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Bismi Allah (In the Name
of Allah)
Part 2 (b)
Abul Kasem
Published
on
February 13, 2007
Who is Allah? � (ii)
Allah lived in a cave during Moses�
time
So, where precisely Allah lived
before He sent Muhammad to Mecca? Since Arabia in particular and the Middle
East in general, are mountainous, we should not be surprised that Allah
loves mountains, especially the mountains of Arabia and its neighbouring
areas. No wonder, we find many verses in the Qur�an which say that
Muhammad�s Allah indeed lived in caves, before Muhammad was born. Here are a
few verses from the Qur�an.
When Moses was close to the fire, a voice praised Allah and those
surrounding the fire�27:8.
Muhammad was not present when Allah gave the command to Moses on the western
side of the Mountain�28:44.
Allah is a country-destroyer; He
loves to dwell in cities
Allah always has a great
fascination for large cities like Mecca. He cares very little about rural or
suburban areas. Nowhere in the Qur�an do we find examples that He ever cared
for the rural folks. This is understandable when we realise that Allah does
actually reside in a metropolitan city such as Mecca. This is the
birth-place of Muhammad, Allah�s greatest friend and compatriot. Naturally,
Allah would never like to depart from this location. Allah�s interest in
huge cities never ends. Some times He likes to destroy and redeem big
cities. Here are some sample verses from the Qur�an which tell us that Allah
sends messengers and warners only to cities.
Allah will not destroy a population until an apostle is sent to a major city
(Allah sends His messenger only to a major town) as a warner�28:59.
Allah sent an Arabic Qur�an to Muhammad to warn the people in the
neighbourhood of the city of Mecca (Islam is only for the Meccans, the city
dwellers)...42:7.
Even today, Allah�s deep interest in gigantic cities lives on. That is why
he sends His soldiers to destroy mega cities like New York, London, Madrid,
Istanbul, Delhi, Baransi, Dhaka, Cairo�and so on to redeem their inhabitants
from their calumnies and to fully Islamise these cities.
Allah has competitors�other creators
compete with Him
Islam preaches that Allah is
the only owner of the universe; He has no want (31:26),
no penury and no competitors. Incredibly though, we read in the Qur�an that
Allah does have competitors. In verse 23:14 Allah says that He is one of the
best of creators. Allah used this verse to convince the Pagan Arabs that
there could be no comparisons between Allah and other creators. Let us read
the verse:
YUSUFALI:
Then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then of that clot We
made a (foetus) lump; then we made out of that lump bones and clothed the
bones with flesh; then we developed out of it another creature. So blessed
be Allah, the best to create!
PICKTHAL: Then fashioned We the drop a clot, then fashioned
We the clot a little lump, then fashioned We the little lump bones, then
clothed the bones with flesh, and then produced it as another creation. So
blessed be Allah, the Best of creators!
SHAKIR: Then We made the seed a clot, then We made the clot
a lump of flesh, then We made (in) the lump of flesh bones, then We clothed
the bones with flesh, then We caused it to grow into another creation, so
blessed be Allah, the best of the creators. [023.014]
I included three
translations for the readers to judge that these three translations indicate
the same meaning; that is, Allah does compete with His competitors.
Here is another verse to confirm that we get the correct meaning. In this
verse Allah admonished the Baal worshippers. This is simply because Baal,
the sun Allah of the Egyptians competed with the moon Allah of Arabia.
YUSUFALI:
"Will ye call upon Baal and forsake the Best of Creators,-
PICKTHAL: Will ye cry unto Baal and forsake the Best of creators,
SHAKIR: What! do you call upon Ba'l and forsake the best of the
creators, [037.125]
Allah is a King
Muhammad always hated kings and rulers. When
the Pagans told Muhammad that his Allah is not as powerful as Tubba, the
title of the Himyarite king (Hitti, 2002, p. 60) Muhammad was furious. He
asserted that his Allah was far more powerful and mightier than the Tubba of
the Himyarite , the south Arabian king. His argument was that His Allah was
not only the King of kings, but that Allah was the King of the entire
universe. He said Allah is the Lord of the Kingdom, Malikul-Mulk (Hughes,
1994, p. 312).
