Respect for the holy Prophet, by Abid Ishaq

Opinion, August 2003, www.aljazeerah.info

Respect for the holy Prophet

Abid Ishaq

Khaleej Times

1 August 2003

WE PRAISE Almighty Allah as is His right to be praised and ask Him to send peace and blessings on the noblest of prophets, Muhammad (peace be upon him). It is as the Lord says in the final revelation, "Grievous to him (Muhammad) is what you suffer, anxious for you, compassionate is he, merciful to the believers" (10:128)

When the people of Muhammad (peace be upon him) rejected him, Jibril came to him and said, "Allah has heard what your people say to you and how they reject you. He has ordered the angels of the mountains to obey whatever you tell them to do." The angel of the mountains called on him, greeted him and said, "Send me to do what you wish. If you wish, I will crush them between the two mountains of Makkah." The holy Prophet said, "Rather, I hope that Allah will bring forth from their loins those who will worship Allah alone and not associate anything with Him." (Sahih Muslim, Al Bukhari and the Six Books).

Blessed is humanity to have been conferred with such a great blessing as the holy Prophet. So after Almighty Allah's rights, the rights of the Prophet are the most important. There is no human who has more rights than the Prophet. Almighty Allah says "Verily, We have sent you (O Muhammad) as a witness, as a bearer of glad tidings, and as a warner. In order that you (O mankind) may believe in Almighty God and His Messenger, and that you assist and honour him (Muhammad) ... " (48:8-9).

Therefore, love for the holy Prophet should be more than one's love for himself, his children, family and worldly possessions. The holy Prophet said, what translated means: "None of you will reach belief till I become dearer to him than his children, parents and all humans" [Al Bukhari & Muslim].

When one reads how the companions used to love and respect the holy Prophet, one knows the importance of this matter. When Quraish (the holy Prophet's tribe) sent Orwa Ibn Masud to negotiate with the holy Prophet in the Hudaibia area, he was greatly impressed by how the companions treated the holy Prophet. He said, "I have visited the kings of Persia, Rome and Abyssinia, but I have not seen any leader more revered and respected by his people than Muhammad. If he ordered them to do anything, they do it without delay. If he performs Wudu (ablution for prayer) they all seek the remainder of the water he used. They never look at him in the eye, out of respect." This is how the holy Prophet was treated by his companions. He was Almighty Allah's Messenger who possessed great qualities and the best of conduct ever.

Are we true in our love to the prophet today?

Umar ibn al Khattab (RA), said to Almighty God's Messenger, "O Rasoolullah, you are more beloved to me than anything except my own self." The holy Prophet then told him, "No, by the One in Whose Hand is my soul, not until I am more beloved to you than your own soul."

Umar then told him, "By Allah, now you are more beloved to me than my own soul." Almighty God then told him that now he had the complete and correct faith.

To defend the religion of the holy Prophet is one of his rights upon believers. Defending the religion can be done by using one's hands, tongue and writings. To ignore attacks on the holy Prophet or on his religion is impermissible to Muslims. Muslims must strive to reject, in the best manner, attacks on the holy Prophet's character or on any aspect of his religion, the best religion sent to mankind.

What we Muslims need today is a change of understanding; we need to step out of our time and place and see our situation in light of the laws that Allah placed in His creation, and the guidance that He sent with His Messenger.

Earth, a planet hungry for peace

The Israeli apartheid (security) wall around Palestinian population centers (Ran Cohen, pmc, 5/24/03).

The Israeli apartheid (security) wall around Palestinian population centers in the West Bank (Ran Cohen, pmc, 5/24/03).