Indexed OCR Text

The Miracles of the
Prophet
Imâm Ibn Kathîr
معجزات النبي
ابن كثير
Translated by
Dr. Nancy Eweiss
Edited by
Selma Cook
Dar Al-Manarah
For Translation, Publishing& Distribution

C
Dar Al-Manarah for Translation, Publishing &
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ii

Table of Contents
Translator's Preface
Introduction
vii
X
The life of the Prophet
# is a great
1
miracle
The definition of a miracle
1
Types of miracles
2
Miracles of the Prophet
3
First: Moral miracles
3
The miracle of the Qur'an
3
Aspects of the miracles of the Qur'an
8
The miracle of his morals and attributes
24
His honorable lineage
24
The honor of the area where he was born
25
and raised
His perfect discipline and upbringing
26
His perfect creation and image
26
His Migration from Madînah
27
His nation is the most perfect of nations
36
Second: The material signs of Prophecy
40
1. The sign of the splitting of the moon
40
2. Invoking Allâh (Du'â') for rain ((Istisqâ'
42
prayer)
3. The miracles related to the earth
46
A. The spouting of water from between
46
his fingers
B. Food multiplies in amount in his hand
51
iii

C. The tree follows the command of the
66
Prophet
D. The weeping of the pulpit on missing
71
the Prophet
E. The stones glorify Allâh in the palm of
72
the Prophet
F. The stones salute him :
74
G. The Prophet # throws dust into the
74
enemies' faces in Badr and Hunain
H. The Prophet # pointed to the idols and
77
they fell on their faces
4. The miracles related to animals
77
A. The story of the camel which fled
77
B. The story of the camel which wept and
78
complained to the Prophet
C. The Messenger of Allah & is informed
79
about the poisoned sheep
D. The story of the camel of Jâbir
80
E. The blessing of the Prophet gives
81
power to the donkey of Halimah as-
Sa'diyah (his wet nurse)
F. The wolf who testified that Muhammad
82
# is the Messenger of Allâh
G. The Hadîth of the deer which seeks the
83
protection of the Prophet
H. The story of the bird
84
5. The miracles related to the companions
85
of the prophet *
iv

A. The story of the two men whose sticks lit
85
the way for them
B. The man whose fingers lit the way for
86
him
C. The miracle of Tamîm ad-Darî who
86
pushed away the fire which appeared in al-
Harrah (a mountain at the side of Madinah)
D. The story which Anas told about "al-
87
'Alâ' Ibn al- Hadramî"
E. An army which walks on the water
89
6. Miracles related to the cure of disease
90
A. The Prophet # cures the boy who is
90
suffering from epilepsy (due to being
touched by the Shaitân)
B . Making Du'a' for the woman who was 91
suffering from epilepsy
C. Making Du'â' for the Emigrants to be 91
cured from fever in Madînah
D. The blind man was cured when he said a
93
Du'â' that was taught to him by the Prophet
7. His Du'a' # is answered
93
107
8. The Prophet # was asked bout certain
matters, and his answer was in accordance
with - the facts - that were stated in the
previous books revealed to other Prophets
(before his Message)
A. His answer about : the soul, the people 107
of the cave and Dhul Qarnain
V

B. His answer
#about the signs of the 108
Hour and other questions
C. The Story of the Jew who defied him
112
D. A Jewish boy who used to serve the
113
Prophet #, believes in his Message, but his
father belies him
Third: The Previous books give Glad 114
Tidings (Prophecies) about him %:
Fourth: His Telling
about
events 130
which actually took place:
Fifth: His telling & about future events:
140
Sixth: The Miracles of the Prophet
160
compared to those of the Previous
Messengers:
Seventh: The Night Journey al-Isra' and 200
al-Mi‘raj:
vi

