Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Miracles of Islam|Islam The Straight Path|Islam Teachings|Quran Guidance

Article first published as Miracles of Islam on Blogcritics.

What do we understand about the 'Miracles of Islam', or the 'Miracles' performed by some of the Prophets such as Jesus who could 'Raise the Dead' and Moses who opened the Red Sea to let his People through?

However, before we explore those Phenomena let us look at what we have discussed thus far.

We spoke previously about the terrible persecution and torture the Muslims had to endure at the hands of Qureish (the leading tribe in Mecca) and the Prophet's (pbuh) dilemma in trying to find a way of securing a measure of safety for his followers.

We learnt of how some of the Muslims migrated to Abyssinia(modern-day Ethiopia—on the instructions of the Prophet (pbuh)] and found asylum under the rule of the Negus (Christian King of that country) even though Qureish tried their utmost to get the Muslims out and back to Mecca.

We discussed how, despite the continuous efforts of Qureish to stop the spread of Islam, notable people like Hamza and Umar embraced Islam, much to the dismay of the clansmen, who decided on a final plan of eradicating Islam by killing the Prophet (pbuh).

We also discussed how the seven young men of the seven different tribes, all tasked to strike as one, failed to see the Prophet (pbuh) slipping past them during the wee hours of the night and disappear into the desert, heralding the start of the famous 'Hijra' (Flight to Medina) that marks the Muslim calendar.

But to come back to our point of exploring the 'Miracles of Islam' or the 'Special Powers' given to Jesus and Moses, one again needs to ask the question: Why was there a necessity for a religion like Islam? And, what was the purpose of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) on this earth?

One thing that has played a major factor in all our discourses this far is the condition of Arabia and the Arabs, in particular, at that time, i.e before the birth of Prophet Muhammed (pbuh), and during the early days of Islam.

We find that Arabia, and especially its capital city, Mecca, was a cauldron of all kinds of evil imaginable (as we have explained so many times before). The Arabs indulged in pastimes such as drunken orgies, gambling, wife-swapping, wife-sharing—with friends, or anyone they fancied, battering their womenfolk, killing their female offspring for fear that they might bring bad luck to the household! Idol-worshipping, human trafficking, and even human sacrifices were the order of the day. Just to mention a few!

And it was against the backdrop of this near-impossible scenario of human failing and degradation that Muhammed (pbuh) was deployed to administer the 'Message' of the 'One God' and to change the mind-set of a People steeped to the hilt in their ignominy and fiercely resistant to change.

According to Al-Quran, Almighty Allah says that He does not 'Destroy' any nation without sending them a 'Warner' first.

And, we immediately think of Jesus and the money-changers and how he used a whip to get them out of the Temple when they refused to listen!

We also think of Moses and how desperately he tried to get the Mighty Pharaoh to let his People go.

In all these instances one thing remains abundantly clear: All the Prophets who were sent to their People with a 'Message' and a 'Mission' were given 'Special Powers' or 'Miracles' to perform, in order to convince their People that they were Messengers of God.

Muhammed (pbuh) did not perform any of these kinds of miracles, but the mere fact that he could not read nor write (history proves this) and the way the Quran was revealed to him, i.e. through the medium of the Archangel Gabriel, in the Cave of Hira on Mount Nur (Mountain of Light)—and the way he compiled the Quran over a period of 23 years—mainly by memorizing it—as it was revealed to him, and getting Zaid bin Thabit, his freed slave, to record it in writing, bears testimony to the fact that the Quran in itself is a 'Miracle'!

Today we find that there are thousands—if not millions—of men and women, all over the world, who have memorized the entire Quran...all 6666 verses of it! And still more and more people do so every day.

Another 'Miracle' of Islam is the 'Miraj'—the Ascension into Heaven by Muhammed (pbuh) accompanied by the Archangel Gabriel. It was a night journey that started from Mecca to Jerusalem and ended in the 'Precincts of Allah's Domain'—past the 'Seventh Heaven'.

Allah Almighty, Himself, explains this in the Quran when He says: "It was He (Allah) Who has taken His Slave (Muhammed pbuh) from the Holy Mosque in Mecca (Haram) to the Farthest Mosque (Aqsa) in Jerusalem—So that He May Convey to him (Muhammed pbuh) what He meant to Convey."

And Allah Almighty also states in the Quran that Muhammed (pbuh) was 'Two Bow Lengths' away from the 'Countenance' of His Lord and not once did his gaze waiver..."

Thus one can only imagine what happened when Muhammed (pbuh) returned from his 'Nocturnal Sojourn'- that same night- and tried to convince his Followers that he had transcended the 'Seven Heavens', that he had actually been in the 'Presence of the Almighty', and, that he brought them 'A Message From The One Allah, that Salaah ('Five Daily Prayers') were now compulsory upon them— as is (up till this day) compulsory on every sane Muslim male and female all over the world, and, that no one was exempted from it, except in a case of a woman who was busy menstruating.

Qureish couldn't believe their good fortune when they heard of this. They finally had something they could use— constructively— to prove that Muhammed (pbuh) had lost his mind, and that he was a sooth-sayer and a fraud. They worked on those Followers who had newly converted to Islam and those who were 'still busy making up their minds' about the Religion. They got a few to turn their backs on Islam, but overall, those Muslims like Abu Bakr, Hamza, Ali, Bilal, etc.—those who were not afraid of Qureish and their evil— those who believed firmly that Muhammed (pbuh) was 'The True Messenger of Allah' stood firm and even performed their 'Five Daily Prayers' openly in the precincts of the Kaabah!

Qureish was totally beside themselves with hatred and frustration at this turn of events; every way they turned Islam was there- in their faces! Every day more and more people turned Muslim, and could be seen performing the 'Five Daily Prayers', heedless of Qureish's animosity and threats.
Qureish couldn't believe that one man could cause such an upheaval and get away with it—hence their ultimate plan of having the Prophet (pbuh) murdered by the seven young men of the seven tribes.

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