The Church and Religious Politics From the Middle Ages to The Modern Age

Milan Cathedral, Milan, Italy (1998) | Credit: Thomas Struth

THE POLITICS OF GOD

https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/19/magazine/19Religion-t.html

by Mark Lilla

Aug. 19, 2007

I. “The Will of God Will Prevail”

The twilight of the idols has been postponed. For more than two centuries, from the American and French Revolutions to the collapse of Soviet Communism, world politics revolved around eminently political problems. War and revolution, class and social justice, race and national identity — these were the questions that divided us. Today, we have progressed to the point where our problems again resemble those of the 16th century, as we find ourselves entangled in conflicts over competing revelations, dogmatic purity and divine duty. We in the West are disturbed and confused. Though we have our own fundamentalists, we find it incomprehensible that theological ideas still stir up messianic passions, leaving societies in ruin. We had assumed this was no longer possible, that human beings had learned to separate religious questions from political ones, that fanaticism was dead. We were wrong.

An example: In May of last year, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran sent an open letter to President George W. Bush that was translated and published in newspapers around the world. Its theme was contemporary politics and its language that of divine revelation. After rehearsing a litany of grievances against American foreign policies, real and imagined, Ahmadinejad wrote, “If Prophet Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Ishmael, Joseph or Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) were with us today, how would they have judged such behavior?” This was not a rhetorical question. “I have been told that Your Excellency follows the teachings of Jesus (peace be upon him) and believes in the divine promise of the rule of the righteous on Earth,” Ahmadinejad continued, reminding his fellow believer that “according to divine verses, we have all been called upon to worship one God and follow the teachings of divine Prophets.” There follows a kind of altar call, in which the American president is invited to bring his actions into line with these verses. And then comes a threatening prophecy: “Liberalism and Western-style democracy have not been able to help realize the ideals of humanity. Today, these two concepts have failed. Those with insight can already hear the sounds of the shattering and fall of the ideology and thoughts of the liberal democratic systems. . . . Whether we like it or not, the world is gravitating towards faith in the Almighty and justice and the will of God will prevail over all things.”

This is the language of political theology, and for millennia it was the only tongue human beings had for expressing their thoughts about political life. It is primordial, but also contemporary: countless millions still pursue the age-old quest to bring the whole of human life under God’s authority, and they have their reasons. To understand them we need only interpret the language of political theology — yet that is what we find hardest to do. Reading a letter like Ahmadinejad’s, we fall mute, like explorers coming upon an ancient inscription written in hieroglyphics.

The problem is ours, not his. A little more than two centuries ago we began to believe that the West was on a one-way track toward modern secular democracy and that other societies, once placed on that track, would inevitably follow. Though this has not happened, we still maintain our implicit faith in a modernizing process and blame delays on extenuating circumstances like poverty or colonialism. This assumption shapes the way we see political theology, especially in its Islamic form — as an atavism requiring psychological or sociological analysis but not serious intellectual engagement. Islamists, even if they are learned professionals, appear to us primarily as frustrated, irrational representatives of frustrated, irrational societies, nothing more. We live, so to speak, on the other shore. When we observe those on the opposite bank, we are puzzled, since we have only a distant memory of what it was like to think as they do. We all face the same questions of political existence, yet their way of answering them has become alien to us. On one shore, political institutions are conceived in terms of divine authority and spiritual redemption; on the other they are not. And that, as Robert Frost might have put it, makes all the difference.

Understanding this difference is the most urgent intellectual and political task of the present time. But where to begin? The case of contemporary Islam is on everyone’s mind, yet is so suffused with anger and ignorance as to be paralyzing. All we hear are alien sounds, motivating unspeakable acts. If we ever hope to crack the grammar and syntax of political theology, it seems we will have to begin with ourselves. The history of political theology in the West is an instructive story, and it did not end with the birth of modern science, or the Enlightenment, or the American and French Revolutions, or any other definitive historical moment. Political theology was a presence in Western intellectual life well into the 20th century, by which time it had shed the mind-set of the Middle Ages and found modern reasons for seeking political inspiration in the Bible. At first, this modern political theology expressed a seemingly enlightened outlook and was welcomed by those who wished liberal democracy well. But in the aftermath of the First World War it took an apocalyptic turn, and “new men” eager to embrace the future began generating theological justifications for the most repugnant — and godless — ideologies of the age, Nazism and Communism.

It is an unnerving tale, one that raises profound questions about the fragility of our modern outlook. Even the most stable and successful democracies, with the most high-minded and civilized believers, have proved vulnerable to political messianism and its theological justification. If we can understand how that was possible in the advanced West, if we can hear political theology speaking in a more recognizable tongue, represented by people in familiar dress with familiar names, perhaps then we can remind ourselves how the world looks from its perspective. This would be a small step toward measuring the challenge we face and deciding how to respond.

II. The Great Separation

Why is there political theology? The question echoes throughout the history of Western thought, beginning in Greek and Roman antiquity and continuing down to our day. Many theories have been proposed, especially by those suspicious of the religious impulse. Yet few recognize the rationality of political theology or enter into its logic. Theology is, after all, a set of reasons people give themselves for the way things are and the way they ought to be. So let us try to imagine how those reasons might involve God and have implications for politics.

Imagine human beings who first become aware of themselves in a world not of their own making. Their world has unknown origins and behaves in a regular fashion, so they wonder why that is. They know that the things they themselves fashion behave in a predictable manner because they conceive and construct them with some end in mind. They stretch the bow, the arrow flies; that is why they were made. So, by analogy, it is not difficult for them to assume that the cosmic order was constructed for a purpose, reflecting its maker’s will. By following this analogy, they begin to have ideas about that maker, about his intentions and therefore about his personality.

In taking these few short steps, the human mind finds itself confronted with a picture, a theological image in which God, man and world form a divine nexus. Believers have reasons for thinking that they live in this nexus, just as they have reasons for assuming that it offers guidance for political life. But how that guidance is to be understood, and whether believers think it is authoritative, will depend on how they imagine God. If God is thought to be passive, a silent force like the sky, nothing in particular may follow. He is a hypothesis we can do without. But if we take seriously the thought that God is a person with intentions, and that the cosmic order is a result of those intentions, then a great deal can follow. The intentions of such a God reveal something man cannot fully know on his own. This revelation then becomes the source of his authority, over nature and over us, and we have no choice but to obey him and see that his plans are carried out on earth. That is where political theology comes in.

One powerful attraction of political theology, in any form, is its comprehensiveness. It offers a way of thinking about the conduct of human affairs and connects those thoughts to loftier ones about the existence of God, the structure of the cosmos, the nature of the soul, the origin of all things and the end of time. For more than a millennium, the West took inspiration from the Christian image of a triune God ruling over a created cosmos and guiding men by means of revelation, inner conviction and the natural order. It was a magnificent picture that allowed a magnificent and powerful civilization to flower. But the picture was always difficult to translate theologically into political form: God the Father had given commandments; a Redeemer arrived, reinterpreting them, then departed; and now the Holy Spirit remained as a ghostly divine presence. It was not at all clear what political lessons were to be drawn from all this. Were Christians supposed to withdraw from a corrupted world that was abandoned by the Redeemer? Were they called upon to rule the earthly city with both church and state, inspired by the Holy Spirit? Or were they expected to build a New Jerusalem that would hasten the Messiah’s return?

Throughout the Middle Ages, Christians argued over these questions. The City of Man was set against the City of God, public citizenship against private piety, the divine right of kings against the right of resistance, church authority against radical antinomianism, canon law against mystical insight, inquisitor against martyr, secular sword against ecclesiastical miter, prince against emperor, emperor against pope, pope against church councils. In the late Middle Ages, the sense of crisis was palpable, and even the Roman Church recognized that reforms were in order. But by the 16th century, thanks to Martin Luther and John Calvin, there was no unified Christendom to reform, just a variety of churches and sects, most allied with absolute secular rulers eager to assert their independence. In the Wars of Religion that followed, doctrinal differences fueled political ambitions and vice versa, in a deadly, vicious cycle that lasted a century and a half. Christians addled by apocalyptic dreams hunted and killed Christians with a maniacal fury they had once reserved for Muslims, Jews and heretics. It was madness.

The English philosopher Thomas Hobbes tried to find a way out of this labyrinth. Traditionally, political theology had interpreted a set of revealed divine commands and applied them to social life. In his great treatise “Leviathan” (1651), Hobbes simply ignored the substance of those commands and talked instead about how and why human beings believed God revealed them. He did the most revolutionary thing a thinker can ever do — he changed the subject, from God and his commands to man and his beliefs. If we do that, Hobbes reasoned, we can begin to understand why religious convictions so often lead to political conflicts and then perhaps find a way to contain the potential for violence.

The contemporary crisis in Western Christendom created an audience for Hobbes and his ideas. In the midst of religious war, his view that the human mind was too weak and beset by passions to have any reliable knowledge of the divine seemed common-sensical. It also made sense to assume that when man speaks about God he is really referring to his own experience, which is all he knows. And what most characterizes his experience? According to Hobbes, fear. Man’s natural state is to be overwhelmed with anxiety, “his heart all the day long gnawed on by fear of death, poverty, or other calamity.” He “has no repose, nor pause of his anxiety, but in sleep.” It is no wonder that human beings fashion idols to protect themselves from what they most fear, attributing divine powers even, as Hobbes wrote, to “men, women, a bird, a crocodile, a calf, a dog, a snake, an onion, a leek.” Pitiful, but understandable.

And the debilitating dynamics of belief don’t end there. For once we imagine an all-powerful God to protect us, chances are we’ll begin to fear him too. What if he gets angry? How can we appease him? Hobbes reasoned that these new religious fears were what created a market for priests and prophets claiming to understand God’s obscure demands. It was a raucous market in Hobbes’s time, with stalls for Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Lutherans, Calvinists, Anabaptists, Quakers, Ranters, Muggletonians, Fifth Monarchy Men and countless others, each with his own path to salvation and blueprint for Christian society. They disagreed with one another, and because their very souls were at stake, they fought. Which led to wars; which led to more fear; which made people more religious; which. . . .

Fresh from the Wars of Religion, Hobbes’s readers knew all about fear. Their lives had become, as he put it, “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” And when he announced that a new political philosophy could release them from fear, they listened. Hobbes planted a seed, a thought that it might be possible to build legitimate political institutions without grounding them on divine revelation. He knew it was impossible to refute belief in divine revelation; the most one can hope to do is cast suspicion on prophets claiming to speak about politics in God’s name. The new political thinking would no longer concern itself with God’s politics; it would concentrate on men as believers in God and try to keep them from harming one another. It would set its sights lower than Christian political theology had, but secure what mattered most, which was peace.

Chiesa dei Frari, Venice, 1995 | Credit: Thomas Struth

Hobbes was neither a liberal nor a democrat. He thought that consolidating power in the hands of one man was the only way to relieve citizens of their mutual fears. But over the next few centuries, Western thinkers like John Locke, who adopted his approach, began to imagine a new kind of political order in which power would be limited, divided and widely shared; in which those in power at one moment would relinquish it peacefully at another, without fear of retribution; in which public law would govern relations among citizens and institutions; in which many different religions would be allowed to flourish, free from state interference; and in which individuals would have inalienable rights to protect them from government and their fellows. This liberal-democratic order is the only one we in the West recognize as legitimate today, and we owe it primarily to Hobbes. In order to escape the destructive passions of messianic faith, political theology centered on God was replaced by political philosophy centered on man. This was the Great Separation.

III. The Inner Light

It is a familiar story, and seems to conclude with a happy ending. But in truth the Great Separation was never a fait accompli, even in Western Europe, where it was first conceived. Old-style Christian political theology had an afterlife in the West, and only after the Second World War did it cease to be a political force. In the 19th and early 20th centuries a different challenge to the Great Separation arose from another quarter. It came from a wholly new kind of political theology heavily indebted to philosophy and styling itself both modern and liberal. I am speaking of the “liberal theology” movement that arose in Germany not long after the French Revolution, first among Protestant theologians, then among Jewish reformers. These thinkers, who abhorred theocracy, also rebelled against Hobbes’s vision, favoring instead a political future in which religion — properly chastened and intellectually reformed — would play an absolutely central role.

And the questions they posed were good ones. While granting that ignorance and fear had bred pointless wars among Christian sects and nations, they asked: Were those the only reasons that, for a millennium and a half, an entire civilization had looked to Jesus Christ as its savior? Or that suffering Jews of the Diaspora remained loyal to the Torah? Could ignorance and fear explain the beauty of Christian liturgical music or the sublimity of the Gothic cathedrals? Could they explain why all other civilizations, past and present, founded their political institutions in accordance with the divine nexus of God, man and world? Surely there was more to religious man than was dreamed of in Hobbes’s philosophy.

That certainly was the view of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who did more than anyone to develop an alternative to Hobbes. Rousseau wrote no treatise on religion, which was probably a wise thing, since when he inserted a few pages on religious themes into his masterpiece, “Émile” (1762), it caused the book to be burned and Rousseau to spend the rest of his life on the run. This short section of “Émile,” which he called “The Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar,” has so deeply shaped contemporary views of religion that it takes some effort to understand why Rousseau was persecuted for writing it. It is the most beautiful and convincing defense of man’s religious instincts ever to flow from a modern pen — and that, apparently, was the problem. Rousseau spoke of religion in terms of human needs, not divine truths, and had his Savoyard vicar declare, “I believe all particular religions are good when one serves God usefully in them.” For that, he was hounded by pious Christians.

Rousseau had a Hobbes problem, too: he shared the Englishman’s criticisms of theocracy, fanaticism and the clergy, but he was a friend of religion. While Hobbes beat the drums of ignorance and fear, Rousseau sang the praises of conscience, of charity, of fellow feeling, of virtue, of pious wonder in the face of God’s creation. Human beings, he thought, have a natural goodness they express in their religion. That is the theme of the “Profession of Faith,” which tells the parable of a young vicar who loses his faith and then his moral compass once confronted with the hypocrisy of his co-religionists. He is able to restore his equilibrium only when he finds a new kind of faith in God by looking within, to his own “inner light” (lumière intérieure). The point of Rousseau’s story is less to display the crimes of organized churches than to show that man yearns for religion because he is fundamentally a moral creature. There is much we cannot know about God, and for centuries the pretense of having understood him caused much damage to Christendom. But, for Rousseau, we need to believe something about him if we are to orient ourselves in the world.