Translator's Preface
All Praise is due to Allâh, the Most High, the
Greatest and the Almighty. I testify that there is no
god but Allâh, Who has no partner and that nothing
is like unto Him. I testify that Muhammad _ is the
Messenger of Allâh. May the peace and blessings of
Allâh be upon His Messenger, his family, his
companions and his followers until the Day of
Judgment.
Allâh the Almighty sent His Messengers and
supported them with miracles to prove to those who
belie them that they are really sent by Allâh. Before
the advent of Muhammad , those miracles were
mainly material signs that could be seen and felt by
the senses. However, Muhammad ¿ was supported
by the greatest and everlasting miracle- The Glorious
Qu'ân, the Book of Allâh- which Allâh promised to
preserve -Himself- until the Day of Judgment. Truly
Allâh said:
(الحجر: ٩)
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ (٩)
"Verily We: It is We Who have sent down
the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur'an) and surely,
We will guard it (from corruption)"
(15:9).
vii

The Prophet # was supported by many material
signs, that all could see and which were narrated by
the Companions of the Prophet
# and were reported
in many books of Hadîth.
This book, "The Miracles of the Prophet # "
is extracted from the great book of Ibn Kathir; "al-
Bidâyah wan-Nihâyah"; the greatest book ever
written about the history of the world until the era
which the author had lived through. Imâm Ibn
Kathîr, was a scholar of Hadîth, so when he relates a
Hadîth, he follows it by commenting on the chain of
narrators and the text of the Hadîth. That is why, I
chose to leave out (in this translation), the very weak
or invented narrations, depending mainly on the
comments of Ibn Kathîr and trying to adhere
whenever possible to the sound (Sahîh) narrations or
the good (Hasan) ones.
I must say though, that I have come across many
interesting stories, for the first time, which proved
to me that we -the Muslims- are not fully aware of
the material miracles by which Allâh supported His
Prophet, and we chose to remain under the
impression that it is only the Qur'an which is the
miracle of our Prophet .
I would like to express my appreciation to sister
Selma Cook for her great efforts not only in editing
viii

this work, but also for being a critical reader, who
appreciates and understands what she is reading,
giving interesting remarks, of which I benefited a
great deal.
I hope that this valuable book will be a
beneficial addition to the English Islamic library, and
I pray to Allâh to accept this humble effort, without
Whose help and guidance, this work would not have
been accomplished.
Nancy Eweiss
ix

Introduction
All praise is due to Allâh and may the peace
and blessings of Allâh be upon His Messenger
Muhammad, his household, his companions, his
followers and those who continue the call to Islam
until the Day of Judgment.
This book, "The Miracles of the Prophet" is
extracted from the famous history book, entitled "al-
Bidâyah wan-Nihâyah" written by Imâm Ibn Kathîr.
The miracles of the Prophet # were included in this
encyclopedia under the heading "The signs of
Prophethood". This book is spiritual nourishment for
Muslim readers as it links them to the life of our
holy Prophet . It clarifies an aspect of his great
character, which is supported by endless Divine
power of which all the laws of the universe submit.
For this reason, we observe that all creatures
responded to him - with the will of Allâh the
Almighty- in whichever way he chose. Trees
followed him, stones praised and glorified Allâh in
his hand, mountains communicated with him, birds
and beasts spoke to him, the Jinn submitted to him
and the devils were stricken upon hearing his name.
There are many more miracles, which were narrated
about him . These miracles bewildered the minds
of his contemporaries and their great impact was
evident in silencing the tongues of those who
X

opposed his Message, while being a source of
comfort to the believers.
The miracles of the Prophet
were so
numerous, that it was impossible to count them all.
Narrators of Hadîth reported them in authentic
chains of narration that were subsequently
transcribed by Muslim scholars. All the books of
history and biography of the Prophet # or his
companions, refer to some of these great miracles.
These miracles prove that Allâh supported His
Prophet # and granted him victory over his enemies.
The transcription of these miracles started very
early, under the title "The signs of prophethood".
One of the earliest authors of these miracles was Ibn
Qutaybah, who died in 267 AH followed by Imam
Abû-Dâwûd as-Sajistânî, who died in 275 AH who
also wrote a book about the signs of prophecy,
which was referred to by Imam Ibn Hajar in his
book "Tahdhîb at-tahdhîb".
xi

