1.2 The Miraculous Signs of the Prophet ﷺ
1. The
Qur'an
stands foremost among the Prophet’s signs, a divine text that, since its
revelation, has consistently challenged the Arabs and all others, urging those
who doubted its veracity to produce anything comparable. This challenge has
persisted from the dawn of Islam to our present day and will continue to the
end of time. Allah has rendered even the most eloquent orators incapable of
meeting this challenge, and not even the jinn were permitted to attempt it.
Allah says, "And if you are in doubt about what We have sent down upon
Our Servant [Muhammad], then produce a surah the like thereof and call upon
your witnesses other than Allah, if you should be truthful"
(Al-Baqarah 2:23), and further, "Or do they say, 'He invented it'? Say,
'Then bring forth a surah like it and call upon whomever you can besides Allah,
if you should be truthful'" (Yunus 10:38).
2. When the
Quraysh requested a miracle, Allah
split the moon in Makkah, revealing, "The Hour has
drawn near, and the moon has split. And if they see a sign, they turn away and
say, 'Passing magic'" (Al-Qamar 54:1-2).
3. The
Prophet displayed weighty
miracles of provision, once feeding eighty men with just a few
handfuls of barley and a small goat at Jabir’s house, and on another occasion
feeding an even larger number from barley bread carried by Anas ibn Malik in
his hand. At the battle trench, he miraculously fed nine hundred men from a few
dates provided by the daughter of Bashir ibn Sa'd, all of whom ate to fullness,
leaving leftovers.
4. Water
gushed from between his fingers,
quenching the thirst of the entire army and providing for ablutions from a bowl
so small it could not even fit his blessed hand. He poured his ablution water
into the spring at Tabuk and the well at Hudaybiyyah, causing them both to
overflow. At Tabuk, thousands drank until they were sated, while at
Hudaybiyyah, fourteen hundred drank from what had been a dry well.
5. During a
journey, he
instructed Umar ibn al-Khattab to feed four hundred riders from
a mound of dates, the size of a camel’s hump, which provided enough for all
while the supply remained undiminished.
6. During
a battle,
he threw a handful of dust at the enemy, causing them to go blind. Allah
records this moment in the Qur'an: "And you threw not when you threw,
but it was Allah who threw" (Al-Anfal 8:17).
7. With
his arrival,
Allah abolished fortune-telling, a practice previously widespread, which ceased
altogether.
8. A palm trunk the Prophet used for
sermons groaned in longing when he began using a pulpit, a
sound audible to all present until he embraced it, whereupon it calmed. This
spot remains known.
9. The
Prophet challenged the Jews to wish
for death, assuring them they would be unable to, which they
indeed could not attempt, as Allah noted in the Qur'an.
10. He
prophesied future events.
Among these, he foretold that ‘Ammar would be killed by a rebellious faction,
that ‘Uthman would face hardship but attain Paradise, and that his grandson
al-Hasan would bring peace between two great Muslim groups—all of which
occurred.
11. When
pursued by Suraqah ibn Malik,
the ground swallowed Suraqah’s horse hooves in smoke. Upon the Prophet’s
prayer, they were released, and Suraqah was granted safety.
12. He
prophesied that he would one day wear
the bracelets of Chosroes, which was indeed fulfilled.
13. On the
night of al-Aswad al-Ansi’s, a false prophet, killing in Yemen, the Prophet announced his death,
naming his assassin.
14. He
informed his companions of the Negus' death, a devout follower of Islam
across the salt sea, who was separated from them by days of travel by land. On
the day of his passing, the Prophet, together with his companions, went to the
Baqi’ cemetery to offer the funeral prayer for him, only for confirmation of
his death to arrive shortly afterward.
15. On the
night of his migration, he passed unseen through Quraysh men lying in wait,
dusting their heads as he departed safely.
16. A
camel complained and bowed to him in submission, a gesture observed by his
companions.
17. The
Prophet told a group of companions, "One
of you will enter Hell with a molar the size of Mount Uhud."
All died in Islam, except one, al-Rahhal al-Hanafi, who fought alongside
Musaylima the liar and perished as an apostate.
18. He
informed another group that the
last of them to die would perish in Hell, which came true when
that man later fell into a fire and died.
19. At
his command, two trees united and then separated, in obedience to his word.
20. Though of
average height, he appeared
taller when walking beside tall men.
21. He invited
Christians to a mutual
prayer of cursing against falsehood, yet they declined, fearing
the consequences, recognizing the truth of his words.
22. When ‘Amir
ibn al-Tufayl and Arbad ibn Qays sought to assassinate him, Allah interceded, and both men
perished afterward, 'Amir was afflicted with plague and Arbad
was struck by lightning.
23. He
foretold the death of Ubayy ibn Khalaf, later inflicting a light scratch upon him in the
battle of ‘Uhud, which proved fatal.
24. Having
been poisoned, he
survived for four years, while his companions died immediately,
the meat speaking to warn him.
25. At
Badr, he indicated where each Quraysh leader would fall, and each died precisely as
foretold.
26. He
prophesied that a
group of his followers would undertake sea voyages, naming Umm
Haram bint Milhan among them, who later joined a naval expedition.
27. The world was revealed to him,
east and west, predicting the extent of Muslim dominion, which stretched across
Sind and the Berber lands, which was realized as Muslim lands extended from
Sind and the Turks to the eastern coasts of Andalusia and the Berber lands in
the west.
28. To
his daughter Fatima,
he foretold that she would be the first of his family to rejoin him in death,
which proved true.
29. He
predicted that the wife
with the longest arm would join him in death first, referring
to her charity; it was indeed Zaynab bint Jahsh.
30. On
multiple occasions, he blessed food, such as when he filled the udder of a sheep,
leading to Ibn Mas’ud’s conversion.
31. When
Qatada’s eye was injured, the
Prophet restored it, and it became his most functional eye.
32. Ali’s
sore eye was cured at Khaybar,
and he later returned victorious without further ailment.
33. His
companions heard food glorifying Allah in his presence.
34. He healed a companion’s injured leg
with a touch.
35. In
a military campaign,
he multiplied provisions, filling every container.
36. When
al-Hakam mocked him, al-Hakam
trembled until his death, fulfilling the Prophet’s curse.
37. Rejecting
a marriage proposal, he cursed a girl’s father, who implied she had a defect. She then became afflicted,
fulfilling his word.
These events
represent but a portion of his countless miracles, firmly attested and widely
transmitted.
