What Muslims Fail to Learn from Prophets' Life
or how the greatest man in history live by
Mulsim considers Muhammad ( may Allah have mercy on him) as the best of humans who have walked the earth; his every action is based on wisdom and high moral ground; he knows how to control his emotions and desires; and has the best of characters, even to his enemies.
He brought about the greatest revolution ever in human history with meager resources, and created a society based on Justice and Principles; which spread and inspired thousands and millions of people over the centuries.
I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it much-needed peace and happiness: I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to the Europe of today.”
― Sir George Bernard Shaw
“If greatness of purpose, smallness of means, and astonishing results are the three criteria of a human genius, who could dare compare any great man in history with Muhammad?”
Alphonse de Lamartine, History of Turkey
But Muslims today have lost touch with the person Muhammad; who is part of their beliefs; they don't know the person; and how he dealt with people; how he stood strong and patiently in the face of the adversary and who prayed and cried for its Ummah even on its deathbed.
They will claim to love him, but what is love if you do not follow and take heed from the person or try to imitate the personality? Who personified what a living Quran would look like.
Let's look at some of the stories from the Prophet of our time, and try to reflect how it could make us rise in our morals and get closer to the creator.
Passion
One incident that proved the Prophet’s absolute sincerity and loyalty to his mission, despite the terrible odds, was this: After the Prophet was able to gather followers from among the Quraish, some of their leaders approached his uncle Abu Talib, intending to use his influence to dissuade Muhammad (peace be upon him) from his mission. But the Prophet told his uncle:
“By Allah, if they put the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left hand on condition that I abandoned this course, I would not abandon it until Allah has made it victorious, or I perish therein.”
Determination
Shortly after the conversion of the two powerful heroes, Hamzah ibn Abdil-Muttalib and Umar ibn Al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with them), the clouds of tyranny and oppression against Muslims in Makkah started to clear away and the Makkah polytheists realized that it was no use meting out torture to the Muslims. They consequently began to direct their campaign to a different course.
Makkan leaders tried to appeal to lure Muhammad’s (peace and blessings be upon him) ambition with temptation.
One day some of the important men of Makkah gathered in the enclosure of Al-Ka`bah, and `Utbah ibn Rai`ah, a chief among them, offered to approach the Prophet (PBUH) and contract a bargain with him whereby they give him whatever worldly wealth he asks for, on condition that he keep silent and no longer proclaim his new faith. The people of Quraish endorsed his proposal and requested him to undertake that task.
So, `Utbah approached Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) with the following offer:
If you are doing all this to get wealth, we will join together to give you greater riches than any Quraishite has possessed.
If ambition moves you, we will make you our chief; we will never decide anything without referring to you.
If you desire kingship we will readily offer you that.
If you are under the power of an evil spirit that seems to haunt and dominate you so that you cannot shake off its yoke, then we shall call in skillful physicians to cure you.
“Have you said all?” asked the Prophet (PBUH); and then hearing that all had been said, he spoke forth, reciting verses from Surat Fussialt:
In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.
{Ha Meem. [This is] a revelation from Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.
A Book whereof the verses are explained in detail; — a Quran in Arabic for people who know.
Giving glad tidings and warning; but most of them turn away, so they listen not.
And they say: “Our hearts are under coverings (screened) from that to which you invite us …” (Fussilat 41: 1–5)
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) went on reciting the Chapter while ‘Utbah sitting and listening attentively with his hand behind his back to support him. When the Messenger reached the verse that required prostration, he immediately prostrated himself. After that, he turned to ‘Utbah saying:
“Abu Al-Waleed! You have heard my reply, you are now free to do whatever you please.“
Keeping Promises
It was the time of the treaty of Hudaybiya and the articles that were agreed upon were being written down. Just at that point, Abu Jandal, the son of Suhayl ibn Amr, the representative of Quraysh, appeared before the Messenger of Allah (PBUH), having dragged his feet in chains.
Abu Jandal was being tortured because he became Muslim. He had found an opportunity to escape and fled to where the Muslims were.
Suhayl insisted that the first person to be sent back was his son, according to the pact, and he hit Abu Jandal on the face with a stick.
Sad at the events, the Prophet repeatedly and insistently requested from Suhayl that Abu Jandal be immune from the pact and sent to him.
