Prophet Adam a.s.

Prophet Adam 'Alaihissalam.

By Aisha Stacey 

In the name of Allāh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful;

All the praise and Thanks are due to Allāh, the Lord of al-‘ālamīn. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allāh, and that Muhammad, Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam is His Messenger.

Description: The thought provoking story of Adam described with references from the Divine Books; The creation of the first woman, the tranquil dwelling in Paradise and the beginning of enmity between Satan and mankind; Satan’s deception of Adam and Eve in Heaven and some lessons we can learn from it; Adam, his children, the first murder and his death; and, Some modern findings about the commonality of humans in comparison with some Quranic facts.

1. The Creation of Adam ‘Alaihissalam: The First Man

Islam provides us with the astonishing details of the creation of Adam [1]. Both Christian and Jewish traditions are remarkably similar yet importantly different to the Quran. The Book of Genesis describes Adam as being made from “the dust of the earth,” and in the Talmud, Adam is described as being kneaded from mud.

And Allah said to the angels:

“‘Verily, I am going to place mankind generations after generations on earth.’ They said: ‘Will You place therein those who will make mischief therein and shed blood, while we glorify You with praises and thanks and sanctify You.’ God said: ‘I know that which you do not know.’” (Al-Baqarah, 2:30)

So begins the story of Adam, the first man, the first human being. Allah created Adam from a handful of soil containing portions from all its varieties on Earth. Angels were sent to earth to collect the soil that was to become Adam. It was red, white, brown, and black; it was soft and malleable, hard and gritty; it came from the mountains and the valleys; from infertile deserts and lush fertile plains and all the natural varieties in between. The descendants of Adam were destined to be as diverse as the handful of soil from which their ancestor was created; all have different appearances, attributes and qualities.

1.1 Soil or Clay?

Throughout the Quran, the soil used to create Adam is referred to by many names, and from this we are able to understand some of the methodology of his creation. Each name for soil is used at a different stage of Adam’s creation. Soil, taken from the earth, is referred to as soil; Allah also refers to it as clay. When it is mixed with water it becomes mud, when it is left to stand the water content reduces and it becomes sticky clay (or mud). If it is again left for some time it begins to smell, and the colour becomes darker – black, smooth clay. It was from this substance that God moulded the form of Adam. His soulless body was left to dry, and it became what is known in the Quran as sounding clay. Adam was moulded from something akin to potter’s clay. When it is rapped it produces a ringing sound. [2]

1.2 The First Man is honoured

And Allah said, to the Angels:

“And (remember) when your Lord said to the angels: ‘I am going to create a human (Adam) from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by Me, then you fall down prostrate to him.” (Sad, 38:71-72)

Allah honoured the first human, Adam, in countless ways. Allah blew his soul into him, He fashioned him with His own hands and He ordered the Angels to bow down before him. And God said to the Angels:

“....Prostrate to Adam and they prostrated except Iblis (Satan)....” (Al-‘Araf, 7:11)

While worship is reserved for God Alone this prostration by the Angels to Adam was a sign of respect and honour. It is said that, as Adam’s body trembled into life, he sneezed and immediately said ‘All praise and thanks is due to God;’ so God responded by bestowing His Mercy upon Adam. Although this account is not mentioned in either the Quran or the authentic narrations of the Prophet Muhammad, (Sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), it is mentioned in some commentaries of the Quran. Thus, in his first seconds of life, the first man is recognized as an honoured creature, covered with the infinite Mercy of God. [3]

It was also said by the Prophet Muhammad  (Sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) that God created Adam in His image.[4] This does not mean that Adam was created to look similar to God, as God is unique in all His aspects, we are unable to comprehend or form an image of Him. It does mean, however, that Adam was given some qualities which also God has, although incomparable. He was given qualities of mercy, love, free will, and others.

1.3 The First Greeting

Adam was instructed to approach a group of Angels sitting near to him and greet them with the words Assalamu ‘alaikum (May God’s peace be upon you), they answered ‘and also upon you be God’s peace, mercy and blessings’. From that day forward these words became the greeting of those submitted to God. From the moment of Adam’s creation, we his descendents were instructed to spread peace.

1.4 Adam, the Caretaker

God told mankind that He did not create them except that they should worship Him. Everything in this world was created for Adam and his descendants, in order to aid us in our ability to worship and know God. Due to God’s infinite Wisdom, Adam and his descendants were to be the caretakers on earth, so God taught Adam what he needed to know to perform this duty. God mentions:

“He taught Adam all the names of everything.” (Al-Baqarah, 2:31)

God gave Adam the ability to identify and designate names to everything; He taught him language, speech and the ability to communicate. God imbued Adam with an insatiable need for and love of knowledge. After Adam had learned the names and uses for all things God said to the Angels...

“‘tell me the names of these if you are truthful.’ They answered ‘Glory be to You, we have knowledge except what You have taught us. Verily it is You the All Knower, the All Wise.’” (Al-Baqarah, 2:31-32)

God turned to Adam and said:

“‘O Adam! Inform them of their names,’ and when he had informed them of their names, He said: Did I not tell you that I know the unseen in the heavens and the earth, and I know what you reveal and what you have been hiding?” (Al-Baqarah, 2:33)

Adam tried to speak with the Angels, but they were occupied worshipping God. The Angels were given no specific knowledge or freedom of will, their sole purpose being to worship and praise God. Adam, on the other hand, was given the ability to reason, make choices and identify objects and their purpose. This helped to prepare Adam for his coming role on earth. So Adam knew the names of everything, but he was alone in Heaven. One morning Adam awoke to find a woman gazing at him. [5]

2. The Creation of Eve and the Role of Satan

Adam opened his eyes and looked into the beautiful face of a woman gazing down at him. Adam was surprised and asked the woman why she had been created. She revealed that she was to ease his loneliness and bring tranquility to him. The Angels questioned Adam. They knew that Adam possessed knowledge of things they did not know about and the knowledge mankind would need to occupy the earth. They said ‘who is this?’ And Adam replied ‘this is Eve’.

