MUSLIMS AND THE CONCEPT OF REVELATION:

Muslims owe their religious faith to Muhammad, the messenger of God. One day
the Prophet Muhammad himself replied to a question as to what is Faith and said:
"Thou shalt believe in the One God, in His angelic messengers, in His revealed
books, in His human messengers, in the Last Day (or Resurrection and final
judgement) and in the determination of Good and evil by God."
On the same occasion, he explained as to what signifies submission to God in
practice, and what is the best method of obedience The highest degree of contact,
the surest and the most infallible means of communication between man and his
Creator, is called wahy by the Prophet Muhammad. This is not an ordinary
inspiration, but a veritable revelation made to man from God - a celestial
communication. Man is matter, but on the contrary, God is even above the spirit
and therefore beyond all possibility of direct physical contact with man (Qur'an
6/103). God is omnipresent [ever present] and, as the Qur'an says "nearer to man
than his jugular vein" [50:15]. Yet no physical contact is possible. Therefore it is a
malak (lit. a messenger), that is, a celestial message-bearer (commonly translated
as 'angel') who serves as an intermediary, or the channel of the transmission of the
God's message to His human agent or messenger (i.e., the prophet). None except a
prophet receives such a revelation through the intermediary of a celestial
messenger. It ought to be remembered that, in Islam, prophet does not mean one
who makes prophecies and predictions, but only an envoy of God, a bearer of
Divine message intended for his people. As to the angel, it does not enter in the
scope of our studies here to discuss whether it is a spiritual being, distinct from the
material beings in the universe, or something else.According to the Qur'an, the
celestial messenger who brought revelations to the Prophet is called Jibril (Jibrail,
Gabriel), which etymologically means 'the power of God.' The Qur'an cites also
Mikal (Mikail, Michael) without indicating his functions. The functionary in
charge of hell is named Malik (lit. 'master' or 'owner'). It also speaks of other
angels without name and without attributes, all of whom execute the orders of the
Lord. The Islamic belief is that Jibril, also described in the Qur'an as "trustworthy
spirit" (al-ruh al-amin), stands above all. In the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad,
as distinct from the Qur'an, we read that this celestial messenger, Jibril, did not
always appear in the same form to the Prophet. The Prophet saw him sometimes
like a being suspended in the air, sometimes in the shape of a man, sometimes like
a being having wings, etc. In a narration preserved by Ibn Hanbal (1, 53 or No.
374), it is reported that one day in the presence of many people, an unknown
person came and put some questions to the Prophet Muhammad, and then went

away. Several days afterwards, the Prophet told his companions: "I am persuaded
to believe that the person who put to me questions on that day was none other than
Gabriel, who had come to teach you your religion; and never was I so tardy in
recognizing him." It was so because he had come to examine the Prophet and not
to communicate to him some message from God.
The way in which the revelation used to come could be deduced from the
following reports in which the Prophet himself or his onlookers have described it:
"Sometimes it came to me like the beating sound of the bell - and this is the hardest
experience for me - and when that ceases, I retain well engraved in my memory all
that it has said; but sometimes the angel appears to me in the shape of a human
being and speaks to me and I retain what he says" (Bukhari). In the transmission of
Ibn Hanbal, this same report reads: "I hear the beating sounds and thereupon I keep
silent; there is not an occasion of the revelation to me when I do not fear that my
soul will depart." His Companions relate their observations, "whenever a revelation
came to him, a sort of rest (immobility) captured him." (Ibn Hanbal) Or, "whenever
the revelation came to the messenger of God, he was overwhelmed and remained
in this state a while as if he was intoxicated." (Ibn Sa'd) Or, "the revelation came to
him in the coldest day, and when it ceased, the front of the Prophet perspired with
(sweat falling as) pearls." (Bukhari) Or, "once when the moment (of revelation)
arrived, he bent his head inside (a garment?), and lo, the face of the messenger of
God had become red, and he snored; later the state vanished" (Bukhari). Or,
"whenever the revelation came, he suffered therefrom and his face darkened." (Ibn
Sa'd) Or, "when the revelation came to him, we heard near him like the humming
sound of bees." (Ibn Hanbal and Abu Hu-aim) Or, "the Prophet suffered great pain
when the revelation came to him, and he used to move his lips." (Bukhari) Another
series of reports say that he then felt the weight of a great load, and said, "I saw the
Prophet while he was on his camel when a revelation came to him. The camel
began to foam with rage and twist its legs to the point that I feared that they would
break with a crack. In fact sometimes the camel sat down, but sometimes it would
obstinately try to stand, with legs planted like pegs all through the time of
revelation, and this lasted until the state (of revelation) vanished, and sweat would
fall from him like pearls." (Ibn Sa'd) Or, "the load almost broke the leg of the
camel with a crack" (Ibn Hanbal). Zaid Ibn Thabit reports his personal experience
of a certain day in the following words: "His leg lay on my thigh and weighed so
heavy that I feared that my femur would break with a crack" (Bukhari). In another
version, there is this addition: "... had it not been for the Prophet of God, I would
have pushed a cry and taken away my leg." Other reports say: "The revelation
came to him once while he was standing on the pulpit of the Mosque and he
remained immobile." (Ibn Hanbal) Or, "he was holding a loaf of meat (during his

