Why we cannot trust Muhammad according to Islam’s most trusted sources (Part 1)
From the very beginning, the delivery of the revelation of Allah to Muhammad seemed to be very sinister. We have the story recorded in the hadith as follows,
“Narrated ‘Aisha (the mother of the faithful believers):
The commencement of the Divine Inspiration to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was in the form of good dreams which came true like bright daylight, and then the love of seclusion was bestowed upon him.
He used to go in seclusion in the cave of Hira where he used to worship (Allah alone) continuously for many days before his desire to see his family. He used to take with him the journey food for the stay and then come back to (his wife) Khadija to take his food likewise again till suddenly the Truth descended upon him while he was in the cave of Hira. The angel came to him and asked him to read. The Prophet (ﷺ) replied, “I do not know how to read.” The Prophet (ﷺ) added, “The angel caught me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read and I replied, ‘I do not know how to read.’ Thereupon he caught me again and pressed me a second time till I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read but again I replied, ‘I do not know how to read (or what shall I read)?’ Thereupon he caught me for the third time and pressed me, and then released me and said, ‘Read in the name of your Lord, who has created (all that exists), created man from a clot. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous.” (96.1, 96.2, 96.3) Then Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) returned with the Inspiration and with his heart beating severely. Then he went to Khadija bint Khuwailid and said, “Cover me! Cover me!” They covered him till his fear was over and after that he told her everything that had happened and said, “I fear that something may happen to me.” Khadija replied, “Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your kith and kin, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the deserving calamity-afflicted ones.” Khadija then accompanied him to her cousin Waraqa bin Naufal bin Asad bin ‘Abdul ‘Uzza, who, during the pre-Islamic Period became a Christian and used to write the writing with Hebrew letters. He would write from the Gospel in Hebrew as much as Allah wished him to write. He was an old man and had lost his eyesight. Khadija said to Waraqa, “Listen to the story of your nephew, O my cousin!” Waraqa asked, “O my nephew! What have you seen?” Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) described whatever he had seen. Waraqa said, “This is the same one who keeps the secrets (angel Gabriel) whom Allah had sent to Moses.”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari Book 1 Hadith 3)
A couple of things stand out here. First, the angel assaulted Muhammad pressing him so hard he could not bear it anymore. This happened three times. Secondly, this experience left Muhammad terrified and quaking. He was certain something terrible was going to happen to him. It is worth flagging here that the actions of this angel are in stark contrast with what angels tend to do according to the Judeo-Christian sources. In the Old Testament, the angel that appears to Gideon says to him,
“Now Gideon perceived that He was the Angel of the Lord. So Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face.”
Then the Lord said to him, “Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.”
(Judges 6:22–23)
And again, in the New Testament, we read the account of the angel appearing to Zacharias,
“Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.”
(Luke 1:11–13)
The angels when sent to a favoured person tended to allay their fears whenever they were terrified. In the case of Muhammad, this angel just continues to assault him and leaves him terrified. Other descriptions of the revelations (after the first time in the cave of Hijra) still leave Muhammad in fear,
“Narrated Jabir bin ‘Abdullah Al-Ansari (while talking about the period of pause in revelation) reporting the speech of the Prophet:
“While I was walking, all of a sudden I heard a voice from the sky. I looked up and saw the same angel who had visited me at the cave of Hira’ sitting on a chair between the sky and the earth. I got afraid of him and came back home and said, ‘Wrap me (in blankets)…’
(Sahih Al-Bukhari Book 1 Hadith 4)
Now circling back to the description of the very first revelation, we still do not know who Muhammad saw. It was Waraqa who informed him it was the angel Gabriel. This angel never introduced itself and its character seems to be wildly out of step with the character of angels as portrayed in the Jewish and Christian scriptures. The fear, which is something angels typically allay, remained with Muhammad.