Eve is Hawwa in Arabic; it comes from the root word hay, meaning living. Eve is also an English variant of the old Hebrew word Havva, also deriving from hay. Adam informed the Angels that Eve was so named because she was made from a part of him and him, Adam, was a living being.

Both Jewish and Christian traditions also maintain that Eve was created from Adam’s rib, although in a literal translation of the Jewish tradition, rib is sometimes referred to as side.

“And God said: ‘O Mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a single person (Adam) and from Him (Adam) He created his wife (Eve), and from them both He created many men and women.’” (An-Nisa’, 4:1)

The traditions of Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) relate that Eve was created while Adam was sleeping from his shortest left rib and that, after sometime, she was clothed with flesh. He (Prophet Muhammad) used the story of Eve’s creation from Adam’s rib as a basis for imploring people to be gentle and kind to women. “O Muslims! I advise you to be gentle with women, for they are created from a rib, and the most crooked portion of the rib is its upper part. If you try to straighten it, it will break, and if you leave it, it will remain crooked; so I urge you to take care of the women.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)

2.1 Dwelling in Paradise

Adam and Eve dwelt in tranquility in Paradise. This, too, is agreed upon by Islamic, Christian and Jewish traditions. Islam tells us that all of Paradise was theirs to enjoy and God said to Adam, “eat both of you freely with pleasure and delight of things therein as wherever you will...” (Al-Baqarah, 2:35) The Quran does not reveal the exact location of where this Paradise was; however, commentators agree that it is not on the earth, and that the knowledge of the location is of no benefit to mankind. The benefit is in understanding the lesson from the events that took place there.

God continued his instructions to Adam and Eve by warning them “...come not near this tree or you both will be of the wrongdoers.” (Al-Baqarah, 2:35) The Quran does not reveal what type of tree it was; we have no details and seeking such knowledge also produces no benefit. What is understood is that Adam and Eve lived a tranquil existence and understood that they were forbidden to eat from the tree. However, Satan was waiting to exploit the weakness of mankind.

2.2 Who is Satan?

Satan is a creature from the world of the Jinn. The Jinn are a creation of God made from fire. They are separate and different from both the Angels and mankind; however, like mankind, they possess the power of reason and can choose between good and evil. The Jinn existed before the creation of Adam [6] and Satan was the most righteous among them, so much so that he was elevated to a high position amongst the Angels.

“The Angels prostrated themselves all of them together. Except Satan, he refused to be among the prostrators. God said: ‘O Satan! What is your reason for not being among the prostrators? ‘Satan said: ‘I am not the one to prostrate myself to a human being, whom You created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud.’ God said: ‘Then get out from Here for verily you are an outcast or cursed one. Verily the curse shall be upon you till the Day of Resurrection.’” (Al-Hijr, 15:30-35)

2.3 The Role of Satan

Satan was there in the Paradise of Adam and Eve and his vow was to misguide and deceive them and their descendents. Satan said: “…surely I will sit in wait against them (human beings) on Your Straight Path. Then I will come to them from before them and behind them, from their right and from their left…” (Al-‘Araf, 7:16-17) Satan is arrogant, and considered himself better then Adam, and thus mankind. He is crafty and cunning, but ultimately understands the weakness of human beings; he recognises their loves and desires. [7]

Satan did not say to Adam and Eve “go eat from that tree” nor did he out rightly tell them to disobey God. He whispered into their hearts and planted disquieting thoughts and desires. Satan said to Adam and Eve, “...Your Lord did not forbid you this tree save that you should become Angels or become of the immortals.” (Al-‘Araf, 7:20) Their minds became filled with thoughts of the tree, and one day they decided to eat from it. Adam and Eve behaved as all human beings do; they became preoccupied with their own thoughts and the whisperings of Satan and they forgot the warning from God.

It is at this point that the Jewish and Christian traditions differ greatly from Islam. At no point do the words of God – the Quran, or the traditions and sayings of Prophet Muhammad - indicate that Satan came to Adam and Eve in the form of a snake or serpent.

Islam in no way indicates that Eve was the weaker of the two, or that she tempted Adam to disobey God. Eating the fruit of the tree was a mistake committed by both Adam and Eve. They bear equal responsibility. It was not the original sin spoken about in Christian traditions. The descendents of Adam are not being punished for the sins of their original parents. It was a mistake, and God, in His infinite Wisdom and Mercy, forgave them both.

3. The Descent

Islam rejects the Christian concept of original sin and the notion that all humans are born sinners due to the actions of Adam. God says in the Quran:

“And no bearer of burdens shall bear another’s burden.” (Fatir, 35:18)

Every human being is responsible for his or her actions and is born pure and free from sin. Adam and Eve committed a mistake, they repented sincerely and God in His infinite wisdom forgave them.

“Then they both ate of that tree, and so their private parts appeared to them, and they began to stick on themselves the leaves from Paradise for their covering. Thus did Adam disobey his Lord, so he went astray? Then his Lord chose him, and turned to him with forgiveness and gave him guidance.” (Ta-Ha, 20:121-122)


Mankind has a long history of committing mistakes and forgetting. Even so, how was it possible for Adam to have committed such a mistake? The reality was that Adam did not have any experience with the whisperings and ploys of Satan. Adam had seen the arrogance of Satan when he refused to follow the commands of God; he knew that Satan was his enemy but had no familiarity with how to resist Satan’s tricks and schemes. The Prophet Muhammad SAW told us:

“Knowing something is not the same as seeing it.” (Sahih Muslim)

Allah said:

“So he (Satan) misled them with deception.” (Al-‘Araf, 7:22)

Allah tested Adam so that he could learn and gain experience. In this way God prepared Adam for his role on earth as a caretaker and a Prophet of God. From this experience, Adam learned the great lesson that Satan is cunning, ungrateful and the avowed enemy of mankind. Adam, Eve and their descendants learned that Satan caused their expulsion from heaven. Obedience to God and enmity towards Satan is the only path back to Heaven.

