YOU MUST KNOW THIS MAN

In The Name Of Allaah,

Most Gracious, Most Merciful

YOU MUST KNOW THIS MAN
MUHAMMAD
(May peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon him)
You may be an atheist or an agnostic; or you may belong to anyone of
the religious denominations that exist in the world today. You may be
a Communist or a believer in democracy and freedom. No matter what you
are, and no matter what your religious and political beliefs, personal
and social habits happen to be - YOU MUST STILL KNOW THIS MAN!

He was by far the most remarkable man that ever set foot on this
earth. He preached a religion, founded a state, built a nation, laid
down a moral code, initiated numberless social and political reforms,
established a dynamic and powerful society to practice and represent
his teachings, and completely revolutionized the worlds of human
thought and action for all times to come.

HIS NAME IS MUHAMMAD, peace and blessings of Almighty God be upon him
and he accomplished all these wonders in the unbelievably short span
of twenty-three years.

Muhammad, peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon him was born in
Arabia on the 20th of August, in the year 570 of the Christian era,
and when he died after 63 years, the whole of the Arabian Peninsula
had changed from paganism and idol-worship to the worship of One God;
from tribal quarrels and wars to national solidarity and cohesion;
from drunkenness and debauchery to sobriety and piety; from
lawlessness and anarchy to disciplined living; from utter moral
bankruptcy to the highest standards of moral excellence. Human history
has never known such a complete transformation of a people or a place
before or since!

The Encyclopedia Britannica calls him "the most successful of all
religious personalities of the world". Bernard Shaw said about him
that if Muhammad were alive today he would succeed in solving all
those problems which threaten to destroy human civilization in our
times. Thomas Carlysle was simply amazed as to how one man, single-
handedly, could weld warring tribes and wandering Bedouins into a most
powerful and civilized nation in less than two decades. Napoleon and
Gandhi never tired of dreaming of a society along the lines
established by this man in Arabia fourteen centuries ago.

Indeed no other human being ever accomplished so much, in such diverse
fields of human thought and behavior, in so limited a space of time,
as did Muhammad, peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon him. He
was a religious teacher, a social reformer, a moral guide, a political
thinker, a military genius, an administrative colossus, a faithful
friend, a wonderful companion, a devoted husband, a loving father -
all in one. No other man in history ever excelled or equaled him in
any of these difficult departments of life.

The world has had its share of great personalities. But these were one
sided figures who distinguished themselves in but one or two fields
such as religious thought or military leadership. None of the other
great leaders of the world ever combined in himself so many different
qualities to such an amazing level of perfection as did Muhammad,
peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon him.

The lives and teachings of other great personalities of the world are
shrouded in the mist of time. There is so much speculation about the
time and the place of their birth, the mode and style of their life,
the nature and detail of their teachings and the degree and measure of
their success or failure that it is impossible for humanity today to
reconstruct accurately and precisely the lives and teachings of those
men.

Not so this man Muhammad, peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon
him. Not only was he born in the fullest blaze of recorded history,
but every detail of his private and public life, of his actions and
utterances, has been accurately documented and faithfully preserved to
our day. The authenticity of the information so preserved is vouched
for not only by faithful followers but also by unbiased critics and
open-minded scholars.

At the level of ideas there is no system of thought and belief-secular
or religious, social or political-which could surpass or equal ISLAAM-
the system which Muhammad peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon
him propounded. In a fast changing world, while other systems have
undergone profound transformations, Islaam alone has remained above
all change and mutation, and retained its original form for the past
1400 years. What is more, the positive changes that are taking place
in the world of human thought and behavior, truly and consistently
reflect the healthy influence of Islam in these areas. Further, it is
not given to the best of thinkers to put their ideas completely into
practice, and to see the seeds of their labors grow and bear fruit, in
their own lifetime. Except of course, Muhammad, peace and blessings of
God Almighty be upon him, who not only preached the most wonderful
ideas but also successfully translated each one of them into practice
in his own lifetime. At the time of his death his teachings were not
mere precepts and ideas straining for fulfillment, but had become the
very core of the life of tens of thousands of perfectly trained
individuals, each one of whom was a marvelous personification of
everything that Muhammad peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon
him taught and stood for. At what other time or place and in relation
to what other political, social, religious system, philosophy or
ideology-did the world ever witness such a perfectly amazing
phenomenon?

Indeed no other system or ideology secular or religious, social or
political, ancient or modern - could ever claim the distinction of
having been put into practice in its fullness and entirety EVEN ONCE
in this world, either before or after the death of its founder. Except
of course ISLAAM, the ideology preached by Muhammad, peace and
blessings of God Almighty be upon him which was established as a
complete way of life by the teacher himself, before he departed from
this world. History bears testimony to this fact and the greatest
skeptics have no option but to concede this point.

In spite of these amazing achievements and in spite of the countless
absolutely convincing and authentic miracles performed by him and the
phenomenal success which crowned his efforts, he did not for a moment
claim to be God or God's incarnation or Son - but only a human being
who was chosen and ordained by God to be a teacher of truth to man
kind and a complete model and pattern for their actions.

He was nothing more or less than a human being. But he was a man with
a noble and exalted mission-and his unique mission was to unite
humanity on the worship of ONE AND ONLY GOD and to teach them the way
to honest and upright living in accordance with the laws and commands
of God. He always described himself as A MESSENGER AND SERVANT OF GOD,
and so indeed every single action and movement of his proclaimed him
to be.

A world which has not hesitated to raise to Divinity individuals whose
very lives and missions have been lost in legend and who historically
speaking did not accomplish half as much-or even one tenth-as was
accomplished by Muhammad, peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon
him should stop to take serious note of this remarkable man's claim to
be God's messenger to mankind.

Today after the lapse of some 1400 years the life and teachings of
Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon him,
have survived without the slightest loss, alteration or interpolation.
Today they offer the same undying hope for treating mankind's many
ills which they did when Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of God
Almighty be upon him, was alive. This is our honest claim and this is
the inescapable conclusion forced upon us by a critical and unbiased
study of history.

The least YOU should do as a thinking, sensitive, concerned human
being is to stop for one brief moment and ask yourself: Could it be
that these statements, extraordinary and revolutionary as they sound,
are really true? Supposing they really are true, and you did not know
this man Muhammad, peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon him or
hear about his teachings? Or did not know him well and intimately
enough to be able to benefit from his guidance and example? Isn't it
time you responded to this tremendous challenge and made some effort
to know him? It will not cost you anything but it may well prove to be
the beginning of a completely new era in your life.

Come, let us make a new discovery of the life of this wonderful man
Muhammad, peace and blessings of God Almighty be upon him the like of
whom never walked on this earth, and whose example and teachings can
change YOUR LIFE and OUR WORLD for the better. May God shower His
choicest blessings upon him!

Written by S.H. Pasha