Assalamu Alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh May peace and

Assalamu Alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh
May peace and God’s mercy and blessing be upon all of you! Good evening and
thanks for taking time to attend this seminar. My name is Aurangzeb and I’ll be talking
about what the Qur’an says about Abraham. Abraham is one of the most well known
figures of the history of mankind. He is considered as one of the main prophets in
Judaism, Christianity and Islam, all of which are also called Abrahamic religions. Today
we’ll see what Muslims believe about Abraham and what the Qur’an says about him.
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Here is the outline of the presentation. First we’ll take a look at the historical
background and see what historians say about the society in which Abraham grew up.
Then we’ll see what the Qur’an says about his belief in monotheism from a young
age. After that we’ll discuss his dialog with his father and people, about religion. Then
we’ll study his life as a prophet. Next, we’ll talk about his family, which was really a
family of prophets. Then we’ll see how he has the honor of building the first house of
worship on earth and starting the ritual of pilgrimage. Finally we’ll see how he was a
true Muslim and a role model for the whole mankind.
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Here is a list of keywords that I’ll be using. Muslims believe in one Creator, who is
called Allah in Arabic. Muhammad is the final prophet of God sent to the mankind.
Among other prophets that Muslims believe in are Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus.
The Qur’an is the Divine book which Muslims believe to be the literal word of God.
The Qur’an and the teachings of Prophet Muhammad are the two sources of
guidance for Muslims. I’ll pronounce the word as Qur’an and not Koran. Similarly, I’ll
say Islam and not Izlam. Abraham is Ibrahim in Arabic. PBUH is the abbreviation of
peace be upon him. “We” is the plural of respect in Arabic which is used as a pronoun
for one God, in the Qur’an. And “Children of Israel” and “people of the book” refer to
Jews and Christians.
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Before looking at what Islam says about Abraham, let us first see what the historians
say about the society in which he grew up. Most of what I am going to say now is
derived from the works of Sir Leonard Woolley.
Scholars generally regard 2100 B.C. as the estimated period of Abraham. He was born
in Ur which was the capital city of Iraq. It was a flourishing industrial and business
center of the country with an estimated population of 250,000. The people of Ur
were mostly merchants and craftsmen by profession. The inscriptions of the age that
have been deciphered from the archaeological remains show that they had a
materialistic outlook on life. Their main object in life was to amass wealth and
luxuries. Their prayers to their gods generally consisted of supplications for long life,
prosperity and flourishing business. The society was divided in three classes. The
Amelu, this was the highest class which consisted of the priests, state officials and
military officers. The Mushkenu, These were the merchants, craftsmen, and farmers.
The Ardu, these were the slaves. The Amelu class enjoyed special distinctions and
privileges, and they had greater rights both in criminal and civil law than others. Their
life and property were held sacred and precious. According to the Talmudic
description, Abraham’s father belonged to the Amelu class and he was the chief
official of the state.
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As for the religion, the people of Iraq were pagans. The tablets excavated at Ur
mention the names of about 5000 gods. Every city had its own god and a special
deity, who was regarded as the city god or the chief god and was entitled to greater
reverence than others. The city god of Ur was Nannar, the moon god. The other big
city was Larsah which later became the capital of the state instead of Ur, its city god
was Shamash, the sun god. Under these chief gods there were many smaller gods
most of whom had been adopted from the stars and planets and a few among the
earthly objects. They thought that their prayers for less important things were
granted by these minor gods. The symbols of all heavenly and earthly gods and
goddesses had been formed in the shape of idols and all rites of worship were
performed before them. The first image on the screen shows a tower that symbolizes
a link between earth and heaven. At the top, the king stands in an attitude of prayer.
Above his head is the symbol of the moon god, Nannar. And to the right are the
angels. The middle one shows the King with the idol of Nannar. And the image on the
right shows the sun god, Shamash.
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The idol of Nannar had been kept in a grand shrine built on the highest peak at Ur
and near it the sanctuary of his wife Ningal had been built. The shrine of Nannar was
just like a royal palace where every night a different female worshipper would go and
become his bride. Thus there lived a large number of women in the shrine who had
been dedicated to the god and their position was no better than religious prostitutes.
