Signs of the Messengers

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
As-salaamu'Alaykum,

This small thread will cover some of the signs of the Messengers (may Allahs peace and blessings be upon them all) (taken from The Messengers and Messages from Umar al-Ashqar). I include the thread in this section because it will cover mainly the miracles of Prophet Muhammad :saw:.
 

ditta

Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
Introduction

The Prophets whom Allah sent to His slaves told the people: we have been sent by Allah, and you have to believe what we tell you, and obey us by doing what we command you to do and by abstaining from what we forbid you to do. Allah tells us in Soorah ash-Shu'araa' the 26th chapter of the Qur'an that the Prophet Nooh (Noah) addressed his people, saying:

... Will you not fear Allah and obey Him? I am a trustworthy Messenger to you. So fear Allah, keep your duty to Him, and obey me.

(Qur'aan 26: 106-108)

The same words were spoken by the Messengers of Allah Hood, Saalih, Loot (Lot) and Shu'ayb to their peoples. Indeed, this is what every Messenger said to his people when he called them (to Allah).

As this is the case, then Allah has to establish clear signs, evidence and proof to confirm that the claim of the Messengers to be the Messengers of Allah is true, in order that proof may be established against the people, so that no one will have any excuse for not believing in them and obeying them.

Indeed We have sent Our Messengers with clear proofs...

(Qur'aan 57: 25)

- i.e., with evidence and clear signs which will demonstrate that they are telling the truth.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
Different Kinds of Signs

The kinds of signs which proved the veracity of each Messenger are many and varied. Some of those who listed the signs of Prophethood of our Prophet Muhammad :saw: counted nearly one thousand signs. These signs may be divided into different groups, each containing similar signs. We have divided the signs into five groups:

1) Signs and miracles which Allah caused in order to show that His Messengers were true.

2) Foretelling by earlier Prophets of the coming of later Prophets.

3) Lifestyle and conduct of the Prophets.

4) The content of the Messengers' call.

5) Allah's help and support.

We will look at each of these five in more detail.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
1 – Signs and Miracles

The word aayah (translated here as a 'sign') in Arabic means a sign which indicates something. What is meant here is something extraordinary which Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) causes to happen at the hands of His Messengers and Prophets, something the like of which human beings are unable to reproduce, such as turning a stick into a snake which moves quickly. These extraordinary signs which cannot be denied or rejected indicate that they are telling the truth in conveying the message they bring.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
Definition of signs and miracles

Scholars tend to call these signs mu’jizaat (miracles). Mu’jizah, in Arabic, is a noun derived from the word al- ‘ajz, which refers to the inability to do something, take a decision or control the affairs of something.

(Basaa'ir Dhawiy at-Tamyeez, 1/65).

Al-Fakhr ar-Raazi defined a miracle as, customarily meaning, something extraordinary, accompanied by a challenge which no one is able to meet.

(Lawaami` al-Anwaar al-Bahiyah, 2/289-290).

Ibn Hamdaan al-Hanbali defined it as words or actions that are extraordinary, if that is accompanied by the claim to be a Messenger and he does it in the context of challenging, and no one is able to meet that challenge or do anything like it or anything that even comes close to it.

(Ibid).

Based on the above, the following cannot be counted as miracles (mu’jizaat):

1) The feats which Allah gave to the Prophets but which did not occur in the context of a challenge, such as making water appear from between the fingers of the Messenger :saw:, his increasing a small amount of food, the tasbeeh (saying SubhaanAllah) of the pebbles in his hand, the trees coming to him, the weeping of the palm stump, etc.

2) The feats which Allah gave to people other than the Prophets, which the scholars of later generations called karaamah. Those who differentiate between mu’jizah and karaamah were the later scholars. But the word mu’jizah in Arabic and in the usage of the earlier scholars such as Imam Ahmad includes all of that.

(Majmoo al-Fataawa Shaykh al-Islam, 11/311; Lawaami` al-Anwaar al-Bahiyah, 2/290).

We have given them the name aayah (sign) as is mentioned in the Qur'aan. This is a comprehensive word which includes everything that Allah gave to His Prophets to show that they were true, whether or not it was intended as a challenge.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
Kinds of signs

If we examine the signs and miracles which Allah gave to His Messengers and Prophets, we will find that they are related to three things: knowledge, power and independence of means.

