Dimensions of Prophetic Personality Part 2
| Khatib : | Sadullah Khan |
| Khutbah No: | 18 |
| Khutbah Date: | 05/31/02 |
The Ideal Exemplar
"You have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope
is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the praise of Allah."
(Quran 33:21)
IN THE WORDS OF OTHERS:
The celebrated orientalist John William Draper in his well known work, "A History of the Intellectual
Development of Europe", observes:
"Four years after the death of Justinian, 569 A.D., was born at Makkah, in Arabia, the man who, of all men,
has exercised the greatest influence upon the human race,"
The well known British historian, Sir William Muir, in his "Life of Mohammed" adds:
"Our authorities, all agree in ascribing to the youth of Mohammad a modesty of deportment and purity of
manners rare among the people of Makkah...
The fair character and honorable bearing of the unobtrusive youth won the approbation of his fellow-citizens;
and he received the title, by common consent, of Al-Ameen, the Trustworthy."
James Michener in his well known work, "Islam, The Misunderstood Religion" writes:
"Orphaned at birth, he was always particularly solicitous of the poor and the needy, the widow and the orphan,
the slave and the downtrodden. At twenty he was already a successful business man, and soon became director of
camel caravans for a wealthy widow. When he reached twenty?five his employer, recognizing his merit, proposed
marriage. Even though she was fifteen years the older, he married her, and as long as she lived remained a devoted
husband."
The celebrated British writer, Thomas Carlyle, in his book "On Heroes, Hero-Worship and the Heroic in History",
observes:
"Ah on: this deep-hearted son of the wilderness with his beaming black eyes and open social deep soul, had other
thoughts than ambition. A silent great man; he was one of those who cannot but be in earnest; whom Nature herself
has appointed to be sincere. While others walk in formulas and hearsays, contented enough to dwell there, this man
could not screen himself in formulas; he was alone with his own soul and the reality of things. The great mystery of
Existence, as I said, glared in upon him, with its terrors, with its splendorous; no hearsays could hide that
unspeakable fact. 'Here am I'; such Sincerity as we name it, has in very truth something of divine. The work of such
a man is a voice direct from Nature's own Heart. Men do and must listen to that as to nothing else; all else is wind
in comparison."
Dr. Marcus Dods, in his work, "Mohammad, Buddah and Christ" writes:
"Certainly he had two of the most important characteristics of the prophetic order. He saw truth about God which
his fellowmen did not see, and he had an irresistible inward impulse to publicize this truth."
John Davenport in his well known work, "An Apology for Mohammad and the Koran", admits the honesty and sincerity
behind Mohammad's claim of being an apostle of God, when he says:
"It Is strongly corroborative of Mohammad's sincerity that the earliest converts of Islam were his bosom friends
and the people of his household, who all intimately acquainted with his private life, could not fail to have detected
those discrepancies which more or less invariably exist between the pretentions of the hypocritical deceiver and his
actions at home."
W. Montgomery Watt writes in his "Mohammad at Makkah" :
"His readiness to undergo persecution for his beliefs, the high moral character of the men who believed in him and
looked up to him as leader, and the greatness of his ultimate achievement - all argue his fundamental integrity.
To suppose Muhammad as imposter raises more problems than it solves. Moreover, none of the great figures of history
is so poorly appreciated in the West as Muhammad. Thus, not merely must we credit Muhammad with essential honesty
and integrity of purpose, if we are to understand him at all: if we are to correct the errors we have inherited
from the past ..."
A well known writer, Bosworth Smith, in his well known book "Mohammad and Mohammadanism", adds:
"Head of the State as well as of the Church, he was Caesar and Pope in one; but he was Pope without Pope's
pretensions, Caesar without the legion of Caesar. Without a standing army, without a body-guard, without a palace,
without a fixed revenue, if ever any man had the right to say that he ruled by the right divine, it was Mohammad,
for he had all the power without its instructions and without its supports."
James A. Michener, in his invaluable work, "Islam: The Misunderstood Religion", observes:
"...Forced now to fight in defense of the freedom of conscience which he preached, he became an accomplished
military leader, Although he repeatedly went into battle outnumbered and out speared as much as five to one, he won
some spectacular victories."
Stanley Lane-Poole, in his work, "The Speeches and Table Talk of the Prophet Mohammad" adds:
"The day of Mohammad's greatest triumph over his enemies was also the day of his grandest victory over himself.
He freely forgave the Koraysh all the years of sorrow and cruel scorn in which they had afflicted him and gave an
amnesty to the whole population of Makkah. Four criminals whom justice condemned made up Mohammad's proscription
list, when he entered as a conqueror to the city of his bitterest enemies. The army followed his example, and
entered quietly and peacefully; no house was robbed, no women insulted. One thing alone suffered destruction.
Going to the Kaaba, Mohammad stood before each of the three hundred and sixty idols, and pointed to it with his
staff, saying, 'Truth has come and falsehood has fled away!' and at these words his attendants hewed them down,
and all the idols and household gods of Makkah and round about were destroyed."
"It was thus Mohammad entered again his native city, Through all the annals of conquest there is no triumphant
entry comparable to this one."
Another well-known English writer, John Davenport, in his outstanding work, "An Apology for Mohammad and
the Koran" states:
"With all that simplicity which is so natural to a great mind, he performed the humblest offices whose homeliness
it would be idle to conceal with pompous diction; even while Lord of Arabia, he mended his own shoes and coarse
woolen garments. milked the ewes, swept the hearth, and kindled the fire. Dates and water were his usual fare and
milk and honey his luxuries. When he traveled he divided his morsel with the servant. The sincerity of his
exhortations to benevolence was justified at his death by the exhausted state of his coffers"
Lamartine, in his well known work, "Histoire de la Turquie", observes:
"if greatness of purpose, smallness of means, and astounding results are the three criteria of human genius, who
could dare to compare any great man in modern history with Muhammad? The most famous men created arms, laws and
empires only. They founded, if anything at all, no more than material powers which often crumbled away before their
eyes. This man moved not only armies, legislations, empires, peoples and dynasties, but millions of men in one-third
of the then inhabited world; and more than that, he moved the altars, the gods, the religions, the ideas, the beliefs
and the souls. On the basis of a Book, every letter of which has become law, he created a spiritual nationality which
blended together peoples of every tongue and of every race."
Reflecting on the relevance of the study of the personality of the Prophet
The life of the Prophet is both, history and biography, a code of law and mode of guidance. The Seerah should not
only be stated, narrated and analyzed but be internalized and utilized as a principled model for righteous and
wholesome living. To fully appreciate the significance of the Prophet's life in this millennium we need to evolve
our perception of the Seerah from a mere historical narrative into a contemporary map of guidance. It should serve
as a source of inspiration and a model for excellence.