In the Name of Allah,
the Most Merciful and the Most
Beneficent
"O people ! Muhammad has
no sons among ye men, but verily, he is
the Apostle of God and the last in the
line of Prophets. And God is Aware of
everything." (Surah Al Ahzab:
40)
This verse has been revealed in the
fifth Ruku' (para or passage) of Surah
al-Ahzab. In this Ruku' Allah has
provided answers to all those objections
raised by the hypocrites, which had
given rise to a storm of calumnies,
slander and mischief in respect of the
marriage of Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace
be upon him) with Hadrat Zainab (may
Allah be pleased with her).
These hypocrites argued that Zainab
was the wife of an adopted son of the
Holy Prophet and by this connection she
stood in the position of the Prophet's
daughter in-law. Hence, after her
divorce from Zaid, the Prophet had taken
his own daughter-in-law as wife.
In order to refute this allegation
Allah told clearly in verse 37 that this
marriage had Divine sanction behind it
and was made to serve as a lawful
precedent for Muslim men to marry the
wives of their adopted sons after they
had been divorced by their husbands.
Later in verses 38 and 39, Allah
affirmed that no power could hinder the
Prophet from discharging a Divine
obligation. The Prophets are ordained to
fear God, not the people. It has been an
invariable practice of the Apostles to
transmit the Divine message without any
extraneous care and to perform the
duties enjoined upon them by Allah
without fear or hesitation. Afterwards a
verse was revealed which extinguished
the basis of all objections. In the
first place, they had charged "You
have taken your daughter-in-law as wife,
in contravention of your own law that
the wife of a son is forbidden to his
father."
In refutation of this charge it was
affirmed by the Almighty:
"Muhammad had no sons
among ye men..."
thereby making absolutely clear that
the man whose divorced wife was taken
into wedlock by the Prophet being not
his real son; the act, therefore did not
imply violation of it.
The argument of their second charge
ran thus: "Admitted that the
adopted son is not the real one, and on
that basis a father might lawfully marry
the divorced spouse of his adopted son,
but where was the compulsion for the
Prophet to do so?"
Allah affirmed in answer to this
charge:
"But, verily, he is the
Apostle of Allah".
The implication is that it was
Allah's mandate to the Holy Prophet to
wipe out all prejudices and declare all
taboos that pagan custom had
unnecessarily imposed upon the people,
as lawful. In this respect the Prophet's
action was unequivocal and left no room
for doubt. (see footnote 1,
below.)
In order to lay particular emphasis
upon this point Allah observes: (Khatim
Al-Nabbiyeen)
"And he is the last in the
line of Prophets,"
which means that no messenger nor
even a Prophet charged with the mission
of carrying out reforms in the sphere of
Law or society which might have been
omitted (God forbid) during the lifetime
of Muhammad (PBUH) will ever succeed
him. Since Allah ordained the ministry
of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to be final,
it was, therefore, imperative that he
should accomplish the task of uprooting
this pagan custom.
Later the point has been further
emphasized in the revelation (Wa Kan
ul-Allahi Be-kulle Shai-in 'Aleema):
"God is Aware of
everything."
The true import of this revelation is
that Allah deemed it best to remove this
pagan custom through the agency of
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and that Allah
only could take cognisance of the harm
that the perpetuation of this infidel
custom would have entailed. Allah was
well aware that the line of Prophethood
ended in Muhammad (PBUH) whose precedent
the whole ummah would follow, and had he
not done away with this custom, there
would arise no man comparable in status
to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) who could
accomplish the task. And suppose a
reformer had arisen in later times who
would break this custom, his act would
not have constituted a universal or
permanent precedent for Muslims of all
ages and all countries to follow. No
other person that follows will embody
the Divine sanctity which attaches to
the person of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
Hence the precedent of no man but
Muhammad has the potential of wiping out
the idea of all pagan customs from the
souls of men for all times to come.
footnote 1.
At this point those who deny the
finality of Muhammad's Prophethood (PBUH)
demand to know the tradition in which
this allegation has been reported. This
query in fact lays bare their ignorance.
The Holy Qur'an furnishes answers to the
charges of the mischief-mongers at
several points without actually
mentioning the charge. In each case,
however, the relevant text bears
unmistakable evidence as to which
allegation is being answered. In the
present case also the answer contains
the substance of the question. The use
of the conjunctive word "but"
at the end of the first sentence
presupposes that part of the question
had yet to be dealt with. The second
sentence, therefore, furnishes answer to
the remaining part of the question. The
first sentence had revealed to the
objectors the answer to their charge
that 'Muhammad had married his daughter-
in-law.' However, the second point of
the question "where was the
compulsion for the Prophet to do
so" still called for an answer.
This answer was provided by the next
sentence in the text.
"But verily, Muhammad is the
Apostle of God and last in the line of
Prophets of God."
The point may be further explained by
taking an illustration from ordinary
conversation. Someone says "Zaid
had not risen, but that Bakr has stood
up." Now this conveys the sense
that Zaid has not risen, but the matter
does not end there, as it gives rise to
the query, "If Zaid has not risen,
who has stood up then?" The
subordinate clause of the above sentence
"but Bakr has stood up"
supplies an answer to this query. It is
the same in the above case.
The Verdict of the Text of the
Qur'an
A group who has raised the heresy of a
new prophethood in modern times explains
the meaning of the idea of the
"Finality of Prophethood" as
the 'Stamp of Prophethood' thereby
implying that all prophets who would
succeed Muhammad (PBUH) will bear his
stamp and will attain to prophethood by
his seal alone. No one, in other words,
who does not bear the seal of Muhammad (PBUH)
will attain the status of Prophethood.
But the context in which the term
"the last in the line of
Prophets"
has been revealed in the Holy Qur'an
leaves no scope for such speculation. If
indeed the term
"last in the line of
Prophets"
does bear the meaning intended by
this group, then this term is surely out
of place in the context in which it has
been revealed. Furthermore, when the
term is charged with this meaning it
distorts the whole purpose of the
revealed verse.
In this verse God refutes the charge
and dispels doubts created by the
mischievous people about the marriage of
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) with Zainab (may
Allah be pleased with her), the divorced
wife of the Prophet's adopted son, Zaid.
Does it stand to reason to make a sudden
interpolation in this context of the
point that Muhammad (PBUH) was the 'seal
of Prophets' and that Allah had
delegated to him the authority of
attesting the bonafides of succeeding
prophets ?
This interpretation bears no
connection with the context-not the
least even and is contrary to the
purpose of Divine argument against the
heretics. If this interpretation were
true the non- believers might well have
argued: "There is no hurry in doing
away with this custom now. You might
safely leave this task for your
successor prophets who will bear your
stamp."
According to a second interpretation
of the idea of the finality of
Prophethood advanced by this group it is
said that the term
"Last in the line of
Prophets"
means the "exalted
Prophet." They further explain that
the line of Apostles will continue,
though the excellence of Prophethood has
been culminated in the person of
Muhammad (PBUH). This interpretation is
no less defective and harmful than the
other one. It hardly bears any relation
to the context and, in fact, conveys a
contradictory sense of the verse. Taking
this thread of argument the infidels and
hypocrites would have plausibly pointed
out, "Sir, there will be other
prophets after you, howsoever inferior
in status compared to you, to fulfil the
Divine mission, why must you take it
upon yourself to remove this custom
also?"
The Dictionary Meaning of the Word 'Khatam-al-Nabiyyin'
It is evident that the text can bear
one meaning and it is that
Khatam-al-Nabiyyin stands for the Finality
of Prophethood with a clear
implication that the prophethood has
been culminated and finalized in
Muhammad (PBUH). It is not only the
context that supports this
interpretation but also the
lexicography.
According to Arabic lexicon and the
linguistic usage Khatam
means to affix seal; to close, to come
to an end; and to carry something to its
ultimate end.
Khatama al-'Amala is equivalent to 'Faragha
min al-'Almali' which means 'to get over
with the task.' 'Khatama al-Ina' bears
the meaning 'The vessel has been closed
and sealed so that nothing can go into
it, nor can its contents spill out.'
'Khatam-al-kitab' conveys the meaning
'The letter has been enclosed and sealed
so that it is finally secured.'
'Khatama-'Ala-al-Qalb' means 'The
heart has been sealed so that it cannot
perceive anything new nor can it
forswear what it has already imbibed.'
'Khitamu-Kulli-Mashrubin' implies
'the final taste that is left in the
mouth when the drink is over.'
Katimatu Kulli Shaiinn 'Aqibatuhu wa
Akhiratuhu means "The end in the
case of everything denotes its doom and
ultimate finish." Khatm-ul-Shaii
Balagha Akhirahu conveys the sense,
"To end a thing means to carry it
to its ultimate limit."
The term Khatam-i-Qur'an is used in
the similar sense and the closing verses
of Qur'anic Surahs are referred to as
Khawatim. Khatim-ul-Qaum Akhirhuum means
"The last man in the tribe."
(Refer to Lisan-ul-'Arab; Qamus and
Aqrab-ul- Muwarid). (see footnote 2,
below.)
For this reason all linguists and
commentators agree that
Khatam-ul-Nabiyyin means 'The Last in
the line of Prophets.' The word Khatam
in its dictionary meaning and linguistic
usage does not refer to the post office
stamp which is affixed on the outgoing
mail. Its literal meaning is the 'seal'
which is but on the envelope to secure
its contents.
footnote 2.
We have referred to three lexicons here,
yet the elucidation of this point is not
confined to these works alone. All
authoritative dictionaries of the Arabic
language interpret the word Khatam in
the sense that we have given to it. But
the deniers of the Finality of
Prophethood in their endeavor to make a
sneaky assault on the religion of God
argue that if we refer to someone as
'Last of the Poets' or 'Last of the
Legists' or 'Last of the Commentators',
we do not necessarily mean that no poet,
legist or commentator will come after
them; rather we only mean to say that
all excellence of their act has been
concentrated in such men. The actual
position, however, is that when we do
use these exaggerated epithets for
someone we do not thereby replace or
remove the original meaning of the word
'Last'. It is preposterous to assume
that by its metaphorical use to refer to
the excellence or perfection of a man,
the word 'Last' loses its original or
real significance which is 'Final'. Such
an assumption can only be accepted by a
person who lacks elementary knowledge of
the rules of grammar. There is no
grammatical principle in any language by
which the metaphorical meaning of a word
may be taken as its real or original
meaning. Besides, the metaphorical
meaning in no case replaces or
obliterates the real and basic meaning
of the word.
When you tell an Arab 'Ja Khatam
ul-Qaum', he will certainly not take it
to mean that 'the perfect or the most
excellent man of the tribe has come.' He
will, on the other hand, take it to mean
that 'the whole tribe, even to the last
man, has come.'
