CD4
By: Imam Anwar Awlaki
The situation in Arabia and the world was very desperate. It wasn’t entirely evil, people around the world still had good qualities. Al-Buti mentions some of the characteristics of the Arabs in the time of the Prophet Muhammad (saw) like generosity and hospitality, fulfilling of a pledge, justice, firm will and determination, perseverance and deliberateness, pure and simple life. These were the aspects taken advantage by Islam. The Sahaba due to these qualities made them successful in spreading the word of Islam. The Sahaba were seen as a liberating army that would free them from servitude, like in Egypt and Syria. They also didn’t care for power and authority, they would train among the local people leadership and give the power back to them. They wanted to spread islam and not to conquer for power and take advantage of people and their wealth. They were strong and powerful and were true to their word, and that it why Allah chose that particular area to be the birthplace of Rasul Allah (saw) and to carry the eternal message of Islam.
Rasul Allah (saw) was born in the year of the Elephant, the year in which Allah destroyed the army of Abraha. Miracles during the birth of the Prophet (saw) are usually narrated weak but there are some authentic narrations. When his mother, Aminah, was giving birth, Abdullah was traveling to Ash-Sham but he ended up dying close to Madinah and he was buried there, and died before the birth of his son. Rasul Allah was born and his mother saw a light that was coming out of her and reaching to Ash-Sham. This was interpreted as the light of the message of Islam reaching to the world. Allah chose the best to be His messenger, Rasul Allah. Certain statements reached the Prophet (saw) and he mounted the pulpit and asked: “Who am I?” they replied and said: “You are the messenger of Allah.” And he replied: “I am Muhammad bin Abdullah bin Abdul Muttali, Allah divided the creation and made me part of the best creatures. He made them all into two groups, placing me in the better of them, divided them into tribes and put me in the best of them, subdivided into clans and placed me in the best one. I am the best of you in clan and in spirit.” Rasul Allah said he is not one good man amongst evil people but he is the best from among the best around him. Rasul Allah (saw) also said: “Verily Allah granted eminence to al-Kinanah from the descendants of Ismai’l and he granted eminence to the Qurais from al-Kinanah and he granted eminence to Bani Hashim from al-Qurash, and he granted me eminence from the tribe of Banu Hashim.” He also said: “I am a product of marriage and not fornication from Adam right on up to when my father and my mother had me. I was never tainted by the fornication of al-Jahiliyah.”
The famous names of the Prophet (saw) that we know are Muhammad and Ahmad but there are additional names.
1. Muhammad – named by his grandfather, Abdul Muttalib. It means “to be eternally praised”. Allah has fulfilled the meaning of his name, no other person has been praised as much as the Prophet Muhammad (saw). He is praised day and night.
2. Ahmad – come from the same root ‘hamd’ which means praise. It means “he praises” Allah. He was the most among us who praised Allah the most.
3. Al-Haashir – “The gatherer” to whom people will be resurrected in his wake. The Prophet is the first to be resurrected on the DOJ and then followed by others.
4. Al-Muqaffi – “The successor” for he was the last of the prophets and messengers and there shall be none succeeding him.
5. Al-Maahy – “The eraser” the one who erases and eradicates kufr. There is no prophet who will succeed in total eradication until the time of ‘Isa by the Ummah of Muhammad (saw) under his leadership.
6. Nabi ul-Malhamah – “the Prophet of the fierce battle”. Makhamah is a fierce battle and a series of battles. He was named so because his Ummah are the greatest in terms of Jihad. Also, it could be that the future of humanity after him will be that of fierce battles, like WWI and WWII.
· Rasul Allah (saw) was nursed initially by his mother and Umm Ayman (Barakah), an Abyssinian woman who lived in Makkah. Rasul Allah married her to his emancipated slave, Zayd bin Haritha. It was a tradition among the urban arabs to send their children to grow up in the desert, believing that it is more pure and a healthier environment to live in, as well as strengthen the character of the children due to the harshness of the desert. The Prophet was in the land of Banu Sa’d. To continue, refer to the book about Halimah and what happened when she chose the orphan child (Prophet Muhammad) and the blessings thereafter and the first cleaning of his heart and when he was returned to Aaminah.