The woman who would sacrifice her virginity in the name of god was regarded very
respectable. The common belief was that a woman must surrender herself at least
once in her lifetime to another man in the way of god and it goes without saying that
those who benefitted most from this were the male priests themselves.
It is interesting to note that Nannar was not just an idol, he was the biggest landlord
of the country, the biggest merchant, the biggest craftsmen and the chief executive of
country’s political life, for a large number of gardens, houses and fields had been
dedicated to his shrine. Besides the income from these sources, people brought their
offerings of corn, milk, gold, clothe, etc. to the shrine. Naturally there was a big staff
to look after these offerings. Many factories were run and business on a large scale
was done on behalf of the Temple. Similarly, the highest court of justice had been
established in the shrine and the priests acted as judges and their judgments were
regarded as from god. The royal dynasty also derived its sovereignty from Nannar
who was the real sovereign. The king ruled the country on his behalf and was,
therefore, raised to the rank of a deity and worshipped like the other gods.
The dynasty which was ruling over Ur at the time of Abraham was founded by UrNammu who in 2300 B.C. had established a vast empire. It was from him that the
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dynasty received the title of Nammu which became Namrud in Arabic.
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After this historical background let us see what the Qur’an tells us about Abraham.
According to the Qur’an, Abraham believed in one God from very young age,
although everyone else around him was a pagan, an idol worshipper. As we saw
previously that his people used to worship stars, moon, sun and other heavenly and
earthly objects. The Qur’an tells us that after his belief in one God, he tried to reason
with his people and questioned the legitimacy of their gods. First he considered the
star and questioned if it can be god. But when it set he said he did not like those that
set.
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Then he considered the moon and questioned if it can be his god. But it too set. He
concluded that it could not be god. It was his way of reasoning and telling his people
that the things they worship as gods were not really gods.
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Then he considered the sun. It was bigger and brighter. He questioned if it could be
god. But it too set. He concluded it too was not god. Thus he rejected all false gods
and said:
“O my people, I am indeed free from all that you join as partners in worship with
Allah”. “Certainly, I have turned my face towards Him Who has created the heavens
and the earth firmly and truly I am not of polytheists”.
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The Qur’an tells us that Abraham’s father, like everyone else, was an idol-worshipper.
Abraham being a firm believer in one God, tries to convince his father to give up
worshipping stones. He says: “O my father, why do you worship that which hears not,
sees not and cannot avail you in anything”. He also tells him that it is a sheer
ignorance, plain wrong, utter non-sense, and manifest error to take idols as gods.
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Abraham tells his father that he has got knowledge and guidance from God. He asks
his dad to follow him and tells him that he will guide him to the straight path. He asks
him to not worship Satan who is rebel against God. And warns him of punishment
from God, if he remains a polytheist and disbeliever in the true God.
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The Qur’an tells us that instead of listening to the sincere call of his son, Abraham’s
father rebukes him on rejecting his gods. He warns Abraham that he will stone him if
he doesn’t stop talking like this about his gods. And he tells Abraham to just go away
before he punishes him. So he expels him from the house.
Abraham says that he will turn away from him and his false gods and call on his true
Lord in hope. He also tells his father that he will ask for God’s forgiveness for his
father.
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We are told in the Qur’an later that Abraham kept this promise. He kept praying for
his father until he found that his father died as a disbeliever and enemy of Allah. The
Qur’an also testifies that Abraham was very tender-hearted and forbearing.
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The Qur’an tells us that Abraham’s preaching was not limited to his father only, he
also tried his best to reason with his people. He asked them “what do you worship”.
They said, “we worship idols and to them we are ever devoted”. He said, “Do they
really hear you when you call them”, “or do they have the power to benefit or harm
you”. They had no answer. But they were honest in their reply when they said, “no,
but we found our fathers doing so”. And this is a great tragedy with mankind that
when it comes to religion they blindly follow what their parents tell them to.
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Abraham tells them these their idols, the false gods are his enemies. And that he only
believes in the true God, the Lord of the Universe, Who created him, Who guides
him, Who feeds him, Who gives him to drink, Who cures him when he is ill, Who will
cause him to die, Who will resurrect him and Whose forgiveness and mercy he hopes
for. So basically, he tells them that God is the one who does all these things and the
idols they worship are mere stones. So they should not worship them.