Again, the intense method of revelation as described in the hadith warrant mention,
“…So Allah inspired the Prophet (ﷺ) divinely and he was screened by a place of cloth. I wished to see the Prophet (ﷺ) being divinely inspired. `Umar said to me, ‘Come! Will you be pleased to look at the Prophet (ﷺ) while Allah is inspiring him?’ I replied in the affirmative. `Umar lifted one corner of the cloth and I looked at the Prophet (ﷺ) who was snoring. (The sub-narrator thought that he said: The snoring was like that of a camel)…”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari, Book 26 Hadith 16)
“…The Prophet (ﷺ) kept quiet for a while and he was Divinely inspired (then). ‘Umar beckoned Ya’la. So he came, and the Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was shaded with sheet. Ya’la put his head in and saw that the face of Allah’s Messenger was red and he was snoring…”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari, Book 25 Hadith 24)
So piecing this all together, the revelation was brought by an unknown angel who struck fear in the heart of Muhammad, suffocated him almost to the point of death and the method of inspiration made him red, sweaty and snoring like a camel. This is something a Christian could look at and draw a very different conclusion. It would appear this angel was the devil himself and the nature of the revelation in the Quran to fight Christians who believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God (Surah 9:29–30), to strike fear into the hearts of unbelievers (Surah 8:60) and to contract marriages with prepubescent girls who are yet to have their first menstrual cycle (Surah 65:4), to mention a few, would lend credence to this possibility.
Secondly, according to the Islamic sources, Muhammad attempted to end his life multiple times because he doubted his prophethood,
“…But after a few days Waraqa died and the Divine Inspiration was also paused for a while and the Prophet (ﷺ) became so sad as we have heard that he intended several times to throw himself from the tops of high mountains and every time he went up the top of a mountain in order to throw himself down, Gabriel would appear before him and say, “O Muhammad! You are indeed Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) in truth” whereupon his heart would become quiet and he would calm down and would return home. And whenever the period of the coming of the inspiration used to become long, he would do as before, but when he used to reach the top of a mountain, Gabriel would appear before him and say to him what he had said before…”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari Book 91 Hadith 1)
If Muhammad himself doubted his prophethood, how can those who follow him today be certain of the fact he is indeed a prophet at all? This might be an insignificant detail but how much weight can we put on the claims of a man who doubted his own revelations so much that he was suicidal about his doubts?
Third, and stay with me on this please, Muhammad was reputed to visit all his wives in one night and to have had the sexual strength of 30 men according to the hadith, we read,
“Narrated Qatada:
Anas bin Malik said, “The Prophet (ﷺ) used to visit all his wives in a round, during the day and night and they were eleven in number.” I asked Anas, “Had the Prophet (ﷺ) the strength for it?” Anas replied, “We used to say that the Prophet (ﷺ) was given the strength of thirty (men).” And Sa`id said on the authority of Qatada that Anas had told him about nine wives only (not eleven).”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari Book 5 Hadith 21)
And again,
“Narrated Anas bin Malik:
The Prophet (ﷺ) used to visit all his wives in one night and he had nine wives at that time.”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari Book 5 Hadith 36)
Problem though is that one of those very wives he was visiting, Aisha (who was nine years old when Muhammad first had sex with her according to the Islamic sources), had a very different recollection of events,
“Narrated `Aisha:
The Prophet (ﷺ) continued for such-and-such period imagining that he has slept (had sexual relations) with his wives, and in fact he did not…”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari Book 78 Hadith 93)
Muhammad seems to have hallucinated, at the very least, part of his sexual relations with his wives. If we cannot trust this man to properly perceive and give an accurate account of his own sexual experiences with his wives, how can we trust him to accurately perceive revelation from God?
Now still related to this, and this is the fourth point, Muhammad was bewitched for a period in his life, it is within this period he is said to have been hallucinating that he was having relations with his wives according to the above hadith. The hadith records his bewitchment thus,
“Narrated Aisha:
Once the Prophet (ﷺ) was bewitched so that he began to imagine that he had done a thing which in fact he had not done.”
(Book 58 Hadith 17)
And again,
“Narrated `Aisha:
that Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was affected by magic, so much that he used to think that he had done something which in fact, he did not do, and he invoked his Lord (for a remedy). Then (one day) he said, “O `Aisha!) Do you know that Allah has advised me as to the problem I consulted Him about?” `Aisha said, “O Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ)! What’s that?” He said, “Two men came to me and one of them sat at my head and the other at my feet, and one of them asked his companion, ‘What is wrong with this man?’ The latter replied, ‘He is under the effect of magic.’ The former asked, ‘Who has worked magic on him?’ The latter replied, ‘Labid bin Al-A’sam.’ The former asked, ‘With what did he work the magic?’ The latter replied, ‘With a comb and the hair, which are stuck to the comb, and the skin of pollen of a date-palm tree.’..”
