PART V: The Messenger/Prophet Muhammad Was a Mortal Human Being; Why Could not Polytheistic Disbelievers Accept This Fact?

Published in January 27, 2020

Translated by: Ahmed Fathy

The Belief Is Not In Muhammad But In What Has Descended Upon Muhammad: Those Who Believe In Muhammad Are Disbelievers: PART V

The problematic issue for polytheists regarding the fact that the messenger/prophet Muhammad was a mortal human; why could not polytheistic disbelievers accept this fact? (3/3)

Firstly: the root of the problem:

1- With the death of Muhammad, he is no longer there in our physical world; this applies to all dead people; it is impossible that they would return to this world; this applies to Adam until the last living human being who will die in the last human generation before the Hour. These facts are rejected by those who worship and deify the dead: the Muhammadans, Christians, Buddhists, Baha'is, Yazidis,...etc., and their deified figures are not assumed to be dead but to be immortal gods who control this transient world; such polytheists believe in God but alongside with other gods/partners though the Lord God never share His sovereignty with anyone: "...They have no ally apart from Him, and He shares His Sovereignty with no one." (18:26).

2- In ancient eras, disbelieving polytheists hated to see their prophets/messengers as human beings who consume food and water and walk through marketplaces; they hated the fact that these prophets/messengers were chosen by the Lord God to receive divine revelation. In their sick imagination, they assume that prophets/messengers must be gods/deities or have God-like qualities and abilities to be distinguished from ordinary human beings; they desired that their prophets/messengers would arrive in processions of pomp and splendor surrounded by angels. In all eras, the disbelieving polytheists rejected the divine message and the prophethood because they were granted to mortal human beings like themselves.

3- The affluent, corrupt, unjust biggest criminals in any communities hated to see that the Lord God has chosen someone below their stature and power to be a prophet/messenger; they typically employed their authority and power to scheme and plot against this prophet/messenger and the divine message he conveyed. Yet, their scheming typically turned against themselves: "And thus We set up in every city its biggest criminals, to conspire in it, but they conspire only against themselves, and they do not realize it. When a sign comes to them, they say, “We will not believe unless we are given the like of what was given to God’s messengers.” God knows best where to place His message. Humiliation from God and severe torment will afflict the criminals for their scheming." (6:123-124). This is how the Lord God destroyed the ancient nations of disbelievers and delivered and saved prophets/messengers and the believers with them. Years later each time, polytheism crept into the hearts of the generations of those who loved too much the deceased messenger/prophet as they deified him as well as his contemporaries. This required that the Lord God send a new prophet/messenger who repeats the same monotheistic message like the previous prophets/messengers. This has been repeated in all eras until the last messenger, Muhammad, and the last message: the Quran. The vast majority of Muhammad's people in Arabia rejected and denied him because he was a mortal human being like them; their stances and words are a repetition of those of the disbelievers of ancient eras. As per the Quran, Muhammad asserted to them that he was a human being, and they denied him because of that and plotted and schemed against him. their schemes turned against them eventually. Within later generations after the death of Muhammad, disbelief/polytheism has infiltrated into the hearts of most people; they deified Muhammad and imagined him to be a grand deity who controls the physical world after his death while his capital is his Yathreb mausoleum! The Muhammadans perform pilgrimage to this abomination known as the Yathreb-mosque mausoleum where they venerate, implore, and supplicate to their imaginary deity made by them as the grand intercessor on the Last Day whose decrees are irrevocable and who can change God's decrees!    

Secondly: denying the ancient prophets/messengers by the previous disbelievers because those prophets/messengers were human beings:

1- The Lord God says the following in the Quran.

1/1: "Nothing prevented the people from believing, when guidance has come to them, except that they said, “Did God send a human messenger?”" (17:94); this means that the only reason for their never following the guidance is that the Lord God has sent a mortal human being as a messenger.

