The possibility of divine revelation cannot be denied by anyone who believes in the existence of Allah and in His omnipotence. Allah maintains His creation in any manner that pleases Him. The connection between the Creator and his Creation is by way of His Messengers, and these Messengers only know what Allah wants from them by way of revelation, either directly or indirectly. The rational mind cannot dismiss the possibility of revelation, since nothing is difficult for the all-powerful Creator.

The Nature of Revelation

Revelation is not a personal experience that a Prophet brings forth from within himself. It is not a spiritual state that a person can attain by doing certain meditations or spiritual exercises. Quite the contrary, revelation is a communication between two beings: one that speaks, commands, and gives, and another who is addressed, commanded, and receives. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) – as with every Prophet – never confused himself with the One who gave the revelation to him. As a human being, he felt his weakness before Allah, feared Allah’s wrath if he should disobey, and hoped for Allah’s mercy.

He sought help from Allah, submitted to what he was commanded to do, and was on occasion even sternly reprimanded by Allah. The Prophet (peace be upon him) admitted his absolute inability to alter even one word of Allah’s Book.

Allah says:

And when Our clear signs are recited to them, those who hope not for a meeting with Us say: ‘Bring a Qur’ân other than this or change it.’ Say (O Muhammad): ‘It is not for me to change it of my own accord. I only follow what is revealed to me. I fear, if I were to disobey my Lord, the punishment of an awful day.’ Say: ‘If Allah had willed, I would not have recited it to you nor would He have made it known to you. I have lived with you a whole lifetime before it came to me. Have you no sense?’

A good example of this is the time when `A’ishah, the wife of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was accused of adultery by some of the hypocrites, though she was innocent. People began to say things that were painful for the Prophet (peace be upon him) until his heart was about to burst. He was unable to prohibit this. All he could say was: “O `A’ishah, I have heard this or that. If you are innocent, then Allah will show your innocence, and if you fell into sin, then seek Allah’s forgiveness.”

A whole month passed like this before the revelation came down declaring `A’ishah’s innocence and exonerating the household of the Prophet (peace be upon him).

In brief, revelation has nothing to do with the choices and wishes of the one who receives it. It is an unusual, external occurrence. It is a force of knowledge, because it gives knowledge. It is free from error. It comes only with the truth and guides only to what is right.

How revelation comes to the angels and to the Messengers?

In the Qur’ān it is mentioned that Allah speaks to the angels. Allah says:

And (remember) when your Lord revealed to the angels: ‘Verily I am with you, so keep firm those who have believed’

Revelation to the angels happens by Allah speaking to them and the angels hearing from Him.

Revelation comes to Allah’s human Messengers either directly or through an intermediary. In the case of an intermediary, it is the angel Gabriel who brings the revelation. There are two ways that this occurs:

1. The angel would come to him with a voice like the clanging of a bell. This is the severest way revelation would come to the Messenger (peace be upon him). Such a harsh sound demands the full attention of the one being addressed with it. When the revelation came in this manner, it was extremely demanding upon all of the Messenger’s faculties (peace be upon him).

2. The angel would come to him in the form of a man. This was easier than the previous way, since the form of the angelic Messenger was familiar to the human Messenger (peace be upon him) and easier to relate to.

Both of these ways are mentioned by the Prophet (peace be upon him) in his answer to al-Hârith b. Hishâm when he asked how the revelation came to him. Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) said: “Sometimes he comes to me like the clanging of a bell, and this is the most difficult for me. It weighs upon me and I commit to memory what he says. And sometimes the angel comes to me in the form of a man and speaks to me and I commit to memory what he says.”

Revelation without an intermediary happens in two ways:

1. A good dream: `A’ishah relates: “It began as a good dream during sleep. He would not have a dream except that it would come as clear as day.”

This was to prepare Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) to receive revelation while awake. The whole Qur’ân was revealed while the Prophet (peace be upon him) was awake.

The story of Abraham (peace be upon him) when he was commanded to sacrifice his son demonstrates how a dream can be revelation that must be acted upon.

Allah says:

So We gave him glad tidings of a forbearing boy. And when he was old enough to walk with him, he said: “My son, I have seen in a dream that I am sacrificing you. So look, what do you think?” He said: “O my father, do what you are commanded. By Allah’s will, you shall find me to be among those who are patient.” Then, when they had both submitted themselves and he had laid him prone on his forehead, We called out to him: “O Abraham, you have fulfilled the dream.” Thus do We reward the righteous. That was indeed a manifest trial. And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice. And We left for him a goodly remembrance for later generations. Peace be upon Abraham! Thus indeed do We reward the righteous. Verily, he was one of Our believing servants.

