In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Mawaddah Association presents:
"It Happened in Ramadan"
By Dr. Abd al-Rahman Ra'fat al-Basha.
"The Birth of a New World"
I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the accursed.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
“The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur'an, a guidance for mankind, and clear proofs of the guidance, and the Criterion (of right and wrong). And whosoever of you is present, let him fast the month, and whosoever of you is sick or on a journey, (let him fast the same) number of other days. Allah desireth for you ease; He desireth not hardship for you; and (He desireth) that ye should complete the period, and that ye should magnify Allah for having guided you, and that peradventure ye may be thankful.” (2:185)
“The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur'an, a guidance for mankind, and clear proofs of the guidance, and the Criterion (of right and wrong). And whosoever of you is present, let him fast the month, and whosoever of you is sick or on a journey, (let him fast the same) number of other days. Allah desireth for you ease; He desireth not hardship for you; and (He desireth) that ye should complete the period, and that ye should magnify Allah for having guided you, and that peradventure ye may be thankful.” (2:185)
In Ramadan, thirteen years before the Hijrah,
and most likely on the twenty-fourth of this blessed month,
this planet Earth was blessed with the most magnificent moment of its existence,
and witnessed the greatest event ever to take place upon its surface.
That event was a decisive turning point in the entire history of mankind,
and heralded the birth of a new world.
On that radiant, blessed day in the span of time,
the Magnificent God, the Compeller, the Supreme, Master of the Kingdom, bestowed His favor;
He bestowed His favor upon this small planet Earth
and distinguished it with His honor.
From among all creation, He chose a Messenger from their midst,
to recite unto them the verses of Allah,
to teach them the Book and wisdom,
to bring them out of darkness into the light,
and to guide them along the path of the Almighty, the Praiseworthy.
And for this glorious day,
there is a story that shall endure throughout time,
etched into the memory of eternity.
This story begins when Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Abd al-Muttalib came to prefer seclusion
and solitude was made beloved to him,
so that nothing was dearer to him than being alone.
He would go to the Cave of Hira with his provisions,
engaging in tahannuth—devotional worship—there for a number of nights,
until his provisions were exhausted and he longed for his family.
He would then return to his wife, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid,
replenish his provisions for a new stay,
and return to his seclusion and worship.
Allah willed to prepare the soul of His noble Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
to receive the weighty word that He was about to cast upon him.
Thus, He began by granting him true dreams;
he would never see a dream except that it came true like the breaking of the dawn.
He remained in that state for as long as Allah willed.
Whenever he went out to relieve himself,
he would walk far away until the houses of Makkah disappeared from view,
going deep into its mountain passes and valley bottoms.
Not a stone or tree did he pass by except that it would say,
"Peace be upon you, O Messenger of Allah."
"Peace be upon you, O Messenger of Allah."
He would look around—to his right, to his left, and behind him—
and see nothing but trees and stones.
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, continued
in this manner, seeing and hearing such things for as long as Allah willed.
It was his custom, whenever the crescent of Ramadan appeared,
to spend the entire month in retreat at the Cave of Hira,
in devoted worship and spiritual contemplation.
Once he had completed his month and finished his retreat,
he would first head to the Ka'bah before entering his home,
circumambulating it seven times, or as much as Allah willed,
and then return to his house and family.
In Ramadan, thirteen years before the Hijrah,
the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
was observing his retreat as was his custom in Ramadan.
Suddenly, the Truth came upon him while he was in the Cave of Hira.
The Angel came to him and said, "Read!"
The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, replied,
"I cannot read."
The Angel seized him
and pressed him hard until he could bear it no longer,
then released him and said, "Read!"
He replied, "I cannot read."
He seized him and pressed him a second time,
until he could bear it no longer,
then released him and said, "Read!"
He replied, "I cannot read."
He seized him and pressed him a third time,
until he could bear it no longer,
then released him and said to him:
“Read: In the name of thy Lord Who createth,” (96:1)
“Createth man from a clot.” (96:2)
"Read, and your Lord is the Most Generous,
Who taught by the pen."
“Teacheth man that which he knew not.” (96:5)
At that moment,
the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, returned
to his wife Khadijah,
his heart trembling with fear from the terrifying sight he had seen
and the intensity of what he had heard.
Adding to his awe and trembling,
scarcely had he reached the middle of the mountain
when he heard a voice from heaven saying:
"O Muhammad!
You are the Messenger of Allah,
and I am Gabriel."
He raised his head toward the sky to see,
and there was Gabriel in the form of a man with his feet set evenly
across the horizon of the sky,
saying:
"You are the Messenger of Allah,
and I am Gabriel."
The Prophet stood looking up at him,
unable to move forward or backward.
He began to turn his face away across the horizons of the sky,
but no matter which direction he looked,
he saw him just the same.
Then Gabriel departed from the Messenger,
and the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, set off
to his family.
The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, returned
to his wife Khadijah,
his neck muscles trembling, as he said:
"Cover me! Cover me!"
So they covered him until his fear subsided.
The Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, then told
Khadijah the news,
saying,
"I fear for myself."
She said to him,
"Never!
Glad tidings!
By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you.
You maintain ties of kinship,
you speak the truth,
you host your guests generously,
and you assist those afflicted by misfortunes of life."
Khadijah then accompanied the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him,
until she brought him to Waraqah ibn Nawfal.
