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There are in fact many more examples of what we have narrated here. Had we attempted to recount all of them, however, we would have deviated from the intended purpose of this book.

As for the signs and wonders which were wrought by Muhammad's hands (peace be upon him and his progeny) after his call to Prophethood, they were of two kinds. The first is the Qur'an which Allah sent down to him, and with which He strengthened him, and the second consists of his other miracles.

As for the proof from the Qur'an: any rational man who heard the hadith reports and was acquainted with their transmitters would have undoubtedly recognized the manifestation of the Prophethood of our Prophet, and the truth of his claim to be a messenger sent by Allah. Moreover, he challenged the Arabs with the Qur'an, and in spite of the lapse of a long period of time, they did not oppose him - for opposition was impossible for them. This impossibility is in itself a miracle, violating the norms of general custom. That he challenged people with the Qur'an can be proven by the fact that he claimed that Gabriel used to bring the Qur'an down to him, and that Allah had distinguished him by it. Knowledge of all this is certain, and it is the strongest sort of challenge, properly understood. Furthermore, some verses of the Qur'an present clear instances of challenge, such as Allah's saying: Bring therefore ten fabricated Surahs like it, and again: Bring forth even one Surah like it [Qur.11:13 and 10:38].

As for the argument that people were unable to present any opposition, it can be argued that if opposition had occurred, it would have been necessary for it to be known and reported. The fact that it was never reported must imply that it never occurred. We say this because all the things necessitating the transmission of the Qur'an, such as the strong reasons and need for it as well as the close familiarity of the people with it, all strengthen the possibility of opposition. This possibility would be further strengthened because opposition would itself be the argument, and the Qur'an would then be the specious argument. Reporting a true argument is more worthy than reporting a specious one. How could opposition not have been reported if it had occurred, while men reported the words of Musaylimah (the false prophet), meaningless and unworthy though they were.

If it is claimed that it was fear of the Muslims, who became so numerous as to be greatly feared, that prevented men from reporting such opposition, the answer is that fear alone does not necessitate the disruption of report in every way. It only prevents men from doing so openly. Do you not see that the excellences of the Commander of the Faithful (`Ali) were widely transmitted, in spite of the great fear of those who disclosed them of the Umayyads? It would rather have been natural for the enemies of Islam to report such opposition, or at least do so in secret among themselves. Furthermore, the great increase of Muslims happened after the Migration (hijrah). It would, therefore, have been possible to report it before that time, and during the Prophet's stay in Mecca. Had opposition then been widely reported, no Muslim power would have been capable of concealing it. It may be argued that opposition did not occur during that time. This, however, would itself be an argument in support of the miraculous nature of the Qur'an. For even though Islam grew in power in Medina, the people of `rejection of faith' (kufr) had their own strong and vast domains. The Persian Empire was strong still, and Byzantine and other domains were just as vast. Naturally then, opposition should have arisen.

As for the argument for the lack of opposition due to impossibility: we know that any action not executed by its doer, when all conditions for its execution are present, must by necessity be because of his inability to do so. If this be true - and we know that the Arabs talked much about the Qur'an, yet did not oppose it in spite of their great need to do so - we can conclude that they were unable to oppose it.

If we add to all this the fact that the Arabs were in the habit of undertaking many hardships, such as war, in order to achieve their aims - yet that they did not oppose the Qur'an, although there was no [apparent] reason for them not to do so - then it becomes certain that [the real reason they did not oppose it was because] they were incapable of such opposition. They were a people of proud and arrogant nature, yet the Prophet called upon them to abandon their religions: to relinquish their high status, dissociate themselves from their own forefathers, fathers and sons, and even to fight against anyone who opposed the new faith, even if he were to be one of their closest relations. They would have known that through successful opposition to the Qur'an all this would vanish, and be nullified. What greater reason would there have been, then, to attempt such opposition? Instead, they resorted to war, wasting their wealth and composing polemical poetry, when all this availed them nothing. Thus, had opposition been possible for them they would have surely hastened to it, if for no other reason but that it would have been far easier than the other hardships which they undertook. It would have, moreover, been far less costly than any of the other things they did.

