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Books
Section
> Jesus
in Heaven on Earth [Journey of Jesus to
Kashmir, his preaching to the Lost Tribes of Israel
and death and burial in Srinagar] by Khwaja
Nazir Ahmad
> Chapter 2: Islamic Sources Chapter
2: There are two main Islamic sources: the Holy Quran and the Hadith. Before dealing with these two sources, I ought to mention that they are peculiar to themselves: they are of a systematic character, and have an authority far superior to that of the sources of any other religion. Their authenticity and historicity is now admitted universally. "With the appearance of Muhammad," says Professor Nicholson, "the almost impenetrable veil thrown over the preceding age is suddenly lifted and we find ourselves on the solid ground of historical tradition" (Nicholson, A Literary History of the Arabs, 141). Bosworth-Smith says: "In Mohammedanism everything is different; here, instead of the shadowy and the mysterious we have history. We know as much of Mohammed as we do even of Luther and Milton. The mythical, the legendary, the supernatural is almost wanting in the original Arab authorities..... Nobody here is the dupe of himself or of others; there is the full light of day upon all that that light can ever reach at all.... We know everything of the external history of Mohammed ... while for his internal history, after his mission had been proclaimed we have a book absolutely unique in its origin, in its preservation .... on the substantial authenticity of which no one has ever been able to cast a serious doubt" (Bosworth-Smith, Mohammed and Mohammedanism, 14-15). And yet it must be pointed out that these two sources are not works of history in so far as they do not relate events chronologically or in their entirety. They mention only certain singular events in the life of various Prophets of God with the purpose of presenting them in their true light and in their natural order; and thus affirm or contradict, or sometime modify, prevailing ideas about these Prophets and thereby clear their character against gross calumnies heaped against them. For instance, if we read the Gospels and the Talmuds together we gather that Jesus: 1. was born of immaculate conception, or of an illegal union; Islamic sources deal with all these questions and, exposing the falsity of these calumnies, clear the character of Jesus and his mother, Mary, of all these charges; but they do not deal with their lives in entirety or give all the facts in their minutest detail. These two sources deal repeatedly with various aspects of the life and actions of the Prophets merely to enable us to understand the basic truth they preached, to appreciate the purity of their characters and to differentiate the genuine portions from the spurious of the Books revealed to them. Again, these two sources are not story books. They do not relate past events merely for the pleasure of those who read or hear them. They describe the condition of the people to whom the various Prophets were sent; how these people conducted, or rather misconducted, themselves; how after having received guidance they went astray and rejected the Prophets, maltreating and persecuting them. These narratives are meant to serve as a solemn warning to us, and for this purpose the language used adapts itself to the exigencies of everyday life, with a view to bringing it, in its private and public bearings, in harmony with the fundamental principles of Islam. They usually end with certain prophetic utterances, most of which were fulfilled during the life-time of the Holy Prophet. The Holy
Quran: The Holy Quran claims, and the Muslims believe, that it consists exclusively of Divine Revelation which the Holy Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) received direct from Almighty God piecemeal during his prophetic career of three-and-twenty years; so that the last portion was not revealed till near the time of his death. It consists of 114 Suras (Chapters) out of which 86 are Makki, i.e., revealed at Makka and 28 are Madani, i.e., revealed at Madina. It contains 6,237 Ayas (signs : verses), to which if the 113 Bismillas are added the number becomes 6,350. For purposes of recitation it has been divided into 7 Manzils (portions or stages), 30 equal Juzs (also called Paras or parts) sub-divided into four equal parts; and 558 Rukus (Sections). These divisions, with the exception of the Suras, have nothing to do with the subject-matter of the Holy Quran. It contains 86,430 words, 349,470 letters, (Alif 48,876 ; Ba, 11,442, Ta, 10,199 ; Sa, 1,276 ; Jeem, 3,273 ; Ha, 3,973 ; Kha, 2,446 ; Dal, 5,642 ; Zal, 4,677 ; Ra, 11,793 ; Za, 1,590 ; Seen, 5,891 ; Sheen, 2,253 ; Suad, 2,013 ; Zuad 1,607 ; Tue, 1,277 ; Zue, 842 ; Ain, 9,220 ; Ghain, 2,208, Fa, 8,499 ; Kaf, 6,813 ; Qaf, 9,502; Lam, 33,432; Meem, 26,560 ; Noon, 45,190; Wao, 25,536; He, 19,070 ; La, 4,720 ; Ya, 45,919) out of which 124,331 are letter-vowels and the rest are consonants; it also contains 52,243 Fathas (sound vowel a), 39,582 Kasras (sound vowel e or i) and 8,804 Zammas (sound vowel o or u). It has 105,684 Nuqqat (dots), 1,771 Maddat (prolonged pronunciation), 1,250 Tashdeeds (indications of double sound) and 240 Alif mamdudas (silent alif). The Book names itself as Quran (The Holy Quran, 2 : 185; 10: 37, 61 ; 17 : 106 ; etc.) - that which is or should be read. It is the most widely read book in the world. It is read daily in mosques and Muslim houses throughout the world. It is repeated in daily prayers. During the month of Ramadan it is recited from the beginning to the end in Tarawih prayers and is also read and explained in its entirety during these days. On the night between the 26th and 27th of this month it is recited completely by various Imams in almost every mosque and this reading is styled as Shabina, i.e. in one night. Similarly, on diverse occasions, various persons, not less than ten, read or recite from memory the whole of the Book, each reading or reciting separately certain parts, in an hour or so. This is called Khatam-i-Quran. In the Holy Quran, the Book is mentioned by various other names. They describe its character, its significance, its peculiar features and its aims and objects. I will mention but a few of them: Al-Kitab (the Complete Book) (The Holy Quran, 2 : 2); (The Distinction between truth and falsehood) (Ibid., 25:1); Al-Tanzil (The Revelation) (Ibid., 26: 192); Al-Hukm (the Judgement) (Ibid., 13 : 37); Habl-Ullah (The Covenant of Allah) (Ibid., 3 : 103); Ar-Rahman (The Mercy) (Ibid., 17 : 82); Ar-Ruh (The Spirit) (Ibid., 42: 52); Al-Bayan (The Explanation) (Ibid., 3 : 138); An-Nur (The Light) (Ibid., 7 : 157); Al-Haqq (Ibid., 17 : 81) (The Truth); Al-Burhan (Ibid., 4 : 174) (The Argument); Al-Maw'iza (Ibid., 10 : 57) (The Admonition); Al-Hikma (The Wisdom) (Ibid., 17 :39). Besides these, the Holy Quran is also mentioned by several other names, and there are also various qualifying words applied to it, for instance: it is called Majid (The Glorious) (Ibid., 85 : 21); Mubeen (One making things manifest) (Ibid., 12: 1); Fasl (Decision) (Ibid., 86: 13); Mutahhara (Purified) (Ibid., 80: 14); Mutashabih (Ibid., 39: 23) (Conformable in all its various parts). The Book gives the name of its Author in the very first verse of the second sura, which is really the beginning of the Book-for the first sura (Al-Fatihah - the opening chapter) is really a short introduction to it-in these words: Alif Lam, Meem (Ibid., 2 : 1) standing for Ana Allah A'lam (I am Allah: the Best Knower). The first three verses of the next chapter throw further light on the matter. They read: "I am Allah, the Best Knower: Allah, there is no god but He, the Ever-living, the Self-Subsisting, by Whom all subsist. He has revealed to you the book with truth, verifying that which is before it, and He revealed the Torah and the Evangel aforetime, a guidance for the people, and He sent this distinction. Surely they who disbelieve in the Communications of Allah -they shall have a severe chastisement, and Allah is Mighty, the Lord of retribution" (Ibid., 3 : 1 - 4). The Book was revealed to Muhammad, who "believed in what has been revealed" to him (Ibid., 47 : 2). It was revealed in Arabic so that the Holy Prophet should be the first to understand it perfectly (Ibid., 42: 7). It was revealed in portions. "And it is a Quran, which We have made distinct so that you may read it to the people by slow