet The idea of the world-prophet is not based on a solitary passage occurring in the Holy Quran, as to the extent of the mission of this or that prophet; but is a fully developed Divine scheme. When mentioning the earlier prophets the Quran says that Noah was sent “to his people”, and so were Hud, Salih and Shuaib — everyone of them was sent to his people.7 It speaks of Moses as being commanded to “bring forth your people from darkness into light” (15), it speaks of Jesus as “a messenger to the children of Israel” (49) but in speaking of Holy Prophet Muhammad it says in unequivocal words: “We have not sent you but as a bearer of good news and as a warner to all mankind…” — 328 The Arabic words for “all mankind” are kāffat-an li-l-nās, where even al-nās carries the idea of all people, and the addition of kāffah is meant to emphasize further that not a single nation was excluded from the heavenly ministration of the Prophet Muhammad. On another occasion also, the universality of the Holy Prophet’s mission is thus stressed: “Say: O mankind, surely I am the Messenger of Allah to you all,8 of Him Whose is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth.” — 158 One thing is sure, that no other prophet is spoken of either in the Quran or in any other scripture as having been sent to the whole of humanity or to all people or all nations;9 nor is Prophet Muhammad ever spoken of in the Quran as having been sent to his people only. The Quran itself is repeatedly termed “a Reminder for the nations”.10 And the Holy Prophet is called not only “a warner to all the nations” (21) but a mercy to all of them as well: “And We have not sent you but as a mercy to the nations.” — 2107 The idea that a world-prophet must follow the national prophets is further developed in the Holy Quran. It is in a Madinah revelation that the whole proposition, the appearance of a world-prophet, the distinguishing feature of his religion and the necessity for believing in him is laid down in clear words. The complete passage is as follows: “And when Allah made a covenant through the prophets: Certainly what I have given you of Book and wisdom — then a Messenger comes to you verifying what is [already] with you, you shall believe in him, and you shall aid him. He said: Do you affirm and accept My compact in this matter? They said: We do affirm. He said: Then bear witness, and I too am a bearer of witness with you. Whoever then turns back after this, these are the transgressors. Do they then seek other than Allah’s religion? And to Him submits whoever is in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly, and to Him they will be returned. Say: We believe in Allah and in what is revealed to us, and in what was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and in what was given to Moses and Jesus and to the prophets from their Lord; we make no distinction between any of them, and to Him we submit. And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will not be accepted from him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers.” — 81–85 That a world-prophet is spoken of here is evident from the fact that his acceptance — “you shall believe in him and you shall aid him” —is made obligatory on the followers of all the prophets that had passed away before him. As prophets had been sent, according to the teachings of the Holy Quran, to every nation, the conclusion is obvious that the followers of every prophet are required to believe in this, the final Prophet. The distinguishing feature of the world-prophet as mentioned here is that he will “verify what is with you,” in other words, that he will bear testimony to the truth of all the prophets of the world. One may turn the pages of all the sacred books and search the sacred history of every nation, and it would be found that there was but One Prophet who verified the scriptures of all religions and bore testimony to the truth of the prophets of every nation. In fact, no one could aspire to the dignity of world-prophet who did not treat the whole humanity as one; and Muhammad is the only man who did so by declaring that prophets of God had appeared in every nation and that everyone who believed in him must also believe in all the prophets of the world. Hence it is that the verse requiring a belief in all the prophets of God — a belief in Abraham, in Ishmael, in Isaac, in Jacob, in Moses, in Jesus, and finally and comprehensively in the prophets — which occurs several times in the Quran, is repeated here again, and followed by the clear statement that Islam, or belief in all the prophets of God, is the only religion with God, and whosoever desires a religion other than Islam — a belief only in one prophet while rejecting all others — it shall not be accepted from him, because belief in one prophet is, after all, only acceptance of partial truth, and tantamount to the rejection of the whole truth, i.e., that there have been prophets in every nation. Muhammad (peace be on him), therefore, does not only claim to have been sent to the whole world, to be a warner to all peoples and a mercy to all nations, but lays the foundations of a world-religion by making a belief in the prophet of every nation the basic principle of his faith. It is the only principle on which the whole of humanity can agree, the only basis of equal treatment for all nations. The idea of a world-prophet is not a stray idea met with in the Quran; it is not based simply on one or two passages, stating that he had been raised for the regeneration of all nations; but the idea