Narrated 'Aisha:
(the mother of the faithful believers) The
commencement of the Divine Inspiration to Allah's Apostle was in the form of good dreams
which came true like bright day light, and then the love of seclusion was bestowed upon
him. He used to go in seclusion in the cave of Hira where he used to worship (Allah alone)
continuously for many days before his desire to see his family. He used to take with him
the journey food for the stay and then come back to (his wife) Khadija to take his food
like-wise again till suddenly the Truth descended upon him while he was in the cave of
Hira. The angel came to him and asked him to read. The Prophet replied, "I do not
know how to read.
The Prophet added, "The angel caught
me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it any more. He then released
me and again asked me to read and I replied, 'I do not know how to read.' Thereupon he
caught me again and pressed me a second time till I could not bear it any more. He then
released me and again asked me to read but again I replied, 'I do not know how to read (or
what shall I read)?' Thereupon he caught me for the third time and pressed me, and then
released me and said, 'Read in the name of your Lord, who has created (all that exists)
has created man from a clot. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous." (96.1, 96.2,
96.3) Then Allah's Apostle returned with the Inspiration and with his heart beating
severely. Then he went to Khadija bint Khuwailid and said, "Cover me! Cover me!"
They covered him till his fear was over and after that he told her everything that had
happened and said, "I fear that something may happen to me." Khadija replied,
"Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your
Kith and kin, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the
deserving calamity-afflicted ones."
Khadija then accompanied him to her cousin
Waraqa bin Naufal bin Asad bin 'Abdul 'Uzza, who, during the PreIslamic Period became a
Christian and used to write the writing with Hebrew letters. He would write from the
Gospel in Hebrew as much as Allah wished him to write. He was an old man and had lost his
eyesight. Khadija said to Waraqa, "Listen to the story of your nephew, O my
cousin!" Waraqa asked, "O my nephew! What have you seen?" Allah's Apostle
described whatever he had seen. Waraqa said, "This is the same one who keeps the
secrets (angel Gabriel) whom Allah had sent to Moses. I wish I were young and could live
up to the time when your people would turn you out." Allah's Apostle asked,
"Will they drive me out?" Waraqa replied in the affirmative and said,
"Anyone (man) who came with something similar to what you have brought was treated
with hostility; and if I should remain alive till the day when you will be turned out then
I would support you strongly." But after a few days Waraqa died and the Divine
Inspiration was also paused for a while.
Narrated Jabir bin 'Abdullah Al-Ansari
while talking about the period of pause in revelation reporting the speech of the Prophet
"While I was walking, all of a sudden I heard a voice from the sky. I looked up and
saw the same angel who had visited me at the cave of Hira' sitting on a chair between the
sky and the earth. I got afraid of him and came back home and said, 'Wrap me (in
blankets).' And then Allah revealed the following Holy Verses (of Quran):
'O you (i.e. Muhammad)! wrapped up in
garments!' Arise and warn (the people against Allah's Punishment),... up to 'and desert
the idols.' (74.1-5) After this the revelation started coming strongly, frequently and
regularly."
Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Abbas:
Abu Sufyan bin Harb informed me that
Heraclius had sent a messenger to him while he had been accompanying a caravan from
Quraish. They were merchants doing business in Sham (Syria, Palestine, Lebanon and
Jordan), at the time when Allah's Apostle had truce with Abu Sufyan and Quraish infidels.
So Abu Sufyan and his companions went to Heraclius at Ilya (Jerusalem). Heraclius called
them in the court and he had all the senior Roman dignitaries around him. He called for
his translator who, translating Heraclius's question said to them, "Who amongst you
is closely related to that man who claims to be a Prophet?" Abu Sufyan replied,
"I am the nearest relative to him (amongst the group)."
Heraclius said, "Bring him (Abu
Sufyan) close to me and make his companions stand behind him." Abu Sufyan added,
Heraclius told his translator to tell my companions that he wanted to put some questions
to me regarding that man (The Prophet) and that if I told a lie they (my companions)
should contradict me." Abu Sufyan added, "By Allah! Had I not been afraid of my
companions labeling me a liar, I would not have spoken the truth about the Prophet. The
first question he asked me about him was:
'What is his family status amongst you?'
I replied, 'He belongs to a good (noble)
family amongst us.'
Heraclius further asked, 'Has anybody
amongst you ever claimed the same (i.e. to be a Prophet) before him?'
I replied, 'No.'
He said, 'Was anybody amongst his ancestors
a king?'
I replied, 'No.'
Heraclius asked, 'Do the nobles or the poor
follow him?'
I replied, 'It is the poor who follow him.'
He said, 'Are his followers increasing
decreasing (day by day)?'
I replied, 'They are increasing.'
He then asked, 'Does anybody amongst those
who embrace his religion become displeased and renounce the religion afterwards?'
I replied, 'No.'
Heraclius said, 'Have you ever accused him
of telling lies before his claim (to be a Prophet)?'
I replied, 'No. '
Heraclius said, 'Does he break his
promises?'
I replied, 'No. We are at truce with him
but we do not know what he will do in it.' I could not find opportunity to say anything
against him except that.
Heraclius asked, 'Have you ever had a war
with him?'
I replied, 'Yes.'
Then he said, 'What was the outcome of the
battles?'
I replied, 'Sometimes he was victorious and
sometimes we.'
Heraclius said, 'What does he order you to
do?'
