June 1996: Page 1, 2, 3, 4

Submitters Perspective

Page 2

Muhammad’s Illiteracy

Continued from page 1

The Muslim scholars derived the illiteracy concept for Muhammad from verses 7:157-158 of the Quran. They say that the word ummy means illiterate. It is true that in today’s standard Arabic, “illiterate” is one of the meaning of this word. But this is not a compelling evidence, since “gentile” is also another meaning of it. In fact, if we study the Quran carefully where this word is found, its usage has always been in the context of “the people of the scripture” vs. “the gentiles” (see for example 3:20, 3:75, 62:2, 2:78). It is even possible to surmise that the “illiterate” meaning is secondary. It came to be used after the Quran was revealed, since it is reasonable to deduct “illiterate” as the opposite of “those who can read.” This in turn may well be coming from “those who read the book,” or “those who received the book,” or “the people of the book” (ahl al-Kitab), which is precisely the opposite of “the gentiles.”

It is interesting that in his book “Sirat Rasul Allah,” the 8th century historian Ibn Ishaq also recorded a written communication between Prophet Muhammad and one of his contemporaries. Ibn Ishaq wrote one of the earliest chronicles of Islam (he was born in Medina some 85 years after the Hijra), and his book predates hadith collections by at least a century. Of course, as with any historical records (of which the hadith collection is one), we must apply a certain degree of judgment. Our primary criterion is of course information from God’s revelation, i.e. the Quran. Therefore, some things that Ibn Ishaq (or anyone else for that matter) wrote, which clearly disagree with the Quran, we can easily reject. On the other hand, other records that support the Quran can be accepted as part of history. What follows, therefore, is a historical record from early Islam.

During the prophet Muhammad’s time, there were some people who also claimed to be God’s prophet and messenger. One of them was Musaylima b. Habib. The following is a quote from Guillaume’s translation of Ibn Ishaq’s book:

MUSAYLIMA’S LETTER AND THE APOSTLE’S ANSWER THERETO

Musaylima had written to the apostle (Prophet Muhammad):

From Musaylima the apostle of God to Muhammad the apostle of God. Peace upon you. I have been made partner with you in authority. To us belongs half the land and to Quraysh half, but Quraysh are a hostile people...

Then he (Prophet Muhammad) wrote to Musaylima:

From Muhammad the apostle of God to Musaylima the liar. Peace be upon him who follows the guidance. The earth is God’s. He lets whom He will of His creatures (to) inherit it and the result is to the pious...

This was at the end of the year 10 (after Hijra).

There were other instances in the history of early Islam where Prophet Muhammad sent many letters to Kings and other heads of state, inviting them to embrace God's religion. The only plausible conclusion is that he realized the importance of written communication, as God has taught in the earliest revelation. Ibn Ishaq’s chronicle on this issue provides a historical evidence to support the fact that Muhammad was indeed a literate prophet.

[From Friday khutba at Masjid Tucson, October 27, 1995]

Dr. G. Adisoma

Reference: Guillaume, A., The Life of Muhammad, a translation of Ibn Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, Oxford, 1967, p. 649.