1/2: "Has the news not reached you, of those who disbelieved before? They tasted the ill consequences of their conduct, and a painful torment awaits them. That is because their messengers came to them with clear explanations, but they said, “Are human beings going to guide us?” So they disbelieved and turned away. But God is in no need. God is Independent and Praiseworthy." (64:5-6); this means all disbeliever/polytheists in the ancient nations expressed the same protest out of arrogance.

2- Despite the differences in eras and regions, we find in the Quran the same, almost identical, dialogue that took place between messengers/prophets and their disbelieving peoples. This is summarized here: "Their messengers said, “Is there any doubt about God, Maker of the heavens and the earth? He calls you to forgive you your sins, and to defer you until a stated term.” They said, “You are only humans like us; you want to turn us away from what our ancestors worshiped; so bring us a clear proof.” Their messengers said to them, “We are only humans like you, but God favors whomever He wills from among His servants. We cannot possibly show you any proof, except by leave of God. In God let the faithful put their trust.”" (14:10-11).

3- This is exemplified in the Quranic stories of ancient nations and their prophets/messengers.

3/1: The affluent, corrupt, unjust ones among the people of Noah said the following about Noah: "But the notables of his people, who disbelieved, said, “This is nothing but a human being like you, who wants to gain superiority over you. Had God willed, He would have sent down angels. We never heard of this from our forefathers of old." (23:24). This means they accused Noah of pretending to be a prophet so that he would gain superiority over them; those polytheists believed in God but they desired that angels, and not mortal human beings, would be sent to them; they cling to the myths of their polytheistic forefathers.  

3/2: The affluent, corrupt, unjust ones among the tribe of Aad said the following about Hud and warned others against evident loss if they followed a mortal human being like them: "But the dignitaries of his people, those who disbelieved and denied the meeting of the Hereafter, and We had indulged them in the present life, said, “This is nothing but a human like you; he eats what you eat, and he drinks what you drink. If you obey a human being like yourselves, then you will be losers." (23:33-34).

3/3: The tribe of Thamood said the following to Saleh: "You are nothing but a human being like us. So bring us a miracle, if you are truthful." (26:154).

3/4: The tribe of Madian said the following to Shuaib: "And you are nothing but a human being like us; and we think that you are a liar." (26:186).

3/5: The polytheists of this unidentified town believed in the Dominant Lord God, but they rejected and denied the three messengers sent by Him: "And cite for them the parable of the landlords of the town - when the messengers came to it. We sent them two messengers, but they denied them both, so We reinforced them with a third. They said, “We are messengers to you.” They said, “You are nothing but human beings like us, and the Dominant Lord did not send down anything; you are only lying.”" (36:13-15).

3/6: The people of Moses' Pharaoh had an extra reason to reject Moses and Aaron apart from their both being mortal human beings; this reason was that the Israelites worshiped and submitted to Pharaoh and his people: "They said, “Are we to believe with two mortal human beings like us, and their people are our worshipers?”" (23:47).

Thirdly: the disbelieving Arabs denied Muhammad because he was a mortal human being:

1- When Abraham was rebuilding the Kaaba in Mecca along with his first-born son, Ishmael, he supplicated to the Lord God that the descendants of Ishmael (who settled in Mecca) would include a messenger among the Meccans: "Our Lord, and raise up among them a messenger, of themselves, who will read to them Your Verses, and teach them the Book and wisdom, and purify them. You are the Almighty, the Wise.”" (2:129). The Dominant Lord answered the prayers of Abraham; He sent the Arab Gentiles an Arab messenger from among them: Muhammad Ibn Abdullah Ibn Abdul-Mutalib Ibn Abd-Manaf. "It is He who sent among the Gentiles a messenger from themselves; reading His Verses to them, and purifying them, and teaching them the Book and wisdom; they were in obvious misguidance before that." (62:2). 

2- The Lord God has commanded Muhammad to announce to his people his being a mortal human being like them who received divine revelation from Allah.