As for the argument which states that the abandonment of opposition was because of the miraculous nature of the Qur'an, it may be objected that the Prophet was more eloquent than all the men of his time, and that only through this was he able to achieve what they could not. It may be further objected that he was active for too short a time for them to present any opposition. If, however, both of these objections could be refuted, then it would have to be concluded that this inability was unnatural, and hence was itself a miraculous phenomenon. It may be argued in refutation of the first objection that for any opposition to be effective, the two opposing parties must have similar abilities of eloquence.

Since the Arabs did not even come close to the eloquence of the Qur'an, then the accepted norms were indeed miraculously suspended. It is not possible for the less eloquent to imitate or closely approximate him who is more eloquent in all his speech. R is, however, possible for the less eloquent to approximate him who is more eloquent in some of his speech. This is usually the case. It is for this reason that later poets have equalled those of ancient times, and may have excelled them in some respects. If the Qur'an challenged the Arabs to produce the like of one of its shorter Surahs, although it is more eloquent than they, that does not mean that they could not have equalled it in so small a portion. Moreover, it was not the case that the Prophet himself was of greater eloquence in his speech than others of his people. Had he been of greater eloquence, while this special quality belonged only to the Qur'an, and had the Qur'an been his speech, then all his words should have been of eloquence equal to the Qur'an.

The invalidity of the second objection, namely that the Prophet was active for only a short time and that therefore if they too were able to labor for an equal period of time they would have been able to imitate the Qur'an, can be easily demonstrated. If, however, it can be proven that inability is itself a miraculous phenomenon, then one of two possibilities must follow - either that the Qur'an itself was a miracle in its eloquence which they could not match, or that Allah, the Exalted, Himself turned them away from imitating the Qur'an, and had He not turned them away, they would have done so. Either of these two possibilities would not invalidate Muhammad's claim to Prophethood. This is because Allah would not vouchsafe a liar, or miraculously suspend natural custom for a man of falsehood.

Were we to reproduce all that has been written on this subject - the arguments and counter arguments - this book would have become too long. What we have here presented should be sufficient to convince those who are possessed of understanding.

As for the clear miracles other than the Qur'an which prove without a doubt the Prophethood of Muhammad, these are many. We have here given the texts dealing with them and eliminated chains of transmission because these miracles are well-known to both the (Sunni) majority and (Shi`i) minority, and because the Muslim community has generally accepted them without question.

It is related on the authority of the Commander of the Faithful ('Ali) that he said: "I was with the Prophet when the notables of Quraysh came to him and said: `O Muhammad, you have surely made grave claims which were never made by your forefathers or anyone else of your clan. We shall, therefore, test you with a request, and if you can fulfill it, we shall know that you are a prophet and messenger. But if you cannot, then we shall know that you are a magician and a liar.' He answered: `What do you wish to ask of me?' They said: `We ask that you call that tree so that it uproots itself and comes and stands before you.' He said: `Allah has power over all things. If He does this for you, would you have faith, and witness to the truth?' `Yes', they answered. `I shall then show you what you ask for', he replied, `even though I know that you shall not turn to the good. Some of you will be thrown in the well (qalib) and others will gather parties (ahzab) [18] against us'. Then he exclaimed: `O tree, if you truly have faith in Allah and the Last Day and know that I am the Messenger of Allah, then uproot yourself and come and stand before me, by Allah's permission.' By Him who sent Muhammad with the truth (continued `Ali), it did uproot itself and came to him with a soft buzzing sound and a thunderous noise like the sound of the flapping of the wings of many birds. Thus it came, and stood before the Messenger of Allah with its branches spread out. It placed its highest branch lightly upon his head, placing others on my shoulders, as I stood at his right hand. When the people saw this, they said with haughty arrogance, `Order now that only half of it come to you and the other half remain in its place.' He commanded the tree, and only half of it came to him, with haste and great noise, so that it nearly wrapped itself around the Messenger of Allah. Still remaining in their rejection of faith and stubbornness, they exclaimed: `Command this half, that it return to the other half.' He commanded it and it returned. Then I exclaimed: `There is no god but Allah, and I am the first of those who accept faith in you, O Messenger of Allah, and the first to testify that the tree did what it did by Allah's command, and in proof of your Prophethood and in reverence of your word.' But the people said: `No, but you are a liar and a skillful magician! Would any other believe in you except this man?' By this, they meant me."
Still another miracle was the water gushing out from between the Prophet's fingers. One day the people accompanying him on a journey ran out of water. They complained that they were near death from thirst. He said: "My Lord is with me; in Him do I trust." He then called for a jug into which he poured a little water, not enough to satisfy even a weakling. He then placed his hand in the jug and the water gushed out from between his fingers. A crier went out and called the people, who then gathered in the thousands. They drank, watered their flocks and filled their water-skins. All the while the Prophet was exclaiming: "I bear witness that I in truth am the Messenger of Allah."
Another one of his miracles was the longing of a dry palm branch for him. At the beginning, the Prophet used to stand leaning on a thick palm branch when he spoke to the people in the Mosque of Medina. As the number of his followers began to increase, they built a pulpit for him. When he stood on it to speak, however, the branch cried out in longing as would a she-camel cry when she loses her young. The Prophet descended and embraced it, and the branch moaned contentedly as would a child when it quiets down.

