Importants and Charectaristics of Prophets

19. Importants and Charectaristics of Ambiyā

19.1 Mankind Needs the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ.

Now, a few points that we will close with, in regard to the Ambiyā of Allāh. First of all, humanity and mankind cannot live and survive without the Rusūl, without the Ambiyā, without the Messengers. And I want to read to you some of the words of Ibn Al-Qayyim in this regard.

He says, “There is no way to success and happiness in this world or in Ākhirah, except through the messengers. And there is no way to know the difference between good and evil, except through the messengers. And there is no way to receive the pleasure of Allāhﷻ, except through the messengers. They are the standard in their words and their actions; they are the standard; they are the criteria. And without the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, our spirits and our bodies will be dead.”

When we say this, we don’t only mean that it is important for us to learn about the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ. What is meant is that the Ambiyā of Allah ﷻ should be our guiders in everything that we do, in every aspect of our life. And that would lead to number two.

19.2 The Ambiyā are Guidance for Us

There is no way for us to know and learn the guidance of the Ambiyā, except through the Āyāt of Qur’ān. There is no other way. Where are you going to learn about the guidance of the Ambiyā? Where? What other source will you go back to? Historical books? – history was not recorded yet. Are you going to go back to the Bible? Well, let’s look for example, at some of the references that were made in the Bible about the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, to see if we can use it as a credible source.

19.3 What the Bible says about the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ

NŪh عليه السالم : The Bible says about Nūhعليه السالم , and by the way, all of these verses that I will read to you are from the Old Testament which is part of the Jews. Now this is talking about Nūhعليه السالم .

“Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk, and lay uncovered inside his tent. Hām, the father of Can’ān, saw his father’s nakedness, and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders, when they walked in backward, and covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father’s nakedness. When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son has done to him, he said, “Cursed be Can’ān, the lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.” And this is in Genesis 920.

Sayyidnā ‘Ibrāhīm عليه السالم: About Sayyidnā ‘Ibrāhīmعليه السالم  in Exodus 31, verse one, it mentions that ‘Ibrāhīm used his wife Sarah, to go to the king of Egypt, so that he can gain some material gains. So, he sent his wife to stay with the king, so that he can get sheep, and animals, and cattle and go away with it. Sayyidnā ‘Ibrāhīm is selling his wife for sheep. This is in Exodus 32, verse one.

Sayyidnā Lūt عليه السالم: SayyidnāLūtعليه السالم , and Subhān’Allāh, yā’ni, I know that all of you feel uncomfortable hearing this inside the Masjid.

It says, “Lūt (Lot) and his two daughters left Zoar and settled in the mountains, for he was afraid to stay in Zoar. He and his two daughters lived in a cave. One day, the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old. And there is no man around here to lie with us, as is the custom all over the earth. Let’s get our father to drink wine, and then lay with him, and preserve our family line through our father.” That night, they got their father to drink wine, and the older daughter went in and lay with him. He was not aware of it when she laid down, or when she got up. The next day, the older daughter said to the younger, “Last night I lay with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and lie with him, so we can preserve our family line through our father.”

And you can see in the mentality of the Yahūd, the issue of preserving line, and seed; it’s all talking about seed and how to preserve our seed.

“So, they got their father to drink wine that night also, and the younger daughter went and lay with him. Again, he was not aware of it when she laid down, or when she got up. So, both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father. The older daughter had a son and she named him Moab. He is the father of the Moabites of today. The younger daughter also had a son, and she named him Ben Ami. He is the father of the Ammonites of today.”

See how the Yahūd are using this to discredit the other races of the world? They’re using the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ as a tool to get away with lowering the other races of the earth, and they even accused ‘Ibrāhīm of having an illegitimate son, which is Ismā’īl. By the way, when we’re talking about Sayyidnā Lūt and they accused him of adultery and fornication. Subhān’Allāh, how could you say this about the Nabi of Allāhﷻ, who gave up his whole life calling for people to be moral? Spending his life to teach the people morality. And then you accuse him of a horrendous crime. With Ya’qūbعليه السالم , it says also in the Old Testament, that he stole sheep and goats from his father-in-law, and ran away with them.