Allah confirmed Muhammad�s declaration in
verse 67:1.
YUSUFALI:
Blessed be He in Whose hands is Dominion; and He over all things hath
Power;- [067.001]
Allah is a Bachelor
The brief history of Allah demonstrated with
ample epigraphic evidences that Allah had consort/s and children. This was
the version of moon Allah that the Bedouin Arabs believed firmly. But
Muhammad wanted to stand out from the crowd Pagans. So he claimed that Allah
never had any wives or children. In essence, his claim meant that Allah is a
perpetual bachelor.
Let us read verse 2:116.
YUSUFALI:
They say: "Allah hath begotten a son" :Glory be to Him.-Nay, to Him belongs
all that is in the heavens and on earth: everything renders worship to Him.
[002.116]
Dr Muhammad Taqiuddin
al-Hilai and Dr Muhammad Muhsin Khan, the translators of The Noble Qur�an
comment on this verse by quoting this hadith from Sahih Bukhari.
Volume 6, Book 60,
Number 9: Narrated Ibn
Abbas:
The Prophet said, "Allah said, 'The son of Adam tells a lie against me
though he has no right to do so, and he abuses Me though he has no right to
do so. As for his telling a lie against Me, it is that he claims that I
cannot recreate him as I created him before; and as for his abusing Me, it
is his statement that I have offspring. No! Glorified be Me! I am far from
taking a wife or offspring.' "
This hadith confirms Muhammad�s claim that
Allah is a Bachelor, void of wives, concubines or
children.
Here are a few more verses from the Qur�an
which tell us that Muhammad�s Allah prefers to remain wifeless and
childless.
Allah neither has a son nor
a daughter; He has no preference for daughter�37:153-154.
If Allah had a son, Muhammad would still be the first to believe in Him and
refute the claim that Allah has a son...43:81.
It is not true that humans have sons and Allah has only daughters...53:21.
Allah bestowed children to Satan but
not to Himself
Though Muhammad�s Allah
prefers to remain a Bachelor, He has no qualm to bestow his implacable foe,
Satan, with children�plenty of them. Here is a verse from the Qur�an in
which Allah confirms his bequeath of children to Satan.
Do not follow the progeny (Satan has children or offspring) of Satan...18:50.
Allah does not have the personality
of a weak female, He is a male.
Even when Allah is a Bachelor
He still prefers male children�if He would ever like to have them. Allah
considers females to be weak and, therefore would not like to be associated
with anything resembling a female character. Here is verse 43:18 in which
Allah tells us that He would never like to have daughters.
The weak personality of females cannot be associated with Allah; Allah does
not like daughters...43:18.
Allah has His signs (insignia) on
earth: they are Safwa and Marwa
Here are a few ahadith which
say that Allah does have symbols (just like the Pagan idols).
The early Muslims were reluctant to run between Safwa and Marwa like the
Pagans did; but Allah decreed that Safwa and Marwa were two sacred places
(2:158)�(Sahih Bukhari,
2.26.706,710).
Muhammad wanted to continue with the Pagan tradition, so Allah revealed (2:158)
that Safa and Marwa were two symbols of Allah. So it is all right to
ambulate (Tawaf) between them� (Sahih Bukhari,
6.60.22).
When the Ghassan asked Muhammad about circumambulation between Safa and
Marwa Allah revealed, �Verily al-Safa' and al-Marwa are among the Signs of
Allah�� (Sahih Muslim,
7.2927,
2928).
Not only that Safwa and Marwa, the two mountains in Mecca are two physical
symbols of Allah, the moon and the sun are also Allah�s symbols. The Pagans
had been correct al along, Muhammad confirmed. Let us read this hadith.
The Sun and the Moon are the two signs of Allah; they do not prostrate
because of someone�s death� (Sahih Bukhari,
4.54.424,
426).
