Muhammad (saw) is the Seal of the Prophethood, the seal of divine revelation

1.

The Prophet mentions the large gap of divine revelation between Isa (as) and
Muhammad (saw) more than 6 centuries between these two prophets
In the 2 years before receiving his first divine revelation, Muhammad
developed the habit of spending more & more time in the cave of Hira to meditate
(hours turned to days to weeks)

Khadijah would pack food & take it up to him when she figured that his
provisions had run out
The more knowledgeable of the Ahlul Kitab knew of the coming of the new
Prophet; they had observed & knew of several signs of his arrival

If such signs were written about centuries ago about the coming of the Prophet,
then why did the people of Makkah dismiss Muhammad when he claimed to be
the Messenger of Allah? Why didnt more people accept Islam?
Some of the scholars of the Scripture knew of the prophecies of the arrival of the
new Messenger, but such individuals were very few in number perhaps a
handful
They did not actively talk about these prophecies
If they did, they tended to be written off as crazy people; the general mass public
did not believe these scholars about a new prophet
These scholars also were reclusive in nature, biding their time for the Prophets
arrival so they can go to him & accept his Message
Many rabbis from amongst the Jews & priests among the Christians had this
knowledge that the Prophet of the Last Time was soon to receive his revelation

Surat Al-Araf, 7:157

Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered prophet, whom they find written
in what they have of the Torah and the Gospel, who enjoins upon them what is
right and forbids them what is wrong and makes lawful for them the good things
and prohibits for them the evil and relieves them of their burden and the shackles
which were upon them. So they who have believed in him, honored him,
supported him and followed the light which was sent down with him - it is those
who will be the successful.
Surat As-Saf, 61:6
And [mention] when Jesus, the son of Mary, said, O children of Israel, indeed I
am the messenger of Allah to you confirming what came before me of the Torah
and bringing good tidings of a messenger to come after me, whose name is
Ahmad. But when he came to them with clear evidences, they said, This is
obvious magic. (Surat As-Saf, 61:6)
The Prophet was called Ahmad by his mother Aminah & his milkmother Baraqah
(aka Ummu Aymen)
Surat Al-Fath, 48:29
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah; and those with him are forceful against
the disbelievers, merciful among themselves. You see them bowing and
prostrating [in prayer], seeking bounty from Allah and [His] pleasure. Their mark

is on their faces from the trace of prostration. That is their description in the
Torah. And their description in the Gospel is as a plant which produces its
offshoots and strengthens them so they grow firm and stand upon their stalks,
delighting the sowers - so that Allah may enrage by them the disbelievers. Allah
has promised those who believe and do righteous deeds among them forgiveness
and a great reward.
Surat Ali-Imran, 3:81
And [recall, O People of the Scripture], when Allah took the covenant of the
prophets, [saying], Whatever I give you of the Scripture and wisdom and then
there comes to you a messenger confirming what is with you, you [must] believe
in him and support him. [ Allah ] said, Have you acknowledged and taken upon
that My commitment? They said, We have acknowledged it. He said, Then
bear witness, and I am with you among the witnesses.
Ibn Abbas (ra) narrates, Whenever Allah sent a prophet, He took a covenant for
him. If Muhammad would be sent after that prophet, they would have to believe
in Muhammad & aid Muhammad.
After Ibrahim (as) finished building the Kabah, he made dua Surat AlBaqarah, 2:129
Our Lord, and send among them a messenger from themselves who will recite to
them Your verses and teach them the Book and wisdom and purify them. Indeed,
You are the Exalted in Might, the Wise
Muhammad was made a Prophet long before mankind even existed
Abu Umama (ra) asked the Prophet, O Messenger of Allah, how did your affair
begin? How did your story begin?
The Prophet responds, I am the dua of my forefather Ibrahim (as). I am the
good news that Isa (as) delivered. My mother saw a light, a noor, illuminated
from her, and it illuminated the palaces of Bilad As-Sham.
The Prophet said, I am the slave of Allah. I am the seal of all the prophets. Adam
(as) was in between water & clay (in the process of formation) when I was
appointed as the Prophet of Allah.
The Prophet also mentioned that all the women who gave birth to Allahs
Prophets throughout time would have the same dream that the Prophets mother
Aminah had seen, that they were about to give birth to a very special person
Maysara al-Fajr asked the Prophet, When were you given Prophethood?
The Prophet said, I was made a prophet when Adam was in between being just a
soul & in between his body (before Adams soul was breathed into his body).
Abu Huraira asked the Prophet, When was Prophethood decreed to you?
The Prophet replied, Between the time Adam was formed into his physical form
& before his soul was in his body.
All of the Prophets before Muhammad all foretold their followers about the Last
Prophet, Muhammad
Some of the kuhan (soothsayers) became a bit curious. They started to feel that
something was up. Allahs message was not just for mankind, but also for jinn
Some of the bad jinn (shayatin) would try to eavesdrop on the angels in the
heavens. They would bring in news from the heavens to the earth to the

