Humanities 101 research paper
7/7/14
In 570 C.E Muhammad (PBUH), the Prophet and Messenger of Islam, was born in the city of Mecca located in present day Saudi Arabia. A short while after his birth, his mother Aminah sent him to the desert with a well known family where the air is clean and where he would be breastfed by a woman named Halimah for 2 years. His father died before he was born and his mother died when he was six years old. He was then raised by his grandfather Abdulmuttalib and later by his uncle Abutalib. As a boy, Muhammad spent his time as a shepherd taking care of sheep and goats. As he grew older, he also went on business trips with his uncle and learned how to earn a living as a merchant and trader. Traveling with his uncle on business trips and learning the trade, Muhammad never had the chance to learn to read and right. His generosity, calm spirit, and kind personality led the people of Mecca to love him and trust him. His honesty and good character gave him the nickname of “Al Amine,” which means the trustworthy. When Muhammad (PBUH) became 25 years old he received a marriage proposal from a lady he worked for named Khadijah. Although she was older than him by 15 years, he accepted her proposal and had a successful and happy marriage. They had 6 children of whom 4 were girls and 2 were boys. The 2 boys sadly died when they were infants. In Mecca, almost all the Arabs were practicing polytheism, worshipping multiple idols. According to the beliefs of Islam, they had lost the original monotheistic tradition of Prophet Abraham, father of the Prophets Moses, Jesus and Muhammad peace be upon them. They also had terrible practices such as burying their newborn daughters. They were known to be heavy drinkers who didn’t care much for the orphans and widows in the society. Because of their horrible culture and practices, Muhammad PBUH would often isolate himself, contemplate, and pray for the truth in the cave of Hira near Mecca. He never understood why the Arabs of Mecca worshipped idols and practiced these barbaric traditions. One night, Muhammad (PBUH) was about to get the answer to his prayers. He heard a strong voice asking him to read. He didn’t know who or what that voice was. He replied to the voice, “I am unable to read”. As it repeated and he gave the same reply, he felt pressure all over himself. The voice was Angel Gabrielle, reciting the first verses of Quran as God has recited it to Gabrielle. As soon as the angel let go of him, Muhammad (PBUH) ran home to tell his wife Khadijah. When she found him trembling telling her to cover him and that something fearful has happened to him, she covered him as he rested and asked him what was wrong. When he explained to her what had happened she told him not to worry and that God will never disgrace him. Khadijah was then the first person to become a Muslim. She took him to her cousin Waraqah ibn Nawfal, a religious scribe who studied the torah and Gospel. She explained to him what happened and he told her that it was the Archangel Gabrielle who had visited Muhammad PBUH.
The first verses of the Quran that were revealed to Muhammad (PBUH) in the cave of Hira are “Read in the name of thy lord who creates, Creates man from a clot of blood, Read and your lord is most generous, Who teaches by the pen, teaches man that which he knew not. This night is special to the Muslims and it is called Laylatul Qadr, which means the Night of Power. Muslims celebrate the revelation of the Quran in the special blessed month called Ramadan. The revelation of the Quran continued in Madinah and the final verse in Mecca during the final Sermon of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) on Mount Arafat. It was revealed within 23 years. Currently there are about 50 translations of the whole book and over 100 of selected verses. Till this day, every letter and word of the Quran has been preserved and unchanged through memorization and print resulting in only one holy book in the