I said, 'He tells us to worship Allah and
Allah alone and not to worship anything along with Him, and to renounce all that our
ancestors had said. He orders us to pray, to speak the truth, to be chaste and to keep
good relations with our Kith and kin.'
Heraclius asked the translator to convey to
me the following, I asked you about his family and your reply was that he belonged to a
very noble family. In fact all the Apostles come from noble families amongst their
respective peoples. I questioned you whether anybody else amongst you claimed such a
thing, your reply was in the negative. If the answer had been in the affirmative, I would
have thought that this man was following the previous man's statement. Then I asked you
whether anyone of his ancestors was a king. Your reply was in the negative, and if it had
been in the affirmative, I would have thought that this man wanted to take back his
ancestral kingdom.
I further asked whether he was ever accused
of telling lies before he said what he said, and your reply was in the negative. So I
wondered how a person who does not tell a lie about others could ever tell a lie about
Allah. I, then asked you whether the rich people followed him or the poor. You replied
that it was the poor who followed him. And in fact all the Apostle have been followed by
this very class of people. Then I asked you whether his followers were increasing or
decreasing. You replied that they were increasing, and in fact this is the way of true
faith, till it is complete in all respects. I further asked you whether there was anybody,
who, after embracing his religion, became displeased and discarded his religion. Your
reply was in the negative, and in fact this is (the sign of) true faith, when its delight
enters the hearts and mixes with them completely. I asked you whether he had ever
betrayed. You replied in the negative and likewise the Apostles never betray. Then I asked
you what he ordered you to do. You replied that he ordered you to worship Allah and Allah
alone and not to worship any thing along with Him and forbade you to worship idols and
ordered you to pray, to speak the truth and to be chaste. If what you have said is true,
he will very soon occupy this place underneath my feet and I knew it (from the scriptures)
that he was going to appear but I did not know that he would be from you, and if I could
reach him definitely, I would go immediately to meet him and if I were with him, I would
certainly wash his feet.' Heraclius then asked for the letter addressed by Allah's Apostle
which was delivered by Dihya to the
Governor of Busra, who forwarded it to Heraclius to read. The contents of the letter were
as follows: "In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful (This letter is) from
Muhammad the slave of Allah and His Apostle to Heraclius the ruler of Byzantine. Peace be
upon him, who follows the right path. Furthermore I invite you to Islam, and if you become
a Muslim you will be safe, and Allah will double your reward, and if you reject this
invitation of Islam you will be committing a sin by misguiding your Arisiyin (peasants).
(And I recite to you Allah's Statement:)
'O people of the scripture! Come to a word
common to you and us that we worship none but Allah and that we associate nothing in
worship with Him, and that none of us shall take others as Lords beside Allah. Then, if
they turn away, say: Bear witness that we are Muslims (those who have surrendered to
Allah).' (3:64).
Abu Sufyan then added, "When Heraclius
had finished his speech and had read the letter, there was a great hue and cry in the
Royal Court. So we were turned out of the court. I told my companions that the question of
Ibn-Abi-Kabsha) (the Prophet Muhammad) has become so prominent that even the King of Bani
Al-Asfar (Byzantine) is afraid of him. Then I started to become sure that he (the Prophet)
would be the conqueror in the near future till I embraced Islam (i.e. Allah guided me to
it)."
The sub narrator adds, "Ibn An-Natur
was the Governor of llya' (Jerusalem) and Heraclius was the head of the Christians of
Sham. Ibn An-Natur narrates that once while Heraclius was visiting ilya' (Jerusalem), he
got up in the morning with a sad mood. Some of his priests asked him why he was in that
mood? Heraclius was a foreteller and an astrologer. He replied, 'At night when I looked at
the stars, I saw that the leader of those who practice circumcision had appeared (become
the conqueror). Who are they who practice circumcision?' The people replied, 'Except the
Jews nobody practices circumcision, so you should not be afraid of them (Jews).
'Just Issue orders to kill every Jew
present in the country.'
While they were discussing it, a messenger
sent by the king of Ghassan to convey the news of Allah's Apostle to Heraclius was brought
in. Having heard the news, he (Heraclius) ordered the people to go and see whether the
messenger of Ghassan was circumcised. The people, after seeing him, told Heraclius that he
was circumcised. Heraclius then asked him about the Arabs. The messenger replied, 'Arabs
also practice circumcision.'
(After hearing that) Heraclius remarked
that sovereignty of the 'Arabs had appeared. Heraclius then wrote a letter to his friend
in Rome who was as good as Heraclius in knowledge. Heraclius then left for Homs. (a town
in Syrian and stayed there till he received the reply of his letter from his friend who
agreed with him in his opinion about the emergence of the Prophet and the fact that he was
a Prophet. On that Heraclius invited all the heads of the Byzantines to assemble in his
palace at Homs. When they assembled, he ordered that all the doors of his palace be
closed. Then he came out and said, 'O Byzantines! If success is your desire and if you
seek right guidance and want your empire to remain then give a pledge of allegiance to
this Prophet (i.e. embrace Islam).'
(On hearing the views of Heraclius) the
people ran towards the gates of the palace like onagers but found the doors closed.
Heraclius realized their hatred towards Islam and when he lost the hope of their embracing
Islam, he ordered that they should be brought back in audience.
(When they returned) he said, 'What already
said was just to test the strength of your conviction and I have seen it.' The people
prostrated before him and became pleased with him, and this was the end of Heraclius's
story (in connection with his faith).