Dawūd عليه السالم  : With Dawūdعليه السالم , and this story of Dawūd, is really ridiculous. In the spring, at the time when the kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the kings’ men, and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah, but David remained in Jerusalem. One evening, David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “Isn’t this Bathsheba, the daughter of Liam and the wife of Uriah of the Hatite?” Then, David sent the messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. Now, the story is long, but what happened is, this man was the leader of the armies of SayyidnāDawūd, as they claim.

“When David saw how beautiful his wife was, he slept with the wife, and then he made a plan to kill her husband so he can take her over.

And then it says that “But the thing David has done displeased the Lord.”

Sayyidnā Sulaymān عليه السالم: With SayyidnāSulaymānعليه السالم , King Solomon, and this is in Kings eleven one. King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter. And it mentions how many women he loved; here it says, “Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had 700 wives of royal birth, and 300 concubines, and his wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and was not fully devoted to the Lord (his God). He followed Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians and Molech, the testable God of the Ammonites. So, Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord.”

Anyway, so you can see here that SayyidnāSulaimānعليه السالم , as they accuse him – in the end of his life he started worshipping idols and died as a Murtad.

19.4 Qur’ān is the Only Authentic and Credibly Source to Report the Truth about the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ

Now, these stories that are mentioned about the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, don’t think that this has happened haphazardly. There was a goal, and an objective of degrading the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ. When the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ were degraded, and they were discredited, and they lost their credibility, then the people don’t have to follow them anymore, so the Sunnah of the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ is destroyed. And that is the plan that the Yahūd have done against the Ambiyā of Allāh. And they attempted to do that with Īsāعليه السالم , and they attempted to do that with Muhammad ﷺ. These are things mentioned in a book that is acceptable by the Yahūd and the Nasārah [Christians]. Even though it is the Jews who made all of these claims, because all of this which I read was in the Old Testament, but the Christians are not innocent because they still believe in this book as theirs. They believe in the Old Testament – that it is the word of God, and they still follow it. And this shows you how the Yahūd have been able to mislead the nation of the Nasārah after them; by discrediting the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ. When the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ are discredited, that completely throws them out of our respect, so we don’t take them as role models anymore. I mean, imagine, would you accept one of these people to be a teacher for your child? Would you accept a person with such manners and behaviour to be a teacher of your child? I mean, now we’re living in America, with the present laws of the United States, which we as Muslims consider to be very liberal. With the existing laws of the United States, if these men then did these things which I listed to you, they would all be in jail now. If the President of the United States or a member of Congress, or a person in public office does such a thing: stealing the cattle of your father-in-law, or doing such things, or getting rid of your army general; killing him so that you can take over his wife, this is something that will be unacceptable and immediately you would be thrown in jail. If we cannot trust such a people to teach our children, or to lead us, or to be the president, or to be in public office, how can we trust them with our souls? How can you trust them with your souls? That’s why humanity has no hope. Mankind has no hope, except by following the way of the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ as taught in Qur’ān. That’s the only credible reference to learn about the Ambiyā of Allah ﷻ. Because, I mean, if you were a Christian or a Jew, you would not want your children to read this. You, as adults, were not comfortable with hearing this.

19.5 Disbelieving in one Nabi of Allāhﷻ is Equal to Disbelieving in all of Them

Disbelieving in one of the Ambiyā, is equivalent to disbelieving in all of them. Allāhﷻ says in Sūrah An-Nisā,

Verily, those who disbelieve in Allah and His Messengers and wish to make distinction between Allah and His Messengers (by believing in Allah and disbelieving in His Messengers) saying, “We believe in some but reject others,” and wish to adopt a way in between.(An-Nisā – 4:150, 151)

What does it mean ‘making a distinction between Allāh and his Messengers’? How do they make a distinction between Allāhﷻ and His Messengers? They say, “We believe in some and we reject some.” Allāhﷻ is telling you, ‘These are My messengers, I chose them. These are mine. These are the ones whom I sent to the world.’ And then you come and say, ‘No, I’m going to accept this one, but I’m not going to accept you that one.’ You’re separating between them and Allāhﷻ. Allāhﷻ says, “These are my Ambiyā, I’m the One who sent them to you.” And you say, ‘No, I’m going to accept Jesus, but I’m not going to accept Muhammad ﷺ. I’m going to accept Mūsā, but I’m not going to accept Īsā.’ What does Allāhﷻ call this?

