5. Up there in the mountain

(Beginning of Prophethood)

Muhammad would take himself away from Makkah

for periods of total seclusion

In the month of Ramadan each year, he went to a mountain called Hira

Hira was only a few miles away from Makkah but offered him complete seclusion

The Cave of Hira

Up there in the mountain there was a little cave

where Muhammad stayed for several days at a time

He absorbed himself in contemplation and worship

He addressed his worship to the Creator of the Universe but did not follow any particular method of worship because he was not aware of any

The Cave of Hira

It was in the month of Ramadan, in the year AD 610,

when Muhammad was 40 years old that he received his first revelation

He was spending the month in the mountain of Hira, as had been his habit for several years

Suddenly, Muhammad had a most fascinating experience

The First Revelation

An angel came to him and ordered him, “Read.”

He replied, “I am not a reader.”

The angel held him and pressed him hard until Muhammad was exhausted

An Address from Heaven

This repeated twice and thrice until the angel said,

“Read, in the name of Your Lord who created. It is He Who created man from clots of blood. Read! Your Lord is the most bounteous, Who has taught the use of the pen. He has taught man what he did not know.”

An Address from Heaven

The Prophet returned home to Khadijah, trembling,

and said, “Wrap me! Wrap me!”

She wrapped him and his fear subsided

He turned to Khadijah and exclaimed, “What has happened to me?”

Khadijah

He related to her what happened and said, “I fear for

myself.”

Khadijah replied, “You have nothing to fear; be calm and relax. God will not let you suffer humiliation, because you are kind to your relatives, you speak the truth, you assist anyone in need, you are hospitable to your guest and you help in every just cause.”

Khadijah

Khadijah took him to her cousin Waraqah ibn

Nawfal who was a Christian convert, old in age, and a scholar with good knowledge of Arabic, Hebrew and the Bible

The Prophet told him what he had seen

Waraqah said, “It is the same revelation as was sent down to Moses. I wish I was a young man so that I might be alive when your people turn you away from this city.”

Waraqah ibn Nawfal

The Prophet exclaimed, “Would they turn me

away?”

Waraqah answered, “Yes! No man has ever preached a message like yours and was not met with enmity. If I live till that day, I will certainly give you all my support.”

Waraqah ibn Nawfal

The first few days must have been full of worry in

the Prophet’s home

He needed every possible assurance and it seems that the Angel Jibril appeared to him more than once in the days following the first encounter

But then followed a period during which the Angel Jibril stopped coming to him

The Angel Jibril

This period of absence was perhaps to allow the

Prophet some time to himself, to evaluate his new situation and its implications for his future role

When this transitional period was over, revelations resumed

From now, not only a Prophet but a Messenger also, he was to receive revelations without interruption

The Angel Jibril

(Source: ‘Muhammad – Man and Prophet’, by Adil Salahi)

End