Was Muhammad a Prophet of Allah?
22 Aug, 2007
Allah is said to have revealed to the Prophet of Islam:
30:39: [That which ye lay out for increase through the property
of (other) people, will have no increase with Allah: but that which
ye lay out for charity, seeking the Countenance of Allah, (will
increase): it is these who will get a recompense multiplied.]
Allah again told the Prophet:
2:275: [Those who devour usury will not stand except as stand one
whom the Evil one by his touch hath driven to madness. That is
because they say: "Trade is like usury," but Allah hath permitted
trade and forbidden usury. Those who after receiving direction from
their Lord, desist, shall be pardoned for the past; their case is
for Allah (to judge); but those who repeat (The offence) are
companions of the Fire: They will abide therein (for ever).]
2:281: [And fear the Day when ye shall be brought back to Allah.
Then shall every soul be paid what it earned, and none shall be
dealt with unjustly.]
While verses 30:39 and 2:275 were revealed in Medina, verse 2:281 is
believed to have come to the Prophet when he was in the plains of
Mina.
The Arabic word for usury is riba. In an attempt to clarify the true
meaning of the word riba, Fathi Osman writes:
[Usury or riba in the Quran may encompass any unlawful addition
to the principle when such an addition is unfair and thus harmful to
the individuals and the society. As Ibn Kathir noticed in his
commentary on the verse 2:275, as did other commentators and
jurists, riba is one of the most difficult subjects in Islamic law,
since the verse prohibiting riba, as well as what the Prophet said
about riba in his sermon during the Farewell Pilgrimage, came in the
last days of the Prophet’s life. As a result of this, the Companions
had no opportunity to ask him about the matter, so that even Caliph
Umar stated a wish that the Prophet could have given some
explanations, according to a report by Ibn Hanbal. In general, riba
has been related to loans involving an exploitation of the
economically weak and needy borrower by the strong and wealthy
lender who always gains, whereas the borrower may be merely using
the money to fulfill a need of life. …
What Muhammad Asad has clarified is essential, since usury is not a
name of a certain concrete material object, but of a dealing between
two or more people which can be understood within historical and
social circumstances. Linguistic explanation of riba as an
[addition] or an [increase] cannot shed any light on the matter,
since any legitimate incurrence of profit is also an increase.
Relating the words [addition] or [increase] to a loan in particular
may also not be sufficiently convincing, because the circumstances
of the society and the dealer have to be considered, since a loan
may have secured mutual free agreement, mutual gain and payments,
mutual equitable benefit, social usefulness etc. …][1]
Cutting Osman’s long discourse on riba short, I draw the following
inferences from it as well as from the verses of the Quran:
1.The word [riba] or [usury] denotes excessive or exploitative
interest a lender charges on a loan he makes to a borrower. This is
confirmed by the use of the English word [usury] for riba. Because
the word [usury] denotes exorbitant interest, its practice in the
United States of America is a prosecutable offence.
2. Charging of a normal rate of interest on loans is not riba, or
usury. Which means that the Quran has not forbidden payment and
receipt of a legally approved rate of interest on a loan.. Yusuf
Ali’s opinion is identical to mine, for he says: [… The definition I
would accept would be: undue profit made, not in the way of
legitimate trade, out of loans of gold and silver, and necessary
articles of food, such as wheat, barley, dates and salt (according
to the list mentioned by the Holy Apostle himself). My definition
would include profiteering of all kinds of, but exclude economic
credit, the creature of modern banking and finance.][2]
That said, I now revert to the verses I have quoted above to have a
one-paragraph discussion on them.
I surmise that the verses 2:275 and 30:39 were revealed to Muhammad
a year or two after his arrival in Medina, which means that from the
time of their revelation, payment and receipt of riba became haram
or illegal for all the Muslims. How effectively Muhammad was able to
enforce this prohibition on the Jews and the Pagans of Medina
remains a hotly contested issue.
Now, let us read what the Prophet is believed to have said on the
payment and receipt of riba in his Farewell Sermon, which he
delivered about eight or nine years after his arrival in Medina.
[Interest on money has been cancelled. I am the first one to cancel
all usury on behalf of my family.]
This sentence is from the text of the sermon, which Dr. Shabbir
Ahmed, one of the modern-day scholars of Islam, recently posted on
some internet forums. Ibn Ishaq’s reproduction of the same sentence
is slightly different. According to him, the Prophet had said: [God
has decreed that there is to be no usury and the usury of ‘Abbas b.
“Abdu’l-Muttalib is abolished, all of it.[3]
A close reading of the text given to us by Dr. Shabbir tells us that
the Prophet himself had not understood the true meaning of the word
[riba], hence his concomitant use of the word [interest] with
[usury] in his sermon. Ishaq’s text dispels our suspicion, for in
the text he has preserved for us, we note that the Prophet had
avoided the use of the word [interest]; it giving us the impression
that he knew that normal interest and usury was not one and the same
thing.