The life of the Prophet # is a great miracle:
There is no doubt that the life of the Prophet #
is in itself a great miracle. Imâm Ibn-Taymiyah
referred to this fact by saying, "The biography of the
Prophet , his attributes and manners, his sayings
and deeds and his Shari'ah are of the signs of his
Prophecy". If this were the true miracle of the
Prophet #, what would one say about the moral and
material miracles, which Allâh bestowed upon him!
The latter will be discussed in detail in this book,
Inshâ' Allâh (Allâh willing).
The definition of a miracle:
Scholars have defined a miracle as an event,
which violates the conventional laws of life. This
kind of event occurs by the permission of Allâh
through one of His Prophets, in order to prove His
Prophecy and message.
It is customary that a miracle comes to defy
human power and that this occurs in the same field
in which those people have achieved some level of
progress and development.
The sign of prophecy is a miracle, which Allâh
reveals, through that Prophet, after the non-believers
have defied him. It occurs in a way that renders them
helpless to perform a similar feat. This miracle, is a
testimony from Allâh that this Prophet, who came with
this miracle is truthful in conveying this message, as
1

Allâh the Almighty does not support liars.
Types of miracles:
If we look at the miracles that supported Allah's
Prophets and Messengers throughout history, we will
find that for each Prophet, there is a miracle that
suits both his people and his time. This miracle, is
either an action, such as the emergence of the she-
camel of Sâlih from the mountain rocks, or the
conversion of the stick of Moses into a snake and its
swallowing of the magic of the magicians without
leaving a single trace of it.
On the other hand, a miracle could be displayed
in a negative form of action such as the fire in which
Ibrâhîm was thrown, as it did not burn him when the
non-believers cast him into it.
A miracle could also be manifested in the form
of sayings, such as the words of the Glorious
Qur'ân, which defies the rhetoric ability of the non-
believers throughout the ages.
2

Miracles of the Prophet
First: Moral miracles
The miracle of the Qur'ân:
The miracle of the Qur'an, is both a moral and a
material miracle. In the moral aspect, it is the
revelation of the Qur'an to the Prophet #, which in
itself reflects the greatest of miracles, the most
amazing sign and the clearest evidence, due to its
miraculous linguistic structures that defies human
beings and the jinn alike. They were both challenged
to produce the like of the Qur'ân, but were unable to
do so. The enemies of the Qur'an were absolutely
incapable of saying anything like it, even though
they were motivated to oppose it, in addition to their
traditional eloquence and fluency in Arabic. This
challenge to produce something like the Qur'ân,
went down to ten Sûrahs (chapters), but they still
could not, and then even one Sûrah (chapter) but
they were still incapable of producing anything like
it. They were well aware that they could never do so
and that no one could ever meet this challenge.
Allâh, the Almighty says in the Qur'ân:
﴿قُلْ لَئِنْ اجْتَمَعَتْ الْإِنِسُ وَالْجِنُّ عَلَى أَنْ يَأْتُوا بِمِثْلِ هَذَا الْقُرْآنِ لَا
يَأْتُونَ بِمِثْلِهِ وَلَوْ كَانَ بَعْضُهُمْ لِبَعْضٍ ظَهِيرًا (٨٨)) (الإسراء: ٨٨)
"Say: "If the mankind and the Jinns were
together to produce the like of this Qur'ân,
3

they could not produce the like thereof,
even if they helped one another" (17:88).
This verse was revealed in Makkah. In Sûrah
at-Tûr (The Mount), which was also revealed in
Makkah, Allâh the Almighty says:
(أَمْ يَقُولُونَ تَقَوَّلَهُ بَل لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ (٣٣)﴾ (الطور: ٣٣-٣٤)
"Or do they say: "He (Muhammad
has forged it (this Qur'an)?" Nay! They
believe not! Let them then produce a
recital like unto it (the Qur'ân) if they
are truthful" (52: 33-34),
i.e. if you are truthful in saying that Muhammad
made this Qur'an himself, then remember that he
is a human being like you, so they should be able to
say something similar to what he said.
Allâh the Almighty repeats in Sûrah "al-
Bagarah" (the cow), which was revealed in
Madînah, the challenge to the non believers ..
﴿وَإِنْ كُنتُمْ فِي رَيْبٍ مِمَّا نَزَّلْنَا عَلَى عَبْدِنَا فَأُتُوا بِسُورَةٍ مِنْ مِثْلُه
وَادْعُوا شُهَدَاءَكُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ (٢٣)﴾ (البقرة: ٢٣)
"And if you are in doubt concerning that
which We have sent down to Our slave
(Muhammad
then produce a Sûrah
(chapter) of the like thereof and call your
witnesses besides Allâh, if you are
4

