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The Greatest Prophet Muhammad saw

A.P.I AL FADHLU / 10/11/2012 / Islam and Muslims

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<i>"Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." [ Qur'an 48:29]</i></div>
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IN the annals of men, individuals have not been lacking who 
conspicuously devoted their lives to the socio-religious reform of their
 connected peoples. We find them in every epoch and in all lands. In 
India, there lived those who transmitted to the world the Vedas, and 
there was also the great Gautama Buddha; China had its Confucius; the 
Avesta was produced in Iran. Babylonia gave to the world one of the 
greatest reformers, the Prophet <a href="http://alfadhlu.blogspot.com/2012/10/nabi-ibrahim-as.html" target="_blank">Abraham</a> (not to speak of such of his 
ancestors as Enoch and Noah about whom we have very scanty information).
 The Jewish people may rightly be proud of a long series of reformers: 
<a href="http://alfadhlu.blogspot.com/2012/10/nabi-musa-as.html" target="_blank">Moses</a>, Samuel, <a href="http://alfadhlu.blogspot.com/2012/10/nabi-dawud-as.html" target="_blank">David</a>, <a href="http://alfadhlu.blogspot.com/2012/10/nabi-sulaiman-as.html" target="_blank">Solomon</a>, and Jesus among <a href="http://alfadhlu.blogspot.com/search/label/Stories%20of%20the%20Prophets" target="_blank">others</a>.</div>
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2. Two points are to note: Firstly these reformers claimed in general
 to be the bearers each of a Divine mission, and they left behind them 
sacred books incorporating codes of life for the guidance of their 
peoples. Secondly there followed fratricidal wars, and massacres and 
genocides became the order of the day, causing more or less a complete 
loss of these Divine messages. As to the books of Abraham, we know them 
only by the name; and as for the books of Moses, records tell us how 
they were repeatedly destroyed and only partly restored.</div>
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Concept of God:</h2>
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3. If one should judge from the relics of the past already brought to
 light of the homo sapiens , one finds that man has always been 
conscious of the existence of a Supreme Being, the Master and Creator of
 all. Methods and approaches may have differed, but the people of every 
epoch have left proofs of their attempts to obey God. Communication with
 the Omnipresent yet invisible God has also been recognised as possible 
in connection with a small fraction of men with noble and exalted 
spirits. Whether this communication assumed the nature of an incarnation
 of the Divinity or simply resolved itself into a medium of reception of
 Divine messages (through inspiration or revelation), the purpose in 
each case was the guidance of the people. It was but natural that the 
interpretations and explanations of certain systems should have proved 
more vital and convincing than others.</div>
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3/a. Every system of metaphysical thought develops its own 
terminology. In the course of time terms acquire a significance hardly 
contained in the word and translations fall short of their purpose. Yet 
there is no other method to make people of one group understand the 
thoughts of another. Non-Muslim readers in particular are requested to 
bear in mind this aspect which is a real yet unavoidable handicap.</div>
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4. By the end of the 6th century, after the birth of Jesus Christ, 
men had already made great progress in diverse walks of life. At that 
time there were some religions which openly proclaimed that they were 
reserved for definite races and groups of men only, of course they bore 
no remedy for the ills of humanity at large. There were also a few which
 claimed universality, but declared that the salvation of man lay in the
 renunciation of the world. These were the religions for the elite, and 
catered for an extremely limited number of men. We need not speak of 
regions where there existed no religion at all, where atheism and 
materialism reigned supreme, where the thought was solely of occupying 
one self with one's own pleasures, without any regard or consideration 
for the rights of others.</div>
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Arabia:</h2>
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5. A perusal of the map of the major hemisphere (from the point of 
view of the proportion of land to sea), shows the Arabian Peninsula 
lying at the confluence of the three great continents of Asia, Africa 
and Europe. At the time in question. this extensive Arabian subcontinent
 composed mostly of desert areas was inhabited by people of settled 
habitations as well as nomads. Often it was found that members of the 
same tribe were divided into these two groups, and that they preserved a
 relationship although following different modes of life. The means of 
subsistence in Arabia were meagre. The desert had its handicaps, and 
trade caravans were features of greater importance than either 
agriculture or industry. This entailed much travel, and men had to 
proceed beyond the peninsula to Syria, Egypt, Abyssinia, Iraq, Sind, 
India and other lands.</div>
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6. We do not know much about the Libyanites of Central Arabia, but 
Yemen was rightly called Arabia Felix . Having once been the seat of the
 flourishing civilizations of Sheba and Ma'in even before the foundation
 of the city of Rome had been laid, and having later snatched from the 
Byzantians and Persians several provinces, greater Yemen which had 
passed through the hey-day of its existence, was however at this time 
broken up into innumerable principalities, and even occupied in part by 
foreign invaders. The Sassanians of Iran, who had penetrated into Yemen 
had already obtained possession of Eastern Arabia. There was 
politico-social chaos at the capital (Mada'in = Ctesiphon), and this 
found reflection in all her territories. Northern Arabia had succumbed 
to Byzantine influences, and was faced with its own particular problems.
 Only Central Arabia remained immune from the demoralising effects of 
foreign occupation.</div>
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7. In this limited area of Central Arabia, the existence of the 
triangle of Mecca-Ta'if-Madinah seemed something providential. Mecca, 
desertic, deprived of water and the amenities of agriculture in physical
 features represented Africa and the burning Sahara. Scarcely fifty 
miles from there, Ta'if presented a picture of Europe and its frost. 
Madinah in the North was not less fertile than even the most temperate 
of Asiatic countries like Syria. If climate has any influence on human 
character, this triangle standing in the middle of the major hemisphere 
was, more than any other region of the earth, a miniature reproduction 
of the entire world. And here was born a descendant of the Babylonian 
Abraham, and the Egyptian Hagar, Muhammad the Prophet of Islam, a Meccan
 by origin and yet with stock related, both to Madinah and Ta'if.</div>
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Religion:</h2>
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8. From the point of view of religion, Arabia was idolatrous; only a 
few individuals had embraced religions like Christianity, Mazdaism, etc.
 The Meccans did possess the notion of the One God, but they believed 
also that idols had the power to intercede with Him. Curiously enough, 
they did not believe in the Resurrection and Afterlife. They had 
preserved the rite of the pilgrimage to the House of the One God, the 
Ka'bah, an institution set up under divine inspiration by their ancestor
 Abraham, yet the two thousand years that separated them from Abraham 
had caused to degenerate this pilgrimage into the spectacle of a 
commercial fair and an occasion of senseless idolatry which far from 
producing any good, only served to ruin their individual behaviour, both
 social and spiritual.</div>
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Society:</h2>
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9. In spite of the comparative poverty in natural resources, Mecca 
was the most developed of the three points of the triangle. Of the 
three, Mecca alone had a city-state, governed by a council of ten 
hereditary chiefs who enjoyed a clear division of power. (There was a 
minister of foreign relations, a minister guardian of the temple, a 
minister of oracles, a minister guardian of offerings to the temple, one
 to determine the torts and the damages payable, another in charge of 
the municipal council or parliament to enforce the decisions of the 
ministries. There were also ministers in charge of military affairs like
 custodianship of the flag, leadership of the cavalry etc.). As well 
reputed caravan-leaders, the Meccans were able to obtain permission from
 neighbouring empires like Iran, Byzantium and Abyssinia - and to enter 
into agreements with the tribes that lined the routes traversed by the 
caravans - to visit their countries and transact import and export 
business. They also provided escorts to foreigners when they passed 
through their country as well as the territory of allied tribes, in 
Arabia (cf. Ibn Habib, Muhabbar ). Although not interested much in the 
preservation of ideas and records in writing, they passionately 
cultivated arts and letters like poetry, oratory discourses and folk 
tales. Women were generally well treated, they enjoyed the privilege of 
possessing property in their own right, they gave their consent to 
marriage contracts, in which they could even add the condition of 
reserving their right to divorce their husbands. They could remarry when
 widowed or divorced. Burying girls alive did exist in certain classes, 
but that was rare.</div>
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Birth of the Prophet:</h2>
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10. It was in the midst of such conditions and environments that 
Muhammad was born in 569 after Christ. His father, 'Abdullah had died 
some weeks earlier, and it was his grandfather who took him in charge. 
According to the prevailing custom, the child was entrusted to a Bedouin
 foster-mother, with whom he passed several years in the desert. All 
biographers state that the infant prophet sucked only one breast of his 
foster-mother, leaving the other for the sustenance of his 
foster-brother. When the child was brought back home, his mother, 
Aminah, took him to his maternal uncles at Madinah to visit the tomb of 
'Abdullah. During the return journey, he lost his mother who died a 
sudden death. At Mecca, another bereavement awaited him, in the death of
 his affectionate grandfather. Subjected to such privations, he was at 
the age of eight, consigned at last to the care of his uncle, Abu-Talib,
 a man who was generous of nature but always short of resources and 
hardly able to provide for his family.</div>
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11. Young Muhammad had therefore to start immediately to earn his 
livelihood; he served as a shepherd boy to some neighbours. At the age 
of ten he accompanied his uncle to Syria when he was leading a caravan 
there. No other travels of Abu-Talib are mentioned, but there are 
references to his having set up a shop in Mecca. (Ibn Qutaibah, Ma'arif 
). It is possible that Muhammad helped him in this enterprise also.</div>
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12. By the time he was twenty-five, Muhammad had become well known in
 the city for the integrity of his disposition and the honesty of his 
character. A rich widow, Khadijah, took him in her employ and consigned 
to him her goods to be taken for sale to Syria. Delighted with the 
unusual profits she obtained as also by the personal charms of her 
agent, she offered him her hand. According to divergent reports, she was
 either 28 or 40 years of age at that time, (medical reasons prefer the 
age of 28 since she gave birth to five more children). The union proved 
happy. Later, we see him sometimes in the fair of Hubashah (Yemen), and 
at least once in the country of the 'Abd al-Qais (Bahrain-Oman), as 
mentioned by Ibn Hanbal. There is every reason to believe that this 
refers to the great fair of Daba (Oman), where, according to Ibn 
al-Kalbi (cf. Ibn Habib, Muhabbar ), the traders of China, of Hind and 
Sind (India, Pakistan), of Persia, of the East and the West assembled 
every year, travelling both by land and sea. There is also mention of a 
commercial partner of Muhammad at Mecca. This person, Sa'ib by name 
reports: "We relayed each other; if Muhammad led the caravan, he did not
 enter his house on his return to Mecca without clearing accounts with 
me; and if I led the caravan, he would on my return enquire about my 
welfare and speak nothing about his own capital entrusted to me."</div>
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An Order of Chivalry:</h2>
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13. Foreign traders often brought their goods to Mecca for sale. One 
day a certain Yemenite (of the tribe of Zubaid) improvised a satirical 
poem against some Meccans who had refused to pay him the price of what 
he had sold, and others who had not supported his claim or had failed to
 come to his help when he was victimised. Zuhair, uncle and chief of the
