YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS MAN

YOU SHOULD
KNOW THIS MAN

ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA confirms:

"....a mass of detail in the early sources show that he was
an honest and upright man who had gained the respect and loyalty
of others who were like-wise honest and upright men." (Vol.
12)

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW said about him:

"If any religion had the chance of ruling over England, nay
Europe within the next hundred years, it could be Islam."

“I have always held the religion of Muhammad in high estimation
because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion which
appears to me to possess that assimilating capacity to the changing
phase of existence which can make itself appeal to every age. I
have studied him - the wonderful man and in my opinion for from
being an anti-Christ, he must be called the Savior of Humanity."

"I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship
of the modern world he would succeed in solving its problems in
a way that would bring it the much needed peace and happiness: I
have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable
to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to
the Europe of today.”(Sir George Bernard Shaw in 'The Genuine
Islam,' Vol. 1, No. 8, 1936.)

He was by far the most remarkable man that ever set foot on this
earth. He preached a religion, founded a state, built a nation,
laid down a moral code, initiated numerous social and political
reforms, established a powerful and dynamic society to practice
and represent his teachings and completely revolutionized the worlds
of human thought and behavior for all times to come.

"HIS NAME IS MUHAMMAD" May Peace of God Be Upon Him (pbuh)

He was born in Arabia in the year 570 C.E. (common era), started
his mission of preaching the religion of Truth, Islam (submission
to One God) at the age of forty and departed from this world at
the age of sixty-three.

During this short period of 23 years of his Prophethood, he changed
the complete Arabian peninsula from paganism and idolatry to worship
of One God, from tribal quarrels and wars to national solidarity
and cohesion, from drunkenness and debauchery to sobriety and piety,
from lawlessness and anarchy to disciplined living, from utter bankruptcy
to the highest standards of moral excellence. Human history has
never known such a complete transformation of a people or a place
before or since - and IMAGINE all these unbelievable wonders in
JUST OVER TWO DECADES.

Lamartine, the renowned historian speaking on the essentials of
human greatness wonders: "If greatness of purpose, smallness
of means and astounding results are the three criteria of human
genius, who could dare to compare any great man in modern history
with Muhammad? The most famous men created arms, laws and empires
only. They founded, if anything at all, no more than material powers
which often crumbled away before their eyes. This man moved not
only armies, legislation, empires, peoples and dynasties, but millions
of men in one-third of the then inhabited world; and more than that,
he moved the altars, the gods, the religions, the ideas, the beliefs
and souls....his forbearance in victory, his ambition, which was
entirely devoted to one idea and in no manner striving for an empire;
his endless prayers, his mystic conversations with God, his death
and his triumph after death; all these attest not to an imposture
but to a firm conviction which gave him the power to restore a dogma.
This dogma was two-fold, the unity of God and the immateriality
of God; the former telling what God is, the latter telling what
God is not; the one overthrowing false gods with the sword, the
other starting an idea with the words.

"Philosopher, orator, apostle, legislator, warrior, conqueror
of ideas, restorer of rational dogmas, of a cult without images,
the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and of one spiritual empire,
that is MUHAMMAD. As regards all the standards by which Human Greatness
may be measured, we may well ask, IS THERE ANY MAN GREATER THAN
HE?" (Lamartine, HISTOIRE DE LA TURQUIE, Paris, 1854, Vol.
II, pp 276-277)

The world has had its share of great personalities. But these were
one-sided figures who distinguished themselves in but one or two
fields, such as religious thought or military leadership. The lives
and teachings of these great personalities of the world are shrouded
in the mist of time. There is so much speculation about the time
and place of their birth, the mode and style of their life, the
nature and detail of their teachings and the degree and measure
of their success or failure that it is impossible for humanity to
reconstruct accurately the lives and teachings of these men.

Not so this man. Muhammad (pbuh) accomplished so much in such diverse
fields of human thought and behavior in the fullest blaze of human
history. Every detail of his private life and public utterances
has been accurately documented and faithfully preserved to our day.
The authenticity of the record so preserved are vouched for not
only by the faithful followers but even by his prejudiced critics.

Muhammad (pbuh) was a religious teacher, a social reformer, a moral
guide, an administrative colossus, a faithful friend, a wonderful
companion, a devoted husband, a loving father - all in one. No other
man in history ever excelled or equaled him in any of these different
aspects of life - but it was only for the selfless personality of
Muhammad (pbuh) to achieve such incredible perfections.

MAHATMA GANDHI, speaking on the character of Muhammad, (pbuh) says
in YOUNG INDIA: "I wanted to know the best of one who holds
today's undisputed sway over the hearts of millions of mankind....I
became more than convinced that it was not the sword that won a
place for Islam in those days in the scheme of life. It was the
rigid simplicity, the utter self-effacement of the Prophet, the
scrupulous regard for his pledges, his intense devotion to this
friends and followers, his intrepidity, his fearlessness, his absolute
trust in God and in his own mission. These and not the sword carried
everything before them and surmounted every obstacle. When I closed
the 2nd volume (of the Prophet's biography), I was sorry there was
not more for me to read of the great life."