(Majmoo `al-Fataawa Shaykh al-Islam, 11/312-313).

Telling of unseen matters of the past and things which are yet to come, such as when the Prophet ‘Eesa (Jesus) told his people what they were eating and what they were storing in their houses, and when our Messenger :saw: told of the previous nations, and he told of the tribulations and signs of the Hour which were to come in the future, all of that has to do with knowledge.

Changing a stick into a snake, healing the leper and the blind, raising the dead, splitting the moon and the like, all have to do with power.

Allah's protecting the Messenger :saw: from the people, guarding him against those who wanted to do him harm, and enabling him to fast continually without affecting his energy, all has to do with independence of means.

These three matters - knowledge, power and independence of means - to which the signs and miracles were related, are limited and only Allah has the power to do all things. Hence Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) commanded His Messenger to disassociate himself from any such claim:

Say [O' Muhammad :saw:]: I don't tell you that with me are the treasures of Allah, nor [that] I know the Unseen; nor I tell you that I am an angel. I but follow what is revealed to me... '

(Qur'aan 6: 50)

The Messenger :saw: disassociated himself from any claim to have knowledge of the unseen, or to posses the treasures of the earth, or to be an angel who had no need for food, drink or wealth. The Messengers may possess some of these attributes in a limited sense which makes them different from the majority of people in that regard, so they learn that which Allah taught them, they may be able to do things that Allah enables them to do, and they may possess independence of means by the support of Allah.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
Examples of the signs of the Messengers


1) The sign of Allah's Prophet Saalih (aalayhis-salaam)

The Prophet Saalih called his people to worship Allah the One, the Unique:

And indeed We sent to Thamood their brother Saalih [Saleh], saying: 'Worship Allah [Alone and none else]...

(Qur'aan 27: 45)

But they disbelieved in him and demanded of him a sign to prove that he was telling the truth:

They said: 'You are only of those bewitched! You are but a human being like us. Then bring us a sign if you are of the truthful.'

(Qur'aan 26: 153-154)

Ibn Katheer said: "The mufassireen (Exegetes) stated that Thamood gathered together one day in their meeting-place, and the Messenger of Allah Saalih came to them and called them to Allah. He reminded them, warned them, preached to them and exhorted them. They said to him, 'If you can bring forth to us from this rock' - and they pointed to a rock there - a she-camel, with such-and-such features' - and they demanded features which are rarely found in camels, including the demand that it should be ten months pregnant.

Their Prophet Saalih said to them,

'If I respond to your demand in the manner that you want, will you believe in what I have brought to you and in the message with which I have been sent?'

They said,

'Yes.'

So he made them promise, then he went to his prayer-place and prayed for as long as Allah willed he should pray, Then he petitioned his Lord, asking Him to respond to their request. Allah commanded that rock to split, revealing a huge she-camel which was ten months pregnant, just as they had asked for. When they saw it with their own eyes, they saw a great miracle, a dazzling sign and definitive proof. Many of them believed, but most of them persisted in their kufr.

(Al-Bidaayah wan-Nihaayah, 1/134).

Allah stated that He responded to their demand for a sign:

He said: 'Here is a she-camel: it has a right to drink [water], and you have a right to drink [water] [each] on a day, known.

(Qur'aan 26: 155)

...Indeed there has come to you a clear sign [the miracle of the coming out of a huge she-camel from the midst of a rock] from your Lord. This she-camel of Allah is a sign unto you; so you leave her to graze in Allah's earth, and touch her not with harm...

(Qur 'aan 7: 73)

And Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) stated that this was a clear sign with no ambiguity, hence He described it as being "clear":

...And We sent the she-camel to Thamood as a clear sign...

(Qur 'aan: 7: 59)"
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
2) The miracle of the Prophet Ibraaheem (Abraham)

The Prophet Ibraaheem (Abraham) smashed the idols of his people which they used to worship, and they built the fire and threw him in. But Allah (subhaanahu wa ta'aala) commanded the fire not to harm him:

They said: 'Burn him and help your aalihah [gods], if you will be doing.'

We [Allah] said: 'O' fire! Be you coolness and safety for Ibraaheem [Abraham]!'

And they wanted to harm him, but We made them the worst losers.

