Quran and age of Universe

@Olivier5,

I looks like you are looking at the right resources and have a good understanding of marriages of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). There are many non Muslims who unfortunately misunderstand this and start character assassination of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

You may already know this but thought I should share few important points and hope someone can benefit from these:

When talking about Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) marriages, we need to look at the time line of his marriages and the reasons of his marriages.

Time Line of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)’s marriages:
• He was single up until 25
• 25-50 he was faithful to his first wife Khadija, who bore all his children except one.
o Khadija was 15 years older than Him
• 50-52, he remained unmarried
• 53-60 he married all his other wives for many noble reasons
o It is unimaginable for a man to turn lustful at this age especially when he was constantly traveling to spread message of Allah, busy in battling with enemies
• At age 60, Allah prevented Him from further marring. (33:52)

Reasons for Prophet (PBUH) Marriages:

1. Muhammad the man who needed a loving wife, children, stable home. So he married Khadija and remained only with her for 20 years until she died.
2. Muhammad the Prophet who married other wives for reasons pertaining to His duty to deliver the message to the world
o Pass on Islam on next generations as a practical legacy: Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is the only prophet without any privacy and with a meticulously preserved tradition in speech and actions which is a guidance for Muslims to live their lives. Islam is spread through shoulders of these women is a great honor for females of Muslim Ummah. More than 3,000 narration of Hadith comes from wives of Prophet (PBUH).
o In Tribal society, it was customary to seal treaties by marrying to their women. This was a peaceful way to hold treaties to avoid wars and spread the message of Islam.
o To teach Muslims compassion for women: Most of His wives were old and widows ( Except Aisha).
o To offer a role model for Muslim to treat wives with justice

2 Replies

@HabibUrrehman,

Yes, the Prophet said: “An honorable man treats women with honor, and a despicable man treats women poorly.” In other words, you can judge a man by the way he treats women.

Comparable to Jesus' parable: "Whatever you do to the least among you, you do it to me." In other words, you can judge a man by the way he treats the powerless around him.

0 Replies

@HabibUrrehman,

By the way, I believe what Aisha brought to Mohammad is essentially a bit of levity, a bit of joy. We French call it la joie de vivre and we believe it's important, even for prophets.

1 Reply

@Olivier5,

Indeed it was a true love. So much so that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) died in her lap. She never said a single bad word against her husband during his life, or after his death. Is there a woman living today who could compare to this great woman.

1 Reply

@HabibUrrehman,

Of course there are people nowadays who are as good as Mohammad and Aisha. They were human beings after all. They made mistakes.

1 Reply

@Olivier5,

I am not surprised by what you said. Yes they were humans and may have made mistakes but do you really think there are people like them today? If that is possible, world would be a different place. Even non Muslims like George Bernard Shaw who was a critic of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) could not hold himself from saying quotation below:

Quote:

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. ... 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 the much-needed peace and happiness.

2 Replies

@HabibUrrehman,

In my mind, the biggest defect of Islam is precisely its attachment to politics, which stems from Muhammad's own role as a political and military leader. The problem I see there is that politics are inherently dirty, and therefore mixing religion and politics will only result is sullying religion. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

For instance, the mistakes that Aisha did were power-related: why oh why did she have to fight this battle of the camel? Really, this fine lady had nothing better to do than go and kill other Muslims, a few years after the death of the Prophet???

Christianity also had the same defect of mixing war, politics and religion. But some countries have managed to progressively disentangle the two and make politics a purely secular affair. Ironically, this is in accordance with Jesus' message ("Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God").

1 Reply

@HabibUrrehman,

'sustenance of the best'. Define 'best', please?

I'm enjoying this post, Habib. And I read 'physical needs' as Nutrition, Hydration and Shelter from the elements (All else is 'Want', 'Desire', Ego, NOT God). Reproduction is not a physical 'Need/'requirement'

The verse is of God - The interpretation, thereof, is not.

I'll read on, once you've responded.