 tribe of the Prophet, felt great remorse on hearing this just satire. 
He called for a meeting of certain chieftains in the city, and organized
 an order of chivalry, called Hilf al-fudul , with the aim and object of
 aiding the oppressed in Mecca, irrespective of their being dwellers of 
the city or aliens. Young Muhammad became an enthusiastic member of the 
organisation. Later in life he used to say: "I have participated in it, 
and I am not prepared to give up that privilege even against a herd of 
camels; if somebody should appeal to me even today, by virtue of that 
pledge, I shall hurry to his help."</div>
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Beginning of Religious Consciousness:</h2>
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14. Not much is known about the religious practices of Muhammad until
 he was thirty-five years old, except that he had never worshipped 
idols. This is substantiated by all his biographers. It may be stated 
that there were a few others in Mecca, who had likewise revolted against
 the senseless practice of paganism, although conserving their fidelity 
to the Ka'bah as the house dedicated to the One God by its builder 
Abraham.</div>
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15. About the year 605 of the Christian era, the draperies on the 
outer wall of the Ka'bah took fire. The building was affected and could 
not bear the brunt of the torrential rains that followed. The 
reconstruction of the Ka'bah was thereupon undertaken. Each citizen 
contributed according to his means; and only the gifts of honest gains 
were accepted. Everybody participated in the work of construction, and 
Muhammad's shoulders were injured in the course of transporting stones. 
To identify the place whence the ritual of circumambulation began, there
 had been set a black stone in the wall of the Ka'bah. dating probably 
from the time of Abraham himself. There was rivalry among the citizens 
for obtaining the honour of transposing this stone in its place. When 
there was danger of blood being shed, somebody suggested leaving the 
matter to Providence, and accepting the arbitration of him who should 
happen to arrive there first. It chanced that Muhammad just then turned 
up there for work as usual. He was popularly known by the appellation of
 al-Amin (the honest), and everyone accepted his arbitration without 
hesitation. Muhammad placed a sheet of cloth on the ground, put the 
stone on it and asked the chiefs of all the tribes in the city to lift 
together the cloth. Then he himself placed the stone in its proper 
place, in one of the angles of the building, and everybody was 
satisfied.</div>
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16. It is from this moment that we find Muhammad becoming more and 
more absorbed in spiritual meditations. Like his grandfather, he used to
 retire during the whole month of Ramadan to a cave in Jabal-an-Nur 
(mountain of light). The cave is called `Ghar-i-Hira' or the cave of 
research. There he prayed, meditated, and shared his meagre provisions 
with the travellers who happened to pass by.</div>
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Revelation:</h2>
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17. He was forty years old, and it was the fifth consecutive year 
since his annual retreats, when one night towards the end of the month 
of Ramadan, an angel came to visit him, and announced that God had 
chosen him as His messenger to all mankind. The angel taught him the 
mode of ablutions, the way of worshipping God and the conduct of prayer.
 He communicated to him the following Divine message:</div>
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With the name of God, the Most Merciful, the All-Merciful. 
Read: with the name of thy Lord Who created, 
Created man from what clings, 
Read: and thy Lord is the Most Bounteous, 
Who taught by the pen, 
Taught man what he knew not. (Quran 96:1-5)</div>
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18. Deeply affected, he returned home and related to his wife what 
had happened, expressing his fears that it might have been something 
diabolic or the action of evil spirits. She consoled him, saying that he
 had always been a man of charity and generosity, helping the poor, the 
orphans, the widows and the needy, and assured him that God would 
protect him against all evil.</div>
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19. Then came a pause in revelation, extending over three years. The 
Prophet must have felt at first a shock, then a calm, an ardent desire, 
and after a period of waiting, a growing impatience or nostalgia. The 
news of the first vision had spread and at the pause the sceptics in the
 city had begun to mock at him and cut bitter jokes. They went so far as
 to say that God had forsaken him.</div>
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20. During the three years of waiting. the Prophet had given himself 
up more and more to prayers and to spiritual practices. The revelations 
were then resumed and God assured him that He had not at all forsaken 
him: on the contrary it was He Who had guided him to the right path: 
therefore he should take care of the orphans and the destitute, and 
proclaim the bounty of God on him (cf. Q. 93:3-11). This was in reality 
an order to preach. Another revelation directed him to warn people 
against evil practices, to exhort them to worship none but the One God, 
and to abandon everything that would displease God (Q. 74:2-7). Yet 
another revelation commanded him to warn his own near relatives (Q. 
26:214); and: "Proclaim openly that which thou art commanded, and 
withdraw from the Associators (idolaters). Lo! we defend thee from the 
scoffers" (15:94-5). According to Ibn Ishaq, the first revelation (n. 
17) had come to the Prophet during his sleep, evidently to reduce the 
shock. Later revelations came in full wakefulness.</div>
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The Mission:</h2>
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21. The Prophet began by preaching his mission secretly first among 
his intimate friends, then among the members of his own tribe and 
thereafter publicly in the city and suburbs. He insisted on the belief 
in One Transcendent God, in Resurrection and the Last Judgement. He 
invited men to charity and beneficence. He took necessary steps to 
preserve through writing the revelations he was receiving, and ordered 
his adherents also to learn them by heart. This continued all through 
his life, since the Quran was not revealed all at once, but in fragments
 as occasions arose.</div>
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22. The number of his adherents increased gradually, but with the 
denunciation of paganism, the opposition also grew intenser on the part 
of those who were firmly attached to their ancestral beliefs. This 
opposition degenerated in the course of time into physical torture of 
the Prophet and of those who had embraced his religion. These were 
stretched on burning sands, cauterized with red hot iron and imprisoned 
with chains on their feet. Some of them died of the effects of torture, 
but none would renounce his religion. In despair, the Prophet Muhammad 
advised his companions to quit their native town and take refuge abroad,
 in Abyssinia, "where governs a just ruler, in whose realm nobody is 
oppressed" (Ibn Hisham). Dozens of Muslims profited by his advice, 
though not all. These secret flights led to further persecution of those
 who remained behind.</div>
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23. The Prophet Muhammad [was instructed to 
call this] religion "Islam," i.e. submission to the will of God. Its 
distinctive features are two:</div>
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A harmonius equilibrium between the temporal and the spiritual (the 
body and the soul), permitting a full enjoyment of all the good that God
 has created, (Quran 7:32), enjoining at the same time on everybody 
duties towards God, such as worship, fasting, charity, etc. Islam was to
 be the religion of the masses and not merely of the elect. 
A universality of the call - all the believers becoming brothers and 
equals without any distinction of class or race or tongue. The only 
superiority which it recognizes is a personal one, based on the greater 
fear of God and greater piety (Quran 49:13).</div>
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Social Boycott:</h2>
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24. When a large number of the Meccan Muslims migrated to Abyssinia, 
the leaders of paganism sent an ultimatum to the tribe of the Prophet, 
demanding that he should be excommunicated and outlawed and delivered to
 the pagans for being put to death. Every member of the tribe, Muslim 
and non-Muslim rejected the demand. (cf. Ibn Hisham). Thereupon the city
 decided on a complete boycott of the tribe: Nobody was to talk to them 
or have commercial or matrimonial relations with them. The group of Arab
 tribes called Ahabish, inhabiting the suburbs, who were allies of the 
Meccans, also joined in the boycott, causing stark misery among the 
innocent victims consisting of children, men and women, the old and the 
sick and the feeble. Some of them succumbed yet nobody would hand over 
the Prophet to his persecutors. An uncle of the Prophet, Abu Lahab, 
however left his tribesmen and participated in the boycott along with 
the pagans. After three dire years, during which the victims were 
obliged to devour even crushed hides, four or five non-Muslims, more 
humane than the rest and belonging to different clans proclaimed 
publicly their denunciation of the unjust boycott. At the same time, the
 document promulgating the pact of boycott which had been hung in the 
temple, was found, as Muhammad had predicted, eaten by white ants, that 
spared nothing but the words God and Muhammad. The boycott was lifted, 
yet owing to the privations that were undergone the wife and Abu Talib, 
the chief of the tribe and uncle of the Prophet died soon after. Another
 uncle of the Prophet, Abu-Lahab, who was an inveterate enemy of Islam, 
now succeeded to the headship of the tribe. (cf. lbn Hisham, Sirah ).</div>
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The Ascension:</h2>
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25. It was at thIs time that the Prophet Muhammad was granted the 
mi'raj (ascension): He saw in a vision that he was received on heaven by
 God, and was witness of the marvels of the celestial regions. 
Returning, he brought for his community, as a Divine gift, the [ritual 
prayer of Islam, the salaat], which constitutes a sort of communion 
between man and God. It may be recalled that in the last part of Muslim 
service of worship, the faithful employ as a symbol of their being in 
the very presence of God, not concrete objects as others do at the time 
of communion, but the very words of greeting exchanged between the 
Prophet Muhammad and God on the occasion of the former's mi'raj : "The 
blessed and pure greetings for God! - Peace be with thee, O Prophet, as 
well as the mercy and blessing of God! - Peace be with us and with all 
the [righteous] servants of God!" The Christian term "communion" implies
 participation in the Divinity. Finding it pretentious, Muslims use the 
term "ascension" towards God and reception in His presence, God 
remaining God and man remaining man and no confusion between the twain.</div>
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26. The news of this celestial meeting led to an increase in the 
hostility of the pagans of Mecca; and the Prophet was obliged to quit 
his native town in search of an asylum elsewhere. He went to his 
maternal uncles in Ta'if, but returned immediately to Mecca, as the 
wicked people of that town chased the Prophet out of their city by 
pelting stones on him and wounding him.</div>
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Migration to Madinah:</h2>
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27. The annual pilgrimage of the Ka'bah brought to Mecca people from 
all parts of Arabia. The Prophet Muhammad tried to persuade one tribe 
after another to afford him shelter and allow him to carry on his 
mission of reform. The contingents of fifteen tribes, whom he approached
 in succession, refused to do so more or less brutally, but he did not 
despair. Finally he met half a dozen inhabitants of Madinah who being 
neighbour of the Jews and the Christians, had some notion of prophets 
and Divine messages. They knew also that these "people of the Books" 
were awaiting the arrival of a prophet - a last comforter. So these 
Madinans decided not to lose the opportunity of obtaining an advance 
over others, and forthwith embraced Islam, promising further to provide 
additional adherents and necessary help from Madinah. The following year
 a dozen new Madinans took the oath of allegiance to him and requested 
him to provide with a missionary teacher. The work of the missionary, 
Mus'ab, proved very successful and he led a contingent of seventy-three 
new converts to Mecca, at the time of the pilgrimage. These invited the 
Prophet and his Meccan companions to migrate to their town, and promised
 to shelter the Prophet and to treat him and his companions as their own
 kith and kin. Secretly and in small groups, the greater part of the 
Muslims emigrated to Madinah. Upon this the pagans of Mecca not only 
confiscated the property of the evacuees, but devised a plot to 
assassinate the Prophet. It became now impossible for him to remain at 
