LIFE OF MUHAMMADsa BY HADRAT MIRZA BASHIRUDDIN MAHMUD AHMAD 2013 ISLAM INTERNATIONAL PUBLICATINS LIMITED Life of Muhammadsa BY: HADRAT MIRZA BASHIRUDDIN MAHMUD AHMAD KHALIFATUL MASIH II First published in UK in 1990 Second edition published in UK in 2005 Third edition published in UK in 2009 Fourth edition published in UK in Oct. 2012 Fifth edition published in UK in New Format in Nov. 2012 Sixth edition published in UK in Mar. 2013 Re-printed in UK in Jan. 2014 © ISLAM INTERNATIONAL PUBLICATIONS LTD PUBLISHED BY: Additional Wakalat-e-Tasnif (United Kingdom) Islamabad Sheephatch Lane, Tilford, Surrey, GU10 2AQ, UK Printed and bound in Great Britain No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without prior permission from the Publisher, except for the quotation of brief passages in criticism. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Ahmad, Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud 1889–1965 The Life of Muhammad 1. Islam Muhammad (Prophetsa) I. Title 297.63 ISBN: 1- 85372- 045- 3 Contacts for Further Information: www.alislam.org, www.muslims4peace.org.uk, www.muslimsforpeace.org About the Author The Promised sonra of the Promised Messiah and Mahdias; the manifest Sign of Allah, the Almighty; the Word of God whose advent was prophesied by the Holy Prophet Muhammadsa and the Promised Messiahas as well as the past Prophets; a Star in the spiritual firmament for the like of which the world has to wait for hundreds of years to appear; the man of God, crowned with a spiritual halo from which radiated such scintillating rays of light as would instil spiritual life into his followers and captivate and enthral those who were not fortunate to follow him; an orator of such phenomenal quality that his speeches would make his audience stay put for hours on end, come rain or shine, deep into the late hours of the evenings while words flowed from his tongue like honey dripping into their ears to reach the depths of their soul to fill them with knowledge and invigorate their faith; the ocean of Divine and secular knowledge; the Voice Articulate of the age; without doubt the greatest genius of the 20th century; a man of phenomenal intelligence and memory; an epitome of the qualities of leadership; the one whose versatility cannot be comprehended—Hadrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmadra (1889-1965), Muslih Mau‘ud (the Promised Reformer) was the eldest son and the second successor (Khalifah) of the Promised Messiahas. He took charge of the Ahmadiyya Jama‘at at the young age of 24 when the Jama‘at was still in its infancy and nourished it to its maturity for more than 50 years with his spiritual guidance, prayers, tears, toil and blood. Not only did he fortify the foundations of the community laid down by the Promised Messiahas, but expanded the structure of the Jama‘at by initiating various schemes, organizations, and programs taking his inspiration from the Promised Messiahas and under the Divine guidance. His foremost concern, to which he devoted all his life, was to accomplish the mission of the Promised Messiah—the daunting task of spreading the message of true Islam in its pristine purity to the ends of the world. To achieve this, he initiated Tahrik-e-Jadid through which spread, and continues to spread, the missionary work all over the globe. His acute intelligence, keen intellect, deep and extensive scholarship and above all his God-given knowledge iii iv Life of Muhammadsa enabled him to produce a vast corpus of writings, speeches etc. His oeuvre is so vast that it will take many years to see the light of publication. When the promised Messiahas fervently prayed to God to grant him a Sign in support of Islam, Allah gave him the good tiding about this son of his and said: "…He will be extremely intelligent…and will be filled with secular and spiritual knowledge...Son, delight of the heart, high ranking, noble. A manifestation of the First and the Last, a manifestation of the True and the High; as if Allah has descended from heaven…Behold a light comes…We shall pour Our Spirit into him" [Revelation of 20th February 1886]* * Translation from Urdu by Sir Muhammad Zafrullah Khan in his English translation of Tadhkirah—the book containing dreams, visions and verbal revelations vouchsafed to the Promised Messiahas. (Revised edition, 2009.) [Publisher] CONTENTS Foreword ................................................................................... ix Arabia At The Time Of The Prophet'ssa Birth ........................... 1 Holy Prophet'ssa Marriage With Khadijara ................................. 7 The Prophetsa Receives His First Revelation ............................. 9 First Converts .......................................................................... 11 The Faithful Persecuted ........................................................... 12 The Message Of Islam ............................................................. 18 Emigration To Abyssinia ......................................................... 21 ‘Umarra Accepts Islam ............................................................. 23 Persecution Intensifies ............................................................. 25 The Prophetsa Goes To Ta’if ................................................... 27 Islam Spreads To Medina ........................................................ 30 First Pledge Of ‘Aqaba ............................................................ 35 The Hijra .................................................................................. 37 Suraqara Pursues The Prophet .................................................. 39 The Prophetsa Arrives At Medina ............................................ 41 Abu Ayyub Ansarira As Prophet'ssa Host .............................. 42 Life Unsafe At Medina ............................................................ 44 Pact Between Various Tribes Of Medina ................................ 47 Meccans Preparing To Attack Medina .................................... 50 Battle Of Badr .......................................................................... 52 A Great Prophecy Fulfilled ...................................................... 59 Battle Of Uhud ........................................................................ 62 Victory Converted Into Defeat ................................................ 64 Rumour Of Prophet'ssa Death Reaches Medina ....................... 70 Encounter With Banu Mustaliq.............................................. 80 Battle Of The Ditch ................................................................. 83 Fight Against Heavy Odds ...................................................... 85 Treachery Of Banu Quraiza .................................................... 88 The Confederates Disperse ...................................................... 95 Banu Quraiza Punished ........................................................... 97 Sa‘D'sra Award In Harmony With The Bible......................... 100 Did The Prophetsa Seek To Continue Warfare? ..................... 103 Teachings Of Judaism And Christianity About War ............. 106 The Qur’an On War And Peace ............................................. 