However, the hard-hearted polytheist would have none of it. Abu Jandal was delivered back to the Quraysh, amongst cries and pleading of the Muslims. Upset he asked:
“Will you send me back and throw me into the same oppressed fire”? The hearts of the Muslims were torn apart, and they began to cry, not being able to bear it. To try and console him, the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said to Abu Jandal:
“Abu Jandal. Please be a little bit more patient. Await the reward for this from Allah. Allah will undoubtedly give you an expanse and a way out, both for you and the other weak Muslims who have no one to save them. We have made an agreement with this tribe and we have made a promise to them by Allah. And they have promised us by Allah. We cannot break our promise. This would not befit us”
Simplicity
His living quarters were so tight that when he ﷺ wished to pray, he would tap ‘Āishah (rA) to bend her legs to make room for him to prostrate.
To drink or bathe, he would reach for the small leather waterskin that hung in his room.
For months, no fire would be kindled for cooking in his home, and his family was content with dates and water unless someone gifted them some milk.
‘Umar ibn al-Khattāb (rA) reports that he once entered the room of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to find him lying down and noticed that the coarseness of the straw mat under him had left marks on his side.
Upon noticing that, and the meager rations of barley and leaves, and the leather bag hanging in the corner, his eyes welled with tears.
The Prophet ﷺ said, “What makes you weep, O son of al-Khaṭṭāb?”
He said, “O Prophet of Allah, how can I not cry after seeing how the mat has left these marks on your side, and how little you have in your food cupboard? Caesar and Chosroes live surrounded by fruits and springs of water, while you are the Messenger of God and His chosen one, and yet this is your condition.”
The Prophet ﷺ said, “O son of al-Khaṭṭāb, does it not please you that these [luxuries] are for us in the Hereafter and for them in this world?” I said, “Of course.” In another narration, he responded, “Are you in doubt, O son of al-Khaṭṭāb? These are a people whose pleasures have been expedited in the life of this world.”
When in war
His method of dealing with the enemy in times of war and with army personnel demonstrated the magnificence of the soul of this ambassador of God, a soul full of kindness.
Imam as Sadiq (peace be upon him) has said,
“Whenever the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) wanted to dispatch an army, he would request at them to come to him and he would tell them: ‘Go in the name of God, the Exalted. Seek perseverance from Him and fight for His cause. Do not steal from the war booty. Do not mutilate the disbelievers. Do not kill old men, children or women. Do not kill monks who live in caves. Do not uproot trees unless you are forced to do so. Do not burn palm trees nor destroy them. Never poison the water of the idol worshippers. Do not be deceptive nor treacherous. If a Muslim gives asylum to an idol worshipper, he is a refugee until he hears the word of God and Islam is presented to him. If he accepts, he is your brother in faith. If he does not accept, he is to be returned to a safe place (amongst his own people).’”
this behavior is also visible in Ali (RA) during a battle; when he was in a duel and wrestled and threw his opponent down to the ground, and was ready to vanquish him.
The pagan warrior, flustered and humiliated at having been defeated, spat on Ali’s face. Ali calmly exited the defeated warrior’s chest, put his sword back in his sheath, and walked away.
The pagan warrior, puzzled, asked Ali why he had not finished him. Ali explains that everything he had done up until that point had been for the sake of God. When the warrior spat on his face, Ali got angry. If he were to kill the warrior, it would not be for the sake of God, but as a response to his anger.
Mercy and Empathy
One day a poor man brought a bunch of grapes to the holy prophet Muhammad (peace be upon Him) as a gift.
The holy prophet (pbuhf) ate one, two, three, and then the whole bunch of grapes by himself. He did not offer grapes to anyone present. The poor man who brought those grapes was very pleased and left. One of the companions asked, “O prophet of Allah (peace be upon Him) ! How come you ate all the grapes by yourself and did not offer to any one of us present?
The holy Prophet (peace be upon Him) smiled and said, “I ate all the grapes by myself because the grapes were sour. If I had offered you, you might have made funny faces and that would have hurt the feelings of that poor man. I thought to myself that it’s better that I eat all of them cheerfully and please the poor man. I did not want to hurt the feelings of that poor man.”
Such were the manners of this most noble prophet of Allah.
Once a Sahabi’s son was missing. The Sahabi went looking for his son. As he was searching he found a group of children playing and saw his son was among them. He saw that Rasoolallah ﷺ, the Beloved of Allah was sitting at a short distance watching the children.
The Sahabi came into the presence of the Beloved ﷺ and after presenting Salam he asked Ya Rasoolallah ﷺ I have been looking for my son and found him playing here, do I have your permission to take him?