There is another point to be
considered. Such terms as the 'Last
Poet', the Last Legist' or the 'Last
Narrator of hadith' are eulogies used by
men for other human beings whom they
deem to be perfect and excellent. Those
who use these hyperboles for other men
certainly can not say, nor do they know,
that people of such excellence will come
in later times or not. So in human
language these appellations are
hyperboles, but when God uses for a
person that such and such quality has
been culminated in him, there is no
reason to take it in the metaphorical
sense in the strain of human expression.
If Allah had pronounced someone as 'Last
Poet', he would have been last poet in
the literal sense of the word. If Allah
appoints someone as His 'Last Prophet',
there is absolutely no possibility of
any other person attaining to that
dignity after that.
God is Omniscient. Man has but
limited knowledge. This being so, how
can one construe the human praise of a
person as 'Last Poet' or the last of the
jurists in the same sense as God's
pronouncement of a person as the 'Last
Prophet'?
The Observations of the Holy
Prophet(PBUH) About the Finality of
Prophethood
The meaning of the word Khatam that
emerges out of the context of the Holy
Qur'an and which is the same as given in
all lexicons of the Arabic language is
also affirmed by the observations of the
Holy Prophet(peace and blessings be upon
him). We quote some authentic traditions
to illustrate the case in point:
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) observed: "The
tribe of Israel was guided by
prophets. When a prophet passed
away, another prophet succeeded him.
But no prophet will come after me;
only caliphs will succeed me."
(Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Manaqib).
The Prophet of God (PBUH)
affirmed: "My position in
relation to the prophets who came
before me can be explained by the
following example:
A man erected a building and
adorned this edifice with great
beauty, but he left an empty niche,
in the corner where just one brick
was missing. People looked around
the building and marvelled at its
beauty, but wondered why a brick was
missing from that niche? I am like
unto that one missing brick and I am
the last in the line of the
Prophets."
(Bukhari,
Kitab-ul-Manaqib).
(In other words, with the advent
of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) the
edifice of Prophethood has been
completed and there is no empty
niche in this edifice to provide
room for another prophet.)
Four traditions relating to this
subject are recorded, in Muslim,
Kitab-ul-Fada'il, Babu
Khatimin-Nabiyyin. The latter
tradition contains the following
additional sentence. "So
I came and in me the line of
Prophets has ended."
The very same tradition in
similar words has been reported in
Tirmidhi, Kitab-ul-Manaqib,
Bab-Fadlin Nabi and Kitab-Adab,
Bab-ul-Amthal. In Musnad Abu Dawud
Tayalisi this tradition has been
incorporated among other traditions
reported by Jabir bin Abdullah; and
its last sentence reads, "It
is in me that line of Prophets came
to its final end."
Musnad Ahmad contains traditions
reported by Hadrat Ubayyi bin Ka'b,
Hadrat Abu Sa'id Khudri and Hadrat
Abu Huraira(may Allah be pleased
with them) on the same subject with
a slight variation of words here and
there.
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) observed: "God
has bestowed upon me six favors
which the former Prophets did not
enjoy:
(Muslim, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah)
The Prophet of Allah (PBUH)
affirmed: "The chain of
Messengers and Prophets has come to
an end. There shall be no Messenger
nor Prophet after me." (Tirmidhi,
Kitab-ur-Rouya Babu Zahab-un-
Nubuwwa, Musnad Ahmad, Marwiyat-Anas
bin Malik)
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) observed: "I
am Muhammad, I am Ahmad, I am the
effacer and infidelity shall be
erased through me; I am the
assembler. People shall be assembled
on Doomsday after my time. (In other
words Doom is my only successor.)
And I am the last in the sense that
no prophet shall succeed me."
(Bukhari and Muslim,
Kitab-ul-Fada'il, Bab: Asmaun-Nabi;
Tirmidhi, Kitab-ul- Adab, Bab:
Asma-un-Nabi; Muatta', Kitab-u-Asma
in-Nabi, Al- Mustadrak Hakim,
Kitab-ut-Tarikh, Bab: Asma-un-Nabi.)
The Prophet of God (PBUH)
observed: "God Almighty
hath sent unto the world no apostle
who did not warn his people about
the appearance of Dajjal(
Anti-Christ, but Dajjal did not
appear in their time). I am the last
in the line of Prophets and ye are
the last community of believers.
Without doubt,then, Dajjal shall
appear from amongst ye".
(Ibn Majah, Kitabul-fitan,
bab:Dajjal).
'Abdur Rahman bin Jubair reported:
"I heard Abdullah bin
'Amr ibn-'As narrating that one day
the Holy Prophet (PBUH) came out of
his house and joined our company.
His manner gave us the impression as
if he were leaving us.' He said, 'I
am Muhammad, the unlettered prophet
of Allah' and repeated this
statement three times. Then he
affirmed: "There will be no
prophet after me'."(Musnad
Ahmad, Marwiyat'Abdullah bin Amr
ibn'-As.)
The Holy Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him)
said: "Allah will send no
Apostle after me, but only
Mubashshirat. It was said: what is
meant by al-Mubashshirat. He said :
Good vision or pious vision".
(Musnad Ahmad, Marwiyat Abu Tufail,
Nasa'i, Abu Dawud) (In other words
there is no possibility of Divine
revelation in future. At the most if
some one receives an inspiration
from Allah he will receive it in the
form of "pious
dream."
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) said: "If
an Apostle were to succeed me, it
would have been 'Umar bin
Khattab."
(Tirmidhi,Kitab-ul- Manaqib)
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) told
Hadrat 'Ali, "You are
related to me as Aaron was related
to Moses(peace be upon him). But no
Apostle will come after me."
(Bukhari and Muslim, Kitab Fada'il
as-Sahaba)
This tradition is recorded in
Bukhari and Muslim in the account of
the Battle of Tabuk also. Musnad
records two traditions narrated by
Hadrat Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas ( may
Allah be pleased with him) on this
subject. The last sentence in one of
these traditions runs as follows : "Behold
there is no prophethood after
me."
Detailed accounts of the
traditions incorporated in Abu Dawud
Tayalisi, Imam Ahmad and Muhammad
bin Ishaque report that on the eve
of his departure for the battle of
Tabuk, the holy Prophet (PBUH) had
resolved to leave Hadrat 'Ali behind
him in order to look after the
defense and supervise the affairs of
Medina. The hypocrites thereupon
began to spread insinuations and
rumours about Hadrat 'Ali. Hadrat
'Ali went to the Prophet and
submitted : 'O Prophet of Allah, are
you leaving me behind among women
and children?' On this occasion in
order to set his mind at peace the
Holy Prophet (PBUH) observed: "You
are related to me as was Aaron with
Moses." In other words
"as Hadrat Moses on the Mount
Tur had left Hadrat Aaron behind to
look after the tribe of Israel, so I
(Muhammad) leave you behind to look
after the defense of Medina."
At the same time apprehending that
this comparative allusion to Hadrat
Aaron might later on give rise to
heresies, the holy Prophet (PBUH)
immediately made it clear that "There
will be no Prophet after me."
Thauban reports: "The
Holy Prophet (PBUH) observed: And
there will arise Thirty imposters in
my Ummah and each one of them will
pronounce to the world that he is a
prophet, but I am the last in the
line of the Prophets of God and no
Apostle will come after me."
(Abu Dawud, Kitab-ul-Fitan)
Abu Dawud in 'Kitab-ul-Malahim'
has recorded another tradition
reported by Abu Huraira in the same
subject. Tirmidhi has also recorded
these two traditions as reported by
Hadrat Thauban and Hadrat Abu
Huraira. The text of the second
tradition runs thus: "It
will come to this that thirty
imposters will arise and each one of
them will put forth his claim to be
the Apostle of God."
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) observed:
"Among the tribe of Israel who
went before you there indeed were
such people who held communion with
God, even though they were not his
Prophets. If ever there arose a
person from among my people who
would hold communion with God, it
would be none else but 'Umar (May
Allah be pleased with him)."
(Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Manaqib)
A version of this same tradition
in `Muslim' contains Muhaddithuna
instead of Yukallimuna. But then
Mukalima and Muhaddith bear
identical meaning i.e., a man enjoys
the privilege of holding direct
communion with God or a person who
is addressed by the Almighty from
the unseen. Thus we conclude that if
there had been any person among the
followers of Muhammad who could hold
communion with God without being
raised to the dignity of
prophethood, it would have been
`Umar.
The Prophet of God (PBUH) said: "No
Prophet will come after me and there
will, therefore, be no other
community of followers of any new
prophet."
(Baihaqi,Kitab-ul Rouya; Tabarani)
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) observed: "I
am the last in line of the prophets
of God and my Masjid is the last
Masjid (referring the holy Masjid of
the Prophet)." (see footnote
3) (Muslim, Kitab-ul-Hajj;
Bab:Fadl-us-Salat bi Masjidi Mecca
wal Medina)
A large number of such traditions
of the Holy Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) have
been reported by the companions and
a great many compilers have recorded
them from authoritative sources. A
study of these traditions shows that
the Holy Prophet on several
occasions, and in various ways and
in different words made it
explicitly clear that he was the
last Prophet of God; That no prophet
would follow him and that the line
of prophets had ended in him.
Furthermore, those would claim to be
Prophets and Messengers of God after
his time would be imposters and
liars. (see footnote 4).
There can be no authentic,
creditable and conclusive
interpretation of the words of the
Holy Qur'an, Khatam-un- Nabiyyin,
than that given by the Holy Prophet
(PBUH) for the credentials of the
Holy prophet (PBUH) need no proof
and the authority of his words is
unassailable. His words are
authentic and a proof in itself.
When the Prophet is explaining a
Nass of the Holy Quran, his
explanation is the most authentic
and a proof positive.
The question is who else besides
the Holy Prophet (PBUH), to whom the
Qur'an was revealed, is better
qualified to comprehend its meaning
and to explain its contents to us?
And he who advances an alternative
explanation, shall we regard his
claims as worthy of our
consideration let alone our
acquiescence?
footnote 3:
Referring to this tradition
disbelievers in the Finality of
Prophethood argue that the Holy Prophet
(PBUH) called his mosque (Masjid) `the
last mosque' despite the fact that it is
not the last mosque, as countless other
mosques have been built after it all
over the world. Similarly when the Holy
Prophet (PBUH) observed: `I am the last
Prophet,' it did not mean that the line
of prophets had ended, but that Muhammad
(PBUH) was the last as regards his
excellence amongst the Prophets of God
and Mosque was the last one in the same
sense. Such foolish reasoning is an
irrefutable proof of the fact that these
people have lost the faculty of
perceiving the true meaning of the words
of God and those of His Prophet(PBUH).