With the above in our mind, let us now consider what the Prophet had
told his audience. He is said to have told them that he was the
first one to cancel or abolish all usury of his family members or
that of Abbas b. Abdul Muttalib, and that from the date of his
announcement, the practice of usury became haram or illegal. This
leads me to conclude:
-until the day of his announcement, his family members, either as
lenders or as borrowers, practiced usury. That they loaned money and
charged exorbitant interest (riba) is probable; the force and tone
of his announcement helping me to arrive at this conclusion.
-Muhammad let his family members practice usury despite the fact
that Allah never lagged behind in reporting their activities to him.
Allah personally spied on the common people of Medina[4] as well as
on his family members,[5] lest they secretly did or said such things
as were not in his best interest.
-Muhammad violated the Quran by allowing his family members to
practice usury.
Now, the question is: could a flagrant violator of Allah’s
instruction be a prophet?
In my judgment, Muhammad was not a prophet or an apostle; he was an
imposter and a liar. He said and did things that suited his agenda,
and this is evident from the text of the Quran. In the blind pursuit
of his ambition, he turned Allah into a personal servant of his,
often using Him for justifying what he himself could not have
justified. He made Allah an accessory to his crimes. And in his
fleeting moments when he felt acting like Allah, he did it without
anyone ever perceiving it.
I am cataloguing his lies and crimes in my commentary to the Quran.
I hope I will be able to present them to the public very soon.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] Concept of the Quran- A Tropical Reading; pp. 879-880.
[2] The Holy Quran, vol. 1, p. 111.
[3] The Life of Muhammad, p. 651.
[4] The Quran; 58:7.
[5] The Quran; 66:3.
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Muhammad Asghar has contributed in Beyond Jihad — Critical Voices from Inside Islam. He is the author of e-book: Muhammad & Islam — Stories not told before.
Name: vbv
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 02:30:43 -0700
Comment
Mo practiced only those tenets of Quran that would line his pockets with ill-gotten wealth plundered from others and also to rape what his right hand possessed from the brigandry.Uncivilized ,as he was, he practiced usury for the benefit of his kith and kin ,but forbade others.With so many moral turpitudes , he still proclaims to be a 'prophet'.Any civilized society would have castigated him as a rotten criminal.So much for islam and its religion of bigotry and blood!
Name: Larry Houle
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 05:42:30 -0700
Comment
Muhammad invented ALLAH, and staged the revelations to give him authority over his followers and justification to war against the neighboring tribes of so called idoltars (pagan Arabs) and Jews and Christians – the first infidels that faced the murderous onslaught of this killer and murderous conquering ideology. When Muhammad spoke, he was speaking the word of ALLAH – the laws of ALLAH - that had to be obeyed without question. How could the word of ALLAH be challenged. By morphing into ALLAH and His Messenger, Muhammad set up the perfect totalitarian system whereby his rule could not be challenged. Muhammad was ALLAH and ALLAH was Muhammad. The ALLAH of the Koran never existed except in the mind of Muhammad. By Larry Houle www.godofreason.com intermedusa@yahoo.com
Name: Godot
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 06:14:49 -0700
Comment
Mohammad re-invented god so what is the problem with manipulating the semantics of "riba".
Name: Crotalus
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 18:36:17 -0700
Comment
As invented by Mo, or Moped, as I prefer, Allah is Satan, as presented in Judeo-Christian scriptures.
Name: Farewell Sermon
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 19:51:24 -0700
Comment
During the farewell sermon,Prophet Muhammad S.a.w told the companions that riba to be given to Abbas ibn Abdul Muttalib(Allah is Pleased with him) is abolished and that only the capital should be returned. So, in what way is he helping his relatives?
Name: The farewell sermon
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 19:54:51 -0700
Comment
After praising, and thanking Allah, he said: “ O People,Lend me an attentive ear, for I know not whether after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to you very carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today. ” “ O People, Just as you regard this month, this day, this city as sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your Lord, and that He will indeed reckon your deeds. Allah has forbidden you to take usury (interest, Arabic: Riba); therefore all interest obligation shall henceforth be waived. Your capital, however, is yours to keep. You will neither inflict nor suffer any inequity. ” “ Allah has Judged that there shall be no usury (interest) and that all interest due to Abbas Ibn Abd al Muttalib (the Prophet's uncle) shall henceforth be waived. ” “ Beware of Satan for the safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things. ” “ Fear Allah concerning women ! Verily you have taken them on the security of Allah, and intercourse with them has been made lawful unto you by words of Allah. You too have right over them, and that they should not allow anyone to sit on your bed whom you do not like. But if they do that, you can chastise them but not severely. Their rights upon you are that you should provide them with food and clothing in a fitting manner. (Sahih Muslim, Book 7 ,Number 2803). ” “ O People, Listen to me in earnest, worship Allah, say your five daily prayers (Salah), fast during the month of Ramadan, and give your wealth in Zakat.
