The Universe Loves Muhammad ﷺ – Part 2

Allah Most High’s love for the Prophet ﷺ

• Allah Most High selected him ﷺ as the greatest of all creation, His beloved and the final and best Prophet of them all.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

“Indeed I am the beloved of Allah and I am not boasting. 

And I am the carrier of the Banner of Praise on the Day of Judgement, and Adam and those other than him will be under it, and I am not boasting. 

And I am the first intercessor, and the first to have intercession accepted from Him on the Day of Judgement, and I am not boasting. 

And I am the first to shake the rings of Paradise (meaning on the gates of Paradise) and I am not boasting. Allah will open it for me and admit me into it and with me will be the poor people from the believers, and I am not boasting.

And I am the most noble before Allah among the first and the last, and I am not boasting.”

(Darimi, Tirmidhi, Abu Nuaym)

• Allah Almighty placed his name next to His name out of love and honour. We see this on numerous occasions in the Holy Quran.

Below are just a few examples:

“Believe in Allah and His Messenger and the light which He sent down.” [64:8]

“O you who believe, obey Allah and His Messenger … “ [8:20]

“When Allah and His Messenger have decided something, no believing man or woman has a choice about [following or not following] it. Anyone who disobeys Allah and His Messenger is clearly misguided.” (33:36)

This is of course does not imply equality in any way as every Muslim knows Allah Most High has no equal. So why did Allah place the name of his beloved Prophet ﷺ next to His own exalted name? It is in order to honour His beloved and to show the world his rank with Him. We also see the name of the Prophet ﷺ placed next to the blessed name of Allah in the shahada:

لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا ٱللَّٰهُ مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ ٱللَّٰهِ‎

There is no god except Allah. Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.

Look how Allah Most High has made entering the religion of Islam dependent on the two testimonies of faith (shahdatain). Acknowledging that there is only one true God is not enough. A person will not be accepted in the Divine court until they also bear witness that Muhammad ﷺ is the last and final Messenger of Allah.

• Allah defends, consoles and praises His Prophet ﷺ in the Quran.

When the enemies of Islam would mock, accuse and insult the Prophet ﷺ, Allah Most High took it upon himself to console him, reassure him, praise him and respond to his enemies. From all of those who opposed and showed enmity to the Prophet ﷺ, some were guided to Islam by Allah and ended up becoming from amongst his closest followers. As for those for whom guidance was not written i.e. those intent on continuing to oppose the Messenger ﷺ, Allah gave them humiliating deaths and damned them to the hellfire (like Abu Lahab and Abu Jahl).

• Allah Almighty never addresses him by his name in the Quran.

Whenever Allah Most High addresses the Prophet ﷺ directly in the Quran, He uses titles of love and honour. Other Prophets are however called by their names. For example, we find:

‘”Ya Musa” (O Moses)

20:17

“Ya Ibrahim” (O Abraham)

37:104

“Ya Isa” (O Jesus)

3:55

However, when it comes to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ we find:

“Ya ayuha an-Nabiyu” (O Prophet)

33:45

“Ya ayuha al-Muzammil” (O you, wrapped up in your garment)

73:1

“Ya ayuha al-Mudathir” (O you, wrapped up in your cloak)

74:1

Allah Most High also refers to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ by the names Ya-Seen and Ta-Ha, which according to many scholars are two of his ﷺ names. The name Muhammad is only used by Allah in the Quran when referring to His beloved ﷺ in the third person.

• Allah Most High will ensure that his beloved ﷺ will ultimately be pleased.

He says in the Quran, addressing the Prophet ﷺ:

وَلَسَوْفَ يُعْطِيكَ رَبُّكَ فَتَرْضَىٰٓ

“And indeed your Lord will soon give you so much that you will be pleased.”

Surah ad-Duha: 5

Qadi Iyad mentions in ‘ash-Shifa‘ that this verse refers to Allah granting the Prophet ﷺ all types of nobility, felicity and victory in this life and the next. Imam Ali is quoted to have said that this is the most hopeful verse of the Quran for us since the Prophet ﷺ will not be pleased if any of his Ummah enter the fire!

In a beautiful Hadith the Prophet ﷺ informs about his intercession on the day of judgement:

I will intercede for my Ummah (so much) until my Lord, blessed and exalted is He, will call out to me saying:

“Are you pleased O Muhammad?”

And I will say “Yes my Lord; I am pleased.”

al-Bazzar and al-Tabarani

If Allah Most High wills, in the next part we will look at the love and reverence of the Sahaba (Companions) for the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

Part 3