meal) when a revelation came to him, and when the state ceased, the loaf was still
in his hand" (Ibn Hanbal). At such an occasion, the Prophet sometimes lay on his
back, sometimes the inmates even covered his face in respect with a piece of cloth,
as the circumstance may be. Yet he never lost his consciousness nor control of his
self. In the early times of the mission, he used to repeat aloud, during the course of
the revelation, what was revealed to him, but while still at Mecca, he abandoned
this habit of simultaneous repeating, but remained silent until the end of the state of
revelation, and then he communicated the message of God to his secretaries to note
(as is mentioned in the Qur'an 75/16): "Stir not thy tongue herewith to hasten it;
upon Us the putting together and the reading thereof." And again (20/114): "And
hasten not with the Qur'an ere its revelation hath been perfected unto thee and say:
my Lord, increase me in knowledge." And when the Prophet returned to his normal
state, he used to dictate to his scribes the portion of the Qur'an which had just been
received by him, in order to publish it amongst the Muslims and to multiply the
copies. In his al-Mab'ath wa'l-Maghazi (MS of Fes), Ibn Ishaq reports: "Whenever
part of the Qur'an was revealed to the Messenger of God, he first recited it among
men, and then among women."
Objective of revelation:
The whole Book of Quran that had been revealed on Prophet Muhammad is a an
Instrument of instructions which has been issued to man in his capacity as God's
vicegerent on earth to enable him to conduct his life's operations in such a manner
he is able to obtain success in this world and the reward of eternal bliss hereafter.
The distinctive feature of teh Quran as a religious scripture lies in the undeniable
fact taht it
"affirms and completes the total process of revelation which has come from teh
Divine for the guidence of the human race"
The necessity of the revelation is attested by the facts of life,the very condition of
teh finitude in which we find ourselves calls for Divine help.In a short span of life
taht is ours, having regard to the limited range of our capabilities and powers of
perception,it would be impossible for us without assistance from the Divine to
understand our role here and to plan wise and intelligent action with a view to
serving teh essential needs of our being.
DIVINITY AND SUPREMACY OF WAHY:
The Holy Quran claims to be book of Hidayah i..e, Guidence ,for man.It addresses

