This article provides compelling reasons to help Muslims make an unbiased evaluation of Islam. The article is intentionally written in an assertive manner so as to thaw Muslims from the years of lies that they have been fed from infancy. If you, as a Muslim, find this article offensive or even shocking, we strongly encourage you to examine the Islamic references provided here on your own. Though this article may understandably upset or anger you, please remember that the ones telling such truths are in reality the sincere friends of the Muslims. While Truth may hurt, it is the Lies that will kill you. Your eternal salvation depends on knowing the Truth about your Creator.
MUHAMMAD BELIEVED HE WAS POSSESSED
Muhammad received his calling in the darkness of a cave. His immediate conclusion was that the spirit which delivered the opening verses of the Qur’an was an evil force. Therefore, it is absolutely important to begin our evaluation of Islam by investigating the calling of Muhammad as a Prophet of Allah.
Sahih Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 1, Number 3:
The Prophet added, “The angel caught me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read and I replied, ‘I do not know how to read.’ Thereupon he caught me again and pressed me a second time till I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read but again I replied, ‘I do not know how to read (or what shall I read?)’ Thereupon he caught me for the third time and pressed me, and then released me and said, ‘Read in the name of your Lord, who has created (all that exists) has created man from a clot. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous.” (96.1, 96.2, 96.3)
Then Allah’s Apostle returned with the Inspiration and with his heart beating severely. Then he went to Khadijah bint Khuwailid and said, “Cover me! Cover me!” They covered him till his fear was over and after that he told her everything that happened and said, “I fear that something may happen to me.” Khadijah replied, “Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your Kith and kin, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the deserving calamity-afflicted ones.”
Something really distressing must have occurred in the cave. Muhammad ran back to his wife terrorized. He tells her: “I fear that something may happen to me.” And just as children hide under the blankets when they are terrified, Muhammad urged his wife to cover him. He did not want to see the cause of that terror again. That supernatural confrontation in the cave was more demonic than divine. Muhammad was convinced that the spirit which spoke to him was a demon. Muhammad was the first person to doubt the genuineness of the revelation he received from Allah in the Cave of Hira. No other Prophets of God ever had an experience similar to that of Muhammad.
MUHAMMAD BECAME SUICIDAL
After the terrifying and violent encounter with the spirit, Muhammad became extremely distraught. He became suicidal. It is absolutely outrageous that a Prophet of God could be pushed towards suicide following a revelation from God.
Ibn Ishaq is one of the earliest biographers of Muhammad. His biography is indispensable to the study on Muhammad’s life and is used extensively in well-known Islamic universities such as the Al-Azhar University in Cairo. Ibn Ishaq’s biography on Muhammad is known as “Sirat Rasul Allah.” This renowned biography reveals the fear and the depressive state of mind which Muhammad experienced following his encounter with the spirit messenger in the Cave of Hira:
So I (Muhammad) read it, and he (Gabriel) departed from me. And I awoke from my sleep, and it was as though these words were written on my heart. Now none of God’s creatures was more horrible to me than a poet or a man possessed: I could not even look at them. I thought, “Woe is me poet or possessed – Never shall Quraysh say this of me! I will go to the top of the mountain and throw myself down that I may kill myself and gain rest.” (Ibn Ishaq, p. 106)
Yes, you read it right. After his encounter with the spirit in the cave, Muhammad believed he was possessed by a demon. And Muhammad became suicidal. Muhammad’s suicide attempts were not a one-off thing. He repeated tried to kill himself over the years.
Sahih Bukhari, Book 9, Volume 87, Number 111:
But after a few days Waraqa died and the Divine Inspiration was also paused for a while and the Prophet became so sad as we have heard that he intended several times to throw himself from the tops of high mountains and every time he went up the top of a mountain in order to throw himself down, Gabriel would appear before him and say, “O Muhammad! You are indeed Allah’s Apostle in truth” whereupon his heart would become quiet and he would calm down and would return home. And whenever the period of the coming of the inspiration used to become long, he would do as before, but when he used to reach the top of a mountain, Gabriel would appear before him and say to him what he had said before. (Only the relevant quote is cited here)
Not many Muslims are aware of Muhammad’s suicide attempts. Understandably, few Islamic scholars will ever want to teach this to their fellow Muslims because it casts a stain upon Muhammad reputation as a Prophet. It brings doubt to the credibility of his assumed “prophetic” experience. Some Muslims scholars respond by saying that the shock of the experience caused him to attempt suicide. This is a blatant lie. The shock of the initial experience would have worn off over the next few days, if not weeks. Why then did Muhammad continue to attempt suicide long after his initial encounter in the cave? A true Prophet would have turned to God for comfort instead of attempting to end his life. A Prophet who attempts suicide on numerous occasions cannot be a Prophet of the true God. Sincere Muslims should take note of this important fact regarding Muhammad.