2/1: "Say, “I am only a human being like you, being inspired that your God is One God. Whoever hopes to meet his Lord, let him work righteousness, and never associate anyone with the worship of his Lord.”" (18:110).

2/2: "Say, “I am only a human being like you; it is inspired in me that your God is One God. So be upright towards Him, and seek forgiveness from Him.” And woe to the polytheists." (41:6).

This means that Muhammad had a human nature, with its frailty...etc., like his contemporaries and he was not larger than life or above the level of human beings; he was merely chosen by the Lord God as a messenger from among the Arab Gentiles.

3- The disbelieving polytheists among the Arabs repeated the stances and words of the ancient disbelievers/polytheists. 

3/1: Those Arabs protested against Muhammad and denied/rejected the fact that their messenger was a mortal human being like them: "...“Is this anything but a mortal human being like you? Will you take to sorcery, with open-eyes?”" (21:3).

3/2: The Arabs disliked and cringed at the idea that the messenger/prophet Muhammad was a mortal human being like them.

3/2/1: "They marveled that a warner has come to them from among them. The disbelievers say, “This is something strange." (50:2).

3/2/2: "Is it a wonder to the people that We inspired a man from among them: “Warn people, and give good news to those who believe that they are on a sound footing with their Lord”? The disbelievers said, “This is a manifest sorcerer.”" (10:2).

3/2/3: "And they marveled that a warner has come to them from among them. The disbelievers said, “This is a lying magician.” Did he turn all the gods into one God? This is something strange.”" (38:4-5).

4- Arrogance and envy are the motives behind such a stance.

4/1: The affluent, corrupt, unjust masters refused to acknowledge the fact that the Lord God has chosen a messenger, outside their circle of rich, great, powerful men, to be distinguished among their people; they felt that this messenger was superior to them: "And thus We set up in every city its biggest criminals, to conspire in it, but they conspire only against themselves, and they do not realize it. When a sign comes to them, they say, “We will not believe unless we are given the like of what was given to God’s messengers.” God knows best where to place His message. Humiliation from God and severe torment will afflict the criminals for their scheming." (6:123-124).

4/2: Thamood said the following about Saleh: "Thamood rejected the warnings. They said, “Are we to follow one of us, a human being? We would then go astray, and end up in Hell. Was the message given to him, out of all of us? In fact, he is a wicked liar.”" (54:23-25).

4/3: The same stance of disbelieving polytheists was repeated in Arabia during Muhammad's lifetime.

4/3/1: They repeated the words of sinners among Noah's people: "The notables among them announced: “Go on, and hold fast to your gods. This is something planned. We never heard of this in the former faith. This is nothing but a fabrication." (38:6-7).

4/3/2: They repeated the words of sinners among the Thamood tribe: "Was the message sent down to him, out of all of us?” In fact, they are doubtful of My Reminder. In fact, they have not yet tasted My torment." (38:8).

4/3/3: They looked down upon Muhammad; they saw he was not a great man as per their own criteria of greatness: "They also said, “If only this Quran was sent down to a man of greatness from the two cities.”" (43:31); this is the Lord God's response to them: "Is it they who allocate the mercy of your Lord? It is We who have allocated their livelihood in this life, and We elevated some of them in rank above others, that some of them would take others in service. But your Lord’s mercy is better than what they amass." (43:32).

4/3/4: Such arrogance and envy made many of the People of the Book in Arabia, who recognized the Quran in the same way they recognize their children, reject and disbelieve in the Quran.

4/3/4/1: "Many of the People of the Book wish to turn you back into unbelievers after you have believed, out of envy on their part, after the Truth has become clear to them. But pardon and overlook, until God brings His command. God has power over all things." (2:109).

4/3/4/2: "Or do they envy the people for what God has given them of His grace? We have given the family of Abraham the Book and Wisdom, and We have given them a great kingdom." (4:54).