Among modern thinkers, Rousseau was the first to declare that there is no shame in saying that faith in God is humanly necessary. Religion has its roots in needs that are rational and moral, even noble; once we see that, we can start satisfying them rationally, morally and nobly. In the abstract, this thought did not contradict the principles of the Great Separation, which gave reasons for protecting the private exercise of religion. But it did raise doubts about whether the new political thinking could really do without reference to the nexus of God, man and world. If Rousseau was right about our moral needs, a rigid separation between political and theological principles might not be psychologically sustainable. When a question is important, we want an answer to it: as the Savoyard vicar remarks, “The mind decides in one way or another, despite itself, and prefers being mistaken to believing in nothing.” Rousseau had grave doubts about whether human beings could be happy or good if they did not understand how their actions related to something higher. Religion is simply too entwined with our moral experience ever to be disentangled from it, and morality is inseparable from politics.

IV. Rousseau’s Children

By the early 19th century, two schools of thought about religion and politics had grown up in the West. Let us call them the children of Hobbes and the children of Rousseau. For the children of Hobbes, a decent political life could not be realized by Christian political theology, which bred violence and stifled human development. The only way to control the passions flowing from religion to politics, and back again, was to detach political life from them completely. This had to happen within Western institutions, but first it had to happen within Western minds. A reorientation would have to take place, turning human attention away from the eternal and transcendent, toward the here and now. The old habit of looking to God for political guidance would have to be broken, and new habits developed. For Hobbes, the first step toward achieving that end was to get people thinking about — and suspicious about — the sources of faith.

Though there was great reluctance to adopt Hobbes’s most radical views on religion, in the English-speaking world the intellectual principles of the Great Separation began to take hold in the 18th century. Debate would continue over where exactly to place the line between religious and political institutions, but arguments about the legitimacy of theocracy petered out in all but the most forsaken corners of the public square. There was no longer serious controversy about the relation between the political order and the divine nexus; it ceased to be a question. No one in modern Britain or the United States argued for a bicameral legislature on the basis of divine revelation.

The children of Rousseau followed a different line of argument. Medieval political theology was not salvageable, but neither could human beings ignore questions of eternity and transcendence when thinking about the good life. When we speculate about God, man and world in the correct way, we express our noblest moral sentiments; without such reflection we despair and eventually harm ourselves and others. That is the lesson of the Savoyard vicar.

In the aftermath of the French Revolution, the Terror and Napoleon’s conquests, Rousseau’s children found a receptive audience in continental Europe. The recent wars had had nothing to do with political theology or religious fanaticism of the old variety; if anything, people reasoned, it was the radical atheism of the French Enlightenment that turned men into beasts and bred a new species of political fanatic. Germans were especially drawn to this view, and a wave of romanticism brought with it great nostalgia for the religious “world we have lost.” It even touched sober philosophers like Immanuel Kant and G. W. F. Hegel. Kant adored “Émile” and went somewhat further than Rousseau had, not only accepting the moral need for rational faith but arguing that Christianity, properly reformed, would represent the “true universal Church” and embody the very “idea” of religion. Hegel went further still, attributing to religion an almost vitalistic power to forge the social bond and encourage sacrifice for the public good. Religion, and religion alone, is the original source of a people’s shared spirit, which Hegel called its Volksgeist.

These ideas had an enormous impact on German religious thought in the 19th century, and through it on Protestantism and Judaism throughout the West. This was the century of “liberal theology,” a term that requires explanation. In modern Britain and the United States, it was assumed that the intellectual, and then institutional, separation of Christianity and modern politics had been mutually beneficial — that the modern state had benefited by being absolved from pronouncing on doctrinal matters, and that Christianity had benefited by being freed from state interference. No such consensus existed in Germany, where the assumption was that religion needed to be publicly encouraged, not reined in, if it was to contribute to society. It would have to be rationally reformed, of course: the Bible would have to be interpreted in light of recent historical findings, belief in miracles abandoned, the clergy educated along modern lines and doctrine adapted to a softer age. But once these reforms were in place, enlightened politics and enlightened religion would join hands.

Protestant liberal theologians soon began to dream of a third way between Christian orthodoxy and the Great Separation. They had unshaken faith in the moral core of Christianity, however distorted it may have been by the forces of history, and unshaken faith in the cultural and political progress that Christianity had brought to the world. Christianity had given birth to the values of individuality, moral universalism, reason and progress on which German life was now based. There could be no contradiction between religion and state, or even tension. The modern state had only to give Protestantism its due in public life, and Protestant theology would reciprocate by recognizing its political responsibilities. If both parties met their obligations, then, as the philosopher F. W. J. Schelling put it, “the destiny of Christianity will be decided in Germany.”

Among Jewish liberal thinkers, there was a different sort of hope, that of acceptance as equal citizens. After the French Revolution, a fitful process of Jewish emancipation began in Europe, and German Jews were more quickly integrated into modern cultural life than in any other European country — a fateful development. For it was precisely at this moment that German Protestants were becoming convinced that reformed Christianity represented their national Volksgeist. While the liberal Jewish thinkers were attracted to modern enlightened faith, they were also driven by the apologetic need to justify Judaism’s contribution to German society. They could not appeal to the principles of the Great Separation and simply demand to be left alone. They had to argue that Judaism and Protestantism were two forms of the same rational moral faith, and that they could share a political theology. As the Jewish philosopher and liberal reformer Hermann Cohen once put it, “In all intellectual questions of religion we think and feel ourselves in a Protestant spirit.”

V. Courting the Apocalypse

This was the house that liberal theology built, and throughout the 19th century it looked secure. It wasn’t, and for reasons worth pondering. Liberal theology had begun in hope that the moral truths of biblical faith might be intellectually reconciled with, and not just accommodated to, the realities of modern political life. Yet the liberal deity turned out to be a stillborn God, unable to inspire genuine conviction among a younger generation seeking ultimate truth. For what did the new Protestantism offer the soul of one seeking union with his creator? It prescribed a catechism of moral commonplaces and historical optimism about bourgeois life, spiced with deep pessimism about the possibility of altering that life. It preached good citizenship and national pride, economic good sense and the proper length of a gentleman’s beard. But it was too ashamed to proclaim the message found on every page of the Gospels: that you must change your life. And what did the new Judaism bring to a young Jew seeking a connection with the traditional faith of his people? It taught him to appreciate the ethical message at the core of all biblical faith and passed over in genteel silence the fearsome God of the prophets, his covenant with the Jewish people and the demanding laws he gave them. Above all, it taught a young Jew that his first obligation was to seek common ground with Christianity and find acceptance in the one nation, Germany, whose highest cultural ideals matched those of Judaism, properly understood. To the decisive questions — “Why be a Christian?” and “Why be a Jew?” — liberal theology offered no answer at all.

By the turn of the 20th century, the liberal house was tottering, and after the First World War it collapsed. It was not just the barbarity of trench warfare, the senseless slaughter, the sight of burned-out towns and maimed soldiers that made a theology extolling “modern civilization” contemptible. It was that so many liberal theologians had hastened the insane rush to war, confident that God’s hand was guiding history. In August 1914, Adolf von Harnack, the most respected liberal Protestant scholar of the age, helped Kaiser Wilhelm II draft an address to the nation laying out German military aims. Others signed an infamous pro-war petition defending the sacredness of German militarism. Astonishingly, even Hermann Cohen joined the chorus, writing an open letter to American Jews asking for support, on the grounds that “next to his fatherland, every Western Jew must recognize, revere and love Germany as the motherland of his modern religiosity.” Young Protestant and Jewish thinkers were outraged when they saw what their revered teachers had done, and they began to look elsewhere.

But they did not turn to Hobbes, or to Rousseau. They craved a more robust faith, based on a new revelation that would shake the foundations of the whole modern order. It was a thirst for redemption. Ever since the liberal theologians had revived the idea of biblical politics, the stage had been set for just this sort of development. When faith in redemption through bourgeois propriety and cultural accommodation withered after the Great War, the most daring thinkers of the day transformed it into hope for a messianic apocalypse — one that would again place the Jewish people, or the individual Christian believer, or the German nation, or the world proletariat in direct relation with the divine.

Notre-Dame, Paris, 2000 | Credit: Thomas Struth

Young Weimar Jews were particularly drawn to these messianic currents through the writings of Martin Buber, who later became a proponent of interfaith understanding but as a young Zionist promoted a crude chauvinistic nationalism. In an early essay he called for a “Masada of the spirit” and proclaimed: “If I had to choose for my people between a comfortable, unproductive happiness . . . and a beautiful death in a final effort at life, I would have to choose the latter. For this final effort would create something divine, if only for a moment, but the other something all too human.” Language like this, with strong and discomforting contemporary echoes for us, drew deeply from the well of biblical messianism. Yet Buber was an amateur compared with the Marxist philosopher Ernst Bloch, who used the Bible to extol the utopia then under construction in the Soviet Union. Though an atheist Jew, Bloch saw a connection between messianic hope and revolutionary violence, which he admired from a distance. He celebrated Thomas Müntzer, the 16th-century Protestant pastor who led bloody peasant uprisings and was eventually beheaded; he also praised the brutal Soviet leaders, famously declaring “ubi Lenin, ibi Jerusalem” — wherever Lenin is, there is Jerusalem.

But it was among young Weimar Protestants that the new messianic spirit proved most consequential. They were led by the greatest theologian of the day, Karl Barth, who wanted to restore the drama of religious decision to Christianity and rejected any accommodation of the Gospel to modern sensibilities. When Hitler came to power, Barth acquitted himself well, leading resistance against the Nazi takeover of the Protestant churches before he was forced into exile in 1935. But others, who employed the same messianic rhetoric Barth did, chose the Nazis instead. A notorious example was Emanuel Hirsch, a respected Lutheran theologian and translator of Kierkegaard, who welcomed the Nazi seizure of power for bringing Germany into “the circle of the white ruling peoples, to which God has entrusted the responsibility for the history of humanity.” Another was Friedrich Gogarten, one of Barth’s closest collaborators, who sided with the Nazis in the summer of 1933 (a decision he later regretted). In the 1920s, Gogarten rejoiced at the collapse of bourgeois Europe, declaring that “we are glad for the decline, since no one enjoys living among corpses,” and called for a new religion that “attacks culture as culture . . . that attacks the whole world.” When the brownshirts began marching and torching books, he got his wish. After Hitler completed his takeover, Gogarten wrote that “precisely because we are today once again under the total claim of the state, it is again possible, humanly speaking, to proclaim the Christ of the Bible and his reign over us.”

All of which served to confirm Hobbes’s iron law: Messianic theology eventually breeds messianic politics. The idea of redemption is among the most powerful forces shaping human existence in all those societies touched by the biblical tradition. It has inspired people to endure suffering, overcome suffering and inflict suffering on others. It has offered hope and inspiration in times of darkness; it has also added to the darkness by arousing unrealistic expectations and justifying those who spill blood to satisfy them. All the biblical religions cultivate the idea of redemption, and all fear its power to inflame minds and deafen them to the voice of reason. In the writings of these Weimar figures, we encounter what those orthodox traditions always dreaded: the translation of religious notions of apocalypse and redemption into a justification of political messianism, now under frightening modern conditions. It was as if nothing had changed since the 17th century, when Thomas Hobbes first sat down to write his “Leviathan.”

VI. Miracles

The revival of political theology in the modern West is a humbling story. It reminds us that this way of thinking is not the preserve of any one culture or religion, nor does it belong solely to the past. It is an age-old habit of mind that can be reacquired by anyone who begins looking to the divine nexus of God, man and world to reveal the legitimate political order. This story also reminds us how political theology can be adapted to circumstances and reassert itself, even in the face of seemingly irresistible forces like modernization, secularization and democratization. Rousseau was on to something: we seem to be theotropic creatures, yearning to connect our mundane lives, in some way, to the beyond. That urge can be suppressed, new habits learned, but the challenge of political theology will never fully disappear so long as the urge to connect survives.

So we are heirs to the Great Separation only if we wish to be, if we make a conscious effort to separate basic principles of political legitimacy from divine revelation. Yet more is required still. Since the challenge of political theology is enduring, we need to remain aware of its logic and the threat it poses. This means vigilance, but even more it means self-awareness. We must never forget that there was nothing historically inevitable about our Great Separation, that it was and remains an experiment. In Europe, the political ambiguities of one religion, Christianity, happened to set off a political crisis that might have been avoided but wasn’t, triggering the Wars of Religion; the resulting carnage made European thinkers more receptive to Hobbes’s heretical ideas about religious psychology and the political implications he drew from them; and over time those political ideas were liberalized. Even then, it was only after the Second World War that the principles of modern liberal democracy became fully rooted in continental Europe.

As for the American experience, it is utterly exceptional: there is no other fully developed industrial society with a population so committed to its faiths (and such exotic ones), while being equally committed to the Great Separation. Our political rhetoric, which owes much to the Protestant sectarians of the 17th century, vibrates with messianic energy, and it is only thanks to a strong constitutional structure and various lucky breaks that political theology has never seriously challenged the basic legitimacy of our institutions. Americans have potentially explosive religious differences over abortion, prayer in schools, censorship, euthanasia, biological research and countless other issues, yet they generally settle them within the bounds of the Constitution. It’s a miracle.

And miracles can’t be willed. For all the good Hobbes did in shifting our political focus from God to man, he left the impression that the challenge of political theology would vanish once the cycle of fear was broken and human beings established authority over their own affairs. We still make this assumption when speaking of the “social causes” of fundamentalism and political messianism, as if the amelioration of material conditions or the shifting of borders would automatically trigger a Great Separation. Nothing in our history or contemporary experience confirms this belief, yet somehow we can’t let it go. We have learned Hobbes’s lesson too well, and failed to heed Rousseau’s. And so we find ourselves in an intellectual bind when we encounter genuine political theology today: either we assume that modernization and secularization will eventually extinguish it, or we treat it as an incomprehensible existential threat, using familiar terms like fascism to describe it as best we can. Neither response takes us a step closer to understanding the world we now live in.

