The Life of Muhammad

by M. Husayn Haykal

  The Poets of Quraysh

  Abu Lahab and Abu Sufyan, noblemen of Quraysh and lords of its commerce and entertainment, began to feel the threat which the call of Muhammad presented. They therefore decided to begin by ridiculing him and belying his prophet hood. Their first act was to tempt their poet friends to attack Muhammad in their poetry. It was then that Abu Sufyan ibn al Harith, ‘Amr ibn al ‘As, and ‘Abdullah ibn al Zib’ari launched their vituperative attacks in verse. A number of Muslim poets undertook to answer these attacks in kind, despite the fact that Muhammad hardly needed their efforts. Besides the poets, others advanced and asked Muhammad to perform some miracles with which to prove his prophethood. They challenged him to do as much as Moses or Jesus had done. They asked, “Why don’t you change Mount Safa and Mount Marwah into gold? Why don’t you cause the book of which you speak so much to fall down from heaven already written? Why don’t you cause Gabriel to appear to all of us and speak to us as he spoke to you? Why don’t you resurrect the dead and remove these mountains which bound and enclose the city of Makkah? Why don’t you cause a water fountain to spring whose water is sweeter than that of Zamzam, knowing how badly your town needs the additional water supply?” The unbelievers did not stop at these demands for miracles. In ridicule, they asked, “Why doesn’t your God inform you of the market prices of the future in order to help you and us in the trade of the morrow?” Whether serious or in ridicule, all these questions and demands were answered once and for alt by revelation. God commanded Muhammad, “Say: ‘I have no power whatever to bring advantage or avoid disadvantage. What God wills, that will happen. If it were given me to tell the future I would have used such knowledge to my own advantage. But I am only a man sent to warn you, and a messenger to convey a divine message that you may believe.” [Qur’an, 7:188]

  Indeed: Muhammad was only a warner and a messenger. How could they demand of him that which reason denies while he demanded of them only that which reason commends-nay, dictates and imposes? How could they demand of him that which no morality can tolerate, whereas he called them to goodness and genuine virtue? How could they ask him to perform miracles when the Book that was being revealed to him, which was his guide to the truth, was the end of all miracles? How could they ask him to prove his prophethood with miracles that they might then see whether or not they would follow him, while their so-called gods were dead and cold, utterly devoid of power to do anything, whether miracle or nonmiracle? How could they ask him to prove himself with miracles when they worshipped their stone and wooden gods without ever asking them to prove their divinity? If they had only once asked their gods to prove their divinity, they would have seen through their wood and stone and convinced themselves that they were no gods at all but dead, immobile, and unable to defend themselves against anyone.

  Muhammad’s Attack against the Idols

  Muhammad did take the initiative of attacking their gods. Hitherto he had not mentioned them at all. Now, hs attacked them directly. To the Quraysh this was so serious that it aroused deep hatred. This man had become a threatening problem to them demanding definite solution. Until then they had not taken him seriously but had ridiculed him. When they assembled in Dar al Nadwah or around the Ka’bah and its idols and happened to mention him, they would speak lightly of him and ridicule his cause. Now that he had directly attacked their gods, ridiculed their worship as well as their ancestors’, severely condemned Hubal, al Lat, al ‘Uzza and all other idols, the matter called for’ something more than ridicule. It called for a fight plan and serious thinking of how to combat and counterattack. If this man were to succeed in converting the people of Makkah and in turning them against their old worship, what would happen to Makkan trade? What would remain of Makkah’s religious eminence? These and like thoughts were ominous and called for the most careful strategy.