The story of the ewe of Umm Ma'bad is yet another miracle in testimony to Muhammad's Prophethood. When the Prophet migrated from Mecca to Medina, accompanied by Abu Bakr and `Amir ibn Fuhayrah, with `Abdullah ibn Urayqit al-Laythi as their guide, they passed by Umm Ma'bad, a woman of the Khuza'ah tribe. She sat by her tent wrapped in a long garment. They asked if they could buy from her some dates and meat. She had nothing to offer them; the people were hungry. She insisted, however: "Had we anything to offer you, you would not have been deprived of our hospitality." The Prophet saw a ewe standing beside her tent. He asked: "What is this ewe, O Umm Ma'bad?" She answered: "It is a sick ewe, unable to go out with the sheep to graze." He asked: "Does she have milk?" "No", she answered, "she is too weak for that." He then asked: "Would you permit me to milk her?" "Yes", she replied, "may my father and mother be a ransom for you! If you see that she has any milk, then go ahead and milk her."

The Messenger of Allah had the ewe brought to him. He passed his hand over its udders, praying, "O Allah, bless the ewe of this woman." The ewe spread its legs, and its milk flowed copiously. The Messenger of Allah called for a vessel, big enough only to quench the thirst of the group. The milk came pouring until a thick foam brimmed over. He then gave the woman to drink, and she drank her fill. Then he gave his Companions to drink, and they drank their fill as well. Finally he himself drank, and said: "The one who gives others to drink, must himself be the last to drink!" He repeated the process once more, and they all drank again their fill. They remained with the woman till the morning, then they departed.

Soon after, her husband Abu Ma'bad returned, driving before him a few emaciated goats, with little marrow in their bones. When he saw the milk he asked "Where did this come from, while the ewe is dry, and there is no other animal to give milk in the house?" She answered: "By Allah it was so, except that a blessed man passed here who did thus and thus . . . ", and she related the story.

Another miracle concerned Suraqah ibn Malik ibn Ju'shum. Suraqah was famous among the Arabs; they composed poems about him and he was the talk of their assemblies. He pursued the Prophet - who was on his way to Medina - seeking to capture him and receive a reward from the Quraysh. Yet, when he thought that he was about to attain his object, the legs of his horse sank into the ground so that they could not be seen, even though he was in a smooth and firm spot. He knew that what had happened to him was a heavenly punishment. He thus cried out: "O Muhammad, pray to your Lord that He release my horse, and I give you Allah's covenant (dhimmah) that I tell no one of your whereabouts." The Prophet prayed, and Suraqah's horse jumped up as though he had freed himself from a tightly knotted rope. Suraqah was a cunning man, and he saw that the Prophet would soon be a man of note. He therefore asked that the Prophet write him a 'pledge of security' (aman), which he took and went away. [19]

Ibn Ishaq related that Abu Jahl recited some verses in disapprobation of Suraqah. The latter answered him also in verse:
O Abu'l-Hakam, if you had seen what happened,To my horse when his legs sank into the ground;You would have known through a clear sign that Muhammad is a prophet;This fact no one can hide. .Hold your men, then, from him,For I see that his affair will soon be manifest. [20]

It is related that the Prophet said to Abu Bakr on that journey, "Keep men away from me, for it is not fit for a prophet to lie." Thus, when Abu Bakr was asked, "What are you?", he would answer only, "A traveller", and if he was asked, "Who is with you?", he would answer, "A guide to guide me."