It is a world in which millions of people, particularly in the Muslim orbit, believe that God has revealed a law governing the whole of human affairs. This belief shapes the politics of important Muslim nations, and it also shapes the attitudes of vast numbers of believers who find themselves living in Western countries — and non-Western democracies like Turkey and Indonesia — founded on the alien principles of the Great Separation. These are the most significant points of friction, internationally and domestically. And we cannot really address them if we do not first recognize the intellectual chasm between us: although it is possible to translate Ahmadinejad’s letter to Bush from Farsi into English, its intellectual assumptions cannot be translated into those of the Great Separation. We can try to learn his language in order to create sensible policies, but agreement on basic principles won’t be possible. And we must learn to live with that.

Similarly, we must somehow find a way to accept the fact that, given the immigration policies Western nations have pursued over the last half-century, they now are hosts to millions of Muslims who have great difficulty fitting into societies that do not recognize any political claims based on their divine revelation. Like Orthodox Jewish law, the Muslim Shariah is meant to cover the whole of life, not some arbitrarily demarcated private sphere, and its legal system has few theological resources for establishing the independence of politics from detailed divine commands. It is an unfortunate situation, but we have made our bed, Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Accommodation and mutual respect can help, as can clear rules governing areas of tension, like the status of women, parents’ rights over their children, speech offensive to religious sensibilities, speech inciting violence, standards of dress in public institutions and the like. Western countries have adopted different strategies for coping, some forbidding religious symbols like the head scarf in schools, others permitting them. But we need to recognize that coping is the order of the day, not defending high principle, and that our expectations should remain low. So long as a sizable population believes in the truth of a comprehensive political theology, its full reconciliation with modern liberal democracy cannot be expected.

VII. The Opposite Shore

This is not welcome news. For more than two centuries, promoters of modernization have taken it for granted that science, technology, urbanization and education would eventually “disenchant” the charmed world of believers, and that with time people would either abandon their traditional faiths or transform them in politically anodyne ways. They point to continental Europe, where belief in God has been in steady decline over the last 50 years, and suggest that, with time, Muslims everywhere will undergo a similar transformation. Those predictions may eventually prove right. But Europe’s rapid secularization is historically unique and, as we have just seen, relatively recent. Political theology is highly adaptive and can present to even educated minds a more compelling vision of the future than the prospect of secular modernity. It takes as little for a highly trained medical doctor to fashion a car bomb today as it took for advanced thinkers to fashion biblically inspired justifications of fascist and communist totalitarianism in Weimar Germany. When the urge to connect is strong, passions are high and fantasies are vivid, the trinkets of our modern lives are impotent amulets against political intoxication.

Realizing this, a number of Muslim thinkers around the world have taken to promoting a “liberal” Islam. What they mean is an Islam more adapted to the demands of modern life, kinder in its treatment of women and children, more tolerant of other faiths, more open to dissent. These are brave people who have often suffered for their efforts, in prison or exile, as did their predecessors in the 19th century, of which there were many. But now as then, their efforts have been swept away by deeper theological currents they cannot master and perhaps do not even understand. The history of Protestant and Jewish liberal theology reveals the problem: the more a biblical faith is trimmed to fit the demands of the moment, the fewer reasons it gives believers for holding on to that faith in troubled times, when self-appointed guardians of theological purity offer more radical hope. Worse still, when such a faith is used to bestow theological sanctification on a single form of political life — even an attractive one like liberal democracy — the more it will be seen as collaborating with injustice when that political system fails. The dynamics of political theology seem to dictate that when liberalizing reformers try to conform to the present, they inspire a countervailing and far more passionate longing for redemption in the messianic future. That is what happened in Weimar Germany and is happening again in contemporary Islam.

The complacent liberalism and revolutionary messianism we’ve encountered are not the only theological options. There is another kind of transformation possible in biblical faiths, and that is the renewal of traditional political theology from within. If liberalizers are apologists for religion at the court of modern life, renovators stand firmly within their faith and reinterpret political theology so believers can adapt without feeling themselves to be apostates. Luther and Calvin were renovators in this sense, not liberalizers. They called Christians back to the fundamentals of their faith, but in a way that made it easier, not harder, to enjoy the fruits of temporal existence. They found theological reasons to reject the ideal of celibacy, and its frequent violation by priests, and thus returned the clergy to ordinary family life. They then found theological reasons to reject otherworldly monasticism and the all-too-worldly imperialism of Rome, offering biblical reasons that Christians should be loyal citizens of the state they live in. And they did this, not by speaking the apologetic language of toleration and progress, but by rewriting the language of Christian political theology and demanding that Christians be faithful to it.

Today, a few voices are calling for just this kind of renewal of Islamic political theology. Some, like Khaled Abou El Fadl, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, challenge the authority of today’s puritans, who make categorical judgments based on a literal reading of scattered Koranic verses. In Abou El Fadl’s view, traditional Islamic law can still be applied to present-day situations because it brings a subtle interpretation of the whole text to bear on particular problems in varied circumstances. Others, like the Swiss-born cleric and professor Tariq Ramadan, are public figures whose writings show Western Muslims that their political theology, properly interpreted, offers guidance for living with confidence in their faith and gaining acceptance in what he calls an alien “abode.” To read their works is to be reminded what a risky venture renewal is. It can invite believers to participate more fully and wisely in the political present, as the Protestant Reformation eventually did; it can also foster dreams of returning to a more primitive faith, through violence if necessary, as happened in the Wars of Religion.

Perhaps for this reason, Abou El Fadl and especially Ramadan have become objects of intense and sometimes harsh scrutiny by Western intellectuals. We prefer speaking with the Islamic liberalizers because they share our language: they accept the intellectual presuppositions of the Great Separation and simply want maximum room given for religious and cultural expression. They do not practice political theology. But the prospects of enduring political change through renewal are probably much greater than through liberalization. By speaking from within the community of the faithful, renovators give believers compelling theological reasons for accepting new ways as authentic reinterpretations of the faith. Figures like Abou El Fadl and Ramadan speak a strange tongue, even when promoting changes we find worthy; their reasons are not our reasons. But if we cannot expect mass conversion to the principles of the Great Separation — and we cannot — we had better learn to welcome transformations in Muslim political theology that ease coexistence. The best should not be the enemy of the good.

In the end, though, what happens on the opposite shore will not be up to us. We have little reason to expect societies in the grip of a powerful political theology to follow our unusual path, which was opened up by a unique crisis within Christian civilization. This does not mean that those societies necessarily lack the wherewithal to create a decent and workable political order; it does mean that they will have to find the theological resources within their own traditions to make it happen.

Our challenge is different. We have made a choice that is at once simpler and harder: we have chosen to limit our politics to protecting individuals from the worst harms they can inflict on one another, to securing fundamental liberties and providing for their basic welfare, while leaving their spiritual destinies in their own hands. We have wagered that it is wiser to beware the forces unleashed by the Bible’s messianic promise than to try exploiting them for the public good. We have chosen to keep our politics unilluminated by divine revelation. All we have is our own lucidity, which we must train on a world where faith still inflames the minds of men.

Mark Lilla is professor of the humanities at Columbia University. This essay is adapted from his book “The Stillborn God: Religion, Politics and the Modern West,” which will be published next month.

Wikipedia - Muhammad in Islam

Muhammad in Islam

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Nabiyy (Arabic: نَبِيٌّ‎, Prophet) Rasūl (Arabic: رَسُولٌ‎, Messenger) Muhammad مُحَمَّدٌ
Calligraphic representation of Muhammad's name
Messenger of God
Born	Monday, 12 Rabi' al-awwal c. 53 BH/ c. 570 CE Mecca, Hejaz, Arabia
Died	Monday, 12 of Rabi' al-awwal c. 11 AH/ 8 June, 632 CE (aged 62 or 63 years) Medina, Hejaz, Arabia
Resting place	Under the Green Dome in al-Masjid an-Nabawi
Venerated in	Islam
Major shrine	Al-Masjid an-Nabawi, Medina, Saudi Arabia
Major works	Delivered the Message of Allah in the Quran Led the Hijrah, and established the Ummah in the Hijaz

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Muḥammad ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbdul-Muṭṭalib ibn Hāshim (Arabic: بْنِ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ ٱللهِ بْنِ عَبْدِ ٱلْمُطَّلِبِ بْنِ هَاشِمٍ‎) (c. 570 CE – 8 June 632 CE), commonly known as Muhammad, is believed to be the seal of the Messengers and Prophets of God in all the main branches of Islam. Muslims believe that the Quran, the central religious text of Islam, was revealed to Muhammad by God, and that Muhammad was sent to restore Islam, which they believe did not originate with Muhammad but is the true unaltered original monotheistic faith of Adam, Ibraham, Musa, Isa, and other prophets.^[1][2][3][4] The religious, social, and political tenets that Muhammad established with the Quran became the foundation of Islam and the Muslim world.^[5]

Born about 570 into a respected Qurashi family of Mecca, Muhammad earned the title "al-Amin" (اَلْأَمِينُ, meaning "the Trustworthy").^[6][7] At the age of 40 in 610 CE, Muhammad is said to have received his first verbal revelation in the cave called Hira, which was the beginning of the descent of the Quran that continued up to the end of his life; and Muslims hold that Muhammad was asked by God to preach the oneness of God in order to stamp out idolatry, a practice overtly present in pre-Islamic Arabia.^[8][9] Because of persecution of the newly converted Muslims, upon the invitation of a delegation from Medina (then known as Yathrib), Muhammad and his followers migrated to Medina in 622 CE, an event known as the Hijrah.^[10][11] A turning point in Muhammad's life, this Hegira also marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. In Medina, Muhammad sketched out the Constitution of Medina specifying the rights of and relations among the various existing communities there, formed an independent community, and managed to establish the first Islamic state.^[12] Despite the ongoing hostility of the Meccans, Muhammad, along with his followers, took control of Mecca in 630 CE,^[13][14] and ordered the destruction of all pagan idols.^[15][16] In his later years in Medina, Muhammad unified the different tribes of Arabia under Islam^[17] and carried out social and religious reforms.^[18] By the time he died in 632, almost all the tribes of the Arabian Peninsula had converted to Islam.^[19]

Muslims often refer to Muhammad as Prophet Muhammad, or just "The Prophet" or "The Messenger", and regard him as the greatest of all Prophets.^{[1][20][21][22]} He is seen by the Muslims as a possessor of all virtues.^[23] As an act of respect, Muslims follow the name of Muhammad by the Arabic benediction sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, (meaning Peace be upon him),^[24] sometimes abbreviated as "SAW" or "PBUH".

In the Quran

Further information: Muhammad in the Quran

The name Muhammad written in Thuluth, a script variety of Islamic calligraphy

The Quran enumerates little about Muhammad's early life or other biographic details, but it talks about his prophetic mission, his moral excellence, and theological issues regarding Muhammad. According to the Quran, Muhammad is the last in a chain of prophets sent by God (33:40). Throughout the Quran, Muhammad is referred to as "Messenger", "Messenger of God", and "Prophet". Some of such verses are 2:101, 2:143, 2:151, 3:32, 3:81, 3:144, 3:164, 4:79-80, 5:15, 5:41, 7:157, 8:01, 9:3, 33:40, 48:29, and 66:09. Other terms are used, including "Warner", "bearer of glad tidings", and the "one who invites people to a Single God" (Quran 12:108, and 33:45-46). The Quran asserts that Muhammad was a man who possessed the highest moral excellence, and that God made him a good example or a "goodly model" for Muslims to follow (Quran 68:4, and 33:21). The Quran disclaims any superhuman characteristics for Muhammad,^[25] but describes him in terms of positive human qualities. In several verses, the Quran crystallizes Muhammad's relation to humanity. According to the Quran, God sent Muhammad with truth (God's message to humanity), and as a blessing to the whole world (Quran 39:33, and 21:107). In Islamic tradition, this means that God sent Muhammad with his message to humanity the following of which will give people salvation in the afterlife, and it is Muhammad's teachings and the purity of his personal life alone which keep alive the worship of God on this world.^[26]

Traditional Muslim account

The birthplace of Muhammad. After his migration, the house was taken and sold by Aqil ibn Abi Talib. In modern times, the house was demolished and converted into a library in 1951.

Early years

See also: Muhammad in Mecca, Mawlid, and Family tree of Muhammad

Muhammad, the son of 'Abdullah ibn 'Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim and his wife Aminah, was born in 570 CE, approximately,^{[n 1]} in the city of Mecca in the Arabian Peninsula. He was a member of the family of Banu Hashim, a respected branch of the prestigious and influential Quraysh tribe. It is generally said that 'Abd al-Muttalib named the child "Muhammad" (Arabic: مُحَمَّد‎).^[27]

Orphanhood

Muhammad was orphaned when young. Some months before the birth of Muhammad, his father died near Medina on a mercantile expedition to Syria (Arabic: اَلشَّام‎, "Ash-Shām").^[28][29][30] When Muhammad was six, he accompanied his mother Amina on her visit to Medina, probably to visit her late husband's tomb. While returning to Mecca, Amina died at a desolate place called Abwa, about half-way to Mecca, and was buried there. Muhammad was now taken in by his paternal grandfather Abd al-Muttalib, who himself died when Muhammad was eight, leaving him in the care of his uncle Abu Talib. In Islamic tradition, Muhammad's being orphaned at an early age has been seen as a part of divine plan to enable him to "develop early the qualities of self-reliance, reflection, and steadfastness".^[31] Muslim scholar Muhammad Ali sees the tale of Muhammad as a spiritual parallel to the life of Moses, considering many aspects of their lives to be shared.^[32] The Quran said about Moses: "I cast (the garment of love) over thee from Me, so that thou might be reared under My eye. ... We saved thee from all grief, although We tried thee with various trials. ... O Moses, I have chosen thee for Mine Own service" (20:39-41). Taking into account the idea of this spiritual parallelism, together with other aspects of Muhammad's early life, it has been suggested that it was God under Whose direct care Muhammad was raised and prepared for the responsibility that was to be conferred upon him.^[31] Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan argued that Muhammad's orphan state made him dependent on God and close to the destitute – an "initiatory state for the future Messenger of God".^[33]

Early life

Lineage of several prophets according to Islamic tradition
Adam Shīth (Seth) Nūḥ (Noah) Ibrāhīm (Abraham) Ismāʿīl (Ishmael) Iṣḥāq (Isaac) Mūsa (Moses) ʿĪsā (Jesus) Muhammad
Dotted lines indicate multiple generations
v t e

According to Arab custom, after his birth, infant Muhammad was sent to Banu Sa'ad clan, a neighboring Bedouin tribe, so that he could acquire the pure speech and free manners of the desert.^[34] There, Muhammad spent the first five years of his life with his foster-mother Halima. Islamic tradition holds that during this period, God sent two angels who opened his chest, took out the heart, and removed a blood-clot from it. It was then washed with Zamzam water. In Islamic tradition, this incident signifies the idea that God purified his prophet and protected him from sin.^[35][36]

Islamic belief holds that God protected Muhammad from getting involved in any disrespectful and coarse practice. Even when he verged on any such activity, God intervened. Prophetic tradition narrates one such incident in which it is said on the authority of Ibn Al-Atheer that while working as herdsman at early period of his life, young Muhammad once told his fellow-shepherd to take care of his sheep so that the former could go to the town for some recreation as the other youths used to do. But on the way, his attention was diverted to a wedding party, and he sat down to listen to the sound of music only to soon fall asleep. He was awakened by the heat of the sun. Muhammad reported that he never tried such things again.^[37][38][39]

Around the age of twelve, Muhammad accompanied his uncle Abu Talib in a mercantile journey to Syria, and gained experience in commercial enterprise.^[40] On this journey Muhammad is said to have been recognized by a Christian monk, Bahira, who prophesied about Muhammad's future as a prophet of God.^[9][41]

Around the age of twenty five, Muhammad was employed as the caretaker of the mercantile activities of Khadijah, a distinguished Quraysh lady.