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Then he also declares himself innocent of their idolatry, disassociates himself with
them, and makes it clear to them that he is not going to be their partner in crime. He
says, “Certainly, I am innocent of what you worship”, “except Him, Allah, Who did
create me and surely He will guide me”.
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Then we are told in the Qur’an that after questioning his people about their faith and
separating himself from their pagan beliefs, he does not stop at that. He is the kind of
person who had firm belief in one God and is absolutely convinced that it is the truth,
and he cannot see his people worshipping idols which they carve by their own hands,
instead of the one Creator, Allah. So he calls them towards the worship of Allah, the
only true God. He says:
“Worship Allah, and fear Him, that is better for you if you really know” “You worship
besides Allah only idols, and you only invent falsehood. Verily, those whom you
worship besides Allah have no power to give you provision, so seek your provision
from Allah, and worship Him, and be grateful to Him. To Him you will be brought
back.”
He also makes it clear to them, that as a messenger, his job is just to convey, he
cannot force them to believe in monotheism.
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But instead of paying attention to what he is calling them for, and thinking about it,
his people dispute with him and actually tell him to fear their gods. They tell him, hey
what are you saying about our gods that they are false, you should fear them,
otherwise they will harm you. And He is like, what? Seriously? You are telling me that
I should fear these stones, who have no power to harm or benefit anyone. Actually
you should fear Allah, who is the All-Powerful and not associate these false gods with
Him, because He really has the power to punish you.
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He further tells them that he is the witness that their Lord is the Lord of the Universe.
But when he sees that his people are not listening to his arguments, he warns them
that he will plot a plan against their idols in order to teach them a lesson.
Then comes the day of the big festival which is held outside the town and everyone
from the town attends the festival. Abraham is not feeling well so he tells them he
cannot join them because he is not feeling well.
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So his people leave him behind and go to attend the festival. Abraham finds a good
opportunity to deal with their idols in order to teach his people a lesson. So he goes
to the temple. It is a great opportunity for him as everyone is gone and won’t be back
until late in the night. So he has all the time. He turns to the idols and finds food of all
sorts that people had brought for their gods. Oh pizzas ,hmm hot dogs, biryani,
yummy, wow. But it’s all untouched. He asks them, will you not eat it. No answer. He
asks, what is the matter with you that you speak not. What’s wrong with you guys?
Come on, say something.
Then he turns to them and starts striking them with his right hand and breaks them
into pieces all of them, except the biggest of them, which is probably the idol of
Nannar. He does not break it, so that people could turn to him and ask what
happened to others.
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When the people come back from the festival they are in shock to see their gods lying
on the floor broken apart into pieces. They are wondering who could do such a
terrible thing to their gods. Then some of them get reminded of Abraham. They say
oh we know who it may be, it is a young guy called Abraham and we heard him
talking against them. It must be him. The others demand that it is a such a big thing
that we should bring this terrible man in front of everyone so that they could know
who it is who did this to their gods and punish him accordingly.
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So, Abraham is brought in front of everyone and asked.” Are you the one, who has
done this to our gods, O Abraham”. Now, it is the time for Abraham to prove his
point. So he says, well, it must have been the biggest of them who did it. Ask them if
they speak. I mean they are gods, they should be able to tell you who broke them.
This made them think for a while and see how irrational they were in worshipping
them as gods who can neither defend themselves nor even speak and tell who broke
them.
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But they are more irrational than that, instead of learning a lesson from it and seeing
Abraham’s point. They act adamantly and say you know they do not speak. Abraham
says, “Do you then worship besides Allah, things that can neither benefit you nor
harm you”. “Shame on you and on that which you worship besides Allah”. “Do you
have no sense?”
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But guess what; they are still not willing to digest the fact that these are false gods,
mere stones. So they take his case to the court of the king. Now here is an interesting
dialog between Abraham and the king. And as we saw before the king was also
worshipped and given the rank of deity. Abraham tells the king that his Lord is the
one who gives life and causes death. The arrogant king says, “well, I do the same”. He
calls two prisoners and decrees that one of them should be beheaded and other one
released. So he says, see I give life to whom I wish and cause death to whom I wish.
