When it was the night on
which God honoured him with his mission and showed mercy on His servants thereby,
Gabriel brought him the command of God.
“He came to me,” said the apostle of God, “while I was asleep, with
a coverlet of brocade whereon was some writing, and said, ‘Read!’ I said,
‘What shall I read?’ He pressed me with it so tightly that I thought it was
death; then he let me go and said, ‘Read!’ I said, ‘What shall I read?’ He
pressed me with it again so that I thought it was death; then he let me go
and said ‘Read!’ I said ‘What shall I read?’ He pressed me with it the
third time so that I thought it was death and said, ‘Read!’ I said, ‘What
then shall I read? –and this I said only to deliver myself from him, lest
he should do the same to me again.
He said:
‘Read
in the name of thy Lord who created
Who created man of blood coagulated
Read! Thy Lord is the most
beneficent,
Who taught by the pen,
Taught that which they knew not unto men’
From Life of Muhammad
by Muhammad ibn
Ishaq ibn Yasar (d. ca. 768)
|