Attracted by his noble ethics, honesty and trustworthiness, she sent a marriage proposal to Muhammad through her maid-servant Meisara. As Muhammad gave his consent, the marriage was solemnized in the presence of his uncle.

Social welfare

Between 580 CE and 590 CE, Mecca experienced a bloody feud between Quraysh and Bani Hawazin that lasted for four years, before a truce was reached. After the truce, an alliance named Hilf al-Fudul (The Pact of the Virtuous)^[42] was formed to check further violence and injustice; and to stand on the side of the oppressed, an oath was taken by the descendants of Hashim and the kindred families, where Muhammad was also a member.^[40] In later days of his life, Muhammad is reported to have said about this pact, "I witnessed a confederacy in the house of 'Abdullah bin Jada'an. It was more appealing to me than herds of cattle. Even now in the period of Islam I would respond positively to attending such a meeting if I were invited."^[43]

Islamic tradition credits Muhammad with settling a dispute peacefully, regarding setting the sacred Black Stone on the wall of Kaaba, where the clan leaders could not decide on which clan should have the honor of doing that. The Black stone was removed to facilitate the rebuilding of Kaaba because of its dilapidated condition. The disagreement grew tense, and bloodshed became likely. The clan leaders agreed to wait for the next man to come through the gate of Kaaba and ask him to choose. The 35-year-old Muhammad entered through that gate first, asked for a mantle which he spread on the ground, and placed the stone at its center. Muhammad had the clans' leaders lift a corner of it until the mantle reached the appropriate height, and then himself placed the stone on the proper place. Thus, an ensuing bloodshed was averted by the wisdom of Muhammad.^[9][44][45]

Prophethood

Muslims believe that Muhammad is the last and final messenger and prophet of God who began receiving direct verbal revelations in 610 CE. The first revealed verses were the first five verses of sura Al-Alaq that the archangel Jibril brought from God to Muhammad in the cave Mount Hira.[46][47]Main article: Muhammad's first revelation

After his marriage with Khadijah and during his career as a merchant, although engaged in commercial activities and family affairs, Muhammad gradually became preoccupied with contemplation and reflection.^[9][48] and began to withdraw periodically to a cave named Mount Hira, three miles north of Mecca.^[49] According to Islamic tradition, in the year 610 CE, during one such occasion while he was in contemplation, Jibril appeared before him and said 'Recite', upon which Muhammad replied: 'I am unable to recite'. Thereupon the angel caught hold of him and embraced him heavily. This happened two more times after which the angel commanded Muhammad to recite the following verses:^[46][47]

Proclaim! (or read!) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher, Who created-
Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood:
Proclaim! And thy Lord is Most Bountiful,-
He Who taught (the use of) the pen,-
Taught man that which he knew not.

— Quran, chapter 96 (Al-Alaq), verse 1-5^[50]

This was the first verbal revelation. Perplexed by this new experience, Muhammad made his way to home where he was consoled by his wife Khadijah, who also took him to her Christian cousin Waraqah ibn Nawfal. Waraqah was familiar with scriptures of the Torah and Gospel. Islamic tradition holds that Waraka, upon hearing the description, testified to Muhammad's prophethood.^[9][51] It is also reported by Aisha that Waraqah ibn Nawfal later told Muhammad that Muhammad's own people would turn him out, to which Muhammad inquired "Will they really drive me out?" Waraka replied 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."^[52][53] Some Islamic scholars argue that Muhammad was foretold in the Bible.^[54][55][56]

Divine revelation

Main article: Wahy

In Islamic belief, revelations are God's word delivered by his chosen individuals – known as Messengers—to humanity.^[57] According to Islamic scholar Muhammad Shafi Usmani, God created three media through which humans receive knowledge: men's senses, the faculty of reason, and divine revelation; and it is the third one that addresses the liturgical and eschatological issues, answers the questions regarding God's purpose behind creating humanity, and acts as a guidance for humanity in choosing the correct way.^[58] In Islamic belief, the sequence of divine revelation came to an end with Muhammad.^[58] Muslims believe these revelations to be the verbatim word of God, which were later collected together, and came to be known as Quran, the central religious text of Islam.^{[59][60][61][62]}

Early preaching and teachings

During the first three years of his ministry, Muhammad preached Islam privately, mainly among his near relatives and close acquaintances. The first to believe him was his wife Khadijah, who was followed by Ali, his cousin, and Zayd ibn Harithah. Notable among the early converts were Abu Bakr, Uthman ibn Affan, Hamza ibn Abdul Muttalib, Sa'ad ibn Abi Waqqas, Abdullah ibn Masud, Arqam, Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, Ammar ibn Yasir and Bilal ibn Rabah. In the fourth year of his prophethood, according to Islamic belief, he was ordered by God to make public his propagation of this monotheistic faith (Quran 15:94).

Muhammad's earliest teachings were marked by his insistence on the oneness of God (Quran 112:1), the denunciation of polytheism (Quran 6:19), belief in the Last judgment and its recompense (Quran 84:1–15), and social and economic justice (Quran 89:17–20).^[5] In a broader sense, Muhammad preached that he had been sent as God's messenger;^[63] that God is One who is all-powerful, creator and controller of this universe (Quran 85:8–9, Quran 6:2), and merciful towards his creations (Quran 85:14);^[64] that worship should be made only to God;^[63] that ascribing partnership to God is a major sin (Quran 4:48); that men would be accountable, for their deeds, to God on last judgment day, and would be assigned to heaven or hell (Quran 85:10–13); and that God expects man to be generous with their wealth and not miserly (Quran 107:1–7).^[64]

Opposition and persecution

Main articles: Persecution of Muslims by the Meccans and Migration to Abyssinia

Muhammad's early teachings invited vehement opposition from the wealthy and leading clans of Mecca who feared the loss not only of their ancestral paganism but also of the lucrative pilgrimage business.^[65] At first, the opposition was confined to ridicule and sarcasm which proved insufficient to arrest Muhammad's faith from flourishing, and soon they resorted to active persecution.^[66] These included verbal attack, ostracism, unsuccessful boycott, and physical persecution.^[65][67] Biographers have presented accounts of diverse forms of persecution on the newly converted Muslims by the Quraysh. The converted slaves who had no protection were imprisoned and often exposed to scorching sun. Alarmed by mounting persecution on the newly converts, Muhammad in 615 CE directed some of his followers to migrate to neighboring Abyssinia (present day Ethiopia), a land ruled by king Aṣḥama ibn Abjar famous for his justice, and intelligence.^[68] Accordingly, eleven men and four women made their flight, and were followed by more in later time.^[68][69]

Back in Mecca, Muhammad was gaining new followers, including notable figures like Umar ibn Al-Khattāb. Muhammad's position was greatly strengthened by their acceptance of Islam, and the Quraysh became much perturbed. Upset by the fear of losing the leading position, and shocked by continuous condemnation of idol-worship in the Quran, the merchants and clan-leaders tried to come to an agreement with Muhammad. They offered Muhammad the prospect of higher social status and advantageous marriage proposal in exchange of forsaking his preaching. Muhammad rejected the both, asserting his nomination as a messenger by God.^[70][71][72] Unable to deal with this status quo, the Quraysh then proposed to adopt a common form of worship, which was denounced by the Quran: 'Say: O ye the disbelievers, I worship not that which ye worship, Nor will ye worship that which I worship. And I will not worship that which ye have been wont to worship, Nor will ye worship that which I worship. To you be your Way, and to me mine' (109:1).

Social boycott

Thus frustrated from all sides, the leaders of various Quraysh clans, in 617 CE, enacted a complete boycott of Banu Hashim family to mount pressure to lift its protection on Muhammad. The Hashemites were made to retire in a quarter of Abu Talib, and were cut off from outside activities.^[9][73] During this period, the Hashemites suffered from various scarcities, and Muhammad's preaching confined to only the pilgrimage season.^[74][75] The boycott ended after three years as it failed to serve its end. This incident was shortly followed by the death of Muhammad's uncle and protector Abu Talib and his wife Khadijah.^[9][76] This has largely been attributed to the plight to which the Hashemites were exposed during the boycott.^[77][78]

Last years in Mecca

The death of his uncle Abu Talib left Muhammad somewhat unprotected, and exposed him to some mischief of Quraysh, which he endured with great steadfastness. An uncle and a bitter enemy of Muhammad, Abu Lahab succeeded Abu Talib as clan chief, and soon withdrew the clan's protection from Muhammad.^[79] Around this time, Muhammad visited Ta'if, a city some sixty kilometers east of Mecca, to preach Islam, but met with severe hostility from its inhabitants who pelted him with stones causing bleeding. It is said that God sent angels of the mountain to Muhammad who asked Muhammad's permission to crush the people of Ta'if in between the mountains, but Muhammad said 'No'.^[80][81] At the pilgrimage season of 620, Muhammad met six men of Khazraj tribe from Yathrib (later named Medina), propounded to them the doctrines of Islam, and recited portions of Quran.^[79][82] Impressed by this, the six embraced Islam,^[9] and at the Pilgrimage of 621, five of them brought seven others with them. These twelve informed Muhammad of the beginning of gradual development of Islam in Medina, and took a formal pledge of allegiance at Muhammad's hand, promising to accept him as a prophet, to worship none but one God, and to renounce certain sins like theft, adultery, murder and the like. This is known as the "First Pledge of al-Aqaba".^[83][84] At their request, Muhammad sent with them Mus‘ab ibn 'Umair to teach them the instructions of Islam. Biographers have recorded the success of Mus'ab ibn 'Umair in preaching the message of Islam and bringing people under the umbrella of Islam in Medina.^[85][86]

The next year, at the pilgrimage of June 622, a delegation of around 75 converted Muslims of Aws and Khazraj tribes from Yathrib came. They invited him to come to Medina as an arbitrator to reconcile the hostile tribes.^[10] This is known as the "Second Pledge of al-'Aqaba",^[83][87] and was a 'politico-religious' success that paved the way for his and his followers' emigration to Medina.^[88] Following the pledges, Muhammad ordered his followers to migrate to Yathrib in small groups, and within a short period, most of the Muslims of Mecca migrated there.^[89]

Emigration to Medina

Main article: Hegira

Inside view of Quba Mosque

Because of assassination attempts from the Quraysh, and prospect of success in Yathrib, a city 320 km (200 mi) north of Mecca, Muhammad emigrated there in 622 CE.^[90] According to Muslim tradition, after receiving divine direction to depart Mecca, Muhammad began taking preparation and informed Abu Bakr of his plan. On the night of his departure, Muhammad's house was besieged by men of the Quraysh who planned to kill him in the morning. At the time, Muhammad possessed various properties of the Quraysh given to him in trust; so he handed them over to 'Ali and directed him to return them to their owners. It is said that when Muhammad emerged from his house, he recited the ninth verse of surah Ya Sin of the Quran and threw a handful of dust at the direction of the besiegers, rendering the besiegers unable to see him.^[91][92] After eight days' journey, Muhammad entered the outskirts of Medina on 28 June 622,^[93] but did not enter the city directly. He stopped at a place called Quba', a place some miles from the main city, and established a mosque there. On 2 July 622, he entered the city.^[93] Yathrib was soon renamed Madinat an-Nabi (Arabic: مَدينة النّبي‎, literally "City of the Prophet"), but an-Nabi was soon dropped, so its name is "Medina", meaning "the city".^[94]

In Medina

Main article: Muhammad in Medina

The place where the people of Medina welcomed Muhammad when he came from Mecca

In Medina, Muhammad's first focus was on the construction of a mosque, which, when completed, was of an austere nature.^[95] Apart from being the center of prayer service, the mosque also served as a headquarters of administrative activities. Adjacent to the mosque was built the quarters for Muhammad's family. As there was no definite arrangement for calling people to prayer, Bilal ibn Ribah was appointed to call people in a loud voice at each prayer time, a system later replaced by Adhan believed to be informed to Abdullah ibn Zayd in his dream, and liked and introduced by Muhammad.

The Emigrants of Mecca, known as Muhajirun, had left almost everything there and came to Medina empty-handed. They were cordially welcomed and helped by the Muslims of Medina, known as Ansar (the helpers). Muhammad made a formal bond of fraternity among them^[96] that went a long way in eliminating long-established enmity among various tribes, particularly Aws and Khazraj.^[97]

Establishment of a new polity

See also: Constitution of Medina

After the arrival of Muhammad in Medina, its people could be divided into four groups:^[98][99]

1. The Muslims: emigrants from Mecca and Ansars of Medina.
2. The hypocrites; they nominally embraced Islam, but actually were against it.
3. Those from Aws and Khazraj who were still pagans, but were inclined to embrace Islam.
4. The Jews; they were huge in number and formed an important community there.