(Qur'aan 21: 68-70)

Another of the signs which happened at the hands of Prophet Ibraaheem was the raising of the dead. Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) tells us the story of that:

And [remember] when Ibraaheem [Abraham] said, 'My Lord! Show me how You give life to the dead.' He [Allah] said: `Do you not believe?' He [Ibraaheem) (Abraham)] said: 'Yes [I believe], but to be stronger in Faith.' He said: 'Take four birds, then cause them to incline towards you [then slaughter them, cut them into pieces], and then put a portion of them on every hill, and call them, they will come to you in haste'...

(Qur'aan 2: 260)

So Allah commanded him to slaughter those birds, then to cut them into pieces, and scatter them across a number of hills, then to call them. The scattered pieces came back together, and were as they had been before, then life came back to them and they flew up into the air. Glory be to Allah, how great He is...
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
3) The signs of Allah's Prophet Moosa (Moses) (aalayhis-salaam)

Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) gave the Prophet Moosa nine clear signs:

And indeed We gave Moosa [Moses] nine clear signs...

(Qur 'aan 17: 101)

1) The greatest of these signs was the stick which changed into a huge snake when he threw it onto the ground:

'And what is that in your right hand, O' Moosa [Moses]?'

He said: 'This is my stick, whereon I lean, and wherewith I beat down branches for my sheep, and wherein I find other uses.'

[Allah] said: 'Cast it down, O' Moosa, [Moses]!

'He cast it down, and behold! It was a snake, moving quickly.

Allah said: 'Grasp it and fear not; We shall return it to its former state.'

(Qur'aan 20: 17-21)

This stick swallowed the dozens of ropes and sticks which the sorcerers of Pharaoh brought to compete with the Prophet Moosa:

They said: 'O' Moosa [Moses]! Either you throw first or we be the first to throw?'

[Moosa (Moses)] said: 'Nay, throw you [first]! ' Then behold! their ropes and their sticks, by their magic, appeared to him as though they moved fast.

So Moosa [Moses] conceived fear in himself.

We [Allah] said: 'Fear not! Surely, you will have the upper hand.

And throw that which is in your right hand! It will swallow up that which they have made. That which they have made is only a magician's trick, and the magician will never be successful, to whatever amount [of skill] he may attain.

(Qur 'aan 20: 65-69)

When the sorcerers saw with their own eyes what the snake of Moosa did,
they knew that this was not the action of a human being, rather it was the action of Allah, the Creator of man. They could not help but fall down before all the people, prostrating to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds:

So the magicians fell down prostrate. They said: 'We believe in the Lord of Haaroon [Aaron] and Moosa [Moses].’

(Qur'aan 20: 70)

2) Another of the signs with which Prophet Moosa (Moses) was sent was that which Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) mentioned in the aayah (verse):

And press your
hand to your
side: it will come forth white [and shining], without any disease as another sign.​


(Qur'an 20: 22)

He would put his hand into the sleeve of his garment, and it would be shining white like the moon, but with no disease, i.e., no leprosy or vitiligo alba (i.e., skin diseases which turn the skin white).

Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) mentions seven signs in Soorah al-A`raaf the 7th chapter of the Qur'an, where He mentions that He inflicted upon them:

3) The years of drought and famine, caused by low water levels in the Nile and the withholding of rain from the land of Egypt.

4) Shortness of crops, whereby the land withheld its goodness, and what was produced was affected by stunted growth, etc.

5) The flood which inundated the fields and destroyed cities and villages.

6) The locusts which did not leave anything green or dry but they
devoured it.

7) The lice, insects which caused physical harm to people.

8) The frogs which made their lives a misery because there were so many of them.

9) The blood which affected their food and drink.

And indeed We punished the people of Fir`awn [Pharaoh] with years of drought and shortness of fruits [crops], that they might remember [take heed].

But whenever good came to them, they said: 'Ours is this.' And if evil afflicted them, they ascribed it to evil omens connected with Moosa [Moses] and those with him. Be informed! Verily, their evil omens are with Allah but most of them know not.

They said [to Moosa (Moses)]: 'Whatever Aayaat [proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.] you may bring to us, to work therewith your sorcery on us, we shall never believe in you.'

So We sent on them: the flood, the locusts, the lice, the frogs, and the blood [as a succession of] manifest signs, yet they remained arrogant, and they were of those people who were Mujrimoon [criminals, polytheists and sinners].