Even a cursory glance through the whole
chain of traditions in the context of
which this particular tradition has been
recorded makes true import of the words
of the Holy prophet clear to any man. In
this context the various traditions
which Imam Muslim has recorded on the
authority of Hadrat Abu Huraira, Hadrat
`Abdullah bin `Umar and the mother of
the Faithful Hadrat Maimuna narrate that
there are only three mosques in the
world to which the greatest sanctity is
attached, and these are sacred above all
other mosques. Worship in these mosques
is rewarded with thousandfold blessings
in comparisons to offering prayers in
other mosques. It is because of this
reason that it has been declared lawful
to undertake a journey to these mosques
to offer prayers therein. No other
mosque, save these three, can claim such
sanctity that a person should make a
journey to offer worship there leaving
all other mosques. Among the three
mosques which bear the greatest sanctity
in Islam, the first one is `Masjid
Al-Haram' which was built by Hadrat
Abraham(peace be upon him); the second
one is the`Masjid al-Aqsa' which was
erected by Hadrat Sulaiman (peace be
upon him); and the third mosque is
`Masjid-i-Nabawi' in the Holy city of
Medina which was founded by the Holy
Prophet(PBUH). The observation of the
Holy Prophet in regard to `the last
mosque' should be viewed in this
context. The words of the Prophet(PBUH)
meant that no Prophet would come after
him, hence there would be no fourth
mosque after the last Masjid-i-Nabawi(a
mosque of the last Prophet). It follows,
therefore, that no other mosque should
bear such sanctity, that worship in it
should be rewarded with more blessings
in comparison with worship in other
mosques and further there shall be no
fourth mosque towards which it is lawful
or even desirable for people to make a
journey in order to offer prayers.
footnote 4
In contrast to the observations of
the Holy Prophet the deniers of the
Finality of Prophethood quote the
following words scribed to Hadrat
`Aisha: "Say, indeed, that the Holy
Prophet is the Final Apostle of God; but
say not that no prophet will come after
him." In the first place it is an
audacity to quote the words of Hadrat
`Aisha for contradicting the explicit
command of the Holy Prophet(PBUH).
Moreover the very words attributed to
Hadrat `Aisha are not authentic. No
authoritative work on Hadith contains
this observation of Hadrat `Aisha nor
any notable compiler of traditions has
recorded or referred to it. This
tradition is derived from a commentary
entitled Durr-i- Manthur and a
compilation of Hadith Known as Takmilah
Majma-ul- Bihar, but its source and
credentials are unknown. It is the
height of audacity to put forward a
statement of a lady companion in order
to contradict the explicit observations
of the Holy Prophet which the eminent
traditionists have transmitted on the
most authentic chains of transmission.
The Consensus of the Companions
After the Holy Qur'an and sunnah, the
consensus of the companions of the holy
Prophet (PBUH) holds the third position.
All authentic historical traditions
reveal that the companions of the
prophet (PBUH) had unanimously waged a
war on the claimants to the prophethood
and their adherents after the demise of
the Holy Prophet (PBUH).
In this connection the case of
Musailama is particularly significant.
This man did not deny that Muhammad
(PBUH) was the Prophet of God; he
claimed that God had appointed him as a
co- prophet with Muhammad to share his
task. The letter which had addressed to
the Holy Prophet just before the
Mussailama's death reads:
"From Musailma the prophet of
God to Muhammad the Prophet of
God(PBUH). I wish to inform you that I
have been appointed as your partner to
share in the burden of
prophethood." The historian Tabari
has recorded a tradition which says that
the `call to prayers'(Adhan) which
Musailama had devised for his followers
included the words, "I testify that
Muhammad is the Prophet of God."
Despite Musailama's clear affirmation
of the Prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH),
he was declared an apostate and
ostracised from the society of Islam.
Not only this but a war was waged on
Musailama. History also bears witness to
the fact that the tribe of Hunaifa (Banu
Hunaif) had accepted Musailama's claim
to prophethood in good faith. They had
been genuinely led to believe that
Muhammad (PBUH) had of his own accord
declared Musailama as his partner in
prophethood. A man who had learnt Qur'an
in the Holy City of Medina went to the
tribe of Banu Hunaifa and falsely
represented the verses of the Qur'an as
having been revealed to Musailama.
Though Banu Hunaifa had been
deliberately misinformed, nevertheless
the companions of the Holy Prophet did
not recognize them as muslims and sent
an army against them. There is no scope
here for taking the view that the
companions had fought against them as
rebels and not as apostates. Islamic Law
lays down that in the event of a war
against the rebel Muslims, the prisoners
taken in battle shall not be taken into
slavery. The law further requires that
even the rebellious Dhimmis, when taken
as prisoners in battle, shall not go
into slavery. But when military action
was taken against Musailama and his
followers, Hadrat Abu Bakr declared that
the women and children of the enemy
would be taken as slaves; and when they
were taken prisoner in battle, they were
enslaved. From among these a girl was
given as a slave to Hadrat `Ali. She
bore him a son named Muhammad bin
Hanfiya, who is a renowned figure in the
history of Islam. (Al- Badaya
wan-Nihaya, Vol. VI, pp. 316 & 325)
This event is a clear proof of the
fact that when companions fought against
Musailama, they did not charge him with
rebellion. The charge against him was
that he had preferred a claim to
prophethood after the line of Prophets
had ended in Muhammad (PBUH) and he had
thus misled other people to affirm faith
in his claim of prophethood. The action
against Musailama was taken immediately
after the death of the Holy Prophet
(PBUH) under the leadership of Hadrat
Abu Bakr Siddique (may God be pleased
with him), and it had the unanimous
support of the entire body of the
companions. There can be found no better
and explicit example of the consensus of
the companions than this.
The Consensus of all the Ulema of
the Ummah
Next in line of authority after the
consensus of the Companions stands the
consensus, in matters of religion, of
those ulema of the Muslims who came
after the time of Companions (may God be
pleased with them). A glance through the
history of Islam from the first century
up to the modern times reveals to us the
fact that the ulema of all periods in
every Islamic country of the world are
unanimous in their conviction that no
new prophet can be raised after Muhammad
(PBUH). They all agree in the belief
that anyone who lays a claim to
Prophethood after Muhammad (PBUH) and
anyone who puts faith in such a claim is
an apostate and an outcast from the
community of Islam.
The following facts are appended as
an illustration of this:
A man in the time of Imam Abu
Hanifa (80 A.H.-150 A.H.) laid claim
to Prophethood and said "Let me
show you the proofs of my
prophethood." The great Imam
thereupon warned the people:
"Anyone who asks of this man
the credentials of prophethood,
shall become an apostate, for the
Prophet of God (PBUH) has explicitly
declared: "No prophet will come
after me." (Manaqib
al-Imam-i-Azam Abi Hanifa, Ibn Ahmad
al-Makki, Vol. I, p.161, published
in Hyderabad, India, 1321 A.H.)
`Allama Ibn Jarir Tabari (224
A.H.-310 A.H.) in his renowned
commentary of the holy Qur'an gives
the following interpretation of the
verse, 'walakin Rasul Allahi wa
Khatam-ul Nabiyyin': "He has
closed and sealed the prophethood
and the door (of prophethood) shall
not open for anyone till the end of
the world." (Vide Commentary of
Ibn-i-Jarir, Vol. 22, p.12)
In his book `Aqida-i-Salfia, while
explaining the beliefs of the pious
forbearers and particularly those of
Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Abu Yusuf and
Imam Muhammad, Imam Tahavi (239
A.H.-321 A.H.) writes that Muhammad
(PBUH) is a highly venerable servant
of God. He is the chosen Prophet and
the favorite Messenger of Allah. He
is the last of the Prophets, Leader
of the pious, chief of the
Messengers of Allah and the beloved
one of the Lord. After him every
claim to Prophethood is an error
manifest and worship of one's
evil-self." (Sharah al-Tahawiya
Fil-'Aqidat-ul-Salfia,
Dar-ul-Ma'arif, Egypt, pp. 15, 87,
96, 97, 100, 102)
`Allama Ibn Hazm Andulasi (384
A.H.-456 A.H.) writes: "It is
certain that the chain of Divine
revelations has come to an end after
the death of the Holy Prophet(PBUH).
The proof of this lies in the fact
that none but a prophet can be the
recipient of Divine revelations and
God has affirmed that Muhammad has
no sons among ye men and he is the
Messenger of God and that He has
sealed the office of
Prophethood." (Al-Mohallah,
Vol. 1, p.26)
Imam Ghazali (450 A.H-505 A.H.)
says `If the right of denying the
authority of consensus be admitted,
it will give rise to many
absurdities. For example, if someone
says that it is possible for a
person to attain the office of
Prophethood after our Apostle
Muhammad(PBUH), we shall not
hestitate to pronounce him as an
infidel, but in the course of a
controversy the man who wishes to
prove that any reluctance in
pronoucing such a person as an
apostate is a sin shall have to seek
the aid of consensus in support of
his arguments, because reason is no
arbiter against the possibilty of
the existance of a `new prophet.' As
regards the followers of the `new
prophets' they will not be utterly
incapable of making various
interpretations of La Nabiya Ba`di, "There
will be no Prophet after me"
and Khatam-ul-Nabiyyin, `Last of the
Prophets.' A follower of the `new
prophets' might say that
Khatam-ul-Naibiyyin, `Last of the
Prophets' bears the meaning
"last of the prominent
Messengers." If you argue that
"prophets" is a common
word, he would very easily give this
term a particular significance with
regard to his own `prophethood.' In
respect of `No Prophet will come
after him', such a man would contend
that this expression does not say
that `No Messengers will follow
him.' There is a difference betwen a
Prophet and a Messenger. The status
of a Prophet is higher than that of
the Messenger. The fact is that such
absurdities can be indulged in ad
infinitum. It is not difficult, in
our view, to make different
interpretations of a word. Besides,
there is no ample scope for people
to commit blunders ever and beyond
these points in the exposition of
these clear words. We cannot even
say that those who make such
interpretations are guilty of the
denial of clear injunctions. But to
refute those who have but their
faith in the false expositions we
shall say that the entire Ummah by a
consensus of opinion recognizes that
the words `No Prophet shall come
after him' and the context of the
traditions suggests that the Holy
Prophet meant that `No Prophet, nor
Messenger shall follow him.'
Furthermore, the Ummah is agreed on
the point that above words of the
Holy Prophet leave no scope for a
different interpretation than given
to it by the consensus of the Ummah
and he who would not join the
consensus is no more than a
dissident. (Al-Iqtisad Fil Aiteqad,
p.114, Egypt)
[We have quoted here the
original Arabic text (in the Urdu
Edition) of the opinion of Imam
Ghazali because the deniers of the
idea of the Finality of Prophethood
have vehemently challenged the
authenticity of this reference.)
Mohy-us-Sunnah Baghawi ( died 510
A.H.) writes in his commentary
Ma`lam-al-Tanzil: "God brought
the line of Prophets to an end with
him. Hence he is the final
Prophet.......Ibn `Abbas affirms
that God(in this verse) has given
His verdict that no Prophet will
come after the Prophet
Muhammad(PBUH)." (Vol. 3, p.