In order to establish peaceful coexistence among this heterogeneous population, Muhammad invited the leading personalities of all the communities to reach a formal agreement which would provide a harmony among the communities and security to the city of Medina, and finally drew up the Constitution of Medina, also known as the Medina Charter, which formed "a kind of alliance or federation" among the prevailing communities.^[90] It specified the mutual rights and obligations of the Muslims and Jews of Medina, and prohibited any alliance with the outside enemies. It also declared that any dispute would be referred to Muhammad for settlement.^[100]

Persistent hostility of Quraysh

Before the arrival of Muhammad, the clans of Medina had suffered a lot from internal feuds and had planned to nominate Abd-Allah ibn Ubaiy as their common leader with a view to restoring peace. The arrival of Muhammad rendered this design unlikely, and from then Abd-Allah ibn Ubaiy began entertaining hostility towards Muhammad. Soon after Muhammad's settlement in Medina, Abd-Allah ibn Ubaiy received an ultimatum from the Quraysh directing him to fight or expel the Muslims from Medina, but was convinced by Muhammad not to do that.^{[9][101][102]} Around this time, Sa'ad ibn Mua'dh, chief of Aws, went to Mecca to perform Umrah. Because of mutual friendship, he was hosted and escorted by a Meccan leader, Umayyah ibn Khalaf, but the two could not escape the notice of Abu Jahl, an archenemy of Islam. At the sight of Sa'ad, Abu Jahl became angry and threatened to stop their visit to Kaaba as his clan had sheltered the Muhammad. Sa'ad ibn Mua'dh also threatened to hinder their trading caravans.^[9][102]

Thus, there remained a persistent enmity between the Muslims and the Quraysh tribe.^[103] The Muslims were still few and without substantial resources, and fearful of attacks.^[9][104]

Causes of and preparation for fighting

Following the emigration, the Meccans seized the properties of the Muslim emigrants in Mecca.^[105] The Quraysh leaders of Mecca persecuted the newly converted Muslims there, and they migrated to Medina to avoid persecution, abandoning their properties. Muhammad and the Muslims found themselves in a more precarious situation in Medina than in Mecca.^[9][106] Besides the ultimatum of the Quraysh they had to confront the designs of the hypocrites, and had to be wary of the pagans and Jews also.^[107] The trading caravans of Quraysh, whose usual route was from Mecca to Syria, used to set the neighboring tribes of Medina against the Muslims, which posed a great danger to the security of Muslims of Medina^[108] given that war was common at that time. In view of all this, the Quran granted permission to the persecuted Muslims to defend themselves: "Permission to fight is granted to those against whom war is made, because they have been wronged, and God indeed has the power to help them. They are those who have been driven out of their homes unjustly only because they affirmed: "Our Lord is God"" (Quran 22:39-40). The Quran further justifies taking defensive measures by stating that "And if God had not repelled some men by others, the earth would have been corrupted. But God is a Lord of Kindness to (His) creatures" (Quran 2:251). According to Quranic description, war is an abnormal and unenviable way which, when inevitable, should be limited to minimal casualty, and free from any kind of transgression on the part of the believers.^[109] In this regard, the Quran says, "Fight in the cause of God with those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for God loveth not transgressors" (2:190), and "And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevail justice and faith in God; but if they cease, let there be no hostility except to those who practice oppression" (2:193).

Thus, to ensure the security of the Ansars and Muhajirun of Medina, Muhammad resorted to the following measures:

1. Visiting the neighboring tribes to enter into non-aggression treaty with them to secure Medina from their attacks.^[110][111]
2. Blocking or intercepting the trading caravans of the Quraysh to compel them into a compromise with the Muslims. As these trading enterprises were the main strength of the Quraysh, Muhammad employed this strategy to reduce their strength.^[9]
3. Sending small scouting parties to gather intelligence about Quraysh movement, and also to facilitate the evacuation of those Muslims who were still suffering in Mecca and could not migrate to Medina because of their poverty or any other reason.^[108] It is in this connection that the following verse of the Quran was revealed: "And why should you not fight in the cause of God and for those who, being weak, are ill-treated (and oppressed)? Men, women, and children, whose cry is: "Our Lord! Rescue us from this town, whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from Thee one who will protect; and raise for us from Thee one who will help!"" (Quran 4:75).

Battle of Badr

Main article: Battle of Badr

A map of the Badr campaign

A key battle in the early days of Islam, the Battle of Badr was the first large-scale battle between the nascent Islamic community of Medina and their opponent Quraysh of Mecca where the Muslims won a decisive victory. The battle has some background. In 2 AH (623 CE) in the month of Rajab, a Muslim patrolling group attacked a Quraysh trading caravan killing its elite leader Amr ibn Hazrami. The incident happening in a sacred month displeased Muhammad, and enraged the Quraysh to a greater extent.^[9][112] The Quran however neutralizes the effect saying that bloodshed in sacred month is obviously prohibited, but Quraysh paganism, persecuting on the Meccan converts, and preventing people from the Sacred Mosque are greater sins (Quran 2:217). Traditional sources say that upon receiving intelligence of a richly laden trading caravan of the Quraysh returning from Syria to Mecca, Muhammad took it as a good opportunity to strike a heavy blow on Meccan power by taking down the caravan in which almost all the Meccan people had invested.^[113][114] With full liberty to join or stay back, Muhammad amassed some 313 inadequately prepared men furnished with only two horses and seventy camels, and headed for a place called Badr. Meanwhile, Abu Sufyan, the leader of the caravan, got the information of Muslim march, changed his route towards south-west along Red Sea, and send out a messenger, named Damdam ibn Umar, to Mecca asking for immediate help. The messenger exaggerated the news in a frenzy style of old Arab custom, and misinterpreted the call for protecting the caravan as a call for war.^[115][116]

The Quraysh with all its leading personalities except Abu Lahab marched with a heavily equipped army of more than one thousand men with ostentatious opulence of food supply and war materials.^[115][117] Abu Sufyan's second message that the trading caravan successfully had escaped the Muslim interception, when reached the Quraish force, did not stop them from entering into a major offensive with the Muslim force, mainly because of the belligerent Quraysh leader Abu Jahl.^[9][118] The news of a strong Quraysh army and its intention reaching the Islamic prophet Muhammad, he held a council of war where the followers advised him to go forward. The battle occurred on 13 March 624 CE (17 Ramadan, 2 AH) and resulted in a heavy loss on the Quraysh side: around seventy men, including chief leaders, were killed and a similar number were taken prisoner. Islamic tradition attributes the Muslim victory to the direct intervention of God: he sent down angels that emboldened the Muslims and wreaked damage on the enemy force.^[119]

Treason, attacks, and siege

Main articles: Battle of Uhud, Expedition of Al Raji, and Battle of the Trench

The defeat at the battle of Badr provoked the Quraysh to take revenge on Muslims. Meanwhile, two Quraysh men – Umair ibn Wahb and Safwan ibn Umayya – conspired to kill Muhammad. The former went to Medina with a poisoned sword to execute the plan but was detected and brought to Muhammad. It is said that Muhammad himself revealed to Umair his secret plan and Umair, upon accepting Islam, began preaching Islam in Mecca.^[120][121] The Quraysh soon led an army of 3,000 men and fought the Muslim force, consisting of 700 men, in the Battle of Uhud. Despite initial success in the battle, the Muslims failed to consummate victory due to the mistake of the strategically posted archers. The predicament of Muslims at this battle has been seen by Islamic scholars as a result of disobedience of the command of Muhammad: Muslims realized that they could not succeed unless guided by him.^[122]

The Battle of Uhud was followed by a series of aggressive and treacherous activities against the Muslims in Medina. Tulaiha ibn Khuweiled, chief of Banu Asad, and Sufyan ibn Khalid, chief of Banu Lahyan, tried to march against Medina but were rendered unsuccessful. Ten Muslims, recruited by some local tribes to learn the tenets of Islam, were treacherously murdered: eight of them being killed at a place called Raji, and the remaining two being taken to Mecca as captives and killed by Quraysh.^[9][123] About the same time, a group of seventy Muslims, sent to propagate Islam to the people of Nejd, was put to a massacre by Amir ibn Tufail's Banu Amir and other tribes. Only two of them escaped, returned to Medina, and informed Muhammad of the incidents.^[9][124] Around 5th AH (627 CE), a large combined force of at least 10,000 men from Quraysh, Ghatafan, Banu Asad, and other pagan tribes was formed to attack the Muslims mainly at the instigation and efforts of Jewish leader Huyayy ibn Akhtab, and it marched towards Medina. The trench dug by the Muslims and the adverse weather foiled their siege of Medina, and they left with heavy losess. The Quran says that God dispersed the disbelievers and thwarted their plans (33:5). The Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza, who were allied with Muhammad before the Battle of the Trench, were charged with treason and besieged by the Muslims commanded by Muhammad.^[125][126] After Banu Qurayza agreed to accept whatever decision Sa'ad ibn Mua'dh would take about them, Sa'ad pronounced that the male members be executed and the women and children be considered as war captives.^{[127][128][129][130]}

Treaty with the Quraysh

Main article: Treaty of Hudaybiyyah

Around 6 AH (628 CE) the nascent Islamic state was somewhat consolidated when Muhammad left Medina to perform pilgrimage at Mecca, but was intercepted en route by the Quraysh who, however, ended up in a treaty with the Muslims known as the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah.^[131] Though the terms of the Hudaybiyyah treaty were apparently unfavorable to the Muslims of Medina, the Quran declared it as a clear victory (48:1). Muslim historians mention that through the treaty, the Quraysh recognized Muhammad as their equal counterpart and Islam as a rising power,^[132] and that the treaty mobilized the contact between the Meccan pagans and the Muslims of Medina resulting in a large number of Quraysh conversion into Islam after being attracted by the Islamic norms.^[9]

Victory

Artifact of Muhammad's letter to the Muqawqis, ruler of Egypt- actual document on the right with transcription on the left- Topkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul

Around the end of the 6 AH and the beginning of the 7 AH (628 CE), Muhammad sent letters to various heads of state asking them to accept Islam and to worship only one God.^[133] Notable among them were Heraclius, the emperor of Byzantium; Khosrau II, the emperor of Persia; the Negus of Ethiopia; Muqawqis, the ruler of Egypt; Harith Gassani, the governor of Syria; and Munzir ibn Sawa, the ruler of Bahrain. In the 6 AH, Khalid ibn al-Walid accepted Islam who later was to play a decisive role in the expansion of Islamic empire. In the 7 AH, the Jewish leaders of Khaybar – a place some 200 miles from Medina – started instigating the Jewish and Ghatafan tribes against Medina.^[9][134] When negotiation failed, Muhammad ordered the blockade of the Khaybar forts, and its inhabitants surrendered after some days. The lands of Khaybar came under Muslim control. Muhammad however granted the Jewish request to retain the lands under their control.^[9] In 629 CE (7 AH), in accordance with the terms of the Hudaybiyyah treaty, Muhammad and the Muslims performed their lesser pilgrimage (Umrah) to Mecca and left the city after three days.^[135][136]

Conquest of Mecca

Main article: Conquest of Mecca

In 629 CE, Banu Bakr tribe, an ally of the Quraysh, attacked the Muslims' ally tribe Banu Khuza'a, and killed several of them.^[137] The Quraysh openly helped Banu Bakr in their attack, violating the terms of Hudaybiyyah treaty. Of the three options now advanced by Muhammad, they decided to cancel the Hudaybiyyah treaty.^[138] Muhammad started taking preparation for Mecca campaign. On 29 November 629 (6th of Ramadan, 8 AH),^[139] Muhammad set out with 10,000 companions, and stopped at a nearby place from Mecca called Marr-uz-Zahran. When Meccan leader Abu Sufyan came to gather intelligence, he was detected and arrested by the guards. Umar ibn al-Khattab wanted the execution of Abu Sufyan for his past offenses, but Muhammad spared his life after he converted to Islam.^[140] On 11 December 629 (18th of Ramadan, 8 AH), he entered Mecca almost unresisted, and declared a general amnesty for all those who had committed offences against Islam and himself.^[13][14] He then destroyed the idols – placed in and around the Kaaba – reciting the Quranic verse: "Say, the truth has arrived, and falsehood perished. Verily, the falsehood is bound to perish" (Quran 17:81).^[15][16] William Muir comments, "The magnanimity with which Muhammad treated a people who had so long hated and rejected him is worthy of all admiration."^[141]

Conquest of Arabia

Main articles: Battle of Hunayn and Battle of Tabouk

Soon after the Mecca conquest, the Banu Hawazin tribe together with the Banu Thaqif tribe gathered a large army, under the leadership of Malik Ibn 'Awf, to attack the Muslims.^[142][143] At this, the Muslim force, which included the newly converts of Mecca, went forward under the leadership of Muhammad, and the two armies met at the valley of Hunayn. Though at first disarrayed at the sudden attack of Hawazin, the Muslim force recollected mainly at the effort of Muhammad, and ultimately defeated the Hawazin. The latter was pursued at various directions.^[144][145] After Malik bin 'Awf along with his men took shelter in the fort of Ta'if, the Muslim army besieged it which however yielded no significant result, compelling them to return Medina. Meanwhile, some newly converts from the Hawazin tribe came to Muhammad and made a plea to release their women and children who had been captivated from the battlefield of Hunayn. Their request was granted by the Muslims.^[146][147]

After the Mecca conquest and the victory at the Battle of Hunayn, the supremacy of the Muslims was somewhat established throughout the Arabian peninsula.^[148][149] Various tribes started to send their representatives to express their loyalty to Muhammad. In the year 9 AH (630 CE), Zakat – which is the obligatory charity in Islam – was introduced and was accepted by most of the people. A few tribes initially refused to pay it, but gradually accepted.^[150]