Allah said to Adam:

“Get you down (upon the earth), all of you together, from Paradise, some of you are an enemy to some others. Then, if there comes to you guidance from Me, whoever follows My Guidance shall neither go astray, nor fall into distress and misery.” (Ta-Ha, 20:123)

The Quran tells us that Adam subsequently received from his Lord some words; a supplication to pray, which invoked God’s forgiveness. This supplication is very beautiful and can be used when asking for God’s pardon of your sins.

“Our Lord! We have wronged ourselves. If you forgive us not and bestow not upon us Your Mercy, we shall certainly be of the losers.” (Al-‘Araf, 7:23)

Mankind continues to commit mistakes and wrong doing, and through them we only harm ourselves. Our sins and mistakes have not harmed, nor will it harm God. If God does not forgive us and have mercy on us, it is we who will surely be among the losers. We need God!

“‘On earth will be a dwelling place for you and an enjoyment, for a time.’ He said: ‘Therein you shall live and therein you shall die, and from it you shall be brought out (resurrected).’” (Al-‘Araf, 7:24–25)

Adam and Eve left heaven and descended upon earth. Their descent was not one of degradation; rather it was dignified. In the English language we are familiar with things being either singular or plural; this is not the case for Arabic. In the Arabic language there is singular, then an extra grammatical number category denoting two. Plural is used for three and more.

When God said: “Get you down, all of you” He used the word for plural indicating that he was not speaking to Adam and Eve alone but that He was referring to Adam, his wife and his descendants – mankind. We, the descendants of Adam, do not belong to this earth; we are here for a temporary time, as is indicated by the words: “for a time.” We belong to the hereafter and are destined to take our place in either Heaven or Hell. 

3.1 The Freedom to Choose

This experience was an essential lesson and demonstrated free will. If Adam and Eve were to live on earth, they needed to be aware of the tricks and schemes of Satan; they also needed to understand the dire consequences of sin, and the infinite Mercy and Forgiveness of God. God knew that Adam and Eve would eat from the tree. He knew that Satan would strip away their innocence.

It is important to understand that, although God knows the outcome of events before they happen and allows them, he does not force things to happen. Adam had free will and bore the consequences of his deeds. Mankind has free will and thus is free to disobey God; but there are consequences. God praises those who obey his commands and promises them great reward, and He condemns those who disobey him and warns them against doing so. [8]

3.2 Where Adam and Eve descended

There are many reports on the subject of where on earth Adam and Eve descended, although none of them come from the Quran or Sunnah. We thus understand that the location of their descent is something that is of no importance, and there is no benefit in this knowledge was we to have it.

We do know however that Adam and Eve descended to earth on a Friday. In a tradition narrated to inform us of the importance of Fridays, the Prophet Muhammad, (Sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), said:

“The best of days on which the sun has risen is Friday. One this day Adam was created, and on this day he was descended to earth.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)

4. Adam’s Life on Earth

Adam and Eve left Paradise and began their life on earth. God had prepared them in many ways. He gave them the experience of struggling against the whisperings and schemes of Satan. He taught Adam the names of everything and instructed him in its properties and usefulness. Adam took up his position as caretaker of the earth and Prophet of God.

Adam, the first Prophet of God was responsible for teaching his wife and offspring how to worship God and seek His forgiveness. Adam established the laws of God and set about trying to support his family and learning to subdue and care for the earth. His task was to perpetuate, cultivate, construct and populate; he was to raise children who would live according to God’s instructions and care for and improve the earth.

4.1 Adam’s First Four Children

Adam and Eve’s first children, Cain and his sister, were twins, Abel and his sister, another set of twins, soon followed. Adam and his family lived in peace and harmony. Cain ploughed the earth while Abel raised livestock. Time passed and the occasion came for the sons of Adam to marry. A group of the companions of Prophet Muhammad including Ibn Abbas and Ibn Mas’ud related that inter-marriage of the male of one pregnancy with the female of another had been the practice among Adam’s children. Therefore we know that God’s plan to fill the earth included each of Adam’s sons marrying the twin sister of the other.

It seems that beauty has played a part in the attraction of men and women since the beginning. Cain was not pleased with the partner chosen for him. Cain began to envy his brother and refused to obey the command of his father and, in doing so, he disobeyed God. God created man with both good and bad tendencies, and the struggle to overcome our baser instincts is part of His test for us.

God commanded that each son was to offer a sacrifice. His judgement would favour the son whose offer was the most acceptable. Cain offered his worst grain, but Abel offered his best livestock. God accepted Abel’s sacrifice, so Cain became enraged, threatening to kill his brother.

“And (O Muhammad) recite to them (the Jews) the story of the two sons of Adam (Abel and Cain) in truth; when each offered a sacrifice to God, it was accepted from the one but not from the other. The latter said to the former; ‘I will surely kill you.’” (Al-Maidah, 5:27)

Abel advised his brother that God would accept good deeds from those that fear and serve Him, but reject the good deeds of those who are arrogant, selfish and disobedient towards God.

“The former said: ‘Verily God accepts only from those who are pious. If you do stretch your hand against me to kill me I shall never stretch my hand against you to kill you, for I fear God; the Lord of mankind, jinn, and all that exists.’” (Al-Maidah, 5:27-28)

4.2 The First Murder

“So the self (base desires) of the other (latter one) encouraged him and made fair seeming to him the murder of his brother; he murdered him and became one of the losers.” (Al-Maidah, 5:28)

Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) informed us that Cain became angry and hit his brother over the head with a piece of iron. It was also said in another narration that Cain hit Abel over the head while he was sleeping.

“God sent a crow who scratched the ground to show him to hide the dead body of his brother. He (the murderer) said: ‘Woe to me! Am I not even able to be as this crow and to hide the dead body of my brother?’ Then he became one of those who regretted.” (Al-Maidah, 5:30)

Adam was devastated; he had lost both his first and second born sons. One had been murdered; the other was won over by mankind’s greatest enemy – Satan. Patiently, Adam prayed for his son, and continued to care for the earth. He taught his many children and grandchildren about God. He told them of his own encounter with Satan and advised them to beware of Satan’s tricks and schemes. Years and years passed, and Adam grew old and his children spread out across the earth.