degrees: and We have revealed it, revealing in portions" (Ibid., 17 :106; 76 : 23). The Holy Quran is a compendium of Divine messages brought by the Holy Spirit (Gabriel) and delivered in words to the Holy Prophet to be proclaimed to mankind. It was not the Holy Prophet who spoke under the influence of the Holy Spirit: he merely repeated the words conveyed to him. Says the Holy Quran: "The Spirit has brought it down from your Lord with the truth" (The Holy Quran, 16: 102). Again: "And most surely this is a revelation from the Lord of the worlds. The Faithful Spirit has come down with it upon your heart, that you may be of the warners in plain Arabic language" (Ibid., 26: 195). Purity of Text: The Holy Quran was revealed to the Holy Prophet under the most trying circumstances. From a solitary recluse in the cave of Hira, after passing through a variety of circumstances, he became the sole monarch and legislator of the whole of Arabia. The life of no other individual human being affords so much variation. Yet throughout the entire revelation the Holy Quran keeps one and the same strain. The spirit of revelation to the solitary, persecuted and tormented preacher of Makka does not differ in any particular from the spirit of the revelation to the sole temporal and spiritual overlord of Arabia. There are no discrepancies even in the details of the narrative, and this is specially true of the numerous prophecies uttered at a time when he was an absolutely helpless man. Had the Book not proceeded from the Omniscient Being, it would certainly not have been free from numerous discrepancies. Muslims believe the Holy Quran, every dot, every vowel, every syllable, every word, every sentence, every chapter-in short, the entire Book-to be of Divine creation. The Holy Prophet was an Ummi, unlettered, and could neither read nor write; he had to be so in keeping with the Divine dispensation: for the tablet of his heart, like a camera, had to be absolutely free of all worldly light to get a perfect impression of the Revelation. The Holy Quran was revealed in the Arabic language (Ibid., 43 : 3), in the dialect of the Quraish. The absolute perfection of the language of the Book is one of its outstanding features. I do not make this assertion simply because it is an impregnable belief with Muslims. Greyer and Noldeke point out that even the idolatrous poets of Arabia, who were known for their literary skill, could not compete with it. To these idolaters, and through them to the whole world, a challenge had been thrown out: "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. But if you do (it) not; and never shall you do (it)-then be on your guard against the fire, of which men and stones are the fuel, it is prepared for the unbelievers" (Ibid., 2 : 23-24). Again: "Or do they say: He has forged it, Say: Then bring ten forged chapters like this and call upon whom you can besides Allah, if you are truthful" (Ibid., 11:13). And again: "Say: If men and jinn should combine together to bring the like of this Quran, they cannot bring the like of it, though some of them be aiders of the others" (Holy Qur'an, 17 : 88). The Holy Quran, as the word of God, needs no champion, no advocate and certainly not an apologist. It speaks for itself. It puts forward its claims, gives reasons and arguments in support of them and throws a challenge for all times-a challenge which till to-day has remained unaccepted. On the contrary, even European scholars have been forced to admit its claims. I will quote but a few of them and will begin with the most bigoted Christian translator of the Holy Quran, George Sale, who was out to expose the Holy Quran as a "manifest forgery." In his Preliminary Discourse he says: "The style of the Koran is generally beautiful and fluent ... and in many places, especially where the majesty and attributes of God are described, sublime and magnificent" (Sale, Preliminary Discourse, 48). Palmer, another translator of the Holy Quran, says: "The best of Arab writers have never succeeded in producing anything equal in merit to the Quran itself" (Palmer, Introduction, 55). Goethe has said: "The Koran is a work with whose dullness the reader is at first disgusted, afterward attracted and astounded by its charms, and finally irresistibly ravished by its many beauties .... In the end it enforces our reverence. Its style, in accordance with its contents and aims, is stern, grand and terrible-ever and anon truly sublime .... This book will go on exercising through all ages most potent influence." John Davenport says: "From a literary point of view, the Koran is the most poetical work of the East .... It is universally allowed to be written with the utmost purity and elegance of language in the dialect of the tribe of Koreish, the most noble and polite of all the Arabs .... It is confessedly the standard of the Arabian language, and abounds with splendid imagery and the boldest metaphor ... is generally vigorous and sublime. Steingass says: "We may well say the Quran is one of the grandest books ever written .... sublime and chaste, where the supreme truth of God's Unity is to be proclaimed . ... its merits as a literary production should, perhaps, not be measured by some preconsidered maxims of subjective and aesthetic taste, but by the effects which it produced on Muhammad's contemporaries and fellow-countrymen. If it spoke so powerfully and convincingly to the hearts of his hearers as to weld hitherto centrifugal and antagonistic elements into one compact and well -organised body, animated by ideas far beyond those which had until now ruled the Arabian mind, then its eloquence was perfect, simply because it created a civilised nation out of savage tribes, and shot a fresh woof into the old warp of history .... But Muhammad made a still greater and more decisive step towards creating a literature for his people. In those Suras in which he regulated the private and public life of the Muslims, he originated a prose which has remained the standard of classical purity ever since" (Translation: Hughes, Dictionary of Islam, 527-530). Dr. Hartwig Hirschfield says: "The Quran is unapproachable as regards convincing power, eloquence, and even composition .... and to it was also indirectly due the marvelous development of all branches of science in the Moslem world" (Hirschfield, New Researches into the Composition and Exegesis of the Qur`an, 8-9). I will quote but one other Christian scholar, Bosworth-Smith, who when writing about the Book says: "Illiterate himself, scarcely able to read or write, he was yet the author of a book which is a poem, a code of law, a Book of Common Prayer and a Bible in one .... It was the one miracle claimed by Muhammad-his "standing miracle" he called it; and a miracle indeed it is" (Bosworth-Smith, Mohammed and Mohammedanism, 290). (Italics are mine.) Thus, the Holy Quran is unique, marvellous and unprecedented in the whole history of the written world. It transformed a dialect spoken in a very limited area of a forgotten corner of the world-steeped in spiritual torpor, sunk in superstition, cruelty and vice, whose people lay lifeless in a debased state and dreaded of things unseen-into a language and tongue of vast countries and mighty empires. The Book thus re-established the claims of the Arabic language to be the Mother of Languages (Al-Haj Khwaja Kamal-ud-Din, Umm-ul-alsina (The Mother of Languages), 23). The Holy Prophet claimed the Holy Quran to be a sign, a miracle of God. A miracle indeed it was, is and shall ever be. It is unique in every respect. Its outstanding distinction, however, is that it has maintained its pristine purity for the last fourteen hundred years. While discussing this question, Muir says: "There is probably in the world no other work which has remained twelve centuries with so pure a text" (Muir, Life of Mohammad). No other religious book in the world has made or can make such a claim. If all copies of the Vedas, the Zenda-Vesta, the Buddhist Pitakas, the Bible and other Scriptures were to be burnt, they can never be re-written from cover to cover. Any such undertaking would be a hopeless task. But if the Holy Quran were to suffer the same fate, not once but a million times, it would be re-written without the least change of a single dot, vowel or sentence. For there are hundreds of thousands of Muslims who know the Holy Quran by heart from one end to the other. In the Holy Quran we read: "Surely