home. It is worthy of mention, that in spite of their hostility to his 
mission, the pagans had unbounded confidence in his probity, so much so 
that many of them used to deposit their savings with him. The Prophet 
Muhammad now entrusted all these deposits to 'Ali, a cousin of his, with
 instructions to return in due course to the rightful owners. He then 
left the town secretly in the company of his faithful friend, Abu-Bakr. 
After several adventures, they succeeded in reaching Madinah in safety. 
This happened in 622, whence starts the Hijrah calendar.</div>
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Reorganization of the Community:</h2>
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28. For the better rehabilitation of the displaced immigrants, the 
Prophet created a fraternization between them and an equal number of 
well-to-do Madinans. The families of each pair of the contractual 
brothers worked together to earn their livelihood, and aided one another
 in the business of life.</div>
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29. Further he thought that the development of the man as a whole 
would be better achieved if he co-ordinated religion and politics as two
 constituent parts of one whole. To this end he invited the 
representatives of the Muslims as well as the non-Muslim inhabitants of 
the region: Arabs, Jews, Christians and others, and suggested the 
establishment of a City-State in Madinah. With their assent, he endowed 
the city with a written constitution - the first of its kind in the 
world - in which he defined the duties and rights both of the citizens 
and the head of the State - the Prophet Muhammad was unanimously hailed 
as such - and abolished the customary private justice. The 
administration of justice became henceforward the concern of the central
 organisation of the community of the citizens. The document laid down 
principles of defence and foreign policy: it organized a system of 
social insurance, called ma'aqil, in cases of too heavy obligations. It 
recognized that the Prophet Muhammad would have the final word in all 
differences, and that there was no limit to his power of legislation. It
 recognized also explicitly liberty of religion, particularly for the 
Jews, to whom the constitutional act afforded equality with Muslims in 
all that concerned life in this world (cf. infra n. 303).</div>
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30. Muhammad journeyed several times with a view to win the 
neighbouring tribes and to conclude with them treaties of alliance and 
mutual help. With their help, he decided to bring to bear economic 
pressure on the Meccan pagans, who had confiscated the property of the 
Muslim evacuees and also caused innumerable damage. Obstruction in the 
way of the Meccan caravans and their passage through the Madinan region 
exasperated the pagans, and a bloody struggle ensued.</div>
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<br /></div>
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31. In the concern for the material interests of the community, the 
spiritual aspect was never neglected. Hardly a year had passed after the
 migration to Madinah, when the most rigorous of spiritual disciplines, 
the fasting for the whole month of Ramadan every year, was imposed on 
every adult Muslim, man and woman.</div>
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Struggle Against Intolerance and Unbelief:</h2>
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32. Not content with the expulsion of the Muslim compatriots, the 
Meccans sent an ultimatum to the Madinans, demanding the surrender or at
 least the expulsion of Muhammad and his companions but evidently all 
such efforts proved in vain. A few months later, in the year 2 H., they 
sent a powerful army against the Prophet, who opposed them at Badr; and 
the pagans thrice as numerous as the Muslims, were routed. After a year 
of preparation, the Meccans again invaded Madinah to avenge the defeat 
of Badr. They were now four times as numerous as the Muslims. After a 
bloody encounter at Uhud, the enemy retired, the issue being indecisive.
 The mercenaries in the Meccan army did not want to take too much risk, 
or endanger their safety.</div>
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<br /></div>
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33. In thc meanwhile the Jewish citizens of Madinah began to foment 
trouble. About the time of the victory of Badr, one of their leaders, 
Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, proceeded to Mecca to give assurance of his alliance
 with the pagans, and to incite them to a war of revenge. After the 
battle of Uhud, the tribe of the same chieftain plotted to assassinate 
the Prophet by throwing on him a mill-stone from above a tower, when he 
had gone to visit their locality. In spite of all this, the only demand 
the Prophet made of the men of this tribe was to quit the Madinan 
region, taking with them all their properties, after selling their 
immovables and recovering their debts from the Muslims. The clemency 
thus extended had an effect contrary to what was hoped. The exiled not 
only contacted the Meccans, but also the tribes of the North, South and 
East of Madinah, mobilized military aid, and planned from Khaibar an 
invasion of Madinah, with forces four times more numerous than those 
employed at Uhud. The Muslims prepared for a siege, and dug a ditch to 
defend themselves against this hardest of all trials. Although the 
defection of the Jews still remaining inside Madinah at a later stage 
upset all strategy, yet with a sagacious diplomacy, the Prophet 
succeeded in breaking up the alliance, and the different enemy groups 
retired one after the other.</div>
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34. Alcoholic drinks, gambling and games of chance were at this time declared forbidden for the Muslims.</div>
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The Reconciliation:</h2>
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35. The Prophet tried once more to reconcile the Meccans and 
proceeded to Mecca. The barring of the route of their Northern caravans 
had ruined their economy. The Prophet promised them transit security, 
extradition of their fugitives and the fulfillment of every condition 
they desired, agreeing even to return to Madinah without accomplishing 
the pilgrimage of the Ka'bah. Thereupon the two contracting parties 
promised at Hudaibiyah in the suburbs of Mecca, not only the maintenance
 of peace, but also the observance of neutrality in their conflicts with
 third parties.</div>
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<br /></div>
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36. Profiting by the peace, the Prophet launched an intensive 
programme for the propagation of his religion. He addressed missionary 
letters to the foreign rulers of Byzantium, Iran, Abyssinia and other 
lands. The Byzantine autocrat priest - Dughatur of the Arabs - embraced 
Islam, but for this, was lynched by the Christian mob; the prefect of 
Ma'an (Palestine) suffered the same fate, and was decapitated and 
crucified by order of the emperor. A Muslim ambassador was assassinated 
in Syria-Palestine; and instead of punishing the culprit, the emperor 
Heraclius rushed with his armies to protect him against the punitive 
expedition sent by the Prophet (battle of Mu'tah).</div>
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<br /></div>
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37. The pagans of Mecca hoping to profit by the Muslim difficulties, 
violated the terms of their treaty. Upon this, the Prophet himself led 
an army, ten thousand strong, and surprised Mecca which he occupied in a
 bloodless manner. As a benevolent conqueror, he caused the vanquished 
people to assemble, reminded them of their ill deeds, their religious 
persecution, unjust confiscation of the evacuee property, ceaseless 
invasions and senseless hostilities for twenty years continuously. He 
asked them: "Now what do you expect of me?" When everybody lowered his 
head with shame, the Prophet proclaimed: "May God pardon you; go in 
peace; there shall be no responsibility on you today; you are free!" He 
even renounced the claim for the Muslim property confiscated by the 
pagans. This produced a great psychological change of hearts 
instantaneously. When a Meccan chief advanced with a fulsome heart 
towards the Prophet, after hearing this general amnesty, in order to 
declare his acceptance of Islam, the Prophet told him: "And in my turn, I
 appoint you the governor of Mecca!" Without leaving a single soldier in
 the conquered city, the Prophet retired to Madinah. The Islamization of
 Mecca, which was accomplished in a few hours, was complete.</div>
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38. Immediately after the occupation of Mecca, the city of Ta'if 
mobilized to fight against the Prophet. With some difficulty the enemy 
was dispersed in the valley of Hunain, but the Muslims preferred to 
raise the siege of nearby Ta'if and use pacific means to break the 
resistance of this region. Less than a year later, a delegation from 
Ta'if came to Madinah offering submission. But it requested exemption 
from prayer, taxes and military service, and the continuance of the 
liberty to adultery and fornication and alcoholic drinks. It demanded 
even the conservation of the temple of the idol al-Lat at Ta'if. But 
Islam was not a materialist immoral movement; and soon the delegation 
itself felt ashamed of its demands regarding prayer, adultery and wine. 
The Prophet consented to concede exemption from payment of taxes and 
rendering of military service; and added: You need not demolish the 
temple with your own hands: we shall send agents from here to do the 
job, and if there should be any consequences, which you are afraid of on
 account of your superstitions, it will be they who would suffer. This 
act of the Prophet shows what concessions could be given to new 
converts. The conversion of the Ta'ifites was so whole hearted that in a
 short while, they themselves renounced the contracted exemptions, and 
we find the Prophet nominating a tax collector in their locality as in 
other Islamic regions.</div>
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<br /></div>
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39. In all these "wars," extending over a period of ten years, the 
non-Muslims lost on the battlefield only about 250 persons killed, and 
the Muslim losses were even less. With these few incisions, the whole 
continent of Arabia. with its million and more of square miles, was 
cured of the abscess of anarchy and immorality. During these ten years 
of disinterested struggle, all thc peoples of the Arabian Peninsula and 
the southern regions of Iraq and Palestine had voluntarily embraced 
Islam. Some Christian, Jewish and Parsi groups remained attached to 
their creeds, and they were granted liberty of conscience as well as 
judicial and juridical autonomy.</div>
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<br /></div>
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40. In the year 10 H., when the Prophet went to Mecca for Hajj 
(pilgrimage), he met 140,000 Muslims there, who had come from different 
parts of Arabia to fulfil their religious obligation. He addressed to 
them his celebrated sermon, in which he gave a resume of his teachings: 
"Belief in One God without images or symbols, equality of all the 
Believers without distinction of race or class, the superiority of 
individuals being based solely on piety; sanctity of life, property and 
honour; abolition of interest, and of vendettas and private justice; 
better treatment of women; obligatory inheritance and distribution of 
the property of deceased persons among near relatives of both sexes, and
 removal of the possibility of the cumulation of wealth in the hands of 
the few." The Quran and the conduct of the Prophet were to serve as the 
bases of law and a healthy criterion in every aspect of human life.</div>
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<br /></div>
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41. On his return to Madinah, he fell ill; and a few weeks later, 
when he breathed his last, he had the satisfaction that he had well 
accomplished the task which he had undertaken - to preach to the world 
the Divine message.</div>
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<br /></div>
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42. He bequeathed to posterity, a religion of pure monotheism; he 
created a well-disciplined State out of the existent chaos and gave 
peace in place of the war of everybody against everybody else; he 
established a harmonious equilibrium between the spiritual and the 
temporal, between the mosque and the citadel; he left a new system of 
law, which dispensed impartial justice, in which even the head of the 
State was as much a subject to it as any commoner, and in which 
religious tolerance was so great that non-Muslim inhabitants of Muslim 
countries equally enjoyed complete juridical, judicial and cultural 
autonomy. In the matter of the revenues of the State, the Quran fixed 
the principles of budgeting, and paid more thought to the poor than to 
anybody else. The revenues were declared to be in no wise the private 
property of the head of the State. Above all, the Prophet Muhammad set a
 noble example and fully practised all that he taught to others.</div>

"Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah." [ Qur'an 48:29] IN the annals of men, individuals have not been lacking who conspi...

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Hadith

A.P.I AL FADHLU / Islam and Muslims

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Hadith (teachings of the Prophet P.B.U.H)</div>
<h3>
Introduction to Hadith</h3>
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Hadith is a body of literature that comprises the sayings, teachings, behaviour etc. of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Muslims try to emulate the character of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in their daily lives and use the hadith as a key source to that end. The Qur'an together with hadith constitute the two most authoritative sources for moral, ethical and spiritual guidance.<br /><br />The Muslims are agreed that the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is the second of the two revealed fundamental sources of Islam, after the Glorious Qur'an. The authentic Sunnah is contained within the vast body of Hadith literature.<br /><br />A hadith (pl. ahadith) is composed of two parts: the matn (text) and the isnad (chain of reporters). A text may seem to be logical and reasonable but it needs an authentic isnad with reliable reporters to be acceptable; 'Abdullah b. al-Mubarak (d. 181 AH), one of the illustrious teachers of Imam al-Bukhari, said, "The isnad is part of the religion: had it not been for the isnad, whoever wished to would have said whatever he liked."<br /><br />During the lifetime of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and after his death, his Companions (Sahabah) used to refer to him directly, when quoting his sayings. The Successors (Tabi'un) followed suit; some of them used to quote the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) through the Companions while others would omit the intermediate authority - such a hadith was later known as mursal. It was found that the missing link between the Successor and the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) might be one person, i.e. a Companion, or two people, the extra person being an older Successor who heard the hadith from the Companion. This is an example of how the need for the verification of each isnad arose; Imam Malik (d. 179) said, "The first one to utilise the isnad was Ibn Shihab al- Zuhri" (d. 124).</div>

Hadith (teachings of the Prophet P.B.U.H) Introduction to Hadith Hadith is a body of literature that comprises the sayings, teachings, ...

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The Beginning of The Revelation

A.P.I AL FADHLU / Islam and Muslims

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<b>In the Cave of Hira:</b><br /><br />When Prophet Muhammad (P) was nearly forty, he had been wont to pass long hours in retirement meditating and speculating over all aspects of creation around him. This meditative temperament helped to widen the mental gap between him and his compatriots. He used to provide himself with Sawiq (barley porridge) and water and then directly head for the hills and ravines in the neighbourhood of Makkah. One of these in particular was his favourite resort - a cave named Hira´, in the Mount An-Nour. It was only two miles from Makkah, a small cave 4 yards long and 1.75 yard wide. He would always go there and invite wayfarers to share him his modest provision. He used to devote most of his time, and Ramadan in particular, to worship and meditation on the universe around him. His heart was restless about the moral evils and idolatry that were rampant among his people; he was as yet helpless because no definite course, or specific approach had been available for him to follow and rectify the ill practices around him. This solitude attended with this sort of contemplative approach must be understood in its Divine perspective. It was a preliminary stage to the period of grave responsibilities that he was to shoulder very soon.<br /><br />Privacy and detachment from the impurities of life were two indispensable prerequisites for the Prophet´s soul to come into close communion with the Unseen Power that lies behind all aspects of existence in this infinite universe. It was a rich period of privacy which lasted for three years and ushered in a new era, of indissoluble contact with that Power.<br />
<br /><b>Gabriel brings down the Revelation:</b><br /><br />When he was forty, the age of complete perfection at which Prophets were always ordered to disclose their Message, signs of his Prophethood started to appear and twinkle on the horizons of life; they were the true visions he used to experience for six months. The period of Prophethood was 23 years; so the period of these six months of true visions constituted an integral part of the forty-six parts of Prophethood. In Ramadan, in his third year of solitude in the cave of Hira´, Allah´s Will desired His mercy to flow on earth and Muhammad (P) was honoured with Prophethood, and the light of Revelation burst upon him with some verses of the Noble Qur´an.<br /><br />As for the exact date, careful investigation into circumstantial evidence and relevant clues point directly to Monday, 21st. Ramadan at night, i.e. August, 10, 610 A.D. with Prophet Muhammad (P) exactly 40 years, 6 months and 12 days of age, i.e. 39 Gregorian years, 3 months and 22 days.<br /><br />´Aishah, the veracious, gave the following narration of that most significant event that brought the Divine light which would dispel the darkness of disbelief and ignorance. It led life down a new course and brought about the most serious amendment to the line of the history of mankind:<br /><br />Forerunners of the Revelation assumed the form of true visions that would strikingly come true all the time. After that, solitude became dear to him and he would go to the cave, Hira´, to engage in Tahannuth (devotion) there for a certain number of nights before returning to his family, and then he would return for provisions for a similar stay. At length, unexpectedly, the Truth (the angel) came to him and said, "Recite." "I cannot recite," he (Muhammad (P) ) said. The Prophet (P) described: "Then he took me and squeezed me vehemently and then let me go and repeated the order ´Recite.´ ´I cannot recite´ said I, and once again he squeezed me and let me till I was exhausted. Then he said: ´Recite.´ I said ´I cannot recite.´ He squeezed me for a third time and then let me go and said:<br /><br /><i>"Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists), has created man from a clot (a piece of thick coagulated blood). Read! and your Lord is the Most Generous.´" [96:1-3]</i><br /><br />The Prophet (P) repeated these verses. He was trembling with fear. At this stage, he came back to his wife Khadijah, and said, "Cover me, ... cover me." They covered him until he restored security. He apprised Khadijah of the incident of the cave and added that he was horrified. His wife tried to soothe him and reassured him saying, "Allah will never disgrace you. You unite uterine relations; you bear the burden of the weak; you help the poor and the needy, you entertain the guests and endure hardships in the path of truthfulness."<br /><br />She set out with the Prophet (P) to her cousin Waraqa bin Nawfal bin Asad bin ´Abd Al-´Uzza, who had embraced Christianity in the pre-Islamic period, and used to write the Bible in Hebrew. He was a blind old man. Khadijah said: "My cousin! Listen to your nephew!" Waraqa said: "O my nephew! What did you see?" The Messenger of Allah (P) told him what had happened to him. Waraqa replied: "This is ´ Namus´ i.e. (the angel who is entrusted with Divine Secrets) that Allah sent to Moses. I wish I were younger. I wish I could live up to the time when your people would turn you out." Muhammad (P) asked: "Will they drive me out?" Waraqa answered in the affirmative and said: "Anyone who came with something similar to what you have brought was treated with hostility; and if I should be alive till that day, then I would support you strongly." A few days later Waraqa died and the revelation also subsided.<br /><br />At-Tabari and Ibn Hisham reported that the Messenger of Allah (P) left the cave of Hira´ after being surprised by the Revelation, but later on, returned to the cave and continued his solitude. Afterwards, he came back to Makkah. At-Tabari reported on this incident, saying:<br /><br />After mentioning the coming of the Revelation, the Messenger of Allah (P) said: "I have never abhorred anyone more than a poet or a mad man. I can not stand looking at either of them. I will never tell anyone of Quraish of my Revelation. I will climb a mountain and throw myself down and die. That will relieve me. I went to do that but halfway up the mountain, I heard a voice from the sky saying ´O Muhammad! You are the Messenger of Allah (P) and I am Gabriel.´ I looked upwards and saw Gabriel in the form of a man putting his legs on the horizon. He said: ´O Muhammad You are the Messenger of Allah (P) and I am Gabriel.´ I stopped and looked at him. His sight distracted my attention from what I had intended to do. I stood in my place transfixed. I tried to shift my eyes away from him. He was in every direction I looked at. I stopped in my place without any movement until Khadijah sent someone to look for me. He went down to Makkah and came back while I was standing in the same place. Gabriel then left, and I went back home. I found Khadijah at home, so I sat very close to her. She asked: ´Father of Al-Qasim! Where have you been? I sent someone to look for you. He went to Makkah and returned to me.´ I told her of what I had seen. She replied: ´It is a propitious sign, O my husband. Pull yourself together, I swear by Allah that you are a Messenger for this nation.´ Then she stood up and went to Waraqa and informed him. Waraqa said: ´I swear by Allah that he has received the same Namus , i.e. angel that was sent to Moses. He is the Prophet of this nation. Tell him to be patient.´ She came back to him and told him of Waraqa´s words. When the Messenger of Allah (P) finished his solitary stay and went down to Makkah, he went to Waraqa, who told him: ´You are the Prophet of this nation. I swear by Allah that you have received the same angel that was sent to Moses.´"</div>

In the Cave of Hira: When Prophet Muhammad (P) was nearly forty, he had been wont to pass long hours in retirement meditating and speculati...