Still another of the Prophet's miracles concerns the account of the cave (al-ghar). This was the time when he took shelter in a cave near Mecca which was frequented by many travellers, and in which many shepherds sought shelter. It was the time of his migration to Medina. The people of Mecca went out seeking to capture him, but Allah concealed all traces of him from their sight, even though he was right before their eyes - Allah prevented them from reaching him and veiled their eyes, so that they could not see him. Yet, they were the most scheming of men among the Arabs. Allah sent a spider which wove its web at the entrance of the cave, which concealed him. The spider's web convinced them that he was not there. Finally, they despaired of finding him. as-Sayyid al-Himyari (a well-known Shi`i poet of the second century) composed the following verses concerning this incident in his famous ode known as `The Gilded' (al-Mudhahhabah ):

When at last they came to the entrance of his cave,Allah placed over him a woven spider's web.Allah concealed him, so that the advance party declared,`There is no one in the cave to be sought'.The Great King prevented them from harming him,For anyone whom the King wishes to protect is never harmed.

Allah also sent two wild doves which sat at the entrance of the cave. The young men of Quraysh came, one from every clan with their sticks and swords, until they were the distance of forty cubits from the Prophet. A man ran ahead to see who was in the cave, but he turned back. His companions asked: "Why do you not look in the cave? " He answered: "I saw wild doves at the mouth of the cave, so I knew that there was no one inside." The Prophet heard what he said, and prayed for the two doves, requesting a special reward for them. They were thus directed by Allah to the 'sacred precincts' (haram) of Mecca, where they lived in safety ever after.

Another miraculous proof was the testimony of a wolf to the truth of Muhammad's claim to apostleship. A man was grazing his sheep one day when he neglected his flocks for a brief hour. A wolf attacked the flocks and snatched a sheep. The man ran after the wolf until finally the wolf threw the sheep on the ground and spoke to the man, saying: "Why do you deprive me of the sustenance which Allah has sent me?" The man exclaimed: "A great wonder, the wolf speaks!" The wolf answered: "Rather you people are more strange, and in your behaviour is a lesson for those who wish to be admonished! Here is Muhammad calling men to the truth in the valley of Mecca, yet you are oblivious to his call!" The man was guided by this admonition and hastened to the Prophet to declare his Islam. He left a great honor for his progeny after him among both Arabs and non-Arabs. His descendants used to say: "We are the posterity of him with whom the wolf spoke."

The warning of the lamb shoulder is yet another miracle. A Jewish woman of Khaybar (an oasis near Medina) offered the Prophet a lamb shoulder, which she had poisoned. She enquired: "Which part of the lamb would the Messenger of Allah prefer?" "The shoulder", she was told. She thus poisoned the shoulder, which she offered to him and his Companions. As they all sat to eat, the Prophet stopped them, saying: "Do not touch it, for it tells me that it is poisoned! Had it not been that I did not wish the Jewish woman to be in doubt (that is, concerning his Prophethood), I would not have accepted it in the first place." Nor would he have gathered his Companions to eat of it. He himself ate a tiny morsel before the shoulder spoke to him. The effect of this poison used to recur every year, until finally Allah made it the cause of the Prophet's martyrdom. This was a trial from Allah, so that it may be known that Muhammad was a mortal.

During the Siege of the Trench (al-Khandaq, see below) the Prophet's companions had no food to eat and to feed their families. They came close to death from hunger and thirst. One of them invited the Prophet one day to a meager meal. All his Companions came along with him, yet there was food only for one or two people. The Messenger of Allah said: "Fill your vessels", addressing all the people present. He prayed and blessed the food, then distributed it among the people, who were thousands. They all ate their fill as though they had never been hungry or thirsty before. The food, however, remained as it was, as though untouched.