is here developed at length, and all the principles which can form the basis of a world-religion are fully enunciated. The whole of humanity is declared to be one nation;11 God is said to be the Rabb (lit., ‘the Nourisher unto perfection’) of all nations;12 prophets are declared to have been raised in all the nations for their uplift;13 all prejudices of colour, race and language are demolished;14 and a vast brotherhood, extending over all the world, has been established, every member of which is bound to accept the prophets of all nations, and to treat all nations equally. Thus not only is the Prophet Muhammad a world-prophet who takes the place of the national prophets but he has also established a world-religion wherein the idea of nationality is superseded by the consciousness of the unity of the human race. All prophets are one community All prophets, being from God, are as it were brethren. This doctrine of the brotherhood of all prophets is not only taught in the interdiction against making distinctions between the prophets of God, as stated above, but is laid down in the plainest words in both the Holy Quran and Hadith. Thus, after speaking of various prophets in the chapter Prophets, we are told: “Surely this your community is a single community, and I am your Lord, so serve Me.” — 292 And again: “O messengers, eat of the good things and do good. Surely I am Knower of what you do. And surely this your community is one community, and I am your Lord, so keep your duty to Me.” — 251–52 Every prophet may have some special characteristic of his own, but, generally, what is said of one in the Quran, of his high morals or sublime character or noble teachings or trust in God, is true of all. Thus of Abraham we are told that he was “a truthful man” (141); of Moses that he was “one purified” (151); of Noah, Hud, Salih, and Lot that they were “faithful” (2107, 125, 143, 162); of Jesus that he was “worthy of regard in this world and the Hereafter, and one of those who are drawn near to Allah” (45); of John the Baptist that he was “honourable and chaste” (39). It is the gravest mistake to think that the high qualities attributed to one prophet may be wanting in others. The prophets are all one community: they were all raised for one purpose, the teachings of all were essentially the same, they were all truthful, all faithful, all worthy of regard, all were made near to God, all were pure, all were honourable and chaste. The prophets are raised for the uplift of humanity and for freeing people from the bondage of sin. It has been shown in the last chapter that Divine revelation was needed to enable man to subdue the devil, who would, otherwise, be a great hindrance in his moral and spiritual progress. Man was commanded to live in a spiritual paradise, but since he was unable to withstand the temptations of the devil, the Divine revelation came to his aid; and a rule for all time was laid down for the guidance of all people: “Surely a guidance from Me will come to you, then whoever follows My guidance, no fear shall come upon them, nor shall they grieve.” — 38 The negation of fear refers to the fear of the devil’s temptation, and as a remedy against this, Divine revelation was first granted to mankind. Again, every prophet brings the message of the Unity of God, and the significance underlying this message has already been shown to be the all-round advancement of man, physical as well as spiritual and moral (see page here). And every prophet is called a giver of good news and a warner;15 the good news relating to man’s advancement and elevation, the warning to the retarding of or interference with his progress. The four works entrusted to the Prophet, as mentioned several times in the Quran, are stated thus: “We have sent among you a Messenger from among you, who recites to you Our messages and purifies you and teaches you the Book and the Wisdom…” — 151, etc. The Arabic word for “purifies” is yuzakkī which is derived from zakā, originally meaning the progress attained by Divine blessing,16 i.e., by the development of the faculties placed by God within man, and relates to the affairs of this world as well as the Hereafter, that is to say, to man’s physical as well as spiritual advancement. The Holy Prophet’s message of purification, therefore, signifies not only purification from sin but also man’s setting forth on the road to physical and moral advancement. All these references to the Holy Book show that the object of sending prophets was no other than the uplift of man, to enable him to subjugate his animal passions, to inspire him with nobler and higher sentiments, and to imbue him with Divine morals. The men who are commissioned for the high office of prophethood must themselves be free from the bondage of sin, and more than that, they must be the possessors of high morals if they are to fulfil the mission entrusted to them. The doctrine of the sinlessness of prophets has therefore always been an admitted principle among Muslims. The Holy Quran not only speaks of individual prophets in terms of the highest praise, but also lays down clearly in general terms that the prophets cannot go, either in word or in deed, against any commandment of God: “They are honoured servants; they do not speak before He speaks and according to His command they act.” — 2227 “And it is not for a prophet to act dishonestly.” — 161 These two verses set out in general words the principle of the sinlessness of prophets, while it has already been shown how each individual prophet has been spoken of