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The Amazing Qur'an

A.P.I AL FADHLU / Islam and Muslims

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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Calling the Qur´an amazing is not something done only by Muslims, who have an appreciation for the book and who are pleased with it; it has been labeled amazing by non-Muslims as well. In fact, even people who hate Islam very much have still called it amazing...</div>
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<br />
<b>Introduction:</b><br />
<br />
One thing which surprises non-Muslims who are examining the book very closely is that the Qur´an does not appear to them to be what they expected. What they assume is that they have an old book which came fourteen centuries ago from the Arabian desert ; and they expect that the book should look something like that - an old book from the desert. And then they find out that it does not resemble what they expected at all. Additionally, one of the first things that some people assume is that because it is an old book which comes from the desert, it should talk about the desert. Well the Qur´an does talk about the desert - some of its imagery describes the desert; but it also talks about the sea - what it´s like to be in a storm on the sea.</div>
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<br />
<b>Merchant Marine:</b><br />
<br />
Some years ago, the story came to us in Toronto about a man who was in the merchant marine and made his living on the sea. A Muslim gave him a translation of the Qur´an to read. The merchant marine knew nothing about the history of Islam but was interested in reading the Qur´an. When he finished reading it, he brought it back to the Muslim and asked, "This Muhammad, was he a sailor?" He was impressed at how accurately the Qur´an describes a storm on a sea. When he was told, "No as a matter of fact, Muhammad lived in the desert," that was enough for him. He embraced Islam on the spot.<br />
<br />
He was so impressed with the Qur´an´s description because he had been in a storm on the sea, and he knew that whoever had written that description had also been in a storm on the sea. The description of "a wave, over it a wave, over it clouds" (Surah Nur, 24:40) was not what someone imagining a storm on a sea to be like would have written; rather, it was written by someone who knew what a storm on the sea was like. This is one example of how the Qur´an is not tied to certain place and time. Certainly, the scientific ideas expressed in it also do not seem to originate from the desert fourteen centuries ago.</div>
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<br />
<b>The Smallest Thing:</b><br />
<br />
Many centuries before the onset of Muhammad´s prophethood, there was a well-known theory of atomism advanced by the Greek philosopher, Democritus. He and the people who came after him assumed that matter consists of tiny, indestructible, indivisible particles called atoms. The Arabs too, used to deal in the same concept; in fact, the Arabic word dharrah commonly referred to the smallest particle known to man. Now, modern science has discovered that this smallest unit of matter (i.e., the atom, which has all of the same properties as its element) can be split into its component parts. This is a new idea, a development of the last century; yet; interestingly enough, this information had already been documented in the Qur´an (Surah Saba´, 34:3) which states:<br />
<br />
<i>"He [i.e., Allah] is aware of an atom´s weight in the heavens and on the earth and even anything smaller than that..."</i><br />
<br />
Undoubtedly, fourteen centuries ago that statement would have looked unusual, even to an Arab. For him, the dharrah was the smallest thing there was. Indeed, this is proof, that the Qur´an is not outdated.</div>
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<br />
<b>Honey:</b><br />
<br />
Another example of what one might expect to find in an "old book" that touches upon the subject of health or medicine is outdated remedies or cures. Various historical sources state that the Prophet (s) gave some advice about health and hygiene, yet most of these pieces of advice are not contained in the Qur´an. At first glance, to the non-Muslims this appears to be a negligent omission. They cannot understand why Allah would not "include" such helpful information in the Qur´an. Some Muslims attempt to explain this absence with the following argument: "Although the Prophet´s advice was sound and applicable to the time in which he lived, Allah, in His infinite wisdom, knew that there would come later medical and scientific advances which would make the Prophet´s advice appear outdated. When later discoveries occurred, people might say that such information contradicted that which the Prophet (s) had given. Thus, since Allah would never allow any opportunity for the non-Muslims to claim that the Qur´an contradicts itself or the teachings of the Prophet (s), He only included in the Qur´an information and examples which could stand the test of time." However, when one examines the true realities of the Qur´an in terms of its existence as a divine revelation, the entire matter is quickly brought into its proper perspective, and the error in such argumentation becomes clear and understandable.<br />
<br />
It must be understood that the Qur´an is a divine revelation, and as such, all information in it is of divine origin. Allah revealed the Qur´an from Himself. It is the words of Allah, which existed before creation, and thus nothing can be added, subtracted or altered. In essence, the Qur´an existed and was complete before the creation of Prophet Muhammad (s), so it could not possibly contain any of the Prophet´s own words or advice. An inclusion of such information would clearly contradict the purpose for which the Qur´an exists, compromise its authority and render it inauthentic as a divine revelation.<br />
<br />
Consequently, there was no "home remedies" in the Qur´an which one could claim to be outdated; nor does it contain any man´s view about what is beneficial to health, what food is best to eat, or what will cure this or that disease. In fact, the Qur´an only mentions one item dealing with medical treatment, and it is not in dispute by anyone. It states that in honey there is healing. And certainly, I do not think that there is anyone who will argue with that!</div>
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<br />
<b>Prophet Muhammad (s) and the Qur´an:</b><br />
<br />
If one assumes that the Qur´an is the product of a man´s mind, then one would expect it to reflect some of what was going on in the mind of the man who "composed" it. In fact, certain encyclopedias and various books claim that the Qur´an was the product of hallucinations that Muhammad underwent. If these claims are true - if it indeed originated from some psychological problems in Muhammad´s mind - then evidence of this would be apparent in the Qur´an. Is there such evidence? In order to determine whether or not there is, one must first identify what things would have been going on in his mind at that time and then search for these thoughts and reflections in the Qur´an.<br />
<br />
It is common knowledge that Muhammad (s) had a very difficult life. All of his daughters died before him except one, and he had a wife of several years who was very dear and important to him, who not only proceeded him in death but died at a very critical period of his life. As a matter of fact, she must have been quite a woman because when the first revelation came to him, he ran home to her, afraid. Certainly, even today one would have a hard time trying to find an Arab who would tell you, "I was so afraid that I ran home to my wife." They just aren´t that way. Yet Muhammad (s) felt comfortable enough with his wife to be able to do that. That´s how influential and strong woman she was. Although these examples are only a few of the subjects that would have been on Muhammad´s mind, they are sufficient in intensity to prove my point.<br />
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The Qur´an does not mention any of these things - not the death of his children, not the death of his beloved companion and wife, not his fear of the initial revelations, which he so beautifully shared with his wife - nothing; yet these topics must have hurt him, bothered him, and caused him pain and grief during periods of his life. Indeed, if the Qur´an was a product of his psychological reflections, then these subjects, as well as others, would be prevalent or at least mentioned throughout.</div>
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<br />
<b>Scientific Approach to the Qur´an:</b><br />
<br />
A truly scientific approach to the Qur´an is possible because the Qur´an offers something that is not offered by other religious scriptures, in particular, and other religions, in general. It is what scientists demand. Today there are many people who have ideas and theories about how the universe works. These people are all over the place, but the scientific community does not even bother to listen to them. This is because within the last century the scientific community has demanded a test of falsification . They say, "If you have theory, do not bother us with it unless you bring with that theory a way for us to prove whether you are wrong or not."<br />
<br />
Such a test was exactly why the scientific community listened to Einstein towards the beginning of the century. He came with a new theory and said, "I believe the universe works like this; and here are three ways to prove whether I am wrong!" So the scientific community subjected his theory to the tests, and within six years it passed all three. Of course, this does not prove that he was great, but it proves that he deserved to be listened to because he said, "This is my idea; and if you want to try to prove me wrong, do this or try that."<br />
<br />
This is exactly what the Qur´an has - falsification tests . Some are old (in that they have already been proven true), and some still exist today. Basically it states, "If this book is not what it claims to be, then all you have to do is this or this or this to prove that it is false." Of course, in 1400 years no one has been able to do "This or this or this," and thus it is still considered true and authentic.</div>
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<br />
<b>Falsification Test:</b><br />
<br />
I suggest to you that the next time you get into dispute with someone about Islam and he claims that he has the truth and that you are in darkness, you leave all other arguments at first and make this suggestion. Ask him, "Is there any falsification test in your religion? Is there anything in your religion that would prove you are wrong if I could prove to you that it exists - anything ?" Well, I can promise right now that people will not have anything - no test, no proof, nothing! This is because they do not carry around the idea that they should not only present what they believe but should also offer others a chance to prove they´re wrong. However, Islam does that.<br />
<br />
A perfect example of how Islam provides man with a chance to verify it authenticity and "prove it wrong" occurs in the 4th chapter. And quiet honestly, I was very surprised when I first discovered this challenge. It states (Surah An-Nisa, 4:82):<br />
<br />
<i>"Do they not consider the Qur´an? Had it been from any other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much discrepancy."</i><br />
<br />
This is a clear challenge to the non-Muslim. Basically, it invites him to find a mistake. As a matter of fact, the seriousness and difficulty of the challenge aside, the actual presentation of such a challenge in the first place is not even in human nature and is inconsistent with man´s personality. One doesn´t take an exam in school and after finishing the exam, write a note to the instructor at the end saying, "This exam is perfect. There are no mistakes in it. Find one if you can!" One just doesn´t do that. The teacher would not sleep until he found a mistake! And yet this is the way the Qur´an approaches people.</div>
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<b>Ask Those Who Have Knowledge:</b><br />
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Another interesting attitude that exists in the Qur´an repeatedly deals with its advice to the reader. The Qur´an informs the reader about different facts and then gives the advice: "If you want to know more about this or that, or if you doubt what is said, then you should ask those who have knowledge." This too is a surprising attitude. It is not usual to have a book that comes from someone without training in geography, botany, biology, etc., who discusses these subjects and then advises the reader to ask men of knowledge if he doubts anything. Yet in every age there have been Muslims who have followed the advice of the Qur´an and made surprising discoveries. If one looks to the works of Muslim scientists of many centuries ago, one will find them full of quotations from the Qur´an. These works state that they did research in such a place, looking for something. And they affirm that the reason they looked in such and such a place was that the Qur´an pointed them in that direction.<br />
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For example, the Qur´an mentions man´s origin and then tells the reader, "Research it!" It gives the reader a hint where to look and then states that one should find out more about it. This is the kind of thing that Muslims today largely seem to overlook - but not always, as illustrated in the following example.</div>
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<b>Embryology:</b><br />
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A few years ago, a group of men in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia collected all of the verses in the Qur´an which discuss embryology - the growth of the human being in the womb. They said, "Here is what the Qur´an says. Is it the truth?" In essence, they took the advice of the Qur´an: "Ask the men who know." They chose, as it happened, a non-Muslim who is a professor of embryology at the University of Toronto. His name is Keith Moore, and he is the author of textbooks on embryology - a world expert on the subject. They invited him to Riyadh and said, "This is what the Qur´an says about your subject. Is it true? What can you tell us?"<br />
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While he was in Riyadh, they gave him all the help that he needed in translation and all of the cooperation for which he asked. And he was so surprised at what he found that he changed his textbooks. In fact, in the second edition of one of his books, called Before We Are Born... in the section about the history of embryology, he included some material that was not in the first edition because of what he found in the Qur´an was ahead of its time and that those who believe in the Qur´an know what other people do not know.<br />
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I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Keith Moore for a television presentation, and we talked a great deal about this - it was illustrated by slides and so on. He mentioned that some of the things that the Qur´an states about the growth of the human being were not known until thirty years ago. In fact, he said that one item in particular - the Qur´an´s description of the human being as a "leech-like clot" ( ´alaqah ) at one stage (Surahs al-Hajj 22:5; al-Mu´minun 23:14; and Ghafir 40:67) - was new to him; but when he checked on it, he found that it was true, and so he added it to his book. He said, "I never thought of that before," and he went to the zoology department and asked for a picture of a leech. When he found that it looked just like the human embryo, he decided to include both pictures in one of his textbooks.<br />
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Although the aforementioned example of man researching information contained in the Qur´an deals with a non-Muslim, it is still valid because he is one of those who is knowledgeable in the subject being researched. Had some layman claimed that what the Qur´an says about embryology is true, then one would not necessarily have to accept his word. However, because of the high position, respect, and esteem man gives scholars, one naturally assumes that if they research a subject and arrive at a conclusion based on that research, then the conclusion is valid.</div>