4.3 Adam’s Death

All of mankind is the children of Adam. In one narration, the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) informed us that God showed Adam his descendants. Adam saw a beautiful light in Prophet David’s eyes and loved him, so he turned to God and said: “Oh God. Give him forty years from my life.” God granted Adam his request, and it was written down and sealed.

Adam’s life span was supposed to be 1000 years but after 960 years the Angel of death came to Adam. Adam was surprised and said “but I still have 40 years to live”. The angel of death reminded him of his gift of 40 years to his beloved descendant Prophet David, but Adam denied it. Many, many years later, the last Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)said: “Adam denied so the children of Adam deny, Adam forgot and his children forget; Adam made mistakes and his children make mistakes.” (At-Tirmidzi)

In Arabic the word for mankind is insan and it comes from the root word nisyan to forget. This is part of human nature, mankind forgets, and when we forget we deny and reject. Adam forgot (he was not lying), and God forgave him. Adam then submitted to the will of God and died. The Angels descended and washed the body of Prophet Adam an odd number of times; they dug the grave and buried the body of the father of mankind, Adam.

4.4 Adam’s successor

Before his death Adam reminded his children that God would never leave them alone or without guidance. He told them God would send other Prophets with unique names, traits and miracles, but they would all call to the same thing – the worship of the One True God. Adam appointed as his successor his son Seth.

5. Adam as the First Man and Modern Science

In Islam, there is no conflict between faith in God and modern scientific knowledge. Indeed, for many centuries during the Middle Ages, Muslims led the world in scientific inquiry and exploration. The Quran itself, revealed around 14 centuries ago, is filled with facts and imagery that are supported by modern scientific findings. Three of those will be mentioned here. Of them, the development of language and mitrochondrial Eve (genetics) are relatively new areas of scientific research.

The Quran instructs Muslims to “contemplate the wonders of creation” (Al-‘Imran, 3:191)

One of the items for contemplation is the statement:

“Truly, I am going to create man from clay...” (Sad, 38:71)

Indeed, many elements present in the earth are also contained in the human body. The most critical component to land-based life is the top soil; that thin layer of dark, organically rich soil in which plants spread out their roots. It is in this thin, vital layer of soil that microorganisms convert raw resources, the minerals that constitute the basic clay of this topsoil, and make them available to the myriad forms of life around and above them.

Minerals are inorganic elements that originate in the earth which the body cannot make. They play important roles in various bodily functions and are necessary to sustain life and maintain optimal health, and thus are essential nutrients. [9] These minerals cannot be manmade; they cannot be produced in a laboratory nor can they be manufactured in a factory

With cells consisting of 65-90% water by weight, water, or H2O, makes up most of the human body. Therefore most of a human body’s mass is oxygen. Carbon, the basic unit for organic molecules, comes in second. 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of just six elements: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus. [10]

The human body contains trace amounts of almost every mineral on earth; including sulphur, potassium, zinc, copper, iron, aluminum, molybdenum, chromium, platinum, boron, silicon selenium, molybdenum, fluorine, chlorine, iodine, manganese, cobalt, lithium, strontium, aluminum, lead, vanadium, arsenic, bromine and more.[11] Without these minerals, vitamins may have little or no effect. Minerals are catalysts, triggers for thousands of essential enzyme reactions in the body. Trace elements play a key role in the functioning of a healthy human being. It is known that insufficient iodine will induce a disease of the thyroid gland and a deficiency of cobalt will leave us without vitamin B12, and thus unable to manufacture red blood cells.

Another verse to contemplate is:

“He taught Adam all the names of everything.” (Al-Baqarah, 2:31)

Adam was taught the names of everything; the powers of reasoning and free will were given to him. He learned how to categorize things and understand their usefulness. Thus, God taught Adam language skills. He taught Adam how to think – to apply knowledge to solve problems, make plans and decisions and to achieve goals. We, the children of Adam, have inherited these skills in order that we can exist in the world and worship God in the best manner.

Linguists estimate that more than 3000 separate languages exist in the world today, all distinct, so that speakers of one cannot understand those of another, yet these languages are all so fundamentally similar that it is possible to speak of a “human language’ in the singular. [12]

Language is a special form of communication that involves learning complex rules to make and combine symbols (words or gestures) into an endless number of meaningful sentences. Language exists because of two simple principles, - words and grammar.

A word is an arbitrary pairing between a sound or symbol and a meaning. For example, in English the word cat does not look or sound or feel like a cat, but it refers to a certain animal because all of us memorized this pairing as children. Grammar refers to a set of rules for combing words into phrases and sentences. It may seem surprising, but speakers of all 3000 separate languages learned the same four rules of language. [13]

The first language rule is phonology – how we make meaningful sounds. Phonemes are basic sounds. We combine phonemes to form words by learning the second rule: morphology. Morphology is the system we use to group phonemes into meaningful combinations of sounds and words. A morpheme is the smallest, meaningful combination of sounds in a language. After learning to combine morphemes to produce words, we learn to combine words into meaningful sentences. The third language rule governs syntax or grammar. This set of rules specifies how we combine words to form meaningful phrases and sentences. The fourth language rule governs semantics – the specific meaning of words or phrases as they appear in various sentences or contexts.