truthful" (2:23).
Allâh the Almighty also said:
﴿أَمْ يَقُولُونَ افْتَرَاهُ قُلْ فَأُتُوا بِعَشْرِ سُوَرٍ مِثْلِهِ مُقْتُرَيَاتٍ وَادْعُوا
مَنْ اسْتَطَعْتُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ (١٣) فَإِلَّمْ يَسْتَجِيبُوا
لَكُمْ فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا أُنزِلَ بِعِلْمِ اللَّهِ وَأَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ فَهَلْ أَنْتُمْ
مُسْلِمُونَ (١٤) ﴾ (هود:١٣ -
"Or they say, "He (Prophet Muhammad )
forged it (the Qur'an)". Say: "Bring you
then ten forged Sûrah (chapters) like unto
it, and call whomsoever you can, other
than Allâh (to your help), if you speak the
truth! If then they answer you not, know
then that the Revelation (this Knowledge of
Allâh and that Lâ ilâha illâ Huwa (none
has the right to be worshipped but He)!
Will you then be Muslims (those who
submit to Islâm)?" (11:13-14).
Allah, Glorified be He also said:
﴿وَمَا كَانَ هَذَا الْقُرْآنُ أَنْ يُفْتُرَى مِنْ دُونِ اللّهِ وَلَّكِنْ تَصْدِيقَ
الَّذِي بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَتَفْصِيلَ الْكِتَابِ لَا رَيْبَ فِيهِ مِنْ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
(٣٧) أَمْ يَقُولُونَ افْتَرَاهُ قُلْ فَأُتُوا بِسُورَةٍ مِثْلِهِ وَادْعُوا مَنْ اسْتَطَعْتُمْ
مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ صَادِقِينَ (٣٨)بَلْ كَذِّبُوا بِمَا لَمْ يُحِيطُوا
بِعِلْمِهِ وَلَمَّا يَأْتِهِمْ تَأْوِيلُهُ كَذَلِكَ كَذَّبَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ فَانْظُرْ
كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الظَّالِمِينَ (٣٩)﴾ (يونس: ٣٧-٣٩)
5

"And this Qur'an is not such as could
ever be produced by other than Allâh
(Lord of the heavens and the earth), but
it is a confirmation of (the Revelation)
which was before it and a full
. explanation of the Book wherein there is
no doubt from the Lord of the universe.
Or do they say : "He (Muhammad ;
has forged it?" Say: "Bring then a Sûrah
(chapter) like unto it, and call upon
whomsoever you can, besides Allâh, if
you are truthful! Nay, they deny that ;
the knowledge whereof they could not
compass and whereof the interpretation
has not yet come unto them. Thus see
what was the end of the wrong-doers!"
(10:37-39).
Allâh the Almighty clarified that human beings
are unable to say anything like it (the Qur'an), not
ten Sûrah (chapters), not even one Sûrah. They
would never be able to do so, as Allâh the Almighty
says: "But if you do it not, and you can never do
it", i.e. if you did not do this (in the past) and will
not be able to do this in the future; which means they
could not say anything like it, now or later.
If the Qur'ân was written by a human being,
then that person would hesitate to throw out such a
6

