ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Muhammad The Call to Islam Muhammad Receives Revelation (610 A.D.) Muhammad was forty years old when the first verses of the Holy Qur'an were revealed to him. They were the first verses of Surat al-Alaq (chapter 96), and they were revealed during the month of Ramadan 13 years before the Hijra, at the cave of Hira, his favourite place for isolation and meditation, a place which is now visited by many pilgrims.

Muhammad went back home heavy-hearted, profoundly perplexed, deeply impressed by the sight of arch-angel Gabriel and by the depth of meaning implied in these beautiful words: In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful Proclaim (or read)! In the Name of your Lord and Cherisher Who created (everything). (He) created man of a (mere) clot of congealed blood. Proclaim!

And your Lord is the Most Bountiful Who taught (the use of) the pen, Who taught man that which he knew not… (Qur'an, 96:1-5) He felt feverish, so he asked to be wrapped and, once he felt better, he narrated what he had seen and heard to his faithful and supportive wife.

“By Allah,’ Khadija said, “Allah shall never subject you to any indignity…, for you always maintain your ties with those of your kin, and you are always generous in giving; you are diligent, and you seek what others regard as unattainable; you cool the eyes of your guest, and you lend your support to those who seek justice and redress.

Stay firm, O cousin, for by Allah I know that He will not deal with you except most beautifully, and I testify that you are the awaited Prophet in this nation, and your time, if Allah wills, has come.’ After a short while, Khadija told her husband about the prediction of the Syrian monk Buhayrah regarding Muhammad's Prophethood, and about her dialogue with both her servant Maysarah, who had informed her of what Buhayrah had said, and with her cousin Waraqah ibn Nawfal.

She then accompanied her husband to Waraqah's house to narrate the whole incident. “Let me hear it in your own words,’ Nawfal said to Muhammad, adding, “O noble master!’ Having heard the Prophet's words, Nawfal took his time to select his words very carefully; he said, “By Allah, this is the prediction which had been conveyed to Moses and with which the Children of Israel are familiar!