in terms of the highest praise: one called “truthful”, another said to have been “purified” by God’s hand, yet another mentioned as “honourable and chaste”; and many of them, including Prophet Muhammad,17 are described as being amīn, which means one who is completely faithful to God. The Quran, therefore, leaves not the least doubt as to the sinlessness of the prophets. Certain words misunderstood There are, however, certain words which have been misunderstood by some critics, who have straightaway rushed to the erroneous conclusion that the Quran gives no support to the doctrine of the sinlessness of prophets. The most important of these words is istighfār which is generally taken as meaning asking for forgiveness of sins. It, however, carries a wide significance, being derived from the root ghafr which means ‘the covering of a thing with that which will protect it from dirt’.18 Therefore seeking of protection from sin is as much a meaning of istighfār as seeking of protection from the punishment of sin. When it is established that, according to the teachings of the Quran, the prophets are sinless, istighfār can, in their case, only be taken as meaning the seeking of protection from the sins to which man is liable, for it is through Divine protection alone that they can remain sinless. Hence the Holy Prophet is spoken of in a hadith as saying istighfār a hundred times a day; that is to say, he was every moment seeking the protection of God, and praying to Him, that he may not go against His will. Istighfār or the prayer for protection (ghafr) is in fact a prayer for Divine help in the advancement to higher and higher stages of spiritual perfection. Thus, even those who have been admitted into Paradise are described in the Quran as praying to God for His ghafr.19 Forgiveness, in the narrow sense of pardoning of sins, is meaningless here, because none can be admitted into Paradise unless his sins are pardoned. Ghafr or forgiveness, therefore, stands here for Divine help in the spiritual advancement of man, which will continue even after death. Another misunderstood word is dhanb which is generally translated as meaning sin; but dhanb also is a word with a very wide significance. It is as much applicable to sins as to inadvertent shortcomings. A righteous man, without in the least departing from the course of righteousness, would always feel that he had fallen short in doing some good to humanity or in doing his duty to God; and thus, even though he is engaged in doing some good, he feels that there is something lacking in him. Between the shortcoming of such a one and that of the sinner is a world of difference. The sinner’s shortcoming or dhanb is that he has set himself against the will of God deliberately and done evil, while the righteous man’s shortcoming lies in the fact that he is not satisfied that he has done all the good that it was in his power to do. Christian criticism — individual cases of prophets Christian criticism of Islam has been particularly directed against the doctrine of the sinlessness of the prophets, and this is due to the Christian doctrine of Atonement which falls ipso facto the moment anyone else is regarded as sharing with Jesus Christ the honour of sinlessness. This criticism is, however, based, not on any principle enunciated in the Holy Quran, but on certain cases of individual prophets. Most of this misdirected criticism is due to a wrong conception of the words explained above. For example, it is said that Noah was a sinner because he prayed to God, saying: “…unless You forgive me and have mercy on me, I shall be among the losers” (147). The word used for ‘forgiving’ is from ghafr, which, as shown above, also means the granting of protection and the prayer is not a confession of sin on the part of Noah. Similarly, Abraham is a sinner according to the critics because he is spoken of as expressing the hope that God “will forgive me my mistake on the Day of Judgment” (282). It is one thing to commit a mistake and quite a different thing to go against the Divine commandments, and no sensible person would consider these words to be a confession of sin. Moses is also said to have committed a sin by killing a Copt, but the Holy Quran makes it clear that he simply used his fist to ward off an attack against an Israelite who was being ill-treated (215), and thus death was only accidental. Concerning Adam, it is undoubtedly said that “Adam disobeyed his Lord” (2121), but even here there is no commission of sin, for as a preliminary to that incident, it is clearly stated: “And certainly We gave a commandment to Adam before, but he forgot; and We found in him no resolve [to disobey]” (2115). There was no intention on the part of Adam to disobey the Divine commandment; it was simply forgetfulness that brought about the disobedience. In 36 the word used, instead of disobedience, is a derivation of zalla which means a slip or mistake. The Holy Prophet Muhammad is said by these critics of Islam to be a sinner because he is commanded to seek Divine protection (istighfār) for his dhanb.20 Now to seek protection against sin does not mean that sin has been committed — he who seeks Divine protection rather guards himself against the commission of sin; and, moreover, the word used here is dhanb which means any human shortcoming. The following verses about the Holy Prophet may also be considered: “Surely We have granted you a clear victory, that Allah may cover for you your dhanb in the past and those to come…” — 42 There is no imputation of sin here in any