158)
`Allama Zamakhshri (467 A.H.-538
A.H) writes in his commentary
entitled Kashshaaf, "If you ask
how Muhammad can be the last of the
Prophets when Hadrat `Isa (Jesus
Christ) will appear towards the end
of the world? I shall reply that the
finality of Prophethood of Muhammad
(PBUH) means that no one will be
endowed with prophethood after him.
Hadrat 'Isa is among those upon whom
prophethood was endowed before
Muhammad(PBUH). Moreover, Hadrat
'Isa will appear as a follower of
Muhammad and he will offer prayers
with his face towards the Qiblah of
Islam, as a member of the community
of the Muslims." (Vol. 2, p.
215)
Qazi 'Iyad (died 544 A.H.) writes:
" He who lays a claim to
prophethood, affirms that a man can
attain the office of prophethood or
can acquire the dignity of a prophet
through purification of soul, as is
alleged by some philosophers and
sufis; similarly a person who does
not claim to be a prophet, but
declares that he is the recipient of
Divine revelation, all such persons
are apostates and deniers of the
prophethood of Muhammad(PBUH), for
Muhammad (PBUH) has conveyed the
message of God to us that he is the
final Prophet and no Prophet will
come after him. He had also conveyed
to us the Divine message that he has
finally sealed the office of
Prophethood and that he has been
sent as a Prophet and a Messenger to
the whole of mankind. It is the
consensus of the entire Ummah that
these words of the Holy Prophet are
clear enough and eloquently speak of
the fact that they can admit of no
other interpretation or amendment in
their meaning. Hence there is no
doubt that all these sects are
outside the pale of Islam not only
from the view-point of the consensus
of the Ummah but also on the ground
of these words having been
transmitted with utmost
authenticity." (Shifa, Vol. 2,
pp. 270- 271)
`Allama Shahrastani (died A.H.
548), in his renowned book, Almilal
wan Nahal, writes: "And
similarly who says that a prophet
shall come after Muhammad (PBUH),
there are no two opinions that such
a man is an infidel." (Vol. 3,
p. 249)
Imam Razi (543 A.H.-606 A.H.), in
his work Tafsir Kabir while
explaining the meaning of the verse
Khatam-un-Nabiyyin states: "In
this context the term Khatam-un
Nabiyyin has been used in the sense
that a Prophet whose ministry is not
final may leave some injunctions or
commandments incomplete or
unexplained thus providing scope for
a succeeding prophet to complete the
task. But the Prophet who will have
no successor is more considerate and
provides clear guidlines for his
followers, for he is like a father
who knows that after him there will
be no guardian or patron to look
after his son."(Vol. 6, p. 581)
Allama Baidawi(died A.H. 685), in
his commentary, Anwar-ul-Tanzil,
writes: "In other words he,
Muhammed (PBUH), is the last of all
Prophets. He is the one in whom the
line of Prophets ends or the one
whose advent has sealed the office
of Prophethood. The appearance of
Hadrat 'Isa (peace be upon him)
after Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) is not
a contradiction of the finality of
Muhammed's Prophethood, because
Hadrat Isa will appear as a follower
of the Shariah of Muhammed."
(Vol. 4, p. 164)
'Allama Hafiz-ud-Din Al-Nasafi
(died A.H.710), in his commentary,
Madark-ut-Tanzil, writes: "And
he Muhammad(PBUH) is the one who has
brought the line of prophets to an
end...in other words he is the last
of all prophets. God shall not
appoint another prophet after him.
In respect of Hadrat `Isa(peace be
upon him) it may be stated that he
is among those who were appointed
Prophets before the time of
Muhammad(PBUH). And when Hadrat `Isa
appears again, he will be a follower
of the Shar'iah of Muhammad, and one
among faithful." (p. 471)
`Allama `Alau-din Baghdadi (died
A.H. 725) in his commentary, Khazin,
writes: "Wa
Khatam-un-Nabiyyin,' in other words,
God has ended prophethood in him,
Muhammad(PBUH). Henceforth there is
no prophethood after him, nor is
there any partner with him in
prophethood...Wa Kan Allahu Bikulle
Shaiin `Alima, God is aware that no
prophet will come after him."
(pp. 471-472)
Allama Ibn Kathir (died A.H. 774)
writes in his well- known
commentary, "Hence this verse
is a clear proof of the fact that no
prophet will come after
Muhammad(PBUH) and when it is said
that no prophet will come after him
it is a foregone conclusion that no
messenger will succeed him either,
for the office of a messenger holds
prominence over the office of a
prophet. Every messenger is a
prophet, but all prophets are not
messengers. Any one who lays a claim
to prophethood after Muhammad(PBUH)
is a liar, a disruptionist, an
imposter, depraved and a seducer
despite his wonderous jugglery and
magical feats. Any one who would
make this claim in future till the
end of the world belongs to this
class. (Vol. 3, pp. 493-494)
Allama Jalal-Ud-Din Suyuti (died
A.H. 911) writes in his commentary
entitled Jalalain, "God is
aware of the fact that no prophet
will succeed Muhammad (PBUH) and
when Isa (PBUH) will reappear in the
world he will act according to the
Shariah of Muhammad (PBUH)."
(p. 768)
Allama Ibn Nujaim (died A.H. 970)
in his renowned work of the canons
of Fiqh entitled, 'Al-Ashbah
wan-Nazair', Kitab- us-Siyyar:Bab:
al-Raddah, writes: "A person
who does not regard Muhammad (PBUH)
as the last Prophet of God is not a
Muslim, for the finality of
Muhammad's prophethood is one of
those fundamental articles of faith
which a Muslim must understand and
believe." (p. 179)
Mulla Ali Qari (died A.H. 1016) in
his commentary Fiqh Akbar, writes:
"To lay a claim to Prophethood
after the ministry of our Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) is a sheer
infidelity by the consensus of
Ummah." (p. 202)
Shaikh Isma'il Haqqi (died 1137
A.H.) while elucidating this verse
in his commentary Ruh-ul-Bayan,
writes: "Asim reads the word
Khatam with a vowel stress on the
letter ta which means the instrument
of stamping and sealing, just as
'Printer' is the machine which
imprints. The connotation of the
word is that the Holy Prophet (PBUH)
was the last of all prophets and God
has sealed the office of prophethood
through his agency. In Persian the
same meaning will be expressed by
the term 'Mohar Paighambran'. The
seal of Prophets i.e., his
(Muhammad's) advent sealed the door
of prophethood and the line pf
prophets ended in him. Other
reciters pronounce the word Khatim
with the vowel point under the
letter ta which means to say that
Muhammad (PBUH) was the one who
sealed the doors of prophethood. In
Persian the same meaning will be
expressed by the term 'Mohar
Konindai Paighambran,' 'Sealer of
the prophets,' so both ways the word
Khatam bears one and the same
meaning........Henceforth the Ulema
of the Ummah of Muhammad(PBUH) will
inherit only spiritual eminence from
him. The inheritance of Prophethood
is extinct, for Muhammad(PBUH) has
sealed the office of Prophethood for
all time to come. The appearance of
Hadrat Isa (PBUH) after
Muhammad(PBUH) is not a
contradiction of the finality of
Muhammad's prophethood. The term
Khatam-un-Nabiyyin makes it clear
that no one will be appointed a
prophet after Muhammad(PBUH).
Hadrat Isa (PBUH) was appointed
Prophet before Muhammad(PBUH) and
Isa(PBUH) will appear as a follower
of the Shari'ah of Muhammad(PBUH).
He (Isa)(PBUH) will offer prayers
with his face turned towards the
Qiblah designated by Muhammad(PBUH).
Hadrat Isa (PBUH) will be one among
the faithful of Islam. He will
neither receive any Divine
revelation nor will issue new
injunctions; he will act as a
follower of Muhammad(PBUH).
`Ahl-Sunnat wal Jam'at (the Sunni
sect) believe that no prophet will
come after our holy Prophet
Muhammad(PBUH) because God has
affirmed: "wa-lakin Rasul
Allahi wa Khatam-un-Nabiyyin",
and the Prophet has said: La Nabiya
Ba`di (There will be no Prophet
after me.) Henceforth anyone who
says that a prophet will succeed
Muhammad(PBUH) will become an
apostate, because he has denied a
basic article of faith. Similarly
anyone who casts doubt about the
finality of Muhammad's prophethood,
will also be declared an infidel,
because the foregoing discussion has
distinguished right from wrong. And
any claim to prophethood after
Muhammad(PBUH) is absolutely
false."
In Fatawa-i-Alamgiri which was
compiled by the eminent scholars of
the Indian sub-continent at the
command of Aurangzeb Alamgir, in the
12th century Hijri, it is recorded:
"A man who does not regard
Muhammed (PBUH) as the final Prophet
of God, is not a Muslim, and if such
a man claims to be a messenger or
prophet of God, he shall be
proclaimed an apostate." (Vol.
2, p. 263)
Allama Shoukani (died 1255 A.H.)
in his commentary, Fath-ul-Qadeer,
writes: "A majority of people
have read the word Khatam with the
vowel point under the letter ta but
'Asim reads the same word with vowel
stress on ta. The first reading
means that Muhammed (PBUH) ended the
line of Prophets (peace of Allah be
upon them) i.e., in other words the
Holy Prophet came last of all the
Prophets. The second reading means
that the Holy Prophet was the seal
by which the office of Prophethood
was finally closed; and that his
advent lent grace to the group of
Allah's Prophets.
Allama Alusi (died 1270 A.H.) in
his commentary, Ruh-ul-Ma'ani,
writes: "The word 'Prophet' is
common, but the word 'Messenger' has
a particular significance. Hence
when the Holy Prophet (PBUH) is
called the 'Seal of Prophets,' it
necessarily follows that he is also
the 'Seal of Messengers.' The
implication of the Holy Prophet's
position as 'the Last of all
Prophets and Messengers of God' is
that by his(PBUH) elevation to the
dignity of Prophethood in this
world, the same dignity has
henceforth been abolished and no man
can attain that dignity now."
(Vol. 22, p. 32)
"Anyone who claims to be the
recipient of Divine revelations as a
prophet after the advent of Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH), shall be declared
an infidel. There is no difference
of opinion among Muslims on this
point." (ibid., vol.22, p.38)
"The affirmation in the Book of
God of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as
`the Last of the Prophets' is
unequivocal. The Sunnah has clearly
explained this and the Ummah has
reached a consensus on it. Hence
anyone who lays a contradictory
claim against this position shall be
declared an apostate (ibid., vol.22,
p. 39)
These are the expositions of the
leading savants, jurists, scholars of
Hadith and commentators of every realm
of Islam, from the sub-continent of
India to Morocco and Spain (Andulus) and
from Turkey to Yemen. We have indicated
their years of birth and death in each
case so that the reader may realise at
first glance that this list includes
eminent authorities of every century of
the Islamic History falling between the
first and thirteenth century. We might
even have added expositions by the
learned doctors of Islam belonging to
the fourteenth century; but we omitted
the Ulema of the 14th century purposely
because someone might state that these
scholars had explained the meanings of
Khatam-i-Nabuwat as 'the Seal of all
Prophets' to refute the claim of the
'new prophets' of the modern age.