All children, regardless of where in the world they are, go through the same four language stages because of innate language factors. These factors facilitate how we make speech sounds and acquire language skills. The renowned linguist Noam Chomsky says that all languages share a common universal grammar, and that children inherit a mental programme to learn this universal grammar. [14]

A third verse to ponder is about progenitor:

“O Mankind! Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a single person (Adam) and from Him (Adam) He created his wife (Eve), and from them both He created many men and women.” (An-Nisa’, 4:1)

The realization that all mtDNA lineages (Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas) can be traced back to a single origin is popularly called the “mitochondrial Eve” theory. According to top scientists [15] and cutting-edge research, everyone on the planet today can trace a specific part of his or her genetic heritage back to one woman through a unique part of our genetic makeup, the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The mtDNA of “mitochondrial Eve” has been passed down through the centuries from mother to daughter (men are carriers, but don’t pass it on) and exists within all people living today.[16] It is popularly known as the Eve theory because, as can be deduced from the above, it is passed down through the X chromosome. Scientists are also studying DNA from the Y chromosome (perhaps to be dubbed the “Adam theory”), which is passed only from father to son and is not recombined with the mother’s genes.

These are but three of the many wonders of creation God suggest we contemplate through his verses in the Quran. The entire universe, which was created by God, follows and obeys His laws. Therefore Muslims are encouraged to seek knowledge, explore the universe, and find the “Signs of God” in His creation.

 Allah the Exalted Alone Know most.

Footnotes:

[1] Based on the work of Al Imam Ibn Kathir, The Stories of the Prophets.
[2] Sahih Al-Bukhari
[3] Al Imam Ibn Kathir: The Stories of the Prophets.
[4] Sahih Muslim
[5] Ibn Kathir.
[6] Al Ashqar, U. (2003). The World of Jinn and Devils. Islamic Creed Series. International Islamic Publishing House: Riyadh.
[7] Sheikh Ibn Al Qayyim in the Ighaathat al Lahfaan.
[8] Muhammad Ibn Al Husain al Ajjurri.
[9] (http://www.faqs.org/nutrition/Met-Obe/Minerals.html)
[10] Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D., Your Guide to Chemistry.
[11] Minerals and Human Health The Rationale for Optimal and Balanced Trace Element Levels by Alexander G. Schauss, Ph.D.
[12] Pinker, S., & Bloom, P. (1992) Natural Language and natural selection. In Gray. P. (2002). Psychology. 4th ed. Worth Publishers: New York
[13] Plotnick, R. (2005) Introduction to Psychology. 7th Ed .Wadsworth: USA
[14] Gray. P. (2002). Psychology. 4th ed. Worth Publishers: New York
[15] Douglas C Wallace Professor of Biological Sciences and Molecular Medicine. At the University of California.
[16] Discovery channel documentary – The Real Eve.

[Via Islam Religion]

Humbleness of Prophet Muhammad

Humbleness of Prophet Muhammad

In the name of Allāh, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful;

All the praise and thanks is due to Allāh, the Lord of al-‘ālamīn. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allāh, and that Muhammad, Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam, is His Messenger

As reported in many Hadiths that Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam)  was a perfect model of modesty and humbleness. Humbleness is seen in every sphere of the Prophet’s life. His way of talking, walking, sitting, eating and every aspect of his life reflected humbleness.

The Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) would never speak loudly or in an unseemly manner. In the market, he always passed by the people quietly with a smile. Whenever he heard anything undesirable in an assembly, he did not say anything out of respect for the people, but the facial expression showed his feelings and the Companions became cautious. ‘Aishah (radiyallāhu’anha) the Prophet’s wife, said that she had never seen Allah's Messenger (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), laughing that she could see his molar teeth, for that he always used to smile.

‘Abdullah Ibn Masalamah (radiyallāhu’anhu) reported Allah's Messenger (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) as saying: "Modesty is a part of the teachings of the previous prophets and anyone who lacks it is most likely to do whatever he likes." Zaid (radiyallāhu’anhu) reported Allah's Messenger (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), as saying: "Every religion has a character and the character of Islam is modesty."

The Messenger of Allah (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), lived a simple and modest life, both in Makkah as a trader before his prophethood, and in Al-Madinah as the head of the State after being appointed by Allah Almighty as His Messenger. The change in his status from that of a trader in Makkah to the head of the State in Al-Madinah did not bring any change in his modest living. ‘Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (radiyallāhu’anhu) reported the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), as saying: "Do not exalt me as the Christians have exalted Jesus, son of Mary. I am just His servant, so call me Allah's Servant and Messenger."

The Prophet SAW did not behave towards others as if he was better than they were not, nor did he spurn manual work. ‘Abdullah bin Abi ‘Awfa (radiyallāhu’anhu) reported that the Prophet of Allah (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) never scorned a slave or a widow to accomplish his or her tasks.

Others reported that the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), used to tidy up his house, tie the camels, feed the animals, take food with his servants, and help them in kneading dough and bringing provisions from the market.

Anas reported that the Prophet of Allah (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), used to visit the sick, attend funerals, ride on a donkey and accept a slave's invitation for a meal.

Jabir (radiyallāhu’anhu) stated that the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), used to slow down his pace for the sake of the weak and also prayed for them.

When ‘Adiyy Ibn Hatim (radiyallāhu’anhu) came to see the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), he called him inside his house. A maidservant brought a cushion to rest on, but the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), placed it between him and ‘Adiyy and sat down on the floor. ‘Adiyy later said that he had then immediately realized that the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) was not a king. A similar incident was reported by ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Amr Ibn Al-‘As (radiyallāhu’anhu) who said: “Once when the Messenger of Allah, came to my house, I gave him a cushion filled with bark, but he sat down on the floor placing the cushion between me and him.”

Prophet Muhammad (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) was humble in all things. In a particular case, Anas r.a said that the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) would accept an invitation even if he was presented barley bread and soup whose taste had changed [stale]. He also reported the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), as saying: "I am Allah's servant, I eat like a servant and sit like a servant.''

On one of his journeys, the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), asked his companions to roast a goat. One said that he would slaughter the animal; another said that he would skin it, while a third said that he would cook it. The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) then said that he would collect wood for fuel. Their response was: “O Messenger of Allah! We will do everything.” The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) then said: “I have no doubt that you will. But I do not like distinctions to be made, nor does Allah like any one of His servants to assert his superiority over his companions.”

His self-deprecation was such that the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam)  once said: “By Allah, I do not know, even although I am Allah’s messenger, what would be my fate in the next world, nor do I know what yours will be.”