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<b>Skeptic´s Reaction:</b><br />
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Dr. Moore also wrote a book on clinical embryology , and when he presented this information in Toronto, it caused quite a stir throughout Canada. It was on the front pages of some of the newspapers across Canada, and some of the headlines were quite funny. For instance, one headline read: "SURPRISING THING FOUND IN ANCIENT PRAYER BOOK!" It seems obvious from this example that people do not clearly understand what it is all about. As a matter of fact, one newspaper reporter asked Professor Moore, "Don´t you think that maybe the Arabs might have known about these things - the description of the embryo, its appearance and how it changes and grows? Maybe they were not scientists, maybe they did some crude dissections on their own - carved up people and examined these things." The professor immediately pointed out to him that he [i.e., the reporter] had missed a very important point - all of the slides of the embryo that had been shown and that had been projected in the film had come from pictures taken through a microscope. He said, "It does not matter if someone had tried to discover embryology fourteen centuries ago. They could not have seen it!"<br />
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All of the descriptions in the Qur´an of the appearance of the embryo are of the item when it is still too small to see with the eye; therefore, one needs a microscope to see it. Since such a device had only been around for little more than two hundred years, Dr. Moore taunted, "Maybe fourteen centuries ago someone secretly had a microscope and did this research, making no mistakes anywhere. Then he somehow taught Muhammad (s) and convinced him to put this information in his book. Then he destroyed his equipment and kept it a secret forever. Do you believe that? You really should not unless you bring some proof because it is such a ridiculous theory." In fact, when he was asked, "How do you explain this information in the Qur´an?" Dr. Moore´s reply was, "It could only have been divinely revealed!"</div>
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<b>Geology</b>:<br />
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One of Professor Moore´s colleagues, Marshall Johnson, deals extensively with geology at the University of Toronto. He became very interested in the fact that the Qur´an´s statements about embryology are accurate, and so he asked Muslims to collect everything contained in the Qur´an which deals with his speciality. Again people were very surprised at the findings. Since there are a vast number subjects discussed in the Qur´an, it would certainly require a large amount of time to exhaust each subject. It suffices for the purpose of this discussion to state that the Qur´an makes very clear and concise statements about various subjects while simultaneously advising the reader to verify the authenticity of these statements with research by scholars in those subjects. And as illustrated by the previous examples of embryology and geology, the Qur´an has clearly emerged authentic.</div>
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<b>You Did Not Know This Before!</b><br />
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Undoubtedly, there is an attitude in the Qur´an which is not found anywhere else. It is interesting how when the Qur´an provides information, it often tells the reader, "You did not know this before." Indeed, there is no scripture that exists which makes that claim. All of the other ancient writings and scriptures that people have do give a lot of information, but they always state where the information came from.<br />
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For example, when the Bible discusses ancient history, it states that this king lived here, this one fought in a certain battle, another one had so may sons, etc. Yet it always stipulates that if you want more information, then you should read the book of so and so because that is where the information came from. In contrast to this concept, the Qur´an provides the reader with information and states that this information is something new. Of course, there always exists the advice to research the information provided and verify its authenticity. It is interesting that such a concept was never challenged by non-Muslims fourteen centuries ago. Indeed, the Makkans who hated the Muslims, and time and time again they heard such revelations claiming to bring new information; yet, they never spoke up and said, "This is not new. We know where Muhammad got this information. We learned this at school." They could never challenge its authenticity because it really was new!<br />
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In concurrence with the advice given in the Qur´an to research information (even if it is new), when ´Umar was caliph, he chose a group of men and sent them to find the wall of Dhul-Qarnayn. Before the Qur´anic revelation, the Arabs had never heard of such a wall, but because the Qur´an described it, they were able to discover it. As a matter of fact, it is now located in what is called Durbend in the Soviet Union.</div>
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<b>Proof of Authenticity: An Approach:</b><br />
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It must be stressed here that the Qur´an is accurate about many, many things, but accuracy does not necessarily mean that a book is a divine revelation. In fact, accuracy is only one of the criteria for divine revelations. For instance, the telephone book is accurate, but that does not mean that it is divinely revealed. The real problem lies in that one must establish some proof of the source the Qur´an´s information. The emphasis is in the other direction, in that the burden of proof is on the reader. One cannot simply deny the Qur´an´s authenticity without sufficient proof. If, indeed, one finds a mistake, then he has the right to disqualify it. This is exactly what the Qur´an encourages.<br />
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Once a man came up to me after a lecture I delivered in South Africa. He was very angry about what I had said, and so he claimed, "I am going to go home tonight and find a mistake in the Qur´an." Of course, I said, "Congratulations. That is the most intelligent thing that you have said." Certainly, this is the approach Muslims need to take with those who doubt the Qur´an´s authenticity, because the Qur´an itself offers the same challenge. And inevitably, after accepting it´s challenge and discovering that it is true, these people will come to believe it because they could not disqualify it. In essence, the Qur´an earns their respect because they themselves have had to verify its authenticity.<br />
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An essential fact that cannot be reiterated enough concerning the authenticity of the Qur´an is that one´s inability to explain a phenomenon himself does not require his acceptance of the phenomenon´s existence or another person´s explanation of it. Specifically, just because one cannot explain something does not mean that one has to accept someone else´s explanation. However, the person´s refusal of other explanations reverts the burden of proof back on himself to find a feasible answer. This general theory applies to numerous concepts in life, but fits most wonderfully with the Qur´anic challenge, for it creates a difficulty for one who says, "I do not believe it." At the onset of refusal one immediately has an obligation to find an explanation himself if he feels others´ answers are inadequate.<br />
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In fact, in one particular Qur´anic verse which I have always seen mistranslated into English, Allah mentions a man who heard the truth explained to him. It states that he was derelict in his duty because after he heard the information, he left without checking the verity of what he had heard. In other words, one is guilty if he hears something and does not research it and check to see whether it is true. One is supposed to process all information and decide what is garbage to be thrown out and what is worthwhile information to be kept and benefitted from immediately or even at a later date.<br />
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One cannot just let it rattle around in his head. It must be put in the proper categories and approached from that point of view. For example, if the information is still speculatory, then one must discern whether it´s closer to being true or false. But if all the facts have been presented, then one must decide absolutely between these two options. And even if one is not positive about the authenticity of the information, he is still required to process all the information and make the admission that he just does not know for sure. Although this last point appears to be futile, in actuality, it is beneficial to the arrival at a positive conclusion at a later time in that it forces the person to at least recognize, research and review the facts.<br />
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This familiarity with the information will give the person "the edge" when future discoveries are made and additional information is presented. The important thing is that one deals with the facts and does not simply discard them out of empathy and disinterest.</div>
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<b>Exhausting the Alternatives:</b><br />
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The real certainty about the truthfulness of the Qur´an is evident in the confidence which is prevalent throughout it; and this confidence comes from a different approach - " Exhausting the alternatives ." In essence, the Qur´an states, "This book is a divine revelation; if you do not believe that, then what is it?" In other words, the reader is challenged to come up with some other explanation. Here is a book made of paper and ink. Where did it come from? It says it is a divine revelation; if it is not, then what is its source? The interesting fact is that no one has yet come up with an explanation that works. In fact, all alternatives have bee exhausted. As has been well established by non-Muslims, these alternatives basically are reduced to two mutually exclusive schools of thought, insisting on one or the other.<br />
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On one hand, there exists a large group of people who have researched the Qur´an for hundreds of years and who claim, "One thing we know for sure - that man, Muhammad (s), thought he was a prophet. He was crazy!" They are convinced that Muhammad (s) was fooled somehow. Then on the other hand, there is a group which alleges, "Because of this evidence, one thing we know for sure is that that man, Muhammad (s) was a liar!" Ironically, these two groups never seem to get together without contradicting.<br />
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In fact, many references to Islam usually claim both theories. They start out by stating that Muhammad (s) was crazy and then end by saying he was a liar. They never seem to realize that he could not have been both! For example, if one is deluded and really thinks that he is a prophet, then he does not sit up late at night planning, "How will I fool the people tomorrow so that they think I am a prophet?" He truly believes that he is a prophet, and he trusts that the answer will be given to him by revelation.</div>
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<b>The Critic´s Trail:</b><br />
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As a matter of fact, a great deal of the Qur´an came in answer to questions. Someone would ask Muhammad (s) a question, and the revelation would come with the answer to it. Certainly, if one is crazy and believes that an angel put words in his ear, then when someone asks him a question, he thinks that the angel will give him the answer. Because he is crazy, he really thinks that. He does not tell someone to wait a short while and then run to his friends and ask them, "Does anyone know the answer?" This type of behavior is characteristic of one who does not believe that he is a prophet. What the non-Muslims refuse to accept is that you cannot have it both ways. One can be deluded, or he can be a liar. He can br either one or neither one, but he certainly cannot be both! The emphasis is on the fact that they are unquestionably mutually exclusive personality traits.<br />
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The following scenario is a good example of the kind of circle that non-Muslims go around in constantly. If you ask one of them, "What is the origin of the Qur´an?" He tells you that it originated from the mind of a man who was crazy. Then you ask him, "If it came from his head, then where did he get the information contained in it? Certainly the Qur´an mentions many things with which the Arabs were not familiar." So in order to explain the fact which you bring him, he changes his position and says, "Well, maybe he was not crazy. Maybe some foreigner brought him the information. So he lied and told people that he was a prophet." At this point then you have to ask him, "If Muhammad was a liar, then where did he get his confidence? Why did he behave as though he really thought he was a prophet?" Finally backed into a corner, like a cat he quickly lashes out with the first response that comes to his mind. Forgetting that he has already exhausted that possibility, he claims, "Well, maybe he wasn´t a liar. He was probably crazy and really thought that he was a prophet." And thus he begins the futile cycle again.<br />
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As has already been mentioned, there is much information contained in the Qur´an whose source cannot be attributed to anyone other than Allah. For example, who told Muhammad (s) about the wall of Dhul-Qarnayn - a place hundreds of miles to the north? Who told him about embryology? When people assemble facts such as these, if they are not willing to attribute their existence to a divine source, they automatically resort to the assumption someone brought Muhammad (s) the information and that he used it to fool the people. However, this theory can easily be disproved with one simple question: "If Muhammad (s) was a liar, where did he get his confidence? Why did he tell some people out right to their face what others could never say?" Such confidence depends completely upon being convinced that one has a true divine revelation.</div>
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<b>A Revelation - Abu Lahab:</b><br />
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Prophet Muhammad (s) had an uncle by the name of Abu Lahab. This man hated Islam to such an extent that he used to follow the Prophet around in order to discredit him. If Abu Lahab saw the Prophet (s) speaking to a stranger, he would wait until they parted and the would go to the stranger and ask him, "What did he tell you? Did he say, ´Black´? Well, it´s white. Did he say ´morning´? Well, it´s night." He faithfully said the exact opposite of whatever he heard Muhammad (s) and the Muslims say. However, about ten years before Abu Lahab died, a little chapter in the Qur´an (Surah al-Lahab, 111) was revealed about him. It distinctly stated that he would go to the fire (i.e., Hell). In other words, it affirmed that he would never become a Muslim and would therefore be condemned forever. For ten years all Abu Lahab had to do was say, "I heard that it has been revealed to Muhammad that I will never change - that I will never become a Muslim and will enter the Hellfire. Well, I want to become Muslim now. How do you like that? What do you think of your divine revelation now?" But he never did that. And yet, that is exactly the kind of behavior one would have expected from him since he always sought to contradict Islam.<br />
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Ten years! And in all that time he never accepted Islam or even became sympathetic to the Islamic cause.<br />