In the final assessment, we can see that the very first revelation that Muhammad received–the seeds out of which Islam sprouted–began amidst a violent and dark encounter with some form of a spirit being in the darkness of a cave. And Islam is built on the foundation of this dark and fearsome encounter.
MUHAMMAD SPOKE THE WORDS OF SATAN
One of the most embarrassing events in Muhammad’s life was when Satan cast his words upon the tongue of Muhammad. As a result, Muhammad spoke the words of Satan believing it to be the words of Allah. This incident came to be known as “The Satanic Verses.” The episode of the Satanic Verses is well-known among the early Muslims. The event is well documented in many authoritative Islamic sources. It is recorded by the earliest Islamic sources available on Muhammad’s life. Renowned Muslim scholars like Ibn Ishaq, Ibn Sa’d, and al-Tabari have all documented this event in their scholarly works. They have all testified to the Satanic Verses as an authentic event. And they are not the enemies of Islam. In his commentary regarding the historicity of the episode of the Satanic Verses, prominent Muslim Scholar, Shahab Ahmed, stated:
“The Satanic verses incident constituted a standard element in the historical memory of the Muslim community in the first 150 years of Islam, and was recorded by almost all prominent scholars working in the fields of Tafsir and Sirah-Maghazi.” (Shahab Ahmed, The Satanic Verses Incident in the Memory of the Early Muslim Community – An Analysis of the Early Riwayahs and their Isnads, p. i)
When Muhammad was preaching in Mecca, he did not win many converts to his new found religion. However, he desperately wanted those from his tribe to accept Islam. He was hoping to receive a Qur’anic verse that would help them accept Islam. Then one day he got the revelation that he was longing for. We will now consider the detailed account of this incident as recorded by Ibn Ishaq. Please read the following historical account carefully.
Sirat Rasul Allah:
“Now the apostle was anxious for the welfare of his people, wishing to attract them as far as he could. It has been mentioned that he longed for a way to attract them and the method he adopted is what Ibn Hamid told me that Salama said M. b. Ishaq told him from Yazid b. Ziyad of Medina from M. b. Ka`b al-Qurazi: When the apostle saw that his people turned their backs on him and he was pained by their estrangement from what he brought them from God he longed that there should come to him from God a message that would reconcile his people to him. Because of his love for his people and his anxiety over them it would delight him if the obstacle that made his task so difficult could be removed; so that he meditated on the project and longed for it and it was dear to him.
Then God sent down “By the star when it sets your comrade errs not and is not deceived, he speaks not from his own desire,” and when he reached His words “Have you thought of al-Lat and al-`Uzza and Manat the third, the others,” Satan, when he was meditating upon it, and desiring to bring it (reconciliation) to his people, put upon his tongue “these are the exalted Gharaniq whose intercession is approved.”
When the Quraysh heard that, they were delighted and greatly pleased at the way in which he spoke of their gods and they listened to him; while the believers were holding that what their prophet brought from their Lord was true, not suspecting a mistake or a vain desire or slip, and when he reached the prostration and the end of the Sura in which he prostrated himself the Muslims prostrated themselves when their prophet prostrated confirming what he brought and obeying his command, and the polytheists of Quraysh and others who were in the mosque prostrated when they heard the mention of their gods, so that everyone in the mosque believer and unbeliever prostrated, except al-Walid b. al-Mughira who was an old man who could not do so, so he took a handful of dirt from the valley and bent over it.
Then the people dispersed and the Quraysh went out, delighted at what had been said about their gods, saying, “Muhammad has spoken of our gods in splendid fashion. He alleged in what he read that they are the exalted Gharaniq whose intercession is approved.”
The news reached the prophet’s companions who were in Abyssinia, it being reported that Quraysh had accepted Islam, so some men started to return while others remained behind. Then Gabriel came to the apostle and said, “What have you done, Muhammad? You have read to these people something I did not bring you from God and you have said what He did not say to you.” The apostle was bitterly grieved and was greatly in fear of God.
So God sent down (a revelation), for he was merciful to him comforting him and making light of the affair and telling him that every prophet and apostle before him desired as he desired and wanted what he wanted and Satan interjected something into his desires as he had on his tongue. So God annulled what Satan had suggested and God established His verses i.e. you are just like the prophets and apostles.