We can see he is not getting Abraham’s point. But on that Abraham says, ok, well, my
Lord causes the sun to rise from the east, cause it to rise from the west. Now the king
is speechless.
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So in a way, Abraham, utterly defeats everyone there. But again, instead of conceding
defeat the people demand that he should be burnt alive or killed for what he did to
their gods. They finally decide to burn him alive and throw him in the pit of fire. At
that point Allah says, O fire, be coolness and safety for Abraham. So Allah saves
Abraham through this miracle and his people are not able to harm him. But they are
still determined to not believe in him.
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Abraham can see these people have closed their hearts and minds from seeing the
truth so he decides to leave this place. But before leaving he says to his people:
“You have taken (for worship) idols instead of Allah, and the love between you is only
in the life of this world, but on the Day of Resurrection, you shall disown each other,
and curse each other, and your abode will be the Fire, and you shall have no helper.”
Among all his people only Lot, who was Abraham’s nephew, believed in him.
Abraham migrated with Lot to Palestine from his home in Iraq.
It concludes the first phase of his life. We saw how he grew up in a pagan society,
how he questioned the established beliefs which led him to believe in God, how he
tried to convince his father and people, how he was expelled from his home and put
in the fire and how he was rescued.
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Next we see that the Qur’an tells us that Abraham was true in his faith and was a very
firm believer in one God. His faith was unshakable even when he was thrown in the
fire, he was not afraid. He believed in God and he knew He will save him and He did
save him. We are also told that Abraham was devoutly obedient to Allah and thankful
for all his bounties. That Allah chose him and guided him to the straight path. That he
was a leader, a role-model and an ummah, a nation, in himself. Allah honored his
faith in Him and chose him to be the prophet. He says in the Qur’an: “And mention in
the Book, that is the Qur’an, Abraham, verily He was a man of truth, a Prophet.
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Allah also made him the leader of all the people. And the reason was that fulfilled
every command of Allah. He was tried and tested so many timed but he successfully
passed all the trials and fulfilled every command. On that, Allah made a covenant
with him and made him the leader of all the people. But he was also concerned
about his progeny so he asked if the covenant would be extended to his progeny as
well. And he was told that it will not include polytheists and wrong-doers. Here is the
verse that talks about it. It says:
And (remember) when the Lord of Abraham tried him with (certain) Commands,
which he fulfilled. He (Allah) said (to him), “Verily, I am going to make you a leader
(Prophet) of mankind.” (Abraham) said, “And of my offspring?” (Allah) said, “My
Covenant includes not polytheists and wrong-doers.”
It is a great honor that he was made the leader of the whole mankind.
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Similarly, the Qur’an tells us that Abraham and his family (i.e. his progeny) were
chosen above the whole world. They were blessed with the prophet hood, the
scripture, and the wisdom. It also tells us that Abraham was chosen in this world and
he will be among the righteous in the in the Hereafter.
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The Qur’an mentions Abraham with other prophets at many different occasions. We
are told that he followed the way of Noah in worshipping Allah alone and calling his
people towards monotheism. He is not only a prophet but is also the father and
ancestor of many of prophets including Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Jesus and
so on.
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The Qur’an also tells us that all the prophets of God were chosen and were the best
among mankind. They were the most righteous and the most noble among whole
mankind. It is important to note that the prophets were human beings just like us,
they were not gods, but they were the best that human beings can be.
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Muslims believe in all prophets that God sent to mankind for their guidance, including
Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, may peace be upon them all. Muslims
respect and honor all of them and make no distinction among them. They also
believe in the books that were revealed to these prophets. Allah says in the Qur’an:
Say (O Muslims), “We believe in Allah and that which has been sent down to us and
that which has been sent down to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and to the tribes of
Jacob’s sons and that which has been given to Moses and Jesus, and that which has
been given to the Prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of
them, and to Him we have submitted.”
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Muhammad PBUH is also a prophet like Abraham. He is actually a descendant of
Abraham through Ishmael. So he is included in the covenant that God made with
Abraham. And Muslims believe that He is the final messenger of God to mankind.