  Abu Talib, Muhammad’s uncle, had not joined the faith, but he continued to protect his nephew and let everyone know of his preparation to fight for him. Led by Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, some noblemen of Quraysh went to Abu Talib and addressed him in these words: “O Abu Talib, your nephew has blasphemed our gods, attacked our religion, ridiculed our ideals and condemned our fathers for unbelief. Either you stop him or you relinquish your protection of him. Our faith which he attacks is equally your faith. Why don’t you let us take care of him for you?” Abu Talib talked to them gently and discharged them. Muhammad continued his preaching and intensified his missionary activity. His followers multiplied. Once more Quraysh plotted against him. They went to Abu Talib and brought with them ‘Umarah ibn al Walid ibn al Mughirah, the most handsome youth in Quraysh. They asked Abu Talib to adopt ‘Umarah as his son and to let them handle Muhammad. Once more they were turned down. As Muhammad continued his missionary activities, they continued to plot. Finally, they went to Abu Talib for a third time saying, “O Abu Talib, you are an honorable elder among us. We have asked you to stop your nephew but you have not. By God, we cannot permit him to insult our fathers, to ridicule our ideals, and to castigate our gods. Either you stop him or we shall fight both you and him until one of us perishes in the process.” To alienate them and to arouse their enmity was too much for Abu Talib, and yet he was neither prepared to join the faith of his nephew nor to betray him. What would he do? He called Muhammad and told him what had happened and pleaded with him: “Save me as well as yourself, and do not cause me to carry a burden I cannot bear.”

  The Logic of History

  For a while Muhammad stood motionless in his place. It was a moment in which the history of being itself stopped without knowing which course to take. Whichever word this one man was about to say, would be a judgment of mankind. Should the world continue to wallow in its darkness? Should Zoroastrianism triumph over a corrupt and lifeless Christianity? Should paganism be allowed to raise its superstitious, rotten head? Or should he, Muhammad, proclaim to this world the unity of God, enlightening it with the light of truth, liberating the minds of men from the bondage of superstition, and raising the souls for communion with the Supernal Plenum? There was his uncle weakened by the people’s opposition, unable to help or protect indeed, likely to betray him. And there were the Muslims, few and weak, unable to wage war or to resist a strong and well-equipped army such as Quraysh had. There was none to lend him support in this hour of dire need. Only the truth which he proclaimed and of which he was the advocate could console or rescue him. Nothing was left to count upon except his own faith and conviction of that truth. That alone was his whole force. Well, let it be. The other realm is better than this one. Let him then discharge his duty and convey his message. It is better to die faithful to the truth than to betray it or stammer in its cause. Refreshened and energized by the strength and determination of new resolution, he turned to his uncle and said, “O uncle! By God Almighty I swear, even if they should put the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left that I abjure this cause, I shall not do so until God has vindicated it or caused me to perish in the process.”

  How great is the truth! And how sublime is faith in the truth! The old man was shaken to his depths when he heard the answer of Muhammad. It was his turn to stand motionless and speechless in front of this holy power and great will which had just spoken on behalf of a life above life. Choked with emotion at his uncle’s request as well as at his own certainty of the course he was to follow, Muhammad got up to leave. For but a moment Abu Talib hesitated between the enmity of his people and the cause of his nephew. Immediately, he called Muhammad back. “Go forth, my nephew,” he said, “and say what you will. By the same God I swear I shall never betray you to your enemies.”

  Banu Hashim Protects Muhammad against Quraysh

  Abu Talib communicated his resolution to Banu Hashim and Banu al Muttalib and spoke to them about his nephew with great admiration and deep appreciation of the sublimity of Muhammad’s position. He asked them all to protect Muhammad against the Quraysh. All of them pledged to do so except Abu Lahab, who declared openly his enmity to him and his wi
thdrawal to the opposite camp. Undoubtedly, the tribal bond they shared with Muhammad and their traditional enmity with Banu Umayyah influenced their decision to stand by Muhammad. Tribal solidarity and politics, however, do not completely explain their new opposition to all Quraysh in a matter so grave as to require them to repudiate the faith and beliefs inherited from the fathers. The attitude of Muhammad toward them, his firm conviction, his calling them in kindness to the worship of God alone, and their awareness that among the tribes of Arabia there were certainly other religions besides their own all these factors caused them to realize that to their nephew and fellow tribesman belonged the right to speak out his views, just as Umayyah ibn Abu al Salt and Waraqah ibn Nawfal and others had done before him. If Muhammad were saying the truth and they did not think that that was the case truth will certainly prevail, and they stand to share in the glory of its victory. If, on the other hand, Muhammad was not telling the truth, then people would pass his claim by as they had other claims before. In this case it would not destroy their traditions, and there was, therefore, no reason why they should betray him to his enemies and allow them to kill him.