Allāhﷻ says about this, They are in truth disbelievers.(An-Nisā – 4:150, 151) They are truly disbelievers. If you disbelieve in one of the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, it is as if you have rejected them all. Allāhﷻ says in Sūrah Ash-Shu’arā,

The people of Nūh (Noah) belied the Messengers.(Ash-Shu’arā – 26:105) Plural. How many Messengers have the people of Nūh received? One.

How come Allāhﷻ said it in plural? You disbelieved in al-Mursalīn – the Messengers. Because disbelieving in Nūh, is equivalent to disbelieving in all of the Ambiyā of Allāh. And the same thing, Allāhﷻ says,

‘Ād (people) belied the Messengers,(Ash-Shu’arā – 26:123) and they received only Hūd عليه السالم , Allāh ﷻ says,

Thamūd (people) belied the Messengers,(Ash-Shu’arā – 26:141) and they received only Sālih عليه السالم . Allāh ﷻ says,

The people of Lūt belied the Messengers,(Ash-Shu’arā – 26:160) and they received only Lūt.

Therefore, disbelieving in one of the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ is equal to disbelieving in all of them. And this needs to be kept in mind when we are talking for example about Yahūd (Jews) and Nasārah (Christians). I mean, it’s not up to you to make a choice of who you want to follow, and who you don’t. All of them are Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ. So, the Jews have become non- Believers as soon as they rejected Jesus (Īsāعليه السالم ) and the Nasārah, the followers of Jesus, became disbelievers the moment they disbelieved in Muhammad ﷺ. Allāh says about the believers who follow all of the Ambiyā,

The Messenger (Muhammad) believes in what has been sent down to him from his Lord, and (so do) the believers. Each one believes in Allāh, His Angels, His Books, and His Messengers. They say, “We make no distinction between one another of His Messengers”(Al-Baqarah – 2:285)

As the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ, we do not make any distinction between them. We accept them all as Messengers of Allāhﷻ.

19.6 Unique Characteristics of the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ

Finally, some of the unique characteristics of the Ambiyā. The Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ are Bashar – they’re human beings, but they have some unique qualities which make them different and unique.

1.Al-Wahi – Revelation They received Wahī from Allāhﷻ, they received revelations. That’s the first unique quality of the Ambiyā.

2.The Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ do not Sleep as we do: Their eyes sleep, but their hearts don’t. Rasūlullāhﷺ says in the Hadīth, narrated by Al-Bukhārī, “Wa kadhālika al-ambiyā tanāmu a’yunuhum wa lā tanāmu qulūbuhum – the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, their eyes sleep but their hearts don’t.”(Sahih al-Bukhari 2013, 3570, 7281, 7517, – Sunan Abi Dawud 1341)

And by the way, when we say they don’t sleep, [it means] their hearts are always awake. They’re carrying so much responsibility, and they have so much concern. And they’re so attached to Allāhﷻ that the heart cannot sleep. And the heart is always attached to the Allāhﷻ.

3. Al-‘Ismāh – Infallibility The Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, it is agreed upon among the scholars of Islām, that they never commit major sins. And it’s also Ijmā’ [consensus] of the Muslims, that the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ never commit a sin in conveying the message. So, for example, they would never conceal knowledge. They would never betray the trust, they would never break a promise, they would never lie. And this is the consensus of all of the ‘Ulamā. In terms of mistakes, or very small minor sins; it is the opinion of the majority of the Ummah, that the Ambiyā could commit mistakes, but Allāhﷻ doesn’t leave them unnoticed, but Allāh corrects them during their life. So that when they pass away, they leave us a message that is completely, one hundred percent, pure. There are no mistakes in it.