Then God sent down: “We have not sent a prophet or apostle before you but when he longed Satan cast suggestions into his longing. But God will annul what Satan has suggested. Then God will establish his verses, God being knowing and wise.” Thus God relieved his prophet’s grief, and made him feel safe from his fears and annulled what Satan had suggested in the words used above about their gods by his revelation “Are yours the males and His the females? That were indeed an unfair division” (i.e. most unjust); “they are nothing by names which your fathers gave them” as far as the words “to whom he pleases and accepts,” i.e. how can the intercession of their gods avail with Him?
When the annulment of what Satan had put upon the prophet’s tongue came from God, Quraysh said: “Muhammad has repented of what he said about the position of your gods with Allah, altered it and brought something else.” (The Life of Muhammad: A Translation of Ibn Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, with introduction and notes by Alfred Guillaume, pp. 165-167)
Why would Allah make “light of the affair” of a Prophet speaking the words of Satan as the words of God? As we can see, Muhammad acknowledged to being deceived by Satan. Muhammad’s exultation of the goddesses of the polytheists and the subsequent willingness of the pagans to prostrate along with him in prayer clearly proves that Muhammad compromised to idolatry. Although he later realized the consequences of what he had done, this does not diminish the fact that he was deceived by Satan. This does not excuse his participation in idolatry.
What is important for Muslims to learn from this incident is that it shows that Muhammad could not distinguish between the words of Allah and the words of Satan. He received a revelation from Satan which he proclaimed as a message from Allah. The message was not only false but also demonic. Now, take careful note of Allah’s response to the Satanic Verses:
Surah 22:52: “Never did We send a Messenger or a Prophet before you, but, when he did recite the revelation or narrated or spoke, Shaitan (Satan) threw some falsehood in it. But Allah abolishes that which Shaitan (Satan) throws in. Then Allah establishes His Revelations. And Allah is All-Knower, All-Wise.” (Hilali-Khan)
Can you comprehend the full implication of Allah’s response to the Satanic Verses spoken by Muhammad? Allah is in effect saying: “Don’t worry about it Muhammad, all Prophets proclaim Satanic messages from time to time.” In other words, Allah is saying that every Messenger of God who lived before the time of Muhammad have recited the verses of Satan when they received revelations from God. While Allah revealed Surah 22:52 to justify the blasphemous sin of Muhammad, this Qur’anic verse serves to confirm the indisputable truth that the Satanic Verses episode did actually happen.
What should concern Muslims is that Allah openly lied that all the previous Prophets of God were also influenced by Satan. This blatant lie was deliberately advanced by Allah to down-play the humiliation of Muhammad who submitted to satanic influence. Surah 22:52 which falsely claims that all of God’s Prophets succumbed to satanic influence, is in itself a Satanic Verse woven into the very fabric of the Qur’an. To excuse Muhammad’s transgression, Allah defamed all the Prophets of God. Allah did not provide the slightest proof to substantiate his wicked defamation of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and many other faithful Prophets of God. Other than Muhammad, Allah could not provide a single name of any ancient Prophets who succumbed to the influences of Satan. In summary, read the historical record of Al-Tabari. He is recognized as one of the most important ancient historians of Islam.
Tabari, VI:107:
“Satan cast a false Qur’an revelation on the Messenger of Allah’s tongue.”
Well, Muslims does it not concern you that your Prophet spoke the words of Satan as the words of Allah? How many other verses did Muhammad receive from Satan?
MUHAMMAD WAS BEWITCHED
Islamic sources clearly state that even during his prophetic career as the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad came under the spell of black magic. Yes! Muhammad was bewitched. Let us now consider the evidences from the most authentic sources of Islam. We will simple let these sources do the talking.
Sahih Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 490:
Narrated By ‘Aisha: Magic was worked on the Prophet so that he began to fancy that he was doing a thing which he was not actually doing. One day he invoked (Allah) for a long period and then said, “I feel that Allah has inspired me as how to cure myself. Two persons came to me (in my dream) and sat, one by my head and the other by my feet. One of them asked the other, ‘What is the ailment of this man?’ The other replied, ‘He has been bewitched.’ The first asked, ‘Who has bewitched him?’ The other replied, ‘Lubaid bin Al-A’sam.’ The first one asked, ‘What material has he used?’ The other replied, ‘A comb, the hair gathered on it, and the outer skin of the pollen of the male date-palm.’ The first asked, ‘Where is that?’ The other replied, ‘It is in the well of Dharwan.’
So, the Prophet went out towards the well and then returned and said to me on his return, “Its date-palms (the date-palms near the well) are like the heads of the devils.” I asked, “Did you take out those things with which the magic was worked?” He said, “No, for I have been cured by Allah and I am afraid that this action may spread evil amongst the people.” Later on the well was filled up with earth.