It cannot, however, be said that the
ulema of the past centuries entertained
feelings of animosity against a later
day personality claiming to be a
prophet. These writings also make it
clear beyond doubt that from the first
century up to the present-day the entire
Muslim world has unanimously taken the
expression Khatam-un-Nabiyyin to mean
`the Last of all Prophets.' Muslims of
all periods have been unanimous in the
belief that the office of prophethood
has been sealed after the advent of the
holy Prophet(PBUH). There has never been
any difference of opinion among muslims
that any person who prefers a claim to
prophethood and those who believe in
such a claim to prophethood are outside
the pale of Islam. It is now up to all
reasonable persons to judge that in the
face of all this massive evidence- the
plain dictionary meaning of the phrase
'Khatam-un-Nabiyyin' the interpretation
of the Quranic verse in its true
perspective, the exposition of the Holy
Prophet himself and the consensus on the
finality of prophethood of
Muhammad(PBUH) of the entire body of
muslims all over the world from the time
of the companions of the Holy prophet to
the present day followers of Islam-what
scope is left for an alternative
interpretation and what justification
can they give for opening the door of
prophethood for a new claimant.
Furthermore, how can those people be
recognized as Muslims who have not only
expressed their opinion in favour of
opening the door to prophethood, but
they have, in fact, catapulted a man
into the mansion of the Prophets of God
and have become the followers of this
trespasser? In this connection three
more points are noteworthy.
Is GOD the Enemy of our Faith?
In the first place, Prophethood is a
delicate matter. According to the Holy
Qur'an the idea of Prophethood is such a
fundamental article of faith that one
who believes in this idea is a believer
and he who disbelieves is an infidel. If
a man does not put his faith in a
prophet, he is an apostate; similarly if
he believes in the claim of an imposter
to be a prophet, he becomes an infidel.
In such a delicate and important matter
Omniscient God certainly cannot be
expected to have made a slip. If there
were to be a Prophet after the time of
Muhammad (PBUH), God would have made
this possibility clear in the Holy
Qur'an or He would have commanded His
Apostle Muhammad to make a clear
declaration of it. The Apostle of God
would never have passed away without
having forewarned his people that other
Apostles would succeed him and that his
followers must put their faith in the
succeeding prophets.
Had God and His Messenger (PBUH) any
intention of undermining our faith by
hiding from us the possibility of
opening the door of Prophethood after
the advent of Muhammad (PBUH) and the
coming of a new prophet, thus leaving us
in a quandary that if we did not believe
in the ministry of a new prophet we
would apostate from Islam? Further than
this, not only were we kept in the dark
by God and His Messenger (PBUH) about
all this, but, on the contrary, they
made observations and affirmations which
the Ummah for the last thirteen [now
fourteen] hundred years has taken to
mean and even today holds the view that
no prophet will come after Muhammad
(PBUH). Could God and His Messenger
really temper with our faith? Supposing
for a moment that admittance to the
office of Prophethood is open and a new
Prophet does appear, we shall refuse him
without fear. For this refutation, God
might call us to account on the Day of
Judgement; but we shall place the whole
record of His own affirmations and
injunctions before Him and this evidence
will prove that (God-forbid) Allah's
Book and the Sunnah of His Messenger had
led us to disbelieve the new prophet and
had thus condemned us to be infidels. We
have no fear that after considering this
record God Almighty will consider it fit
to punish us for blasphemy against the
new Prophet. But if the door of
Prophethood is in fact closed and no
Prophet will arise after Muhammad
(PBUH), and despite this fact a person
puts his faith in the claim of a new
prophet, that person should think well
indeed as to what record can be
presented before God in his defense to
avoid the punishment for blasphemy and
to achieve salvation? Such a man should
look through the material of his defense
before he is produced in the August
Court of the Almighty. He should compare
this material with the record that we
have presented and then judge for
himself if the material upon which he is
relying for his defense is worth the
trust of a reasonable man and can he
court the risk of facing the charge of
blasphemy and be punished for it with
the kind of defense that he has at his
disposal?
Do We Need a Prophet Now?
The second point which requires
consideration is that Prophethood is not
a quality to be acquired by any person
who proves himself worthy of it by
devoting himself to prayers and
righteous deeds. Nor is it anything like
a reward given in recognition of good
service. Prophethood is an office and
Allah appoints some person to this
office to fulfill a special need. When
such a need arises, God appoints a
Prophet to fulfill it. Allah does not
send prophets in rapid succession when
there is no need or when the need has
been fulfilled. When we refer to the
Quran in order to find out conditions
when the Prophets were appointed by
Allah, we come to know that there are
only four conditions under which the
Prophets have been sent unto the world.
Firstly there was need for a prophet
to be sent unto a certain nation to
which no prophet had been sent before
and the message brought by the Prophet
of another nation could not have reached
these people.
Secondly, there was need for
appointing a prophet because the message
of an earlier Prophet had been forgotten
by the people, or the teachings of the
former prophets had been adulterated and
hence it had become impossible to follow
the message brought by that Prophet.
Thirdly, the people had not received
complete mandate of Allah through a
former prophet. Hence succeeding
prophets were sent to fulfill the task
of completing the religion of Allah.
Fourthly, there was need for a second
prophet to share the responsibility of
office with the first prophet.
It is obvious that none of the above
needs remains to be fulfilled after the
advent of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
The Holy Quran says that Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) has been sent as a
bearer of instructions for the whole
mankind. The cultural history of the
world bears testimony to the fact that
since the advent of the Holy Prophet
(PBUH) up to the present time such
conditions have always prevailed in the
world which were conducive to
transmitting his message to all nations
at all times. It follows, therefore,
that different nations no longer need
different prophets after the time of the
Holy Prophet (PBUH). The Holy Quran and
the records of Hadith and the
biographical details of the life of
Muhammad (PBUH) stand witness to the
fact that the Divine message brought
into this world by the Holy Prophet is
extant in its original and pure form.
The Prophet's message has suffered no
process of distortion or falsification.
Not a single word has been added to or
expunged from the Holy Book which the
Prophet (PBUH) brought unto the world
from Almighty Allah, nor can anyone make
additions to or delete anything from it
till the Day of Resurrection.
The message which the Holy Prophet
(PBUH) conveyed by word and action has
been transmitted to us in such
comprehensive, pure and original form
that we feel as if we were living in the
environment and period of the Holy
Prophet (PBUH).
In this way the second condition
under which prophets are sent unto the
world has also been fulfilled.
Thirdly the Holy Qur'an clearly
affirms that God has finally completed
His Divine Mission through the agency of
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Hence there is
no room for a new prophet to carry the
divine mission to completion.
As regards the fourth condition, if a
partner were really needed he would have
been appointed in the time of Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) to share the burden of
his ministry. Since no co- prophet was
appointed, this condition also stands
fulfilled.
We should, therefore, look around for
a fifth condition under which a new
prophet might be needed after Muhammad
(PBUH). If a man argues that people have
fallen into depravity, hence there is
need for a new prophet to reform the
degenerate people, we shall ask him:
when did a prophet ever come to
introduce reforms only that we should
need one now to carry out the work of
reformation? A prophet is appointed so
that he may be the recipient of Divine
revelation and Divine revelations are
made with express purpose of
transmitting a new message or to correct
the wrongs that have crept into an
earlier religion.
When the Holy Qur'an and the Sunnah
of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) have been
preserved in their original and
comprehensive form and when the Divine
mission has been completed by Muhammad
(PBUH), all possible need for the
transmission of Divine revelations have
now been fulfilled and there is further
need only of reformers to cleanse the
evils of mankind, but there is no room
for the prophets.
A New Prophethood is a Curse Rather
than a Blessing for the Ummah
The third point which needs
consideration is that whenever a prophet
is sent unto a certain people the
question of faith and infidelity
invariably arises among these people.
The faithful form one Ummah and the
disbelievers automatically form
different community. The difference that
keeps these two communities apart is not
peripheral or superficial but a basic
and fundamental difference of belief or
disbelief in a prophet; and those two
communities can never merge with each
other unless people of one side decide
to surrender their faith.
In addition, these two Ummahs obtain
guidance and derive their law from two
different sources. One sect follows the
law emanating from the Divine message
and Sunnah of the Prophet they believe
in; the other community is fundamentally
opposed to the idea of this Prophet
being the law-giver. On this basis, it
becomes an impossibility for these two
sections to join in a unified and
cohesive society. It will be perfectly
clear to a man who keeps the above facts
in view that the Finality of Prophethood
is a great blessing from Allah for the
people of Islam. It is due to this that
the Ummah has been able to form a
permanent universal brotherhood.
The belief in the finality of
Prophethood has secured Muslim society
from the danger of any fundamental
dissension which might result in
permanent division in its ranks. Now
every man who accepts Muhammad (PBUH) as
a divinely appointed Guide and Leader
and also is not inclined to seek
instruction from any other source except
the Divine message of the Holy Prophet
(PBUH) is a member of the brotherhood of
Islam and on this basis, can join this
brotherhood at any time.
If the office of Prophethood had not
been sealed once and for all after
Muhammad (PBUH), the people of Islam
could never have forged a cohesive
society; for every new prophet would
have shattered the unity of the Ummah.
A reasonable man after a little
deliberation will come to the conclusion
that when a prophet has been sent to the
whole mankind (not just to a certain
group or nation), and when the Divine
message has been completely transmitted
through this Prophet and further when
the teachings of the Prophet have been
fully preserved, the office of
prophethood should be sealed after him
in order that the whole world may unite
in allegiance to this Prophet and form
one brotherhood of the faithful. Only in
this way can universal brotherhood of
Islam be secured against needless
dissensions which might have repeatedly
erupted on the appearance of every
successive prophet.
A prophet may be a shadow or a buruzi
prophet; or "a prophet who is
law-giver and the bearer of a Divine
book." The appearance of anyone of
the above God-appointed prophets will
invariably have the social consequence
of his followers forming one Ummah and
his detractors being condemned as
infidels and hence outside the pale of
Islam. This division of mankind is
unavoidable when the need for a prophet
is inevitable. But in the absence of
such a need, it is utterly impossible to
expect that Allah in His Wisdom and
Beneficence will needlessly cause strife
among His creatures on the question of
faith and disbelief, thus for ever
preventing His creatures to form one
Ummah. Hence what is confirmed by the
Qur'an and what is clearly affirmed to
be true by the Sunnah and the consensus
of the Ummah, is also corroborated by
reason. Reason demands that the office
of prophethood should remain sealed
hereafter for all time to come.
The Reality of `Masih' i.e.
