The Message of Islam — Page 19
The Commencement of Revelation 19 thee in want and provide thee with abundance? ( Surah az-Zuhaa, 93:7–9) The Commencement of Revelation Muhammad saw was forty years old when the divine call came to him in his retreat in Hira, to which he was in the habit of repair- ing for prayer and contemplation. He beheld a gracious Presence, who asked him to recite. Muhammad saw answered that he knew not how to recite. The Presence insisted: ِمَلَقْلاِبَۙمَّلَع َناَسْنِاْلا اَم ْمَل ْمَلْعَيْؕاَرْقِا ِمْساِب َكِّبَر ْيِذَّلا َقَلَخ َۚقَلَخ َناَسْنِاْلا ْنِم ٍقَلَعْۚاَرْقِا َو َكُّبَر ُمَرْكَاْلاْۙيِذَّلا َمَّلَع Recite in the name of thy Lord Who created; created man from a clot of blood. Recite! Thy Lord is the Most Beneficent, Who taught man by the pen, taught him what he knew not. ( Surah al-‘Alaq, 96:2–6) Muhammad saw repeated the words as commanded. The Presence then vanished. Overpowered by the experience, Muhammad saw immediately made his way home, all atremble. He told Khadijah ra what had happened, and expressed fearful apprehension whether a frail human being like himself would prove equal to the heavy responsibility that the incident portended God was about to lay upon him. ‘Surely, God will not suffer thee to fail,’ was Khadijah’s com- forting response. ‘Thou art kind and considerate towards thy kin. Thou helpest the poor and forlorn and bearest their burdens.