So, when Sayyidnā Dawūdعليه السالم  made a mistake in the judgement; Allāhﷻ corrected him. So, Allāhﷻ doesn’t leave the Messengers without teaching them the right Ijtihād (Ijtihād is independent reasoning or the ability to judge, which is only allowed to be done by Islamic scholars.) Therefore, whatever the Ambiyā leave for us, is 100 % pure and infallible, without any mistakes. And that is called Al- ‘Ismah; IsmatulAmbiyā – the infallibility of the Prophets.

4.The Soul of Ambiyā is Never Taken until they Give Permission The fourth quality which is unique about the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ: their soul is never taken until they give permission. For us, our death is unannounced. The Angel of Death, when he comes to you, he is not going to seek your permission. He’s not going to knock on your door and say, ‘Can you please allow me in?’ He’s going to come in and will take your soul, whether you like it or not.

With the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, the Angel of Death comes to them, and seeks their permission first, and tells them that, ‘I have come to take your soul.’

Rasūlullāhﷺ says in the Hadīth, “Mā min nabiyyamradillākhuyyirabayna al-dunyāwa al-Ākhira – any Prophet who becomes ill (and this is the illness of Death), he is given the choice of Dunyā or Ākhirah.”(Sahih al-Bukhari 4586, – Sunan Ibn Mājah 1620)

They choose. And this Hadīth is narrated by Al-Bukhārī and Muslim.

5.Every Prophet is Buried Exactly in the Spot where they Die Yiqbar haythu yamūt – every Prophet is buried exactly in the spot they die. They’re not carried from one place to another. Rasūlullāhﷺ says, “Lam yuqbar nabiyyu illā haythu yamūt – Every prophet is buried in the spot they die.”(Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1018, – Ash-Shama’il Al-Muhammadiyah 390) Narrated by Imām Ahmad

6.The Earth doesn’t Decompose their Bodies The earth does not decompose their bodies and eat away their bodies. The bodies of the Ambiyā are protected in their graves. And the animals, and the insects of the earth, and the erosion caused by earth does not affect their bodies. Rasūlullāhﷺ says, in the Hadīth narrated by Abu Dawūd, and Nasā’i, and Abū Khuzaymah has said it is Sahīh, “Inna Allāha harrama ‘alā al-ardi anta’kula ajsād al-ambiyā – Allāhﷻ has made it Harām on the earth to eat away from the bodies of the Ambiyā.”(Sunan Abi Dawud 1047, 1531, – Sunan Ibn Mājah 1637, 1085)

The body of the Nabi is just like when he was alive. It doesn’t go through the natural process of decomposing, that we are susceptible to.

The Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, as an honouring for them, Allāhﷻ preserves their bodies in their graves wherever they are.

7.They are Alive in their Graves Finally, Rasūlullāhﷺ says, in the Hadīth narrated by Al-Jamā’ah, “Al-ambiyā wa-ahyā’ fī qubūrihim yusallūn – the Prophets are alive in their graves and are praying.”(Mishkat al-Masabih 1366, – Sunan an-Nasa’i 1633, 1634)

We are done with the ‘Lives of the Ambiyā of Allāh’, and Allāhﷻ has made for us in the Lives of the Ambiyā of Allāh an ‘Ibrā. And again, we need to remember, what is the purpose of these stories? It is, as Allāhﷻ says,

Indeed in their stories, there is a lesson for men of understanding.(Yūsuf – 12:111)

Lessons for you. We ask Allāhﷻ to make us of those who would follow the lessons of the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ. We ask Allāhﷻ to accept our deeds of coming here, and talking about the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ. And We ask Allāhﷻ to make us of those who would love the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ, because if we love them, we would be resurrected with them on the Day of Judgement.

Fa-nasaluka an taj’alnā min man yuhibu ambiyā-ak – We ask Allāhﷻ to make us of those who deeply and sincerely love the Ambiyā of Allāhﷻ.

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