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How could Muhammad (s) possibly have known for sure that Abu Lahab would fulfil the Qur´anic revelation if he (i.e., Muhammad) was not truly the messenger of Allah? How could he possibly have been so confident as to give someone 10 years to discredit his claim of prophethood? The only answer is that he was Allah´s messenger; for in order to put forth such a risky challenge, one has to be entirely convinced that he has a divine revelation.</div>
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<b>The Flight:</b><br />
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Another example of the confidence which Muhammad (s) had in his own prophethood and consequently in the divine protection of himself and his message is when he left Makkah and hid in a cave with Abu Bakr (ra) during their emigration to Madeenah. The two clearly saw people coming to kill them, and Abu Bakr was afraid. Certainly, if Muhammad (s) was a liar, a forger and one who was trying to fool the people into believing that he was a prophet, one would have expected him to say in such a circumstance to his friend, "Hey, Abu Bakr, see if you can find a back way out of this cave." Or "Squat down in that corner over there and keep quiet." Yet, in fact, what he said to Abu Bakr clearly illustrated his confidence. He told him, "Relax! Allah is with us, and Allah will save us!" Now, if one knows that he is fooling the people, where does one get this kind of attitude? In fact, such a frame of mind is not characteristic of a liar or a forger at all.<br />
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So, as has been previously mentioned, the non-Muslims go around and around in a circle, searching for a way out - some way to explain the findings in the Qur´an without attributing them to their proper source. On one hand, they tell you on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, "The man was a liar," and on the other hand, on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday they tell you, "He was crazy." What they refuse to accept is that one cannot have it both ways; yet they need both theories, both excuses to explain the information in the Qur´an</div>
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<b>An Encounter with a Minister:</b><br />
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About seven years ago, I had a minister over to my home. In the particular room which we were sitting there was a Qur´an on the table, face down, and so the minister was not aware of which book it was. In the midst of a discussion, I pointed to the Qur´an and said, "I have confidence in that book." Looking at the Qur´an but not knowing which book it was, he replied, "Well, I tell you, if that book is not the Bible, it was written by a man!" In response to his statement, I said, "Let me tell you something about what is in that book." And in just three to four minutes, I related to him a few things contained in the Qur´an. After just those three or four minutes, he completely changed his position and declared, "You are right. A man did not write that book . The Devil wrote it!" Indeed, possessing such an attitude is very unfortunate - for many reasons. For one thing, it is a very quick and cheap excuse. It is an instant exit out of an uncomfortable situation.<br />
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As a matter of fact, there is a famous story in the Bible that mentions how one day some of the Jews were witnesses when Jesus (pbuh) raised a man from the dead. The man had been dead for four days, and when Jesus arrived, he simply said, "Get up!" and the man arose and walked away. At such a sight, some of the Jews who were watching said disbelievingly, "This is the Devil. The Devil helped him!" Now this story is rehearsed very often in churches all over the world, and people cry big tears over it, saying, "Oh, if I had been there, I would not have been as stupid as the Jews!" Yet, ironically, these people do exactly what the Jews did when in just three minutes you show them only a small part of the Qur´an and all they can say is, "Oh, the Devil did it. The devil wrote that book!" Because they are truly backed into a corner and have no other viable answer, they resort to the quickest and cheapest excuse available.</div>
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<b>The Source of the Qur´an:</b><br />
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Another example of people´s use of this weak stance can be found in the Makkans´ explanation of the source of Muhammad´s message. They used to say, "The devils bring Muhammad that Qur´an!" But just as with every suggestion made, the Qur´an gives the answer. One verse (Surah Al-Qalam 68: 51-52) in particular states:<br />
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<i>"And they say, ´Surely he is possessed [by jinn],´ but it [i.e., the Qur´an] is not except a reminder to the worlds."</i><br />
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Thus it gives an argument in reply to such a theory. In fact, there are many arguments in the Qur´an in reply to the suggestion that devils brought Muhammad (s) his message. For example, in the 26th chapter Allah (SWT) clearly affirms:<br />
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<i>"No evil ones have brought it [i.e., this revelation] down. It would neither be fitting for them, nor would they be able. Indeed they have been removed far from hearing." (Surah ash-Shu´ara 26:210-212)</i><br />
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And in another place (Surah an-Nahl 16:98) in the Qur´an, Allah (SWT) instructs us:<br />
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<i>"So when you recite the Qur´an seek refuge in Allah from Shaytan, the rejected."</i><br />
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Now is this how Satan writes a book? He tells one, "Before you read my book, ask God to save you from me?" This is very, very tricky. Indeed, a man could write something like this, but would Satan do this? Many people clearly illustrate that they cannot come to one conclusion on this subject. On one hand, they claim that Satan would not do such a thing and that even if he could, God would not allow him to; yet, on the other hand, they also believe that Satan is only that much less than God. In essence they allege that the Devil can probably do whatever God can do. And as a result, when they look at the Qur´an, even as surprised as they are as to how amazing it is, they still insist, "The Devil did this!"<br />
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Thanks be to Allah (SWT), Muslims do not have that attitude. Although Satan may have some abilities, they are a long way separated from the abilities of Allah. And no Muslim is a Muslim unless he believes that. It is common knowledge even among non-Muslims that the Devil can easily make mistakes, and it would be expected that he would contradict himself if and when he wrote a book. For indeed, the Qur´an states (Surah an-Nisa 4:82):<br />
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<i>"Do they not consider the Qur´an? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much discrepancy."</i></div>
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<b>Mythomania:</b><br />
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In conjunction with the excuses that non-Muslims advance in futile attempts to justify unexplainable verses in the Qur´an, there is another attack often rendered which seems to be a combination of the theories that Muhammad (s) was crazy and a liar. Basically, these people propose that Muhammad was insane, and as a result of his delusion, he lied to and misled people. There is a name for this in psychology. It is referred to as mythomania . It means simply that one tells lies and then believes them. This is what the non-Muslims say Muhammad (s) suffered from. But the only problem with this proposal is that one suffering from mythomania absolutely cannot deal with any facts, and yet the whole Qur´an is based entirely upon facts. Everything contained in it can be researched and established as true. Since facts are such a problem for a mythomaniac , when a psychologist tries to treat one suffering from that condition, he continually confronts him with facts.<br />
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For example, if one is mentally ill and claims, "I am the king of England," a psychologist does not say to him "No you aren´t. You are crazy!" He just does not do that. Rather, he confronts him with facts and says, "O.K., you say you are the king of England. So tell me where the queen is today. And where is your prime minister? And where are your guards?" Now, when the man has trouble trying to deal with these questions, he tries to make excuses, saying "Uh... the queen... she has gone to her mother´s. Uh... the prime minister... well he died." And eventually he is cured because he cannot deal with the facts. If the psychologist continues confronting him with enough facts, finally he faces the reality and says, "I guess I am not the king of England."<br />
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The Qur´an approaches everyone who reads it in very much the same way a psychologist treats his mythomania patient. There is a verse in the Qur´an (Surah Yunus 10:57) which states:<br />
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<i>"O mankind, there has come to you an admonition [i.e., the Qur´an] from your Lord and a healing for what is in the hearts - and guidance and mercy for the believers."</i><br />
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At first glance, this statement appears vague, but the meaning of this verse is clear when one views it in light of the aforementioned example. Basically, one is healed of his delusions by reading the Qur´an. In essence, it is therapy. It literally cures deluded people by confronting them with facts. A prevalent attitude throughout the Qur´an is one which says, "O mankind, you say such and such about this; but what about such and such? How can you say this when you know that ?" And so forth. It forces one to consider what is relevant and what matters while simultaneously healing one of the delusions that facts presented to mankind by Allah can easily be explained away with flimsy theories and excuses.</div>
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<b>New Catholic Encyclopedia:</b><br />
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It is this very sort of thing - confronting people with facts - that had captured the attention of many non-Muslims. In fact, there exists a very interesting reference concerning this subject in the New Catholic Encyclopedia . In an article under the subject of the Qur´an, the Catholic Church states:<br />
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"Over the centuries, many theories have been offered as to the origin of the Qur´an... Today no sensible man accepts any of these theories!!"<br />
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Now here is the age-old Catholic Church, which has been around for so many centuries, denying these futile attempts to explain away the Qur´an.<br />
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Indeed, the Qur´an is a problem for the Catholic Church. It states that it is revelation, so they study it. Certainly, they would love to find proof that it is not, but they cannot. They cannot find a viable explanation. But at least they are honest in their research and do not accept the first unsubstantiated interpretation which comes along. The Church states that in fourteen centuries it has not yet been presented a sensible explanation. At least it admits that the Qur´an is not an easy subject to dismiss. Certainly, other people are much less honest. They quickly say, "Oh, the Qur´an came from here. The Qur´an came from there." And they do not even examine the credibility of what they are stating most of the time.<br />
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Of course, such a statement by the Catholic Church leaves the everyday Christian in some difficulty. It just may be that he has his own ideas as to the origin of the Qur´an, but as a single member of the Church, he cannot really act upon his own theory. Such an action would be contrary to the obedience, allegiance and loyalty which the Church demands. By virtue of his membership, he must accept what the Catholic Church declares without question and establish its teachings as part of his everyday routine. So, in essence, if the Catholic Church as a whole is saying, "Do not listen to these unconfirmed reports about the Qur´an," then what can be said about the Islamic point of view? If even non-Muslims are admitting that there is something to the Qur´an - something that has to be acknowledged - then why are people so stubborn and defensive and hostile when Muslims advance the very same theory? This is certainly something for those with a mind to contemplate - something to ponder for those of understanding!</div>
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<b>Testimony of an Intellectual:</b><br />
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Recently, the leading intellectual in the Catholic Church - a man by the name of Hans - studied the Qur´an and gave his opinion of what he had read. This man has been around for some time, and he is highly respected in the Catholic Church, and after careful scrutiny, he reported his findings, concluding, "God has spoken to man through the man, Muhammad." Again this is a conclusion arrived at by a non-Muslim source - the very leading intellectual of the Catholic Church himself!<br />
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I do not think that the Pope agrees with him, but nonetheless, the opinion of such a noted, reputed public figure must carry some weight in defense of the Muslim position. He must be applauded for facing the reality that the Qur´an is not something which can be easily pushed aside and that, in fact God is the source of these words.<br />
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As is evident from the aforementioned information, all of the possibilities have been exhausted, so the chance of finding another possibility of dismissing the Qur´an is nonexistent</div>
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<b>Burden of Proof on the Critic:</b><br />
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If the book is not a revelation, then it is a deception; and if it is a deception, one must ask, "What is its origin? And where does it deceive us?" Indeed, the true answers to these questions shed light on the Qur´an´s authenticity and silence the bitter unsubstantiated claims of the unbelievers.<br />
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Certainly, if people are going to insist that the Qur´an is a deception, then they must bring forth evidence to support such a claim. The burden of proof is on them, not us! One is never supposed to advance a theory without sufficient corroborating facts; so I say to them, "Show me one deception! Show me where the Qur´an deceives me! Show me, otherwise don´t say that it is a deception!"</div>
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<b>Origin of the Universe and Life:</b><br />
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An interesting characteristic of the Qur´an is how it deals with surprising phenomena which relate not only to the past but to modern times as well. In essence, the Qur´an is not and old problem. It is still a problem even today - a problem to the non-Muslims that is. For everyday, every week, every year brings more and more evidence that the Qur´an is a force to be contended with - that its authenticity is no longer to be challenged! For example, one verse in the Qur´an (Surah al-Anbiya 21:30) reads:<br />
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<i>"Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together, then We clove them asunder, and made from water every living thing? Will they not then believe?"</i><br />
Ironically, this very information is exactly what they awarded the 1973 Noble Prize for - to a couple of unbelievers.<br />
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The Qur´an reveals the origin of the universe - how it began from one piece - and mankind continues to verify this revelation, even up to now. Additionally, the fact that all life originated from water would not have been an easy thing to convince people of fourteen centuries ago. Indeed, if 1400 years ago you had stood in the desert and told someone, "All of this, you see (pointing to yourself), is made up of mostly water," no one would have believed you. Proof of that was not available until the invention of the microscope. They had to wait to find out that cytoplasm , the basic substance of the cell, is made-up of 80% water. Nonetheless, the evidence did come, and once again the Qur´an stood the test of time.</div>