case, but only of human shortcomings, for, as has been already shown, dhanb carries that wider significance. But as a matter of fact, “your dhanb” here means the dhanb attributed to you, that is to say, “alleged shortcomings”.21 The “victory” spoken of here was the Hudaibiyah truce. Before that, during a prolonged state of hostilities between the Muslims and their opponents, the latter had drawn a dark picture of the Holy Prophet as their enemy. The truce put a stop to hostilities, and with peace being established in the country, non-Muslims freely mixed with Muslims, and the good points of Islam together with the high morality of the Prophet made their impression. Misunderstandings were removed, and this is how that “victory” became a means of covering (ghafr) the shortcomings alleged against the Holy Prophet in the past. The reference in “those to come” is to the later fault-finding of the critics of Islam, and means that evil things will be said about the Holy Prophet at a later date as well, and that all such misrepresentations and misunderstandings will, in their turn, be swept away. Conception of miracles in Islam The word employed in the Holy Quran for miracle is āyat, the primary meaning of which is ‘an apparent sign or mark by which a thing is known’.22 As used there, it generally carries one of two significations: an indication, evidence or proof, and a Divine message or communication. In the first sense, it includes the miracle in its meaning, and in the second, a verse of the Holy Quran. The adoption of the same word to indicate a Divine message and its proof is noteworthy. It shows that the Divine message itself is first and foremost proof of its own truth, and hence it is that the Holy Quran has always been looked upon by all Muslims as the greatest miracle of the Holy Prophet. And it is indeed the greatest miracle ever vouchsafed to a prophet because it stands in need of no other evidence whatever, but is itself a living proof of its own truth for all time. The conception of miracles, as given by the Holy Quran, is quite different from that in other religions and in popular thinking. Here the supreme object before the Prophet is to effect a moral and spiritual transformation; the means adopted are an appeal to the reasoning faculty, an appeal to the heart of man to convince him that the Divine message is meant for his own uplift, and lessons drawn from previous history showing how the acceptance of truth has always benefited man, and its rejection has worked to his own undoing. The miracle has its own place in the Divine scheme; something great and beyond human power and comprehension is wrought now and again to show that the source of the great Message of Truth is supernatural, Divine. Thus the Holy Quran makes it clear that the bringing about of a transformation is the real object for which prophets are raised, that this object is attained by several means, each of which, therefore, has but a secondary value, and that among these evidences of the truth of the Prophet, the miracle does not occupy the highest place. Thus it is that, while the Holy Quran is full of arguments, makes frequent appeals to human nature, and repeatedly refers to the histories of previous peoples, the mention of miracles in it is very rare. But still they are not denied: “And they swear their strongest oaths by Allah that if a sign comes to them they would certainly believe in it. Say: Signs are with Allah. And what should make you know that when they come they do not believe?” — 109 The words “signs are with Allah” clearly imply, as do those that follow, that extraordinary signs will be shown as an evidence of the Divine mission of the Prophet. Strange it is that there are critics of Islam who see in this verse a denial of signs, only because it is said that signs are with God. It is true that the Holy Quran does not represent Prophet Muhammad as a wonder-worker, as the Gospels represent Jesus Christ. Signs were shown, not when the Prophet so desired, or when his opponents demanded, but when it was the will of God; hence, whenever an extraordinary sign of the Prophet’s truth was demanded, the reply was that such a sign would come when God willed it. The miracles of Islam As already stated, the greatest miracle of Islam is the Holy Quran. Nor is this an after-thought on the part of Muslims, for the Holy Book itself claims to be a miracle and has challenged the world to produce its like: “If people and jinn should combine together to bring the like of this Quran, they could not bring the like of it, though they helped one another.” — 188 “Or, say they: He has forged it. Say: Then bring ten forged chapters like it, and call upon whom you can besides Allah, if you are truthful.” — 113 Or, say they: He has forged it? Say: Then bring a chapter like it and call upon whom you can besides Allah, if you are truthful.” — 138 “And if you are in doubt as to that which We have revealed to Our servant, then produce a chapter like it, and call on your helpers besides Allah, if you are truthful.” — 23 The proof of this claim lies in the result achieved — a miraculous transformation — which has been acknowledged alike by friends and critics of Islam. The Quran is a miracle because it brought about the greatest transformation that the world has ever witnessed — a transformation of the individual, of the family, of society, of the nation, of the country, an awakening material as well as moral, intellectual as well as spiritual. It produced an effect far greater than that of any other miracle recorded