challenge and thereby be exposed and suffer the
repudiation of the people, contrary to what he
originally intended. It is well known by every wise
man, that Muhammad is the most rational creature
of Allâh; the most wise and most perfect of all. He
would never have taken such a step (saying the
Qur'ân) unless he was certain that no one could ever
produce anything like it. This is how it has been
since the time of the Prophet % till now, that no one
has ever been able to say anything like the Qur'ân,
not even one Sûrah. It is impossible because the
Qur'ân is the word of the Lord of the Universe,
Allâh, and there is nothing like unto Him. He bears
no similarity to any of His creation, in His Being,
His Character or His Deeds. How then could the
words of His creation, be similar to His words!
The non believers of the Quraish said - as Allâh
told us in the Qur'ân:
﴿وَإِذَا تُتْلَى عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتُنَا قَالُوا قَدْ سَمِعْنَا لَوْ نَشَاءُ لَقُلْنَا مِثْلَ هَذَا إِنْ
هَذَا إِلَّا أَسَاطِيرُ الْأَوَّلِينَ (٣١)﴾ (الأنفال: ٣١)
"And when Our Verses are recited to
them, they say: "We have heard this (the
Qur'ân); if we wish we can say the like
of this. This is nothing but tales of the
ancients" (8:31).
There is no evidence to support their lie. If they
7

were truthful, they would not have said any such
thing, but they know within themselves that they are
lying, just as they know that they lied when they said :
﴿وَقَالُوا أَسَاطِيرُ الْأَوَّلِينَ اكْتَتَبَهَا فَهِيَ تُمْلَى عَلَيْهِ بُكْرَةٌ وَأَصِيلًا(٥)﴾
(الفرقان: ٥)
"Tales of the ancients, which he has
written down, and they are dictated to
him morning and afternoon" (25:5).
Allâh the Almighty answered them saying,
﴿قُلْ أَنزَلَهُ الَّذِي يَعْلَمُ السَِّّ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ إِنَّهُ كَانَ
غَفُورًا رَحِيمًا (٦)) (الفرقان: ٦)
"Say: "It has been sent down by Him
(Allâh) (the Real Lord of the heavens
and earth) Who knows the secrets of the
heavens and the earth, He is Oft-
Forgiving, Most Merciful" (25:6),
which means that Allah knows all the hidden
secrets. That He is the Lord of the heavens and the
earth, and knows all that took place (in the past),
what will be (in the future), and even from what
never took place, He knows what would have
happened should it have occurred.
Aspects of the miracles of the Qur'ân:
Allâh the Almighty revealed to His slave and
8

messenger, the illiterate Prophet # the stories of the
previous religions, which he did not know before. It
was Allâh Who told him the stories of what took
place in the past, together with what existed in
reality, at that time. By doing so, Allâh makes a
distinction between what is true and what is false,
and that is the distinction, which the previous books
differed in. Allâh the Almighty said:
﴿ِتِلْكَ مِنْ أَنْبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ نُوحِيهَا إِلَيْكَ مَا كُنتَ تَعْلَمُهَا أَنْتَ وَلَا
قَوْمُكَ مِنْ قَبْلِ هَذَا فَاصْبِرْ إِنَّ الْعَاقِبَةَ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ (٤٩)﴾ (هود: ٤٩)
"This is of the news of the unseen which
We reveal unto you (O Muhammad)
neither you nor your people knew them
before this. So be patient. Surely, the
(good) end is for the pious" (11:49),
and said:
﴿كَذَلِكَ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنْبَاءِ مَا قَدْ سَبَقَ وَقَدْ آتَيْنَاكَ مِنْ لَدْنَّا ذِكْرًا
(٩٩) مَنْ أَعْرَضَ عَنْهُ فَإِنَّهُ يَحْمِلُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ رِزْرًا (١٠٠) خَالِدِينَ
فِيهِ وَسَاءَ لَهُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ حِمْلًا (١٠١)﴾ (طه: ٩٩-١٠١)
"Thus We relate to you some information
of what happened before. And indeed We
have given you from Us a Reminder (this
Qur'ân). Whoever turns away from it,
verily, they will bear a heavy burden (of
sins) on the Day of Resurrection. They
9