We have revealed the Reminder and We will most surely be its guardian" (The Holy Qur-`an, 15 : 9). Thus God had proclaimed in the Holy Quran that it should always remain free from corruption and that God would protect it and be its Guardian. These verses, and there are many others like these in the Holy Quran, contain a most wonderful prophecy, whose fulfilment is, and shall always continue to be, a standing testimony to the Divine origin of the Holy Quran and to the truth of the mission of the Holy Prophet. It has often been alleged by Christian apologists that the Holy Quran was a product of the creative mind of the Holy Prophet. I will deal with this aspect at the close of this discussion; as I must first describe the manner in which and when the Book was written and collected, the arrangement of its chapters and verses, the so-called theory of abrogation and the rules of Quranic interpretation. The Holy Quran was written and committed to memory in the lifetime of the Holy Prophet: There is both internal and external evidence that the Holy Quran was meant, from the very beginning, to be reduced to writing. The very first revelation opening with the word Read (The Holy Quran, 96: 1) indicated that the revelation was to be read by Muslims from written pages. Similarly its name, Quran, that which is read, points to the same significance. The Book calls itself repeatedly Al-Kitab (Ibid., 2 : 2) - the Book which is complete in itself. This name was applied to the Holy Quran in some of the earliest Makkan revelations. To read from a book without any writing would be an impossibility. The Holy Quran is styled as the written pages (Ibid., 80: 12-16) and also as the pure pages" (Ibid., 98: 2). In one of the earliest Makkan revelations we read: "Most surely it is an honoured Quran, in a Book that is protected. None shall touch it save the purified ones" (Ibid., 56: 77-79) The italicised words prove that the Holy Quran had been reduced to writing, otherwise the question of touching it could not have arisen. Rodwell, while commenting on this verse, says: "This passage implies the existence of copies of portions at least of the Koran in common use." This verse of the Holy Quran was quoted by the sister of Hazrat Umar when he saw her reading the twentieth chapter (Ta Ha) of the Holy Quran and wanted to get hold of it. He was made to wash himself, before he was allowed to read it. He, after reading it, at once became a Muslim. This conversion took place in the fifth year of the mission of the Holy Prophet. It is obvious, therefore, that even at that very early period at least twenty chapters were written. Again we read in a Makkan revelation: "Or do they say: He has forged it. Say: Then bring ten forged chapters like it and call upon whom you can besides Allah, if you are truthful" (Ibid., 11 : 13). And in a chapter revealed at Madina: "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 beside Allah, if you are truthful" (Ibid., 2 : 23). The mention of chapters in these two verses presupposes the existence of the Holy Quran in writing in chapters. Hazrat Usman, the third Caliph, one of the earliest converts to Islam, explaining the practice of the Holy Prophet as to the writing of the revelations, reports: "It was customary with the Messenger of God (may peace and the blessings of God be upon him) that when portions of different chapters were revealed to him, and when any verse was revealed, he called one of those persons who used to write the Holy Quran and said to him: Write these verses in the chapter where such and such verse occurs" (Bukhari, 33:15). See also Abu Daud 2:123. Bukhari records: "When the verse la yastawi-l-qa `iduna ... was revealed, the Messenger of God (may peace and blessings of God be upon him) said: Bring Zaid to me, and let him bring the tablet and the inkstand. Then he said to him (Zaid): Write la yastawi . . ." (Bukhari, 66: 4). The direction of the Holy Prophet to his Companions not to write anything from him except the Holy Quran (Fath al Bari, 9 : 10) establishes that the Holy Quran was being written and the Holy Prophet wished to avoid confusion between his Sayings and the Word of God. Bukhari records the following report of the Companions of the Holy Prophet: "We were forbidden to travel to the enemy land with the Quran" (Bukhari, 29: 113). This report shows that the written copies of the whole Quran existed in such large numbers that it was found necessary to issue an injunction against their being carried to enemy country. It has wrongly been assumed that the Holy Quran was written on palm-leaves, skins or shoulder blades of sheep at the instance of the Holy Prophet. The copies dictated by the Holy Prophet to his amanuensis were on writing material. Some of the Companions used to take down their copies on palm-leaves etc. Speaking of these copies Muir says: "There is good reason for believing that many fragmentary copies embracing amongst them the whole Koran, or nearly the whole, were during his lifetime made by the Prophet's followers" (Muir, Life of Mohammad 19). There are two incidents connected with the death of the Holy Prophet which conclusively prove that the Holy Quran was a compact whole at that time. The first is the following Saying of the Holy Prophet reported by Malik bin Anas: "Verily I leave with you two things, if you hold fast by them, ye will never be misguided. The Book of Allah and my sunna" ( Bukhari, 61 :170). To the same effect was the address he made during his last visit to the mosque. I will quote only the relevant portion. He said: "I have not made lawful aught except that which God hath made lawful; nor have I prohibited aught but that which God in His Book hath prohibited" (Bukhari, 61 :170). The second incident also refers to the death of the Holy Prophet. When the news of his death spread over Madina, Hazrat Umar would not believe the mournful truth. "The Messenger of God is not dead," he declared in a loud and passionate voice. Just then Hazrat Abu Bakr appeared and after reciting the relevant verses of the Holy Quran said: "Let him then know whosoever worships Muhammad, that Muhammad is dead: but whosoever worships Allah, let him know that the Lord lives and dies not" (Durr-i-Mansur, 4 : 318). I have mentioned this incident so as to make Hazrat Umar's address to the people of Madina on the following day intelligible. He said: "O ye people that which I spoke to you yesterday was not correct. Verily I find that it is not borne out by the Book which the Lord hath revealed .... And truly the Word, the same Word which directed your Prophet, is with us still. Take it, therefore, for your guide and ye shall never go astray" (Durr-i-Mansur, 4 : 318). It is thus abundantly clear that the whole of the Holy Quran had been reduced to writing during the life-time of the Holy Prophet Muhammad. But apart from reducing the revelation to writing, the Holy Prophet knew himself the whole of the Book by heart. It was revealed in portions (The Holy Quran, 76: 23), so that it might be easy to remember (Ibid., 54: 32) and to make its learning perfect it had to be listened to in silence (Ibid., 7 : 204). It was made to "enter upon the hearts" (Ibid., 26: 194, 200) of those who heard it and was revealed to the heart of the Holy Prophet (Ibid., 2 : 97 ; 26: 193-194). The recital of a portion of it formed an essential part of the daily prayer, public and private. It was also recited in the midnight prayers (Ibid., 73 : 20). The Holy Quran was accordingly committed to memory more or less by every Companion of the Holy Prophet and the extent to which it could be recited was one of the chief distinctions among early Muslims. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said that "the best man among you is he who has learned the Quran and teaches it" (Bukhari, 56: 159). Accordingly any one who could recite the Holy Quran better than others had the right of becoming the Imam, leader of prayer (Ibid., Tirmizi, 3 : 61). Thus we hear of Amr ibn Salma, a boy of thirteen, leading congregational prayers for his tribe (Mishkat-al-Masabih, 4 : 26). The Arabs had long been used to committing tribal events and long poems to memory. This faculty was applied, with all the ardour of an awakened spirit, to the Holy Quran. Even Muir has to admit that: "several of his followers could, during the Prophet's life-time, repeat with scrupulous accuracy the whole of the Quran." Collection of the Holy Quran: It is true that when the Holy Prophet died the Holy Quran had not been made into one compact volume. The possibility of a fresh revelation could not be excluded, and, therefore, the making of a complete volume was an impossibility. But this could be done immediately after his death. As a result of the expedition against the impostor Musailama a battle was fought at Yamamah in which many of the best reciters of the Holy Quran were killed. Hazrat Umar approached the Caliph Hazrat Abu Bakr and, expressing his apprehensions, asked him to give immediate orders for the collection of the Holy Quran. "How can I do a thing" replied Hazrat Abu Bakr, "which the Messenger of God (may peace and the blessings of God be upon him) has not done?" (Bukhuri, 65 : 9 : 20). After some discussion Hazrat Abu Bakr was convinced and he sent for Zaid, the scribe of the Holy Prophet, and commissioned him to act accordingly. Zaid compiled into one volume all the manuscripts written under the directions of the Holy Prophet himself and the arrangement followed was the same, as that of the oral recitation, as was followed in the time of the Holy Prophet. This standard written copy was entrusted to the care of Hazrat Hafsa, wife of the Holy Prophet and daughter of Hazrat Umar. By the time Hazrat Usman became Caliph, Islam had spread far beyond the limits of Arabia and non-Arabs began to recite the Holy Quran differently. Bukhari records: "Anas son of Malik relates that Huzaifa came to Usman. He had been fighting with the people of Syria in the conquest of Armenia and with the people of Iraq in Azarbaijan, and was alarmed at their variation in the modes of reading (the Holy Quran). He said to Usman: "O Commander of the Faithful! stop the people before they differ in the Holy Book as the Jews and the Christians differ in their scriptures." So Usman sent word to Hafsa, asking her to send him the (copy of the) Quran in her possession, so that he might make other copies of it and then send the original back to her. Thereupon, Hafsa sent the copy to Usman and he ordered Zaid ibn Sabit and Abdullah ibn Zubair and Said ibn al-'As and Abdul Rahman ibn Haris ibn Hisham, and they made copies from the original copy. Usman also said to the three men who belonged to the Quraish: "When you differ with Zaid in anything concerning the Quran, then write it in the language of the Quraish, for it is in their language that it was revealed." They obeyed their instructions and when they had made the required number of copies from the original copy, Usman returned the original to Hafsa, and sent to every quarter one of the copies thus made and ordered all other copies or leaves on which the Quran was written to be burned" (Bukhuri, 66: 3). The real question is: Did the copy of Hazrat Usman differ in any way from that of Zaid prepared during the Caliphate of Hazrat Abu Bakr, and in its turn did it differ from the Book as left by the Holy Prophet? I will quote a Muslim authority as well as two Christian writers. Maulvi Muhammad Ali answers this question in the negative and says: "Usman, then, made no alteration in the Quran as it was collected by Abu Bakr immediately after the death of the Holy Prophet. He employed the same scribe who was employed before him by Abu Bakr and in his life-time by the Holy Prophet himself .... The bitterest foes of Usman, those who cut off his head while he was reading the Quran and who had the whole power in their hand, never charged him with having tampered with the Quran" (M. Muhammad Ali, Preface to the Translation of the Holy Quran, 64). Sir William Muir answers the same question in the following terms: "It is sufficient for us to know that in Othman's revision recourse was had to the original exemplar of the first compilation, and that there is otherwise every security, internal and external, that we possess the text which Muhammad himself gave forth and used" (Muir, The Life of Mohammad, 27). At the end of his discussion Muir quotes and agrees with the verdict of Von Hammer: "That we hold the Koran to be surely the word of Mohamet, as the Mohametans hold it to be the word of God." Bosworth-Smith expresses the same view in the following words: "In the Koran we have, beyond all reasonable doubt, the exact words of Mohammad without subtraction and without addition" (Bosworth-Smith, Mohammed and Mohammedanism, 18). Arrangement of Chapters and Verses: The Holy Quran as it was left by the Holy Prophet, and as it is to-day, was not arranged in chronological order. Christian critics of Islam have always been at pains to allege that the chapters of the Holy Quran were put together without any regard to their subject-matter, and that the entire text is in a confused state. Sale in his Preliminary Discourse gives a peculiar reason: "After the revealed passages had been from the Prophet's mouth taken down in writing by his scribes, they were published to his followers, several of whom took copies for their private use, but the far greater number got them by heart. The originals when returned were put promiscuously into a chest, observing no order" (Sale, The Preliminary Discourse to the Koran, 51). But says Muir: "The statement made by Sale, that the fragmentary revelations were cast promiscuously into a chest, is not borne out by any good authority that l have met with" (Muir, The Life of Mohammad, 15, 16 - footnote). This chest of Sale is, therefore, a creation of his own imagination. A cheat and a hypocrite always leaves traces which expose him; and a liar, it is said, has no memory. Sale contradicts himself, on the same page, when he admits that "Mohammed left the chapters complete as we now have them." A discussion of the arrangement of the verses and chapters of the Holy Quran is a subject by itself, and is really beyond the scope of this book. I cannot do better than to refer the reader to the Preface to the Translation of the Holy Quran by Maulvi Muhammad Ali, which is a most elaborate and scholarly exposition on the arrangement and collection of the Holy Quran. In it Maulvi Muhammad Ali explains how the chapters and verses were arranged under the directions of the Holy Prophet, and proves conclusively that the arrangement is based on the subject-matter. In his introductory notes to each chapter, in the abstract of every section of each chapter and in the copious footnotes, he has made it clear that the chapters like the verses, have a connection with each other on the basis of the subject-matter. It is true that the Holy Quran was revealed in portions; yet it would be a mistake to suppose that it remained in that fragmentary form for any length of time. There is both internal and external evidence to show that the present arrangement of the chapters and verses of the Holy Quran was effected by the Holy Prophet himself under the guidance of Divine revelation. The outstanding challenge of the Holy Prophet to his opponents to produce ten chapters (The Holy Quran, 11 : 13), or even one chapter (Ibid., 2 : 23; 10 : 38, etc.), like those in the Holy Quran presupposes that chapters were available in some order for the purpose of comparison. Again we read in the Holy Quran: "Surely, on Us (devolves)) the collection of it, and the reciting of it. Therefore, when We have recited it, follow its recitation" (Ibid., 75: 17-18). And again: "And those who disbelieve say: Why has not the Quran been revealed to him all at once: Thus, that We may establish your heart by it, and We have arranged it well in arranging (it)" (Ibid., 25 : 32). The arrangement of the Holy Quran was thus a part of the Divine scheme. I have already quoted a passage from Hazrat Usman, the Third Caliph, to show how this was done by the Holy Prophet himself, who used to indicate the place where a chapter or a verse had to be inserted. The following hadith establishes beyond any doubt that the Book was properly arranged during the life-time of the Holy Prophet. He once said: "Whoever reads the last two verses of Sura Baqarah on any night, they are sufficient for him" (Tirmizi, Vol. II, 112). See also Bukhari, 64: 12. Again, on another occasion the Holy Prophet told his followers to recite "the first ten verses" of the chapter called Al-Kahf (The Cave) at the appearance of the Antichrist (Abu Daud 36: 13). Further, we have it on the authority of Bukhari that Ibn Mas'ud, a Companion of the Holy Prophet, recited in a certain prayer forty verses of the chapter Al-Anfal ending with such and