"The Incarnation of Jesus
Christ"
The propagandists of the new prophethood
usually tell the Muslim laity that the
traditions have foretold the arrival of
a `Christ incarnate'. They argue that
Christ was a prophet, hence his
re-emergence is not contrary to the
concept of the finality of prophethood.
The concept of the finality of
prophethood is valid, but, nevertheless
the idea of the arrival of `Christ
incarnate' is also tenable.
Further on, they explain that `Christ
incarnate' does not refer to the Christ,
son of Mary(PBUH). Christ(PBUH) is dead.
The person whose arrival has been
foretold in the tradition is a `man like
Christ',`An incarnation of Jesus. And he
is such and such a person who has
already arrived. To follow him is not
contrariwise to belief in the Finality
of prophethood.'
To expose the fallacy of this case we
record here authentic traditions on this
subject with full references to the
authoritative works on Hadith. After
going through this collection of
Ahadith, the reader can judge for
himself as to how the observations of
the Holy Prophet(PBUH) are being
presented today in a form which bears no
relation to their original shape and
content.
Traditions Relating to the Descent
of Christ, Son of Mary
Hadrat Abu Huraira reports that
the Prophet (PBUH) of God said: "I
swear by Him Who hath power over my
life, the son of Mary shall descend
among ye as a Just ruler. He will
break the cross and kill the swine;[see
footnote 5] and he will
put an end to war."
(Bukhari, Kitab Ahadith al-Anbiya;
Bab: Nuzul 'Isa Ibn Maryam; Muslim,
Bab: Bayan Nuzul 'Isa; Tirmidhi,
Abwab-al-Fitan; Bab Fi Nuzul 'Isa;
Musnad Ahmad, Marwiyat Abu Huraira)
In another tradition the word jizya
has been substituted for harb,
"war", i.e., he
will abolish the jizya
on non-believers. [see footnote 6]
Another tradition reported by
Hadrat Abu Huraira says, "The
Doomsday shall not be established
before the descent of Jesus, son of
Mary," and these words
are followed by the text as given in
the tradition above. (Bukhari,
Kitab-ul-Muzalim: Bab: Kasr-ul-
Salib Ibn Majah, Kitab-ul-Fitan
al-Dajjal.)
Hadrat Abu Huraira reports that
the Apsotle (PBUH) of Allah
observed: "What will you
be like when the son of Mary shall
descend among ye and a person among
ye will discharge the office of Imam
(leader in Prayers)."[see
footnote 7] (Bukhari, Kitab
Ahadith Anbiya, Bab: Nuzul Isa;
Muslim, Nuzul Isa; Musnad Ahmad,
Marwiyat Abu Huraira)
Hadrat Abu Huraira reports the
Apsotle (PBUH) of Allah having said:
"Christ, son of Mary,
will then kill the swine and remove
the Cross. A congregation for prayer
will be held for him. He will
distribute such an enormous quantity
of goods that none will be left in
need of anything. He will abolish
taxes. He will encamp at Rauha (a
place situated at a distance of 35
miles from Medina) and from there,
set out to perform Hajj or Umrah or
both." (The reporter is
in doubt as to which of these two
had been mentioned by the Holy
Prophet (PBUH). (Musnad Ahmad,
Silsila Marwiyat Abi Huraira;
Muslim, Kitab-ul-Hajj; Bab Jawaz-ul-
Tamatttu fil-Hajj wa-al-Qir'an)
Hadrat Abu Huraira relates that
the Prophet (PBUH) of God after
mentioning the exile of Dajjal said:
"The Muslims will be
preparing for war with Dajjal and
they will be falling in line in
preparation for offering Prayers and
the Takbir will have been said for
Prayers when in the meantime Christ
(PBUH), son of Mary, will descend
and lead Muslims in Prayer. The
enemy of God, Dajjal, on seeing him
will start melting like salt in
water. If Christ (PBUH) would leave
Dajjal alone, he would melt and die
anyway, but God will cause Dajjal to
be slain at the hand of Christ
(PBUH) and Christ will display his
spear strained with the blood of
Dajjal to the Muslims." (Mishkat,
Kitab-ul-Fitan, Bab: al-Malahim,
quoted by Muslim)
footnote5
The implication of
"breaking the Cross" and
"killing of the swine" is
that Christianity will become
defunct as a religion. The whole
edifice of the Christian religion is
based on the belief that God
crucified His only son (i.e. Hadrat
Isa (PBUH) on the Cross and caused
him to suffer this 'accursed' death
so that he might thus expiate for
the sins of man. Among the followers
of God's Prophets, the Christians
are unique in having rejected the
entire Shariah of God and retaining
this belief only.
The swine has been declared
unlawful by all the Prophets, but
the Christians have gone as far as
to make it lawful. Hence when
Jesus(PBUH) will proclaim on his
appearance, "I am not the son
of God; I did not die on the Cross,
nor did I expiate for the sins of
anyone," the whole basis of
Christian belief will be demolished.
Similarly, the second distinctive
charactertistic of Christianity will
vanish when Jesus(PBUH) will say:
"I never declared the swine
lawful for my followers nor did I
proclaim them free from the
restraints of Divine Law."
footnote 6
In other words this expression
means that differences between the
followers of various religions will
vanish and the whole mankind will
join the brotherhood of Islam.
Consequently, there shall no longer
be any war or cause for imposing
religious tax on anyone. This
interpretation is supported by
Tradition No. 5 and 15 quoted
hereafter.
footnote 7
The implication is that
Jesus(PBUH) will not act as the
leader of Prayers. He will offer
Prayers behind the already existing
Imam of Muslims.
Hadrat Abu Huraira reports that
the Apostle (PBUH) of Allah
affirmed: "No Prophet
shall come during the period between
me and Jesus (PBUH). And Jesus shall
descend. Recognize him when you see
him; he is a man of medium height
and of a rudy, fair complexion. He
will be dressed in two pieces of
yellow garment. The hair of his head
will appear as if water is trickling
out of them, though his hair would
not be wet. He will fight for the
cause of Islam. He will break the
Cross into pieces. He will slay the
swine. He will abolish the Jizya on
non-believers. In his time God will
put an end to all other faiths
except the religion of Islam. And
Christ will kill Dajjal. He will
live on this earth for a period of
forty years and at the end of this
period he will pass away. The
Muslims will offer the funeral
prayers of Christ (PBUH).
(Abu Dawud, Kitab-ul-Malahim, Bab:
Khuruj-ul-Dajjal; Musnad Ahmad,
Marwiyat Abu Huraira)
Hadrat Jabir bin Abdullah reports
that he heard the Prophet (PBUH) as
saying: "Then Christ, son
of Mary, will descend. The leader of
the Muslims will say to him,
"Come, lead us in Prayer,"
but he will reply, "No be thou
your own leaders in prayer."[see
footnote 8] He will say
this out of respect for the dignity
that God has bestowed on the people
of Islam." (Muslim,
Bayan Nuzul Isa ibn Maryam; Musnad
Ahmad, Basilsila Marwiyat Jabir bin
Abdullah)
In connection with the episode of
Ibn Sayyad, Jabir bin Abdullah
relates that Umar bin Khattab (RAA)
submitted: "O Apostle of
God, allow me to slay him. In reply
the Prophet of God observed,
"If indeed this man is he
(referring to Dajjal), then he shall
be slain by Christ, son of Mary. You
shall not slay him. But if this man
is not he (Dajjal), then you have no
right to kill an individual from
amongst those with whom we have
guaranteed protection
(Dhimmies)." (Mishkat,
Kitab-ul-Fitan, Bab: Qissa Ibn
Sayyad, quoted by Shara al-Sunnah
al-Baghawi).
Jabir b. Abdullah relates that
while narrating the episode of
Dajjal, the Holy Prophet (PBUH)
observed: "At that time
Christ, son of Mary, will suddenly
descend among the Muslims. A
congregation will be assembled for
prayer and he shall be asked: "
O Spirit of God, come forward and
lead (us in Prayer)." But he
will say, 'No, your own Imam shall
step forward and act as the leader.'
Thus when the Muslims will have
offered the morning Prayer, they
will set out to do battle against
Dajjal. When that liar will look on
Christ (PBUH), he will start melting
like salt in water. Christ (PBUH)
shall advance towards him and slay
him. And it will come to pass that
every stone will cry out: 'Spirit of
Allah, this Jew is hiding behind
me.' Not a single follower of Dajjal
will escape slaughter."
(Musnad Ahmad, Basissila Riwayat
Jabir b. Abdullah)
footnote 8
The implication of this
observation of Christ (PBUH) is that
"Someone from amongst you
should act as your leader."
Hadrat an-Nawas b. Sam'an (while
relating the story of Dajjal)
reports: "Meantime when
Dajjal will be engaged in
perpetrating such deeds, God shall
send Christ, son of Mary. Christ
(PBUH) will descend near the white
tower in the eastern quarter of
Damascus, wearing two pieces of
yellow garment and resting his hands
upon the arms of two angels. When he
will bend his head, it would seem
that drops of water would fall down
from his head and when he will raise
his head it would seem as if pearls
would be trickling in the form of
drops. Any infidel who will be
within reach of the air of his
breath, and the air of his breath
willr each as far as his eye would
see - will not escape death. Later
the son of Mary will pursue Dajjal
and will overtake him at the gate of
Lydda [see footnote 9]
and put him to death." (Muslim,
Dhikr Dajjal; Abu Dawud, Kitab
ul-Malahim, Bab: Khuruj; Dajjal;
Tirmidhi, Abwab-ul-Fitan; Bab: Fi
Fitna al-Dajjal; Ibn Majah, Kitab
ul-Fitna, Bab: Fitna al-Dajjal)
Abdullah b. Amr b. al-As says that
the Apostle of God (PBUH) observed: "Dajjal
will arise in my people and will
survive for forty (here the reporter
is not certain whether the Prophet
mentioned forty days or forty months
or forty years). Then God shall send
Christ, son of Mary, unto the world.
He will resemble in appearance with
'Urwa b. Masud (a companion of the
Prophet). Christ will pursue Dajjal
and put him to death. Following this
for a period of seven years the
state of the world will be such that
a quarrel between two individuals
will be unknown." (Muslim,
Dhikr-ul-Dajjal)
footnote 9
Please note that Lod (modern
Lydda) is situated at a distance of
few miles from Tel Aviv, the capital
of the State of Israel in Palestine.
The Jews have built a large air-base
at this place.
Hudhaifa b. Usaid al-Ghifari
reports that "once the
Holy Prophet(PBUUH) visited us when
we were sitting in company and
talking to each other. The holy
Prophet(PBUH) enquired: "What
are you talking about?" The
people said,"we were talking
about the doomsday." The holy
Prophet(PBUH) observed
:"Doomsday shall not be
established before the appearance of
ten signs. He then enumarated those
signs as:
Smoke
Dajjal
Daabba
Rising of the sun in the West
The descent of Christ son of
Mary (PBUH)
Appearance of Yajuj and Majuj
Formation of three huge
cavities or landslide on the
earth, one in the east
Second in the west,
and third in the Arabian
Isles,
Finally, a huge conflagration
which will arise in Yemen and
drive people towards the plain
of Doom."