You have a good skill in your delivery of Islamic logos, Habib - I hope its 'accepted' interpretations don't hinder its passage through a Babelised void.
Smile

1 Reply

@HabibUrrehman,

Habib.
'Are there people like them today?'

You say that as though they are idols. They were, and are, conduits - Through which "God" exuded itself - All of humankind are equal, and have that same ability.

And when the time is right - ALL will be revealed.

That 'Time' is Nigh.

Peace be upon ALL.

1 Reply

@Olivier5,

Quote:

For instance, the mistakes that Aisha did were power-related: why oh why did she have to fight this battle of the camel? Really, this fine lady had nothing better to do than go and kill other Muslims, a few years after the death of the Prophet???

Do you think this makes sense after you have read the biography of Aisha (May Allah be please with her)? Don't you think you have read this from the sources who are either anti Islam or hate Aisha (Shia Muslims)? Anyways I will leave that for you to decide, however, I will give a brief narrative of what majority of Muslims understand about Battle of Camel.

The historians like al-Tabari and others mention that the Battle of Camel was instigated by a group known as the Sab'iyyah in order to prevent the conciliation between the companions.

After the killing of Uthman (May Allah be pleased with him), some companions wanted the murderers to be brought to justice. On the other hand Ali wanted to stabilize the situation and avoid bigger problems. Aisha, Talha, and Azubayr lead a contingent to Basra (May Allah be pleased with them all) with the intention of reconciliation. When Ali (May Allah be please with him) heard this, he traveled to meet them with an a large contingent. The intention was to make them understand and obey his order (as the caliph and leader of Muslims), as well as discussing what to do with the murderers. The Sab'iyah saw this as a threat to themselves. They hid among both sides. When the two met they caused them fight: They would attack the other side. Those in the other side would call out that they are being attacked. This is how the battle started and a number of great companions died.

Quote:

In my mind, the biggest defect of Islam is precisely its attachment to politics, which stems from Muhammad's own role as a political and military leader. The problem I see there is that politics are inherently dirty, and therefore mixing religion and politics will only result is sullying religion. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Unfortunately what you said as a general statement is true, religion has been mostly used to gain control over people. This is true even today when our politicians start dividing people at the name of religion. However, we need to understand that what is the purpose of Divine guidance (assuming Islam is true religion from God) and what was the role of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as a prophet. Before I go in further details on concept of politics in Islam, let me provide a comparison between Divine law and man made law.

There is a vast difference between divine law and man-made law. Divine law takes superiority since the creator of man knows what he has created, and what his needs are. One of the attributes of the divine is that he is all knowing (omniscient). A simple illustration, at a human level, is the manufacturer of a car knows exactly what the car needs.

In contrast, since man lacks this omniscience, man-made laws change all the time, according to changing social attitudes and perceptions. Actions that were once regarded as detestable and heinous crimes (like abortion, suicide, prostitution, homosexuality and adultery in England) are now regarded as legal and normal under the same laws. Some of these changes are sometimes called "progressive reforms" because of short-sightedness or its reactive nature, may not be beneficial to man and society. When that is realized after a period of time, amendments take place again, in order to find solutions to the problems created by the original change.

Earlier, most Americans treated married women according to the concept of coverture, a concept inherited from English Common Law. Coverture was enshrined in English Common Law for several centuries and throughout most of the 19th century. Under the doctrine of coverture, a woman was legally considered the possession of her husband (chattel). Any property she owned became her husband’s on her wedding day, and she had no legal right to appear in Court, to sign contracts or to do business. Later, with women taking an active role in the Nation’s socio-economic arena, the status changed from being treated as chattels to those with basic rights. Such is the nature of law made by humans. Lawmakers cannot fully comprehend human nature or predict the future. It constantly keeps changing, so much so, that today’s law may not be valid tomorrow.