Tabuk, Saudi Arabia

In October 630 CE, upon receiving news that the Byzantine was gathering a large army at the Syrian area to attack Medina, and because of reports of hostility adopted against Muslims,^[151] Muhammad arranged his Muslim army, and came out to face them. On the way, they reached a place called Hijr where remnants of the ruined Thamud nation were scattered. Muhammad warned them of the sandstorm typical to the place, and forbade them not to use the well waters there.^[9] By the time they reached Tabuk, they got the news of Byzantine's retreat,^[152] or according to some sources, they came to know that the news of Byzantine gathering was wrong.^[153] Muhammad signed treaties with the bordering tribes who agreed to pay tribute in exchange of getting security. It is said that as these tribes were at the border area between Syria (then under Byzantine control) and Arabia (then under Muslim control), signing treaties with them ensured the security of the whole area.^[154] Some months after the return from Tabuk, Muhammad's infant son Ibrahim died which eventually coincided with a sun eclipse. When people said that the eclipse had occurred to mourn Ibrahim's death, Muhammad said: "the sun and the moon are from among the signs of God. The eclipses occur neither for the death nor for the birth of any man".^[155][156] After the Tabuk expedition, the Banu Thaqif tribe of Taif sent their representative team to Muhammad to inform their intention of accepting Islam on condition that they be allowed to retain their Lat idol with them and that they be exempted from prayers. Given that there were inconsistent with Islamic principles, Muhammad rejected their demands and said "There is no good in a religion in which prayer is ruled out".^{[157][158][159]} After Banu Thaqif tribe of Taif accepted Islam, many other tribes of Hejaz followed them and declared their allegiance to Islam.^[160][161]

Final days

Farewell Pilgrimage

Main article: Farewell Pilgrimage

In 631 CE, during the Hajj season, Abu Bakr led 300 Muslims to the pilgrimage in Mecca. As per old custom, many pagans from other parts of Arabia came to Mecca to perform pilgrimage in pre-Islamic manner. Ali, at the direction of Muhammad, delivered a sermon stipulating the new rites of Hajj and abrogating the pagan rites. He especially declared that no unbeliever, pagan, and naked man would be allowed to circumambulate the Kaaba from the next year.^[162][163] After this declaration was made, a vast number of people of Bahrain, Yemen, and Yamama, who included both the pagans and the people of the book, gradually embraced Islam. Next year, In 632 CE, Muhammad performed hajj and taught Muslims first-hand the various rites of Hajj.^[164][165] On the 9th of Dhu al-Hijjah, from Mount Arafat, he delivered his Farewell Sermon in which he abolished old blood feuds and disputes based on the former tribal system, repudiated racial discrimination, and advised people to "be good to women". According to Sunni tafsir, the following Quranic verse was delivered during this event: "Today I have perfected your religion, and completed my favours for you and chosen Islam as a religion for you" (Quran 5:3).^{[164][165][166]}

Death

Soon after his return from the pilgrimage, Muhammad fell ill and suffered for several days with fever, head pain, and weakness. During his illness, he appointed Abu Bakr to lead the prayers in the mosque.^[167][168] He ordered to donate the last remaining coins in his house as charity. It is narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari that at the time of death, Muhammad was dipping his hands in water and was wiping his face with them saying "There is no god but God; indeed death has its pangs."^[169] He died on 8 June 632, in Medina, at the age of 62 or 63, in the house of his wife Aisha.^[170][171]

In Islamic thought

Final prophet

Main article: Khatam an-Nabiyyin

Muhammad is regarded as the final messenger and prophet by all the main branches of Islam who was sent by God to guide humanity to the right way (Quran 7:157).^{[1][25][165][172][173]} The Quran uses the designation Khatam an-Nabiyyin (33:40) which is translated as Seal of the Prophets. The title is generally regarded by Muslims as meaning that Muhammad is the last in the series of prophets beginning with Adam.^{[174][175][176]} The belief that a new prophet cannot arise after Muhammad is shared by both Sunni and Shi'i Muslims.^[177][178] Believing Muhammad is the last prophet is a fundamental belief in Islamic theology.^[179][180]

Moral character

Muslims believe that Muhammad was the possessor of moral virtues at the highest level, and was a man of moral excellence.^[23][165] He represented the 'prototype of human perfection' and was the best among God's creations.^[23][181] The 68:4 verse of the Quran says: 'And you [Muhammad] are surely on exalted quality of character'. Consequently, to the Muslims, his life and character are an excellent example to be emulated both at social and spiritual levels.^{[165][181][182]} The virtues that characterize him are modesty and humility, forgiveness and generosity, honesty, justice, patience, and, self-denial.^[23][183] Muslim biographers of Muhammad in their books have shed much light on the moral character of Muhammad. Besides, there is a genre of biography that approaches his life focusing on his moral qualities rather than discussing the external affairs of his life.^[23][165]

According to biographers, Muhammad lived a simple and austere life often characterized by poverty.^[184][185] He was more bashful than a maiden, and was rare to laugh in a loud voice; rather, he preferred soft smiling.^[186] Ja'far al-Sadiq, a descendant of Muhammad and an acclaimed scholar, narrated that Muhammad was never seen stretching his legs in a gathering with his companions and when he would shake hands, he would not pull his hand away first.^[187] It is said that during the conquest of Mecca, when Muhammad was entering into the city riding on a camel, his head lowered, in gratitude to God, to the extent that it almost touched the back of the camel.^{[16][186][188]} He never took revenge from anyone for his personal cause.^[186][189] He maintained honesty and justice in his deeds.^[190][191] When an elite woman in Medina was accused of theft, and others pleaded for the mitigation of the penalty, Muhammad said: "Even if my daughter Fatima were accused of theft, I would pronounce the same verdict." He preferred mildness and leniency in behavior and in dealing with affairs,^[184][192] and is reported as saying: "He who is not merciful to others, will not be treated mercifully (by God)" (Sahih al-Bukhari, 8:73:42). He pardoned many of his enemies in his life.^[193] Biographers especially mention his forgiving the Meccan people after the Conquest of Mecca who at the early period of Islam tortured the Muslims for a long time, and later fought several battles with the Muslims.^[13][14]

Muslim veneration

See also: Durood, Mawlid, Na`at, Madih nabawi, Haḍra, and Dala'il al-Khayrat

Muhammad is highly venerated by the Muslims,^[194] and is sometimes considered by them to be the greatest of all the prophets.^[1][20][21] But Muslims do not worship Muhammad as worship in Islam is only for God.^{[21][195][196]} Muslim understanding and reverence for Muhammad can largely be traced to the teachings of Quran which emphatically describes Muhammad's exalted status. To begin with, the Quran describes Muhammad as al-nabi al-ummi or unlettered prophet (Quran 7:158), meaning that he "received his religious knowledge only from God".^[197] As a result, Muhammad's examples have been understood by the Muslims to represent the highest ideal for human conduct, and to reflect what God wants humanity to do. The Quran ranks Muhammad above previous prophets in terms of his moral excellence and the universal message he brought from God for humanity. The Quran calls him the "beautiful model" (al-uswa al-hasana) for those who hope for God and the last day (Quran 33:21). Muslims believe that Muhammad was sent not for any specific people or region, but for all of humanity.^[198][199]

Muslims venerate Muhammad in various ways:

• In proclamation of Islamic faith, the attestation to oneness of God is always followed by the declaration "verily, I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God".^[24]
• In speaking or writing, Muslims attach the title "Prophet" to Muhammad's name, and always follow it with sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam (صَلّى الله عليه وسلّم, "Peace be upon him"),^[24] sometimes abbreviated SAW, PBUH, or ﷺ.
• Muhammad's tomb in Medina is considered the second most holy place for Muslims,^{[197][full citation needed][verification needed]} and is visited by most pilgrims who go to Mecca for Hajj.^[200][201]
• Muslims often use various titles of praise and appellations to express Muhammad's exalted status.^[24]

Sunnah: A model for Muslims

For more than thirteen hundred years Muslims have modeled their lives after their prophet Muhammad. They awaken every morning as he awakened; they eat as he ate; they wash as he washed; and they behave even in the minutest acts of daily life as he behaved.

— S. A. Nigosian

In Muslim legal and religious thought, Muhammad, inspired by God to act wisely and in accordance with his will, provides an example that complements God's revelation as expressed in the Quran; and his actions and sayings – known as Sunnah – are a model for Muslim conduct.^[202] The Sunnah can be defined as "the actions, decisions, and practices that Muhammad approved, allowed, or condoned".^[203] It also includes Muhammad's confirmation to someone's particular action or manner (during Muhammad's lifetime) which, when communicated to Muhammad, was generally approved by him.^[204] The Sunnah, as recorded in the Hadith literature, encompasses everyday activities related to men's domestic, social, economic, political life.^[203] It addresses a broad array of activities and Islamic beliefs ranging from the simple practices like, for example, the proper way of entering into a mosque, and private cleanliness to the most sublime questions involving the love between God and humans.^[205] The Sunnah of Muhammad serves as a model for the Muslims to shape their life in that light. The Quran tells the believers to offer prayer, to fast, to perform pilgrimage, to pay Zakat, but it was Muhammad who practically taught the believers how to perform all these.^[205] In Islamic theology, the necessity to follow the examples (the Sunnah) of Muhammad comes from the ruling of the Quran which it describes in its numerous verses. One such typical verse is "And obey God and the Messenger so that you may be blessed" (Quran 3:132). The Quran uses two different terms to denote this: ita’ah (to obey) and ittiba (to follow). The former refers to the orders of Muhammad, and the latter to his acts and practices.^[206] Muhammad often stressed the importance of education and intelligence in the Muslim Ummah because it removes ignorance and promotes acceptance and tolerance. This can be illustrated when Muhammad advises his cousin Ali that, "No poverty is more severe than ignorance and no property is more valuable than intelligence."^[187]

Pre-existence

Muslims also venerate Muhammad as the manifestation of the Muhammadan Light.^[207] Accordingly, Muhammad's spirit already existed before the creation of the world and he was actually the first prophet created, but the last who was sent.^[208] A hadith from Al-Tirmidhi states, that Muhammad was once asked, when his prophethood was decreed and he answered: "When Adam was between the spirit and the body." A more popular, but less authenticated version states,^[208] that Muhammad answered: "when Adam was between water and mud."^[209] Both Sunni and Shia sources later elaborated cosmogonic scenarios in which the world emanated from the light of Muhammad.^[208] According to a Sunni tradition, when Adam was in heaven, he read an inscription on the throne of God of the Shahada, Muhammad already mentioned. There also exists an extended version in Shia traditions. Therefore, the Shahada does not only mention Muhammad, but also Ali.^[210]

However the idea of Muhammad's pre-existence was also a controversial one and disputed by some scholars like Al-Ghazali and Ibn Taymiyyah.^[211] Although the notion of the pre-existing Muhammad takes some resemblance of the Christian doctrine of the pre-existence of Christ, in Islam there can not be found any trace of Muhammad as a second person within the Godhead.^[212]

Muhammad as lawgiver

In Islamic Sharia, the Sunnah of Muhammad is regarded a vital source for Islamic law, next in importance only to the Quran.^[213][214] Additionally, the Quran in its several verses authorizes Muhammad, in his capacity as a prophet, to promulgate new laws. The 7:157 verse of the Quran says, "those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet whom they find written down in the Torah and the Injil, and who (Muhammad) bids them to the Fair and forbids them the Unfair, and makes lawful for them the good things, and makes unlawful for them the impure things,... So, those who believe in him, and honor him, and help him, and follow the light that has been sent down with him (Muhammad) – they are the ones who acquire success." Commenting on this verse, Islamic scholar Muhammad Taqi Usmani says, "one of the functions of the Holy Prophet (saaw) is to make lawful the good things and make unlawful the impure things. This function has been separated from bidding the fair and forbidding the unfair, because the latter relates to the preaching of what has already been established as fair, and warning against what is established as unfair, while the former embodies the making of lawful and unlawful".^[215] Taqi Usmani recognizes two kinds of revelations – the "recited" one which is collectively known as Quran, and the "unrecited" one that Muhammad received from time to time to let him know God's will regarding how human affairs should be – and concludes that Muhammad's prophetic authority to promulgate new laws had its base on the later type. Therefore, in Islamic theology, the difference between God's authority and that of his messenger is of great significance: the former is wholly independent, intrinsic and self-existent, while the authority of the latter is derived from and dependent on the revelation from God.^[216][217]

Muhammad as intercessor

Muslims see Muhammad as primary intercessor and believe that he will intercede on behalf of the believers on Last Judgment day.^[218] This non-Qur'anic vision of Muhammad's eschatological role appears for the first time in the inscriptions of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, completed in 72/691-692.^[219] Islamic tradition narrates that after resurrection when humanity will be gathered together and they will face distress due to heat and fear, they will come to Muhammad. Then he will intercede for them with God and the judgment will start.^[220] Hadith narrates that Muhammad will also intercede for the believers who for their sins have been taken to hell. Muhammad's intercession will be granted and a lot of believers will come out of hell.^[221] In Islamic belief, intercession will be granted on conditions: the permission of God, God's being pleased with the intercessor, and his being pleased with the person for whom intercession is made.^[222] In Islamic tradition, the facility of getting Muhammad's intercession has been linked, to some extent, to Darood – sending blessing upon Muhammad that generally reads "May God give him blessing and peace".^[218]

Muhammad and the Quran

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To Muslims, the Quran is the verbatim word of God which was revealed, through Gabriel, to Muhammad^[223] who delivered it to people without any change (Q53:2-5,^[224] 26:192-195),^[225] Thus, there exists a deep relationship between Muhammad and the Quran. Muslims believe that as a recipient of the Quran, Muhammad was the man who best understood the meaning of the Quran, was its chief interpreter, and was granted by God "the understanding of all levels of Quran's meaning".^[226] In Islamic theology, if a report of Muhammad's Quranic interpretation is held to be authentic, then no other interpretative statement has higher theoretical value or importance than that.^[214]

In Islamic belief, though the inner message of all the divine revelations given to Muhammad is essentially the same, there has been a "gradual evolution toward a final, perfect revelation".^[227] It is in this case that Muhammad's revelation excels the previous ones as Muhammad's revelation is considered by the Muslims to be "the completion, culmination, and perfection of all the previous revelations".^[227] Consequently, when the Quran declares that Muhammad is the final prophet after which there will be no future prophet (Q33:40),^[228] it is also meant that the Quran is the last revealed divine book.