Sahih Bukhari, Volume 8, Book 73, Number 89:
Narrated By ‘Aisha: The Prophet continued for such-and-such period imagining that he has slept (had sexual relations) with his wives, and in fact he did not. One day he said, to me, “O ‘Aisha! Allah has instructed me regarding a matter about which I had asked Him. There came to me two men, one of them sat near my feet and the other near my head. The one near my feet, asked the one near my head (pointing at me), ‘What is wrong with this man? The latter replied, ‘He is under the effect of magic.’
Sahih Bukhari, Volume 8, Book 75, Number 400:
Narrated Hisham’s father: ‘Aisha said, “, so he invoked Allah repeatedly requesting Him to cure him from that magic).”
Sahih Bukhari, Volume 7, Book 71, Number 660:
Narrated By ‘Aisha: Magic was worked on Allah’s Apostle so that he used to think that he had sexual relations with his wives while he actually had not (Sufyan said: That is the hardest kind of magic as it has such an effect).”
The above Hadiths should trouble any sincere Muslims. They clearly state: “Magic was worked on Allah’s Apostle” and “Allah’s Apostle was bewitched.” Muhammad is exulted as the “Seal of the Prophets” in the Qur’an. How could the demons exercise control over the “Seal of the Prophets”? Allah guaranteed in the Qur’an that Satan will have no authority over any of the Servants or Messengers of Allah. Why then was Allah unable to protect Muhammad from the influences of the demons? Allah clearly stated to Satan:
Surah 15:42: “For over My servants no authority shalt thou (Iblis) have, except such as put themselves in the wrong and follow thee.” (Yusuf Ali)
This means that either Muhammad was a follower of Satan or this Qur’anic verse is totally false? Let us look at more damaging evidences from other Islamic sources.
Asbab Al-Nuzul by Ali ibn Ahmad Al-Wahidi, Q. 113-114:
(Say: I seek refuge in the Lord of the Daybreak…) [113:1-5] The commentators of the Qur’an said: “The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, had a Jewish servant boy. The Jews approached him and kept after him until he gave them some fallen hair from the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, as well as a few teeth from his comb. The Jews used these to cast a spell of black magic on him. The person who was behind this was the Jew Labid ibn al-A’sam. He then put the hair in a well belonging to Banu Zurayq called Dharwan.
The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, fell ill for a period of six month, during which the hair of his head fell off; he imagined that he slept with his wives when he did not, and was withering away without knowing the reason. As he was one day sleeping, he saw two angels coming to him. One of them sat at his head and the other at his feet. The angel who sat at his head asked: ‘What is wrong with the man?’ The second angel responded: ‘A spell of black magic was cast on him’. (Source: Altafsir.com)
Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah:
“From B. Zurayq: Labib b. A’sam, who bewitched the apostle of God so that he could not come at his wives.” (Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah – The Life of Muhammad –Translated by A. Guillaume, p. 240). Guillaume’s footnotes states that according to a Muslim scholar, the spell lasted for a year.
Lubaid bin Al-A’sam was a Jewish sorcerer from the tribe of Bani Zaraiq. It is important to note that this incident occurred after Muhammad had already migrated to Medina and settled there. Muhammad’s arrival in Medina took place during the thirteenth year of his prophetic career. This means long after he became a Prophet of Allah, he succumbed to the influences of the demons. Even though he is supposed to be the greatest among the Prophets of Allah, he came under demonic influences for nearly a year. He was so bewitched that he imagined he was having sexual relations with his wives, when in reality he did not. Imagine, Allah’s greatest Prophet was bewitched by a kafir.
This event is also recorded in Ibn Sa’d’s “Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir” (Book of the Major Classes), Volume 2, pp. 244 to 248. Here is a relevant quote:
“The apostle of Allah fell ill. He was bewitched about women and food…There were eleven knots in the hair from the comb. The two Surahs no. 113 and 114 were revealed to him. No sooner did the apostle of Allah recited a verse than a knot loosened. When all of them were loosened, he regained his urge for food and women.”
Muslims take pride in proclaiming that Surah 113 and Surah 114 cured Muhammad from the Jewish spell. Do they really have reasons to boast? Consider the following facts: Firstly: The claim that Surah 113 and Surah 114 cured Muhammad from sorcery is in itself an admission that he was bewitched. Otherwise, why was there a need to cure him from the influences of the demons? Secondly: Did not Allah clearly state that Satan will have no authority over any of his Messengers? Thirdly: A true Prophet of God is not even supposed to be affected by sorcery in the first place. The Bible states that the worshippers of the true God will not come under any form of demonic control such as sorcery or magic because of the protective care of Jehovah over them:
Numbers 23:23: “There is no sorcery against Jacob. Nor any magic that can harm Israel.”