itself by and large ,to the totality of mankind.Its message is relevant to different
people living in different parts of the world.Not only this it's message is valid for
all times to come .In other words it is not a book that will ever be out of date.There
are numerous indications in the Divine Book itself which can enable a discerning
and perceptive student to appreciate the truth of the claim of the Quran that it
presents teh message of universal significance.
The Quran as a book of guidence must be regarded as an embodiment of the code
of life which God,the Creator and Lord of the Universe has revealed for the
"hidaya" of mankind.This revealed truth relating to the various aspects of human
life has been shown to man through the process of revelation.This procedure has
been consumated in the message that has been brought by the Prophet of Islam to
mankind.It may be said that Islam itself provides for the education of the human
race.In Islam religion has been perfected .That is another way of saying that with
islam the age of new revelation has come to an end,and that the age of realization
of the principles of revealed religions has been inagurated.That is why in all the
earliest scripture refrences have been found to the advent of the Prophet of
Islam.The Bible,for instance provides us with the reference of this revelation as
Jesus had said,
"I have yet many things to say unto you,but ye cannot bear them now....He will
guide you until all truth:for he shall not speak himself;but of whatsoever he shall
hear,that he shall speak"
Further the New Testament bears testimony to this very truth:
"Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things,which
God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy Prophets since the world began"
The Holy Quran itself affirms this reference in chapter 61,verse 6,when it says,
"And that Jesus,son of Mary ,said,"O children of Israel ,surely i am the messanger
of Allah to you verifying that which is before me of Torah and giving the good
news of the messenger ,who will come after me ,his name being Ahmad."
This is the meaning of the fundamental tenet of islam which enjoins that the
Prophet of Islam is the last Prophet.The HOly Quran thus embodies the final most
communication from the Divine.After the Prophet of Islam came to mankind teh
need for continuing the process of Divine communication itself has come to an
end.This revelation or the Divine coomunication is supreme in the fact that it

enables the human beings and the follower of Islam to understand the grand
strategy for bringing about the moral and mental regeneration of mankind on earth.
THE CHOICE OF GOOD AND EVIL:
The very fact that the Quran claims itself to be a book of Guidence asssumes that it
is not a book of Ten Commandments as is,for instance the Old Testament.The
Prophet was called upon to purify the people,to teach them the book ,that is there
destiny and to make them wise.He was to warn and to guide.The Quran
unmistakably places the burden of making a choice between good and evil fully
and squarely on the shoulders of man.It says,
" Have we not shown to you the two ways,the easy way and the difficult way".
The Quran further declares that nothing belongs to man except his effort.He is
going to be judged by what he does here and now.This suggests that the Quran
assumes the man to have reach the level where he is regarded as being capapble of
choosing between right and wrong.The Quran is also called "al Furqan" which
means it is the book which helps one to discrimminate between the scale of
values,pointing out which acts are good,better,and best and which ones are
bad,worse and worst.All this shows that God has revealed to the people the Divine
Truth of the choice of right and wrong and it addresses to the people who can
choose.
WAHY , SOURCE OF SUPREME KNOWLEDGE:
The message which Allah has revealed through His Prophet Muhammad
demonstrates his followers the indispensibility of the teachings contained in the
Quran.This message to the modern world is to take up one by one the present day
standards of excellence.This excellence is associated with the values and ideals
which are accepted and upheld by the enlightened sections of contemporay
humanity.These present day set of values and ideals which is considered worthy by
a civilized man to adopt and accept was revealed for the first time by Islam.Quran
is surely a supreme source of knowledge as it teaches the equality,dignity and
brotherhood of man.It advises to practice religious tolerence and provides dignity
to the human beings without any exploitation and inequality among the
individuals.It definately guides and teaches those principles which are necessary
for the survival of mankind both physically and spiritually.
The revelations and teachings of Quran are accepted in principle by the whole

world.The world swears its ideals and cherishes the values sponsered by it.No
book in the world down the ages has been adored than the Holy Quran has been by
the Muslims.The Quran is the best evidence that there is for all of us to believe that
God exists,that Muhammad is His Prophet (PBUH).It is a Book of Hope in the
sense that it presents to us the Image of our Maker who forgives us and protects us
against our follies.Man needed to discover the word of God.Allah
revealed,informed and guided the man about his Creator,his purpose of
Creation,informs him of his place as the "best of Creation",provides him guidence
to lead a fullfilling and rewarding life,tells him of the hereafter,teaches him the
value of his fellow beings,makes everything else subservient to the criterion of
Truth.In short it enabels him to be peace with himself,with the whole of the
creation and with the Creator
Supremacy of Revelation (Wahi)
posted in Revelation (Wahi)
Firstly, it is essential that a saying must not go against common human
observation and experience.Prophets never uttered anything which was
against common human intellect.
Second standard to judge the narration is that a group of people provides
some information and they do not differ from each other. Message of all the
prophets remained same through all ages and for all people.
Third standard to judge a narration is that what is the output of its adoption
in practical life and review it. History is evident that with common
acceptance of a prophets teaching vices and evils were removed & society
flourished with peace and justice.
Fourth standard is to judge the personality of the person who is transferring
the narration. A narrator may be a dishonest, liar and bad character person.
But in case of Prophets even their worst enemies accepted their veracity.
Types of Revelation (Wahi)
1 Wahee-e-Matlu:
It means the revelation which God has transmitted in His own words and speech,
for example the Quran. It is essential that such revealed words should be recited in
the same accent, diction and pronunciation as they were revealed. Thus even after
1400 years Quran has remained unchanged.
2 Wahee-e-Ghair Matlu:
It is the revelation which Allah projected in the heart of the Holy Prophet. These
are not the words of the Almighty, but the Holy Prophet (PBUH) transmitted these
revealed edicts to the people in his own words.

