The Characteristics of Muhamad Rasul Allah

RasulAllah was a Mercy to all Mankind

Abu Huraira (may Allah be pleased with him) said: the Prophet was asked to curse the infidels. He said, "I have not been sent to curse people but as a mercy to all mankind." (Muslim)

Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said that she once asked the Holy Prophet 'Did you face a day severer than the day of the battle of Uhud? 'He answered:

'Yes I have experienced such things at the hands of your people and such a day was the day of Aqabah. On this day I presented myself to Abdi lail bin Abd Kulal and offered him Islam, but he failed to make any responce to what I had offered to him. I therefore, left with a heavy heart and depressed.

I felt some relieft only when I reached Qarn Sa'alib. Here I looked up and saw a cloud covering me. In this cloud I saw Angel Jibril who called me and said: Allah, the Most High, has heard what your people have said to you and the response to your offer. Allah has now sent the Angel of the Mountains to you to carry out your orders to do what you might like to be done to them.

Then the Angel of the Mountains addressed me greeting with Salam and then said: 'Muhammad! Allah (The Glorified and the Exalted) has heard what your people have said to you. I am the Angel of the Mountains and my Lord has sent me to you to carry out your orders. What do you want now to be done? If you like I may crush them between the two mountains encircling the city of Makka. The Prophet replied: (I do not want their destruction) I am still hopeful that Allah will make some of their children (good Muslims) who would worship Allah, the One, without associating anybody with Him. (Bukhari and Muslim).

Principles of Success in the light of the life of Prophet Mohammed

It is a well-known fact that the Prophet of Islam (saw) has been the supremely successful man in human history. But he was not just a hero, as Thomas Carlyle has called him. According to the Qur'an, he was the best example for all mankind. He has shown us the way of achieving supreme success in this world.

By studying the life of the Prophet (saw), we can derive those important principles which were followed by the Prophet (saw). Indeed, the Prophet of Islam (saw) was a positive thinker in the full sense of the word. All his activities were result-oriented. He completely refrained from all such steps as may prove counter-productive.

1. First Principle: To begin from the possible

This principle is well explained in a saying of Aishah (ra). She said: "Whenever the Prophet had to choose between two options, he always opted for the easier choice." (Al-Bukhari) To choose the easiest option means to begin from the possible, and one who begins from the possible will surely reach his goal.

2. Second Principle: To see advantage in disadvantage

In the early days of Mecca, there were many problems and difficulties. At that time, a guiding verse in the Qur'an was revealed. It said: "With every hardship there is ease, with every hardship there is ease." (94:5-6).

This means that if there are some problems, there are also opportunities at the same time. And the way to success is to ignore the problems and avail the opportunities.

3. Third Principle: To change the place of action

This principle is derived from the Hijrah. Hijrah was not just a migration from Mecca to Medina. It was to find a more suitable place for Islamic work, as history proved later on.

4. Fourth Principle: To make a friend out of an enemy

The Prophet (saw) of Islam was repeatedly subjected to practices of antagonism by the unbelievers. At that time the Qur'an enjoined upon him the return of good for evil. And then, as the Qur'an added, "You will see your direst enemy has become your closest friend" (41:34).

It means that a good deed in return of a bad deed has a conquering effect over your enemies. And the life of the Prophet (saw) is a historical proof of this principle.

5. Fifth Principle: To turn minus into plus

After the Battle of Badr, about 70 of the unbelievers were taken as the prisoners of war. They were educated people. The Prophet (saw) announced that if any one of them would teach ten Muslim children how to read and write he would be freed. This was the first school in the history of Islam in which all of the students were Muslims, and all of the teachers were from the enemy rank. Here I shall quote a British orientalist who remarked about the Prophet of Islam (saw): He faced adversity with the determination to writing success out of failure.