Circumambulation, running between Safwa and Marwa, and casting stones at the
pillars are for the remembrance of Allah� (Sunaan Abu Dawud 2.10.1883).
The online version of Sunaan Abu Dawud does not contain this hadith.
So I shall quote this hadith from the print version of Sunaan Abu Dawud.
Sunaan Abu Dawud, vol.ii, Book 7, hadith number 1883:
�Aishah reported the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) as saying:
Going round the House of (the Ka�ba), running between al�safa� and
lapidation of the pillars are meant for the remembrance of Allah.
Allah will give tongue and eyes to
Ka�ba
The Islamists will find it extremely tough to
digest what is written in the above caption. But a careful study of the most
authentic sources of Islam reveal a great secret�Islam is deeply mired in
idolatry. As written before, no matter how much Muhammad had tried, he could
not, shake out his Pagan origin. He believed in the stones having life, in
the speaking powers of inanimate objects and in the ability of some rocks
(i.e. the rocks of Ka�ba) to become alive, with hands and eyes.
The most eminent Islamic scholar, Imam Ghazali (many Muslims consider his
writings as next to the Qur�an and ahadith) wrote that the Blackstone (of
Ka�ba) is a jewel from Paradise. It will be raised on the resurrection day.
It will have two eyes and one tongue with which it will speak. It will bear
witness for everyone who kissed it and testified its truth (Ghazali, 1993,
p. 1.190).
A hadith in Ibn Majah confirms Ghazali�s claims.
Here is the hadith.
Ka�ba will have Allah�s eyes ..(ibn
Majah, 4.2944).
Please note that Sunaan ibn Majah is not available online. I am
quoting from the print version of this hadith book.
Sunaan ibn Majah,Vol.IV,Hadith number
2944:
Sa�d b. Jubair (Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have said, �I
heard Ibn �Abbas (Allah be pleased with him) saying that Allah�s Messenger
(peace and blessings Allah be upon him) said, �This Stone must come on the
Day of Resurrection and it will have two eyes to see with and a tongue to
talk with bearing witness for him who caressed it with Truth (Islam).�
Not only that Muhammad was a believer in
the supernatural power of restoring the power of life to Ka�ba stones, he
also declared that touching Ka�ba stones is akin to touching the Hands of
Allah. And to confirm that what he said was an absolute truth, he kissed the
stones of Ka�ba.
Here are two ahadith from Sunaan ibn Majah.
Please note that this hadith is quite lengthy. I shall quote only the
relevant section. Interested readers are requested to read the full hadith
from the reference/bibliography.
Touching Ka�ba is touching hands of
Allah (Ibn Majah, 4.2957).
Sunaan Ibn Majah,
Vol IV, Hadith number 2957:
This is a hadith narrated by Ibn Hisham
�When we reached Rukn Aswad (the Black Stone) he said, �O Abu
Muhammad, �What (command) has reached you regarding this (sic)
Black Stones?� Ata� said: Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) related to
me that he heard Allah�s Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him) saying, �He who touches it in fact touches the Hand of the Merciful
(Allah).��
Here is another hadith from
Ibn Majah.
Muhammad caressed and hugged the Ka�ba stone� (Ibn Majah, 4.2962).
Sunaan Ibn Majah,
Vol IV, Hadith number 2962:
�Umar b. Shu�aib (Allah be pleased with him) reported his father to have
said on his grandfather�s authority, �I performed tawaf alongwith (sic)
�Abdullah b. �Amir (Allah be pleased with him): As we concluded our seven
circuits (around the Ka�ba), we offered two rak�ats (prayer) at the
back of Ka�ba. I said, �Do we not seek refuge from Allah against the
Hell-Fire?� He replied, �I seek refuge from Allah against the Fire.� He (the
narrator) said, �Then he went and caressed the Black Stone. Then he stood
between the Black Stone and the Gate and pressed his bosom, his hands and
his cheek against it. He then said, �I saw Allah�s Messenger (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) doing that.�
Similar ahadith are found
in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. Readers are requested to
consult online version the following ahadith.