such words. These words in fact occur at the end of the fortieth verse of that chapter. We are also told that the Holy Prophet used to recite the last ten verses of the chapter Al-i-`Imran in his tahajjud (midnight) prayers (Fath al-Bari, Vol. 9 : 39). In many other reports we find reference to verses by numbers and chapters by names. Such references would have been meaningless if no arrangement had existed during the life-time of the Holy Prophet. Incidentally, this hadith also shows that the present arrangement is the same because the verses and chapters referred to appear exactly in the same place and order. The Holy Prophet gave directions that the Book should not be recited in less than seven days (Fath al-Bari, 9 : 83), that is one manzil should only be read in a day. Anas reports: "I was in the Saqif embassy at the time of conversion to Islam of Bani Saqif. . . . . The Holy Prophet said to us: "My manzil (portion) of the Holy Quran has come to me unexpectedly, so I do not intend to go out until I finish it." Thereupon we questioned the Companions of the Holy Prophet (may peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him) as to how they divided the Quran into manzils. They said: "We observe the following manzils; three chapters, and five chapters, and seven chapters, and nine chapters, and eleven chapters, and thirteen chapters, and all the remaining chapters beginning with Qaf, which are termed the Mufassal" (Bukhari, 66: 3 :19). This report establishes not only the existence of chapters but their division into seven manzils, which is observed to this day throughout the Muslim world. The first six manzils comprise forty-eight chapters and the last manzil sixty-six small chapters beginning with Sura Qaf. I should mention that Sura Qaf is really the fiftieth chapter. Anas did not include the first chapter, the Fatiha, the opening seven verses. This report clearly establishes that the chapters, like the verses, were arranged by the Holy Prophet himself during his life-time and they did not differ from the present arrangement. The Holy Quran was recited during the time of the Holy Prophet both in public prayers and otherwise. This would have been an impossibility had there been no arrangement of the Book. We know that in the life-time of the Holy Prophet, as indeed is the practice even to-day, the slightest mistake, made by the Imam leading the prayers, in the recitation of the Holy Quran, used to be corrected by those who followed him in prayers. Had there been no order or arrangement of the chapters and verses, this practice could never have come into existence. The objection that the Holy Quran was not completed till the death of the Holy Prophet is disposed of by a reference to the report of Anas already quoted. He spoke of the conversion of Bani Saqif, which did not take place till the ninth year of Hijra, in which year the chapter called the Immunity, admittedly the last in chronological order, was revealed. Hence at that time almost the entire Quran had been revealed and the division of manzils and chapters on the authority of the Holy Prophet supports the view that the present arrangement did exist at that time. Muir, a bigoted critic of Islam, after mentioning the fact that Ibn Masud had learned seventy Suras, from the Prophet's own lips, and that the Holy Prophet on his death-bed had recited seventy Suras, among which were the seven long ones (Muir, The Life of Mohammad 18), had to admit: "Still the fact remains, that the fragments themselves were strictly and exclusively Mohammad's own composition and were learned or recorded under his instructions; and this fact stamps the Koran, not merely as formed out of the Prophet's own words and sentences, but to a large extent, as his in relation to the context also" (Ibid., 19). (Italics are mine.) Theory of Abrogation: There are two verses in the Holy Quran which are generally deemed by Christian critics to be the basis of this theory. The first of these two verses is: "And when We change one communication for (another) communication, and Allah knows best what He reveals, they say you are only a forger" (The Holy Quran, 16: 101). Now the theory of abrogation has been applied only to such verses as lay down the Islamic Law, which were revealed exclusively at Madina. But the chapter containing this verse was revealed at Makka. It stands to reason, therefore, that the Law which had yet to be introduced could not be abrogated by a previous revelation; nor could a verse earlier in time refer to any such future abrogation. If we consider the context, it becomes apparent that this verse is dealing with the Holy Quran in its entirety and with the allegation of the opponents of the Holy Prophet: that he had forged the Holy Quran himself. The Book refutes it by asserting that because the communications received by earlier Prophets were, in fact, abrogated and another (the Holy Quran) was substituted in their place, non-believers alleged it to be a forgery. The next four verses make the position abundantly clear. The Holy Prophet is made to say: "The Holy Spirit has revealed it from your Lord with the truth, that it may establish those who believe, and as a guidance and good news for those who submit" (Ibid., 16: 102). The opponents of Islam did not style the Holy Prophet as a forger because certain verses had been abrogated, but because they alleged that someone else was teaching him (Ibid., 16: 103) and, in spite of this, he was representing it to be from God-a work of his own creation was being put forward as a Divine revelation. The Holy Quran controverts these allegations and points out that it is they who are liars, because God has abrogated the older communications, the Mosaic Law. The second verse which is alleged to support this theory makes the matter still more clear. It reads: "Whatever communications We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, We bring one better than it or like it. Do you not know that Allah has power over all things" (Ibid., 2 : 106). Here again, we must read the verse in the light of the context (the previous two sections: specially verses 90-91) and in particular the preceding verse: "Those who disbelieve from among the followers of the Book do not like, nor do the polytheists, that any good should be sent down (revealed) to you from your Lord, and Allah chooses especially whom He pleases for His mercy and Allah is the Lord of Mighty Grace" (Ibid., 2 : 105). The Holy Quran is dealing here with the contention of the Jews that they could not accept the Holy Prophet or the Holy Quran because it had not been revealed to an Israelite and that they could not accept a new code which would replace their Law. In verse 105 they are told that Allah chooses whom He pleases-an Israelite or a nonIsraelite; and in the verse in question they are informed that Allah has abrogated the Mosaic Law and replaced it with a better communication. The succeeding verse (Ibid., 2 : 107) then, by way of illustration, explains that in accordance with the laws of Nature the old order must give way to the new: thereby implying that the Mosaic Law which was given to a particular people for a particular object and for a particular time has been abrogated and replaced by a new and universal law. The old law, having been partly lost and forgotten, was being replaced by "one better than it or like it" and whatever portion of it remained was now abrogated. To construe the verse as abrogating the Quranic law is to do violence to its plain language. The words "or cause to be forgotten" cannot possibly refer to the Holy Quran at all because, as I have already mentioned, every verse as soon as it was revealed was reduced to writing and, therefore, could not be forgotten. Further, why should a verse be abrogated if one like it had to be revealed again? Besides, the Holy Quran itself asserts that it shall not be forgotten (Ibid., 87 : 6). On the other hand, it is a notorious fact that a good deal of the Torah and the Gospels had been completely lost and forgotten. These were replaced by better verses or verses like them; and such portions as were in existence were abrogated and replaced by the Holy Quran. It is worth noting that the only person who could really say that a particular verse of the Holy Quran had been abrogated was the Holy Prophet himself. He never said that any verse or any portion of the Holy Quran had become abrogated. On the other hand