The Story of the Prophet Muhammad - Essay Example

? The Prophet Muhammad September 18, The story of the Prophet Muhammad includes both favorable and unfavorable opinions. The research delves on gathering books proving Muhammad was mentally ill and a liar. The research delves on proving that Prophet Muhammad is a true prophet of God. Evidences tilt the balance, in terms of Muhammad’s legitimacy as the ultimate prophet of God. One author, Lionel Attwell, gave the proposal that Muhammad was mentally ill (2007). Muhammad’s father died prior to his birth. His mother died shortly after his birth. Muhammad’s Uncle took and grandfather took care of Muhammad. As a young child, Attwell insists that Muhammad usually suffered from seizure fits. During the fits, Muhammad mentioned receiving voices from heaven and heavenly visions (Attwell, 2007). Attwell prescribes some tribes described the young boy, Muhammad, as demon-possessed (2007). Growing up, Muhammad learned the teachings of the Jewish religion and the Christian Church. Consequently, some of the two religions’ teachings were incorporated in the Koran. The Koran teaches that Jesus Christ is a prophet, just like Moses. Growing up, Muhammad prayed to 350 various gods, including the Moon God, Al-lah. The author proposes that Muhammad’s knowledge of Jewish and Christian teachings of the Angel Gabriel visit (Attwell, 2007). Consequently, Prophet Muhammad espoused that Angel Gabriel visited him in Mount Hira, after marrying the 40 year old wealthy widow, Khadijah. Confused about receiving visions, Khadijah and his relatives convinced Muhammad that they were real visions. The author, insist that this situation casts doubts on authenticity as a prophet (Attwell, 2007). Gahl Eden Sasson insists Muhammad insists he quarreled with Angel Gabriel when he was instructed to recite and surrender to the will of God (2008). However, Angel Gabriel “the angel overwhelmed me in his embrace until he had reached the limits of my endurance. It took a bear hug and some wrestling moves o the part of the archangel to get the Aries (Muhammad) to submit to God’s will (Sasson, 2008 p.124).” Muhammad also mentions that he met Adam in the first heaven and Jesus and John the Baptist in the second heaven, when Angel Gabriel brought him to visit heaven (Spencer, 2007). In fact, Lionel Attwill’s biased resolution indicates Muhammad’s unstable and mentally disturbed condition, magnified by his continued fasting and meditation to receive visions is reminiscent of schizoid delusions (Attwell, 2007). The author insists that the scripture depicts Angel Gabriel as reassuring Mirriyam, mother of Yahsua by telling her “Hail, O woman richly blessed The Yahweh is with you. Do not be afraid for you have found favor with Yahweh” (Attwell, 2007; p. 260). The author insists that Angel Gabriel never hugged or squeeze the lady until she thought she was going to die and leaving her cold and doubting her vision and eager to take her own life, because of the Angel Gabriel visit. Being an illiterate all his life, the author insists that Muhammad did not write the Koran (Attwell, 2007). After Muhammad’s death, his followers wrote the Koran from memory and hearsay. The author further states that the Koran verse stating Muhammad was “escorted to the seven heavens on a white horse to the temple mount in Jerusalem is a myth without any evidence (Attwell, 2007, p.261)”. Likewise, the author insists that Muhammad assimilated prayer to Allah, the pagan religion’s moon god, into the Islam religion. The author further states that there is no record of Muhammad curing the sick, saving the sight of the blind people, casting out demons, or any other miracles, like the other prophets mentioned in Christian and Jewish scriptures, including Jesus and Moses. Further, Goldschmidt proposed Muhammad was a liar. Initially, he instructed all Muslims to avoid praying to idols or images. However, to gain the favor of the current Meccan leaders, Muhammad made a 180 degree religious policy shift. To espouse increasing the spread of the Islamic faith, Muhammad espoused the worship of the three goddesses, calling them sacred swans. The three pagan goddesses are al-Uzza, al-Manat, and al-Lat. When Muhammad realized what he had done, Muhammad withdrew his acceptance of prayer to the three goddesses. Consequently, the leaders of pagan Mecca were disgusted by the sudden turn of events. However, Muhammad accepted the Meccan pagan’s worshipping of the Kaba stone as