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<b>More on Falsification Test:</b><br />
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In reference to the falsification tests mentioned earlier, it is interesting to note that they, too, relate to both the past and the present . Some of them were used as illustrations of Allah´s omnipotence and knowledge, while others continue to stand as challenges to the present day. An example of the former is the statement made in the Qur´an about Abu Lahab. It clearly illustrates that Allah, the Knower of the Unseen, knew that Abu Lahab would never change his ways and accept Islam. Thus Allah dictated that he would be condemned to the Hellfire forever. Such a chapter was both an illustration of Allah´s divine wisdom and a warning to those who were like Abu Lahab.</div>
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<b>People of the Book:</b><br />
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An interesting example of the latter type of falsification tests contained in the Qur´an is the verse which mentions the relationship between the Muslims and the Jews. The verse is careful not to narrow its scope to the relationship between individual members of each religion, but rather, it summarizes the relationship between the two groups of people as a whole. In essence, the Qur´an states that the Christians will always treat the Muslims better than the Jews will treat the Muslims. Indeed, the full impact of such a statement can only be felt after careful consideration of the real meaning of such a verse. It is true that many Christians and many Jews have become Muslims, but as a whole, the Jewish community is to be viewed as an avid enemy of Islam. Additionally, very few people realize what such an open declaration in the Qur´an invites. In essence, it is an easy chance for the Jews to prove that the Qur´an is false - that it is not a divine revelation. All they have to do is organize themselves, treat the Muslims nicely for a few years and then say, "Now what does your holy book say about who are your best friends in the world - the Jews or the Christians? Look what we Jews have done for you!" That is all they have to do to disprove the Qur´an´s authenticity, yet they have not done it in 1400 years. But, as always, the offer still stands open!</div>
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<b>A Mathematical Approach:</b><br />
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All of the examples so far given concerning the various angles from which one can approach the Qur´an have undoubtedly been subjective in nature; however, there does exist another angle, among others, which is objective and whose basis is mathematical .<br />
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It is surprising how authentic the Qur´an becomes when one assembles what might be referred to as a list of good guesses. Mathematically, it can be explained using guessing and prediction examples. For instance, if a person has two choices (i.e., one is right, and one is wrong), and he closes his eyes and makes a choice, then half of the time (i.e., one time out of two) he will be right. Basically, he has a one in two chance, for he could pick the wrong choice, or he could pick the right choice.<br />
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Now if the same person has two situations like that (i.e., he could be right or wrong about situation number one, and he could be right or wrong about situation number two), and he closes his eyes and guesses, then he will only be right one-fourth of the time (i.e., one time out of four). He now has a one in four chance because now there are three ways for him to be wrong and only one way for him to be right. In simple terms, he could make the wrong choice in situation number one and then make the wrong choice in situation number two; or he could make the wrong choice in situation number one and then make the right choice in situation number two; or he could make the right choice in situation number one and then make the wrong choice in situation number two; or he could make the right choice in situation number one and then make the right choice in situation number two.<br />
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Of course, the (only instance in which he could be totally right is the last scenario where he could guess correctly in both situations. The odds of his guessing completely correctly have become greater because the number of situations for him to guess in have increased; and the mathematical equation representing such a scenario is 1/2 x 1/2 (i.e., one time out of two for the first situation multiplied by one time out of two for the second situation).<br />
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Continuing on with the example, if the same person now has three situations in which to make blind guesses, then he will only be right one-eighth of the time (i.e., one time out of eight or 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 ). Again, the odds of choosing the correct choice in all three situations have decreased his chances of being completely correct to only one time in eight. It must be understood that as the number of situations increase, the chances of being right decrease, for the two phenomena are inversely proportional.<br />
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Now applying this example to the situations in the Qur´an, if one draws up a list of all of the subjects about which the Qur´an has made correct statements, it becomes very clear that it is highly unlikely that they were all just correct blind guesses. Indeed, the subjects discussed in the Qur´an are numerous, and thus the odds of someone just making lucky guesses about all of them become practically nil. If there are a million ways for the Qur´an to be wrong, yet each time it is right, then it is unlikely that someone was guessing.<br />
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The following three examples of subjects about which the Qur´an has made correct statements collectively illustrate how the Qur´an continues to beat the odds.</div>
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<b>The Female Bee</b>:<br />
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In the 16th chapter (Surah an-Nahl 16:68-69) the Qur´an mentions that the female bee leaves its home to gather food. Now, a person might guess on that, saying, "The bee that you see flying around - it could be male, or it could be female. I think I will guess female." Certainly, he has a one in two chance of being right. So it happens that the Qur´an is right. But it also happens that that was not what most people believed at the time when the Qur´an was revealed. Can you tell the difference between a male and a female bee? Well, it takes a specialist to do that, but it has been discovered that the male bee never leaves his home to gather food. However, in Shakespeare´s play, Henry the Fourth , some of the characters discuss bees and mention that the bees are soldiers and have a king. That is what people thought in Shakespeare´s time - that the bees that one sees flying around are male bees and that they go home and answer to a king. However, that is not true at all. The fact is that they are females, and they answer to a queen. Yet it took modern scientific investigations in the last 300 years to discover that this is the case.<br />
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So, back to the list of good guesses, concerning the topic of bees, the Qur´an had a 50/50 chance of being right, and the odds were one in two.</div>
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<b>The Sun:</b><br />
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In addition to the subject of bees, the Qur´an also discusses the sun and the manner in which it travels through space. Again, a person can guess on that subject. When the sun moves through space, there are two options: it can travel just as a stone would travel if one threw it, or it can move of its own accord. The Qur´an states the latter - that it moves as a result of its own motion (Surah al-Anbiya 21:33). To do such, the Qur´an uses a form of the word sabaha to describe the sun´s movement through space. In order to properly provide the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the implications of this Arabic verb, the following example is given.<br />
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If a man is in water and the verb sabaha is applied in reference to his movement, it can be understood that he is swimming, moving of his own accord and not as a result of a direct force applied to him. Thus when this verb is used in reference to the sun´s movement through space, it in no way implies that the sun is flying uncontrollably through space as a result of being hurled or the like. It simply means that the sun is turning and rotating as it travels. Now, this is what the Qur´an affirms, but was it an easy thing to discover? Can any common man tell that the sun is turning? Only in modern times was the equipment made available to project the image of the sun onto a tabletop so that one could look at it without being blinded. And through this process it was discovered that not only are there spots on the sun but that these spots move once every 25 days. This movement is referred to as the rotation of the sun around its axis and conclusively proves that, as the Qur´an stated 1400 years ago, the sun does, indeed, turn as it travels through space.<br />
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And returning once again to the subject of good guesses, the odds of guessing correctly about both subjects - the sex of bees and the movement of the sun - are one in four!</div>
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<b>Time Zones:</b><br />
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Seeing as back fourteen centuries ago people probably did not understand much about time zones , the Qur´an´s statements about this subject are considerably surprising. The concept that one family is having breakfast as the sun comes up while another family is enjoying the brisk night air is truly something to be marveled at, even in modern time. Indeed, fourteen centuries ago, a man could not travel more than thirty miles in one day, and thus it took him literally months to travel from India to Morocco, for example. And probably, when he was having supper in Morocco, he thought to himself, "Back home in India they are having supper right now." This is because he did not realize that, in the process of traveling, he moved across a time zone. Yet, because it is the words of Allah, the All-Knowing, the Qur´an recognizes and acknowledges such a phenomenon.<br />
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In an interesting verse it states that when history comes to an end and the Day of Judgement arrives, it will all occur in an instant; and this very instant will catch some people in the daytime and some people at night. This clearly illustrates Allah´s divine wisdom and His previous knowledge of the existence of time zones, even though such a discovery was non-existent back fourteen centuries ago. Certainly, this phenomenon is not something which is obvious to one´s eyes or a result of one´s experience, and this fact, in itself, suffices as proof of the Qur´an´s authenticity.</div>
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<b>Conclusions:</b><br />
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Returning one final time to the subject of good guesses for the purpose of the present example, the odds that someone guessed correctly about all three of the aforementioned subjects - the sex of bees, the movement of the sun and the existence of time zones - are one in eight!<br />
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Certainly, one could continue on and on with this example, drawing up longer and longer list of good guesses; and of course, the odds would become higher and higher with each increase of subjects about which one could guess. But what no one can deny is the following: the odds that Muhammad (s), an illiterate, guessed correctly about thousands and thousands of subjects, never once making a mistake, are so high that any theory of his authorship of the Qur´an must be completely dismissed - even by the most hostile enemies of Islam!<br />
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Indeed, the Qur´an expects this kind of challenge. Undoubtedly, if one said to someone upon entering a foreign land, "I know your father. I have met him," probably the man from that land would doubt the newcomer´s word, saying, "You have just come here. How could you know my father?" As a result, he would question him, "Tell me, is my father tall, short, dark, fair? What is he like?" Of course, if the visitor continued answering all of the questions correctly, the skeptic would have no choice but to say, "I guess you do know my father. I don´t know how you know him, but I guess you do!"<br />
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The situation is the same with the Qur´an. It states that it originates from the One who created everything. So everyone has the right to say, "Convince me! If the author of this book really originated life and everything in the heavens and on the earth, then He should know about this, about that, and so on." And inevitably, after researching the Qur´an, everyone will discover the same truths. Additionally, we all know something for sure: we do not all have to be experts to verify what the Qur´an affirms. One´s iman (faith) grows as one continues to check and confirm the truths contained in the Qur´an. And one is supposed to do so all of his life.<br />
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May God (Allah) guide everyone close to the truth.</div>
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<b>Addendum 1:</b><br />
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An engineer at the University of Toronto who was interested in psychology and who had read something on it, conducted research and wrote a thesis on Efficiency of Group Discussions. The purpose of his research was to find out how much people accomplish when they get together to talk in groups of two, three, ten, etc. The graph of his findings goes up and down at places, but it reaches the highest point at the variable of two. The findings: people accomplish most when they talk in groups of two. Of course, this discovery was entirely beyond his expectations, but it is very old advice given in the Qur´an (Surah Saba 34:46): "Say, ´I exhort you to one thing - that you stand for Allah, [assessing the truth] by twos and singly, and then reflect...´"</div>
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<b>Addendum 2: ´Iram</b><br />
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Additionally, the 89th chapter of the Qur´an (Surah al-Fajr 89:7) mentions a certain city by the name of ´Iram (a city of pillars), which was not known in ancient history and which was non-existent as far as historians were concerned. However, the December 1978 edition of National Geographic introduced interesting information which mentioned that in 1973, the city of Elba was excavated in Syria. The city was discovered to be 43 centuries old, but that is not the most amazing part. Researchers found in the library of Elba a record of all of the cities with which Elba had done business. Believe it or not, there on the list was the name of the city of ´Iram. The people of Elba had done business with the people of ´Iram!<br />
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In conclusion I ask you to consider with care the following (Surah 29:50-51): "And they say, ´Why are not signs sent down to him from his Lord?´ Say, ´Indeed, the signs are with Allah, and I am but a clear warner.´ But it is sufficient for them that We have sent down to you the Book [i.e., Qur´an] which is rehearsed to them? Verily, in that is mercy and a reminder to people who believe."</div>

Calling the Qur´an amazing is not something done only by Muslims, who have an appreciation for the book and who are pleased with it; it h...

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