Loving Muhammad (PBUH)!!

In the Name of Allah,

None worthy of worship except Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger.


"Say to them: If you love God, follow (and love and honor) me, and God will love you" (3:31)

Narrated Abu Huraira:
“Allah’s Apostle said, “By Him in Whose Hands my life is, none of you will have faith till he loves me more than his father and his
children.” (Volume 1, Book 2, Number 14)

As a Muslim, we know what we know because Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) told us, so beleiving in him is the critical part of our faith, and everyone knows that.

I am not too much interested in that, because it becomes part of declaration of faith. I would like to talk about who Muhammad (PBUH) was.

Last few years I have been studying his life, and I have seen him in a different light than most of the Muslims. What intrigued me was the early period of his prophethood, when he received the first revelation. In early days, he wasn't too sure about the message and had doubts. His wife took him to her cousin who was a christian, and here is what they talked.

"Allah's Apostle asked, "Will they drive me out?" Waraqa replied in the affirmative and said, "Anyone (man) who came with something similar to what you have brought was treated with hostility; and if I should remain alive till the day when you will be turned out then I would support you strongly." But after a few days Waraqa died " (Bukhari Volume 1 Book 1 #3)

This shows the humanity of him, and the emotions that we all go through if we are uncertain of something. There was a pause in revelation after first one, and Prophet (PBUH) started to doubt that there will be ever another revelation. This is the period where he was starting to getting used to and convincing himself that he has to do this.

Overall the first 13 years were the most difficult of his life, specially the last year of the 13 were so depressing that it is called the year of sorrow. During this time, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) had to use every ounce of his will power to keep going. It was so easy to give up and join the family. He could have become passive, and said that it is not my job. He did not. He took the taunts, the jokes, the physical humiliation, the peer pressure,... head on, and kept going.

I love Muhammad (PBUH) for that. I love him for his perseverance. I love him for his conviction. I love him for his confidence. I love him for his steadfastedness. I love him for his strength within weakness. I love him for sacrificing the honor for the truth. I love him for not compromising the principle for unity. I love him for speaking up. I love him for not second guessing his intentions. I love him for trusting Allah when all of us would have run away. I love him for going against family, friends, establishment to preach Islam.

We should not love him because he asked us to love him. It is not love when you force yourself. You have to fall in love with someone. You have to find something in that person that makes it impossible for you to think negative about them.

Our love should reflect in our action. If you love him, listen to him. If you love him, follow what he asked us to do. If you love him, be like him. If you love him, do something to show your affection, just like you would to someone else.

What have we done to show that we love him? Do we really love him? Or, do we love some half man half god figure that some present (May allah protect me for even thinking about this)? What is one thing that we don't like, but we do it becuase we love him? What do we have in common with him?

I can assure that none of us will enter Jannah, until we have an atom worth of faith, and we will have no faith until we love Muhammad (PBUH) more than we love our kids, our wife, our car, our briefcase, our jobs, our hotel, our house, our bed, our parents, our free will, our wishes, our status as Imam of the masjid, our status in the family, our money, our favourite player, our favourite sports, our favourite food...

If we truly love him, there should always be one question in our mind. Before we do this, how did Muhammad (PBUH) do this, or how did he asked us to do? Once you know the answer to that, there should be no reason to not follow his command, becuase his command is the way to Allah.


"Whoever splits from the Messenger after the guidance is clear to him and follows other than the path of the believers, We shall entrust him to what he has turned to and expose him unto Hell - an evil retreat!" (Quran4:115)


O Allah! Send your blessings/greetings (Salawat) on Muhammad and his family, the same way as You sent Your blessings/greetings on Abraham's family. You are indeed worthy of all praise, full of glory

JazakAllah Khairin
AbuArman
A struggling Muslim