Sources of Knowledge
Sources of Knowledge
1 Senses
For example life is a reality and life cannot be perceived through our sense. We can
observe the things which prove the existence of life but a life of other one cannot
be felt directly.
It is a fact that despite all the functions these senses are limited. We can only
perceive those things which are present and can be felt, but everything which is
present cannot be felt.
Senses make us to feel the material bodies and their characteristics but they does
not help us solve the very basic problems of life and metaphysical objects e.g. life
is a thing whose start or end is out of our sight and hearing.
Senses mean five forces which are called vision, smell, taste, touch and hear.
These senses are a definite source of knowledge whatever is the type of knowledge
in the world there is only one basis that is sense.
2 Wisdom
But human beings were tried for their best to find out answers these questions. Any
such attempt is called philosophy. Philosophy whether it is against religion or in
favour of religion has ways been common in reference to its basis and reality.
But wisdom cannot present answers to the basic questions of life. The reason is
that alone wisdom is not enough to acquire knowledge. Wisdom has to make other
smaller things share with it in search of knowledge.
Sequence and relation present in knowledge is due to wisdom.
Wisdom again depends on knowledge acquired through senses which are faulty in
nature.
Wisdom distinguishes between human being and animal.
3 Intuition

A man can have some hidden powers through which man can get information
which are otherwise impossible to attain through senses. But these powers are
uncommon and are limited.
Believers in intuition think that sensitive observation and rationale are harmful for
existence of intuition. They consider purification of mind is necessary to find truth
and, moreover, purification of mind is forsaking the world, self-abnegation,
meditation.
In fact the wisdom and spiritual powers are not beyond human senses and external
effect. Mans surrounding, ideologies and edicts which are considered truth in his
society also affect mans observations.
Intuition or Ishraq means a kind of supposition based on truth which gives the
knowledge of the worlds which are generally beyond common perception without
the help of sense and wisdom.
The mystics tell that a new world is revealed. But these new faces and new colour
do not solve the intricate problems of life nor Gods characteristics became open,
nor is the relation between man and universe explained.
This fact can be proved that mystics of different methodology and religions draw a
picture which is different from each other in their design. So, if senses are
unmistaken and absolute, this row would not have take place.
4 Revelation (Wahi)
(a) The knowledge which is obtained through revelation is about the things which
are usually beyond human perception.
(b) Revelation is different from other sources of knowledge. It is not based on
some rationale or sensitivity. It is the information which is revealed to a Prophet
from the Master of this universe.
(c) Revelation is never meaningless and unsocial like mysticism but it is for the
guidance and reformation. So it becomes a source of practical life system.
All other people get this knowledge via narration. So, there are three certain
characteristics of prophetic knowledge which are under:

Revelation is that kind of knowledge which God gives only to His pious and
esteemed chosen people (prophets) for the sake of mankind welfare and guidance.
The Master of this universe knows solution of all the problems of this universe and
the man living in it. To run this universe and the man in it, God sent laws and
regulations through His messengers (prophets).
There is a certain group which claims to have answered the basic questions of life.
This group is called Prophets, and they have only one source of their knowledge
that is Wahi (revelation).
When God created human beings, He made it clear to them that His guidance
would be transmitted to them on earth.