The Prophet ﷺ replied,Let your son play a little longer.The Sahabi took his leave and left.
A short while later he came again and found the Beloved of Allah in the same place watching the children play.
The Sahabi asked for permission to take his son and once again the Prophet ﷺ asked to to let his son carry on playing.
The man left and came back a short while later. Again he asked for permission to take his son and this time the Prophet of Allah ﷺ permitted him, now you may take your son.
As the man was about to approach the children and call his son, Rasoolallah ﷺ called him back.
He returned to the company of Rasoolallah ﷺ and the Prophet ﷺ said, Take your son but when you call him don’t call him as ‘my son’ call him by his name.
The Sahabi was a little inquisitive as to why this instruction was given and he asked Ya Rasoolallah, the child is my son and if I did call out to him as ‘my son’ would that be a problem?
Tears began to fall down the Blessed cheeks of The Mercy to Creation and He replied,
O my companion, amongst those children there are orphans… if you call out to your child as ‘O my son’ the orphans may feel the loss of their fathers and may be saddened.
To avoid this I have requested that you call your son by his name so as not to hurt their feelings!
The Sahabi was amazed at the intricate level of concern and sensitivity of Rasoolallah ﷺ.
The man took his son, and came back to Rasoolallah ﷺ to ask for leave.
He then asked Ya Rasoolallah ﷺ why are you sitting here watching these children, again with tears in his blessed eyes, the Mercy to Creation replied,
I was watching those children and sat close by so that they knew that even though they do not have fathers, they have the Prophet of Allah to care for them.
The Complete Man
Muslims have the perfect role model, in the life of Muhammad PBUH.
He the just, was the most balanced personality both introvert and extrovert blended in perfect unity.
He the prophet, showed how to stand firm in the face of difficulty; have full trust in God, and never flutter from doing what is right and moral in a particular situation.
Strange are the ways of a believer for there is good in every affair of his and this is not the case with anyone else except in the case of a believer for if he has an occasion to feel delight, he thanks (God), thus there is a good for him in it, and if he gets into trouble and shows resignation (and endures it patiently), there is a good for him in it.
He the messenger, created a society based on law, united different tribes and religions; removed the racism prevalent in the society by establishing brotherhood in people out of love and faith.
He PHUH showed how to create a state; that took care of the weak in the society, established a fair system of market and trade, and established women's right to Inheritance and Property.
He was the most God-conscious and self-aware person, always making sure he was perfectly parting away responsibilities put on him as a father, a husband, a preacher, a leader, a friend, a statesman, a warrior, and a Prophet.
Parting thoughts..
So, O Mulsim you have the perfect Unique God, the perfect Book that guides, a perfect role model in the life of Muhammad PBUH, the great legacy of Mulsim's intellect and leaders who followed in the footsteps and tried to imitate the great Man.
Then what is stopping you from being great again, being moral, being kind, being humble, bearer of peace and Justice, standing up for what is wrong, saying what is right? Helping the poor and oppressed, holding your leaders accountable.
I understand that you have inherited a world, that is individualistic, run by greedy people who cherish power and money over morality, your lands were colonized and looted, and you inherited scholars who are stuck in orthodoxy and failed to understand the problems of the modern world.
But God has already written your fate when it decided to make you a vicegerent of this world while putting your soul into this material body, your final abode is not this material world.
But this is a place to live to the best of your abilities, you are only earning what you are saving ( good deeds) for the next life; while the rest will eventually be tarnished by the passage of time and it does not deserve the love you associate with it.
If you have a God, who is always listening, and whose creative abilities are always at work in this universe, then why you are not the agent of change in this universe?
What you will say to the beloved Muhammad when you meet him on the day of Judgment?
Muhammad PBUH, reiterate throughout his life, “My similitude compared to the prophets before me is that of a person who built a beautiful, brilliant structure — completing its construction save for a single brick in one of its corners. People began to walk around it, admiring its construction, but saying, ‘If only that final brick were set in place, it would have been perfect.’ I am that brick, and I am the seal of the prophets.”In another hadith, he humbly cautioned, “Do not aggrandize me as the Christians exaggerated in praising the son of Mary. I am but a slave, so call me the slave of God and His messenger.”
Sources
https://www.al-islam.org/perfect-role-model-prophet-islam-himmat-suhrab-pur/kindness