It is however...

It is however, understood from the above points that while the conditions of man’s life are so, that the Prophet’s invitation can reach all the people of the world and his message can be protected and secured for future generations, as long as the social regulations do not need fundamental changes, no new Prophet would be necessary.

The number of prophets As I discussed above, our intellect cannot decide about the number of prophets and Divine Books; such points can only be proved through traditions. Even in the case of the Holy Qur’an, although it emphasises that Almighty God has sent a Prophet for every nation (refer to Fātir:24, al-Nahl:36), it does not clarify the number of the nations or their prophets.

However, more than twenty prophets have been mentioned in the Holy Qur’an and the stories of some others have been narrated without referring to their names (refer to al- Baqarah:246, 256). On the other hand, in some traditions from the Prophet’s family members (a), it has been stated (refer to Risālat I’tiqādāt al-Sadūq, Bihār al-Anwār, vol.11, p.

28,30,32,41) that Almighty God has appointed one hundred and twenty four thousand prophets (a), and that the chain of prophets began with Adam (a) and ended with Muhammad (s) the son of Abdullah. God’s prophets (a) have had various characteristics: They have been guides (nabi), which is the main responsibility for this Divine position, ‘warners’ (nadhīr or mundhir), and ‘providers of glad tidings’ (bashīr or mubashshir) (refer to al- Baqarah:213, al-Nisā’:165).

They have also been known as the best (salihīn) and the most pious (mukhlasīn) people some of whom have held the position of ‘Messengers of God’ (rasūl) aswell. In some sayings, the number of Divine messengers is said to be three hundred and thirteen (refer to Bihār al-Anwār Vol.11, p, 32). Therefore, in this part, I will explain the definition of prophet and messenger aswell as the differences between them.

Prophets and God’s Messengers The word ‘Messenger’ (Rasūl) means the one who brings a message, and the word Prophet (Nabi), if derived from the root (Naba’) means important news, and if derived from (Nabu) means holding an outstanding position.