He (pbuh) commanded us to worship
Allah Alone and to assign no partners unto Him, to pray, to pay the purifying
tax and to fast”
Some of the major aspects of the
mission and method of Prophet Muhammad are eloquently presented in a
speech which one of his companions, Jafar ibn abi Taalib, made to the Christian
ruler of Abyssinia in Africa in the year 616 CE. Jafar was the spokesman of a
group of early Muslims who had sailed across the Red Sea and sought asylum in
Abyssinia from the persecution of the pagan Makkans:
"0 King,"he said, “We were a people steeped in ignorance,
worshipping idols, eating the flesh of dead animals, committing abominations,
neglecting our relations and ill-treating our neighbors, and the strong among
us would oppress the weak”.
"We were in this state when
Allah sent to us a messenger (pbuh) from among us, whose descent and sincerity,
truthfulness, trustworthiness and honesty were known to us”.
"He (pbuh) summoned us to
worship the One True God and to renounce the stones and idols we and our
fathers used to worship apart from Allah”.
"He (pbuh) ordered us to speak
the truth, to fulfill all that is entrusted to us, to care for our relatives,
to be kind to our neighbors, to refrain from what is forbidden and from
bloodshed.
"He (pbuh) has forbidden us
from engaging in obscene and shameful acts, from speaking falsehoods, from
devouring the property of orphans and from vilifying virtuous women”.
"He (pbuh) commanded us to
worship Allah Alone and to assign no partners unto Him, to pray, to pay the
purifying tax and to fast”.
"We deemed him truthful and we
believed in him, and we followed the message he (pbuh) brought to us from
Allah..."
From Jafar's speech on the mission
and method of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), we see
that the first thing he stressed was the worldview of Tawhiid, the worship of
the One True God. To be on the straight and natural way, the human being's
first duty is to gain or regain a correct knowledge of and belief in Allah.
From this knowledge he will come to accept the wisdom and authority of God.
From this will spring correct action.
As an indication of this method of
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in bringing about
individual and social transformation, his wife Aaishah is reported as saying
that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not start by
telling people not to drink wine and not to commit fornication and adultery. He
started by telling them about Allah and the Hereafter until they had firm
belief in them. It is only then he told them not to drink or commit adultery
and they obeyed him. "Had he (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
started by telling them not to drink wine or not commit adultery; they would
have said, 'We will never abandon them?"
From Jafar's speech, we learn that
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) encouraged all the natural
moral virtues such as truthfulness, kindness, generosity, and justice. And he
condemned all the naturally repugnant vices such as false speech shamelessness,
adultery and fornication, ignorance, and oppression.
There is also the testimony of Jafar
on the truthfulness of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).
Both before and after he became a prophet, Muhammad (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) had unchallenged reputation of a person who was always
truthful and trustworthy. For this he was known as As-Saadiq and
Al-Amiin respectively.
In fact, mission and method fused in
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)since we are told by
Aaishah, may Allah be pleased with her: "His character was the
Quran." To reject the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him) is to reject the Quran and to reject the Quran is to reject the human
being's only authentic source of Divine guidance.
The importance of the Quran and the
example of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
plays a vital role in forming a valid and satisfying worldview for the human
being in whatever time or place he or she may live. Since the Quran is the
final and complete message of Allah to humanity and since there will be no prophet
after Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), it is especially
important for people everywhere to discover or rediscover the meaning and
relevance of the Quran to their lives. Whether you live in the north or the
south, the east or the west, whether you live in the so-called developed and
advanced world or the underdeveloped and impoverished world, whether you are a
male or female, young or old, the Quran has a message for you. In fact, it is
the message for you.
The Quran stresses the Oneness of
God and the duty of the human being to acknowledge and worship God alone. If we
approach the Quran with sincerity it reveals the age old questions about the
nature of the human being, the purpose of his life and the various choices and
destinies open to him. In other words: Who are we? What are we doing here on
earth? And where do we go from here?
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