(Qur'aan 7: 130-133)
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
Other signs

These are the nine signs with which Prophet Moosa (Moses) (aalayhis-salaam) was sent to Pharaoh. But there were many more miracles which Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) caused to happen at the hands of Moosa, such as when Moosa struck the sea with his stick and it parted, and when he struck the rock and twelve springs flowed forth from it, and when the manna and quails came down to the Children of Israel in the desert of Sinai, and other signs.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
4) The miracles of Allah's Prophet 'Eesa (Jesus) (aalayhis-salaam)

Among the miracles which Allah has told us about is that he ('Eesa) used to fashion something resembling a bird out of clay, then he would breathe into it and it would become a bird by the will and decree of Allah. He would touch the blind and he would be healed, by the will of Allah; he would touch the leper and Allah would take away his leprosy; he would pass by the dead and call to them, and Allah would bring them back to life.

The Qur'an tells us this in the words in which Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) addresses 'Eesa (Jesus):

...And when you made out of the clay, a figure like that of a bird, by My Permission, and you breathed into it, and it became a bird by My Permission, and you healed those born blind, and the lepers by My Permission, and when you brought forth the dead by My Permission.

(Qur'aan 5: 110)

And among his signs is that table which Allah sent down from heaven, when the Disciples asked Prophet 'Eesa to bring it down, and it was as 'Eesa had asked for it, a festival for the first and the last of them.

[Remember] when Al-Hawaariyoon [the disciples] said: 'O"Eesa [Jesus], son of Maryam [Mary]! Can your Lord send down to us a table spread [with food] from heaven?' Eesa [Jesus] said: 'Fear Allah, if you are indeed believers.'

They said: 'We wish to eat thereof and to satisfy our hearts [to be stronger in Faith], and to know that you have indeed told us the truth and that we ourselves be its witnesses.'

'Eesa [Jesus], son of Maryam [Mary], said: 'O' Allah, our Lord! Send us from the heaven a table spread [with food] that there may be for us - for the first and the last of us - a festival and a sign from You; and provide us with sustenance, for You are the Best of sustainers.'

Allah said, 'I am going to send it down unto you, but if any of you after that disbelieves, then I will punish him with a torment such as I have not inflicted on anyone among [all] the Aalameen [mankind and jinn].'

(Qur'aan 5: 112-115)
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
5) Signs of the...


...Seal of the Prophets and Final Messenger (salla-Allahu 'Alayhi wa-Sallam)

Allah caused dazzling miracles and clear signs to happen at the hands of our Prophet Muhammad :saw:. When the seeker of truth examines them, they will show him that this is a testimony from Allah bearing witness to the truth of His Messenger :saw:. Some of the scholars listed them, and they amounted to some thousand miracles. Books have been written about them, and the scholars of Tawheed, tafseer, hadith and history have all discussed and explained them.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
The greatest sign

The greatest of the signs which Allah gave to our Messenger :saw:, indeed the greatest sign of all the Messengers, is the Holy Qur'an, the clear Book. It is a sign which addresses both the heart and the mind, a sign which will abide until the Day of Judgement, which cannot be changed or altered.

...And verily, it is an honourable well-fortified respected Book [because it is Allah's Speech, and He has protected it from corruption].

Falsehood cannot come to it from before it or behind it, [it is] sent down by the All-Wise, Worthy of all praise [Allah].

(Qur'aan 41: 41-42)

Allah challenged the most eloquent of the Arabs with this Book. Eloquence was the area in which the Arabs excelled. The Arabs were hostile towards the call of Islam and the Messenger of Islam, and they could have destroyed the call of Islam if their most eloquent speakers had managed to produce something to rival this Book, but they were unable to do so:

And if you [Arab pagans, Jews, and Christians] are in doubt concerning that which We have sent down [i.e. the Qur'an] to Our slave [Muhammad :saw:], then produce a Soorah [chapter] of the like thereof and call your witnesses [supporters and helpers] besides Allah, if you are truthful.

But if you do it not, and you can never do it, then fear the Fire [Hell] whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the disbeliever.

(Qur'aan 2: 23-24)
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
A unique kind of miracle

Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) willed that the miracle of the last Prophet, Muhammad :saw: should be of a kind that was different from the miracles of the other Messengers. Allah could have sent down a physical miracle that would have dazzled those who saw it:

If We will, We could send down to them from the heaven a sign, to which they would bend their necks in humility.