(Sahih Al-Bukhari, Book 80 Hadith 86)
Our Muslim friends would tell us that the prophet was bewitched but Allah later healed him. That is besides the point. The point is that he was bewitched and kept on hallucinating and imagining he was doing things he was not doing. All of this happened to the most favoured prophet of Allah. Why did Allah not prevent this from happening? Why in the world would black magic work on a prophet of Allah to begin with? More importantly, did Muhammad also hallucinate any revelation within this time? If so, how much of the Quran was revealed within that period? If any of the Quran is not truly from Allah, then Muslims have no basis of trusting the book.
Closely following on from this, Muhammad is reputed to have delivered verses which were inspired by Satan. He later revoked these verses and admitted that Satan put the things he said in his mouth. The Quran reads in Surah 22:52–53,
“And We did not send before you any messenger or prophet except that when he spoke [or recited], Satan threw into it [some misunderstanding]. But Allāh abolishes that which Satan throws in; then Allāh makes precise His verses. And Allāh is Knowing and Wise.
[That is] so He may make what Satan throws in [i.e., asserts] a trial for those within whose hearts is disease and those hard of heart. And indeed, the wrongdoers are in extreme dissension.”
The explanation for this verse according to Al-Jalalyn reads,
“ The Prophet (s) had, during an assembly of the [men of] Quraysh, after reciting the [following verses from] sūrat al-Najm, Have you considered Lāt and ‘Uzzā? And Manāt, the third one? [53:19–20] added, as a result of Satan casting them onto his tongue without his [the Prophet’s] being aware of it, [the following words]: ‘those are the high-flying cranes (al-gharānīq al-‘ulā) and indeed their intercession is to be hoped for’, and so they [the men of Quraysh] were thereby delighted. Gabriel, however, later informed him [the Prophet] of this that Satan had cast onto his tongue and he was grieved by it; but was [subsequently] comforted with this following verse that he might be reassured [of God’s pleasure]: thereat God abrogates, nullifies, whatever Satan had cast, then God confirms His revelations. And God is Knower, of Satan’s casting of that which has been mentioned, Wise, in His enabling him [Satan] to do such things, for He does whatever He will.”
Implication? Satan was able to inspire Muhammad to give a revelation which glorified gods other than Allah and asked his followers to hope for their intercession. Now the verse and the explanation go further to say Allah removed what Satan threw in but again this is besides the point. The problem here is that, much like the bewitching of Muhammad, Satan was able to throw revelation into the tongue of the prophet. Worse still, Muhammad did not know the difference between a revelation from his God and revelation from the devil!
Our Muslim friends have tried to deny that the Satanic verses incident ever took place but in the book “Before Orthodoxy” by Shahab Ahmad, there are over 50 sources cited regarding this issue. Denying that it happened is just trying to avoid the embarrassment this brings to the prophet and to his religion.
Once again this raises questions; How much of the Quran is revealed by Satan? Are there instances where Satan got away with revelation still lurking around in the Quran? If Muhammad does not know the difference between Allah and Satan, has he in any other Surahs left in verses revealed by Satan? By the way, isn’t it wonderful how Allah usually acts AFTER the fact when it comes to Muhammad?
Surah 22:52 seems like a desperate excuse to exonerate Muhammad, hagiographic language for “crap happens” and “it happens to the best of us!”. We do not have any record of any other prophets or apostles being inspired by the Devil and not knowing the difference, not even in the Old Testament. Jesus Christ was not inspired by the devil, neither was Paul, neither was Peter. At this point, someone might want to bring up Jesus saying to Peter, “Get behind me Satan!”. This however backfires for three reasons.
One, it shows that Jesus clearly knew the difference between the voice of God and the voice of Satan. Much unlike Muhammad. Secondly, the context of this was Peter sternly protesting the death and resurrection of Jesus, saying it will never happen. Jesus is in effect calling anything that contradicts the cross Satanic. Muhammad’s religion is centred around the fact that Jesus never died on the cross hence by this logic, Islam would be Satanic and third, none of the apostles were divinely inspired prior to Christ’s death and resurrection because they did not have the Holy Spirit in them. Yes, Peter had one moment of God revealing the truth of Jesus to him but right after that we see him contradicting the cross showing him being mindful of things that appeal to men, not God, as Jesus said.
