Who is muhammad in the quran

According to Islamic belief, Muhammad was the only person to see Heaven and Hell while still alive. One faction, the Shi'a, believed that only individuals with direct lineage to the Prophet could guide the Muslim community righteously. They thought that 'Ali, Muhammad's closest surviving blood male relative, should be their next leader caliph. The other faction, the Sunnis, believed that the Prophet's successor should be determined by consensus and successively elected three of his most trusted companions, commonly referred to as the Rightly Guided Caliphs Abu Bakr, 'Umar, and 'Uthman , as leaders of the Muslim community; 'Ali succeeded them as the fourth caliph.

Today the Islamic community remains divided into Sunni and Shi'i branches. Sunnis revere all four caliphs, while Shi'is regard 'Ali as the first spiritual leader.

The rift between these two factions has resulted in differences in worship as well as political and religious views. Sunnis are in the majority and occupy most of the Muslim world, while Shi'i populations are concentrated in Iran and Iraq, with sizeable numbers in Bahrain, Lebanon, Kuwait, Turkey, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Depictions of the Prophet Muhammad Featured in this unit are several depictions of the Prophet Muhammad.

These portrayals, while somewhat rare, are not unheard of as there were and still are many different attitudes toward depicting the Prophet, and humans in general, in the Islamic world. These attitudes varied dramatically from region to region and throughout history; the societies that produced the works discussed here are among those that allowed the depiction of the Prophet.

Commissioned by Muslims for Muslims, these images appear in biographies of the Prophet and his family, world and local histories, and accounts of Muhammad's celestial journey mi'raj , as well as in literary texts. In each context, they serve a distinct purpose.

They illustrate a narrative in biographies and histories, while in literary texts they serve as visual analogues to written praises of the Prophet. An image of the Prophet Muhammad at the beginning of a book endows the volume with the highest form of blessing and sanctity. Thus, illustration of him was a common practice, particularly in the eastern regions of the Islamic world see also Frequently Asked Questions. However, priority was given to the first meaning.

For example, according to Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, if Muhammad had mastered writing and reading he possibly would have been suspected of having studied the books of the ancestors. Some scholars such as Watt prefer the second meaning. According to the Quran, one of the main roles of Muhammad is to warn the unbelievers of their punishment at the end of the world.

A depiction of Muhammad receiving his first revelation from the angel Gabriel. Muslims regard the Quran as the most important miracle of Muhammad, the proof of his prophethood, and the culmination of a series of divine messages revealed by the angel Gabriel from — CE. Religious duties required of the believers at this time were few: belief in God, asking for forgiveness of sins, offering frequent prayers, assisting others, particularly those in need, rejecting cheating and the love of wealth considered to be significant in the commercial life of Mecca , being chaste, and not killing newborn girls.

Around , Muhammad began to preach to the public. Most Meccans ignored and mocked him, but he did begin to gain followers. There were three main groups of early converts to Islam: younger brothers and sons of great merchants; people who had fallen out of the first rank in their tribe or failed to attain it; and the weak, mostly unprotected foreigners.

Islam is a monotheistic and Abrahamic religion articulated by the Quran, which is considered by its adherents to be the verbatim word of God Allah , and, for the vast majority of adherents, by the teachings and normative example called the sunnah , composed of accounts called hadith of Muhammad.

An adherent of Islam is called a Muslim. Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable and that the purpose of existence is to worship God. Nearly all Muslims consider Muhammad to be the last prophet of God. She soon became attracted to this young, accomplished man and proposed marriage.

He accepted and over the years the happy union brought several children. Muhammad was also very religious, occasionally taking journeys of devotion to sacred sites near Mecca.

On one of his pilgrimages in , he was meditating in a cave on Mount Jabal aI-Nour. Recite for your lord is most generous…. Islamic tradition holds that the first persons to believe were his wife, Khadija and his close friend Abu Bakr regarded as the successor to Muhammad by Sunni Muslims. Soon, Muhammad began to gather a small following, initially encountering no opposition. Most people in Mecca either ignored him or mocked him as just another prophet.

Besides going against long standing beliefs, the condemnation of idol worship had economic consequences for merchants who catered to the thousands of pilgrims who came to Mecca every year.

Increasingly, the resistance to Muhammed and his followers grew and they were eventually forced to emigrate from Mecca to Medina, a city miles to the north in This event marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar.

Muhammad settled in Medina, building his Muslim community and gradually gathering acceptance and more followers. Between and , the Muslims were involved in a series of battles for their survival.

In the final major confrontation, The Battle of the Trench and Siege of Medina, Muhammad and his followers prevailed and a treaty was signed. The treaty was broken by the Meccan allies a year later.

By now, Muhammad had plenty of forces and the balance of power had shifted away from the Meccan leaders to him. In , the Muslim army marched into Mecca, taking the city with minimum casualties. Muhammad gave amnesty to many of the Meccan leaders who had opposed him and pardoned many others.