Muhammad in the Baháʼí Faith
This article uses secondary sources that critically analyze them.(December 2020) ) |
Muhammad | |
---|---|
The Báb | |
Spouse | See Wives of Muhammad |
Children | See Children of Muhammad |
Parent | Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib (father) Amina bint Wahb (mother) |
Baháʼís venerate Muhammad as one of a number of prophets or "Manifestations of God", but consider his teachings (as with the teachings of Jesus and Moses) to have been superseded by those of Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith.[1]
Overview
Baháʼís believe in Muhammad as a prophet of
In the Baháʼí writings, Muhammad is known by the titles the "Apostle of God", the "Seal of the Prophets" and the "Day-Star of Truth".[5] Writing of Muhammad, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá states that through God's aid, he was able to unite the warring tribes of the Arabian Peninsula "to such an extent that one thousand tribes were welded into one tribe".[6] This, he writes, despite the fact that he (Muhammad) was an illiterate man born into a cruel and barbarous culture. He was nevertheless responsible for producing "a book in which, in a perfect and eloquent style. He explained the divine attributes and perfections, the prophethood of the Messengers of God, the divine laws, and some scientific facts."[7]
In the Baháʼí Faith Muhammad is regarded as one of the class of "independent Prophets" – that is, those prophets "who are followed" and who "establish a new religion and make new creatures of men". They also "change the general morals, promote new customs and rules, [and] renew the cycle and the law."[8] Along with Muhammad, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, the Báb and Baháʼu'lláh are classed among the "independent Prophets". The religion teaches the unity and the oneness of all the prophets of God. As such, Abraham, Moses, Jesus Christ, Muhammad, the Báb and Baháʼu'lláh are believed to have proclaimed the same message at different times. It is only due to the "difference in their station and mission" that their "words and utterances" ever "appear to diverge and differ."[9] As with all the Prophets of God, Baháʼís believe that Muhammad was sinless. Being holy, these prophets are believed to be pure from sin and purged of faults. In response to Sura 48:2 of the Qurʼan which, referring to Muhammad, states that God forgives his past and future sins, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá states that this address was "in reality for all the people" and is only "apparently directed to Muhammad".[10]
The Baháʼí Faith teaches that Muhammad was a man of peace. On the occasions when he did fight, he only did so in order to defend himself and his followers from the hostile pagan Arab tribes who inhabited the Arabian Peninsula in his time.[11] ʻAbdu'l-Bahá claimed that "Muhammad never fought against the Christians".[12]
Hadith
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá taught that some stories about the teachings, deeds and sayings of Muhammad as described in certain hadith which he perceived to be negative, were fabricated due to "fanaticism", "ignorance" or "enmity". He told that most of those who narrated such stories were either members of the "clergy", "antagonistic" or "ignorant Muslims who repeated unfounded traditions about Muhammad which they ignorantly believed to be to His praise." Thus, he says, "some benighted Muslims made His polygamy the pivot of their praises".
While disregarding some hadith about Muhammad as fabrications and exaggerations with no foundation, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá accepted the authenticity of others. For example, traditions about Muhammad's friendly treatment of the Christians of Najran of whom Muhammad is said to have proclaimed: "If any one infringes their rights, I myself will be his enemy, and in the presence of God I will bring a charge against him." According to Baháʼí belief, in this time Muslims and Christians lived in harmony with each other, however, "after a certain time", due to 'the transgression of both the Muhammadans and the Christians, hatred and enmity arose between them.'[12]
Seal of the Prophets
In contrast to the Muslims, Baháʼís do not believe that Muhammad is the final messenger of God,
Baháʼu'lláh cited Sura 5:64 of the Qurʼan in arguing that the censure applied to the Jews in that
Muhammad is seen as ending the .
The Báb and Muhammad
The Báb in a letter written to Mulla Shaykh Ali Turshizi, claims:
The first to swear allegiance to me was Muḥammad the Prophet of God, then 'Alī, then those who were witnesses after him [i.e., the next eleven Imāms], then the Gates of Guidance, then those to whom God had accorded such grace of the prophets and holy ones and witnesses and those who believed in God and his verses.[25]
See also
- Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion
- Isolated letters of the Qurʼan in the Baháʼí Faith
Notes
- ISBN 1-85168-184-1.
- ISBN 9780853984467.
- ^ Lambden, Stephen (1991). "Islam, Muhammad, and the Qurʼan: Some Introductory Notes". Baháʼí Studies Review. 1 (1). London, UK: Association for Baha'i Studies English-Speaking Europe. Retrieved Dec 15, 2015.
- ISBN 978-1435713468.
- ^ . Retrieved Dec 15, 2015.
- ISBN 0-87743-233-3.
- ^ ʻAbdu'l-Bahá 2015, pp. 27 (7.11).
- ^ ʻAbdu'l-Bahá 2015, pp. 187 (43.2–3).
- ^ Baháʼu'lláh 2003, pp. 177 (§ 192).
- ^ ʻAbdu'l-Bahá 2015, pp. 194 (44.11).
- ^ ʻAbdu'l-Bahá 2015, pp. 24 (7.7).
- ^ a b ʻAbdu'l-Bahá 2015, pp. 26 (7.9).
- ^ Wittman, Brian (2001). "Keys to the Proper Understanding of Islam in The Dispensation of Baha'u'llah". Lights of Irfan. 2. Wilmette, IL: Irfan Colloquia: 135–48. Retrieved Dec 15, 2015.
- ^ Baháʼu'lláh 2003, pp. 176 (§ 191).
- ^ Baháʼu'lláh 2003, pp. 137 (§ 148).
- ISBN 81-85091-46-3.
- ISBN 0-85398-071-3.
- .
- ^ Kamran Hakim: A Personal Interpretation of the Term 'Seal of the Prophets'
- ISBN 978-1-943081-00-4.
- ^ Quran 33:40
- ^ Quran 33:44
- ^ Buck, Christopher (2007). Beyond the 'Seal of the Prophets': Bahaʼullah's Book of Certitude (Ketab-e Iqan). Archived 2011-10-09 at the Wayback Machine Religious Texts in Iranian Languages. Edited by Clause Pedersen & Fereydun Vahman. København (Copenhagen): Det Kongelige Danske Videnskabernes Selskab. Pp. 369–378.
- ISBN 0-933770-80-4.
- ISBN 978-90-474-4307-0.
References
- ISBN 978-0-87743-190-9.
- ISBN 1-931847-08-8.
Further reading
- Balyuzi, H. M. (1976). Muḥammad and the Course of Islám. George Ronald. ISBN 978-0-85398-060-5.
- Momen, Moojan (2000). Islam and the Baháʼí Faith. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0-85398-446-8.
- Momen, Moojan (1985). An Introduction to Shiʻi Islam: The History and Doctrines of Twelver Shiʻism. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-03531-5.
- Monajem, Jamshid (1999). Stories of the Life of Muhammad: A Compilation from the Writings of Early Muslim Chronicles. New Delhi, India: Baháʼí Publishing Trust. ISBN 8186953507.
- Saiedi, Nader (2000). Logos and Civilization - Spirit, History, and Order in the Writings of Baháʼu'lláh. USA: University Press of Maryland and Association for Baha'i Studies. OL 8685020M.
- Stockman, Robert (1998). "Notes on Islam from a Baháʼí Perspective". Notes for the Wilmette Institute. Wilmette Institute.
- Troxel, Duane (1994). "Islam and the Baháʼí Faith: A Brief Guide". Deepen Magazine. 3 (2). Tsavo West Baháʼí Institute.