EVIDENCE OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD'S PROPHETHOOD

Source: WhyMuhammad. Net

All Prophets come with signs and evidences furnished by God that they
truly are what they claim to be. Among these signs are miracles
witnessed by the people that defy the laws of nature.

Generally, miracles are experienced only by the people who were there
when the miracle actually occurred. Allah, however, furnished the
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) with a miracle that would endure
for all time. That miracle is the Qur'ân. It is appropriate that the
final Messenger should have an enduring miracle, since his Message is
binding on Creation until the Last Day.

The Qur'ân is the revealed word of Allah that He has preserved from
corruption. The Qur'ân reads: "Surely We have revealed the Reminder
and We will most surely be its guardian." "No falsehood can approach
it from before or behind it. It is sent down by One Full of Wisdom,
Worthy of Praise."

In the Qur'ân, Allah challenges the Arabs to produce something like
it. "Say: `If the whole of humanity and the Jinn were to gather
together to produce the like of this Qur'ân, they could not produce
the like thereof, even if they backed up each other with help and
support."

This challenge was reduced even further to the point where only one
chapter of the Qur'ân was needed: "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 witnesses besides Allah if you are truthful. But if
you do not do it, and never shall you do it, then fear the fire whose
fuel is men and stones, prepared for the unbelievers."

This is Islam's eternal miracle. The challenge remains open and unmet
to this very day. There are many aspects of the Qur'ân's miraculous
inimitability. Among these are its eloquence and its style.

The Arabs were given this challenge and they were the masters of
their language and were well known for their eloquence. Not one of
them, however, could produce a single chapter comparable to the
Qur'ân.

Today, we are conveying this challenge once again to all humanity.
This challenge has stood for over 1400 years and continues to be a
testimony to the truth of the Qur'ân and the Messenger who brought
it. The enemies of Islam have always had in this challenge a perfect
opportunity to prove Islam false. They definitely had enough reason
to try. It would have surely been much less strenuous for them to
pick up the pen and write then to pick up the sword and die trying to
suppress Islam. It would have been far less costly than the time and
money they spent on fighting against Islam.

We feel that by conveying this challenge we have done our duty. It
becomes the duty of the one who hears it to hear the Qur'ân in its
entirety and not to rely on unbelievers for their information but go
directly to the source.

Another proof that Muhammad (peace be upon his) is Allah's Messenger
is the strength of the religion that he was sent with and the fact
that it has been preserved from corruption. We can see all the
scholarly disciplines that developed around it over the ages and how
Islam was able to respond to all the changes that took place
throughout history.
Islam has retained its strength while the Muslim world has
passed through periods of strength and weakness and of freedom and
occupation.

Among the evidence that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is a Prophet of
God is the fact that his coming was foretold by the Prophets who came
before. In their books and their statements they described him and
his followers. They even mentioned him by name. The Qur'ân states
this fact in the following verses:

"And when Jesus the son of Mary said: `O Children of Israel! Lo! I am
the Messenger of God unto you, confirming that which was revealed
before me in the Torah and bringing glad tidings of a Messenger who
cometh after me, whose name shall be the Praised One.' Yet when he
hath come unto them with clear proofs, they say: This is mere magic."

"Those who follow the Messenger, the Prophet who can neither read nor
write, whom they will find described in the Torah and the Gospel
which are with them. He will enjoin on them that which is right and
forbid them that which is wrong. He will make lawful for them all
good things and prohibit for them only the foul; and he will relieve
them of their burden and the fetters that they used to wear. Then
those who believe in him, and honor him, and help him, and follow the
light which is sent down with him: they will be the ones to prosper."

In spite of the distortions and deletions made by some Jewish rabbis
and Christian priests to their sacred texts, and in spite of the
incorrect interpretations they imposed on them, there still remains
within those texts enough to establish the proof of Muhammad (peace
be upon him) being a prophet of God. To highlight a few of the places
in their texts wherein his coming is foretold, we request from you to
look at the following: Deuteronomy [33:1] and [18:15-19], Isaiah
[42:1-5], Habakkuk [3:3], Song of Solomon [72:1-19], John [14:16] and
[14:26], and 1John [2:1]. Another proof that Muhammad (peace be upon
him) was a prophet of Allah
is the history of his mission, the events of his life, the success of
his followers, and how swiftly Islam spread throughout the nations of
the world.

The attributes of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his mode
of conduct show us that he was truly a prophet of God. He was, in
every aspect of his character, an exemplary human being and history
has never witnessed anyone else like him.

He was of good appearance and was always neatly dressed, preferring
to wear white. He was clean and commanded others to observe
cleanliness. When a person approached him and told him that he liked
to wear nice clothes and nice shoes, the prophet (peace be upon him)
replied by saying: "God is beautiful and He loves beauty." He was of
impeccable taste and had a discriminating palate, but was never
ostentatious or frivolous. He said: "A son of Adam can fill no vessel
worse than his stomach It is enough for him to eat enough to keep him
standing straight. If he must consume more, then he may fill a third
of his stomach with food, a third with drink, and a third should be
left for air." His manners were refined and he was well spoken. He
was cheerful and would greet people with a smile. Those who met him
liked him instantly and would never tire of his company or
conversation. In fact, those who sat in his company would often
forget everything else in the world while they were with him. They
felt in awe of his presence, not because he was powerful like a king
or despot, but because of the strength of his character and his
devotion to Allah.