Based on a belief system of divine origin, Shariah, which is commonly acknowledged as Islamic law, envisages both a religious and social order. Islamic law, therefore, recognizes the liberty of human beings and provides legislations which are compatible with the ethical control of human actions, and, ultimately, of society. It is rational and seeks to conform to the spirit of the law, which is known to prohibit what is harmful and to promote what is good for this life and for the hereafter. When compared with the doctrine of coverture, the unchanging principle laid down in divine law is that a woman has equal rights in relation to property, she is considered an independent person, and has guaranteed financial security. This is just one example and I can quote many others to show how Divine law is solution to our problems.
Now to implement Divine law, we will need a state which can set Divine Law (Shariah) as governing law. You may call it caliphate or Islamic state but it definitely is not what ISIS is preaching.

The mission of the Prophet did not just consist of the revelation granted to him by Allah. Inviting people to his religion, explaining the principles of the religion, personally practicing them, directing and managing the society to which he was sent and establishing a new model of society were important aspects of his mission. In fact, the purpose of Prophethood is not to just convey certain principles to people but to also achieve individual and societal transformation. In other words, he had to lead by example.
Prophet Muhammad had to personally practice the religion and demonstrate to people how this was to be performed. Believers have the responsibility to obey him ( see Quranic verses 3/32, 4/64, 80, 5/92, 24/54), submit to his orders and restrictions. Muslims are ordered to become subject to his actions and exemplary attitudes ( see Quranic verses 3/31, 7/157) and to take him as a role model ( see Quranic verse 33/21).

If you read the biography of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), you will see that he is a role model for every aspect of our lives be it as a ruler, as a politician, as a father, as a teacher, as a reformer etc. He did not rule to gain power but rather showed how Divine law can be used to solve our problems and bring people of different tribes and ethnicity together in peace in just 23 years. Muhammad (PBUH) set the first Islamic state and within 10 years, he proved how people can benefit by practicing Divine law. Thus he set a model for Muslims to follow on how to rule. Sadly, many Muslim countries today are far from Quranic model of ruling the country. Muslim leaders are mostly hungry for power and do use religion to benefit themselves. When one looks into Islam, I always tell him/her to look at the teachings of Islam and read through the biography of Muhammad (PBUH) as he is a perfect model for Muslims to follow. Don't look at Muslims because they can never be as perfect as Prophet of Allah was. We make mistakes but best of us is the one who learns from his/her mistakes, repent to Allah and seek His help to keep us on the right path.

1 Reply

@mark noble,

My understanding is that Allah has given a different potential to different people depending of their role. Prophets had a very special role and their potential was way higher than ours because their mission was tougher than ours. We can never reach that potential because Allah has never programmed us that way. Similarly the companions of Prophet Muhammad PBUH were the best generation as Prophet Muhammad PBUH has said in his hadith:

Quote:

Abdullah ibn Masud reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:
“The best people are those of my generation, then those who come after them, then those who come after them. Then, there will come people after them whose testimony precedes their oaths and their oaths precede their testimony.”
Source: Ṣahiḥ al-Bukhari 6065, Ṣaḥiḥ Muslim 2533

I personally love this hadith because it shows that the only person we need to compete with is ourselves. I don't need to compete against a scholar because Allah may have given him more ability to understand Islam because his role is to spread Islam. Now that does not mean we don't need to make any effort. We need to give our 100% and only then we can realize what is our true potential.

Let me give an example, a person with a physical disability may not be able to pray in mosque and may not be able to prostrate (making sajood). On the other hand, a healthy person should be able to go to mosque and pray 5 times without any issue. Do they have same ability? I don't think so. Will they both be judged on same baseline potential? I don't think so, the potential for both is different and they could only be judged against what potential Allah has given them.

Remember Allah knows what we are capable of and he does not test anyone beyond their capability.

Quote:

Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity. It will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of] what [evil] it has earned. "Our Lord, do not impose blame upon us if we have forgotten or erred. ( Part of 2:286)

1 Reply

@HabibUrrehman,

Habib, I'm not a believer. For me, religious law is man-made, so the dinstinction you make between the two have no value to me.