soothsayers
1 The soothsayers would use the little bit of information theyd get
from the shayatin & deceive people
As the time of Revelation of the Quran approached, the shayatin were not
bringing in as much information to the soothsayers as much as they used to
Astrologers who would study the position of the stars observed more shooting
stars in the sky
1 The angels would launch shooting stars at the jinn to drive them out
of the heavens
There was a Jewish man named Abu Hayaban, who was from Bilad Al Shaam
(modern day Syria) & had a lot of knowledge of the ancient Scripture
He moved to the city of Yathrib. As-Sham was a lot nicer area, but Abu Hayaban
took up residence in Yathrib
He was reclusive in nature, so the other Jews in Yathrib left him alone mostly
The primary standard of living in Yathrib was farming. Yathrib at the time was
going through a huge drought.
People would ask Abu Hayaban to pray for rain. No sooner did he pray that it
would start to rain, so people realized that theres something special about Abu
Hayaban
When he was approaching death, Abu Hayaban called some people over
He asked, Doesnt it make your curious why I would leave the beautiful hills &
wonderful weather of As-Sham & come to live here in the desert of your terrible
city?
Yathrib wasnt a desirable place to live compared to Bilad al Shaam. It didnt rain
there, & the weather was awful
Abu Hayaban: Why would I come here to live? Its a horrible place. Arent you
curious why I came here, especially in my old age?
I came because I read in the scriptures about the coming of a prophet. The
prophet will migrate here, so I hoped to Allah to live to see the day hed come.
And I would follow him, believe him. I would place my hands in his hands. But
alas, Im dying & the day hasnt come. So if you live to that day, make sure you
follow him & believe him.
Surat Al-Baqarah, 2:89
And when there came to them a Book from Allah confirming that which was with
them although before they used to pray for victory against those who
disbelieved but [then] when there came to them that which they recognized,
they disbelieved in it; so the curse of Allah will be upon the disbelievers
Ibn Abbas mentions that the Yahud who lived in Khaybar were at war with
tribes of Ghadfaan
Theyd make dua whenever theyd meet the Ghadfaan in the battlefield. Oh
Allah, We ask you to grant us victory. The Yahud would win whenever they made
dua like this
The tribes of Ghadfaan were told of the Prophets coming, but they disbelieved in
him

 Salmat, a Badri Sahabi (whos from Ansar, Yathrib) had a neighbor who was
Jewish & belonged to the tribe of Banu Abdul Ash-ha

The Jewish man, named Yushaa (after the Prophet) came out of his home & he
sat down next to Salmat with his family on the porch, who was a young boy at the
time
1 Yushaa told them about the Hereafter, Day of Judgment, Scale of
Deeds, Paradise, Hellfire
2 He was saying all of that to the Mushrikoon, the idol worshippers,
who didnt believe any of that
The family said, Whats wrong with you? You actually believe theres a
hereafter?
1 Yushaa said, Yes, I do! I swear by Allah.
The family said, What sign do you have of this? Why should we believe you?
1 Theres a prophet whos about to come from this region, Yushaa
said as he pointed in the direction of Makkah
The family asked, What can you tell us about him?
1 Yushaa looked at Salmat, a young boy. If this boy continues to live,
he will see him.
Salmat says, Some time passed. Finally that day came. When Allah sent the
Prophet (when Prophethood was bestowed), the Jewish neighbor of ours was still
alive. And we believed in Muhammad, and that neighbor did not believe in him!
Out of jealousy, hatred, or rebellion. Because I remembered our conversation all
those years ago, I went to him, and asked, Why dont you believe in the
Messenger? Are you the same man who told us about the Prophet? The Jewish
man said, Yes, Im that guy. But it wasnt this guy I didnt expect it to be him.
1 Yushaas issue was that Muhammad was Arab. Most Jews expected
the new prophet to be from one of the Jewish tribes
Story of Salman al-Farsi conversion to Islam

I was from the people of Asbahan, in a town called Hai. My father was the
leader/mayor of our town. I was the most beloved thing to my father in the world.
Because of that, he was bit overprotective of me. Hed keep me locked up in the
house sometimes. Thats how I was raised. Due to that, I didnt have much
outdoor activity. I just used to worship Allah. Id also dedicate myself to fireworship, so much so that it was my responsibility to never let the fire go out.
Salman would take cotton balls, roll it up, & keep dropping those balls every hour
or so that the fire would keep burning
My father once said, Someone owes me money. My hands are tied up. Im
going to give you the task of getting the money. Just get the money & come right
back. Dont get distracted. I dont like sending you out but I have no other
choice.

