What Practicing Muslims Don’t Know about Rasulullah ﷺ

What Practicing Muslims Don’t Know about Rasulullah ﷺ

There are riwayat that tell us facts about our Prophet ﷺ we likely were unaware of.

• Near the end of his life, Rasulullah ﷺ learnt to read and write. This is the opinion of Ibn al-Jawzi, Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi, and al-Suyuti. All that was needed was proof of being unlettered. Another proof of this is his advice to Mu’awiya writing letters, ‘put ink to the side and sharpen your pen…make the baa standing and separate the seen and don’t make meem like a dot, make it round and when you write Rahman make it long and make Rahim clear.’
• Rasulullah ﷺ likely never ate beef, though it was slaughtered for his wives. We have no hadith saying he actually ate the beef. See here.
• Rasulullah ﷺ may have eaten paan as an Indian king sent a gift of betel leaf after the splitting of the moon. See below quote from Shaykh Yusuf Motala’s “Manifestation of Prophet Muhammad’s Beauty.”

• There were Sahabis amongst the jinn, amongst Indian kings, amongst animals and trees that are still standing today.
• 12 Prophets wanted to join the ummah of Rasulullah ﷺ.
• Rasulullah ﷺ knew how long he would live. The proof for this is the hadith that (paraphrased) true dreams are 1/46th of Nubuwwa, as revelation came for 6 months in dreams over 23 years. I heard this in a lecture from Shaykh Hamza Maqbul.
• Idols would recite poetry about Rasulullah ﷺ. Abbas bin Merdas his idol Damar recited poetic verses about the Prophet ﷺ and bird came and said, “O Abbas, do you feel astonished at the speech of Damar; whereas you are not full of astonishment with yourself that Allah’s Messenger calls for Islam while you are sitting?” That was the cause of Abbas embracing Islam. (Shifa of Qadi Iyad, p. 359)
• Angels will open the door of Paradise only for Rasulullah ﷺ. He is the first out of the grave, first to make Shafa’a, first to cross Sirat and first to enter Paradise.
• Rasulullah ﷺ could see from behind after the Farewell Pilgrimage.
• Rasulullah ﷺ would spit in to zamzam water and it would smell fragrant. (Shifa of Qadi Iyad)
• The Name of Muhammad ﷺ is written on the Arsh (or Kursi?) of Allah.
• The Name of Muhammad ﷺ is mentioned in the Torah even up to today.
• In early days of Islam, all of Mecca accepted Islam and went into sajda when Surah al-Najm was revealed accepting the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam. Only after the mustahzi’un returned to Mecca did they disbelieve.
• Dua is answered before Fajr (suhur time) because this was the time of day Rasulullah ﷺ was born. “The patient, the true, the obedient, those who spend [in the way of Allah ], and those who seek forgiveness before dawn.” (Surah Ale-Imran, v. 17)
• The weddings of Rasulullah ﷺ were done by Allah subhana wa ta’ala Himself. No ceremony nor any ritual was needed as this was one of his privileges – see here.
• Rasulullah ﷺ had a room in his home separate from his wives with only a reed mat dedicated solely to worship and seclusion (khalwa). See this class
• Allah subhana wa ta’ala will have Rasulullah ﷺ sit on the Arsh in the Akhira. The Arsh is ultimately just another of Allah’s creations. To learn more about this, read here or watch this video.