One of his most pronounced character traits was his capacity for
mercy. He had great love and compassion for the poor and preferred to
sit and partake of meals in their company. He showed great empathy
for the sick and would go out of his way to help them. He would not
leave a sick person or a child in need without fulfilling that need.
He showed mercy to the orphans and encouraged people to care for
them. He had great affection for children and would often carry
babies and make them laugh. He taught his followers that children had
the right to play and to be humored.

His mercy extended even to animals. He commanded his followers to be
kind to the animals in their care and prohibited abusing them He
instructed that animals used for food should be slaughtered carefully
and with compassion. He reprimanded a man for overburdening his camel
and failing to give it sufficient nourishment. He also informed us
that a woman once was consigned to Hell for her mistreatment of a
cat. She had locked it up and denied it food until it starved to
death. Conversely, a prostitute received God's forgiveness and
entered heaven because she showed pity on a thirsty dog and gave it
water. Once he was asked if people were rewarded for the good
treatment they gave to animals. The Prophet (peace be upon him)
replied: "For every creature possessing a liver there is a reward."

Added to his mercy was his courage. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon
him) was among the most courageous of people. His was not the courage
of tyrants but a courage that stemmed from faith in the promise of
God. It was the courage of someone who lived according to the
religion of God and considered the pleasure of God more important
than life itself. He was always present in the battlefield during
war, and when things became severe, he would be seen fighting in the
front lines. He would remain firm even when other brave men would
turn to flee.

He never hesitated in the face of falsehood and never ceased to call
to the truth, even when most of the people of the Earth were opposed
to him. He never wavered on any of his principles but continued to
enjoin what was right and forbid what was wrong.

He was also very forgiving to those who wronged him. He never became
angry or hateful on a personal level. No matter how greatly someone
wronged him when he was weak, he would show that person clemency when
he was in a position of power. He would accept excuses even when he
knew that the one making the excuse was lying. He would even make
excuses for those who wronged him and did not offer excuses of their
own.

He was the most generous of people. He gave in charity like a person
who had no fear of poverty. He never once refused to give to someone
who asked. He gave everything that came into his possession to the
poor and the needy. He would prefer his guests to himself and the
members of his household. He usually sufficed himself and his family
with dates and water and months would sometimes go by without a
cooking fire being lit in his house.

He was at the same time a most exemplary husband. He was very
affectionate and caring. He was quick to overlooke mistakes. He
never once hit one of his wives, nor did he ever raise his voice to
them or ridicule them. He always showed kindness. He would indulge
them in anything that was not sinful. He shared in the housework and
took care of himself. He mended his own clothes and shoes. He always
exhorted his male followers to be good to their wives and warned them
against mistreating them. He made sure to do so during his greatest
sermon which he gave during his farewell pilgrimage.

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was kind to his servants. He
commanded his followers not to overwork their servants and commanded
that they must eat the same food that the members of the household
eat and wear clothing of the same quality. Anas b. Mâlik said: "I
worked as a servant for the Prophet (peace be upon him) in his
residence and on his journeys. No matter what I did, he never once
said to me: "Now why did you do that?" Likewise, no matter what I
might have failed to do, he never once said to me: "Now why didn't
you do that?"

Once the Prophet (peace be upon him) saw a man beating his slave. The
Prophet said to him: "God is more capable of punishing you than you
are of punishing him."

Upon hearing this, the man stopped and said: "I set him free for the
sake of Allah."

The Prophet (peace be upon him) then said: "If you did not free him,
you would have been touched by the fire."

The Prophet (peace be upon him) was extremely shy and modest. He
hated foul speech He never once uttered a foul word. He said: "A
strong sense of shame is a good quality in every way." He also
said: "Nothing but good comes from having a strong sense of shame."

He was also very humble. He taught his followers: "None will enter
Paradise who has within his heart an atom's weight of pride." He used
to sit on the floor and eat. He forbade his companions from standing
in honor when he entered the room. When he walked, he never expected
anyone to move out of the way. He never allowed himself to stand out
in his dress or his steed. He never seated himself in a place of
honor when he was in the company of others.

Above all of these qualities was his devotion to God. He immersed
himself in worship and eschewed the pleasures of the world. The
remembrance and praise of God was always on his lips. He always
sought the forgiveness of his Lord. His reverence of God often
brought him to tears. He fasted so much that it sometimes seemed that
he never went a day without fasting. He spent long stretches of the
night standing in prayer until his ankles would swell. When he was
asked why he worshipped so much when God had forgiven him all of his
past and future sins, he replied: "Should I not then be a grateful
servant?"

These are just a few of his noble qualities. There is no way we can
do justice to him in such a short time. The combination of worldly
and spiritual perfection that he exhibited was a miracle in and of
itself and a testimony to his truly being a prophet of God.

Compiled, edited and adapted by Khalid Latif

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