Sources that relate the names of Prophet Muhammad
Question: Can you give us some information about the sources that relate the names of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)? Answer (Theologian Meral Günel): There are names which are used in the Qur'an, in other holy books and hadith, in addition to names which the Companions of the Prophet used for him.  Hadith scholars have allotted a section in their books to Asma-un Nabi (The Names of the Prophet); here t...

The Hilya in Islamic Calligraphy
The Islamic faith discourages the making of depictions of a person who could be idolized. Thus, other than a few miniatures, no one made portraits of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Instead of having an image of the Prophet, as exists for Christ within the Christian world, Muslims learn about the characteristics of the Prophet of Islam from the hilyah; with the help of these accurate accounts each belie...

Shamail
The Arabic word shamail is the plural form of shimal, a word that acts as a root for words of many different meanings, some which are even antonymous. Some of these meanings are temper, nature, character, mood and action, behavior and attitude. Plural forms of the words that are used with these meanings are used in the form of shamail. Islamic scholars have used the term in a more narrow sense t...

Was Muhammad Illiterate?
Muhammad (pbuh) was born in the full light of day and the biography of no other prophet is based upon so much historical evidence as that of the Prophet of Islam. We know more about Muhammad and his times than we do of Luther and Calvin. We can not, therefore, establish whether the Prophet was literate or illiterate without the support of history. Mecca was, in the sixth century, the most import...

The Prophet : Not Offending and Not Being Offended
The Quran refers to the kindness of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) towards all creatures and his compassion and grace for humans: "There had come unto you a Messenger, one of yourselves, unto whom whatever that you are overburdened is grievous, full of concern for you, for the believers full of pity, merciful." (1) In this verse, Allah gives the names Rauf (very compassionate) and Raheem (very merciful...

Servitude of Prophet Muhammad
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) performed his religious acts in the most perfect manner and taught people how to perform these acts. When we look at the Holy Quran in terms of the religious acts and worship of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), we find the following issues: 1. The most important issue that the Holy Quran emphasizes about the worship of Prophet Muhammad(pbuh) is sincerity: Sincerity in servitude is...

Religious Practices of Prophet Muhammad
Even though the basis of piety is faith, the presence of faith within the heart can only be solidified by acts of religious practices. Man was essentially created to worship Allah. As it is known, another source of Islamic rulings is the religious practices of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Apart from his acts of worshipping in different levels of fard (duty), vacib (obligatory) and sunnah (practices o...

The Sunna as the Basis of Islamic Ethical Teaching
One of the most important reasons for anarchy and depression, two of the greatest problems in today’s societies, is undoubtedly moral degeneration. In the past prophets were sent to nations which were morally degenerated. As a matter of fact, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) states that he was sent to complete moral virtues (Muvatta, "Husn al-Huluq" 8; Ahmed ibn Hanbal, Musnad, II, 381). We learn from the...

The Ideal Human Type in a Society of Ignorance: Muhammad Al-Amin
After Prophet Muhammad became an active member of the society where he passed his childhood, he began to be uncertain about everything in the society. These doubts prevented him from accepting all the customs and behavior in that society which had been passed down from generation to generation and applying them in his own life. In this situation Muhammad adopted an attitude of organizing his life...

Muhammad as a Model of Virtue
Our Prophet's being an example of virtue necessitates his being a model for living and applying moral values. By personally living these values as a human being and by demonstrating them in a tangible way, he became a model for us. In addition to religion, values are determined by intelligence, emotions and senses - in other words, by man. Value theories determined outside of religion are tied to...