Umar kissed the Ka�ba stone because Muhammad did it likewise... (Sahih
Bukhari,
2.26.667,
675,
679,
680).
Muhammad kissed the corner of the black stone in Ka�ba... (Sahih Bukhari,
2.26.673).
Muhammad kissed the black stone in Mecca; background to
2:199---�then hasten on from where the people hasten----�� (Sahih
Muslim,
7.2806,
2807).
Muhammad touched the corner of Ka�ba and then kissed his hand� (Sahih
Muslim,
7.2910).
Umar kissed the black stone of Ka�ba because Muhammad did so� (Sahih Muslim,
7.2912,
2913,
2914,
2915).
Incredible though it might sound, even today, the single most revered object
in Islam is a piece of stone�the stone of Ka�ba. Faithful Muslims turn
towards it every day�five times, to worship�in the name of Allah. This was
exactly what the Pagan Arabs did�worship stones and idols.
The Pagans of Mecca knew Allah very
well.
We learned
before that the concept of one�moon Allah was nothing new to
the Pagans of Mecca. They were absolutely familiar with this all-powerful,
almighty, benevolent (at times) and utterly destructive (at times) nature of
Allah. When the Islamist scholars talk about Allah, they would like to give
the impression that Allah was something unique that Muhammad alone knew
about. What the Pagans of Mecca did not like about Muhammad was that he
imposed on the easy�going, secular�minded gullible Pagans his own idea about
this powerful moon deity, Allah. With his invention of a new Allah, Muhammad
tried to ridicule the Allah these Pagans knew about for millenniums. They
used to name their children with Allah�s name. Even Muhammad�s father�s name
was Abd Allah. Here are a few comments from eminent scholars and from the
primary sources of Islam which irrefutably prove that the Pagans were ever
cognisant about Allah, that Muhammad simply confused those Meccans.
Muhammad did not invent the concept of the unity of Allah; this concept was
not new�38:5.
Many Pagans had heard the story of resurrection from past tales; it was
nothing new to them�23:83.
Ask the unbelievers to whom belongs the earth and they will answer it is
Allah...23:84-85.
Ask the unbelievers under whose hand is the sovereignty and against whom
there is no protector and they will answer it is Allah; so how could they
deceive and turn away from Allah�23:88-89.
The Pagans thought that the angels were females and they (the angels) are
the daughters of Allah; Allah vehemently rejects this idea�37:149-150.
The unbelievers do agree that almighty Allah created the universe�43:9.
The Pagans thought that it was ar-Rahman�s (Allah) wish that they should
worship the partners of ar-Rahman (Allah)�43:20.
If the unbelievers accept Allah as the creator of the universe then why
should they deviate from His message?�43:87.
The Pagans in Mecca, during Muhammad�s time,
believed that Allah was a high
God . (29:61-65).
Other deities interceded with Allah on behalf of their worshippers (39:38).
Other deities interceded with Allah,
10:18,
36:23,
43:86 (Tabari, 1988, p. 6. xxii).
When Abd al-Muttalib and his companions found
an inscription by digging in the desert they cried out, �Allah Akbar�( ibn
Ishaq, 2001, p. 63).
The Quraysh used to cry, �Allah Akbar.� When Abd al-Muttalib dug Zamzam he
cried, �Allah Akbar� (Ibid, p. 62).
Abd al-Muttalib, Muhammad�s grandfather was a very handsome man. He was also
very wealthy. Abd al-Muttalib had many wives. He prayed to Allah to bless
him with ten sons. His prayer was granted. He promised to sacrifice one of
his sons to Allah. His youngest son was Abd Allah. Abd al-Muttalib loved Abd
Allah the most (Lings, 1983, p. 12).
When the Quraysh made it difficult for Abd al-Muttalib to dig Zamzam, he
vowed that if ten sons were born to him and they reached puberty, he would
sacrifice one of them.
Allah fulfilled his desire of having ten
sons. The lot fell on Abdallh b. Abd Muttalib. Abd Al-Muttalib asked Allah
if he should sacrifice Abdullah or 100 camels instead. He cast lots and the
lot fell on 100 camels (Tabari, 1988, p. 6.2).