Names and titles of praise

See also: Names and Titles of Muhammad, Islamic honorifics, Durood, Mawlid, Naat, Madih nabawi, Haḍra, and Dala'il al-Khayrat

Muhammad is often referenced with these titles of praise or epithet:

• an-Nabi, 'the Prophet';
• ar-Rasul, 'the Messenger';
• al-Habeeb, 'the beloved';
• al-Muṣṭafa, 'the chosen one' (Quran 22:75);
• al-Amin, 'the trustworthy' (Sahih al-Bukhari, 4:52:237);
• as-Sadiq, 'the honest'(Quran 33:22);
• al-Haq, 'the truthful' (Quran 10:08);
• ar-Rauf, 'the kind' (Quran 9:128);
• ‘alā khuluq ‘aẓīm (Arabic: عَلَى خُلُق عِظِيْم‎), 'on an exalted standard of character' (Quran 68:4);
• al-Insan al-Kamil, 'the perfect man';^[229]
• Uswah Ḥasan (Arabic: أُسْوَة حَسَن‎), 'good example' (Quran 33:21);
• al-Khatim an-Nabiyin, 'the seal of the prophets' (Quran 33:40);
• ar-Rahmatul lil 'alameen, 'mercy of all the worlds' (Quran 21:107);
• as-Shaheed, 'the witness' (Quran 33:45);
• al-Mubashir, 'the bearer of good tidings' (Quran 11:2);
• an-Nathir, 'the warner' (Quran 11:2);
• al-Mudhakkir, 'the reminder' (Quran 88:21);
• ad-Da'i, 'the one who calls [unto God]' (Quran 12:108);
• al-Bashir, 'the announcer' (Quran 2:119);
• an-Noor, 'the light personified' (Quran 05:15);
• as-Siraj-un-Munir, 'the light-giving lamp' (Quran 33:46);
• al-Kareem, 'the noble' (Quran 69:40);
• an-Nimatullah, 'the divine favour' (Quran 16:83);
• al-Muzzammil, 'the wrapped' (Quran 73:01);
• al-Muddathir, 'the shrouded' (Quran 74:01);
• al-'Aqib, 'the last [prophet]' (Sahih Muslim, 4:1859, Sahih al-Bukhari, 4:56:732);
• al-Mutawakkil, 'the one who puts his trust [in God]' (Quran 9:129);
• al-Kutham, 'the generous one’
• al-Mahi, 'the eraser [of disbelief]' (Sahih al-Bukhari, 4:56:732);
• al-Muqaffi, 'the one who followed [all other prophets]';
• an-Nabiyyu at-Tawbah, 'the prophet of penitence’
• al-Fatih, 'the opener';
• al-Hashir, 'the gatherer (the first to be resurrected) on the day of judgement' (Sahih al-Bukhari, 4:56:732);
• as-Shafe'e, 'the intercessor' (Sahih al-Bukhari, 9:93:601, Quran 3:159, Quran 4:64, Quran 60:12);
• al-Mushaffaun, 'the one whose intercession shall be granted' (Quran 19:87, Quran 20:109).

He also has these names:

• Abu'l-Qasim, "father of Qasim";
• Ahmad, "the Praised one" (Quran 61:06);
• Hamid, "praiser";
• Mahmood, "praiseworthy";
• 'Abd-Allah, "servant of God" (Quran 25:1).

Miracles

Main article: Miracles of Muhammad

Al-Aqsa Mosque, in the Old City of Jerusalem, is said to be the location to which Muhammad traveled in his night journey. The location is the third holiest place for the Muslims.^[230]

Several miracles are said to have been performed by Muhammad.^[231] Muslim scholar Jalaluddin Al-Suyuti, in his book Al Khasais-ul-Kubra, extensively discussed Muhammad's various miracles and extraordinary events. Traditional sources, indicate that Sura 54:1-2 refers to Muhammad splitting the Moon in view of the Quraysh.^[232][233]

Isra and Mi'raj

Main article: Isra and Mi'raj

The Isra and Mi'raj are the two parts of a "Night Journey" that, according to Islamic tradition, Muhammad took during a single night around the year 621. It has been described as both a physical and spiritual journey.^[234] A brief sketch of the story is in Sura (chapter) 17 Al-Isra of the Quran,^[235] and other details come from the hadith.^[236] In the journey, Muhammad riding on Buraq travels to the Al-Aqsa Mosque (the farthest mosque) in Jerusalem where he leads other prophets in prayer. He then ascends to the heavens, and meets some of the earlier prophets such as Abraham, Joseph, Moses, John the Baptist, and Jesus.^[236] During this Night Journey, God offered Muhammad five-time daily prayer for the believers.^{[237][238][236]} According to traditions, the Journey is associated with the Lailaṫ al-Isrā' wal-Mi'rāj (Arabic: لَيلَة الإِِسرَاء والمِعرَاج‎), as one of the most significant events in the Islamic calendar.^[239]

Splitting of the moon

Main article: Splitting of the moon

Islamic tradition credits Muhammad with the miracle of the splitting of the moon.^[240][241] According to Islamic account, once when Muhammad was in Mecca, the pagans asked him to display a miracle as a proof of his prophethood. It was night time, and Muhammad prayed to God. The moon split into two and descended on two sides of a mountain. The pagans were still incredulous about the credibility of the event but later heard from the distant travelers that they also had witnessed the splitting of the moon.^[240][241] Islamic tradition also tends to refute the arguments against the miracle raised by some quarters.^[242]

During the Battle of the Trench

On the eve of the Battle of the Trench when the Muslims were digging a ditch, they encountered a firmly embedded rock that could not be removed. It is said that Muhammad, when apprised of this, came and, taking an axe, struck the rock that created spark upon which he glorified God and said he had been given the keys of the kingdom of Syria. He struck the rock for a second time in a likewise manner and said he had been given the keys of Persia and he could see its white palaces. A third strike crushed the rock into pieces whereupon he again glorified God and said he had been given the keys of Yemen and he could see the gates of Sana. According to Muslim historians, these prophesies were fulfilled in subsequent times.^[243][244]

The Spider and the Dove

When Muhammad and his companion Abu Bakr had been persecuted by the Quraysh, on their way to Medina, they hid themselves in a cave. The cave had been concealed by a spider building a web and a dove building a nest at the entrance after they entered the cave,^[245] therefore killing a spider became associated with sin.^[246]

Visual representation

Main article: Depictions of Muhammad

See also: Depictions of Muhammad in film and List of films about Muhammad

Although Islam only explicitly condemns depicting the divinity, the prohibition was supplementally expanded to prophets and saints and among Arab Sunnism, to any living creature.^[247] Although both the Sunni schools of law and the Shia jurisprudence alike prohibit the figurative depiction of Muhammad,^[248] visual representations of Muhammad exist in Arabic and Ottoman Turkish texts and especially flourished during the Ilkhanate (1256-1353), Timurid (1370-1506), and Safavid (1501-1722) periods. But apart from these notable exceptions and modern-day Iran,^[249] depictions of Muhammad were rare, and if given, usually with his face veiled.^[250][251]

Most modern Muslims believe that visual depictions of all the prophets of Islam should be prohibited^[252] and are particularly averse to visual representations of Muhammad.^[253] One concern is that the use of images can encourage idolatry, but also creating an image might lead the artist to claim the ability to create, an ability only ascribed to God.^[254]

Gallery

• 

  A view of Taif with a road at the foreground and mountains at the background. Muhammad went there to preach Islam

 
• 

  Masjid an-Nabawi

 
• 

  Inside view of Masjid an-Nabawi

 
• 

  The Green Dome built over Muhammad's tomb

 
• 

  Sunshade umbrellas over the terrace at Masjid an-Nabawi

 
• 

  Part of Al-Masjid an-Nabawi where Muhammad's tomb is situated

 
• 

  Masjid an-Nabawi at sunset

 
• 

  Facsimile of a letter sent by Muhammad to the Munzir Bin Sawa Al-Tamimi, governor of Bahrain

 
• 

  Muhammad's letter To Heraclius

See also

• Children of Muhammad
• List of biographies of Muhammad
• Islamic mythology
• Muhammad in the Bible
  • Mahammaddim
• Muhammad in the Quran
• Relics of Muhammad
• Stories of The Prophets

Notes

1. ^ Opinions about the exact date of Muhammad's birth slightly vary. Shibli Nomani and Philip Khuri Hitti fixed the date to be 571 CE. But August 20, 570 CE is generally accepted. See Muir, vol. ii, pp. 13–14 for further information.