· His mother died when he was 6 yrs. old, so now he lost his father and mother. Abdul Muttalib adopted him and he passed away when he was 8. Now he was taken care of by Abu Talib who helped him and supported him for the next forty years of his life.
Important Events leading up to his prophethood
Rasul Allah (saw) was protected by Allah, he would not commit sins which were usual and normal amongst his people. He narrates an example: “I was a shepherd and one day I told my friend tonight I want to go into Makkah to attend the parties my peers attend. So I told him to take care of my flock until I come back. I went and arrived to the place where the party was and as soon as I heard the music, Allah stuck my ears and immediately I fell asleep. By the time I woke up, the party was over. The next day, I decided to attend another party and the same thing happened. And I realized that it was a sign to me from Allah.” Zaid narrates: “There was a brass idol which the polytheists would touch as they would perform tawaaf. The prophet told him not to touch it. As I went around the Ka’bah I wanted to touch it just to see what would happen. When I did so, RA said were you not forbidden to do that? The Prophet (saw) never saluted an idol until when Allah gave him the revelation.” It was guidance coming from Allah, and he had a natural dislike for idol worshipping. He also influenced his family such as Zaid and Ali so they never worshipped idols.
The people of Quraish participated in all rituals of Hajj except participating in the day of Arafah. This is because Arafah was considered outside the boundaries of the sacred place. So all Arabs would go to Arafah except the people of Quraish saying that they are the dwellers of Al-Haram, how can we go outside of it? So they would stop at the borders of Arafat. Mut’am ibn Jubair lost his camel and ended up searching for it in arafah and to his amazement he finds the Prophet (saw). This is an indication that Allah was guiding the Prophet (saw) to the fitrah and the rituals of hajj.
The first profession for Rasul Allah (saw) was shepherding. He said: “Allah has not sent a prophet except that he was a shepherd.” And his companions asked: “And you?” the Prophet said: “Yes, I used to herd sheep, with compensation from the people of Makkah.” Allah has trained all of his prophets going through this line of work. Lessons that they learned from being shepherds specifically of sheeps/goats (ghanam):
Responsibility – The Prophet (saw) said: “You are all shepherds, and you are all responsible for your herd. The Imam (leader of the Muslims) is responsible for the Muslims, man is responsible for the household, woman is responsible…” Shepherds are usually hired to tend the flock, they don’t own it but by someone else, therefore they have to report to a higher authority. Therefore, the shepherds have a responsibility of making sure that the sheep remain safe even if the herd is not responsible for themselves. This is a valuable lesson for a leader. And the prophets of Allah will be held accountable for their Ummah’s actions.
Patience – taking out sheep to graze, they take their time and they are slow so you have to wait and be patient. Shepherds usually just sit on the rock and look over the sheep while they graze, leaving in the morning and coming back at sunset. The prophets learned to be patient with their people, as Musa (as) was with Bani Israil and his experience being a shepherd for 10 years helped him deal with their disobedience. Nuh for 950 years, he tried all ways to bring his people to the call of Tawheed.
Protection – the shepherd protects the flock. There are various seen or unseen dangers (woleves, beasts, diseases), all of these the shepherd have to consistently make sure no danger comes to the flock. The prophets of Allah tried to protect their people from physical and psychological dangers. In Madinah, a commotion was heard so some of the Sahaba prepared with their horses and weapons. On the way there, they saw that the Prophet (saw) was already on his way back telling them that everything was fine. So eventhough the Sahaba were so fast and swift, the Prophet (saw) already checked things out and made sure that everything was in order. He used to warn us about Shaytan, of all dangers that could afflict us, and even events in the future (Dajjal). The Prophet (saw) said: “I have warned you about Dajjal more than any prophet before you. And if he comes us while I am amongst you, I will take care of that. If he comes out after I pass away, then everyone is responsible for their own protection.”