he, along with his Companions, continued to recite in prayers the whole of the Holy Quran as it exists today. It is clear, therefore, that he did not consider any verse of the Holy Quran as ever having been abrogated. The theory of abrogation of certain verses of the Holy Quran is so exploded that I will not carry the matter any further. (For a further study of the subject, the reader is referred to Maulvi Muhammad Ali's Religion of Islam, 35-44.) Rules of Quranic interpretation: A "Statute," says Maxwell in his well-known book on The Interpretation of Statutes, "is the will of the Legislature, and the fundamental rule of interpretation, to which all others are subordinate, is that a statute is to be expounded according to the intent of the Legislature. If the words of the statute are in themselves precise and unambiguous no more is necessary then to expound these words in their natural and ordinary sense." If we consider the case-law of the British and American Courts, we can deduce inter alia the following further rules of interpretation: 1. The words of a statute, when there is a doubt about their meaning, are to be understood in the sense in which they best harmonise with the subject of the enactment. "These legal presumptions," said Lord Bacon in his Advancement of Learning, "are beacons to be avoided-rather than as authorities to be followed." Sir William Blackstone, in his Laws of England, laid down that a statute contrary to natural laws, equity or reason, or repugnant or impossible to perform, must be deemed to be void; and there is no legal sanction for the supposition that every unjust and absurd consequence was within the contemplation of the law. These rules of interpretation, based as they are on principles of common sense, equity and justice, must be deemed to be of universal application. We do not find any inconsistency in the laws of nature. God made them according to a measure (The Holy Quran, 55 : 7). The Holy Quran drawing specific attention to the regularity and uniformity of the laws working in nature, says: "... You see no incongruity in the creation of the Beneficent God, then look again, can you see any disorder? Then turn back the eye again and again; your sight shall come back to you confused while it will get fatigued .... Does He not know Who created? And He is the Knower of the subtleties, the Aware" (Ibid., 67 : 3, 4, 14). These verses point to the existence of the Supreme Being as witnessed in the regularity and uniformity of the laws of nature, or in other words the absence of any inconsistency in them, and the succeeding verse calls special attention to the spiritual laws contained in the Book, which also work with uniformity. The laws of nature, nay creation itself, it has been said, are the acts of God: and divinely revealed books are the words of God. There cannot, therefore, be any inconsistency between the two, or in either of them, and if any interpretation produces such a result it must be rejected. I will presently deal with the rules of Quranic interpretation which have been laid down by Muslim divines; but the claims of the Holy Quran and the special rules of interpretation which it gives itself must be considered first. The Holy Quran claims to be a collection of the best teachings (Ibid., 39: 27) and a complete guide (Ibid., 10 : 37) from God, a Book which verifies the previous true revelation (Ibid., 2 : 89, 101, etc.) and replaces them (Ibid., 16: 101). It explains everything (Ibid., 16: 89) and is right directing (Ibid., 18 : 2). It settles all differences (Ibid., 16: 64) and was revealed so that all disputes might be judged and settled according to the directions contained in it (Ibid., 5 : 49). It further claims that, being a Divine revelation, it contains rules of guidance for humanity. It supports them with intelligent arguments (Ibid., 2 : 185) and needs no champion for its cause, for it meets all objections raised against it with clear proof and convincing arguments (Ibid., 25 : 33). The Book says: "Again, on Us (devolves) the explaining of it" (Ibid., 75 : 19). It is a distinguishing feature of the Holy Quran that it explains the wisdom of its teachings by means of arguments. It does not only state the basic doctrines and articles of faith, but it also demonstrates their truth by reasons. "This is a book," says the Holy Quran, "whose verses are established with wisdom and set forth with clearness." The Holy Quran also claims that its verses are conformable to others in its various parts (The Holy Quran, 39: 23), and that there is no inconsistency or discrepancy to be found in it (Ibid., 4 : 82). These claims, unique as they are - and no religious Book has ever put forward similar claims-establish more than anything else the Divine origin of the Book. The Holy Quran further says that it contains, inter alia, verses which are decisive (Ibid., 3 :7), and goes on to give its rule of interpretation in the following terms: "He it is Who has revealed the Book to you; some of its verses are decisive, they are the basis of the Book, and others are allegorical; then as for those in whose heart there is perversity, they follow the part of it which is allegorical seeking to mislead, and seeking to give it their own interpretation; but none knows its interpretation except Allah; and those who are firmly rooted in knowledge say: We believe in it, it is all from our Lord; and none do mind except those having understanding" (Ibid., 3 :7). It is significant that this verse occurs at the beginning of the third chapter of the Holy Quran, which deals with the birth and death of Jesus. It is due to an intentional and dishonest misinterpretation of the allegorical verses that Christian missionaries try to find support from the Holy Quran for their dogmatic beliefs. But the Holy Quran, some fourteen hundred years ago, pointed out that they only follow the allegorical part of it simply to mislead others. To believe and follow them regardless of the decisive verses, according to the Holy Quran, is a perversity which Muslims should avoid. The Holy Quran lays down certain fundamental principles of Islam and they are contained in the decisive verses. They form the basis of the Book. These principles are unchangeable and are stated in unambiguous terms. The allegorical verses must be interpreted in the light of the decisive verses, and no attempt should be made on the strength of these allegorical verses to set up a principle in conflict with the decisive verses. As the Book decides all matters, the explanation of the words and verses of the Holy Quran should therefore be sought from the Holy Quran itself. Thus the particular should follow the general, and the interpretation of the allegorical verses should be strictly in consonance with the decisive verses. These rules of interpretation are indicated by the words: it is all from Allah and none knows the interpretation except Allah. In other words, that interpretation would be the correct one, and should alone be accepted which renders the allegorical verses conformable to the other parts of the Holy Quran. Keeping these principles in mind Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad has explained the following rules of Quranic interpretation (in Barakat-ud-Du'a, 15-17): 1. A verse should be so interpreted as to be conformable with the other parts of the Book. Inconsistency, repugnancy, unreasonableness and unnaturalness should be avoided; and particularly all allegorical verses should be so interpreted as to become conformable with, and subject to, the decisive verses. Divine Origin of the Holy Quran: It is one of the favourite charges brought against Islam by Christian writers that it is less interesting than other religions because its very basis, the Holy Quran, is less original than the Scriptures of other religions. They try to account for various passages in the Book as originating from the Bible and other sources: in other words, they say that the Holy Quran was not a Divinely revealed Book, but was filled up with fabulous matters current among the Jews and Christians of the Seventh Century and thus the wild legends and garbled stories of earlier Scriptures were put forth as portions of Divine revelation. The Christian apologists try to explain everything; but the only elements they leave out or do not account for in their analysis of Islam are the Will of God and the character of the Holy Prophet. In their rather conjectural works