On yet another occasion, during the Battle of Tabuk (see below), the Prophet's Companions and the poor among the people came to him complaining of hunger. He called for any food in their possession to be brought, but they had no more than a few dates. He placed his hand on the dates and said: "Eat in the name of Allah! " All the people ate until they were full and the dates remained as they were, while they all looked on.

Another time, during one of his battles, the Prophet passed by a well which had so little water that it would not wet the throat of one person. The people with him complained of thirst. He took an arrow from his quiver and gave it to one of his Companions, saying: "Go down and stick it in the well." No sooner had he done so than the water gushed out with great force until it flowed over the mouth of the well. Thus the crowds, numbering thirty thousand, all drank and filled their vessels as provision for the journey. There were among them as well men of the Hypocrites, who were present in body, but not in mind.
One day the Prophet came upon a she-gazelle that had fallen into a trap which a man had set up for hunting. The gazelle said: "O Messenger of Allah, I have a young kid that needs milk. I have fallen into this trap; set me free that I might go and feed my kid. The Messenger of Allah said: "How can I let you go, when the owner of the trap is absent?" She answered: "I shall return." He thus let her go and sat waiting until she returned. When the owner of the trap also returned, the Messenger of Allah interceded for the gazelle, and the man set her free. In commemoration of this event, people built a mosque on that spot.

A small community complained to the Prophet about the brackish water of their well. They were suffering great thirst because they could not drink the salty water. The Prophet came with a group of his Companions to the well, and expectorated in it. The well was not only brackish, it was also nearly dry. Soon, however, it burst out with cool and pure water. To this day it has come down as a highly prized source of pride from one generation to the next. Their testimony is surely valid. It was one of the miracles by which Allah attested to the veracity of His Prophet. This is because the followers of Musaylimah, when they heard of this miracle, asked him to perform one like it. He came to a well and expectorated in it, but its water turned so salty and foul, that it was like the urine of donkeys. Both its location and the people who own it are to this day known to all.

On another occasion, a woman came to him with her young son requesting that the Prophet touch him and bless him, for the child had a deformity. The Prophet had mercy upon her - for mercy is one of his attributes, Allah's blessings and peace be upon him and the people of his household. He passed his hand over the boy's head, and immediately his hair became straight and his illness was cured.

News of this reached the people of Yamamah (Musaylimah's district). A woman came with a sick boy to Musaylimah. He passed his hand over his head, but immediately his hair fell off. His descendants are to this day bald.

One day some men of the tribes of `Abdu 'l-Qays brought the Prophet some of their sheep. They asked him to give the animals some mark by which they could be distinguished. He placed his fingers at the base of their ears, which immediately turned white. The miracle of these sheep stands as a testimony to this day through their descendants.

Still another miracle concerns the account of the prayer for rain. It rained one day so hard over Medina that the people were afraid that their houses might be destroyed. The Messenger of Allah prayed: "Let it rain around us, O Allah, not over us!" Immediately the clouds moved away from Medina and gathered around it like a wreath, and thus the sun was shining in Medina while the rain was coming down in torrents all around it. This was seen by all: the rejecters of faith as well as the people of faith. The Messenger of Allah smiled until his teeth could be seen and said: "Would that Abu Talib were alive to see, so that his eyes would be consoled!. Who can recite for us his verses?" The Commander of the Faithful (`Ali) said: "Perhaps, O Messenger of Allah, you wish to hear the verses: 

Of radiant countenance is he,Through his face rain clouds may be prayed for.A help for orphans is he,And a protector of widows.The poor and errant of the clan of Hashim circle around him,For with him they find favor and generosity.

His miracle on the day of the Battle of Badr is also well known. He took a handful of sand and threw it in the faces of the enemy, exclaiming: "May these faces be dishonored!" Allah immediately made these grains of sand so effective that no man of the Associators (mushrikun) was spared. Their eyes were filled with sand. The Muslim warriors and the angels (with whom Allah aided them) [21] began to slay and capture the rejecters of faith. They found every man they captured face down and unable to see.