Power does corrupt. That's a fact. I attribute the divisions between Muslims after Mohammad's death as the result of this corruptive effect of political power. Once the Umah became a significant political force, a 'power', it became expose to corruption. Hence the murder of Uthman; hence the shia-sunni divide, etc.

A similar thing happened to the early Christian church. When it was only a sect, and a persecuted one, to become Christian brought no material advantage, and many risks. So all Christians were true believers. But once Christianity became the official religion of the Roman empire, people starting to join the church for material gain, for money, for honours, and thus the morality of the church went down and down.

1 Reply

@mark noble,

Quote:

Define 'best', please?

It is a very good question indeed. Many people today don't follow a religion and just want to be good but question is how one defines good? For Muslims good or best is whatever is order by our Creator to follow in the Quran and whatever Prophet Muhammad PBUH had said or done through authentic narrations.

Quote:

Reproduction is not a physical 'Need/'requirement'

I agree that it is not a need that's why there are many people who don't have kids even though they want to have kids. The virtues of having righteous children are so many that one should always want to have children for benefits in this life and hereafter. If you plan not to have kids, you can still support orphans or may be adopt those who don't have parents or anyone else to take care of them.

Lastly thanks for your positive feedback. Guidance comes from God, I am just sharing the beautiful message of Islam and hope it enlightens someone on this forum.

0 Replies

@Olivier5,

At least we agree that absolute power in human hands is a source of corruption.

Regarding Islam, as I suggested to look at the message of Islam and don't carry away too much by history which is written by man. One thing I have no doubt of is that the message of Quran has not been corrupted. It is the ultimate guidance for solution to our problems.

1 Reply

@HabibUrrehman,

I think it's important to learn from history, which implies to treat prophets as human beings. There is a lot of fancy and imagination in the way religious folks look at the history of their own faith. For me, the history of religion is too serious a matter to be left at the hand of religious people.

I agree that the Quran was well recorded and preserved, far better than the gospels. Jesus believed the end of the world to be near, and thus he didn't see a value in recording / writing down stuff.

1 Reply

@Olivier5,

Olivier5 wrote

Quote:

I think it's important to learn from history, which implies to treat prophets as human beings. There is a lot of fancy and imagination in the way religious folks look at the history of their own faith.

Quran invites people to look at history and learn lessons from it. Quran gave examples of several great nations in the past who were destroyed because of their disobedience and we can learn lessons from them.

The Prophets are the best of mankind, and the most noble of creation before Allah. Allah chose them to convey the call of Laa ilaaha ill-Allah (there is no God but Allah) to mankind, and Allah has made them the intermediaries between Him and His creation in conveying His Laws. They were commanded to convey the message from Allah, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

“They are those whom We gave the Book, Al‑Hukm (understanding of the religious laws), and Prophethood. But if these disbelieve therein (the Book, Al‑Hukm and Prophethood), then, indeed We have entrusted it to a people (such as the Companions of Prophet Muhammad) who are not disbelievers therein” [6:89]

The Prophets’ task was to convey the message from Allah even though they were human, hence the issue of infallibility may be examined from two angles:

1 – Infallibility in conveying the message
2 – Infallibility from human error

Firstly: With regard to the first issue, the Prophets were infallible in conveying the message from Allah.
They did not conceal anything that Allah had revealed to them, and they did not add anything from themselves. Allah said to His Prophet Muhammad PBUH (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

“O Messenger (Muhammad)! Proclaim (the Message) which has been sent down to you from your Lord. And if you do not, then you have not conveyed His Message. Allah will protect you from mankind” [5:67]

Quote:

“And if he (Muhammad) had forged a false saying concerning Us (Allah),
We surely would have seized him by his right hand (or with power and might), And then We certainly would have cut off his life artery (aorta),
And none of you could have withheld Us from (punishing) him”
[69:44-47]

And Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

“And he (Muhammad) withholds not a knowledge of the Unseen”
[81:24]

Quote:

“By the star when it goes down (or vanishes).
Your companion (Muhammad) has neither gone astray nor has erred.
Nor does he speak of (his own) desire.
It is only a Revelation revealed.
He has been taught (this Quran) by one mighty in power [Jibreel (Gabriel)]”
[53:1-5]

Quote:

“We shall make you to recite (the Quran), so you (O Muhammad) shall not forget (it)” [87:7]

Quote:

“It is for Us to collect it and to give you (O Muhammad) the ability to recite it (the Quran). And when We have recited it to you [O Muhammad through Jibreel (Gabriel)], then follow its (the Quran’s) recitation” [75:17-18]

So with regard to conveying the religion of our Lord, the Prophets PBUTA did not make any mistakes at all, whether major or minor, rather they were infallible and under the constant protection of Allah.

Secondly: With regard to the Prophets as people, they may make mistakes.
This may be discussed as follows:

1 –They do not commit major sins
With regard to major sins, the Prophets do not commit major sins at all, and they are protected from such major sins both before their missions began or afterwards.

The view that the Prophets are infallible and protected against committing major sins, as opposed to minor sins, is the view of the majority of Muslim scholars and of all groups. It is also the view of the scholars of tafseer and hadeeth and fuqaha. Indeed, nothing has been narrated from any of the salaf, imams, Sahaabah, Taabi’een and those who followed them except that which is in accordance with this view.

2 – Matters that have nothing to do with conveying the message and the revelation.
With regard to minor sins, these may be committed by them, or by some of them. Hence the majority of scholars are of the view that they are not infallible when it comes to minor sins. But if they committed such actions they were not left to persist therein, rather Allaah pointed that out to them and they hastened to repent therefrom.
The evidence that they might commit minor sins and that they were not left to persist therein is the verses in which Allaah says of Adam (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

Thus did Adam disobey his Lord, so he went astray. Then his Lord chose him, and turned to him with forgiveness, and gave him guidance [20:121-122]

This indicates that Adam committed sin, but he was not left to persist therein, and he repented to Allah from that.

And Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

He said: ‘This is of Shaytaan’s (Satan’s) doing, verily, he is a plain misleading enemy. He said: ‘My Lord! Verily, I have wronged myself, so forgive me. Then He forgave him. Verily, He is the Oft‑Forgiving, the Most Merciful. [28:15-16]

So Moosa (PBUH) confessed his sin and sought forgiveness from Allah after he killed the Egyptian (unintentionally), and Allah forgave him his sin.
And Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

and he [Dawood or David] sought forgiveness of his Lord, and he fell down prostrate and turned (to Allah) in repentance. So We forgave him that, and verily, for him is a near access to Us, and a good place of (final) return (Paradise). [38:23-24]

Dawood’s (PBUH) sin was hastening to pass judgement before hearing the case of the second disputant.

And Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was rebuked by his Lord for several things that are mentioned in the Quran, such as the following (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you, seeking to please your wives? And Allah is Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful [66:1]

This refers to the well-known story with some of his wives.

Allah also rebuked Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) concerning the prisoners of war at Badr:

Quote:

Muslim narrated in his Saheeh (4588) that Ibn ‘Abbaas said: When the prisoners were taken captive, the Messenger of Allah PBUH said to Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them): “What do you think about these prisoners?” Abu Bakr said: “O Prophet of Allaah, they are our cousins and kinsmen. I think that we should accept a ransom from them which will give us some support against the kuffaar (non-believers), and perhaps Allah will guide them to Islam.” The Messenger of Allah PBUH said: “What do you think, O Ibn al-Khattaab?” He said: “I say, no, by Allah, O Messenger of Allah. I do not agree with Abu Bakr. I think that you should hand them over to us so that we may strike their necks (execute them). Hand over Aqeel to Ali so that he may strike his neck, and hand over So and so – a relative of Umar – to me, for these are the leaders and veterans of kufr.” The Messenger of Allah PBUH liked what Abu Bakr said and he did not like what I [Umar] said. The next day I came and found the Messenger of Allah PBUH and Abu Bakr weeping. I said: “O Messenger of Allah, tell me, what has made you and your companion weep? If there is a reason to weep, I will weep with you, and there is no reason, I will pretend to weep in sympathy with you because you are weeping.” The Messenger of Allah PBUH said: “I am weeping because I was shown the torture to which they were subjected. It was brought as close to me as this tree” – a tree which was near the Prophet of Allah PBUH – then Allah revealed the words (interpretation of the meaning):

