Prophethood: Difference between revisions

'''Al-Nubuwwa''' (Arabic: النُبُوَّة) or '''Prophethood''' is a divine selection of a person to whom divine teachings are [[wahy|revealed]] in order to lead people to the path of perfection and happiness. The main features of the prophets include the reception of [[Wahy]] (revelation), the power to perform [[miracles]], and [['Isma|Infallibility]].

The necessity of prophethood and the rise of prophets is emphasized in the [[Qur'an]], [[hadiths]] from the [[Infallibles (a)]], and theological texts. Reasons given for its necessity include giving an ultimatum to human beings, their essential need for revelations, and their need for a community. According to the Qur'an, all the prophets shared common goals, such as calling to [[monotheism]] and [[resurrection]], pursuit of justice, teaching and training people, purification of their souls, [[taqwa|piety]], and liberating people from their burdens and shackles.

The doctrine of prophethood counts as a principle of Islam, the belief in which is considered as a necessary condition of being a Muslim. In Islam, the doctrine refers to the prophethood of [[the Prophet Muhammad (s)]] and other prophets referred to in the Qur'an or the Prophet Muhammad’s (s) tradition. The prophethood began with [[Adam (a)]], and according to explicit verses of the Qur'an, it ended with the Prophet Muhammad (s). This belief is shared by [[Shi'as]] and [[Sunni]] Muslims. By an appeal to Quranic verses and [[hadiths]] from the [[Infallibles (a)]], the Shi'as believe that after the end of prophethood, God has selected the [[Imams (a)]] to protect and explain the religion.

According to the Qur'an, prophethood is a divine selection of certain people to whom divine teachings are revealed in order to guide people to the path of perfection and happiness. The belief in prophethood is an essential element of Islam as well as other divine religions. The word, “nubuwwa” and its cognates in Arabic have been used to mean different things, such as giving news, heights, going out of a place, a clear path, and a secret voice.

According to the majority of scholars, there are differences between a “Nabi” (prophet) and “Rasul” (Divine messenger): while every “Rasul” is also a “Nabi”, not all “Nabis” are “Rasuls”. A “Rasul” receives revelations in both waking and sleeping times, but a “Nabi” only receives them while dreaming. Moreover, a revelation to a “Rasul” is more transcendent than the one to a “Nabi”, since a revelation to a “Rasul” is delivered by [[Jabra'il]], while a revelation to a “Nabi” is delivered by other angels or by an [[inspiration]] to the heart or through a true dream. However, some people take “Rasul” and “Nabi” to be synonymous.

The Qur'an takes justice to be another goal of prophets. They fought social corruptions and tried to establish justice in their communities. The prophet [[Saleh]]’s fight with extravagance and wastefulness, [[Lot]]’s fight with sexual deviations, and [[Shoaib]]’s fight with fraudulent transactions and economical corruptions are instances of attempts made by prophets to establish social justice, as mentioned in the Qur'an.

“Wahy” (or revelation)—the conveyance of God’s words to prophets—is, according to the Qur'an, a common characteristic of all prophets, including Noah, [[Ibrahim (a)]], [[Isma'il (a)]], [[Jesus]], and [[Muhammad (s)]]. God conveys religious doctrines and orders to guide people to prophets through [[Jabra'il]] or without any mediation.

Some Shiite [[muhaddiths]], such as [[al-Shaykh al-Saduq]], believe that prophets become infallible from the beginning of their prophethood. According to al-Saduq, the prophet might make inadvertent mistakes (“Sahw”). However, [[al-Shaykh al-Mufid]], a prominent student of al-Shaykh al-Saduq, criticized his teacher’s view, considering the theory of inadvertent mistakes to fail to acknowledge the place of prophets. Al-Shaykh al-Mufid takes the infallibility of [[the Prophet Muhammad (s)]] to be superior and more wide-ranging than that of other prophets.

The first prophet was [[Adam (a)]] who was created, together with his wife, [[Eve]], in Eden, and was ousted from there because of eating the “Forbidden Fruit”. And the last prophet was Muhammad (a) who was born in 570 in [[Mecca]].

In most of the hadiths, the number of prophets is said to be 124000, 313 of which are “Rasul”. According to other hadiths, there were 8000 prophets. According to [[al-'Allama al-Majlisi]], these 8000 people were prominent prophets.