Seerah

What is Seerah? Seerah comes from the Arabic word ‘sara’ or ‘yaseero’ means journey or traveling.

Seerah The dictionary meaning includes conduct, demeanor, behavior, attitude, way of life, position, reaction, way of action and biography. Mention the various aspects of the person’s life including the individual’s family, history and profound events.

Seerah of prophet Muhammad It is commonly restricted to the life and events of prophet Muhammad His lineage and the events leading up to his birth, Events and circumstances during his life time His death and events occurred after It also includes the events of the past or early generations in Islam.

Seerah generally means the biography of Prophet Muhammad

WHO WAS

Most respected, loved and followed Human being ever There has never been a person who has changed world history so dramatically as Muhammad and his message. Prophet Muhammad was the single most important person in the history of the world.

Muhammad was and will always be the greatest man who ever stepped on the face of the earth.

What the world says about him

Encyclopedia Britannica ". . . a mass of detail in the early sources shows that he was an honest and upright man who had gained the respect and loyalty of others who were likewise honest and upright men." (Vol. 12)

Michael H. Hart, astrophysicist and writer “ he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular level." Michael H. Hart, THE 100: A RANKING OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSONS IN HISTORY, New York: Hart Publishing Company, Inc., 1978, page. 33.

Reverend R. Bosworth-Smith "Head of the state as well as the Church, he was Caesar and Pope in one; but, he was pope without the pope's claims, and Caesar without the legions of Caesar, without a standing army, without a bodyguard, without a palace, without a fixed revenue. If ever any man had the right to say that he ruled by a Right Divine, it was Mohammad, for he had all the power without instruments and without its support. "Mohammed & Mohammedanism" in 1946:

Alphonse de Lamartine French writer, poet and politician "Philosopher, orator, apostle, legislator, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational dogmas, of a cult without images; the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and of one spiritual empire, that is Muhammad. As regards all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may well ask, is there any man greater than he?" HISTOIRE DE LA TURQUIE, Paris, 1854, Vol. II, pp. 276-277.

George Bernard Shaw, Nobel prize winning Irish writer "He must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it much needed peace and happiness.“ (The Genuine Islam, Singapore, Vol. 1, No. 8, 1936)

K. S. Ramakrishna Rao, an Indian professor of Philosophy What a dramatic succession of picturesque scenes. There is Muhammad the Prophet. There is Muhammad the Warrior; Muhammad the Businessman; Muhammad the Statesman; Muhammad the Orator; Muhammad the Reformer; Muhammad the Refuge of Orphans; Muhammad the Protector of Slaves; Muhammad the Emancipator of Women; Muhammad the Judge; Muhammad the Saint. All in all these magnificent roles, in all these departments of human activities, he is like a hero.“ "Muhammad the Prophet of Islam" calls him the "perfect model for human life." Professor

Mahatma Gandhi, Indian liberation leader It was the rigid simplicity, the utter self-effacement of the Prophet, the scrupulous regard for his pledges, his intense devotion to his friends and followers, his fearlessness, his absolute trust in God and in his own mission. These and not the sword carried everything before them and surmounted every obstacle. speaking on the character of Muhammad, in 'YOUNG INDIA':

Why should we learn seerah

Love for the Prophet is a Condition of Faith "None of you becomes a believer until I am dearer to him than his children, his parents and all mankind." (Bukhari and Muslim)

Allah commands us to follow the example of the Prophet Certainly you have in the Messenger of Allah an excellent exemplar for him who hopes in Allah and the last day and remembers Allah much. Surat Al-Ahzab (33) Verse 21

Perfect role model in all walks of life No matter, what situation you are dealing with in life, you have a perfect example of leadership, success, mercy, compassion, care, consideration, kindness and tolerance in the character of Prophet Muhammad.

It raises our hopes and gives us optimism especially in the time of trouble and turmoil. We are not the only ones suffering rather it has happened before and in more extreme manners.

Seerah lays out a precise methodology of the revival of Muslim Ummah How to bring about the honor and glory that we once had. How he started in the middle of the most illiterate society and within two decades he controlled all of Arabia. And in another two decades after his death, Muslims reign was spread from Spain to china! How did that happen, what were the stages that it went through?

He was a living Quran There is absolutely NO way we can understand Quran without learning seerah. Seerah is one of the most important sciences of Quran.

Why should we learn seerah Studying seerah is ibadah Studying seerah is essential for helping us develop an Islamic identity and character We must know the seerah to know our roots

Three different aspects of learning seerah Learn it as a history subject and emphasize more on dates, names and events. Learn it to get the best examples and lessons for one s own better life and greater reward in the hereafter To increase the love of Prophet Muhammad

Sources of Seerah 1. The Qur’an 2. The Books of Hadeeth 3. The Classical Books of Seerah Seerat Ibn Is’haq. Seerat Ibn Hisham 4. The Books of History

Popular books on Seerah The Sealed Nectar (Ar-Raheeq Al- Makhtum), by S. al-Mubarakpuri Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources, by Martin Lings When the moon split by S. al- Mubarakpuri Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet, by Karen Armstrong

The Sealed Nectar Original name: Ar-Raheequl –Makhtum Writer and translator : Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri This book was awarded First prize by the Muslim world League in world wide competition on the Biography of prophet Muhammad held at Makkah Al- Mukarramah in 1979