108 v vi Life of Muhammadsa The Prophet'ssa Precepts About War ...................................... 116 Sporadic Attacks By Disbelievers ......................................... 119 The Prophetsa Leaves For Mecca With One Thousand Five Hundred Companions ............................................................ 121 Treaty Of Hudaibiya .............................................................. 125 Prophet'ssa Letters To Various Kings ..................................... 128 Letter To The King Of Iran ................................................... 133 The Letter To The Negus ....................................................... 135 Letter To The Ruler Of Egypt ............................................... 137 Letter To Chief Of Bahrain ................................................... 139 Fall Of Khaibar ...................................................................... 140 The Prophet'ssa Vision Fulfilled ............................................. 144 Battle Of Mauta ..................................................................... 147 The Prophetsa Marches On Mecca With Ten Thousand Followers ............................................................................... 152 Fall Of Mecca ........................................................................ 154 The Prophetsa Enters Mecca................................................... 157 Ka‘Ba Cleared Of Idols ......................................................... 163 The Prophetsa Forgives His Enemies ..................................... 165 ‘Ikrimara Becomes Muslim .................................................... 167 Battle Of Hunain ................................................................... 169 "The Prophetsa Of God Calls You" ........................................ 171 A Sworn Enemy Becomes A Devoted Follower ................... 174 The Prophetsa Distributes Booty ............................................ 175 Machinations Of Abu ‘Amir ................................................. 177 The Expedition Of Tabuk ..................................................... 178 The Last Pilgrimage ............................................................... 182 The Prophetsa Gives Hints Of His Death ............................... 186 Last Days Of The Prophetsa ................................................... 189 The Prophetsa Passes Away ................................................... 191 The Prophet'ssa Personality And Character ............................ 195 The Prophet'ssa Purity Of Mind And Cleanliness Of Body ... 196 The Prophet'ssa Simple Life ................................................... 198 Relationship With God .......................................................... 204 Disapproval Of Penance ........................................................ 212 Attitude Towards His Wives ................................................. 214 vii Life of Muhammadsa High Moral Qualities ............................................................. 215 His Self-Control ..................................................................... 217 Justice And Fair Dealing ....................................................... 219 Regard For The Poor ............................................................. 221 Safeguarding The Interests Of The Poor ............................... 225 Treatment Of Slaves .............................................................. 226 Treatment Of Women ............................................................ 227 Attitude Towards The Dead................................................... 231 Treatment Of Neighbours ...................................................... 232 Treatment Of Relatives .......................................................... 233 Keeping Good Company ....................................................... 236 Safeguarding People's Faith ................................................... 236 Overlooking Faults Of Others ............................................... 237 Patience In Adversity ............................................................. 240 Mutual Cooperation ............................................................... 241 Truthfulness ........................................................................... 242 Inquisitiveness ....................................................................... 244 Frank And Straightforward Dealing ...................................... 244 Pessimism .............................................................................. 245 Cruelty To Animals ............................................................... 245 Tolerance In Religious Matters ............................................. 246 Bravery .................................................................................. 247 Consideration Towards The Uncultured ................................ 247 The Fulfilling Of Covenants .................................................. 248 Deference Towards Servants Of Humanity ........................... 248 Life Of The Prophetsa An Open Book ................................... 249 Index Of Subject Matter ........................................................ 251 Index Of Names ..................................................................... 259 Index Of Places ...................................................................... 263 Foreword Life of Muhammadsa is part of Introduction to the study of the Holy Qur’an by Hadrat Mirza Bashirduddin Mahmud Ahmadra. The Introduction was translated into English by Qadi Muhammad Aslam and was first published in 1949 from London. Since then it has appeared in several editions. Life of Muhammadsa has also appeared in several editions and is out of stock now. We are publishing it again with an index which the original English edition did not have. We have also reset it to make it more attractive. Needless to say that it is much in demand and we very much hope that the present edition will meet this demand. Some minor corrections have also been made. The name of Muhammadsa, the Holy Prophet of Islam, has been followed by the symbol sa, which is an abbreviation for the salutation 'may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.' The names of other prophets and messengers are followed by the symbol as, an abbreviation for 'on whom be peace.' The actual salutations have not generally been set out in full, but they should nevertheless, be understood as being repeated in full in each case. The symbol ra is used with the name of the Disciples of the Holy Prophetsa and those of the Promised Messiahas. It stands for Radi Allahu ‘anhu/‘anha/‘anhum (May Allah be pleased with him/with her/with them). In transliterating Arabic words we have followed the following system adopted by the Royal Asiatic Society. at the beginning of a word, pronounced as a, i, u preceded by ا a very slight aspiration, like h in the English word 'honour'. th, pronounced like th in the English word 'thing'. ث h, a guttural aspirate, stronger than h. ح kh, pronounced like the Scotch ch in 'loch'. خ dh, pronounced like the English th in 'that'. ذ s, strongly articulated s. ص ix