Monday, January 18, 2010

Light of Muhammad (peace be upon him)

Q- Was the light of Muhammad (peace be upon him) from the Light of Allah, or from some other light?
A – The light of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is the light of the Message and the Guidance by which Allah guides whom He wills from among His creatures. Without doubt, the light of the Message and the light of guidance are from Allah.

Allah says:
“It is not given to any human being that Allah should speak to him unless (it be) by Inspiration or from behind a veil or (that) He sends a Messenger to reveal what He wills by His Leave. Verily, He is Most High, Most Wise. And thus We have sent to you, (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) Ruh (an Inspiration and a Mercy) of Our Command. You knew not what is the Book, nor what is faith, but We have made it (this Qur’an) a light therewith We guide whomsoever of Our worshippers We will. And verily, you (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) are indeed guiding (mankind) to the Straight Path. The path of Allah, to Whom belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. Verily, all matters at the end go to Allah (for decision).” (Qur’an, 42:51-53)


But this light is not a part of the Seal of the Awliya, as some of the pantheists claim, for he was flesh, blood and bone. He was created from a father and a mother and he had no creation prior to his birth. As for the narrations which claim Allah created the light of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) or that Allah filled His Hand with Light from His Face and that this handful (of Light) was Muhammad (peace be upon him), or that he looked at it and then it became drops of Light, each of which them became the Prophets, or that He created all of creation from his light (peace be upon him), they all cannot be authentically attributed to the Prophet (peace be upon him). Refer to page 366 and after of the 18th volume of the book Majmoo’ Al-Fatawa by Ibn Taymiyah. – Permanent Committee for Islamic Research and Verdicts; Fatawa Islamiyah, vol. 1, pg. 286

How they lived From the lives of our pious predecessors It is narrated that Uthman Bin Affan (may Allah be pleased with him) said in a sermon: “Son of Adam! Know that the angel of death who has been assigned to you has not ceased to pass you and move on to others, ever since you have been in this world. But it is as if he is about to pass someone else and move on to target you, so be careful and prepare for him (by correcting your deeds). And do not forget him, for he does not forget you. And know o son of Adam, if you are heedless about yourself and do not prepare, no one else will prepare for you. You must meet Allah the Mighty and Majestic, so take for yourself and do not leave it to someone else. Peace be on you.”– Abu Bakr Al-Daynuri, Al-Mujalasah wa Jawahir Al-Ilm, 2:73-74

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