Sensing and detecting danger before it approaches the flock - These animals are closer to earth and sight limited, sheep can only see so far. Any small obstacle will block their view, but the human being standing up tall has a longer view and from that vantage point can see danger while it is approaching, while the sheep cannot. Because the shepherd is standing up, the first to notice the danger is the shepherd and he will give an advance warning to the flock. That is the case of the prophets of Allah, and they have the clearest vision, and the longest view, and the best vantage point that none of us has. And they know what is good for us. The Prophet (saw) said: “The analogy of me and you is like someone sitting next to a fire at night, and like moths you are attracted to it and jumping towards it while I’m grabbing you by your clothes dragging you away and you are forcing yourselves towards it.” The Prophet (saw) was inviting people to Jannah but they were insisting on Hellfire. And the shepherd might hit some of the flock but not because he wants to hurt them, but because he wants to save them. If we see the prophets addressing the people sternly and directly, it is because they care about their people. When the Prophet (saw) stood on the minbar and said: “I am warning you Hellfire! (in such a high voice that the people in the markets could here his voice, and repeating it over and over again).
Simplicity – a shepherd lives a very simple life. He eats simple food, accommodation, and teaches them to get accustomed to different environments and climates. He is the last to take cover, taking the animals in first and protect them. It teaches them to get accustomed to different to different ways of life.
o Closeness to the creation of Allah – it pulls you out from the artificial world, and brought them close to nature. Living our lives in this artificial world is against our natural disposition, we were created from this earth and we are part of it. Keeping us away from this nature, it also keeps us from contemplating on the creation of Allah. The Qur;an mentions the mountains, birds, seas, and other creations and He mentions these to draw our attention to these creation for they are a mirror to His abilities and attributes. If we want to learn of His wisdom, greatness, and all of His names, we find some of their reflection in all of His creation. A shepherd is given the chance to contemplate on nature, and the prophets of Allah took advantage of this opportunity.
Sheeps – why was it specific to them for all prophets? Because they are very weak animals, weaker than cows or camels. Therefore they need more protection, more care, and because of this weakness they could easily fall prey. When Rasul Allah (saw) wanted to warn us from Shaytaan, he brought in his experience and said: “Stick with the Jama’ah, because the wolf eats from the straying sheep.” So he learned as a shepherd that when a sheep strays, a wold will target the one that is alone and we are weak as these sheeps as we are weak towards shaytaan. Another lesson to learn is the fact that we are affected by the environment we work in. Our work leaves permanent influence in our personality. Shepherds of sheep are different from others because sheep tend to be very compassionate, very merciful, and weak, so the shepherd learns to become kind and merciful to them since they are fragile animals they cannot be harsh towards them. What we do affects us, like teachers tend to have a different personality than doctors and so forth. The influence is both ways.
Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani is one of the classical scholars, he wrote the most prominent commentary on Al-Bukhari. He was prominent in areas of Hadeeth, Fiqh, Aqeedah. His work, Fath-ul-Bari, gained the most prominence amongst the commentaries on Bukhari. He comments on this hadeeth, “The wisdom behind having the prophets as shepherds before prophethood is that they may become skilled in herding a flock, as they will be responsible for their respective nations in the future. In herding, one attains forbearance and mercy and imbues patience for when a shepherd is obliged to gather his flock and herd it from one area to another at once, knowing the traits of one and all the while protecting the flock from predators he has thus attained the skills necessary to lead a nation and protect it from its enemies, both from within and from abroad. Thus the prophets learned patience when dealing with their people and attained an understanding of the different natures of people, and learned to show kindness to the weak and resolve with the dominant. The reasons for which Allah chose them the sheep as oppose to the communal cows and camels, is that they are animals that are weak and need extra guidance and attention. Sheep are more difficult to maintain as a flock because of their propensity to go astray and wander away. This is akin to human traits within the society and it is the divine wisdom of Allah to train His prophets accordingly. The Prophet (saw) mentioning of this humble trait shared by all prophets attests to his humility to Allah.