Abu Dhar Al-Ghifari (radiyallāhu’anhu) narrates that one day he was sitting with another companion of black complexion whom he addressed as: “O black man.” When the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), heard of this, he was greatly displeased and cautioned Abu Dhar never to make disrespectful remarks to anyone, whoever he might be, and to accord equal treatment to all, adding: “No white man has any superiority over a black man.”

The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam)  once saw a wealthy Muslim gathering up his loose garments so that a certain distance would be kept between him and a poor Muslim sitting close by. He remarked: “Do you fear that his poverty will cling to you?”

The Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), lived like any ordinary person, and did not assume any superior rights. He once had to borrow some money from a Jew called Zaid bin Sana’a. The Jew came to demand the immediate return of the loan a few days before the expiry of the stipulated period. Tugging at the mantle around the Prophet’s shoulders, he jibed that the progeny of ‘Abd Al-Muttalib were always defaulters.

‘Umar (radiyallāhu’anhu) not being able to tolerate this misbehavior on the part of the Jew, started berating him, and was on the point of beating him when the Prophet (Sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam), said to the Jew, smiling: “There are still three days to go before the promise has to be fulfilled.” To ‘Umar he said: “We might have had better treatment from you. You could have advised me to be more careful about the return of loans and you could have advised the Jew to be more courteous in demanding repayment.” He, then requested ‘Umar to get some dates so that the loan could be repaid, and to give the Jew an extra forty kilograms for the rebuke he had been given.

Humbleness is the hallmark of every sphere of the Prophet Muhammad’s life, be it his way of talking, walking, sitting, and eating. His life was an amazing model of simplicity and humbleness. 

“Allāhumma salli ‘ala Muhammad wa ‘ala āli Muhammad kamā sallaita ‘ala āli Ibrāhīm; Wa bārik ‘ala Muhammad wa ‘ala āli Muhammad kama bārakta ‘ala āli Ibrāhīm, fil-‘ālamīn; Innaka Hamīdun Majīd”

(O Allāh! Send Prayers upon Muhammad and the members of his household as You Sent Prayers upon the members of Ibrahim's household; And Send Blessings to Muhammad and the members of his household as You  granted Blessings upon the members of the household of Ibrahim, among all the nations’ Verily You are Most Praiseworthy, Full of Glory)”.[Muslim]

And Allāh Almighty Knows best.

Conditions of the Righteous Deeds

Sheikh Muhammad Salih Al-Munajjid

When does Allah accept a person’s deeds? What are the conditions for a deed to be righteous and acceptable to Allah SWT?

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All the praise and thanks are due to Allah SWT, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

An action cannot become an act of worship until and unless it embraces two things: complete love and humility.

Allah says:

• “But those who believe, love Allah more (than anything else)” [Al-Baqarah, 2:165]

• “Verily, those who live in awe for fear of their Lord” [Al-Mu’minun, 23:57]

And Allah also mentions them together in the ayat:

“Verily, they used to hasten on to do good deeds, and they used to call on Us with hope and fear, and used to humble themselves before Us” [Al-Anbiya’, 21:90]

Once this is understood, we will realize that worship can only be accepted from a Muslim who believes in Allah alone (Tawhid), as Allah says:

“And We shall turn to whatever deeds they (disbelievers, polytheists, sinners) did, and We shall make such deeds as scattered floating particles of dust” [Al-Furqan, 25:23]

It is narrated that ‘Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her said: “I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, during the Jahiliyyah, Ibn Jud’an used to uphold the ties of kinship and feed the poor. Will that avail him anything?’ He said, ‘It will not avail him anything because he never said, “O Allah, forgive me my sins on the Day of Judgment”’” – i.e., he did not believe in the resurrection or do good deeds hoping to meet Allah. [Sahih Muslim (214)]

Moreover, the Muslim’s worship will not be accepted unless it meets two basic conditions:

1 . Sincerity of intention towards Allah: means that the person’s intention in all his words and deeds, both outward and inward, is to seek the pleasure of Allah and none other.

2 . It should be in accordance with the shari’ah which Allah has prescribed, and he should not worship Allah in any other way: it is achieved by following the Prophet,( peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and what he brought, and shunning anything that goes against it, and not inventing any new form of worship that has not been narrated in sound reports from the Prophet,( peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

The evidence for these two conditions is the ayat:

“So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord” [Al-Kahfi, 18:110]

Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “‘So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord’ means his reward; ‘let him work righteousness’ means, that which is in accordance with the laws of Allah; ‘and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord’ this means seeking the Face of Allah alone, with no partner or associate. These two conditions are the basis of acceptable deeds, which must be sincerely for the sake of Allah alone and correct according to the shari’ah of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him”.

[Islam QA]

Ways of Winning the Hearts

Ibn Abdallah

There are a few effective criteria, which are pertinent in making efforts of winning the hearts of the others. The criteria would stress on warmness and merciful that shall be the ingredients of virtuous merits, that captivate others hearts and help in overcoming the obstacle and building good relationship with the others.

Such merits would have their own effective tools and power in charming the hearts.

Moreover, always pray to Allah SWT for His Blessing and Hikmah.

1. Smile and Be Warm.

It is a most basic but highly effective step, like salt for food. It is also regarded as a kind of worship and alms giving as are mentioned in a hadith that “Smiling at your fellow brothers is as charity (Sadaqah)”.

Abdullah Ibn Al-Harith tells us about the Prophet SAW saying that he has never seen anyone smile at others as the Prophet Muhammad SAW used to do.

2. Always Initiates the Greetings.

This particular tool is the one that lets you to be in the innermost depths of the others hearts. The arrow needs a skillful shooter. The needed skills are the hearty smile, the warm shaking of hands and the friendly welcoming to the other. Being successfully achieved, such kinds of skills are going to be rewarded, referring to the Hadith:

“In greetings, the better is the one who initiates greeting the others.”

