Illiteracy of the Holy Prophet (sa) — Seal of the Prophets Vol. 1
Introduction
In this discourse from The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 1), Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra) details the historical events and scholarly insights surrounding Illiteracy of the Holy Prophet (sa).
Book Series: The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 1)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra)
Section: V-A Glance at the Early Life
Pages: Book pp. 159–160 (PDF pp. 183–184)
Navigation: Book Table of Contents | « Previous: [A Paucity of Narrations] | Next: [Circle of Friends] »
Historical Account
further magnified. Along with this, we learn that many letters and treaties, etc. were often prepared before the Holy Prophetsa and were continually observed by him during the period of his prophethood. As a result, he developed a recognition of letters to some extent, later on in his life. Therefore, it becomes evident from one Ḥadīth, that on the occasion of the Treaty of Ḥudaibiyah whilst the treaty was being prepared, the Holy Prophetsa crossed the words ‘Rusūlullāh’ by his own hand and wrote ‘Ibn ‘Abdullāh’ in its place after the infidels objected to it. It is quite possible that the use of the root word
[Messenger of Allāh (Publishers)]
[Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, Kitābuṣ-Ṣulḥ, Bābu Kaifa Yuktabu Hādhā mā Ṣālaḥa Fulānubnu Fulānin, Ḥadīth No. 2699]
َ كَ تَبin Ḥadīth about that occasion, meaning ‘to write’, could also imply ‘to get written’. This is because, sometimes, ‘writing’ and ‘to get written’ is denoted by the same word in general conversation. In this case, the meaning (of the word
َ )كَ تَبwould be that the portion of the treaty which the Holy Prophetsa crossed, was crossed by his own hand, but whatever was written afterwards was written by his scribe. In any case, whichever meaning is accepted, it does not affect the illiteracy of the Holy Prophetsa.
Book Series: The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 1)
Section: V-A Glance at the Early Life | Navigation: « Previous: [A Paucity of Narrations] | Next: [Circle of Friends] »