Muhammad Al-Abda, a writer, comments on Rasul Allah’s living in the desert and being brought up there and states “This faith excels through the free-thinkers, the courageous, the intelligent, and those who are just. And one cannot encompass it except by distancing themselves from lowly character. It is therefore incumbent upon the Muslims to take on the pure characteristics embodied in humanity’s natural disposition. This was the example sought by the early Khalifa, Umar ibn Al-Khattab, when he pleaded with his people to toughen up on how to ride the steed. He feared for his people the longing for this life and adopting reprehensible characteristics. This does not mean that one must abandon urban living in order to attain the stated objectives, but it does mean that one should abandon those things in their life that turn them away from the difficulties of this message.”
Half Al-Fudoul – there was a man named Zabeed who came from Yemen and he came to Makkah to do business. His merchandise was taken by Al ‘Aas bin Wa’il and promised to sell them and pay him back. He refused to pay this man and took advantage of the fact that he was a foreigner. He told him, I’m not going to pay you. He expected this man to just walk away but he stood up for his right and went to a public place in Makkah, and started calling the people of Quraish and told them: “I was oppressed in your place and are you people who will stand up for my rights or would you allow oppression to take over your land?” Some of the clans of Quraish decided to meet together to bring about an agreement in protecting the rights of the weak in Makkah. Among these families was the family of Rasul Allah (saw), his uncles. He was a young boy then, but he was in the meeting. It was held in the house of Abdullah bin Jad’an, a generous and kind to others, and he was the person who would stand up for what is right. This happened before prophethood. They came together and decided to have an agreement between non-believers. Rasul Allah said: “I witnessed in the house of Abdullah bin Jad’an, a pact made that I wouldn’t have exchanged it for the choicest herd, and if it had been suggested after Islam, I would’ve responded positively to it.” The important lesson to learn from this is that Muslims should side with what is right, no matter what the source it. Muslims should stand for human rights, for the oppressed, needy, no matter what their religious background is. The man was given back what belonged to him after that.
An incident happened afterwards during the period of The Umayyad Dynasty, when Al-Waleed bin Utbah bin Abi Sufyan, the governor of Madinah abused his power and wrongfully took the property of Hussain bin Ali bin Abi Talib. What Hussain did was he went to Al-Waleed and told him to give him back what belongs to him otherwise I am going to walk into the masjid and invite the people to Half Al-Fudoul. Abdullah bin Az-zubair was there with Al-Waleed at that time and said that he would stand there with his sword until Hussain gets his justice or we will all die together. Other people heard that and gave similar statements. Al-Waleed realized that it could become dangerous and he gave back Hussain what was rightfully his. This shows that Muslims should not allow anything wrong to happen in front of us and protect our brothers even if we have to give up our lives for it.
Shaykh Muhammad Al-Ghazali states: “This pact shows that no matter how dark life becomes, and oppressive dictators become, noble characteristics will still remain in noble people who stand up for what is right. Allah has made cooperation and enjoining good an obligation which he has called to in the verse: “and cooperate in virtue and taqwa and do not help one another in sin and transgression.” So for a group of Muslims to enter into a treaty or a contract such as the aforementioned is made permissible since it is only a reinforcement of the Islamic obligation. However, this by definition, must be dissimilar to the Masjid Ad-Diraar where the cooperation turns into a nationalistic or elitist strategy to exclude Muslims. As for the Muslims contracting with the people of other faiths in order to remove oppression or to face an oppressor, this becomes permissible for them if there is in it a welfare for Islam and the Muslims in the present and the future.”
Fear ALLAH Wherever You Are!
The Obedient