“It is not for a Prophet that he should have prisoners of war (and free them with ransom) until he had made a great slaughter (among his enemies) in the land. You desire the good of this world (i.e. the money of ransom for freeing the captives), but Allah desires (for you) the Hereafter. And Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise. Were it not a previous ordainment from Allah, a severe torment would have touched you for what you took. So enjoy what you have gotten of booty in war, lawful and good” [8:67-69]

So Allaah permitted booty to them. From this hadeeth it is clear that when the Prophet PBUH chose to ransom the prisoners, this was a decision that he made by ijtihaad (after consulting his companions), and he had no revelation from Allah concerning that. And Allah corrected Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) by revealing above quoted verse.

The words of Allaah (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

(The Prophet) frowned and turned away. Because there came to him the blind man (i.e. Abdullaah bin Umm Maktoom, who came to the Prophet while he was preaching to one or some of the Quraysh chiefs)” [80:1-2]

This is the famous story of the great companion Abd-Allaah ibn Umm Maktoom and the Messenger of Allah PBUH when Allah rebuked him.

to conclude this point, majority of the Muslim scholars hold the view that the Prophets are not infallible with regard to minor sins, but they are not left to persist therein. They do not say that this does not happen under any circumstances.

3 – Unintentional mistakes with regard to some worldly matters
With regard to mistakes in some worldly matters, it is permissible for them to make such mistakes although their reason is sound and their insight is strong. This happened to several of the Prophets including Prophet Muhammad (PBUH. This happened with regard to various spheres of life such as medicine, agriculture, etc.

Quote:

Muslim narrated in his Saheeh (6127) that Raafi ibn Khadeej said: The Prophet of Allah PBUH came to Madinah and found them pollinating the palm trees. He said: “What are you doing?” They said: “We always do this.” He said: “Perhaps if you do not do it, that will be better.” So they did not do it, and the harvest failed. They told him about that and he said: “I am only human. If I tell you to do something with regard to your religion, then do it, but if I tell you to do something based on my own opinion, then I am only human.”

Hence it is known that the Prophets are infallible and protected from error with regard to the Revelation, so we should beware of those who cast aspersions upon the Messenger’s conveying of the Message and his laws, and say that it is his own personal opinion. The Prophet PBUH could never do such a thing. I have quoted this above but it will makes sense to quote again since it helps explaining my point of view. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

Quote:

“Nor does he speak of (his own) desire.
It is only a Revelation revealed” [53:3-4]

1 Reply

@RABEL222,

RABEL222 wrote:

All holy books were written by humans who had their own axe to grind. I don't trust any text written by humans. Especially the ones who claim god told me to write this.

The Mormon religion is an interesting case in point and very very recent in history.

0 Replies

@HabibUrrehman,

I'm no game for theology, as already mentioned. Infallibility does not exist, the way I see it. If gods exist, I would think they are fallible too. That'd be why the creation was a series of trials, errors and fixes, through a process known as evolution.

2 Replies

@Olivier5,

Olivier5 wrote:

I'm no game for theology, as already mentioned. Infallibility does not exist, the way I see it. If gods exist, I would think they are fallible too. That'd be why the creation was a series of trials, errors and fixes, through a process known as evolution.

Being call gods that is not all powerful and are fallibility is not part of modern religions.

Hell you need to go back to the Rome and the Greek gods

0 Replies

@Olivier5,

Quote:

That'd be why the creation was a series of trials, errors and fixes, through a process known as evolution.

Can you explain what is your understanding of evolution so I can comment on that accordingly.

1 Reply

Quran and age of Universe

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know