With Love to Muhammad (sa) - The Khatam-un-Nabiyyin — Page 124
124 With Love to Muhammad sa the Kh ā tam-un-Nabiyy ī n This is the essence and core of prophethood. It is the base or the very foundation of prophethood. The truth is that glad tidings and warnings are not an ordinary phenomenon. When these glad tidings and warnings are granted to someone in abundance and excellence in quantity and quality, that person is called a prophet. Certainly, in low quantities, these can be found in most believers. Just as the owner of a few dollars cannot be called rich, the one who receives these glad tidings and warnings in a small quantity cannot be called a prophet. Only that person can be called a prophet whom All ā h, the Exalted, blesses with unmatched abundance and unparalleled excellence just as He says in the Holy Qur’ ā n: ۙ اَﺣَﺪًا ٖۤ ﻏَﻴْﺒِﻪ ٰ ﻋَىل ُ ﻳُﻈْﻬِﺮ َ ﻓَﻼ ِ اﻟْﻐَﻴْﺐ ُِ ﻋٰمل ْ ﻣِﻦ ٰ ارْﺗَىض ِ ﻣَﻦ َّ اِﻻ ۙ رَﺻَﺪًا ٖ ﺧَﻠْﻔِﻪ ْ وَﻣِﻦ ِ ﻳَﺪَﻳْﻪ ِْ ﺑَني ْۢ ﻣِﻦ ُُ ﻳَﺴْكل ٗ ﻓَﺎِﻧَّﻪ ٍ رَّﺳُﻮْل He is the Knower of the unseen; and He reveals not His secrets to any one, except to him whom He chooses, namely a Messenger of His. And then He causes an escort of guarding angels to go before him and behind him. 116 Hence, in reality, the difference lies in the scale of abundance. Prophets are defined as those blessed with an abundance of glad tidings and warnings. All other things such as the bringing of a law or shar ī ‘ah are additional features, which are not necessarily present in every prophet. They are found in some prophets, yet not in others. Therefore, the Promised Messiah as says: 116 S ū rah Al-Jinn, 72:27-28