Speaking of things appealing to men, a careful reading of tafsir Al-Jalalayn indicates that Muhammad was moved by what appeals to men in giving the Satanic verses. It says the men of Quraysh were delighted at this revelation. It appears the prophet had a desire to please them and this led to him speaking favourably of their idols as daughters of Allah.
Still on this theme, Muhammad constantly receives revelations that appeal to him. They seem to be uncannily convenient. The prophet received revelation of some special privileges for himself alone,
“O Prophet, indeed We have made lawful to you your wives to whom you have given their due compensation and those your right hand possesses from what Allāh has returned to you [of captives] and the daughters of your paternal uncles and the daughters of your paternal aunts and the daughters of your maternal uncles and the daughters of your maternal aunts who emigrated with you and a believing woman if she gives herself to the Prophet [and] if the Prophet wishes to marry her; [this is] only for you, excluding the [other] believers. We certainly know what We have made obligatory upon them concerning their wives and those their right hands possess, [but this is for you] in order that there will be upon you no discomfort [i.e., difficulty]. And ever is Allāh Forgiving and Merciful.
You, [O Muḥammad], may put aside whom you will of them or take to yourself whom you will. And any that you desire of those [wives] from whom you had [temporarily] separated — there is no blame upon you [in returning her]. That is more suitable that they should be content and not grieve and that they should be satisfied with what you have given them — all of them. And Allāh knows what is in your hearts. And ever is Allāh Knowing and Forbearing.”
(Surah 33:50–51)
The above verse gives a list of women Muhammad is allowed to sleep with. Even Aisha was prompted to react thus,
“‘A’isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported:
I felt jealous of the women who offered themselves to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) and said: Then when Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, revealed this:” You may defer any one of them you wish, and take to yourself any you wish; and if you desire any you have set aside (no sin is chargeable to you)” (xxxiii. 51), I (‘A’isha.) said: It seems to me that your Lord hastens to satisfy your desire.”
(Sahih Muslim Book 17 Hadith 64)
The revelations Muhammad received seemed to be just what he needed at that point in time. Consistently so. In fact there is yet another example of this,
“O you who have believed, do not enter the houses of the Prophet except when you are permitted for a meal, without awaiting its readiness. But when you are invited, then enter; and when you have eaten, disperse without seeking to remain for conversation. Indeed, that [behavior] was troubling the Prophet, and he is shy of [dismissing] you. But Allāh is not shy of the truth…”
(Surah 33:53)
So Allah in his eternal word, the Quran, had to tell people about what annoys the prophet when they visit him for a meal because the prophet was too shy to tell them? Of what relevance is this to the religion? How does this benefit Muslims today?
Another clear example of the convenience of Muhammad’s revelation is in this Surah,
“O Prophet, why do you prohibit [yourself from] what Allāh has made lawful for you, seeking the approval of your wives? And Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful.
Allāh has already ordained for you [Muslims] the dissolution of your oaths. And Allāh is your protector, and He is the Knowing, the Wise.
And [remember] when the Prophet confided to one of his wives a statement; and when she informed [another] of it and Allāh showed it to him, he made known part of it and ignored a part. And when he informed her about it, she said, “Who told you this?” He said, “I was informed by the Knowing, the Aware.”
Perhaps his Lord, if he divorced you [all], would substitute for him wives better than you — submitting [to Allāh], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and traveling — [ones] previously married and virgins.”
(Surah 66:1–4)
What is the reason for this revelation? The Hadith tells us,
“It was narrated from Anas, that the Messenger of Allah had a female slave with whom he had intercourse, but ‘Aishah and Hafsah would not leave him alone until he said that she was forbidden for him. Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed:
“O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you.’ until the end of the Verse.”
(Sunan An-Nasai Book 36 Hadith 21)
The tafsir for the verse reads, (Note there are two alternate explanations for this verse, we will focus on the one involving Maria the copt for our purposes here. The alternate explanation is in respect of a nasty smelling honey which the prophet used to eat and his wives forbade him to eat),
“O Prophet! Why do you prohibit what God has made lawful for you, in terms of your Coptic handmaiden Māriya — when he lay with her in the house of Hafsa, who had been away, but who upon returning [and finding out] became upset by the fact that this had taken place in her own house and on her own bed — by saying, ‘She is unlawful for me!’, seeking, by making her unlawful [for you], to please your wives? And God is Forgiving, Merciful, having forgiven you this prohibition.”
