But those who hurt Allâh’s Messenger (Muhammad PBUH) will have a painful torment. [The Noble Qur’an Al-Tawbah 09:61]
You should know this man
You may be an atheist or an
agnostic; or you may belong to any of the religious denominations that
exist in the world today. You may be a Communist or a believer in
democracy and freedom.
No matter who you are, and no
matter what your ideological and political beliefs, personal and social
habits happen to be. You must still know this man.
Encyclopedia Britannica
confirms: “…a mass of detail in the early sources shows that he was an
honest and upright man who had gained the respect and loyalty of others
who were likewise honest and upright men.”(Vol: 12)
Bernard Shaw said about him:
“He must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe that if a man like
him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would
succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it much-needed
peace and happiness”. (The Genuine Islam, Singapore, Vol. 1, No. 8, 1936)
He was by far the most
remarkable man that ever set foot on this earth. He preached a religion,
founded a State, built a nation, laid down a moral code, initiated
numerous social and political reforms, established a powerful and
dynamic society to practice and represent his teachings and completely
revolutionized the worlds of human thought and behavior for all times to
come. His name is Muhammad.
Born in Arabia in the year 570
CE, he started his mission of preaching the religion of Truth, Islam
(submission to One God) at the age of forty and departed from this world
when he was sixty-three.
During this short period of 23
years of his prophethood, he changed the entire Arabian peninsula from
paganism and idolatry to the worship of One God; from tribal quarrels
and wars to national solidarity and cohesion; from drunkenness and
wickedness to sobriety and piety; from lawlessness and anarchy to
disciplined living; from utter bankruptcy to the highest standards of
moral excellence. Human history has never known such a complete
transformation of people or a place before or since – and imagine all
these unbelievable wonders took place in just over two decades.
La Martine, the renowned historian, speaking on The Essentials or Human Greatness,
said: “If greatness of purpose, smallness of means and astounding
results are the three criteria of human genius, who could dare to
compare any great man in modern history with Muhammad? The most famous
men created arms, laws and empires only. They founded, if anything at
all, no more than material powers which often crumbled away before their
eyes. This man moved not only armies, legislations, empires, peoples
and dynasties, but millions of men in one-third of the (then)
inhabited world; and more than that, he moved the altars, the gods, the
religions, the ideas, the beliefs and souls … his forbearance in
victory, his ambition, which was entirely devoted to one idea and in no
manner striving for an empire; his endless prayers, his mystic
conversations with God, his death and his triumph after death — all
these attest not to an impostor, but to a firm conviction which gave him
the power to restore a dogma. This dogma was twofold, the unity of God
and the immateriality of God; the former telling what God is, and the
latter telling what God is not; the one overthrowing false gods with the
sword, the other starting an idea with the words.
Philosopher, orator, apostle,
legislator, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational dogmas, of
a cult without images, the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and of
one spiritual empire that is Muhammad. As regards all the standards by
which human greatness may be measured, we may well ask, is there any man
greater than he?” (La Martine, Historic de la Turquie, Paris, 1854, Vol. II, pp. 276-277)
The world has had its share of
great personalities. However, these were one-sided figures who
distinguished themselves in one or two fields, such as religious thought
or military leadership. The lives and teachings of these great
personalities of the world are shrouded in the mist of time. There is so
much speculation about the time and place of their birth, the mode and
style of their life, the nature and detail of their teachings and the
degree and measure of their success or failure that it is impossible for
humanity to reconstruct accurately the lives and teachings of these
men.
Not so this man. Muhammad, , accomplished
so much in such diverse fields of human thought and behavior in the
fullest blaze of human history. Every detail of his private life and
public utterances has been accurately documented and faithfully
preserved to our day. The authenticity of the records so preserved is
vouched for not only by the faithful followers, but also by his
prejudiced critics.
Muhammad, , was a
religious teacher, a social reformer, a moral guide, an administrative
colossus, a faithful friend, a wonderful companion, a devoted husband, a
loving father – all in one. No other man in history ever excelled or
equaled him in any of these different aspects of life – but it was only
for the selfless personality of Muhammad, , to achieve such incredible perfection.
Mahatma Gandhi, speaking on the character of Muhammad, , says in Young India;
“I wanted to know the best of
one who holds today undisputed sway over the hearts of millions of
mankind… I became more than convinced that it was not the sword that won
a place for Islam in those days in the scheme of life. It was the rigid
simplicity, the utter self-effacement of the Prophet, the scrupulous
regard for his pledges, his intense devotion to his friends and
followers, his intrepidity, his fearlessness, his absolute trust in God
and in his own mission. These and not the sword carried everything
before them and surmounted every obstacle.
When I closed the 2nd volume (of the Prophet’s biography), I was sorry there was not more for me to read of the great life”.
Thomas Carlyle, in his Heroes and Hero-Worship,
was simply amazed as to: “How one man single handedly, could weld
warring tribes and wandering Bedouins into a most powerful and civilized
nation.”
Diwan Chand Sharma wrote:
“Muhammad was the soul of kindness, and his influence was felt and never
forgotten by those around him.” (D. C. Sharma, ‘The Prophets of the East’, Calcutta, 1935, pp. 12).
Speaking on the aspect of equality before God in Islam, the famous poetess of India, Sarojini Naidu says:
“It was the first religion that
preached and practiced democracy; for, in the mosque, when the call for
prayer is sounded and worshippers are gathered together, the democracy
of Islam is embodied five times a day when the peasant and king kneel
side by side and proclaim: God Alone is Great.
I have been struck over again by this indivisible unity of Islam that makes man instinctively a brother.” (S. Naidu, Ideals of Islam, vide Speeches & Writings, Madras, 1918, P. 169).
The world has not hesitated to
raise to divinity, individuals whose lives and missions have been lost
in legend. Historically, none of these legends achieved even a fraction
of what Muhammad, , accomplished. And all his striving was for
the sole purpose of uniting humanity for the worship of One God on the
codes of moral excellence. Muhammad, , or his followers never at any
time claimed that he was a Son of God or God-incarnate – but he always
was and is even today considered as only a Messenger chosen by God.
Michael H. Hart in his recently
published book on ratings of men who contributed towards the benefit
and upliftment of man writes: “My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of
the world’s most influential persons may surprise some readers and may
be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was
supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels”. (M.H.
Hart, ‘The 100: A ranking of the most influential persons in History’, New York, 1978 pp.33).
Today after a lapse of fourteen
centuries, the life and teachings of Muhammad, , have survived without
the slightest loss, alteration or interpolation. They offer the same
undying hope for treating humankind’s many ills, which they did when he
was alive. This is not a claim of the followers of Muhammad, , but also
the inescapable conclusion forced upon by a critical and unbiased
history.
The least you could know as a
thinking and concerned human being is to stop for a moment and ask
yourself: Could these statements sounding so extraordinary and
revolutionary be really true? And supposing they really are true and you
did not know this man Muhammad, , or hear about him, isn’t it time you
respond to this tremendous challenge and put in some effort to know him?
It will cost you nothing but it may prove to be the beginning of a completely new era in your life.
We invite you to make a discovery of this wonderful man, Muhammad, , the like of whom never walked on the face of this earth.
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