Umar al-Nadi tells us that he went out once with Umar Ibn Al-Khattab’s son. While walking, he found him saluting all whom he met, whether being old or young. Al Hasan Al-Basri also said, “Shaking hands strengthens brotherhood feelings.”

The Prophet Muhammad SAW said, “Do not ever waste your good deeds, even by meeting your brother with a frowning face.”

The Prophet also said: “Shaking hands removes hatred and exchanging presents enhances love and ends enmity.”

3. Offer Gift and Presents.

It has a strange charming affection that captivates all senses. Hence, exchanging presents and gifts in different occasions is a pleasant habit however, gifts should be within one’s tolerable expenses. Ibrahim Al-Zahri tells us about his father saying, “My father got a sum of money as a reward, in due, he asked me to send donations to his family members and friends. As we were about to finish, he asked me “Have we missed any one?” I answered “No!” He said, “I think that we did.” He continued, “We have missed someone who had warmly welcomed me. Would you please send him this sum of money?”

Look how Ibrahim loved the man and wished to reward him for his warm welcome.

4. Be Silent But Speak up When Necessary.

The loud voice and chattering are bad merits. You have to be sweet-worded, tender in expressing yourself. Concerning this merit, The Prophet SAW said “The good word is a charity (is a Sadaqah).” If the good word has its own magic in winning the hearts of your enemies, it then should be appropriately used in order to win their hearts!

The Prophet’s wife, once addresses the enemies with the saying, “Damn you” and the Prophet SAW prevented her and said:

“Calm down. Allah likes for the matters to be dealt with gently.” He also said; “Nobility of manners and affectionately are the best of manners that people are ever characterized by.”

A poet says, the pious Allah-fearing may keep silent, in spite of being eloquent.

5. Be a Good Listener.

Listening is an art. It is to listen patiently and never interrupt the speaker, as the Prophet SAW never interrupted a speaker until he ended his speech. In addition, he who fights for this merit gains others love and admiration, whilst on the contrary is the one who chatters and interrupts the other. Atta’ tells us about how he behaves concerning this merit and says, “When someone speaks to me, I listen to him as if it is the first time I have heard this subject, though I have heard it thousands of times before.”

6. Appearance and Dress Well.

You have to be careful with your appearance to be neat, well, –dressed and sweet smelling as well. The Prophet SAW says that Allah loves beauty to be in every thing. Umar Ibn Al Khattab said also, “I like the young man who is sweetly perfumed and cleanly dressed.” Abdullah Ibn Ahmad Ibn Hanbal tells us about his father saying, “I’ve never seen some one who is as caring to the cleanliness of his dress, his hair, his moustache, and other undesirable body hair as Ahmad Ibn Hanbal used to do”

7. Be Gentle and Compassionate Towards the Others

In relation to this, the poet says, Good treatment of the other is the only way of captivating his heart.

Good treatment is classified as an obedient, beloved slave of Allah as the Prophet SAW Muhammad said:

“The more you are in favor of others, the more you are beloved by Allah”

And as Allah Says: “And spend of your substance in the cause of Allah, and make not your own hands contribute to (your) destruction; but do good; for Allah loveth those who do good” (Al-Baqarah, 2:195)

Prophet Muhammad SAW said, “God will not have mercy on one who is not compassionate towards people.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)

He also said, “The Merciful shows mercy to those merciful. Have mercy to those on earth, and the One above the heavens will have mercy upon you.” (At-Tirmidzi)

A poet says, Be a dear friend to all, whom you know, for all, you should be as freshening as iced pure water.

I really wonder for that man who pays money to buy slaves, while he can buy those who are free by being good to them, for those (who treat other well) find many to be in their help.

8. Be Kind and Generous.

Offering money is the key for most of the closed doors that hinder you from reaching others hearts, especially in these days.

Now I will tell you a story about the magic of the merit of generosity.

In the conquest of Makkah, there was a man called “Safwan Ibn Umia.” That man ran away after making all possible means in keeping the people of Islam and after making conspiracies to kill the Prophet SAW. Later on, the Prophet SAW forgave him and he came back asking the Prophet SAW to give him the time of two months to think about Islam and the Prophet SAW said, “You can take four months, not just two.” In spite of being an atheist, he accompanied the Prophet SAW in the Hunain and Al Ta’if conquests. In Al Ta’if, while the Prophet SAW was dividing the booties of the war, he noticed that man looking longingly to a vast land in which a large number of cattle were flocking. The Prophet SAW asked him “Do you like it?” The man eagerly answered “Yes.” The Prophet SAW said, “It is for you then.” Safwan said, “Only a prophet could act as generously as you have done to me. I believe that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is His prophet.”

The Prophet SAW found the missing key and succeeded in moving Safwan heart. Some people acted stingily as if they see the hungry ghost wanted to attack them once they think about being generous in offering money.

9. Have A Good Opinion Of Others - Forgive and Respect Them.

Keeping an eye on others behavior is a bad merit that blocks your way to their hearts. On the contrary is to have a good opinion of them. So, try hard to give your brothers the excuse as much as you can. Concerning this merit, Ibn Al Mubarak says also “The believer is he who grants his brothers the request, and the hypocrite is he who seeks their slips.”

10. Express Your Feelings Sincerely.

If you loved someone, or felt good feelings about him, do not wait, just tell him at once. Regarding this, the Prophet SAW said, “If you felt the brotherly love of Islam towards any, you should immediately go and tell him about your feelings.” He added, “It is the way relations are to be strongly indicated.” Such love is to be blessed by Allah if it is for Allah’s sake, not for any other personal affairs such as seeking high position, money, fame etc…. Unless this love is for Allah’s sake, it is a fruitless kind of brotherhood then. When they meet each other on the Day of Judgement, they are not brothers any more but enemies, as Allah SWT Says in the Quran “Friends on that Day will be foes, one to another; except the Righteous.” (Az-Zukhruf: 67)

The Prophet SAW said, “A man is in the company of whom he loved.” By this, he means that on the Day of Judgment, a person will be with whom he loved. Therefore, we have to choose then between two kinds of societies, one is in enmity and the other is a kind brotherly one. Hence, we find that the Prophet SAW associated the Makkan immigrants and the Madinan followers as brothers. It was a rare kind of sense of the brotherhood that even two brothers were to be buried together in one grave after being martyred in the conquests. The Prophet SAW was always indicating the sense brotherhood among the Ummah as he said, “You are not allowed to enter heaven till you believe in Allah and you will not be true believers unless you love each other. Shall I tell you something to do that indicates love between you? It is to spread salutation of Peace among you.”