of any prophet; hence its claim to be the greatest of all miracles is incontestable and uncontested. Prophecy Of all miracles, the Holy Quran gives the first place to prophecy, and, in fact, prophecy does, in some respects, enjoy a distinction beyond that attributed to other miracles. Miracles generally are manifestations of the powers of God, and prophecy gives prominence to God’s infinite knowledge which comprehends the future as well as the past and present. But there is one great disadvantage attaching to all miracles which are merely manifestations of power. It is very difficult to secure reliable evidence for them under all circumstances. Certain people may have witnessed the performance of such a miracle and their evidence may satisfy their contemporaries, but, with the lapse of time, their testimony loses much of its value. Therefore a miracle stands in need of being proved up to the hilt before it may be used as evidence of a prophet’s claim, and in most cases it is very hard, if not impossible, to adduce any proof that the miracle ever actually took place. Another difficulty in the matter of miracles generally is to be found in the fact that, however wonderful a performance, it may be explained scientifically, and thus lose all value as a sign of the Divine mission of its worker. Such doubts, however, do not exist in the case of prophecy, which can stand the test of scientific investigation. Moreover, the evidence in such a case rests on a firmer basis altogether, and its fulfilment generally comes to pass after a long time. A prophecy which proceeds from a Divine source must, of course, disclose some event which is beyond the scope of human knowledge and which cannot possibly be discovered by human foresight. It must also be connected with some deep Divine purpose in relation to the elevation of humanity, for prophecies are not meant merely to satisfy human curiosity. Lastly, it must have behind it the force of conviction, so that it is not only uttered with the utmost certainty but even in circumstances which apparently conflict with what is disclosed in the prophecy. A prophecy that fulfils these three conditions is one of the greatest miracles, a miracle which by an appeal to reason shows that there is a God Who reveals deep secrets to man and with Whom man can hold communion. Prophecy of the triumph of Islam The prophecies mentioned in the Holy Quran and those uttered by the Holy Prophet, of which Hadith literature is full, cover so vast a ground and relate to a future so distant that they require separate treatment. But one example may be given in illustration of what has been said above. The Holy Quran gives prominence to the great prophecy of the triumph of Islam, and its earlier revealed chapters are full of such prophecies uttered in various forms. Now these chapters were revealed, and these prophecies announced, at a time when the Holy Prophet was quite alone and helpless, beset on all sides by enemies plotting to put an end to his life. The few adherents to his cause had been forced by cruel persecution to leave their homes and to take shelter in a foreign land. There was not the remotest prospect of Islam ever making any headway against the mighty forces of polytheism and idolatry, the mass of superstition and evil of every kind ranged against it. Previous attempts at the regeneration of Arabia, those of the Jewish nation which had settled down in various parts of Arabia, of the Christian missionaries who had the backing of the powerful Roman empire on the north and of Abyssinia in the south and west, the indigenous Arab attempt known as Hanifism, had all proved utter failures, and thus the fate of each previous attempt was only a symbol of despair for any fresh reform movement. Yet under these adverse circumstances, amidst nothing but despair on every side, we find prophecy after prophecy announced in the surest and most certain terms to the effect that the great forces of opposition would be brought to naught, that the enemies of Islam would be put to shame and perish, that Islam would become the religion of the whole of Arabia, that the rule of Islam would be established and battles be fought in which the Muslims would be victorious and the enemy brought low, that Islam would spread to the farthest corners of the earth and that it would ultimately be triumphant over the religions of the world. A few such prophecies from the Quran are quoted here.23 All this has been stated in the Holy Quran in plain words, and at a time when there was not the least prospect of Islam gaining ground, and all this was brought to fulfilment, against all expectations, in the lifetime of the Holy Prophet. No one who has the slightest acquaintance with the Quran and the history of Islam can have any hesitation in affirming these facts. The value of prophecy as a miracle of Islam is, however, much more extensive. There are great and wonderful prophecies in the Book, and more still in Hadith, extending into the far future, many of which have been fulfilled in our own age, and almost every generation of Muslims sees with its own eyes the fulfilment of one or more of these great prophecies, and needs not to turn the pages of history to find out what miracles were performed by the Holy Prophet in a previous age. Another feature of this miracle is that it has been granted even to the righteous followers of the Holy Prophet in every age. Thus it is not only the Prophet’s own prophecies that are witnessed in every age, for prophecy is also a heritage to his devout and