One day the Prophet's she-camel was lost. The Hypocrites (of Medina) were filled with doubt. They said: "He informs us of the affairs of heaven, yet he knows not where his she-camel is! " Fearing that the people of faith might fall prey to the whisperings of Satan, the Prophet told them where she was, describing in detail her circumstances and the tree by which she was entangled. When they went to see, they found her exactly as he had described.

Another well-known miracle was the splitting of the moon in two for the Prophet. This happened towards the beginning of his prophetic career. This miracle is alluded to in the Qur'an (in Surah 54). It is related in a sound tradition on the authority of `Abdullah ibn Mas'ud that: "The moon was split into two parts. The rejecters of faith of Mecca said: "This is magic with which the son of Abu Kabshah [The Associators used to identify the Prophet as Abu Kabshah's son because Abu Kabshah, a man of the tribe of Khuza'ah, opposed the people of Quraysh by refusing to worship idols. Thus, when the Prophet also refused idol-worship, they identified him with Abu Kabshah. It is also said that Abu Kabshah referred to the Prophet's maternal grandfather, whom he resembled. (ed.)] has charmed you. Enquire of travellers if they have seen what you saw; then he would be truthful. But if they did not see it, then it is simply magic with which he has charmed you.' Travellers coming from many different directions were asked; they all confirmed that they had seen the moon split into two." [22]

It is also related that one of the Prophet's Companions was hit in the eye in a battle. His eye was gouged out so that it fell upon his cheek. He ran to the Prophet for help. The Prophet took the eye and placed it back in its socket, and it became the better of the man's two eyes: more healthy and more sharp-sighted than the other.

In yet another tradition, it is related that a man called Abu Bard', known as Muld'ibu'l-Asinnah (`the skilful wielder of spears'), suffered from dropsy. He sent to the Prophet a man called Labid ibn Rabi `ah with a gift of two thoroughbreds and a number of dromedaries. But the Prophet refused the gift, saying: "I will not accept the gift of an Associator." Labid said: "I would not have thought that any Arab of the Mudar lineage would refuse the gift of Abu Bard'!" The Prophet insisted, however, saying: "If I to accept a gift from any Associator at all, I would have accepted the gift of Abu Bard'." Labid said: "He seeks healing from you for a serious ailment which has afflicted his stomach." The Prophet took a handful of earth, spat on it and said: "Soak this in water and give him to drink." The man took it, thinking that the Prophet was mocking him. But when the sick man drank the water, he was immediately cured. It was as though he was released from a fetter.
Another of the Prophet's miracles was the complaint of an old camel to him after returning to Medina from the battle of Banu Tha'labah. The Prophet asked: "Do you know what this camel is saying?" Jabir (the transmitter of this tradition) answered: "Allah and His Messenger know best." The Prophet said: "He tells me that his owner had worked him hard, but now that he has become old and sores have appeared on his back and he is no longer able to work, his owner has decided to slaughter him and sell his meat. O Jabir, go with him to his owner and bring him to me." Jabir answered: "By Allah, I do not know his owner." The Prophet said: "The camel shall lead you to him." Jabir went with the camel until they came to the quarter of Banu Hanzalah, or Banu Waqif. There he asked: "Who among you is the owner of this camel?" One of the men answered: "I am." Jabir said: "The Messenger of Allah has sent for you." Jabir then brought him and the camel to the Messenger of Allah. The Prophet said to the man: "Your camel tells me so-an-so." The man answered: "It is as he says, O Messenger of Allah." "Sell him to me", the Prophet demanded. "He is yours", answered the man. The Prophet, however, insisted on buying the camel. Having done so, he marked him on the side and left him grazing in the environs of Medina and when one of us needed a ride for a short distance the Prophet used to loan it to us. Jabir later reported that: "I saw the camel when his wounds had healed and his strength had returned."