I pass by a monastery, & I hear them worshipping. I entered the monastery and
started watching them. When I saw them praying, I was amazed by it. And I liked
what they were doing. That their religion was better than the one I practiced. I
stayed with them until evening, and when they finished, I asked them, Where

did you learn this from?

They replied, From the Syrian region.
When I finally went back to my father, I found that he was already out looking
for me
My father was frantic. Where were you?! I told you to come straight home after
getting the money.
I told my father, I passed by some people who were worshipping and I stayed
with them. What they do is a lot better than we do.
My father frightened me. No, no, no, youre going to practice the religion of your
forefathers, no questions asked.
Then he shackled me and kept me chained in the house. He confined me to my
home
I sent a message to the same people I saw worshipping in the monastery. If
you know of any travelers going to As-Sham, let me know.
Finally some businessmen came from As-Sham, & the people from the monastery
sent me a message of their arrival
I sent them another message: The day they go back to As-Sham, send me
another message.
The day those businessmen were going back to As-Sham, I picked the lock
from my chains & ran away from home. I gave them a bit of money and travelled
with them to As-Sham.

I asked them who is the most knowledgeable & pious man of their town. I was
pointed to a man, to whom I asked if I could stay with him &worship with him.
1 The man said, Sure, but you have to work for me, which I agreed
to
But I found out that this guy was the most terrible human alive. Hed collect
charity under false pretenses and bury it. Hed bury the money behind the church
& was hoarding all the money for himself

I couldnt tolerate it anymore. I went to the people & told them that the priest was
stealing their money & showed them where all the gold & silver is buried. The
people dug up the place & found all the gold buried there behind the church
They took the guy & hung him. His body was left there to rot. No one buried him
to make an example out of him
The people of As-Sham found another priest to replace the corrupted one. This
man was the most honest & pious person. I stayed with him until his death days. I
told him, I learned so much from you. Tell me of someone who I can go to whos
like you, a good man.

I went to the person whom the good priest recommended & worshipped with
him. I stayed with him until he was about to die, & then I told him, Please direct
me to someone whos like you.
Again I went to another recommended priest. This happened 3 or 4 times with

different priests, who would direct me to another priest with whom I would
study.
The last priest I was with was in a place called Ammu-Riyah. I asked him,
Who can I go to?

The priest replied, Theres no one else I can recommend. You need to go to this
specific area in Hijaaz (Arabia), where they do agriculture & farm. Youll find
people who are mostly idol-worshipping. You need to go & wait there, because
the Prophet of the Last Times will be there soon. Youll need to watch out for the
signs of Prophethood he will accept gifts, but he will not take anything from
charity for himself. Between his shoulder blades youll see the Seal of
Prophethood. Go & wait for him.
I stayed with the priest until he died. Then after some time, I met a group of
businessmen who were traveling to Arabia. I asked to go with them, and they
agreed

When we reached a place near Arabia, they did something terrible to me. They
chained me up & sold me off as a slave
I was sold to a person who lived outside Medina. The man who had bought me
sold me to his cousin, who was a Jew from Banu Quraida Medinan Jew.
My new master took me to Medina. I recognized that this was the place I needed
to be. Even though Im in slavery, unjustly, Im still in the place where I need to
be
One day I was in the trees, doing landscaping work. The man who owned me
one of his cousins came & said, We might be in some trouble. All those idolworshipping Arabs are gathering out In Quba, greeting a man who claims to be a
Prophet.

When I heard that, I almost fell out of the tree

I got down, and said to my owner, Whatd you say? Whatd you say?
My owner slapped me & told me to get back to work
I waited for some time. Later, I went to Quba & saw the Prophet. I bought
some fruits & gave it to the Prophet. This is Sadaqah. I know you have some poor
people with you & this is for them.

I went at a distance and I saw him call some of his Sahabah. He gave all the fruits
to the Sahabah. He ate none for himself.
I gathered some more pennies. Later when I visited the Prophet, I bought him
more fruits. This is a gift for you. I noticed you didnt eat any fruits last time, so
this is yours, as a gift.
The Prophet took one for himself & gave the rest to his Sahabah.
Then I left. I came back after a day or two. I greeted him again, & sat behind
him. I saw that he was wearing an upper garment & a lower garment.

I tried to sit at some angle to catch a sight of the mark of Prophethood

The Prophet noticed me acting funny, & he said, I know what you want to see.

He dropped the upper garment & I could see the Seal of Prophethood on his back.
No sooner did I see that, I ran up & hugged the Prophet from behind. I kissed the
mark of Prophethood on his back & started to cry
I spent decades. I spent my life searching for you. I tolerated slavery to find you.
Now I have found you.
I later accepted Islam