Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Abdul Muttalib

Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Abdul Muttalib
Born 570 C.E. (Christian Era); died 633 C.E.




The
following is based on books, manuscripts, texts and actual eyewitness
accounts, too numerous to mention herein, preserved in original form
throughout the centuries by both Muslims and non-Muslims.

Many
people today are discussing Prophet Muhammad, may Allah exalt his
mention. Who was he exactly? What did he teach? Why was he loved so much
by some and hated so much by others? Did he live up to his claims? Was
he a holy man? Was he a prophet of God? What is the truth about this
man? You be the judge.



Here are the facts as narrated by thousands of people, many of whom knew him personally.

§ He was born to a noble tribe to the lineage of the leaders of Makkah.

§ His name comes from the Arabic root "hamd
" and literally means "praised one." People at his time and until this
very moment, praise him many times per day, may Allah exalt his mention.


§ He never fell into the common practice of his tribesmen to worship statues, idols or man-made "gods."

§ He believed that God was truly One God, and as such, He was to be worshipped alone, without any other "gods" beside Him.

§ He held the Name of God in the highest of reverence and never took God's Name in vain or for any vain glorious purpose.

§ He despised false worship and all of the complexities and degradation to which it leads.

§ He adhered to the Commandments of Almighty God, just as prophets of old had done in the past.

§ He never committed adultery, and he forbade others from doing it.

§ He forbade usury and interest on money lending, as Jesus, may Allah exalt his mention, had done centuries before him.

§ He never gambled and did not allow it.

§ He never drank alcohol or strong drink; even though it was a very normal thing for people of his time and place.

§ He did not engage in gossip and used to turn away from hearing anything related to it.

§ He fasted for days at a time to be closer to Almighty God and away from the narrowness of worldly attractions.

§ He
taught that Jesus, may Allah exalt his mention, was the immaculate
conception and miracle birth of Mary, and that she was among the best
creation of Almighty God.

§ He
insisted even to the Jews of Medina, that Jesus, may Allah exalt his
mention, was the Messiah, the Christ, the one predicted to come in their
Torah (Old Testament).

§ He
said Jesus, may Allah exalt his mention, did many miracles by the
permission of Almighty God, curing the lepers, restoring sight to the
blind and even bringing a dead man back to life.

§ He stated clearly that Jesus, may Allah exalt his mention, was not dead, rather Almighty God had raised him up.

§ He
foretold that Jesus, may Allah exalt his mention, is going to return
again in the Last Days to lead the true believers in a victory over the
evil and unrighteous people, and he will destroy the Anti-Christ.

§ He commanded the payment of charity to the poor and he was the defender and protector of widows, orphans and the wayfarers.

§ He ordered
people to unite with their families and honor the ties of kinship and
he restored relationships between family members.

§ He
required his followers to engage only in lawful marriage relationships
with women, and forbade sex outside of Almighty God's Ordinance.

§ He insisted on giving women their proper rights, dowries, inheritance and property.

§ His patience and humble attitude were exemplary and all who knew him had to admit to these virtues.



A. He
never lied, never broke a trust never bore false witness, and he was
famous with all the tribes in Makkah and was known as: "The Truthful"
(Al-Ameen).

B. He never once engaged in sex outside of marriage, nor did he ever approve of it, even though it was very common at the time.

C. His only relationships with women were in legitimate, contractual marriages with proper witnesses according to law.

D. His
relationship to Ayesha was only that of marriage. Their relationship is
described in every detail by Ayesha herself in the most loving and
respectful manner as a match truly made in heaven. Ayesha is considered
as one of the highest scholars of Islam and lived out her entire life
only having been married to Muhammad, may Allah exalt his mention. She
never desired any other man, nor did she ever utter a single negative
statement against Muhammad, may Allah exalt his mention.

E. He
forbade any killing until the orders came from Allah. Even then the
limits were clearly spelled out and only those engaged in active combat
against the Muslims or Islam were to be fought in combat. And even then,
only according to very strict rules from Allah.