  Persecution of the Muslims by Quraysh

  From whatever harm might come from Quraysh Muhammad took refuge behind his people. From the worries he generated within himself he took refuge in the person of Khadijah. With her faith and great love she was for him a refreshing source of joy. She supported him against every symptom of weakness or despondency generated by the harm his enemies had inflicted against him or against his followers. In fact, ever since Muhammad made public cause of his revelations, Quraysh knew no peace, and the tranquility of earlier days vanished. Instigated by the Quraysh, every clan and tribe began to attack its Muslim members to dissuade them from their faith. One unbeliever threw his Abyssinian slave, Bilal, onto the sand under the burning sun, laid a heavy stone on his chest and left him there to die, for no reason except his insistence upon Islam. Bearing himself gallantly under this torture, Bilal kept on repeating, “God is one, God is one.” Abu Bakr saw him, bought him from his master and set him free. Indeed, Abu Bakr bought many of the slaves and clients who were being thus tortured by the unbelievers. Among these there was even a slave woman whom Abu Bakr had bought from ‘Umar ibn al Khattab before the tatter’s conversion. One woman is known to have been tortured to death because of her attachment to Islam and her refusal to return to the old faith. Muslims of pure Arab blood were beaten and subjected to all sorts of maltreatment and contemptuous humiliation. Even Muhammad did not escape, despite the protection of Banu Hashim and Banu al Muttalib. Umm Jamil, Abu Lahab’s wife, used to throw the refuse from her house onto Muhammad’s door. All Muhammad could do was simply to remove it. While Muhammad was praying near the Ka’bah, Abu Lahab threw on him the entrails of a goat sacrificed to one of the gods; and Muhammad could only go to his daughter Fatimah for her to clean him and wash the dirt off his clothes. This abuse was all in addition to the terrible vituperation and vile calumnies the unbelievers directed against the Muslims on every occasion and in every quarter. Such persecution continued for a long time, but it only confirmed the Muslims in their faith and challenged them to sacrifice everything for the sake of their convictions.

  Muslim Patience

  This period of Muhammad’s life is one of the noblest and greatest pages of human history. Neither he nor his followers sought wealth or reputation, power or sovereignty. Rather, they were seekers after the truth and believers therein. To those who did harm him, Muhammad prayed for guidance, for liberation from the yoke of vile paganism and from its immorality and villainy. It was for this noble spiritual objective that Muhammad suffered persecution. The poets insulted him; the tribe plotted against him, threw stones at his house, threatened his folks and followers, and came close to killing him near the Ka’bah. The more they persecuted, the more patience and resolve Muhammad showed in his mission. The believers repeated and were encouraged by Muhammad’s pledge that he would not abjure this cause even if given both sun and moon. Great sacrifices became small, and death itself became a welcome alternative. One must appreciate the strength of these men’s faith and the depth of their commitment at a time when the new religion was not even complete and the Qur’an was not yet fully revealed. No doubt Muhammad’s gentleness, good character, truthfulness, resoluteness, strength of will, and conviction were contributing factors. But there were other factors besides.