faithful followers.24 In the Holy Quran, the Prophet Muhammad is spoken of as the last of the prophets: “Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but he is the Messenger of Allah and the Khātam al-nabiyyīn, and Allah is ever Knower of all things.” — 340 The word khātam means ‘a seal’ or ‘the last part’ of a thing. The words khātam al-nabiyyīn and khātim al-nabiyyīn mean the last of the prophets, for both the words khātam and khātim mean the last portion of anything.25 The best Arabic lexicologists are agreed that khātam al-qaum means the last of a people.26 The doctrine of the finality of prophethood in Muhammad (peace be upon him), therefore, rests on the clear words of the Holy Quran. Hadith is even clearer on this point. The meaning of khātam al-nabiyyīn was thus explained by the Holy Prophet himself: “My example and the example of the prophets before me is the example of a man who built a house and he made it very good and very beautiful with the exception of a stone in the corner, so people began to go round it and to wonder at it and to say, Why has not this stone been placed? He [the Prophet] said: I am this stone and I am khātam al-nabiyyīn.” 27 This hadith, in which the Holy Prophet speaks of himself as the corner-stone of prophethood and the last of the prophets, is related by Muslim and Tirmidhi as well, and also by Ahmad ibn Hanbal in his Musnad in more than ten places. Another report in which the Holy Prophet speaks of himself as the last of the prophets is contained in the following words: “The Israelites were led by prophets; whenever a prophet died, another came after him; surely there is no prophet after me, but there will be successors.” 28 This is also narrated by Muslim and Ahmad in several places. According to another hadith, the Holy Prophet is reported to have said to Ali, when on the occasion of the Tabuk expedition he left him in Madinah in his place: “Are you not pleased that you should stand to me in the same relation as Aaron stood to Moses except that there is no prophet after me.” 29 Similar reports in which the Holy Prophet has made it clear that no prophet would appear after him abound in other books of Hadith. A Prophet for all peoples and all ages The idea that prophethood came to a close in the person of the Holy Prophet Muhammad is not a stray idea. On the other hand, it is the natural conclusion of the universalization of the theory of revelation which is the basic principle of the religion of Islam. Revelation, according to the Holy Quran, is not the solitary experience of this or that nation but the spiritual experience of the whole of the human race. Allah is spoken of in the very opening verse as the Rabb of all the nations of the world, the Nourisher unto perfection, physically as well as spiritually, of the whole human race. Starting from that broad basis, the Holy Quran develops the theory that prophets were sent to every nation: “There is not a people but a warner has gone among them.” — 324 “And for every nation there is a messenger.” — 147 At the same time it is stated that every prophet was sent to a single nation and, therefore, though prophethood was in one sense a universal fact, it was more or less a national institution, the scope of the preaching of every prophet being limited to his own nation. The advent of the Holy Prophet Muhammad universalized the institution of prophethood in a real sense. The day of the national prophet was over, and one prophet was raised for the whole world, for all nations and for all ages: “Blessed is He Who sent down the Furqān30 upon His servant that he might be a warner to [all] the nations.” — 21 “Say: O mankind, surely I am the Messenger of Allah to you all, of Him Whose is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth.” — 158 “And We have not sent you but as a bearer of good news and as a warner to all mankind, but most people do not know.” — 328 Unification of human race based on finality of prophethood The world-prophet therefore took the place of the national prophets, and the grand idea of unifying the whole human race, and gathering it together under one banner, was thus brought to perfection. All geographical limitations were swept away as were all bars of colour and race, and the basis of the unity of the human race was laid upon the grand principle that the whole human race was one, and that all people, wherever they may be found, were a single nation.31 Such unity could not be accomplished unless the finality of prophethood was established, for if prophets continued to appear after the world-prophet, they would undoubtedly demand the allegiance of this or that section, and shatter the very foundations of the unity at which Islam aimed by giving a single prophet to the whole world. Significance underlying finality It may, however, be further added that by bringing prophethood to a close, Islam has not deprived the world of a blessing which was available to previous generations. The object of sending a prophet to a people was to make known the Divine will, and point out the ways by walking in which human beings could hold communion with God. That object was also brought to perfection through the great World-Prophet, whose message was so perfect that it met the requirements not only of all contemporary nations but of all future generations as well. This is plainly claimed by the Holy Quran, a claim not put forward by any other heavenly book or any other religion: “This day have I perfected for you your religion and completed My favour to you and chosen for you