(Qur'aan 26: 4)

If Allah had willed, He could have sent down from heaven an overwhelming sign which they could not have disputed and they would have had no choice but to believe, and they would have had to express their submission to it in a physical manner: ...to which they would bend their necks in humility (Qur'an 26: 4), as if this posture would have become permanent. But Allah willed that the miracle of this final message should be a sign, mighty, overwhelming and non-vanquishing, so He made its sign the Qur'an, a complete way of life, a miracle in every aspect.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
The Night Journey and Ascent into heaven (Israa' and Mi`raaj)

Another of the clear signs and extraordinary miracles was when Allah took His Prophet by night from Al-Masjid al-Haraam (in Makkah) to Al-Masjid al-Aqsaa (in Jerusalem), where Allah brought the Prophets together with him and he led them in prayer as their Imam:

Glorified [and Exalted] be He [Allah] [above all that (evil) they associate with Him] Who took His slave [Muhammad] for a journey by night from Al-Masjid al-Haraam [at Makkah] to Al-Masjid al-Aqsaa [in Jerusalem], the neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, in order that We might show him [Muhammad :saw:] of Our Aayaat [proofs, evidences, lessons, signs, etc.]...

(Qur 'aan 17: 1)

Thence he was taken up to the highest heavens, where he saw some of the greatest signs of his Lord. He saw the Archangel Jibreel (Gabriel) (aalayhis-salaam) in the real form with which Allah had created him. He saw Sidrat al-Muntahaa (the Lote-Tree of the utmost boundary), he passed beyond the seven heavens, and the Most Merciful spoke with him and drew him nigh.

Will you then dispute with him [Muhammad :saw:] about what he saw [during the Mi 'raaj (Ascent of the Prophet to the seven heavens)].
And indeed he [Muhammad :saw:] saw him [Jibreel (Gabriel)] at a second descent [i.e. another time].

Near Sidrat-ul-Muntahaa [a lote tree of the utmost boundary over the seventh heaven beyond which none can pass].

Near it is the Paradise of Abode.

When that covered the lote tree which did cover it!

The sight [of Prophet Muhammad :saw:] turned not aside [right or left], nor it transgressed beyond the limit [ordained for it].

Indeed he [Muhammad :saw:] did see of the Greatest Signs, of his Lord [Allah].}

(Qur'aan 53: 12-18)

Quraysh thought that the claim of the Messenger of Allah :saw: was a lie, because it used to take the caravans weeks to go to Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem) and return; how could a man claim to have gone there and come back in less than a night? This was something amazing. Indeed it was amazing, but our amazement subsides when we realize that the One Who took him on that night journey was Allah, and Allah is Able to do all things.
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
The splitting of the moon

Another of the miracles of the Prophet :saw: was the splitting of the moon. The people of Makkah asked the Messenger :saw: for a sign, so the moon was split in two, until they could see (a place called) Al-Harraa' between the two halves. At the time when the moon was split it was full. Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aala) recorded this sign in His Book, where He said:

The Hour has drawn near, and the moon has been cleft asunder [the people of Makkah requested Prophet Muhammad :saw: to show them a miracle, so he showed them the splitting of the moon].

And if they see a sign, they turn away, and say: 'This is continuous magic.'

(Qur'aan 54: 1-2)

Ibn Katheer narrated that the Muslims were unanimously agreed that this sign took place, and that the ahaadeeth which mention the splitting of the moon are mutawaatir, with so many isnads that this has to be certain.

(Al-Bidaayah wan-Nihaayah, 3/118).

This miracle was seen by people throughout the Arabian Peninsula. The people of Makkah did not believe it and they said,

"Muhammad :saw: has bewitched us."

Then they had second thoughts and said,

"Wait and listen to what the travellers tell you, for Muhammad :saw: cannot bewitch all the people."

The following day, they asked those who had come to them from outside Makkah, and they told them that they had seen it too.

People also saw the splitting of the moon from beyond the Arabian Peninsula. Ibn Katheer said:

"Its splitting was seen in many parts of the world. It is said that this is recorded in some parts of India. A building was built that night, and dated as the night when the moon split. "

(Ibid, 3/120).

It is said that the splitting of the moon is not something impossible, for science witnessed the splitting of the comet Procus into two parts in 1889 CE, and the comet Bila split into two parts in 1846 CE. The astronomer Spencer Jones discussed the splitting of comets and meteors in his book Worlds Without End.