  Muhammad lived in a free country very much like a republic. As far as social eminence and nobility of lineage, he ranked among the highest and best. Muhammad did not have much wealth, but he had all he needed, and so did Banu Hashim. To them belonged the sidanah of the Ka’bah and the siqayah and all that they wished by way of religious titles. Therefore, Muhammad stood in no need of money, prestige, political power, or religious eminence. In this respect, Muhammad was quite different from the prophets that preceded him. Moses, for instance, was born in Egypt when Pharaoh was worshipped by its people as God. It was he who called to them, “I am your supreme God.” [Qur’an, 79:24]. The priesthood assisted Pharaoh in tyrannizing over the people and in exploiting them. The revolution that Moses led by command of his Lord was a revolution against the political as well as the religious order. Did Moses not seek to reduce Pharaoh to the equal of the most ordinary peasant in front of God, even though that peasant was of the meanest class who drew their water from the Nile with the shadoof? Pharaoh’s divinity, Moses thought, as well as the social order on which it stood, must all be destroyed. The revolution must first be political. Consequently, from the very beginning the Mosaic call was met by Pharaoh with all-out war, and miracles were necessary that the Mosaic call might be believed by the rank and file. When, for instance, Moses threw his stick on the ground, it became a living serpent devouring what Pharaoh’s magicians had created. These miracles, however, turned out to be futile, for Moses had to flee from his country of birth. His flight was assisted by another miracle, that of the splitting of the waters of the sea. As for Jesus, he was born in Nazareth, in Palestine, a province under the yoke of Roman colonialism. He called men to patience in their suffering of injustice, to forgiveness after repentance and to forms of love and mercy which the rulers regarded as tantamount to rebellion against their tyranny. The miracles of resurrecting the dead, healing the sick, and all that Jesus did with the support of the Holy Spirit were necessary for the success of his cause. In their essence, the doctrines of Jesus and Muhammad were built on the same premises and led to the same conclusions, with differences in detail not relevant for our present discussion. The point is that these various factors, especially the political among them gave to the call of Jesus the orientation it took. As for Muhammad, since his circumstances were what we have just seen, his message was spiritual and rational. At every stage of its development, it rested on a foundation of truth, goodness, and beauty for their own sakes. Because of its distance from any political struggle, Muhammad’s message did not disturb the republican regime of Makkah in the least, nor was it disturbed thereby.

  The Call of Muhammad and Modern Scientific Inquiry

  The reader may be surprised by our emphasis on the similarity of Muhammad’s teaching to the methods of modern science. The scientific method demands that were one to undertake an investigation, he should suspend his personal views, beliefs and doctrines. It demands that he begins his study by observation, classification, comparison, experimentation, and then draw his conclusions from these scientific observations as premises. A conclusion reached through this method is scientific and, by the same token, it remains susceptible to further scrutiny and investigation. It remains valid as long as further scientific study has not disproved any one of the premises on which it is based. This scientific method is the highest human achievement in the cause of free thought. And yet this very method is none other than that of Muhammad, the very foundation of his cause. How did his followers become convinced of it? They repudiated all their previous beliefs had began to concentrate their thought
s on what lay before them. But what was before them? What were the facts of religious life in Arabia? Every one of the Arab tribes had its own idols; but which one was true and which false? Besides, within Arabia as well as in the surrounding countries, there were Christians, Jews, Sabeans, Zoroastrian fire-worshippers, and others who worshipped the sun. Whose faith was true and whose false?

  The Essence of Muhammad’s call

  Suppose we lay all this aside and completely avoid its influence upon our minds and hearts. Suppose we cut ourselves loose from every view and every doctrine we have previously entertained. And suppose we observe and consider. The first truth to stand out is that every being is somehow connected with all other beings. In the case of man, the clans, the tribes, and nations are obviously interconnected. Man is also connected with the animals and the world of things. This earth of ours is connected with the sun, the moon, and all the heavenly bodies.

  Necessary and immutable laws regulate and govern all these interconnections. Neither may the sun overtake the moon nor the night overtakes the day. If any one being in the universe were to alter or change these laws, the cosmos itself would change and would no more be what it is. If the sun, for instance, failed to provide the earth with light and heat and thus violate the laws by which nature has been running for millions of years, the earth and the sky would not be what they are. As long as this does not happen it is not possible for the totality of the cosmos to hold itself together except by a moving spirit, a spirit from which it has arisen and has developed and to which it must return. This spirit alone is that to which man should be subject. Everything else in this universe is subject to that spirit just as man is. Man, the cosmos, space, and time are therefore a unity; and this spirit is the origin and substance of this unity. To this spirit alone therefore belongs worship. To this spirit alone all minds and hearts should be oriented. Everywhere in this universe we should be able by reason and meditation to discover this spirit’s eternal laws. Hence, whatever men worship besides God be it idols, kings, Pharaohs, fire, or sunrise a falsehood and an illusion unworthy of man, of human reason, of the human capacity to discover the laws of God through examination of the creation with which God has endowed man.