Faith & Religion | |
Faith & Religion | |
3563 VIEWS | |
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Tuesday,
November 20, 2018 12.00PM / Bukola Akinyele, Proshare WebTV
Who Was Muhammad?
Muhammad is the prophet and founder
of Islam. Born in Mecca in 570, most of his early life was spent as a merchant.
At age 40, he began to have revelations from Allah that became the basis for
the Koran and the foundation of Islam. By 630 he had unified most of Arabia under
a single religion. As of 2015, there are over 1.8 billion Muslims in the world
who profess, “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.”
The Life of Muhammad
Muhammad was born around 570, AD in Mecca (now in Saudi Arabia). His
father died before he was born and he was raised first by his grandfather Abdul
Mutalib and then his uncle Abu Talib. He belonged to a poor but respectable
family of the Quraysh tribe. The family was active in Meccan politics and
trade.
Many of the tribes living in the Arabian
Peninsula at the time were nomadic, trading goods as they crisscrossed the
dessert. Most tribes were polytheistic, worshipping their own set of gods. The
town of Mecca was an important trading and religious center, 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 (Ibrahim to Muslims) 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.
The Prophet Muhammad
Muhammad was also very religious, occasionally taking journeys of devotion to sacred sites near Mecca. On one of his pilgrimages in 610, 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. However, Shi’a tradition states he welcomed the message from the Angel Gabriel and was deeply inspired to share his experience with other in his early teens.
Muhammad worked in a camel caravan,
following in the footsteps of many people his age, born of meager 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 Khadija, 15 years his senior. 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 childhood, but one, Fatima, would marry Muhammad’s cousin, Ali ibn Abi
Talib, whom Shi’ite Muslims regard as Muhammed’s successor.
Islamic tradition holds that the first persons to believe were his wife,
Khadija and his close friend Abu Bakr (regarded as the successor to Muhammad by
Sunni Muslims). Soon, Muhammad began to gather a small following, initially
encountering no opposition. Most people in Mecca either ignored him or mocked
him as just another prophet. However, when his message condemned idol worship
and polytheism, many of Mecca’s tribal leaders began to see Muhammad and his
message as a threat. Besides going against long standing beliefs, the
condemnation of idol worship had economic consequences for merchants who
catered to the thousands of pilgrims who came to Mecca every year. This was
especially true for members of Muhammad’s own tribe, the Quraysh, who were the
guardians of the Kaaba. Sensing a threat, Mecca’s merchants and leaders offered
Muhammad incentives to abandon his preaching, but he refused.
Increasingly, the resistance to Muhammed and his followers grew and they
were eventually forced to emigrate from Mecca to Medina, a city 260 miles to
the north in 622. This event marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar. There
Muhammad was instrumental in bringing an end to a civil war raging amongst
several of the city’s tribes. Muhammad settled in Medina, building his Muslim
community and gradually gathering acceptance and more followers.
Between 624 and 628, the Muslims were involved in a series of battles
for their survival. In the final major confrontation, The Battle of the Trench
and Siege of Medina, Muhammad and his followers prevailed and a treaty was
signed. The treaty was broken by the Meccan allies a year later. Muhammad had
plenty of forces and the balance of power had shifted away from the Meccan
leaders to him. In 630, the Muslim army marched into Mecca, taking the city with
minimum casualties. Muhammad gave amnesty to many of the Meccan leaders who had
opposed him and pardoned many others. Most of the Meccan population converted
to Islam. Muhammad and his followers then proceeded to destroy all of the
statues of pagan gods in and around the Kaaba.
The Death of Muhammad
After the conflict with Mecca was finally settled, Muhammad took his
first true Islamic pilgrimage to that city and in March, 632, he delivered his
last sermon at Mount Arafat. Upon his return to Medina to his wife’s home, he
fell ill for several days. He died on June 8, 632, at the age of 62, and was
buried at al-Masjid an-Nabawi (the Mosque of the Prophet) one of the first
mosques built by Muhammad in Medina.
Eid-El-Maulud Celebration
The word Maulud which has its root in the Arabic word, is the observance of the birthday of the Prophet Mohammed. This is regarded as an historic one because he is the last prophet.
In the early days, songs and poems were composed to honour Prophet Mohammed and thereafter recited and sung to the crowd.
Some of the most common methods of celebration are however seen to be decoration of mosques and houses, also some celebrate by donating to charity.
While several others see this day as a time of reflection and meditation and further spend the free time in reading their Quran or fasting in daylight, as they believe it helps strengthen their faith.
This is a constant reminder to all practising Islam to
be steadfast and dedicated in the religion while being charitable, tolerant and
ensuring peaceful co-existence.
Message From President
Buhari
In his 2018 Eid-El Maulud greetings
President Muhammadu Buhari believed the Islamic ceremony will help to promote
mutual harmony and tolerance amongst Nigerians.
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