Name: The farewell sermon
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 19:57:23 -0700
Comment
Perform Hajj if you can afford to. ” “ All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over a black, nor a black has any superiority over a white - except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood. Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim, which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly. Do not therefore, do injustice to yourselves. ” “ Remember one day you will appear before Allah and answer for your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone. ” “ O People, No prophet or apostle will come after me and no new faith will be born. Reason well therefore, O people, and understand words which I convey to you. I leave behind me two things, the Quran and the Sunnah, and if you follow these you will never go astray. All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listened to me directly. Be my witness, O Allah, that I have conveyed your message to your people. ” As part of this sermon, Muhammad recited them a Revelation from Allah which he had just received:“ This day the disbelievers despair of prevailing against your religion, so fear them not, but fear Me (Allah)! This day have I perfected for you your religion and fulfilled My favor unto you, and it hath been My good pleasure to choose Islam for you as your religion (5:3).
Name: Riba
Date: Wednesday August 22, 2007
Time: 20:03:07 -0700
Comment
I wish to inform that Islam forbids all form of riba (interest related transaction) regardless of whether the interest chatged is small or big. This is due to the fact that one man is profitting from the work of another by lending money. Money cannot grow with time. Most of African countries are mired in poverty because they are charged with interest by rich countries when they borrow money.
Name: Re: Riba
Date: Thursday August 23, 2007
Time: 01:40:44 -0700
Comment
"This is due to the fact that one man is profitting from the work of another by lending money." That's interesting because in Islam you can profit from another's labors if they are slaves. You can also profit from another's labor if they are non-Muslim by heavily taxing them on their profits(yes, yes "protection money" you call it, as did the Mafia)or by forcing them to take on a Muslim partner who did no work.
Name: UsKanna
Date: Thursday August 23, 2007
Time: 16:43:57 -0700
Comment
ISLAM is EVIL. Period.
Name: kafir-infidel-peacelover
Date: Monday August 27, 2007
Time: 22:38:29 -0700
Comment
The story (myth) of Mo & Allah is a simple human psychology. Those days in 6&7th century Arabia & it was nascent years for christianity - judaism&christianity was spreading like wild fire. Mo saw this in first hand & learned about judaism&christianity from his fellow citizens & other foreigners. Mo got jealousy to see the spread of christianity . So, to counter the influence of judaism &christianity - Mo invented Alla 7 His so called revelations. But in essence - Mo 's knowledge about the world is very limited- for example flora & fauna, about other people beyond his limited knowledge. All the revelations from so called Alla are copied from judaism,christianity& arab pagans. There is not a single or iota of new information or ideas in quran.The concept of God predates Islam by several thousands of years. Other religions (not known to MO ) existed,flourished before him. There is nothing new espoused by MO. Moreover religion is a spiritual idea- not a political& economic issue. interest,money,property matters must be decided by rules by society,rulers . The purpose of religion is to enlighten the soul & make & take a human creature close to God by their actions- kindness,compassion,peace,love- but none of these concepts are present in Quran. Quran is based on fascist,totalitarian,oppressive,suppressive,intolerant dogmatic ,primitive ideas- not on enlightening ideas. ISLAM is highly bigoted,hate filled ,revengeful ,death seeking cult. It can be God's religion but a SATANS. In ISLAM - based on inequality -between believers-nonbelievers,between men &women ,between differnt sects of ISLAM. Ther is not a single universal human value in ISLAM.Islam is discriminatory. In the entire history of ISLAM this is evident. Even today - every Moslam country practices inequality,discrimination,bigotry,revenge,intolerance against all nonmuslims,muslim women,children. The laws in Muslim countries are really demonic- not fit for any civilized society.
Name: Marie
Date: Tuesday August 28, 2007
Time: 12:20:38 -0700
Comment
The Farewell Sermon, no more sermons. Some of us can read between the lines of your sermons and they are not as peaceful as you portray them to be. Return the goods that were entrusted to you to their owners, means return whatever you have taken from your slaves or captives. Allah has judged that there will be no usuary does not explain Jyzya or taxation of "protected" of people. Your capital however is yours to keep, refers to the lands that were conquered by Muslims. Fear Allah concerning women, means absolutely nothing because the Quran promotes misogny and oppression against women.
Name: moslam
Date: Tuesday July 22, 2008
Time: 00:31:30 -0700