Muhammad is the prophet and founder of Islam.
Today marks the birth of prophet Muhammad (PBUH), where Muslims all over the world celebrate.
At the age of 40, he began to have revelations from Allah (God) that became the basis for the Quran and the foundation of Islam.
By 630AD he had unified most of Arabia under a single religion of Islam. As of 2020, there are over 2 billion Muslims in the world who profess, “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.”
Muhammad was born around 570AD in Mecca (known now as Saudi Arabia).
Prophet Muhammad belonged to a poor but respectable family of the Quraysh tribe. The family was active in Meccan politics and trade.
Most tribes were polytheistic, worshipping their own set of gods. The town of Mecca was an important trading and religious centre, home to many temples and worship sites where the devoted prayed to the idols of these gods. The most famous site was the Kaaba (meaning cube in Arabic). It is believed to have been built by Abraham and his son Ismail. Gradually, the people of Mecca turned to polytheism and idolatry. Of all the gods worshipped, it is believed that Allah was considered the greatest and the only one without an idol.
In his early teens, Muhammad worked in a camel caravan, following in the footsteps of many people his age, born of meagre wealth. Working for his uncle, he gained experience in commercial trade traveling to Syria and eventually from the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean. In time, Muhammad earned a reputation as honest and sincere, acquiring the nickname “Al-Amin”, meaning faithful or trustworthy.
In his early 20s, Muhammad began working for a wealthy merchant woman named Khadijah, 15 years older than him. She soon became attracted to this young, accomplished man and proposed marriage. He accepted and over the years, the happy union brought several children. Not all lived to adulthood, but one, Fatima, married to Muhammad’s cousin, Ali ibn Abi Talib.
Muhammad (PBUH) was also very religious, occasionally taking journeys of devotion to sacred sites near Mecca. On one of his pilgrimages in 610AD, he was meditating in a cave on Mount Jabal aI-Nour. The Angel Gabriel appeared and relayed the word of God: “Recite in the name of your Lord who creates, creates man from a clot! Recite for your lord is most generous….” These words became the opening verses of sūrah (chapter) 96 of the Qur'an. Most Islamic historians believe Muhammad was initially disturbed by the revelations and that he didn’t reveal them publicly for several years.
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was an ordinary human being who served as a great example to mankind. Although he was subject to the same limitations as any man, and faced many trials and tribulations, yet still accomplished outstanding success in delivering his divine mission;
“God has sent me to perfect good manners and to do good deeds.”
One of Muhammad’s characteristics was forgiveness:
“The Prophet (PBUH) resembled a Prophet who was harmed by His people. He wiped the blood from his face and said: ‘O God! Forgive my people, for they know not!”
“The Prophet (PBUH) did not swear at anyone, nor was He rude, nor did He curse anyone. If He desired to reprimand someone, He would say: ‘What is wrong with him, may dust be cast in his face!”
“Let us go to resolve the situation and make peace between them.”
Another allegation against Islam is that it is a religion that oppresses women, therefore, being the bringer of the religion, Muhammad (PBUH) is also attributed with women oppressing attributes. This perception is also wrong, because Prophet (PBUH) was very caring of the rights of women and commended his followers to give special treatment to women by giving them respect and equal rights that they ought to have. In one of his speeches, he said:
“Whoever (brings up) two girls till they come of age, will be in the next world along with me, like my two fingers joining each other.”
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) did not just love who were around him, nor did he only love those who were related to him, rather he considered the entire society. In society, he was especially considerate of orphans and would commend his followers to take special care of the orphans as they did not have parents to look after them. In one of his speeches, he said:
“The best house among the Muslims is one where an orphan is well treated, and the worst house among the Muslims is one where an orphan is badly treated.”
Islam is a religion of peace. As a Conservative activist and a member of our society, I believe it is our duty to promote equality and to respect each other’s qualities, beliefs and backgrounds. We should embrace each other's differences and achievements and be understanding and accepting of these differences. We are all human beings and, when it comes down to it, we all want the same things: shelter, food, comfort and loved ones to be safe and well. However, looking at it in a wider perspective, it is to develop an understanding from various points of view and to ensure that these points of view are met with tolerance and understanding.