(Muslim, Kitab ul-Fitan wa
Ashtrat-us Sa'h:Abu Dawud, Kitab ul-
Malahim, bab: Amarat ul-Sa'h).
It is reported by Thauban, the
freed slave of the Holy Prophet that
the holy Prophet (PBUH) observed: "God
will grant protection from Hell-fire
to two groups from among the people
of my Ummah. One group consists of
those who will invade India; the
other group will consist of those
who will align themselves with
Christ, son of Mary(PBUH)."
(Nasa'i,Kitab ul-jihad;Musnad ahmad,
Bisilsila Riwayat Thauban)
Mujamme b. jaria Ansari reports: "I
heard the Holy Prophet(PBUH) as
saying: Christ, son of Mary will
slay Dajjal at the gate of
Lod(Lydda)." (Musnad
Ahmad , Tirmidhi, Abwab-ul-Fitan).
Abu Umama al-Bahli(mentioning
Dajjal in the course of a long
tradition) reports "Exactly
when the Imam of the Muslims will
step forward to lead the morning
prayers, Christ son of Mary(PBUH)
will descend among them. The Imam
will retreat to make room for Christ
to lead the prayers. But Christ
patting the Imam in the middle of
his shoulders will say "Nay
thou shall act as leader, for this
congregation has assembled to follow
you in prayer." Hence the Imam
will lead the prayers. When the
prayer is over Christ(PBUH) will
command, `Open the Gate.' The gate
shall be thrown open.
Dajjal will be present outside
the gate with a host of seventy
thousand Jewish troops. As soon as
Dajjal catches the sight of Christ
(PBUH), he will say to him," I
shall strike you with such force
that you will not survive the
blow." Christ (PBUH) will
pursue and overtake him at the
Eastern gate of Lod(Lydda). God will
cause the jews to be defeated. Earth
shall be filled with muslims as a
vessel is filled to the brim with
water-the entire world shall recite
the same Kalima and worship shall be
offered to none else except God
Almighty."
(Ibn
Majah,Kitab-ul-Fitan ; Bab : Fitan
Dajjal)
`Uthman b. Abi al-`As reports that
he heard the Prophet of God (PBUH)
as saying: "And Christ
son of Mary will descend at the time
of morniing prayer. The leader of
the muslims will say to him, "O
spirit of God, Be thou our leader in
prayer." He will answer
"The people of this Ummah are
leaders unto each other." At
this, the leader of the muslims
shall step forward and lead the
prayers. When the prayer is over,
Christ(PBUH) will take hold of his
weapon and advance towards Dajjal.
Dajjal, on seeing Christ shall start
melting like lead. Christ (PBUH)
will slay him with his weapon. The
companions of Dajjal will be
defeated. They will flee away, but
will not find a hiding place
anywhere. Even the trees will cry
out,"O pious, this infidel is
hiding behind me," and the
stones will say, "O pious, this
unbeliever has taken cover behind
me." (Musnad Ahmad,
Tabarani, Hakim)
Samura b. Jundub (in a long
tradition) ascribes this saying to
the Holy Prophet (PBUH): "Then
at morning time Christ, son of Mary,
shall descend among the Muslims. And
Allah shall cause Dajjal and his
hosts to suffer a most crushing
defeat. Even the walls and roots of
the trees will cry out, "O
pious, this infidel is hiding behind
me. Come and strike him to
death." (Musnad Ahmad, Hakim)
A tradition related to 'Imarn b.
Husain says that the Prophet of God
(PBUH) observed: "There
will always be a group of people
among my followers who will keep
firm faith in right and they shall
overwhelm their opponents till God
issues a decree and Christ son of
Mary (PBUH) descends upon
earth." (Musnad Ahmad)
With reference to the episode of
Dajjal, Hadrat 'Aisha (may Allah be
pleased with her) reports that "Hadrat
'Isa (PBUH) will descend and slay
Dajjal. After this Hadrat 'Isa
(PBUH) shall rule over the earth as
a just leader and a benevolent
sovereign for a period of forty
years." (Musnad Ahmad)
Safina, the freed slave of the
Apostle of God (PBUH) reports (in
connection with the episode of
Dajjal) that "Hadrat 'Isa
(PBUH) will descend and God shall
put an end to the life of Dajjal
near the slope of Afiq"[see
footnote 10]. (Musnad Ahmad)
Hadrat Hudaifa b. Yama relates
(with reference to Dajjal), "When
the Muslims will fall in lines to
offer prayers, Christ son of Mary
(PBUH) shall descend from heaven
before their eyes. He will lead the
prayers. When the prayers are over
he will say to the people:
"Clear the way bewteen me and
this enemy of God." God will
give victory to the Muslims over the
hosts of Dajjal. The Muslims will
inflict dire punishment upon the
enemy. Even the trees and stones
will cry out, "O Abdullah, O
Abdul Rahman, O Muslim, come, here
is a Jew behind me, kill him."
In this way God will cause the Jews
to be annihilated and Muslims shall
be the victors. They will break the
Cross, slaughter the swine and
abolish Jizya (levied on
non-Muslims)."
(Mustadrak Hakim - A brief version
of this tradition has been recorded
in Muslim. Hafiz Ibn Hajar in
Fath-ul-Bari Vol. VI, p. 450
declares this tradition to be
authentic.)
The above are twenty-one traditions
which have been transmitted on the
authority of fourteen companions of the
Holy Prophet and have been recorded with
correct references in the most
authoritative books on Hadith. In
addition to these, there are numerous
other traditions relating to the same
subject, but we have not reproduced them
here for the sake of brevity. We have
taken as example only those traditions
which are sound and authentic as regards
chain of transmission.
footnote 10
Afiq known as Fiq in modern times
is a city in Syria, situated on the
borderline between Syria and Israel.
There is a lake called Tibriya a few
miles toward the west of the city. This
lake is the source of river Jordan.
Towards the southwest of this lake,
there is a path between the mountains
which descends two thousand feet to the
point in the lake of Tibriya where the
river rises. This mountainous path is
called the slope of Afiq.
The Verdict of these Traditions
Anyone who reads the above traditions
will come to the conclusion that they do
not mention the advent of a promised
Masih or a like Masih or projection of
Masih. The texts referred to above leave
no scope for any man who is born of
human sperm from the womb of a woman to
declare "I am that Masih whose
advent was foretold by the Holy Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH)." All the above
traditions clearly and definitively
proclaim the descent of that Holy Christ
who was born to Mary without the
instrumentality of father two thousand
years ago. It is certainly of no avail
at this juncture to open the debate as
to whether the Holy Christ is dead or
exists alive somewhere in the world.
Supposing he is dead, God has the power
to raise him alive[see footnote 11],
otherwise also it is not beyond the
Divine power of God to keep a man alive
somewhere in the cosmos for as long as
thousands of years; and to bring the man
back to the world at His Will. At any
rate, a believer in the veracity and
sanctity of the traditions will have no
doubt that the traditions foretell the
advent of 'Christ son of Mary' and no
one else. On the contrary, if a person
has no faith in the traditions, he would
not be a believer in the descent of
anyone, for traditions are the only
bases of the doctrine of Descent. In
view of all this, it is a strange kind
of funny logic to take the doctrine of
Descent derived from the traditions and
having torn out the clear reference to
Christ son of Mary, establish a modern
day 'Christ incarnate' in place of
Mary's son.
Yet another point which is made
equally clear by the traditions is that
Christ son of Mary will not descend in
the capacity of a newly appointed
Apostle of God. He will not receive any
Divine revelations. He will not be the
bearer of any new message or repository
of a fresh mandate from God, nor will he
amend, enlarge or, abridge the Shariah
of Muhammad (PBUH), nor indeed will
Christ son of Mary be brought into the
world to accomplish the renewal of
faith. Christ son of Mary (PBUH) will
not call upon the people to put their
faith in his own prophethood, nor will
he found a separate community of
followers[see footnote 12]. He
will be appointed to accomplish a
particular task and this will be to root
out the mischief of Dajjal. To serve
this purpose, Jesus(PBUH) will descend
in such manner that those Muslims among
whom he appears, will have no doubt at
all about his identity as Jesus son of
Mary whose advent at a most opportune
time was foretold by the Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH). Jesus(PBUH) will join
the community of Muslims and will offer
prayers behind the incumbent Imam of the
Muslims[see footnote 13]. He will
allow the incumbent Imam of the Muslims
to supersede him so as to make it clear
beyond any shadow of doubt that he has
not descended to assert his position as
a Prophet or to carry out the office of
Prophethood. There is no doubt that in
the presence of a Prophet among a
community of people no other person can
assume the office of an Imam or a
leader. Hence when Jesus(PBUH) will
become an individual member of the
Fraternity of Islam, this fact will in
itself proclaim to the world that he has
not descended to assume the office of a
Prophet. On this basis, therefore, the
question of opening the seal of
Prophethood at the second coming of
Christ is completely irrelevant.
It might be said (without actually
comparing the two situations) that
Jesus's advent will be like the
appointment of a former Head of State to
render some State service under the
regime of the present Head of State. It
is not too difficult for a man of
ordinary common sense to understand that
the appointment of a former Head of
State to render some State duty under
the regime of present Head is not a
violation of the constitution of the
State. Two cases, however, do violate
the State Law. In the first case, if a
former Head of State makes a bid to
assume that office once again. In the
second case, if a person refutes the
existence of the former regime of a
defunct Head of State, for this would be
tantamount to challenging the validity
of the tasks carried out by the former
regime. In the absence of any one of the
above two eventualities, the mere
appointment of a past Head of State to a
State duty does not change the
constitutional position. The same
applies to the second advent of Christ,
son of Mary. The seal of Prophethood is
not violated by his second advent.
However, if he assumes the office of
Prophethood once more and starts
performing the duties of a Prophet or
conversely a man repudiates the sanctity
of Christ (PBUH) as a former Prophet,
both these cases constitute a violation
of God's law in respect of the creation
of Prophets. The traditions have clearly
ruled out the existence of both these
possibilities. On the one hand, the
traditions affirm that no Prophet shall
come after Muhammad (PBUH). At the same
time, they foretell the second coming of
Christ, son of Mary. This is sufficient
to make it clear that during his second
advent in the world, Christ will not
discharge the duties of a Prophet.
In the same manner, his advent will
not give rise to a new question of faith
or apostasy among the followers of
Islam. Any one who repudiates the
sanctity of Christ as a former Prophet
is an apostate. The Holy Prophet (PBUH)
himself affirmed Christ's sanctity as a
former Prophet. The followers of
Muhammad (PBUH) therefore, have from the
beginning, always believed in the
sanctity of Christ as a former Prophet.