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It is important to note that Muslims believe that all the prophets preached the same
religion, Islam, which is belief in and submission to the one Creator. Allah says in the
Qur’an. He (Allah) has ordained for you the same religion which He ordained for
Noah, and that which We have inspired in you (O Muhammad PBUH), and that which
We ordained for Abraham, Moses and Jesus saying you should establish religion, and
make no divisions in it.
So Muslims believe that God is one and so is his religion. And all the prophets that
God sent preached the same religion, Islam.
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Next we see that since Abraham was the prophet so like other prophets he too was
given the scripture. Like Muslims believe that “Torah” was given to Moses, “Psalms”
was given to David and “Gospel” was given to Jesus, may peace be upon them all.
However, the Qur’an does not mention the name of the scripture that was given to
Abraham; it refers to it as “the pages of Abraham”.
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The Qur’an also mentions some of the teachings from his scripture. Some of them are
here on this slide. The first one is, that sin is not inherited. That every person is
responsible for only what that person does and not what their fathers or forefathers
did or anyone else did. The next one is, that this life is not meaningless, it is a test ..
so whatever we do here .. we will be asked about it … so everyone’s deeds will be
judged on the Day of Judgment and everyone will be recompensed, that is either
rewarded or punished depending on their deeds.
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Here is the route of Abraham’s migration for his prophetic mission. As we saw that he
was from Ur, in Iraq. When he left his father and people, first he went to Haran and
then from there he went to Palestine. He lived at some places in Palestine but made
Hebron as his permanent dwelling. He also went to Egypt a couple of times as part of
his prophetic mission. This (where it says House of the people of Lot, on the map) is
the place where he made his nephew Lot settle down. He also went to Makkah in
Arabia and made his elder son dwell there. He used to visit him in Makkah but he was
settled in Hebron.
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Now let’s talk about Abraham’s family. We are told the in the Qur’an that after his
rescue from the fire he prayed to Allah bless him with children. However, his prayer
was answered in a very old age, according to the Bible he was 86 years old at that
time. While Ishmael was still a kid, Allah commanded Abraham to make him and his
mother Hagar dwell in Makkah, Arabia. Actually Abraham was now at the root of a
big prophetic mission. He made his nephew live and preach in Sodom and Gomorrah,
he himself stayed in Hebron, Palestine and left his son Ishmael in Makkah, Arabia, all
on the command of Allah. Makkah was a barren land with no cultivation at all. He
prayed to Allah to make this city a safe place and provide its dwellers with fruits.
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When Ishmael became a boy and was old enough to help his father in different
chores, he was commanded in a dream to slaughter his only son. Now this was a
great trial for Abraham. Just imagine, he had no children all his life. He got a son at a
very old age, when he was almost hopeless. And when the kid became a boy and
started helping him, you can imagine how happy he was to have him in his old age
and to think that he will become his strength. But then he saw that he was
slaughtering his dear and beloved son. If it were anyone else he would surely
disregard the dream. But he was a prophet, he knew very well that it was a command
from Allah and that he was being tested. So he told his son about the dream. Now
look at the respectful and obedient son. He didn’t say. What Dad? Are you crazy? This
is a non-sense, no way; I won’t let you do it. No, he didn’t say that. He also knew that
it was a true dream and that his father was indeed commanded to do so. So he said,
“O my father! Do that which you are commanded, God willing, you shall find me of
the patient ones.”
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So both the father, and the son, submitted to the command and the will of Allah.
Abraham laid his son on his forehead on the ground, so that he could not see his face
and started slaughtering him. At that point Allah called out to him and said that he
had fulfilled the dream. Then Allah testifies in the next verse, that it indeed was a
manifest trial, a great trial that Abraham successfully passed. Allah saved his son and
provided a sheep which got slaughtered. Because the test was to see his willingness
to obey the command of Allah and submit to him, and whether his love for his son
was more that his love for Allah. And Abraham had proved that he was a true servant
of Allah who submitted to his command without failing.
