The Finality of Prophethood

is praise and glory. That is why this position is called the muqam-e-mahmood. This verse on muqam-e-mahmood was revealed in the second stage of the Makkan period at a time when Islam had not been consolidated. Later God made such changes in circumstances that the religion of Islam in every respect became perfectly consolidated. The Quran was so perfectly preserved that now there is no possibility of any changes, or interpolations in it, or of any additions being made. The sunnah or the traditions were compiled after the Prophet became an acknowledged historical figure. A vast community (ummah) and countless institutions and so on, were established to safeguard the religion of Islam. When God’s religion is so preserved and consolidated, it becomes possible even without the personal presence of the Prophet to fully understand God’s religion and practice it. After such momentous events have taken place, as marked the life of the Prophet, humanity does not continue to live in the darkness of ignorance; it is brought into the light of knowledge. Thus, for any seeker after truth it becomes not only possible but also easy to learn the will of God. And this is the reason for sending the prophets to the world. When this purpose is being served, there is no reason whatsoever to send another prophet. Trusting Human Nature During his 23-year movement, Prophet Muhammad brought about a revolution, which caused the entire political system of ancient times to be re-structured. But there was another event far greater than that and this took place at the level of human thought. People who had been idolaters prior to this revolution became monotheists; those who had been insolent became submissive, those whose thinking had been parochial became upholders of the international message; those who had known nothing but fighting and aggression became champions of peace and humanitarianism, spreading their message all over the world; those who had had no history of their own, rose to fashion a history of the nations of the world. Now the question arises as to how the Prophet succeeded in bringing about this unique revolution. Again, the answer is that a huge amount of sacrifice was needed to bring it about. This sacrifice is what in today’s jargon we call as ‘taking risks.’ But the world is governed by the principle: the greater the risks the greater the success. Changing human beings is the most difficult task in this world. Therefore, one who aspires to do so cannot but imperil his own interests. As far as this world of cause and effect is concerned, Prophet Muhammad took the greatest of risks, and hence the success he achieved was also the greatest. Here we present two examples to illustrate this point. The first example concerns the conquest of Makkah. The majority of the Makkans at the time of its conquest were still idolaters. These were the same people who had displayed the greatest antagonism towards the Prophet and his companions. They had expelled him and his companions from their homes. They had waged offensive battles against him. They had killed a large number of his companions and had made