It is a pity is to either see that people sometimes cruelly or harshly treating each other and at times extremely very tender that they adore each other. In fact, it is a necessary to provide a striking balance between heart and mind, something that differs according to the difference of characters and circumstances. It is absolutely a blessing given by Allah.

11. Sociability and Courteous.

It is the art of being social. Here, a kind of misconception could exist between sociability and hypocrisy. Could you differentiate between the two meanings?

The Prophet SAW’s wife, Aishah r.a said, “A man came to visit us, but to my surprise, once the Prophet SAW met him, he said “O…that ill-mannered man,” but the Prophet SAW changed completely once he sat with him. He welcomed the man warmly, smiling in his face. When the man left, I asked the Prophet SAW about what had surprised me, how he considered this man as being bad, and how he talked to him in such warmth? The Prophet SAW answered, “Have you ever seen me behaving as a hypocrite?” He added, “In the Day of Judgement, the worst degrees are for those who [caused] people deserted for being mistreated by them.”

Al-Qurtubi differentiates between hypocrisy and sociability, regarding sociability as a desirable legal behavior, saying that sociability means sacrificing the worldly affairs for the sake of improving either life on earth or religion, or so as to improve both, while hypocrisy aims at sacrificing religion for the sake of the worldly affairs.

Hence, being sociable for ill-mannered people is aiming to achieve two purposes:

1 - To avoid being mistreated by them.

2 - Being good to them could be guidance for them to step the right way. Compliments should be within worldly affairs only, never in religious affairs, otherwise, it would be a matter of hypocrisy.

To be sociable, means to be tender, smiling, praising to the other, intending in the meantime a legal benefit [Halal]. The Prophet SAW says, “Being sociable, is as alms-giving [Sadaqah]”

Ibn Battal says also “Sociability is an ethic of the believers; it is to show open-mindedness in treating others and to delicately speak to them. Both are important elements in seeking reasons for intimacy”

Who is Most Entitled to Lead the Solat?

The one who most deserves to lead the solat is the one who has most knowledge of the rulings on prayer and has memorized the most Qur’an.


In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
All the praise and thanks is due to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

The one who most deserves to lead the solat is the one who has most knowledge of the rulings on prayer and has memorized the most Qur’an.

It was narrated that Abu Mas’ud al-Ansari said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

“The people should be led in prayer by the one who has most knowledge of the Book of Allah; if they are equal in knowledge of the Qur’an, then by the one who has most knowledge of the Sunnah.”

[Narrated by Imam Muslim, 1530]

What is meant by “the one who has most knowledge of the Qur’an” is not the one who can recite it most beautifully, but rather the one who has memorized more of the Book of Allah. This is indicated by the hadith of ‘Amr Ibn Salamah who said:

“I used to memorize those words – meaning the Qur’an – and it was as if it took root in my heart. When Makkah was conquered, then every tribe hastened to embrace Islam, and my father urged our tribe to hasten to embrace Islam. When my father returned (from the Prophet) to his tribe, he said, ‘By Allah, I have come to you from the true Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him!’ The Prophet,( peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), afterwards said to them, ‘Offer such-and-such a prayer at such-and-such a time, and when the time for the prayer becomes due, then one of you should pronounce the Azan (for the prayer), and let the one amongst you who knows most Qur’an lead the prayer.’ So they looked for such a person and found none who knew more Qur'an than I, because of what I used to learn from the people. So they made me their imam (to lead the prayer) and at that time I was a boy of six or seven years.”

[Narrated by Al-Bukhari, 4051]

It is essential for the imam to know the rulings on prayer, because he may do something, such as not breaking his wudhu’, or missing out a rak’ah, and not know what to do about it, in which case he would make a mistake and cause the prayer of others to be imperfect or invalid altogether.

Based on the hadith quoted above, some of the scholars said that the one who has more knowledge of Fiqh should lead the prayers.

Al-Nawawi said:

Malik, Al-Shafi’e and their companions said that the one who has more knowledge of Fiqh should take precedence over the one who knows more Qur’an, because what he needs of recitation is known but what he needs of Fiqh may not be clear. There may arise during the prayer some matter where only a person who has complete knowledge of Fiqh will be able to know the right thing to do. They said that this is the reason why the Prophet,( peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), told Abu Bakar, may Allah be pleased with him, to lead the prayer rather than anyone else, and even though he, (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), had stated that others had more knowledge of Qur’an than him. But some refuted this point by quoting the hadith that said that the Sahabah who had most knowledge of Qur’an were also those who had most knowledge of Fiqh. But there is another hadith according to which the Prophet, (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), said: “If they are equal in knowledge of Qur’an, then the one who has most knowledge of the Sunnah),” which indicates that those who have most knowledge of Qur’an should be given precedence in all cases.

[Sharh Muslim, 5/177]

Even though Al-Nawawi differed with his imam Al-Shafi’e with regard to the interpretation of the hadith, their words illustrate the basic principle that there was no one among the Sahabah who had a good knowledge of the Qur’an but was ignorant of the rulings of shari’ah, as is the case among many people nowadays.

Ibn Qudamah said:

If one of them has more knowledge of the rulings on prayer, and the other has more knowledge of matters other than prayer, then the one who has more knowledge about prayer should be given precedence.

[Al-Mughni, 2/19]

If this is understood, then it is not permissible for one who is ignorant to lead the prayer unless he is leading others like him,and should there bes no one who is better qualified to lead the solat.

And Allah knows best.

[Via Islam QA]