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So Abraham passed the great test and for his submission and faith, Allah made him a
famous and respectable figure in the human history. Allah says in the Qur’an, that he
left for Abraham a goodly remembrance in the generations to come. And this is true
even today after 4000 years. He is honored and revered much in Judaism, Christianity
and Islam, which all collectively make the majority of the world population. Muslims,
in particular, remember Abraham and honor him, much. Muslims pray 5 times a day,
and in every single prayer, they mention multiple times God’s peace and blessings
upon Abraham. Similarly, they have been comemorating his act of submission and
obedience throughout the history. Muslims have two annual big celebrations and one
of them is dedicated to Abraham. It is called Eid-ul-Adha. Every year millions of
Muslims slaughter animals commemorating Abraham’s act of submission and
obedience, and feed their families, friends and especially the poor. So they hold
Abraham in very high regards and follow him. Another interesting example is, that
they have all their male children circumcised, following the practice of Abraham.
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Abraham was blessed with another son Isaac, from his wife Sarah, again at a very old
age. According to the Bible he was 100 years old at that time. It was also a miracle
because not only he was too old but also his wife had been barren all her life. But
God cured her and she bore him Isaac. Isaac was also chosen to be a prophet like his
elder brother Ishmael, and who would later continue Abraham’s prophetic mission in
Palestine. After him his son Jacob was chosen to be the prophet. Jacob had twelve
sons from which twelve big tribes originated. In the Qur’an the family of Jacob and
their descendants which later got divided between Jews and Christians, are
collectively referred to, as “banu israel”, the Children of Jacob. There are many verses
in the Qur’an about Isaac and his son Jacob. We are told that they were guided and
were righteous. That they used to do good deeds, perform prayers and give charity.
That Allah ordained prophet hood and the Book, the scripture among them. In other
words Allah chose many of the descendants of Jacob to be prophets and gave them
the scripture. Among them were Joseph, Moses, Aaron, David, Solomon, Jonah, Job,
John and Jesus, may peace be upon them all.
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Here are some verses about Isaac and Jacob, and as I said there are quite a few that
mention them and speak very high of them.
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Abraham’s whole life was dedicated to Allah and His service. He was the true believer
in Allah who is known for his belief as well as obedience and submission to Allah. The
Qur’an tells us that he passed this legacy of Monotheism on to his offspring. He
advised his sons, “Oh my sons! Allah has chosen the faith for you; so die not except in
the submission of one God, in other words, as a Muslim”.
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That brings us to another unique thing about Abraham. And that is that Abraham has
the credit of building the first house of worship of God on earth, called the Ka’bah, in
Makkah, Arabia. He built this house on the command of Allah, with the help of his
son Ishmael.
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The ka’bah, as I said, is the first house of worship of Allah, on earth. It is full of
blessings and guidance for the whole world. Muslims all over the world face the
Ka’bah while praying, it is a symbol of unity and common focus. Also in it are manifest
signs for the mankind, e.g. the station of Abraham, that he used to build the Ka’bah.
It is here inside this golden case. And you can see his foot prints on it in the picture
below.
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Another interesting thing about the ka’bah is that Allah has declared the ka’bah and
its surroundings secure and peaceful. Fighting and shedding blood is unlawful in this
area, called “haram”. Even the birds, the animals and the insects are given security. So
no living thing can be killed, hurt, tortured, wounded or targeted in the ka’bah and its
surroundings.
Also the people are commanded to perform prayer near the station of Abraham, it’s
again in the honor and commemoration of Abraham. Abraham and Ishmael were also
commanded to keep this house clean and purified for the people who
circumambulate, stay, pray, bow and prostrate in this house.
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Another unique thing about Abraham is that after he built the ka’bah on the
command of Allah. He was further commanded to call the mankind for Hajj, the
pilgrimage to the house of Allah, that is, the Ka’bah. Allah says in the Qur’an that it is
a duty that mankind owes to Allah, that whoever has the means to go to the Ka’bah
and perform pilgrimage must do so once in their life time. The Qur’an tells us that
Abraham and Ishmael, as they were building the ka’bah, were praying to Allah to
teach them the rituals of the pilgrimage. Allah taught Abraham the rituals of Hajj and
to this day Muslims follow those rituals every year.
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Making pilgrimage to the Ka’bah is obligatory on every Muslim who can physically
and financially afford it, once in their life time. It is one of the five pillars of Islam.