(Ibid, 130).

In response, to this statement it is said:

"The difference between the splitting of the moon and the splitting of these two comets is that they (the comets) were not put back together after they split, but the moon was put back together. This is the difference which is to be expected between a natural astronomical phenomenon and an astronomical miracle which occurred at the hands of a Messenger, because a miracle is of limited duration and ceases when its purpose has been fulfilled; if it had continued it would simply have been a natural phenomenon and would no longer have been something miraculous. "

(Ibid, 131).
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
He salla-Allahu 'Alayhi wa-Sallam caused food to increase

This happened to the Prophet :saw; more than once. For example, Anas (radhiyAllaahu anh) narrated:

"Abu Talhah said to Umm Sulaym,

'I heard the voice of the Messenger of Allah :saw: sounding weak, and I knew that he was hungry. Do you have anything?'

She said,

'Yes.'

She brought out some loaves made from barley. Then she took out a cloth of hers, and rolled the bread up. Then she placed it under my arm, and wrapped the extra cloth around my head. Then she sent me to the Messenger of Allah :saw: and I took the food to him. I found the Messenger of Allah :saw: in the mosque, and the people were with him. I stood there and the Messenger of Allah :saw: said to me,

'Did Abu Talhah send you?'

I said,

'Yes.'

He said,

'With food?'

I said,

'Yes.'

The Messenger of Allah :saw: said to those who were with him,

'Get up.'

Then he set out, and I set out ahead of them until I came to Abu Talhah and told him.

Abu Talhah said,

'O' Umm Sulaym, the Messenger of Allah :saw: has brought the people,
and we do not have enough to feed them.'

She said,

'Allah and His Messenger know best.'

Abu Talhah went out to meet the Messenger of Allah :saw:, and the Messenger of Allah came with Abu Talhah. The Messenger of Allah said:

'Tell me, O' Umm Sulaym, what do you have?'

She brought that bread. The Messenger of Allah ordered that it should be cut into pieces. Umm Sulaym squeezed butter skin on top of it, then the Messenger of Allah :saw: said what Allah willed that he should say.

Then he said,

'Let ten of them come and eat.'

So they came and ate until they had had enough, then they left.

Then he said,

'Let (another ten) come and eat.'

So they came and ate until they had had enough, then they left.

Then he said,

'Let (another ten) come and eat.'

So they came and ate until they had had enough, then they left.

Then he said,

'Let (another ten) come and eat.'

So all the people ate and had enough, and there were seventy or eighty men."

(This is narrated by both Bukhari and Muslim)

(Mishkaat al-Masaabeeh, 3/182).
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
The report of Jaabir ibn 'Abdullah

Another example narrated by both Bukhari and Muslim from Jaabir ibn 'Abdullah. He said:

"I came to my wife (on the day of Al-Khandaq) and said,

'Have you got anything? For I have seen the Prophet :saw: very hungry.'

She brought out a bag in which there was a saa’ of barley, and we had a black rooster, so I slaughtered it and ground the barley, and we put the meat in an earthenware pot. Then I came to the Prophet :saw: and whispered to him, saying,

'O' Messenger of Allah, we have slaughtered a rooster of ours and ground a saa’ of barley. Come and bring a few people with you.'

The Prophet :saw: announced in a loud voice,

'O' people of Al-Khandaq! Jaabir has made food, come on!'

The Messenger of Allah :saw: said to Jaabir,

`Do not set down your earthenware pot or bake your bread until I come.'

He came, and the dough was brought out to him. He spat in it and blessed it (prayed for blessing for it), then he went to our earthenware pot and spat in it and blessed it.

Then he said,

'Call the baker woman so that she may help you to make the bread; scoop food from your pot but do not remove it from the fire. There were a thousand people, and I swore by Allah that they kept on eating until they had eaten their fill and turned away, and our pot was still bubbling, full of food as it had been in the beginning, and our dough was also as it had been at the beginning. "

(Mishkaat al-Masaabeeh, 3/168).
 

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Alhamdu'Lillaah
Staff member
He caused water to increase, it flowed from between his fingers

This happened often by the Messenger :saw:; we will mention a few examples. Both Bukhari and Muslim narrated from Jaabir ibn 'Abdullah stating:

"The people became thirsty on the day of Al-Hudaybiyah. The Messenger of Allah :saw: had in front of him a vessel from which he did wudoo ',

- then the people came to him and said,

'We do not have any water for wudoo ' or to drink except for what is in your vessel.'