A man who fell victim to sorcery while declaring himself to be God’s greatest Prophet can only be a fraud. Finally: According to Muhammad, consuming seven dates in the morning are just as effective as Surah 113 and Surah 114 to protect against magic:
Sahih Bukhari, Volume 7, Book 71, Number 664:
Narrated Saud: I heard Allah’s Apostle saying, “If somebody takes seven ‘Ajwa dates in the morning, neither magic nor poison will hurt him that day.”
Sahih Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 15, Number 73:
Narrated Anas bin Malik: Allah’s Apostle never proceeded (for the prayer) on the Day of ‘Id-ul-Fitr unless he had eaten some dates. Anas also narrated: The Prophet used to eat odd number of dates.
The “odd number of dates” shows how deeply Muhammad was ingrained in superstition. Muslims, notice the words of your Prophet’s prayer.
Sunan Abu-Dawud, Book 41, Hadith Number 5036:
Narrated AbulAzhar al-Anmari: When the Apostle of Allah (p.b.u.h.) went to his bed at night, he would say: in the name of Allah, I have laid down my side for Allah. O Allah! Forgive me my sin, drive away my devil, free me from my responsibility, and place me in the highest assembly.
Muslims, please reflect on the following points: What was Muhammad actually doing during the entire year when he imagined he was having sexual intercourse with his wives when he did not? After all, for him to actually believe he was really having sex with his wives when he did not, he must surely be pleasuring himself in some unknown manner. Otherwise, how could he sense that he was actually engaging in sexual intercourse? Is this not somewhat degrading for someone claiming to be a Prophet of God? Why would Allah permit his Prophet to be humiliated in this disgraceful way? How could Allah allow Muhammad to imagine that he was engaging in sex when he did not? Think about it!
The vital lesson that Muslims can learn from all these evidences is the undeniable truth that Muhammad cannot be a Prophet of the true God. It will therefore be wise for Muslims to look elsewhere for their salvation. It is vital for Muslims to examine the life of another Messenger of God–Jesus of Nazareth. We will now consider just one out of the many encounters that Jesus had with the demons:
Mark 1:21-27: They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. And they became amazed at his way of teaching, for there he was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the teachers of the law. Just at that immediate time there was in their synagogue a man under the power of an unclean spirit, and he shouted, saying: What have we to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know exactly who you are, the Holy One of God.” But Jesus rebuked it, saying: “Be silent, and come on out of him!” And the unclean spirit, after shaking him violently and yelling at the top of its voice, came out of him screaming. Well, the people were all so astonished that they began a discussion among themselves, saying: “What is this? A new teaching! He even orders the unclean spirits with authority, and they obey him.”
Contrary to the claims made by Allah in Surah 22:52, Jesus had complete authority over the demons. For the record, none of the Prophets who received inspired messages from Jehovah were ever influenced by Satan. And none of the messages that they received was at any time influenced by Satan. We challenge the Muslims to provide the name of a single Prophet of God in the Bible who spoke the words of Satan? There is not one. Otherwise, Allah would have provided a name to support his claim. Not a single Prophet of God compromised the Word of God to gain converts as Muhammad did.
A true Prophet of God will not fall prey to the demons. Muhammad’s own wife testified that he was bewitched. And she is not his enemy. Given such clear evidences of Muhammad’s subjection to the demons, it is extremely difficult to take this man’s claims as a Prophet seriously. And Jesus warned his followers:
Matthew 24:11: “And many false prophets will arise and mislead many.”
If you have to choose between Muhammad and Jesus, is it not sensible to trust the one who terrified the demons with his very presence rather than the one who came under their influence? Would it be wise to follow a man who came under the inspiration of Satan? A man who spoke the words of Satan? A man who succumbed to black magic? All these evidences incriminating Muhammad are not ours. They are provided by the earliest Islamic sources available on the life of Muhammad. The men who recorded them were devout Muslim scholars. They were the very defenders of Islam. They were genuine Islamic scholars who spent their lives studying, analyzing, and writing about Muhammad and Islam. These indisputable evidences prove that Muhammad is a false Prophet. It would be wise for Muslims to turn to the true God before it is too late. The Bible reveals the identity of the true God by name in the following verse:
Psalms 83:18: “May people know that you, whose name is Jehovah, You alone are the Most High over all the earth.”
Shalom,
Dr. Max Shimba