Islam as a religion.” — 3 The perfection of religion and the completion of the blessing of prophethood thus go hand in hand, and the blessing of prophethood being made complete in the person of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, it is a distortion of facts to say that, if no more prophets appeared, the Muslims would be without the blessing of prophethood, since they possess that blessing in its most complete form. Religion being made perfect, and prophethood being made complete, there remained no need for another religion after Islam or for another prophet after Prophet Muhammad. There is a prophecy in books of Hadith which states that the Messiah, “son of Mary”, would appear among the Muslims.32 This prophecy has given rise to a more or less general misconception that the Israelite prophet Jesus Christ would appear among the Muslims, a misconception due to not giving proper attention to the doctrine of finality of prophethood, for if there is no need for a prophet, as clearly set forth in the Holy Quran, neither a new nor an old prophet can appear. In fact, the appearance of an old prophet would be as much subversive of the doctrine of the finality of prophethood, and as derogatory to the dignity of the last prophet of the world, as would the appearance of a new prophet. The words of the prophecy are so clear that, if due attention had been paid to them, there could never have been a misconception. The son of Mary spoken of in the prophecy is clearly called “your Imam from among yourselves”, and therefore the Israelite prophet Jesus Christ, who was from among the Israelites, could not be meant.33 Of Jesus Christ it is nowhere said in the Holy Quran that he went up into heaven. On the other hand, it is plainly stated that he died a natural death: “When Allah said: O Jesus, I will cause you to die and exalt you in My presence and clear you of those who disbelieve and make those who follow you above those who disbelieve to the Day of Resurrection.” — 55 “And when Allah will say: O Jesus, son of Mary, did you say to people, Take me and my mother for two gods besides Allah? He will say… I said to them nothing but what You commanded me: Serve Allah, my Lord and your Lord; and I was a witness of them so long as I was among them, but when You caused me to die You were the Watcher over them. And You are witness of all things.” — 11–117 The words mutawaffī-ka and tawaffaita-nī, which have been translated as “I will cause you to die” and “You caused me to die” respectively in the above verses, carry exactly this significance and nothing else: that Allah took his soul or caused him to die. In the first verse the raf‘ of Jesus Christ to Allah is spoken of (“exalt you in My presence”). Raf‘ signifies raising or elevating and also exalting and making honourable. But wherever the raf‘ of a human being to God is spoken of in the Holy Quran, or in the religious literature of Islam, it is always in the latter sense, for raising someone in his body to Himself would mean that God is limited to a particular place. Therefore there is not the least basis for supposing that Jesus Christ is alive in heavens and would appear again in the world. In addition, there is the clearly defined and strongly established fact of the finality of prophethood which bars the advent of any prophet, old or new, after the Holy Prophet Muhammad. Appearance of reformers It must however be borne in mind that, as shown in the last chapter (see page here), Divine revelation is granted to prophets as well as to those who are not prophets, and that, therefore, though prophethood, being no more needed, has been brought to a close, the gift of Divine revelation to the righteous servants of God is still granted as before. People do not stand in need of a new prophet because they have a perfect law in the Holy Quran, but they do stand in need of Divine blessings, and Divine revelation is the highest of all blessings. Moreover, speaking is an attribute of the Divine Being, just as hearing and seeing are His attributes also, and Divine attributes never cease to function. It has also been shown in the last chapter that, according to a most reliable hadith in Bukhari, a part of prophethood called mubashshirāt (lit., good visions) remains after prophethood has ceased, and according to another, God speaks to the righteous in this Muslim Ummah though they are not prophets. There is another hadith showing that mujaddids (reformers) will appear among the Muslims: “Surely Allah will raise for this community [of Muslims], at the commencement of every century, one who will reform their religion”.34 A mujaddid is a reformer commissioned to remove errors that have crept in among the Muslims, and to shed new light on the great religious truths of Islam in the new circumstances which the Muslim community will be called upon to face. Go to: List of Contents • Previous / Next (9. Life after Death)
Notes to Chapter 8