F. Killing any innocent life was forbidden.

G. There
was no genocide of Jews. He offered mutual protection and forgiveness
to the Jews even after they broke their covenants with him many times.
They were not attacked until it was clearly proven they were traitors
during time of war and tried to bring down the prophet, may Allah exalt
his mention, and the Muslims at any cost. Retaliation was only to those
Jews who had turned traitor and not others.

H. Slaves
were common in those days for all nations and tribes. It was Islam that
encouraged freeing of the slaves and the great reward from Allah for
those who did so. Prophet, may Allah exalt his mention, gave the example
of this by freeing slaves and encouraging all of his followers to do
the same. Examples include his own servant (who was actually considered
like a son to him) Zaid ibn Al Haritha and Bilal the slave who
was bought by Abu Bakr only for the purpose of freeing him.

I. While
there were many attempts of assassination made on Muhammad, may Allah
exalt his mention, (most famous was the night that Ali took his place in
bed while he and Abu Bakr escaped to Madinah), he did not allow his
companions to slaughter any of those who had been involved in these
attempts. Proof for this is when they entered Makkah triumphantly and
his first words were to command his followers not to harm such and such
tribes and so and so families. This was one of the most famous of his
acts of forgiveness and humbleness.

J. Military
combat was forbidden for the first thirteen years of prophethood. The
desert Arabs did not need anyone to tell them how to fight or do combat.
They were experts in this area and held feuds amongst tribes that
lasted for decades. It was not until the proper method of warfare was
instituted by Allah in the Quran, with proper rights and limitations
according His Commandments, that any retaliation or combat was
sanctioned. Orders from Allah made it clear who was to be attacked, how
and when and to what extent fighting could take place.

K. Destruction
of infrastructures is absolutely forbidden except when it is ordained
by Allah in certain instances and then only according to His Commands.

L. Cursing
and invoking evil actually came to the prophet, may Allah exalt his
mention, from his enemies, while he would be praying for their guidance.
Classic example is that of his journey to At-Taif where the leaders
would not even hear him out nor offer so much as the normal courtesy
called for and instead they set the children of the street against him,
throwing rocks and stones at him until his body was bleeding so much,
blood filled his sandals. He was offered revenge by the angel Gabriel,
if he would give the command, Allah would cause the surrounding
mountains to fall down upon them destroying them all. Instead of cursing
them or asking for their destruction, he prayed for them to be guided
to worship their Lord alone, without any partners.

M. Prophet
Muhammad, may Allah exalt his mention, claimed every person who is born
is born in a state of ISLAM (submission to God), as a Muslim (MU-Islam
means; "one who does ISLAM" i.e.; submits to God's Will and obeys His
Commandments). Then as they grow older they begin to distort their faith
according to the influence of the prevailing society and their own
prejudices.

N. Muhammad,
may Allah exalt his mention, taught his followers to believe in the God
of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, David, Solomon and Jesus, peace
be upon them all, and to believe in them as true prophets, messengers
and slaves of Almighty Allah. He insisted on ranking all the prophets up
at the highest level without any distinction between them.

O. He
also taught the Torah (Old Testament), Zaboor (Psalms) and Injeel
(Gospel or New Testament) were originally from the very same source as
the Quran, from Allah.

P. He
prophesied and foretold of events to come and they happened as he had
said. He even predicted something from the past that would come true in
the future, and it has.

Q. The
Quran states pharaoh was drowned in the Red Sea while chasing after
Moses and Allah said He would preserve Pharaoh as a sign for the future.
Dr. Maurice Bucaille in his book, "Bible, Quran and Science "
makes it clear this has happened and the very person of Pharaoh has been
discovered in Egypt and is now on display for all to see.
R. This
event took place thousands of years before Muhammad, may Allah exalt
his mention, and it came true in the last few decades, many centuries
after his death.