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This messenger was
Muhammad, (SAW) Mankind had now reached a stage of
development which could guarantee that the message
brought by him, the Qur'an, would be preserved unchanged
and its content would remain valid for all times to come,
and so there will be no further new messenger after him.
The messengers mentioned by name in the Qur'an are Adam,
Idris, Nuh (Noah), Hud, Salih, Lut (Lot), Ibrahim
(Abraham], Isma'il (Ishmael), Ishaq (Isaac), Ya'qub
(Jacob), Yusuf, (Joseph), Shu'ayb (lethro), Ayyub (Job),
Musa (Moses), Harun (Aaron), Dawud (David), Sulayman
(Solomon], Yunus (Jonah), llyas (Elijah), AI-Yasa'
(Elisha], Dhu-l-Kifl, Zakariyya (Zechariah), Yahya
(John), 'Isa (Jesus), and Muhammad, (peace fee with them
all).
THE LIFE AND MESSAGE OF MUHAMMAD
(SAW)...
Muhammad (SAW) was born in Makkah in Arabia
in 570 C.E. as an orphan, for his father 'Abdullah died
several weeks before his birth. When he was six, his
mother died, too, and he was looked after for two years
by his grandfather, "Abd al-Muttalib, and then, after his
death, by his uncle Abu Talib, whom he helped with his
trade caravans. His integrity soon earned him the
nickname "al-Amin", the Trustworthy. At the age of 25 he
worked for the trading business of a wealthy widow,
Khadijah who, impressed with his character, proposed
marriage. In spite of her being 40 at the time. Muhammad
(SAW) accepted, and she remained his life companion for
25 years, and they had six children
together.
After Khadijah's death he married a young girl,
"A'ishah (RA), who became an important teacher and
narrator of Ahadith (sayings of the Prophet), as well 55
several war widows and divorcees, either to provide them
with shelter or to forge political alliances between
competing tribes. In turn for the kindness shown to him
as a youth, he looked after' Ali, the son of his uncle
Abu Talib, and he freed and adopted a young slave boy,
Zayd ibn al-Harithah, into his household. His family's
testimony is that of a caring husband and father who,
although busy with the affairs of the community, helped
with the household chores wherever he
could.
Disliking the idolatrous and frivolous practices
of his compatriots in Makkah, Muhammad (SAW) often
retreated to a cave in mount Hira' outside the town, and
it was there, at the age of 40, that he received the
first revelation. These revelations continued for 23
years until the end of the life of Muhammad (SAW), and
they are collected in the Qur'an, the Muslims' holy
book.
Muslims follow the life example of Muhammad
(SAW), Allah's messenger, because - unlike so many rulers
before and after him - he meticulously observed and
followed himself what he preached to others and
demonstrated that Islam, as revealed by Allah, is not
some esoteric, aloof philosophy, but a practical
guidance, applicable to all people, at all times, and in
all areas of life. Amongst the most beautiful aspects of
Muhammad (SAW) own life is how perfectly he managed to
balance the various demands of public and private life,
neglecting neither for the sake of the other.
Through his personality and the powerful
guidance contained in the Qur'an he managed to unite the
quarrelling tribes of the Arabian peninsula and led them
to being a major and flourishing civilisation within his
own lifetime, putting the then dominant Persian and East
Roman empires in the shade. Islam soon spread globally
and took the cultural lead, advancing science and
humanity, giving birth to the European enlightenment, and
again, today, providing a much needed spiritual, social,
and philosophical ideology for over a billion people,
counter balancing the excess materialism of the prevalent
consumer ism in the modern world.
THE QUR'AN - A living
Miracle...
The Qur'an is no ordinary book of fact or
fiction. It is a living communication to humankind by our
Creator, intended as a guidance for life, akin to an
instruction manual or a travel guide.
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