Prophecy

AlHarith b. Hisham 281 asked the Prophet Mohammad how the revelation came to him. Muhammad replied,

“At times, it comes to me like the ringing of a bell. This affects me most. When it leaves me, I have retained what was said. At other times, the angel appears to me in the form of a man. He talks to me, and I retain the things he says.”

This leads to 2 cases:

1. The first case, as noise

This affected him more.

It was the first attempt to advance from potential to actual contact with the supernatural.

Thus, it was somewhat difficult. When the Prophet returned, in this case, to the level of human perceptions, all he retained was auditory impressions.

All others were difficult. When the revelation was repeated and the messages became numerous, contact with the supernatural became easy.

2. This second case is that of an angel appearing as a man who addresses the prophet

This happens to prophets who are sent as messengers.

Therefore, the second case is more perfect than the first one.

Vision is clearest sense.

When the Prophet returned to the level of human perceptions, all his senses, especially vision, conveyed the revelation.

The use of the perfect tense “I have retained” in the first case, and of the present tense “I retain” in the second, is a meaningful stylistic distinction.

In both cases, the words that were spoken (during the revelation) came in a disguise.

In the first case, they appeared in the form of “noise,” which, according to accepted usage, is something different from speech.

Muhammad indicated that understanding and comprehension followed immediately upon it after it had stopped.

He properly used the perfect tense, which is suitable (to signify) what has ended or stopped, in order to indicate comprehension at the moment he perceived that (the noise) had ended and stopped. 282 In the second case, the angel appeared in the form of a man who addressed the Prophet and spoke to him.

Comprehension (in this case) ran parallel with speech. Therefore, Muhammad properly used the present tense, which of necessity expresses renewed (repeated) activity.

The state of revelation presents difficulties and pains throughout. This has been indicated in the Qur’an 283 “We shall lay upon you a heavy message.”

A’ishah said:

“There was some anxiety in connection with the revelation, with which he had to struggle.”

“The revelation would come to him on very cold days. Nevertheless, when it left him,there was sweat on his forehead.”

This is the reason for his well-known remoteness (from sensual perception) and the choking (feeling) when in that condition, of which the Prophet used to speak.

This is because the revelation means leaving one’s humanity, in order to attain angelic perceptions and to hear the speech of the soul. 284

This causes pain, since it means that an essence leaves its own essence and exchanges its own stage for the ultimate stage (of the angels).

This is the meaning of the choking feeling which Muhammad referred to in connection with the beginning of revelation in his statement= “And he (Gabriel) choked me until it became too much for me; then he released me. Then he said, ‘Read,’ and I replied, ‘I cannot read.’ 285

He did this a second and a third time, as the tradition tells.

Gradual habituation to (the process of revelation) brings some relief, as compared to how it was before. It is for this reason that the earliest passages, surahs, and verses of the Qur’an, revealed to Muhammad in Mecca, are briefer than those revealed to him in Medina.

One may compare the tradition about how the ninth surah (Surat al-Bara’ah) was revealed, during the expedition to Tabuk. The whole of this (long surah), or most of it, was revealed to Muhammad while he was riding his camel. 286

Before this, when he was in Mecca, part of one of the shortest surahs in the latter part of the Qur’an 287 was revealed on one occasion, and the rest on another occasion. Also, one of the last revelations received in Medina was the “Verse of the Religion,” 288 which is very long.

Before this, in Mecca, the verses revealed were short, like those of the surahs ar-Rahman, adh-Dhariyat, al-Muddaththir, ad-Duha, and al-`Alaq,289 and similar surahs. This may serve as criterion for distinguishing the Meccan surahs and verses from the Medinese.

God leads to that which is correct. This is the quintessence of prophecy. Soothsaying (kahanah) is also one of the particular qualities of the human soul.

The human soul is prepared to exchange its humanity for the spirituality that lies above humanity.

Human beings have an intimation of that exchange in prophets who are by nature fitted to achieve it. It has been established that they neither need acquired qualities for that (exchange), nor are they dependent on any help from perceptions, notions (tasawwur), bodily activities, be they speech or motion, or anything else.

It is (with them) a natural change from humanity to angelicality in the flash of a moment.

If this is so and if such preparedness exists in human nature, logical classification requires that there must be another kind of human beings, as inferior to the first kind as anything that has something perfect as its opposite, must be inferior to that (perfect) opposite.

Independence from all help in (achieving contact with the supernatural) is the opposite of dependence on help in connection with it. They are two very different things.

Now, the classification of the world of existence requires that there must be a kind of human beings fitted by nature for the process of thinking voluntarily under the impulse of their rational power, whenever that power has a desire for it.

But the rational power is not by nature capable of (the process of supernatural perception).

Thus, when its weakness prevents (the rational power) from (contact with the supernatural), it is natural for (the rational power) to get involved with particulars, either of sensual perception or of the imagination, such as transparent bodies, animal bones, speech in rhymed prose, or whatever bird or animal may present itself.

A person whose rational power is thus engaged) attempts to retain such sensual orimaginary perceptions, since he depends on their help in attaining the supernatural perception he desires. They give him a sort of assistance.The power which in (such persons) constitutes the starting point of supernatural perception is soothsaying. The souls of such persons are inferior by nature and unable to attain perfection.

Therefore, they have a better perception of particulars than of universals. They get involved with the former and neglect the latter.

Therefore, the power of imagination is 290 most strongly developed in those persons, because it is the organ of the particulars. (The particulars) completely pervade (the power of the imagination),291 both in the sleeping and the waking state.

They are ever ready and present in it. The power of imagination brings (the particulars) to the attention of (those persons) and serves as a mirror in which they are seen constantly.

The soothsayer is not able to achieve perfection in his perception of the intelligibilia, because the revelation he receives is inspired by devils.

The highest state this type of person can reach is to achieve disregard for the senses, with the help of rhymed prose and the use of words of an identical structure at the end of successive cola, 292 and (thereby) to attain an imperfect contact of the sort described (with supernatural things).

From that motion and the foreign support that accompanies it, his heart receives some inspiration to express itself in words. The soothsayer, thus, often speaks the truth and agrees with reality.

Often, however, what he says are falsehoods, because he supplements his deficiency with something foreign to, different from, and incompatible with, his perceptive essence. Thus, truth and falsehood are umbled together in him, and he is not trustworthy. He often takes refuge in guesses and hypotheses, because, in his self-deception, he desires to have (supernatural) perception and is willing to cheat those who ask him (for information).

Men who use such rhymed prose are distinguished by the name of soothsayers (kahin, pl. kuhhan). They rank highest among their kind. Muhammad said, regarding something of the sort, “This belongs to the rhymed prose of the soothsayers.” 293

The use of the genitive construction (“rhymed prose of”) indicates that Muhammad considered rhymed prose a distinctive (mark of the soothsayer). He also questioned Ibn Sayyad, 294 in order to find out about him, and he asked him how that thing came to him. Ibn Sayyid replied= “It comes to me in the form of both truth and falsehood.”

Whereupon Muhammad said, “You are confused with regard to the matter.” He meant that prophecy is characterized by truthfulness and can in no way be affected by falsehood.

For prophecy is a direct and independent contact of the essence of the prophet with the most high group (the angels). Because of his weakness, the soothsayer depends on the help of foreign notions (tasawwur).

These foreign notions enter into his perception and mingle with the perception toward which he aspires.

He thus becomes confused by them. So it is that falsehood makes its way to his (door). It is, therefore, impossible (for his activity) to be prophecy.