So the Prophet :saw: put his hand in the vessel and then water started to flow from between his fingers like springs. We drank it and we did wudoo’.

Jaabir was asked,

'How many were you?'

He said,

'If we had been one hundred thousand it would have sufficed us, but we were fifteen hundred. "

(Ibid, 3/170).

He :saw: also increased the water of the well of Al-Hudaybiyah on the day of Al-Hudaybiyah. Bukhari narrated from Al-Baraa' ibn `Aazib:

"We were fourteen hundred people with the Messenger of Allah :saw: on the day of Al-Hudaybiyah. From the well Al-Hudaybiyah we drank and made it dry, i.e. did not leave a drop of water in it. The Messenger :saw: heard about this, so he came to the well and sat at its edge, then he called for a vessel of water, did wudoo ', then rinsed his mouth; then he supplicated and poured the water into the well.

He said,

'Leave it for a while.'

Then they drank from it themselves and gave it to their animals, until they left that place."

(Mishkaat al-Masaabeeh, 3/170).

Bukhari narrated from 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ood that he said:

"We used to think that the signs were a blessing, but you think they are something frightening. We were with the Prophet :saw: on a journey, and our water supply ran low.

He :saw: said,

'Bring me some water.'

They brought a vessel in which there was a little water. He put his hand in the vessel then said,

'Come to the blessed, the pure, and the blessing is from Allah.'

I saw the water welling up between the fingers of the Messenger of Allah :saw:, and we used to hear the tasbeeh! (saying SubhaanAllaah) of the
food as he was eating."

(Mishkaat al-Masaabeeh, 3/170).
 

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His enemies were prevented from harming him

Among the examples Allah answered the prayer of the Prophet :saw: is that when he was migrating from Makkah to Madeenah,

"Suraaqah ibn Maalik caught up with him. Suraaqah's horse sank to its belly in the ground and could not move.

Suraaqah said,

'I see that you have prayed against me. Pray for me, and by Allah I will divert the search away from you.'

So the Prophet :saw: prayed for him, and he was saved. Thereafter whenever Suraaqah met anyone he told them,

'I have already looked in this direction, so don't bother to look.'

Everyone he met, he turned him/them back."

(Bukhari and Muslim)

(Ibid, 3/166).

Again at the battle of Hunayn,

"The Muslims were routed but the Messenger :saw: and a few of the believers - those who had offered their oath of allegiance beneath the tree - stood firm. When the fighting grew intense, the Prophet took some pebbles and threw them towards the faces of the kuffaar (the fighting disbelievers), then he said:

'They have been defeated by the Lord of Muhammad :saw:.’”

Al-`Abbaas, the narrator of the hadith, said:

"By Allah, as soon as he threw the pebbles, I started to see that their force had been spent and they began to retreat."

This is narrated by Muslim.

(Mishkaat al-Masaabeeh, 3/172).

According to a report narrated by Salamah ibn al-Akwa', recorded by Muslim:

"We were with the Messenger of Allah :saw: during the campaign of Hunayn, and the Muslim army fled, deserting the Messenger of Allah. When the enemy came near, the Messenger of Allah :saw: got down from his mule, picked up a handful of dust from the ground, threw it into their (enemy) faces and said:

'May these faces be deformed!

'There was no one among the enemy whose eyes were not filled with the dust from this handful, and they fled in retreat. Thus Allah defeated them, and the Messenger of Allah :saw: distributed their booty among the Muslims."

(Ibid).

Another example narrated by Mulsim:

"When Abu Jahl swore by Al-Laat and Al-`Uzza that if he saw the Messenger :saw: praying in the mosque where Quraysh used to gather, he would step on his neck or rub his face in the dust. When he saw the Messenger :saw: prostrating, he wanted to do what he had sworn to do, but when he approached him, he was suddenly thrown onto his back, raising his arms as if to protect himself.

He was asked,

'What is the matter with you?'

He said,

'Between me and him there is a ditch of fire, and terror, and wings.'

The Messenger of Allah :saw: said:

'Had he come near me, the angels would have torn him limb by limb.’”

(Jaami` al-Usool, 12/94).
 
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