Allah does not necessarily mean the monotheistic Allah. Abd Al-Muttalib
stood beside Hubal while praying to Allah (Ibid, foot note 4).
Abd Al-Muttalib took a large knife, took Abdallah to Isaf and Nailah, the
idols of the Quraysh to sacrifice him (Ibid, p. 6.4).
While the custodian was casting lot, Abd Al-Muttalib stood beside Hubal
praying to Allah. The lot fell against Abdullah (Ibid).
When Abdullah was taken for sacrifice, Abd al-Muttalib stood by Hubal and
prayed to Allah. During the visit to the woman sorceress, Abd al-Muttalib
prayed to Allah. A spirit used to visit this woman. She used to get
inspiration from this spirit (ibn Ishaq, 2001, p. 67).
When the Quraysh were carrying out the sorceress� instructions Abd
al-Muttalib was praying to Allah (Ibid, p. 68).
The polytheists believed in the existence of
one supreme deity� (Sahih Muslim,
7.2671).
Sahih Muslim,
Book 007, Number 2671:
Ibn 'Abbas (Allah be pleased with them) reported that the polytheists also
pronounced (Talbiya) as: Here I am at Thy service, there is no associate
with Thee. The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Woe be upon
them, as they also said: But one associate with Thee, you possess mastery
over him, but he does not possess mastery (over you). They used to say this
and circumambulated the Ka'ba.
In a foot note on this
hadith, the translator of Sahih Muslim, �Abdul Hamid Siddiqi writes:
The polytheists believed in the existence of One Supreme Deity but they also
believed that there were some other deities also who were to be worshipped
besides them (Siddiqi, 2004, v.2, p. .704, foot note 1596).
All those references prove, without any doubt, that the Pagans of Mecca had
no problem with Allah. They were very much devoted to their Allah without
any trouble whatsoever. They did not do any acts for which Muhammad should
despise them and declare war on them. So why was it that Muhammad had to be
so vicious towards them, to force them to believe in his version Allah? The
answer to this question is that Muhammad craved attention and praise. With
his lowly background and nothing to offer to the Quraysh he was searching
for a method�a pretext to ridicule, despise, insult and blaspheme the Meccan
Pagans and their religions to grab attention. A waif, deprived of love,
affection, care and protection during childhood, he simply hankered for
those exceedingly powerful human emotions.
Muhammad, therefore, turned to Allah to seek His love and absolute
attention. He declared himself to be the greatest friend and confidante (as
if, Allah, too, hankered for his love and care) of the Allah of the Pagan
Arabs, whom all the Pagans revered with utmost ardour. This was a failsafe
method by which Muhammad could get what he missed out in his dejected,
lonely and featureless childhood.
Sahih Bukhari provides the reason why, all on a sudden, Allah decided to
hate and deplore the Pagan Meccans. It was simply because Allah was in love
with Muhammad, while the Pagans did not love him. So Allah had to abandon
these Bedouin folks in favour of Muhammad. Muhammad became Allah�s most
favourite person. Let us read this hadith.
Volume 2, Book 26,
Number 725:
Narrated Muhammad bin
Jubair bin Mut'im:
My father said, "(Before Islam) I was looking for my camel." The same
narration is told by a different sub-narrator. Jubair bin Mut'im said, "My
camel was lost and I went out in search of it on the day of 'Arafat, and I
saw the Prophet standing in 'Arafat. I said to myself: By Allah he is from
the Hums (literally: strictly religious, Quraish were called so, as they
used to say, 'We are the people of Allah we shall not go out of the
sanctuary). What has brought him here?"
The above hadith tells us that there was
absolutely no reason for Allah to be angry with the Quraysh. They were
utterly devoted to Him. The trouble only started when Muhammad received his
claimed special love of Allah for him. Suddenly, Allah turned his face away
from the Meccan; Allah became obsessed with Muhammad, abandoning the Meccan
Pagans.
Allah frequently changes His name, only
Muhammad was allowed to change Allah�s name.