THOMAS CALYLE in his HEROES AND HEROWORSHIP, was simply amazed
as to: "how one man single-handedly, could weld warring tribes
and wandering Bedouins into a most powerful and civilized nation
in less than two decades."

"The lies (Western slander) which well-meaning zeal has heaped
round this man (Muhammad) are disgraceful to ourselves only."

"A silent great soul, one of that who cannot but be earnest.
He was to kindle the world, the world’s Maker had ordered
so."

DIWAN CHAND SHARMA wrote: "Muhammad was the soul of kindness,
and his influence was felt and never forgotten by those around him."
(D.C. Sharma, THE PROPHETS OF THE EAST, Calcutta, 1935, pp. 12)

EDWARD GIBBON and SIMON OCKLEY speaking on the profession of ISLAM
write: "'I BELIEVE IN ONE GOD, AND MAHOMET, AN APOSTLE OF GOD'
is the simple and invariable profession of Islam. The intellectual
image of the Deity has never been degraded by any visible idol;
the honor of the Prophet has never transgressed the measure of human
virtues; and his living precepts have restrained the gratitude of
his disciples within the bounds of reason and religion." (HISTORY
OF THE SARACEN EMPIRES, London, 1870, p. 54)

Muhammad (pbuh) was nothing more or less than a human being. But
he was a man with a noble mission, which was to unite humanity on
the worship of ONE and ONLY ONE GOD and to teach them the way to
honest and upright living based on the commands of God. He always
described himself as, 'A Servant and Messenger of God,' and so indeed
every action of his proclaimed to be.

Speaking on the aspect of equality before God in Islam, the famous
poetess of India, SAROJINI NAIDU says: "It was the first religion
that preached and practiced democracy; for, in the mosque, when
the call for prayer is sounded and worshippers are gathered together,
the democracy of Islam is embodied five times a day when the peasant
and king kneel side by side and proclaim: 'God Alone is Great'...
I have been struck over and over again by this indivisible unity
of Islam that makes man instinctively a brother." (S. Naidu,
IDEALS OF ISLAM, vide Speeches & Writings, Madras, 1918, p.
169)

In the words of PROF. HURGRONJE: "The league of nations founded
by the prophet of Islam put the principle of international unity
and human brotherhood on such universal foundations as to show candle
to other nations." He continues: "The fact is that no
nation of the world can show a parallel to what Islam has done towards
the realization of the idea of the League of Nations."

The world has not hesitated to raise to divinity, individuals whose
lives and missions have been lost in legend. Historically speaking,
none of these legends achieved even a fraction of what Muhammad
(pbuh) accomplished. And all his striving was for the sole purpose
of uniting mankind for the worship of One God on the codes of moral
excellence. Muhammad (pbuh) or his followers never at any time claimed
that he was a Son of God or the God-incarnate or a man with divinity
- but he always was and is even today considered as only a Messenger
chosen by God.

MICHAEL H. HART in his recently published book on ratings of men
who contributed towards the benefit and upliftment of mankind writes:
"My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world's most
influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned
by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely
successful on both the religious and secular levels." (M.H.
Hart, THE 100: A RANKING OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSONS IN HISTORY,
New York, 1978, p. 33)

K. S. RAMAKRISHNA RAO, an Indian Professor of Philosophy in his
booklet, "Muhammad, The Prophet of Islam," calls him the
"PERFECT MODEL FOR HUMAN LIFE." Prof. Ramakrishna Rao
explains his point by saying: "The personality of Muhammad,
it is most difficult to get into the whole truth of it. Only a glimpse
of it I can catch. What a dramatic succession of picturesque scenes!
There is Muhammad, the Prophet. There is Muhammad, the Warrior;
Muhammad, the Businessman; Muhammad, the Statesman; Muhammad, the
Orator; Muhammad, the Reformer; Muhammad, the Refuge of Orphans;
Muhammad, the Protector of Slaves; Muhammad, the Emancipator of
Women; Muhammad, the Judge; Muhammad, the Saint. All in all these
magnificent roles, in all these departments of human activities,
he is alike a hero."

Today after a lapse of fourteen centuries, the life and teachings
of MUHAMMAD (pbuh) have survived without the slightest loss, alteration
or interpolation. They offer the same undying hope for treating
mankind's many ills, which they did when he was alive. This is not
a claim of Muhammad's (pbuh) followers but also the inescapable
conclusion forced upon by a critical and unbiased history.

The least YOU could do as a thinking and concerned human being
is to stop for a moment and ask yourself: Could these statements
sounding so extraordinary and revolutionary be really true? And
supposing they really are true and you did not know this man MUHAMMAD
(pbuh) or hear about him, isn't it time you responded to this tremendous
challenge and put in some effort to know him?

It will cost you nothing but it may prove to be the beginning of
a completely new era in your life.

--by Eng. Husain Pasha