This belief will hold good even at the
time of the second advent of Christ. At
that time Muslims will not put faith in
the ministry of a new Prophet. They will
retain their belief in the sanctity of
Christ as a former Prophet. This
position is neither contrary to faith in
the Finality of Prophethood today nor
will it be derogatory to this belief at
the time of Christ's second advent in
the world.
The last point which is made clear by
these other traditions and numerous
others pertains to the fact that Dajjal
(for the suppression of whose grave
misdeeds God will send Christ, son of
Mary(peace be on him), will arise among
the nation of Jews and that he will
impose as 'Masih.'
No one can understand the reality of
this fact without studying the history
of the Jews and their religious beliefs.
After the death of Hadrat Sulaiman
(PBUH) [i.e. Solomon], the tribe of
Israel suffered perpetual decline until
it came to pass that they became slaves
of the Babylonian and Assyrian Empires
and their imperial masters dispersed
them over the face of the earth. At that
moment in their history the Prophet of
the Jews began to deliver the glad
tidings of the arrival of a 'Masih' from
God who will redeem them from disgrace.
On the basis of such prophecies the Jews
had long awaited the advent of a 'masih'
who would be a king. This king would
fight and win territories. He would
gather Jews from all over the world and
assemble them in Palestine. He would
create a mighty Jewish Empire. Contrary
to all their eager expectations when the
God-appointed 'Masih', Christ son of
Mary (PBUH) came without an army to win
countries, the Jews repudiated his
Prophethood and determined to put an end
to his life. Since then the Jews all
over the world have awaited the rise of
a 'Masih Mau'ud,' 'The Promised
Messiah,' the glad tidings of whose
arrival had been delivered to them by
their Prophets of yore. Their literature
abounds with the wishful dreams of this
millennium. The Jews have for centuries
been savoring the imaginary pleasure
afforded by the description of this
millennium in Talmud and the works of
the Rabbis. The Jewish nation has
cherished the hope that this 'Promised
Messiah' would be a great military and
political leader. He will restore to
them the country between the rivers Nile
and Euphrates (which the Jews have
always coveted as their patrimony). He
will gather Jews from all parts of the
world and assemble them once again in
this country.
Today when we look at the affairs of
the Middle East in the perspective of
the prophecies of Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH), we perceive at once that the
stage has been set for the emergence of
the Dajjal who as was foretold by the
Holy Prophet (PBUH) would rise as a
'Promised Messiah' of the Jews. The
Muslim people have been ejected from a
large part of Palestine and in that part
a Jewish State named 'Israel' has been
set up. Jews from all over the world are
converging at this place. America,
Britain and France have helped to make
this Jewish State a formidable military
power.
The Jewish scientists and technocrats
are developing this country fast with
the massive aid of Jewish capital. The
military and technical potential of
Israel poses a grave threat to the
neighboring Muslim countries. The
leaders of Israel have never concealed
their design of redeeming 'the land of
their patrimony.' The map of the future
Jewish State which they have been
publishing for a long time is given on
the following page. [Map omitted] It
shows that they wish to include in the
Jewish State the whole of Syria,
Lebanon, Jordan, nearly all the area of
Iraq besides taking Askandron from
Turkey, Sinai and Delta area from Egypt
and Upper Hejaz and Najd areas from
Saudi Arabia. This of course includes
the Holy City of Madina also. In this
context, it is quite clear that taking
advantage of the critical conditions
created by a World war, the Jews will
certainly make a bid to grab these
areas. And at this juncture will arise
Dajjal whom the Jews will deem as their
'Promised Messiah.' The Holy Prophet
(PBUH) not only prophesied the advent of
this Dajjal but also had warned the
Muslims that they would suffer colossal
hardships and one day will seem like one
year of suffering and calamity. It was
for this reason that the Prophet of God
(PBUH) used to pray for protection
against the great evil of 'Dajjal Masih'
and he used to enjoin his followers to
implore Allah to save them the severity
of these evil times.
It is certain that Allah will not
send any 'Christ Incarnate' to combat
with this 'Dajjal Masih.' He will
appoint the real Christ, the Christ who
was born of Mary, and whom the Jews had
declined to acknowledge as a Prophet two
thousand years ago. He will send the
same Christ whom the Jews believed they
had put out of their way by killing him.
The place where the real Christ will
descend is not in India, Africa or
America. It is in Damascus that he will
appear, because this place will be the
actual battle ground at that time. Look
at the map no. 1
[map has to be omitted]
and you will find that Damascus lies
at a distance of hardly 50-60 miles from
the orders of Israel. If you recall the
text of the traditions we have cited
above, you will find it not too
difficult to understand that Dajjal will
penetrate into Syria with 70,000 Jewish
troops and will take position before
Damascus. At this moment of crisis,
Christ son of Mary (PBUH) will descend
near a white minaret in the Eastern
quarter of Damascus. After the morning
prayers, Christ (PBUH) will advance with
the Muslims for fighting against Dajjal.
The enemy will retreat before the
powerful assault of Christ son of Mary,
and Dajjal will run away towards Israel
by way of the slope of Afiq (Reference
to Tradition No. 21). Christ (PBUH) will
pursue Dajjal and destroy him on the
airfield of Lydda (Traditions No. 10-14-
15).
A great slaughter of the Jews will
ensue and every one of them will be
annihilated. The nation of Jews will be
exterminated (Traditions No. 9-15-21).
At the proclamation of truth by
Christ, the Christian religion will
become extinct (Traditions No. 1-2-4-6).
And the followers of all religions,
their former having renounced
allegiances, will amalgamate to form the
one and only brotherhood of Islam. The
traditions reveal this fact clearly
beyond any doubt.
In view of the above, the propaganda
network that has been set up in our
country in the name of Masih Mau'ud,
'the Promised Messiah', is
unquestionably a false and bogus
venture.
One of the funniest aspects of this
base movement is that the person who
deems himself the subject of the
prophecies of Muhammad (PBUH) has given
this interesting explanation of his
identity as 'Christ son of Mary':
"He (God Almighty) named me Mary
in the third part of Barahin-i-Ahmadia.
Later, as is evident from
Barahin-i--Ahmadia I was reared in the
form of Mary for two years. Then, my
body was filled with the soul of Christ
just as the body of Mary was filled with
Christ's soul and in a metaphorical
sense I became pregnant with the soul of
Christ. At last after a period of many
months (lasting not more than ten
months) I was metamorphosed from Mary
into Christ by a Divine revelation which
has been recorded at the end of part
four of Barahin-i-Ahmadia. Hence in this
way I became the son of Mary."
(Kashti-e-Noah, pp. 87-89).
In other words he became Mary in the
first place, then got pregnant, and
lastly from his own abdomen he issued
forth as Christ son of Mary. There was
one snag left, however. According to the
traditions, Christ son of Mary, would
appear in Damascus, which has been a
prominent and famous place in Syria for
several thousand years and still exists
by this name on the map of the world.
This difficulty was explained away by
another fanciful statement: "Let it
be known that in respect of the
interpretation of the word 'Damascus',
God Almighty has explained to me in a
revelation that in this place the name
Damascus has been given to a village
whose inhabitants possess the
characteristics of Yazid and are
followers of the habits and ideas of the
impure Yazid. This town of Qadian,
because of the reason that most of its
residents possess the traits of Yazid in
their character, is akin to and bears
certain resemblance to Damascus
(marginal note of Izala-i-Auham, pp.
63-73).
But that was not all. Yet another
problem demanded clearance, i.e., the
traditions had prophesied that Christ
would descend near a white pillar. This
problem was finally solved when the new
'Christ' got a white pillar built for
him. The traditions mentioned that the
white pillar would be standing prior to
the descent of Christ near it and in
Qadian the pillar was built after the
appearance of 'Masih Mau'ud.' But never
mind the discrepancy. Anyone who reads
the above interpretations of this 'Masih
Mau'ud' with open eyes will arrive at
the conclusion that a clear fraud has
been openly perpetrated by an imposter.
footnote 11
Those who deny this possibility
should go through verse 259 of Surah al-
Baqarah, in which God affirms in clear
words that He let one of His creatures
lie dead for a hundred years and at the
end of this period He raised the man
alive.
footnote 12
The Ulema of Islam have explained
this question in detail. 'Allama
Taftazani (722 A.H. - 792 A.H.) in Shara
'Aqaid-i-Nasafi writes: "It is
established that Muhammad (PBUH) is the
Final Prophet......If it is said that
according to the Hadith the descent of
Christ (PBUH) will take place after
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) we shall say,
"Yes, this fact has been mentioned
in the traditions. But Christ (PBUH)
will appear as a follower of Muhammad
(PBUH). The Shariah of Christ stands
abrogated. Hence he will neither receive
any Divine revelations, nor will he
establish any canon. In all his actions
he will represent Muhammad(PBUH)
only."
The same view point has been
re-affirmed by 'Allama Alusi in Tafsir
Ruh- al-Ma'ani: Later when Christ (PBUH)
appears, he will retain his dignity as a
former Prophet. After all, God will
certainly not divest him of this
dignity, but he will not follow his
former mandate, because the Shariahs of
all prophets, including that of Christ
(PBUH), stand abrogated. Hence it will
be a Divine obligation upon Christ
(PBUH) to follow in letter and spirit
the law of Muhammad (PBUH). He will
receive no Divine revelation, nor will
he be charged with the duty of giving
new religious laws. In all his deeds,
Christ will act as a representative of
the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and he
will function as a deputy and one among
the rulers of the followers of Muhammad
(PBUH).
Imam Razi further elucidates this
point like this: The period of the
Prophets extended as far as the advent
of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). When
Muhammad (PBUH) was raised as a Prophet,
the era of the advent of new Prophets
came to an end. It is not beyond
comprehension that Christ (PBUH), after
his descent, will act as a follower of
Muhammad (PBUH).
footnote 13
Although two traditions (No.5 and
21) bear ample evidence that Jesus
(PBUH) will act as leader in the first
prayer after his descent, the majority
of the traditions which are
comparatively more authentic (vide No.
3,7,9,15,16) speak of the fact that
Jesus(PBUH) will decline to lead the
prayers. He will call upon the incumbent
Imam of the Muslims to step forward and
lead the prayers. All scholars of
traditions and commentators are agreed
on this latter point.
Sheikh Abdulfattah Abu-Abdullah Adelabu (Ph. D. Damas),
a West African Islamic Academic founded AWQAF Africa, of
which he's the first al Amir (i.e. President).
Sheikh Dr. Adelabu was studying Postgraduate Degrees in
Damascus early 1990's during when Syria reviewed its
national security after an ‘Oslo Accord'...
Syria like many other countries around the world
witnessed, during this period, the flood of refugees
from war troubled nations like Somalia, arrival of
people from Algeria during the brutal struggling between
the Mujahidun and the government, resettlement of the
Palestinians fleeing from sophisticated guns of the
Israelis as well as adventure of African migrants for
reasons uncountable…