As told before, the
ancient Arabs knew Allah as well as they knew their palms. They were
consistent with the Allah they were devoted to‑ never changing His name or
His attributes. On the contrary, after Muhammad came in the scene, he
claimed that Allah has ninety-nine names (59:22-24).
The Pagans of Mecca were not convinced because they never had the authority
to change the name of Allah at their will. To this, Muhammad�s response was
that Allah authorised only him to change His name. This was because Allah
had special love, adore and mercy for Muhammad.
Let us read the following hadith from the print version of Sunaan Abu Dawud.
Sunaan Abu Dawud,
Vol. I. Hadith number 1472:
Ubayy b. Ka�b reported: The Prophet (may peace be upon him) said: Ubayy, I
was asked to recite the Qur�an. I was asked: In one mode or two modes? The
angel that accompanied me said: Say in two modes. I said: In two modes. I
was again asked: In two modes or three? The angel that was in my company
said: Say, in three modes. So I said: In three modes. The matter reached up
to seven modes. He then said: each mode is sufficiently health-giving,
whether you utter �all-hearing and all-knowing� or instead �all-powerful and
all-wise�. This is valid until you finish the verse indicating punishment on
mercy and finish the verse indicating mercy on punishment.
Here is the crux. Muhammad
changed, at will, his taste even when Gabriel, Allah�s postman brought from
Allah instructions with stipulated specifications. Why? The answer is
provided in a foot note by Professor Ahmad Hasan, the translator of
Sunaan Abu Dawud. In a foot note on this hadith, he writes:
The Prophet (may peace be
upon him) was allowed to make minor change in the name of Allah at the end
of the verses. But ordinary persons cannot be allowed to do so (�Awn
al�Ma�baf, I, 551) (Hasan, 2001, v.1. p. 387, foot note 819).
After changing at will,
Allah�s name, Muhammad claimed that whoever believes in their meanings and
acts accordingly will enter Paradise (Sahih Bukhari,
8.75.419). Muhammad even went to the extent of claiming that just by
learning those ninety�nine names of his Allah one could be in Paradise
(Sahih Bukhari,
3.50.894).
Curiously, some names by which Muhammad called his Allah were actually the
names of Pagan idols. Benjamin Walker writes:
Thus Wadd, a moon god was
assimilated into and survived in al�Wadud, �the Loving�; Munim, worshipped
in north Arabia survives in al�Mani, �the Withholder�; Salm, a deity of
Tayma, in al�Salaam, �the Peace�; Kaus or Kayis, regarded as the consort of
Manat, is retained in al�Kawi, �the Strong�; Aziz of north Arabia is
preserved unchanged is al�Aziz, �the Mighty�.The pre�Islamic designations of
God, al�Rahman, �the Merciful�, and ar�Rahim, �the Compassionate�, remain
conspicuous in Islam (Walker, 2004, p. 43).
Allah loves to be known as a deity
(god or goddess).
Once we
grasped what the above quote, from an eminent historian means, we should
have no qualm in realising that Allah loves to be known as a deity (god or
goddess). The Qur�an confirms this.
Let us read the following verses from the Qur�an
YUSUFALI:
And your Allah is One Allah: There is no god but He, Most Gracious, Most
Merciful. [002.163]
YUSUFALI: It is He Who is Allah in heaven and Allah on
earth; and He is full of Wisdom and Knowledge. [043.084]
A hadith in Sunaan Abu
Dawud talks about these verses. This hadith is not available online. I
shall quote from the print version of Sunaan Abu Dawud.
Sunaan Abu Dawud,
vol.1, hadith number 1491:
Asma� daughter of Yazid reported the Prophet (may peace be upon him) as
saying: Allah�s Greatest Name is in these two verses: �And your deity is one
deity: there is no deity but He, the Compassionate and the Merciful, and the
beginning of Surah Al�Imran, �A.L.M, Allah there is no deity but He, the
living, the eternal.�
In the beginning Muhammad was not
sure of his Allah.