1. Raghib’s Mufradāt. 2. Dictionary Qāmūs. 3. Dictionary Tāj al-‘Arūs. 4. Editor’s Note: In the Quran, the word rasūl is also applied to a man who was a messenger, not from Allah, but from a king (150). The following examples are found in Bukhari. A man sent by the Holy Prophet Muhammad to Abu Bakr, with the message to lead people in prayers in his place, has been called rasūl (book 10: ‘Call to prayer’, ch. 46, h. 678 and ch. 51, h. 687). In another case, a man sent by the Holy Prophet to a Companion has been described as rasūl of the rasūl of Allah (book 64: ‘Military expeditions’, ch. 79, h. 4418). A man appeared before the Holy Prophet to inform him of his acceptance of Islam and called himself a rasūl of the people he had left behind (book 3: ‘Knowledge’, ch. 6, h. 63). When the Holy Prophet called various clans of the Quraish to gather to listen to him, it is reported that those clans who could not come sent a rasūl to see what it was about (book 65: ‘Commentary on the Quran’, under Sūrah 26, h. 4770). A man sent to someone by Uthman is called the rasūl of Uthman (book 62: ‘Virtues of the Companions’, ch. 7, h. 3696). A hadith in Abu Dawud has been quoted earlier (see page here) according to which the Holy Prophet said: “Praise be to Allah Who has granted the messenger (rasūl) of His Messenger (rasūl) what pleases the Messenger of Allah”. 5. The Quran, 31. See also 37, 275 etc. 6. The Quran, 177, 285. 7. The Quran, 59, 65, 73, 85. 8. The word for “all” here is jamī‘-an. 9. Jesus Christ was the last of these national prophets; and though the message of Christianity has now been conveyed to all the nations of the world, yet that was never Christ’s own idea. He was perfectly sure that he was “not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew, 124); so sure indeed that he did not hesitate to call those who were not Israelites “dogs” in comparison with the “children” who were the Israelites (Matthew, 126), and the bread of the children could not be cast to the dogs. 10. The Quran, 652, 827, 387, 1104. 11. The Quran, 213. 12. The Quran, 1. 13. The Quran, 324. 14. The Quran, 322, 413. 15. The Quran, 213. 16. Raghib’s Mufradāt. 17. Editor’s Note: The Holy Prophet Muhammad is called amīn in 821. 18. Raghib’s Mufradāt. 19. The Quran, 68. 20. The Quran, 455. 21. Such usage is common in the Arabic language. Again and again the Holy Quran speaks of “associates of God”, though the meaning is that they are the associates attributed to the Divine Being by polytheists. Similarly in 29 the word ithmī, uttered by one son of Adam to the other, does not mean my sin, but the sin committed against me: “I would rather that you should bear the sin against me (ithmī) and your own sin”. 22. Raghib’s Mufradāt. 23. “Or do they say: We are an army allied together to help each other? Soon shall the armies be routed, and they will show their backs.” — 5445 “And you dwell in the abodes of those who wronged themselves, and it is clear to you how We dealt with them and We made them examples for you. And they have indeed planned their plan, and their plan is with Allah, though their plan is such that the mountains should be moved by it. So do not think that Allah will fail in His promise to His messengers. Surely Allah is Mighty, the Lord of retribution.” — 1447 “Those who disbelieve, neither their wealth nor their children shall avail them at all against Allah… as was the case of the people of Pharaoh, and those before them. They rejected Our messages, so Allah destroyed them on account of their sins.” — 111 “And certainly We wrote in the Book after the reminder that My righteous servants will inherit the land.” — 2105 “Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good that He will surely make them rulers in the earth as He made those before them rulers, and that He will surely establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them, and that He will surely give them security in exchange after their fear.” — 255 “He it is Who has sent His Messenger with the guidance and the Religion of Truth that He may make it prevail over all the religions…” — 33, 428, 69. 24. Editor’s Note: See page here on continuity of revelation among Muslims. 25. Lane’s Lexicon. The Holy Quran has adopted the word khātam and not khatim, because a deeper significance is carried in the phrase Seal of the prophets than mere finality. In fact, it indicates finality combined with perfection of prophethood, along with a continuance among his followers of certain blessings of prophethood. Through the Holy Prophet a perfect law was given, suiting the requirements of all ages and all countries, and this law was guarded against all corruption, and the office of the prophet was therefore no more required. But people still stood in need of receiving Divine favours, and the highest of these favours is Divine inspiration. It is recognized by Islam that God speaks to His chosen ones among Muslims, but such people are not prophets. (See page here.) 26. Tāj al-‘Arūs. 27. Bukhari, book 61: ‘Virtues (of the Prophet and his Companions)’, ch. 18, h. 3535. 28. Bukhari, book 60: ‘Prophets’, ch. 50, h. 3455. The original Arabic words for “there is no prophet after me” here are: Lā nabiyya ba‘dī. 29. Bukhari, book 64: ‘Military Expeditions’, ch. 78, h. 4416. The original Arabic words for “there is no prophet after me” here are: Laisa nabiyy-un ba‘dī. 30. Furqān is a name for the Quran, meaning criterion or distinction, used in the Quran here and in 185 and 4. 31. The Quran, 213. 32. Bukhari, book 60: ‘Prophets’, ch. 49, h. 3448, h. 3449. Muslim, book 1: ‘Faith’, ch. 71. 33. Editor’s Note: In the Muhsin Khan translation of Bukhari, in h. 3449 (cited in the note above), instead of translating the words imāmu-kum min-kum as “he will be your imam from among yourselves”, the translation given is “he will judge people by the Law of the Quran and not by the law of Gospel”, and a reference is given to Fatḥ al-Bārī, a commentary on Bukhari, for these meanings. However, it is grievously misleading to represent this interpretation as being the translation itself. 34. Abu Dawud, book 39: ‘Battles’ (Al-Malāḥim), ch. 1, h. 4291 (DS: b. 36). |