The Prophet Muhammad of Arabia (peace be upon him), when assessed fairly, undoubtedly emerges as the greatest national hero that any country ever produced. His greatness, however, lies in masterfully exploiting the concept of Prophethood, which, being an integral tradition of the Middle Eastern culture, is less spiritual and more political. Prophethood is based on the doctrine of revelation: it means that God, the Creator, loves mankind so much that He wants to guide the human creatures to save them from hell. In return for this favour, God demands absolute submission, that is, man must worship the All-Mighty and live by his laws without ever questioning their purpose, validity and relevance. The medium of revelation i.e. the person through whom God is supposed to reveal His will, is called the Prophet; he is God's Agent on earth. Since God cannot be seen or contacted, the Prophet's word begins to rank as the Word of God, and the Creator, for total lack of direct communication with people, recedes into the background. As a result, the Prophet, who (apparently) claims to be God's most humble servant, rises as the dominant force in God-Prophet relationship. It is he who comes to hold the keys of paradise. Therefore, a person must believe in the Prophet to qualify for heaven; he who believes in God alone, cannot rank as a believer; he is an infidel and must go to hell, no matter how righteous he may be ! This exposes the true nature of Prophethood. If its purpose is to glorify God and guide people to righteousness, then how is it that salvation depends upon believing in the Prophet, and belief in God counts for nothing ? Again, if the aim of Prophethood is to spread righteousness, then how can a righteous person be thrown into hell just for not acknowledging the Prophet ? Even more baffling is the fact that God becomes powerless in relation to the Prophet because there is nothing that He can do for those who believe in Him alone. Since Prophethood seeks to elevate a Prophet at the expense of God, it has, obviously, nothing to do with God or guidance. It is just a political device of the Middle Eastern origin, which enables its operator to achieve his ambitions under the pretence of spirituality. With a view to bridling the curious human mind, the doctrine of Prophethood discourages free will, which is the fountain of free-thinking, enquiry and social progress. Instead, it imposes complete hegemony of fate on man to drive him as if he were an ass. In fact, Prophethood is the tool of Dominance-Urge, which goads a person to seek the highest possible position in a social or political hierarchy. All the conquerors, heads of states, etc., however, represent ephemeral type of Dominance-Urge because it expires with the demise of its possessor. However, its spiritual counterpart is a lasting phenomenon because a Prophet commands his followers from beyond his gave through the law that he laid down in his holy book.

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Islam The Arab Imperialism

The Principality Publishers

The Principality Publishers

The Principality Publishers

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