If that dream had not been revelation that had to be obeyed, Abraham (peace be upon him) would never have gone forward to sacrifice his son, but in fact he almost did so. He was only stopped because Allah commanded him to stop and ordered him to sacrifice something else instead.

The good dream is not only for the Prophets. It remains for the believers, even though it is not revelation. Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) said: “Nothing remains of prophecy except for glad tidings.” When he was asked what these glad tidings were, he said: “Dreams.”

2. Allah speaking directly from behind a barrier: This happened to Prophet Moses, (peace be upon him). Allah says:

When Moses came to Our appointed meeting, his Lord spoke to him.

Allah also says:

And Allah spoke to Moses directly.

This also happened to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) on the night of his Journey and Ascension when he was taken up into the heavens and his Lord spoke to him.

All of these ways of receiving revelation are mentioned in the Qur’ân. Allah says:

It is not for a human being that Allah should speak to him except as revelation or from behind a barrier, or by sending a Messenger who reveals by His leave whatever He wishes. Verily, He is All-Knowing, All-Wise.

The Qur’ân is the Speech of Allah

The Qur’ân is Allah’s speech, literally not metaphorically. He revealed it to His Messenger (peace be upon him) to convey His warning to all the worlds.

Muhammad (peace be upon him) merely conveyed the Message. Anyone who doubts this has to assume that either the Prophet himself made it up or someone else taught it to him.

As for the first of these two possibilities – the idea that the Qur’ân, in all of its eloquence, was a product of the brilliance, insightfulness and spiritual sensitivities of

Muhammad (peace be upon him) – it is rejected for a number of reasons:

1. No matter how brilliant or insightful a person might be, there is no way that he could discuss the happenings of nations lost to antiquity, issues of belief and Divine Law, the rewards and punishments of Heaven and Hell, and future events, all in such great detail without any contradiction and with a most perfect style and literary form. The Prophet (peace be upon him) had never once read a book nor met with any historian.

2. The Qur’ân makes to the disbelievers a stern challenge that they will never be able to produce a chapter similar to it. Such a challenge would never have come from the Messenger (peace be upon him), who was known for his wisdom and good judgment, to the most eloquent and fluent speakers around, especially since he wanted his Message and his call to be successful and enjoy wide acceptance.

3. The Qur’ân, in some places, sternly rebukes Muhammad (peace be upon him) where he acted upon his own judgment in something and did not decide on what is best. The Qur’ân clarified the truth and showed the error of the Prophet (peace be upon him). No rational person would come with declarations of his own error and circulate them among the people. If he had any say in the Qur’ân at all, he would have hidden these passages from the people. Allah says:

And if he had forged a false statement concerning Us, We surely would have seized him by his right hand and would certainly have ripped out his artery of life. And none of you could have withheld us from punishing him.

4. Many verses of the Qur’ân begin with the imperative verb “Say!” As a matter of fact, this occurs more than three hundred times, addressing Muhammad (peace be upon him) and directing him with respect to what he should say. He, thus, did not follow his own desires; he followed only what was revealed to him. He was the one being addressed, not the speaker; he was quoting what he had heard, not expressing what he felt.

5. Complete harmony exists between what the Qur’ân says regarding the physical world and what has been discovered by modern science. This has been a source of amazement for a number of contemporary western researchers. Though the Qur’ân makes mention of a number of very specific scientific issues – from fields such as embryology, oceanography, and astronomy – it does not contradict any scientific fact.

The second possibility offered by the doubtful is that the Prophet (peace be upon him) learned the Qur’ân from someone else. There are a number of reasons why this claim is false:

1. Muhammad (peace be upon him) was illiterate. He grew up among a people who were generally illiterate. They knew only how to speak eloquently and fluently. Due to their idolatry, they did not associate with the Christians and Jews.

Allah says:

This is of the news of the unseen that We reveal unto you (O Muhammad). Neither you nor your people knew it before this. So be patient. Surely, the good outcome is for the pious.

This verse clearly mentions that the Arabs had no knowledge of these things. It is not recorded in history that any of the Arabs objected to the fact that this verse declared them ignorant of the things that this verse is referring to.

2. The Arabs never attempted to contradict the Qur’ân or take credit for any part of it, in spite of their violent rejection of it. Though the Qur’ân challenged their most eloquent speakers to bring a chapter like it, none of them ever attempted it. They knew the truth of the situation and did not want to face the disgrace of defeat, since they were the masters of eloquence in poetry, prose, and persuasive speaking.

3. The Qur’ân is in Arabic and the Jews and Christians spoke other languages. None of the historical references mention that the Prophet (peace be upon him) ever sat with monks and rabbis to learn from them.

The Qur’ân is in the most fluent Arabic, a language foreign to the Jews and Christians. Allah says:

The tongue of the one they refer to is foreign, while this is in clear Arabic.