In an age when even the king of England bath only once a year, if he did at all, there was a man who taught his companions to bathe at least once a week and practise dental hygiene. Surprisingly they live in a place where water is scarce, the Arabian Peninsula.
His name was Muhammad, (Peace and blessings be upon him), the Seal of the Prophets of Allah, The Most Gracious The Most Beneficent.
Muhammad bin Abdullah was born in the year 570 CE (Common Era) in Mecca, a member of the most powerful tribe in the Arabian Peninsula; the Quraysh, guardians of the Ka’abah. An orphan brought up by his grandfather and later by his uncle, the young Muhammad displayed exceptional virtue as a trustworthy individual whom members of various tribes would invite to act as arbitrator in their disputes.
At that time the Arabs followed a form of idolatry, each tribe keeping its own idols at the Ka'abah, the cubical structure built originally by Abraham to celebrate the glory of the One God. But the monotheistic message of Abraham had long become forgotten among the general population of the Arabian Peninsula.
It was a barbaric age; female infanticide was practiced, when fathers killed their new born baby girls; tribal vengeance was rife, the law of the rich and powerful was the norm of the day. Though the Arabs believe in a supreme deity, Allah; they also pray to these gods which they created and claimed to be intercessors to Allah.
The young Muhammad, however, was a believer in the One God all of his life and never participated in the idolatrous practices of his tribe.
At the age of forty, Muhammad made a habit of retreating to a cave on top of a mountain outside Mecca. It was during one of these retreats that Muhammad received revelation from Allah through the Archangel Gabriel in the form of recitation and which marked the beginning of his prophet hood.
For the next thirteen years he preached the Word of God to the Meccans, inviting them to abandon idolatry and accept the religion of Oneness. A few accepted his call but most Meccans, especially those of his own tribe, opposed him violently, seeing in the new religion a grave danger to their economic as well as social domination based upon their control of the Ka’abah. But the Prophet continued to call the people to Islam and gradually a larger number of men and women began to accept the faith and submit themselves to its teachings. As a result, persecution of Muslims increased until the Prophet was forced to send some of his companions to Abyssinia where they were protected by the Christian king.
The Meccan period was also one of intense spiritual experience for the Prophet and the noble companions who formed the nucleus of the new religious community which was soon to spread worldwide. It was during this period that God ordered the direction of prayers to be changed from Jerusalem to Mecca. To this day Jerusalem remains along with Mecca and Madeenah one of the holiest cities of Islam.
In 622 A. D. the Prophet was ordered by God to migrate to Yathrib, a city north of Mecca. He followed the Divine Command and left with his followers for that city which henceforth was known as "The City of the Prophet" (Madeenat al-nabi) or simply Madeenah. This event was so momentous that the Islamic calendar begins with this migration (hijrah).
In Madeenah, the Prophet established the first Islamic society which has served as the model for all later Islamic societies. Several battles took place against the invading Meccans which the Muslims won against great odds. Soon more tribes began to join Islam and within a few years most of Arabia had embraced the religion of Islam.
After many trials and eventually successive victories, the Prophet returned triumphantly to Makkah where the people embraced Islam at last. He forgave all his former enemies and marched to the Ka’abah, where he ordered his companion and cousin 'Ali to join him in destroying all the idols. The Prophet reconstituted the rite of pilgrimage as founded by Abraham. The Prophet then returned to Madeenah and made another pilgrimage to Makkah. It was upon returning from this last pilgrimage that he delivered his farewell address. Soon he fell ill and after three days died in 632 CE in Madeenah where he was buried in the chamber of his house next to the first mosque of Islam.
MUSLIMS NEED TO REDISCOVER ISLAM; WHAT MADE IT THE GREATEST CIVILIZATION EVER AND HOW TO EMULATE THAT PAST GLORY TODAY
Islam
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious Most Merciful
In Cairo the muezzin calls faithful Muslims to prayer. It’s the same call that sounds 5 times a day everyday in cities across the world. Nearly a quarter of the people on Earth respond to it bound together by the enduring spirit of Islam.
God is Most Great
I testify that there is no god (worthy of worship) but God
I testify that Muhammad is the messenger of God
Come and pray
Come and flourish
God is Most Great
There is no god (worthy of worship) but God
In the unfolding of history, Islamic civilization has been one of humanity’s grandest achievements, a worldwide power founded simply on faith, a spiritual revolution that would shape the nations of 3 continents and launch an empire.
For the West much of the history of Islam has been obscured behind the veil of fear and misunderstanding yet Islam’s hidden history is deeply and surprisingly interwoven with western civilization
It was Muslim scholars who reclaimed the ancient wisdom of the Greeks while Europe languishes in the dark ages. It was they who sowed the seeds of the Renaissance 600 years before the birth of Leonardo Da Vinci. From the way we heal the sick to the numerals we used for counting, cultures across the globe have been shaped by Islamic civilization.
But all these began with the life of a single ordinary man and the profound message he proclaimed which changed the world forever.
His name was Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
Guided by the Al Qur’aan which God Almighty revealed to him through the Archangel Gabriel, peace be upon him, Muhammad taught his companions that there is only one god, Allah, worthy of worship and that he, Muhammad, is His messenger and that Islam is the only way of life which God Almighty has perfected, completed His favour upon and decreed for Man.
Persecuted and constrained both physically and materially, Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, persisted for thirteen years to spread the words of God Almighty to his idol worshiping tribe, the Quraysh of Mecca. Slowly but surely, the number of followers to his teachings grew and spread to nearby Yathrib the city that eventually became known as Madinah, City of the Prophet.
In the thirteenth year of prophet hood, Muhammad was commanded by God Almighty to emigrate to Yathrib, where he set up the seat of Islam as a state and consolidated his position as Prophet and Messenger of Allah by spreading Islam to the whole of Arabia and the surrounding states.
Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, passed away at the age of sixty three, in the twenty third year of his prophet hood.
The following is the sermon he gave to the people who accompanied him on his last pilgrimage to Mecca and known historically as Khutbatul Wada’, the Farewell Sermon, on the 9th day of Zul Hijjah 10 AH in the Uranah Valley at Mount Arafat.
"O People, lend me an attentive ear, for I don't know whether, after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to you carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today.
O People, just as you regard this month, this day, and this city as Sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your Lord, and that He will indeed reckon your deeds.
Allah has forbidden you to take usury (Interest), therefore all interest obligation shall henceforth be waived...
Beware of Satan, for the safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.
O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have right over you. If they abide by your right then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Do treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners and committed helpers. And it is your right that they do not make friends with any one of whom you do not approve, as well as never to commit adultery.
O People, listen to me in earnest, worship Allah, say your five daily prayers (Salah), fast during the month of Ramadan, and give your wealth in Zakat. Perform Hajj if you can afford to.
You know that every Muslim is the brother of another Muslim.
You are all equal. Nobody has superiority over other except by piety and good action.
Remember, one day you will appear before Allah and answer for your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.
O People, no prophet or apostle will come after me and no new faith will be born. Reason well, therefore, O People, and understand my words which I convey to you.
I leave behind me two things, the Qur'an and my example, the Sunnah and if you follow these you will never go astray.
All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly.
Be my witness O Allah that I have conveyed your message to your people."
God Almighty revealed verse 3 of Surah Al Maaidah on this same day, confirming this sermon of the prophet, “This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed my favour upon you and have chosen for you Islam as your religion”.