Among others are testimony of faith, 5 obligatory prayers, obligatory charity which is
2.5% of annual savings and obligatory fasting in the month of Ramadan, which is the
9th month of lunar calendar. These days, every year around 3 million people perform
Hajj. The black box that you see in the middle of this picture is the Ka’bah, and these
white dots are all human beings.
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That brings us to our last section, in which we’ll talk about the personality of
Abraham and conclude this presentation. Let’s first see some of the prayers of
Abraham that are mentioned in the Qur’an and that shed more light into his
personality.
One of his prayers that we have seen was about children and we know that it was
answered by Allah when he was blessed with Ishmael first and then Isaac. Another
that we have seen is the one that he made when he made Ishmael dwell in Makkah.
He prayed that Allah may make this place secure and peaceful. That he may make its
dwellers loveable by others and provide them with fruits. These all were answered as
we saw that Allah declared the Ka’bah as a secure place. And it is also true, that since
that day there has been abundance of fruits in Makkah although its land cannot bear
fruits but the visitors have been bringing fruits and food from all over the world.
Similarly the residents of Makkah have been respected and loved by others not only
after the advent of Islam but also in the pre-Islamic Arabia. Similarly, Abraham also
prayed that Allah may keep him and his progeny away from the idols and the evils of
polytheism.
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Similarly while building the Ka’bah Abraham and his son Ishmael prayed to Allah to
accept this service from them and accept their repentance. We can see how humble
they were. They also prayed to Allah to teach them the rituals of Hajj, make their
offspring Muslims (i.e. those who believe in Allah alone and submit to him), and raise
from their children a messenger who would teach them the Book, and wisdom and
will sanctify them. And the answer to this prayer of them was Prophet Muhammad,
who was a descendant of Ishmael and who taught the Book and the wisdom to the
people and purified them.
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Abraham also prayed to Allah to make him righteous and regular in prayers, and give
him wisdom. He prayed to him to forgive him and his parents and the believers . He
prayed to Allah to not disgrace him on the Day of Judgment and grant him paradise.
Another kind of interesting prayer of his is that he prayed to Allah to grant him an
honorable mention or remembrance in the generations to come. And Allah did hear
all his prayers. We have seen how Allah made him such a respectable and honorable
figure in the whole human history. And how millions of Muslims have been
commemorating his sacrifice, and remembering and praying for him in all their
prayers, following his rituals in Hajj, and following his practices like circumcision for
males throughout the history.
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In summary, Abraham believed in Allah from young age even when everyone around
him was an idol worshipper. He was a true servant of God who passed all the trials in
his life. He submitted himself completely and unconditionally to the will of God. He
left his home, his father, and his people for the sake of Allah. He was thrown in the
fire but it only strengthened his faith. He left his small kid and his wife in a desert all
alone, in the obedience of Allah. He even began slaughtering his only son at that
time, in the obedience of Allah.
Allah testifies in the Qur’an. Whenever his Lord said to him, “Submit (i.e. be a
Muslim)!” He said, “I have submitted myself to the Lord of the universe.”
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So Abraham fulfilled all commandments and passed every trial. His faith in Allah was
unshakable. Allah appreciated his faith and obedience and made him the leader of all
the people. It is a great honor that is given to Abraham. Not only that, Allah even
declared him, as his intimate friend. And he also made him an honorable and
memorable figure in the history of mankind.
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There are many verses in the Qur’an that tell us that there is an excellent example in
Abraham and those who followed him, for the whole mankind. Some are listed here
on this slide. He is really a role-model for the whole mankind.
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Allah also says that for salvation, one should follow the religion of Abraham. Allah
says in the Qur’an:
And who can be better in religion than one who submits his face (himself) to Allah;
and he is a good-doer. And follows the religion of Abraham who was true in the Faith.
And Allah did take Abraham as an intimate friend.
And at another occasion:
Say (O Muhammad PBUH): “Allah has spoken the truth; follow the religion of
Abraham who was true in the Faith and was not of the polytheists.”
Finally I would like to say that Abraham is revered much in Islam, Judaism, and
Christianity. It is unfortunate that despite the fact that these religions have a lot in
common, there is so much lack of tolerance, understanding, and respect. But I think it
is time that we start working towards coexistence, tolerance, understanding, mutual
respect, and friendship.
Thank you.
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