Sometimes...

Sometimes, he abstains from drinking antidote and sometimes he drinks a cup of poison and kills himself. It is certainly clear that the divine universal guidance will not be compulsory for a creature born with free will. That is to say, the prophets conveyed the message of the Almighty Allah on good and bad and prosperity and wretchedness to the people and warned believers of Allah's chastisement, but the believers have always been free to adopt any one of them.

It is true that, in general, man perceives his good and bad and advantage and disadvantage through his wisdom, but that very wisdom often loses its keenness, follows carnal desires, and makes error. Therefore, in addition to the medium of wisdom, divine guidance should positively be achieved through a different medium, which is entirely inviolable to sin and error. In other words, in addition to the medium of wisdom, the Almighty Allah confirms His orders by another medium.

This medium is the same medium of prophethood by which the Almighty Allah reveals His orders to one of His servants through wahy leading mankind to prosperity. Allah appoints him to communicate His orders to the people and to oblige them to follow the orders through hope, despair, encouragement, and threat.

The Almighty Allah states: "Surely We have revealed to you as We revealed to Nuh (Noah), and the prophets after him...(4:163)." "(We sent) messengers as the bearers of good news and as warners, so that people should not have a plea against Allah after the (coming of) messengers...(4:165)." ATTRIBUTES OF PROPHET From what was discussed, it becomes clear that the Almighty Allah, with His divine teachings, must have provided some of His servants with intuitive knowledge and laws that guarantee man's prosperity and must have sent them to lead the people.

A person who possesses divine messages is called a "nabi (prophet)" and messenger of Allah and the entire set of messages from Allah which he has brought to the people are called "religion". It has also become clear that a prophet: (1) Must be free and immuned from error.

In order to communicate what has been revealed to him to the people without error and mistake, he should be immuned from forgetfulness and other mental weaknesses; otherwise, divine guidance will not attain its goal and the general guidance rule will forfeit its applicability and lose its power to influence people.