part of Islam religion, until today. To hasten the spread of the Islamic religion, Muhammad accepted certain Jewish religious practices. One of the Jewish practices is fasting on Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Furthermore, Abbas Sundiata insists that the Prophet Muhammad was misled, thinking that Satan was the Angel Gabriel. Using the Christian Bible and Jewish scriptures, there is no evidence proving that Angel Gabriel had the time or authority to visit Muhammad (2006). The author opines Prophet Muhammad received messages from Satan stating the prophets, including Muhammad, received satanic verses stating, “We have not sent an apostle or prophet before thee, among whose desires Satan injected some wrong desire, but God shall bring to nothing that which Satan had suggested in Koran 22:52 (Sundiata, 2006;p. 345). Further Ali Sina theorized that Prophet Muhammad’s schizophrenia is evidenced by Muhammad’s stating he had seen visions of angels, demons, and slept with the Jinns (genies) stating “he was paranoid as it can be seen all through the Quran… Muhammad’s character is paranoid schizophrenia (Sina, 2008; p. 156”). In a democratic country, Sina has his own self-proclaimed “professional” bias. In addition, the Islamic teachings indicate Muhammad memorized the verses of the Koran, given to him by Angel Gabriel, and recorded in Arabic. Consequently, the Muslims believe the Koran is God’s direct words. The World’s Muslim religion includes memorizing and praying in the Arabic language (Esposito). Esposito brings up a strong probability that the Prophet Muhammad is in fact a messenger for God. Another author, Unal, emphasized Prophet Muhammad greatly loved God and desired to guide the Arab people to the right path (2005). Prophet Muhammad made many predictions that came true during his time on earth, and others are being fulfilled in our present time, but he was not a soothsayer. Regarding capture Mecca prisoners, Prophet Muhammad to Abu Bkr in Koran 5:118, “You are like Jesus, who said: If you punish them, they are your servants, If you forgive them, you are all-mighty, wise (Unal, 2005; p. 145).” Prophet Muhammad reiterated (Koran 8:68-69) regarding the rightfulness of taking ransom from freed prisoners, “…a severe penalty would have reached them for the ransom that they took. But if God made it lawful, they could enjoy what they took in war lawful and good (Unal, 2005; p. 145).” The verse mentions Muhammad is only implementing why his God, Allah, prefers. Using their own biased terminologies, the psychiatrists and psychologist classify people, like the Muslim people’s prophet Muhammad, who espouse they are god’s messengers as suffering from Schizophrenia (Unal, 2005). The psychiatrists and psychologists invented the word schizophrenia to include persons suffering from hallucinations, perceptions, and hearing voices from a “god” where average person never experiences such conditions. The Schizophrenia word also includes people suffering from disorganized thought and actions. Further, the psychiatrists and psychologists gave their concerted professional opinion that schizophrenia is the effect of one several causes. The causes include genetic, psychological, environmental, as well as biological factors (Unal, 2005). (http://www.emedicinehealth.com/schizophrenia/article_em.htm). Summarizing the above discussion, Prophet Muhammad commentaries include both favorable and unfavorable opinions. Some authors insist Prophet Muhammad is mentally ill and a liar. Some Koran verses, personality of Angel Gabriel, etc. are in conflict with Christian and Jewish stories. The Muslim people accept Muhammad as the ultimate prophet of God. Evidently, the above authors’ evidences tilt the balance regarding Prophet Muhammad’s legacy as the ultimate prophet of God. REFERENCES: Emedicine Health, viewed September 18, 2012 from Attwell, L. (2007). Jesus Christ the Countefeit Christian Messiah -Incorporating "What Really Happended in the Garded of Eden" and God, Genes and Evil. New York: Lulu Press. Sasson, G. (2008). Cosmic Navigator: Design Your Destiny with Astrology and Kabbalah. New York: Weiser Books Press. Sina, A. (2008). Understanding Muhammad. New York: Felibri Press. Spencer, R. (2007). The Truth About Muhammad. New York: Regnery Press. Sundiata, A. (2006). Look Behind the Facade. New York: Xulon Press. Unal, A. (2005). The Messenger of God: Muhammad: An Analysis of the Prophet's Life. New York: Tughra Books Press. Read More