When we learn what Muhammad was up to with his
Allah, we can derive only one conclusion: confusion and hesitancy. In the
beginning, In the beginning Muhammad was not so sure who should be his
Allah�ar-Rahman, ar�Rahim, Allat, Uzza, Wadd, Hubal, Aziz�or any other
numerous deities that the Meccan Pagans used to worship. Besides Hubal,
Allah, Allat, Uzza, Manat�each tribe in Arabia, had their own favorite idol
or deity. This is confirmed from the Sirah (biography) of ibn Ishaq.
As an example, he writes that Hudhayl b. Mudrika b. Ilyas b. Mudar adopted
Suwa. Suwa was at Ruhat, a place near Yanbu. Kalb b. Wabra of Quba adopted
Wudd in Dumat al-Jandal (ibn Ishaq, 2001, p. 36).
Even in the Qur�an we read the obsession of the Arabs with idols. Here are
two verses from the Qur�an which tell us about the worshipping of various
idols by the people of Noah.
Noah complained to Allah that
people with money and children were the most corrupt on earth and they
refused to abandon their idols Wadd, Suwa, Yaguth, Yau�q and
Nasr �71:21-23.
With so much idolatry in practice and with so many deities around, Muhammad,
in the beginning of his career as a Prophet, was utterly indecisive. He
tried a few other brands of Allah; was disappointed with the response from
his audience and changed his mind several times. In the end, he realized
that all the Pagans, despite their numerous idols, had one aspect in common:
all of them were wholly devoted to their moon God, Allah, because they
believed that Allah had the wherewithal to inflict punishment as well as
rewards. This last reason propelled Muhammad to turn to Allah to be his
succor. This worked wonderfully, since no Arab could reject their variety of
Allah, even tough they were also totally confused with the new version of
Allah that Muhammad was pushing to them.
Here are a few comments on the hesitancy and confusion in Muhammad about his
Allah.
First we read the Qur�an:
None but Allah (Muhammad uses
another name, Rahman) protects during day and at night�21:42.
Muhammad has no knowledge of Allah but he only gives warning plainly and
publicly; angels only bring Allah�s messages to him�38:67-70.
Muhammad believed in all scriptures but he is commanded to judge between
other people's books; Muslims� Allah and the Allah of the people of the
Books (the Jews and the Christians) are same...42:15.
No Book was sent to the Pagans of Arabia to testify their claims of
ascribing partners to ar-Rahman�43:21.
Then we read hadith.
Muhammad considered himself to be
the messenger of ar-Rahman. The Meccans did not know of any ar-Rahman other
than the ar-Rahman of al-Yamamah. (ibn Sa�d, 1972, p. 1.189).
The word 'ar-Rahm (womb)� derives its name from ar-Rahman (i.e., one of the
names of Allah) and Allah said� (Sahih Bukhari,
8.73.17,
18).
And, finally, comments from a few eminent writers:
Was Muhammad, a warner, an admonisher or the messenger of Allah (Tabari.
1988, p. 6. xxxix)?
The word �Allah� does not occur in the earliest passages of the Qur�an or
does so only rarely.The Jews and the Christians, when speaking about Allah
in Arabic, presumably used the word, �Allah� (Ibid, p. 6.33).
Regis Blanchere did the latest attempts of the chronological order of the
Qur�an in his French translation in 1949. In the first 17 suras, the word
Allah occurs only three times namely: (91:130, 10 (95:8), 16 (87:7). Instead
of Allah, we find �your Lord (rabbuka) in 96:13 or �we� in 94:14, The
Satanic verses indicate the confusion between Allah conceived
monotheistically and Allah as a �high Allah� (Ibid, p. 6.34).
Ar-Rab�the Lord, the Sustainer, the supreme.
3:44 (Allah) Allah is my Lord and your Lord. 18:14 Our Lord Rabb is the Lord
(Rabb) of the heavens and the earth; occupies the place of Hebrew Jehovah
(Hughes, 1994, p. 531).
Abul Kasem writes from Sydney, Australia. Email :
[email protected]
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