One day Abu Jahl swore by Allah that he would break the Prophet's head with a stone when he fell prostrate in prayer. When the Messenger of Allah stood at prayer, praying and prostrating between the two rukns (corners) - the Black Stone and the Yemenite - and facing the Ka'bah, Abu Jahl carried a stone and came toward him. But as he approached, he suddenly turned away, pale with fear, his hands gripping the stone tightly until at last he threw it away from him. Some men of the Quraysh came to him, enquiring: "What has happened to you O Abu 'l-Hakam?" He answered: "A powerful camel stood between me and him, the like of its head, thick neck and sharp teeth as I had never seen. It was about to devour me."

Among the Prophet's miracles was that Abu Jahl bought camels from a man in Mecca, paying him less than the agreed price. The man went to the assembly of Quraysh seeking their help and reminding them of the sanctity of the Ka'bah. They mockingly referred him to the Prophet. The man went to him calling for help. The Prophet went with him and knocked at the door of Abu Jahl, who recognized him and came out to meet them. He met them as though deranged. Abu Jahl recognized the man, and turning to the Prophet said: "Welcome to you, O Abu 'l-Qasim!" The Prophet said: "Give this man his due." "I will", he said, and immediately gave the man what he owed him. When he was asked concerning this, he said: "I saw what you did not see! I saw over his head a dragon with open mouth; by Allah, had I refused, it would have swallowed me up! "

It is also reported that Asma' daughter of Abu Bakr said: "When the Qur'anic verses: Perish the hands of Abu Lahab . . . [Qur'an. 111 ] were sent down, the one-eyed Umm Jamil daughter of Harb (and wife of Abu Lahab), came to the Prophet, screaming and saying: "We have refused to listen to mudhammam (`the disgraced one' which Abu Lahab and his wife used as an epithet of derogation of the Prophet Muhammad). His religion we have abandoned, and his command have we disobeyed." All the while, the Prophet was sitting in the mosque with Abu Bakr. Abu Bakr warned him: "O Messenger of Allah, here she is coming; I am afraid that she may see you!" The Messenger of Allah answered: "She will not see me." He then recited a portion of the Qur'an with which he protected himself. It is related that he recited: When you recite the Qur'an, we place a thick veil between you and those who do not believe in the hereafter [Qur'an. 17:45]. Thus, she stood by Abu Bakr's side, but did not see the Messenger of Allah. She said: "O Abu Bakr, I was told that your companion has composed satirical verses against me." He answered: "No, by the Lord of this House (the Ka'bah), he did not satirize you!" She turned away exclaiming: "The people of Quraysh know well that I am the daughter of the best man among them!"

It is related on the authority of Ibn `Abbas that a group of men of the Makhzum tribe conspired to kill the Prophet. Among them were Abu Jahl, al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah, and some men of the Makhzum tribe. As the Prophet was praying one day, they sent al-Walid to kill him. He came to the spot where the Prophet was praying; he could only hear his voice, but could not see him. He thus returned to them and told them what had happened. They sent Abu Jahl with al-Walid and others for the same purpose. When they carne to the spot where the Prophet was praying, again they could only hear his voice in prayer. As they approached, they heard the voice behind them. When they turned towards it, it again was heard behind them. Finally they departed, without being able to touch him. This is in accordance with Allah's saying: Before them have We placed a barrier, and behind them a barrier, so that they cannot see [Qur'an 36:9).

It is also related that the Prophet set out by night on his she-camel for the Battle of at-Ta'if (a town near Mecca). He travelled through a valley called Najib, with thick and dense trees. He ran into a sidr tree as he dozed upon his mount. The tree, however, was split into two halves in order that he might pass through it. It has remained standing thus, on two halves of a trunk, to our own time. It is well-known, and is called the `sidr tree of the Prophet.'

Were we to recount all the miracles and signs of the Prophet (Allah's blessings and peace be upon him and the people of his household) related by traditionists, this book would have become far too long, for our Prophet possessed many more signs than any other prophet. Some authors have even asserted that his signs exceed a thousand. It is best, therefore, that we limit ourselves, for the sake of brevity, to a few accounts. In the following traditions shall briefly recount, if Allah wills, some of his signs and miracles which deal with his call to Prophethood, the people of his household, his battles, the coming of delegations to him, and so on till the time of his death.