they not only cut out the All-Pervading and All-Knowing Guide, but they also omit the very animating and inspiring soul whose personal character is a guarantee for the truth of his mission. If all religions of the past originated with God, they must have contained, in the first instance, nothing but the truth. Again, if in course of time their Scriptures lost most of their originality, as the Old and New Testaments, for example, admittedly have, they must nevertheless have retained some particles of truth in them. Is a religion, therefore, less true because it recognises itself in other garbs? Is the Book of that religion less original because it refers to or mentions all those particles of truth in the older Scriptures, which it claims to expand or supplant? Jesus himself asserted that he had come to fulfil, and not destroy, the Law of Moses. Would the Christian apologists admit that, on this ground, the religion he introduced into the world was false? It is strange, to say the least, that the avowed affinity of Christianity to Judaism has not protected Islam from the particular assault of Christian apologists. Do not the present-day Old and New Testaments contain in them an iota of Divine Truth? If Jews and Christians are willing to answer this in the negative, they are entitled to challenge the Divine origin of the Holy Quran, otherwise not. The Holy Quran claims that it verifies what has been revealed in the past (The Holy Quran, 46 : 12, 30); but, being the last revealed Book, it has distinguished the genuine from the spurious portions of the older Scriptures (Ibid., 2 : 185). The Holy Quran speaks of itself as the "pure pages wherein are all the right Books" (Ibid., 98 : 2-3); and as bringing out what was concealed by Jews and Christians in their books (Ibid., 5 : 48); and finally, as the last Book, it replaced them (Ibid., 16 : 101) because of the innumerable interpolations in them. Likewise, the Holy Prophet never claimed to be the only Prophet of God. Indeed, we are told that every nation of the world had prophets sent to them (10: 47; 16: 36 ; 35 : 24). Says the Holy Quran: "Surely We have revealed to you as We revealed to Noah, and the prophets after him, and We revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and Jesus and Job and Jonah and Aaron and Solomon, and We gave David a scripture. And (We sent) apostles We have mentioned to you before and apostles We have not mentioned to you; and to Moses Allah addressed His word, speaking (to him). We sent apostles as the givers of good news and as warners, so that people should not have a plea against Allah after the coming of apostles, and Allah is Mighty, Wise" (Ibid., 4 : 163-165). The charge of want of Divine origin or originality has been levelled against the Holy Quran, simply because the Bible does not lay any claims to be of Divine Inspiration and Christians have to admit human element in every part of it. The immense variety of its readings, the discrepant versions, the dishonest translations, the absurd dogmas and the conflicting doctrines-all these tax the faith of a Christian when he is faced with the claims of the Holy Quran, its uniformity, its universality and toleration; and he is left with no alternative but to attack the character of the Holy Prophet as "an impostor" and the Holy Quran as the creation of this "master mind" and thus "a forgery." But the Holy Quran and the Holy Prophet present a unique aspect: we can trace both of them historically; step by step and day by day. This peculiarity, which constitutes their strength, furnishes a complete answer to the charge of Christians. We know the conduct of the Holy Prophet from his childhood to his death from facts in history, and we can proceed to judgement whether such a man could possible be "an impostor" and whether he could falsely represent "a creation of his mind" as the Book of God. I will first deal with certain aspects of his life, which conclusively prove the contrary and then support it with a discussion of the internal evidence from the Holy Quran. The life of the Holy Prophet before the Call bears testimony to his character. He possessed a modesty of deportment and purity of manners rare among the people of his time. Endowed with a refined mind and delicate taste, reserved and meditative, he lived a quiet pious life. The vulgar sports of the young never attracted him and his fair character, honourable bearing and honesty of purpose, won for him the approbation of his fellow citizens, and he received, by common consent, at the age of twenty, the title of Al-Amin, the Trustworthy. It is because of his stainless and noble character that it could be said: "Say: Indeed, I have lived a life-time among you before it: do you not then understand?" (The Holy Quran, 10 : 16). When the Holy Prophet received the Divine revelation to preach openly (Ibid., 5 : 67 ; 74: 2), and in particular to his relations (The Holy Quran, 26: 214), he appealed to the same facts. Climbing one day, on Mt. Safa, he summoned every tribe of Quraish by name till all the tribes had assembled there. "Have you", asked the Holy Prophet, "ever heard me tell a lie?" They replied with one voice in the negative and pointed out that he was Al-Amin. "Would you believe me," then enquired the Holy Prophet, "if I tell you that a great enemy lies in the yonder valley, behind the mountains, in wait to attack you?" The reply was: "Yes, certainly; for we have never found you telling a lie." "Then," said the Holy Prophet, "know that I am a wamer unto you of an appalling doom, unless you amend your ways." At this, as was to be expected, they first mocked at him, then became furious and left him (Sirat Ibn Hisham, 148-9). See Bukhari, 65: 36: 2). The life of the Holy Prophet, from the moment of his Call to the time of his death, bears testimony to his sincerity of purpose. I will only mention a few incidents of his life. Let me begin with his first Call. It was his custom to withdraw into the desert every year during the month of Ramadan, for meditation and prayer. In the mount of Hira (see illustration, page 90) he often remained whole nights, plunged in the profoundest thought, deep in communion with the Unseen yet All-Pervading Power. In the still hours of the night, in the depth of his solitude, he heard the Call: Read. He simply and truthfully replied: "I cannot read." Then came the first revelation: "Read in the name of thy Lord, who created" (The Holy Quran, 96: 1). What were his feelings on this occasion? Not those of a man who wished to be a prophet, not those of an impostor, certainly! He had not as yet realised his mission. A severe conflict wrung his heart. Trembling, with the words which had been spoken to him engraved on his heart, he went home to his wife Hazrat Khadijah and cried: "Cover me with cloth! Cover me with cloth!" and he told her what had happened and said: "I am afraid for my life." She covered him as directed and replied: "God is my protection, O Abul Qasim, He will surely not let such a thing befall thee, for thou speakest the truth, keepest faith and leadest a good life. Thou art kind to thy relations and friends, and dost not return evil for evil. What hath happened to thee? Hast thou seen anything?" (Bukhari, 1:3; Muslim, 2 : 88). Hazrat Khadijah urged him to be glad instead of sorrowful, for she at once believed with all her heart that he had been chosen to be the Prophet of her people. During a period of some six months, called Fatrah, the Holy Prophet did not receive any revelation. This period pressed heavily on his mind for he longed for the heavenly voice to speak again. At last it came and burdened him with a responsibility the extent and consequence of which he did not then know. He was commanded: "O you who are wrapped up! Arise and warn" (The Holy Quran, 74: 1-2). The Holy Prophet then became alive to the mission entrusted to him, and answered the Call. He lost all thoughts of himself, and his life henceforth was devoted entirely to the cause of humanity. During the first three years of his mission he opened his mind only to those who were somewhat attached to him. Then he gathered his tribe and delivered the message. He met with scant success, but the denunciation of their idols lashed them into fury. At first they boycotted him. Then they insulted and outraged him-they even, to mention only one incident, heaped dirt on his head. His daughter, Hazrat Fatimah, wiped it off and, as she