(Al-Jalalayn)
“Although it has not been mentioned ill (sic) the Qur’an as to what it was that the Holy Prophet had forbidden himself yet the traditionists and commentators have mentioned in this regard two different incidents, which occasioned the revelation of this verse. One of these relates to Hadrat Mariyah Qibiyyah (Mary, the Copt lady) and the other to his forbidding himself the use of honey. The incident relating to Hadrat Mariyah is that after concluding the peace treaty of Hudaibiyah one of the letters that the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah’s peace) sent to the rulers of the adjoining countries was addressed to the Roman Patriarch of Alexandria also, whom the Arabs called Muqawqis. When Hadrat Hatib bin Abi Balta a took this letter to him, he did not embrace Islam but received him well, and in reply wrote: “I know that a Prophet is yet to rise, but I think he will appear in Syria. However, I have treated your messenger with due honor, and am sending two slave-girls to you, who command respect among the Coptics. “ (Ibn Sa’d). One of those slave-girls was Sirin and the other Mariyah (Mary). Un his way back from Egypt Hadrat Hatib presented Islam before both and they believed. When they came before the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) he gave Sirin in the ownership of Hadrat Hassan bin Thabit and admitted Hadrat Mariyah into his own household. In Dhil-Hijjah, A.H. 8 she gave birth to the Holy Prophet’s son, Ibrahim. (Al-Isti’ab; Al-Isabah). This lady was very beautiful. Hafiz Ibn Hajar in Al-Isabah has related this saying of Hadrat ‘A’ishah about her: “No woman’s entry into the Holy Prophet’s household vexed me so much as of Mariyah, because she was very beautiful and pleased him much. “ Concerning her the story that has been narrated in several ways in the Hadith is briefly as follows: One day the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) visited the house of Hadrat Hafsah when she was not at home. At that time Hadrat Mariyah came to him there and stayed with him in seclusion. Hadrat Hafsah took it very ill and complained of it bitterly to him. Thereupon, in order to please her the Holy Prophet vowed that he would have no conjugal relation with Mariyah in future. According to some traditions, he forbade Mariyah for himself, and according to others, he also swore an oath on it. These traditions have been mostly reported by the immediate successors of the Companions without mentioning any intermediary link. But some of these have been reported from Hadrat ‘Umar,. Hadrat `Abdullah bin ‘Abbas and Hadrat Abu Hurairah also. In view of the plurality of the methods of narration, Hafiz Ibn Hajar in Fath al-Bari has expressed the view that there is some truth in the story. But in none of the six authentic collections of the Hadith has this story been narrated. In Nasa’i only this much has been related from Hadrat Anas: “The Holy Prophet had a slave-girl with whom he had conjugal relations. Then, Hadrat Hafsah and Hadrat `A’ishah began to point out this to him repeatedly until he forbade her for himself. There upon, Allah sent down this verse: ‘O Prophet. why do you make unlawful that which Allah has made lawful for you?”
(Commentary of Imam Maududi)
So Muhammad was caught pants down with a slave girl on one of his wives’ bed and was made to swear that he would not do such a thing again, but…Allah comes to the rescue here once again with revelation that exonerates Muhammad and rebukes his wives for complaining. Now the other narration regarding honey makes less sense but even if that were to be the case, the fact the prophet is given license to break his promises to his wives is still equally as convenient and the fact he would devour foul smelling honey that made his wives complain raises a hygiene issue. Either way, Muhammad is given a license by Allah to dishonour his vows.
So, just to cite a few examples of the convenient revelations of Muhammad, he is allowed to have sex with multiple women and anyone who offers herself to him, defer them as he sees fit, break his oath to his wives and even have Allah coincidentally send down a revelation about things he is too shy to tell his dinner guests.
So what have we learnt?
Muhammad had no idea who his revelation was from, it took a Christian man to tell him it was Gabriel even if the angel assaulted him, struck fear in his heart and never introduced itself. The scenes of “inspiration" as described in the Hadith are very disturbing.
Muhammad hallucinated about sexual experiences for a period during which he was bewitched. We do not know how much Quranic revelation was received at this time.
Muhammad delivered Satanic verses which were later revoked. We have no idea how much of it was revoked or if all of it was revoked.
Muhammad received very convenient revelations which catered to his sexual desires and comforts.
All of this is according to Islam’s most trusted sources and we have not even gotten started yet…trust me, we are just getting warmed up.
To be continued…