He was a man who had embraced Christianity during the pre-Islamic period of ignorance (Jahiliyyah);
he used to write the Arabic script,
and would copy from the Gospel in Hebrew.
He was an elderly man who had lost his sight.
Khadijah said to him,
"O my cousin!
Listen to your nephew."
Waraqah said,
"O my nephew, what have you seen?"
The Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, informed him of what he had seen.
Waraqah said,
"This is the very same Namus (Angel of Revelation) that was sent down upon Moses!
Would that I were a young man during your mission!
Would that I might be alive when your people drive you out!"
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, asked,
"Will they drive me out?"
Waraqah replied,
"Yes.
Never has a man brought what you have brought except that he was met with hostility.
And if your day reaches me,
I will support you with mighty assistance."
Thereafter, the revelation continued to unfold,
with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, having full faith in his Lord,
affirming the truth of what came from Him,
and preparing himself to shoulder the burden Allah placed upon him,
whether people were pleased or displeased.
For prophethood carries heavy burdens,
which none can undertake nor endure
except those of resolute strength and determination.
The righteous and pure Khadijah bint Khuwaylid believed in Allah
and affirmed the truth of what the Messenger, peace be upon him, brought from his Lord,
and through her, Allah eased for His Prophet the rejection and denial he faced.
Soon thereafter, however, the revelation to the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, ceased for a time;
Gabriel delayed and no longer came.
The Prophet grieved over this with the deepest sorrow
and suffered from it intensely,
to the point that the vast earth seemed narrow to him.
What added to his anguish and grief
was the mockery and ridicule of the polytheists,
and their saying, "His Lord has forsaken him and detests him."
So profound was his sorrow over the cessation of the revelation
that he would go out to Mount Thabir at times,
and to Mount Hira at others,
driven by extreme distress to throw himself from a cliff.
Yet whenever he reached the summit of a mountain intending to cast himself down,
Gabriel, peace be upon him, would appear to him
and say, "O Muhammad, you are truly the Messenger of Allah."
Thereupon his anxiety would be calmed, his heart set at ease,
and he would turn back from his intent.
While the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him,
was on his way toward those mountains,
enduring the deep distress caused by the pause in revelation,
with heavy thoughts weighing upon his soul,
relief suddenly came to him.
He heard a voice from the sky,
and he, peace and blessings be upon him, halted, overwhelmed by the sound.
He raised his head,
and there was Gabriel seated upon a throne between heaven and earth,
sitting cross-legged upon it, saying:
"O Muhammad! You are truly the Messenger of Allah,
and I am Gabriel."
Then Gabriel came to him with the words of Allah, Exalted is His majesty:
"By the morning brightness, and by the night when it grows still,
“Thy Lord hath not forsaken thee nor doth He hate thee,” (93:3)
“And verily the latter portion will be better for thee than the former,” (93:4)
“And verily thy Lord will give unto thee so that thou wilt be content.” (93:5)
Did He not find you an orphan and give you shelter?
And He found you lost and guided you,
and He found you poor and made you self-sufficient."
“Therefor the orphan oppress not,” (93:9)
“Therefor the beggar drive not away,” (93:10)
“Therefor of the bounty of thy Lord be thy discourse.” (93:11)
This Surah was a touch of tenderness,
a breeze of mercy,
and an embrace of divine love,
encompassing the noble Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
It was the gentle hand that wiped away his pain
and poured upon him the cool comfort of tranquility and certainty.
Despite the immense weight the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, experienced
from the intensity and burden of the revelation,
he would constantly yearn for it and eagerly anticipate it.
Abu Arwa al-Dawsi narrated that he said:
"I saw the revelation descending upon the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
while he was upon his riding camel;
She would strain and twist her forelegs
until I thought her leg bones might snap;
sometimes she would kneel down,
and sometimes she would stand firm as a peg until the revelation lifted from him,
due to the sheer weight of the divine inspiration,
while sweat poured from him like pearls.
Revelation used to come to the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
in two distinct ways.
On the authority of al-Harith ibn Hisham, who asked:
"O Messenger of Allah,
how does the revelation come to you?"
The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, replied:
"Sometimes it comes to me like the ringing of a bell,
and that is the hardest on me;
then it departs from me after I have fully retained what he said.
And sometimes the angel takes the form of a man and speaks to me,
and I comprehend what he says."
It was narrated from 'A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, that she said:
"I saw the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him,
receiving revelation on an intensely cold day,
and when it departed from him, his forehead would be dripping with sweat."
And on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas, who said:
"Whenever revelation descended upon
the Prophet, peace be upon him,
he would endure great hardship from its intensity,
moving his lips rapidly to retain it so that he would not forget it."
So Allah revealed verses regarding that to him.
Revelation remained the provision for the Messenger, peace be upon him,
sustaining him through the hardships of the path,
and a shade he sought refuge in whenever scorched by the heat of rejection,
as well as heavenly aid
with which he confronted cunning, plots, and harm,
and a guide directing him to the straight path.
This divine revelation continued
until Allah perfected their religion for the Muslims,
completed His favor upon them,
approved Islam as their religion,
and called their Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, back to Himself.
May Allah reward our Prophet Muhammad on our behalf
and on behalf of humanity with the best of rewards,
for he conveyed the message,
fulfilled the trust,
gave sincere counsel to the Ummah,
and departed to his Lord, well-pleased and pleasing to Him.