did so, wept. The Holy Prophet seeing it comforted her and said: "My daughter, weep not: for verily the Lord will be thy father's helper." The Holy Prophet continued to preach with an unswerving purpose and a small band of followers gathered round him. Amidst frightful persecutions he held to the path of reproof and reform. The Quraish, at last realising to some extent the hopelessness of their task, held a council. They called in a body on the Holy Prophet and Utba, their leader, addressed him thus: "O son of my brother! Thou art distinguished by thy qualities and thy descent. Now thou hast sown division among our people and cast dissension in our families; thou denouncest our gods and goddesses; thou dost tax our ancestors with impiety. We have a proposition to make thee. If thou wishest to acquire riches by this affair, we will collect a fortune larger than is possessed by any of us; if thou desirest honour and dignity, we shall make thee our chief and shall not do a thing without thee. If thou desirest dominion and power, we shall make thee king and thou shalt rule over us. If thou desirest a woman, name her and we will bring her to thee; point to her and she shall be in thine arms" (Sirat Ibn Hisham, 92). What a wonderful opportunity for a hypocrite or an impostor! He could have been the overlord of Arabia; and after establishing himself, he could have forced his views on them. But the Holy Prophet was neither a hypocrite nor an impostor. He stuck to the straight path; and in reply he recited the first eight verses of the forty-first chapter of the Holy Quran which run thus: "The Praised, the Blessed God. This is a revelation from the Beneficent and Most Merciful God. A book the verses whereof are distinctly explained, an Arabic Quran, for a people who understand; a herald of good news and a warner, but most of them turn aside and so they hear not. And they say: Our hearts are veiled from that to what you call us, and there is a deafness in our ears and a veil hangs between us and thee; so act thou as thou shalt think best; we shall act according to our own opinions. Say: Verily I am only a man like unto you. It is revealed to me that your God is One God; therefore follow the right way to Him and ask pardon of Him for what is past, and woe to those who worship many gods (and to those), who give not alms, and believe not in the life to come. (But as for those) who believe and work righteousness, they shall receive an everlasting reward" (The Holy Quran, 41 :1-8). The Quraish expelled the Holy Prophet from the Ka'ba, and went in a body to his uncle, Abu Talib, and addressed him thus: "We respect thine age and thy rank but our respect for thee has bounds; and verily, we can have no further patience with they nephew's abuse of our gods; therefore, do thou either prevent him from so doing, or thyself take part with him, so that we may settle he matter by fight, until one of the two parties is exterminated" (Ibid., 96). Abu Talib sent for the Holy Prophet and appealed to him to renounce the task he had undertaken. Imagine the feelings of Muhammad. On the one hand were the Makkans his most cruel persecutors ever ready to kill him if they could. There is his uncle, old and weary, unable to protect him any longer, appealing to him to give up his work; and there is the Almighty God commanding him to preach His Word fearlessly. A very hard moment of trial, indeed. Finally, the Holy Prophet replied: "O my uncle! if they place the sun on my right hand, and the moon on my left to force me to renounce my work, verily I will not desist an iota therefrom till Allah make manifest His cause, or I perish in the attempt" (Ibid., 96). Abu Talib died in 619 CE, and his death became the signal for the Quraish to redouble their persecution. Reduced to the last extremities for want of provisions and water the Holy Prophet had to leave Makka. Accompanied by Zaid, his freedman, he proceeded to Taif and invited the people of that city to follow him. They hooted him through the streets, and pelted him with stones, and at last compelled him to leave the city pursued by a relentless rabble. Blood flowed from both of his legs; and Zaid, endeavouring to shield him, was wounded in the head. The mob did not desist until they had chased him for some miles. Wounded and bleeding, footsore and weary, he betook himself to prayer. Raising his hands towards heaven, and with tears streaming from his eyes, he uttered the following touching supplication: "O Lord! Guide my people on the right path. They do not know me; make them understand, and do not forsake them. Perchance some of them will see the light and pay heed to Thy Word ... O Thou Most Merciful God! I seek refuge in the light of Thy countenance, by which all darkness is dispersed and peace cometh here and hereafter. Solve my difficulties as it pleaseth Thee; for there is no power, no help, but in Thee" (Sirat Ibn Hisham, 147). Dealing with this incident of Taif, Sir William Muir says: "There is something lofty and heroic in this journey of Mohammad to At-Taif, a solitary man, despised and rejected by his own people, going boldly forth in the name of God ... and summoning an idolatrous city to repent and support his mission. It sheds a strong light on the intensity of his belief in the divine origin of his calling" (Muir, The Life of Mohammad 112, 113). (Italics are mine.) The Holy Prophet returned to Makka, but as time rolled on, life there became impossible for him and his followers. He advised his Companions to go to Abyssinia, and they did; but he himself with a few of the followers remained at his post. Later on, he and his followers were invited by two tribes of Madina, the Khazraj and the Aus, to go to their city. In similar circumstances any other man would have made any sacrifice to get their shelter, would have agreed to any terms to procure their protection. But not so with the Holy Prophet. Before accepting their offer he took from them a pledge-called the Pledge of the Akaba - in the following terms: "We will not worship any but the One God. We will not steal, neither will we commit adultery, nor kill our children; we will not slander in anywise, nor will we disobey the Prophet in anything that is right" (Sirat Ibn Hisham, 151). It is noteworthy that the members of these two tribes were not asked by the Holy Prophet to defend or protect him or his followers. The study of Muhammad in history is a subject in itself and it is really beyond the scope of this book. I can here only discuss the question of his sincerity. The Christian critics of Islam have debated at great length regarding this question. They are compelled to admit indisputable facts relating to his life. But to question his sincerity in face of these admissions is really paradoxical. Could anyone have done what the Holy Prophet did without the most profound faith in the reality of goodness of his cause? There is not a single trait in his character which Christian calumny can couple with imposture: on the other hand there is overwhelming evidence to prove that the Holy Prophet himself believed in what he preached to be the Truth. Even Muir has to admit that: "The first conception by Mohammad of a revelation from heaven ... leaves on the mind no doubt of his sincerity and earnest searching after truth at this period of his life" (Muir, The Life of Mohammad, 53) Gibbon, in his Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, says that no prophet ever passed through so severe an ordeal as did Muhammad, since he first presented himself as the Prophet of God to those who were conversant with him-those who knew him best: his wife, his freed slaves, his cousins and his earliest friends. Muir, while agreeing with Sprenger that "the faith of Abu Bakr is the greatest guarantee of the sincerity of Mohammad in the beginning of his career, and indeed … throughout his life," goes on to say: "It is strongly corroborative of Mohammad's sincerity that the earliest converts to Islam were not only of upright character, but his own bosom friends and people of his own household; who, intimately connected with his life, could not fail otherwise to have detected those discrepancies which ever more or less exist between the professions of the hypocritical deceiver abroad and his actions at home" (Muir, The Life of Mohammad, 55). George Elliot has said: "No man, whether prophet, statesman or popular preacher, ever yet kept a prolonged hold wi | ||