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74. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. pp. 144–5. ISBN 9789839154177.
75. ^ William Muir (1861). Life of Mahomet. vol. vol. 2, p.181
76. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. pp. 148–150. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
77. ^ Armstrong, Karen (2002). Islam: A Short History. New York City: Modern Library. p. 13. ISBN 978-0-8129-6618-3.
78. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. pp. 54–55. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
79. ^ Jump up to:^a b Holt, P. M.; Ann K. S. Lambton; Bernard Lewis, eds. (1977). The Cambridge History of Islam. IA. Cambridge University Press. p. 39. ISBN 978-0-521-29135-4.
80. ^ Brown, Jonathan A.C. (2011). Muhammad: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-19-955928-2. Archived from the original on 2017-02-16.
81. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. p. 165. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
82. ^ Sell, Edward (1913). The Life of Muhammad. Madras: Smith, Elder, & Co. p. 70.
83. ^ Jump up to:^a b Holt, P. M.; Ann K. S. Lambton; Bernard Lewis, eds. (1977). The Cambridge History of Islam. IA. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-521-29135-4.
84. ^ Sell, Edward (1913). The Life of Muhammad. Madras: Smith, Elder, & Co. p. 71.
85. ^ Husayn Haykal, Muhammad (2008). The Life of Muhammad. Selangor: Islamic Book Trust. pp. 169–70. ISBN 978-983-9154-17-7. Archived from the original on 2016-05-01.
86. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. pp. 70–1. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
87. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
88. ^ Sell, Edward (1913). The Life of Muhammad. Madras: Smith, Elder, & Co. p. 76.
89. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 75. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3. Accordingly, within a very short period, despite the opposition of the Quraysh, most of the Muslims in Mecca managed to migrate to Yathrib.
90. ^ Jump up to:^a b Holt, P. M.; Ann K. S. Lambton; Bernard Lewis, eds. (1977). The Cambridge History of Islam. IA. p. 41. ISBN 978-0-521-29135-4.
91. ^ Ibn Kathir (2001). Stories of the Prophet: From Adam to Muhammad. Mansoura, Egypt: Dar Al-Manarah. p. 389. ISBN 978-977-6005-17-4.
92. ^ "Ya-Seen Ninth Verse". Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2014. Quran Surah Yaseen ( Verse 9 )
93. ^ Jump up to:^a b Shaikh, Fazlur Rehman (2001). Chronology of Prophetic Events. London: Ta-Ha Publishers Ltd. pp. 51–52.
94. ^ F. A. Shamsi, "The Date of Hijrah", Islamic Studies 23 (1984): 189-224, 289-323 (JSTOR link 1 Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine+ JSTOR link 2 Archived 2016-12-26 at the Wayback Machine).
95. ^ Armstrong (2002), p. 14
96. ^ Muir (1861), vol. 3, p. 17
97. ^ Ibn Kathir (2001), Translated by Sayed Gad, p. 396
98. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
99. ^ Sell (1913), pp. 86-87.
100. ^ Campo (2009), Muhammad, Encyclopedia of Islam, p. 493
101. ^ Al Mubarakpuri, Safi ur Rahman (2002). "The attempts of the Quraysh to provoke the Muslims". The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8. Archived from the original on 2013-05-27. Retrieved 2011-11-11.
102. ^ Jump up to:^a b Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets, p. 90
103. ^ "Muhammad". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2013. Archived from the original on 16 May 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2013.
104. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 91. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
105. ^ Rahman, Fazlur (1979). Islam. University of Chicago Press. p. 21. ISBN 978-0-226-70281-0.
106. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 93. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
107. ^ Armstrong (2002), p. 19
108. ^ Jump up to:^a b Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 96. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
109. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 94. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
110. ^ Al Mubarakpuri (2002), "Permission to fight"
111. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
112. ^ Haykal (2008), pp. 225–26
113. ^ Muhammad Shafi Usmani (1986). Tafsir Maariful Quran. 4. English Translation by Muhammad Shameem. Lahore. pp. 160–1.
114. ^ Watt, W. Montgomery (1956). Muhammad at Medina. Oxford University Press. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-19-577307-1.
115. ^ Jump up to:^a b Muhammad Shafi Usmani (1986). Tafsir Maariful Quran. 4. Lahore. p. 163.
116. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. p. 252. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
117. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. p. 253. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
118. ^ Watt, W. Montgomery (1956). Muhammad at Medina. Oxford University Press. p. 11.
119. ^ Muhammad Shafi Usmani (1986). Tafsir Maariful Quran. 4. Lahore. pp. 169–70.
120. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. pp. 127–28. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
121. ^ Al Mubarakpuri (2002). "An Attempt on the Life of the Prophet". The Sealed Nectar. ISBN 9789960899558. Archived from the original on 2013-05-27.
122. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 151. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
123. ^ Al Mubarakpuri (2002). "Ar-Raji Mobilization". The Sealed Nectar. ISBN 9789960899558. Archived from the original on 2013-05-27.
124. ^ Muhammad Husayn Haykal (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 297. ISBN 9789839154177. Archived from the original on 2015-10-25.
125. ^ Peterson, Muhammad: the prophet of God, p. 125-127.
126. ^ Ramadan, In the Footsteps of the Prophet, p. 140.
127. ^ Ramadan, Tariq (2007). In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad. New York, NY : Oxford University Press. pp. 146. ISBN 978-0-19-530880-8.
128. ^ Hodgson, The Venture of Islam, vol. 1, p. 191.
129. ^ Brown, A New Introduction to Islam, p. 81.
130. ^ Lings, Martin (1987). Muhammad: His Life Based on Earliest Sources. Inner Traditions International Limited. pp. 231–232. ISBN 978-0-89281-170-0.
131. ^ Nigosian, S. A. (2004). Islam: Its History, Teaching, and Practices. Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 11. ISBN 978-0-253-21627-4.
132. ^ Haykal (2008). The Life of Muhammad. pp. 380–81. ISBN 9789839154177. Archived from the original on 2015-10-25.
133. ^ Lings, Martin (1987). Muhammad: His Life Based on Earliest Sources. Inner Traditions International Limited. p. 260. ISBN 978-0-89281-170-0.
134. ^ Muhammad Zafrullah Khan (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. p. 225. ISBN 9780710006103. Archived from the original on 2015-10-25.
135. ^ Nigosian, S. A. (2004). Islam: Its History, Teaching, and Practices. Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 12. ISBN 978-0-253-21627-4.
136. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. Islamic Book Trust. pp. 408 & 411. ISBN 978-983-9154-17-7.
137. ^ Khan, Majid Ali (1998), p. 274
138. ^ Khan, Majid Ali (1998), p. 274-5
139. ^ Fazlur Rehman Shaikh (2001). Chronology of Prophetic Events. London: Ta-Ha Publishers Ltd. p. 72.
140. ^ Haykal (2008). The Life of Muhammad. pp. 388, 432–33. ISBN 9789839154177. Archived from the original on 2015-10-25.
141. ^ "An Outline of the Life of Muhammad". Archived from the original on 3 January 2012. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
142. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 445. ISBN 9789839154177.
143. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. p. 475. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
144. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 450. ISBN 9789839154177.
145. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. p. 480. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
146. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. pp. 456–7. ISBN 9789839154177.
147. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. p. 487. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
148. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 461. ISBN 9789839154177.
149. ^ Holt, P. M.; Ann K. S. Lambton; Bernard Lewis, eds. (1977). The Cambridge History of Islam. IA. p. 52. ISBN 978-0-521-29135-4.
150. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 477. ISBN 9789839154177.
151. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2002). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. p. 495. ISBN 978-9960-899-55-8.
152. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 482. ISBN 9789839154177.
153. ^ Lings, Martin (1987). Muhammad: His Life Based on Earliest Sources. Inner Traditions International Limited. p. 319. ISBN 978-0-89281-170-0.
154. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 484. ISBN 9789839154177.
155. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. pp. 488–9. ISBN 9789839154177.
156. ^ Al-Huseini, Syed Farouq M. (2014). Islam and the Glorious Kaabah. United States: Trafford Publishing. pp. 103–4. ISBN 978-1-4907-2912-1.
157. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. pp. 493–4. ISBN 9789839154177.
158. ^ Lings, Martin (1987). Muhammad: His Life Based on Earliest Sources. Inner Traditions International Limited. p. 321. ISBN 978-0-89281-170-0.
159. ^ Al-Mubarakpuri (2014). The Sealed Nectar: Biography of the Noble Prophet. Darussalam. pp. 280–1.
160. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. Malaysia: Islamic Book Trust. p. 495. ISBN 9789839154177. With the destruction of al Lat and the conversion of al-Thaqif, the conversion of the Hijaz was complete. Muhammad's power expanded from the frontiers of Byzantium in the north to al Yaman and Hadramawt in the south. The territories of South Arabia were all preparing to join the new religion and integrate themselves into a system of defense. That is why delegations from all corners proceeded to Madinah to declare allegiance to the new order and to convert to the new faith.
161. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 247. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3. The adhesion of Taif and the destruction of its famous idol had enhanced the Holy Prophet’s fame throughout the south and east of the peninsula. A stream of submissive embassies from all quarters now flowed uninterruptedly towards Medina.
162. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 500. ISBN 9789839154177.
163. ^ Peters, F. E. (1994). Muhammad and the origins of Islam. SUNY Press. p. 251. ISBN 978-0-7914-1875-8.
164. ^ Jump up to:^a b Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 522. ISBN 9789839154177.
165. ^ Jump up to:^{a b c d e f} Juan E. Campo, ed. (2009). Encyclopedia of Islam. Facts on File. p. 494. ISBN 978-0-8160-5454-1 https://books.google.com/books?id=OZbyz_Hr-eIC&pg=PA494. Archived from the original on 2015-09-30. Missing or empty |title= (help)
166. ^ Muhammad Shafi Usmani (1986). Tafsir Maariful Quran. 3. English Translation by Muhammad Shamim. Lahore. p. 45.
167. ^ Haykal, Muhammad Husayn (2008). The Life of Muhammad. p. 534. ISBN 9789839154177.
168. ^ Lings, Martin (1987). Muhammad: His Life Based on Earliest Sources. Inner Traditions International Limited. p. 339. ISBN 978-0-89281-170-0.
169. ^ Oliver Leaman, ed. (2006). The Qur'an: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-415-32639-1 https://books.google.com/books?id=isDgI0-0Ip4C&pg=PA171. Missing or empty |title= (help)
170. ^ Nigosian, S. A. (2004). Islam: Its History, Teaching, and Practices. Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 13. ISBN 978-0-253-21627-4.
171. ^ Shaikh, Fazlur Rehman (2001). Chronology of Prophetic Events. London: Ta-Ha Publishers Ltd. pp. 78–79.
172. ^ Clark, Malcolm (2003). Islam for Dummies. Indiana: Wiley Publishing Inc. p. 100. ISBN 9781118053966. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.
173. ^ "Muhammad". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 2013. Archived from the original on 2 February 2013. Retrieved 27 January 2013.
174. ^ Esposito, John L., ed. (2003). "Khatam al-Nabiyyin". The Oxford Dictionary of Islam. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 171. Khatam al-Nabiyyin: Seal of the prophets. Phrase occurs in Quran 33:40, referring to Muhammad, and is regarded by Muslims as meaning that he is the last of the series of prophets that began with Adam.
175. ^ Mir, Mustansir (1987). "Seal of the Prophets, The". Dictionary of Qur'ānic Terms and Concepts. New York: Garland Publishing. p. 171. Muḥammad is called "the seal of the prophets" in 33:40. The expression means that Muḥammad is the final prophet, and that the institution of prophecy after him is "sealed."
176. ^ Hughes, Thomas Patrick (1885). "K͟HĀTIMU 'N-NABĪYĪN". A Dictionary of Islam: Being a Cyclopædia of the Doctrines, Rites, Ceremonies, and Customs, Together with the Technical and Theological Terms, of the Muhammadan Religion. London: W. H. Allen. p. 270. Archived from the original on 2015-10-04. K͟HĀTIMU 'N-NABĪYĪN (خاتم النبيين). "The seal of the Prophets." A title assumed by Muhammad in the Qur'ān. Surah xxxiii. 40: "He is the Apostle of God and the 'seal of the Prophets'." By which is meant, that he is the last of the Prophets.
177. ^ Goldziher, Ignác (1981). "Sects". Introduction to Islamic Theology and Law. Translated by Andras and Ruth Hamori from the German Vorlesungen über den Islam (1910). Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. pp. 220–21. ISBN 0691100993. Archived from the original on 2015-10-05. Sunnī and Shī'ī theology alike understood it to mean that Muhammad ended the series of Prophets, that he had accomplished for all eternity what his predecessors had prepared, that he was God's last messenger delivering God's last message to mankind.
178. ^ Martin, Richard C., ed. (2004). "'Ali". Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World. 1. New York: Macmillan. p. 37.
179. ^ Coeli Fitzpatrick; Adam Hani Walker, eds. (2014). "Muhammad in History, Thought, and Culture: An Encyclopedia of the Prophet of God [2 volumes]". Muhammad in History, Thought, and Culture: An Encyclopedia of the Prophet of God. ABC-CLIO. p. 16. ISBN 978-1-61069-178-9. Archived from the original on 2016-04-27.
180. ^ Bogle, Emory C. (1998). Islam: Origin and Belief. University of Texas Press. p. 135. ISBN 978-0-292-70862-4. Archived from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
181. ^ Jump up to:^a b Nigosian, S. A. (2004). Islam: Its History, Teaching, and Practices. Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-253-21627-4.
182. ^ Ramadan, Tariq (2007). In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad. New York City: Oxford University Press. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-19-530880-8.
183. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 264. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
184. ^ Jump up to:^a b Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. p. 266. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3.
185. ^ Ramadan, Tariq (2007). In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad. New York, NY : Oxford University Press. pp. 117–118. ISBN 978-0-19-530880-8.
186. ^ Jump up to:^a b c Shibli Nomani. Sirat-un-Nabi, vol 2. Lahore
187. ^ Jump up to:^a b al-Kulayni, Muhammad ibn Ya‘qub (2015). Al-Kafi (Volume 6 ed.). NY: Islamic Seminary Incorporated. ISBN 9780991430864.
188. ^ Ibn Kathir (2001). Stories of the Prophets: From Adam to Muhammad. English Translation by Sayed Gad et all. Mansura: Dar Al-Manarah. p. 423. ISBN 978-977-6005-17-4.
189. ^ Khan, Muhammad Zafrullah (1980). Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets. Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 263. ISBN 978-0-7100-0610-3. He was most forgiving and forbearing in respect of personal wrongs suffered by him.
190. ^ Ramadan, Tariq (2007). In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad. New York, NY : Oxford University Press. pp. 77. ISBN 978-0-19-530880-8. He scrupulously applied the principles of honesty and justice that Islam had taught him, whomever he dealt with, be they Muslims or non-Muslims.
191. ^ Khadduri, Majid (1984). The Islamic Conception of Justice. The Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-8018-6974-7.
192. ^ Ramadan, Tariq (2007). In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad. Oxford University Press. pp. 111–13. ISBN 978-0-19-530880-8.
193. ^ Ramadan, Tariq (2007). In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons from the Life of Muhammad. Oxford University Press. pp. 194. ISBN 978-0-19-530880-8.
194. ^ Rippin, Andrew (2005). Muslims: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices. Routledge. p. 200. ISBN 978-0-415-34888-1. Archived from the original on 2015-09-29.
195. ^ Morgan, Diane (2010). Essential Islam: A Comprehensive Guide to Belief and Practice. ABC-CLIO. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-313-36025-1.
196. ^ Khan, Arshad (2003). Islam, Muslims, and America: Understanding the Basis of Their Conflict. New York City: Algora Publishing. ISBN 978-0-87586-194-4. Archived from the original on 2016-05-27.
197. ^ Jump up to:^a b Campo (2009), p. 494
198. ^ Zeki Saritoprak (2013). "The Universal Message of the Prophet". OnIslam. OnIslam.net. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
199. ^ Sami Zaatari. "Was the Prophet Muhammad send for the pagan Arabs only? Or all of Mankind?". Answering-Christianity. Archived from the original on 21 May 2013. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
200. ^ Clinton Bennett (1998). In search of Muhammad. Continuum International Publishing Group. pp. 182–83. ISBN 978-0-304-70401-9. Archived from the original on 2015-09-22.
201. ^ Malcolm Clark (2011). Islam For Dummies. John Wiley & Sons. p. 165. ISBN 978-1-118-05396-6. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.
202. ^ "Sunnah." In The Islamic World: Past and Present. Ed. John L. Esposito. Oxford Islamic Studies Online. 22-Apr-2013. "Sunnah - Oxford Islamic Studies Online". Archived from the original on 2014-04-19. Retrieved 2013-04-22.
203. ^ Jump up to:^a b Nigosian (2004), p. 80
204. ^ Muhammad Taqi Usmani (2004). The Authority of Sunnah. p. 6. Archived from the original on 2015-10-22.
205. ^ Jump up to:^a b Stefon, Islamic Beliefs and Practices, p. 59
206. ^ ʻus̲Mānī, Muḥammad Taqī (2004). The Authority of Sunnah. p. 9. Archived from the original on 2015-12-04.
207. ^ Josiane Cauquelin, Paul Lim, Birgit Mayer-Koenig Asian Values: Encounter with Diversity Routledge 2014 ISBN 978-1-136-84125-5
208. ^ Jump up to:^a b c Marion Holmes Katz The Birth of The Prophet Muhammad: Devotional Piety in Sunni Islam Routledge 2007 ISBN 978-1-135-98394-9page 13
209. ^ G. Widengren Historia Religionum, Volume 2 Religions of the Present, Band 2 Brill 1971 ISBN 978-9-004-02598-1 page 177
210. ^ M.J. Kister Adam: A Study of Some Legends in Tafsir and Hadit LiteratureApproaches to the History of the Interpretation of The Qur'an, Oxford 1988p.129
211. ^ Marion Holmes Katz The Birth of The Prophet Muhammad: Devotional Piety in Sunni Islam Routledge 2007 ISBN 978-1-135-98394-9 page 14
212. ^ Rom Landau The Philosophy of Ibn 'Arabi Routledge 2013 ISBN 978-1-135-02969-2
213. ^ Muhammad Taqi Usmani (2004). The Authority of Sunnah. p. 5. Archived from the original on 2015-10-22.
214. ^ Jump up to:^a b Abdur Rahman (2006-06-22). "The Life & Significance of Muhammad". Retrieved 8 March 2013.
215. ^ ʻus̲Mānī, Muḥammad Taqī (2004). The Authority of Sunnah. pp. 46–47. Archived from the original on 2015-10-22.
216. ^ ʻus̲Mānī, Muḥammad Taqī (2004). The Authority of Sunnah. p. 48. Archived from the original on 2015-10-22.
217. ^ Lassner, Jacob (2010). Islam in the Middle Ages: The Origins and Shaping of Classical Islamic Civilization. California: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 238. ISBN 978-0-313-04709-1. Archived from the original on 2017-04-27.
218. ^ Jump up to:^a b Malcolm Clark (2011-03-10). Islam For Dummies. p. 103. ISBN 9781118053966. Archived from the original on 2015-10-29.
219. ^ Tillier, Mathieu (3 April 2020), "'Abd al-Malik, Muḥammad et le Jugement dernier: le dôme du Rocher comme expression d'une orthodoxie islamique", Les vivants et les morts dans les sociétés médiévales : XLVIIIe Congrès de la SHMESP (Jérusalem, 2017), Histoire ancienne et médiévale, Paris: Éditions de la Sorbonne, p. 351, ISBN 979-10-351-0577-8
220. ^ Muhammad Shafi Usmani (1986). Tafsir Maariful Quran. 5. English Translation by Muhammad Shameem. Lahore. pp. 538. See commentary on 17:79.
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