The Holy Qur'aan and Hadith eloquently prove that prophethood (nubuwwat and risalat) came to an end with our Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam). There are decisive verses to that effect. Being the last Prophet in the chain of prophethood, no one ever shall now succeed him to that status of dignity.

The Holy Qur'aan says, "Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Messenger of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets: and Allah has full knowledge of all things." (Qur'aan, 33:40)

All the interpreters of the Holy Qur'aan agree on the meaning of Khatam-un-Nabieen that our Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) was the last of all prophets and none shall be exalted to the lofty position of prophethood after him. Here are a few examples:

Imam Hafiz Ibn-e-Katheer (Rahmatullah alaihe) said, "This verse is conclusive of the precept that our Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) is the last and that there shall be no Nabi (Prophet) after him. When there shall be no Nabi to follow him, the ordainment of a Rasool (Messenger) cannot arise by logic of anteriority because the status of a Rasool is more exclusive then that of a Nabi. Every Nabi is not a Rasool, but every Rasool is a Nabi. There exists a continuous and unbroken chain of recitations of Ahadith from a large number of venerable sahabah or Companions of the Prophet (Allah be pleased with them), that there shall be no Nabi or Rasool after Muhammad(Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam)". (Tafseer Ibn-e-Khateer, Vol 3, p 453)

Note: Every prophet is called a Nabi whether he was given Shariah or not; and the prophet who was given a Shariah is called a Rasool.

Hujjat-ul-Islam, Imam Ghazali said, "No doubt the Ummah (all Muslims) has unanimously understood from this word (Khatam-un-Nabieen) and its circumstantial reference to mean non-existence of a Nabi or Rasool ever after Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) and that (this word calls for) no reservation or tacit interpretation in it; hence its dissident is certainly the one who rejects the Ummah's unanimity". (Al-Iqtisad fil-Etiqad, p 123)

The Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) unequivocally declared that he was the final Prophet. There are a large number of Ahadith to sustain this article of Islamic faith. Not only that but the Prophet(Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) was also pleased to bring forth such expositions of this word (Khatam-un-Nabieen) that all doubts relating to his finality in prophethood stand void and misinterpretations exposed. Many people having theological distinctions to their credit have stressed upon the unbroken and consecutive nature of those Ahadith, which concern finality of prophethood. Opinions of some of them are quoted below:

Hafiz Ibn-e-Hazam says on page 77 of his Kitab-ul-Fasl: "All those personages who have dwelt upon the subject of Muhammad's (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) prophethood, his miracles and expounded the holy Qur'aan, have stated that he (the Holy Prophet) had informed that there would be no prophet after him".

Hafiz Ibne-Khateer writes under the caption, "finality of prophethood": "And on this (Finality of Prophethood) there have come from Allah's Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) "mutawatir" (absolutely certain and numerous) Ahadith, which have by an unbroken chain of his companions (Allah be pleased with them)".

Allama Syed Mahmood Aloosi writes in ‘Tafseer Roohul-Ma'ani': "That he (Prophet Muhammad [Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam]) was the final prophet, is ordained by the Holy Qur'aan, acknowledged by the Sunnah and agreed upon by the Ummah. Hence, a claimant to the contrary will be (determined as) an unbeliever."

To conclude, finality of prophethood is an article of faith by the Qur'aan and Mutawatir Ahadith. Some Ahadith are reproduced below:

The last brick:

From Abu Hurairah (Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said: "Certainly my example and the example of prophets earlier than me is like the example of a palace most elegant and most beautiful constructed by a person except (that he left in it) a blank space for a brick in one of its corners and that made the people (who were) going around it wonder (at its marvellousness) and exclaimed (in perplexion): Why not is this brick inlaid in here. The Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said, I am that (corner's last) brick and I am the last of the prophets." (Sahih Bukhari, vol 1, p 501 & Sahih Muslim, vol 2, p 248)

The above Hadith is also related by Hazrat Jabir bin Abdullah (Allah be pleased with him,) and is included in Musnad Ahmad, Sahih Muslim and Jama-e-Tirmizi. Sahih Muslim's narration ends with theses words: Said Allah's Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam): So I am in place of this brick; I came and so I completed the chain of the prophets.

The above Hadith is also related by Hazrat Abi bin Kaab (Allah be pleased with him,) as recorded in Musnad Ahmed and Tirmizi.

"My example among the prophets has a likeness (in the sense) that a man constructed a palace most lovely and perfect and extremely elegant but left the place of one brick incomplete in it (for subsequent inlaying); then people went around the palace and wondered (on its excellence) and said, "Would that space for one brick be also filled up!" The holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said, "I am in place of this brick among the prophets." (Musnad Ahmed, vol 1, p 137 & Tirmizi, vol 2, p 201)

Line of prophethood terminated:

From Abu Hurairah, (Allah be pleased with him): Allah's Messenger Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said: I have been bestowed with excellence over (other) prophets in six respects:

1. I have been gifted with comprehensive words,

2. I have been helped through awe (being put in the hearts of

enemies),

3. spoils have been made lawful to me,

4. the whole earth turned into a mosque for me and a means of purification,

5. I have been ordained as the Prophet for all humanity, and

6. the line of the prophets has been terminated with me. (Sahih Muslim, vol 1, p 199, Mishkat, p 512)

The Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said: I have been gifted with five qualities not bestowed upon anybody before me. At the end of this Hadith are the following words: Former prophets were sent to their people alone, whereas I have been sent as the Prophet to all mankind. (Mishkat, p 513)

Allah's Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said to Hadhrat Ali (Allah be pleased with him): You have the same relation with me as Haroon had with Musa (peace be upon them) except that there shall be no prophet after me. (Sahih Bukhari vol 2, p 633)

Abu Hurairah (Allah be pleased with him) relates from Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) that the Bani Isreal were led by their own prophets, when one prophet died, another prophet took his place but there shall be no prophet after me that there shall be Caliphs and they will be many. (Sahih Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Manaqib)

In the case of our Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) even such prophets will not come, except that there shall be religious reformers of the Ummah.

Verily, Allah the Exalted will send down to this Ummah such men at the head of every century who will revive the religion for it (the Ummah). (Abu Dawood vol 2, p 233)

Thirty liars in the Ummah:

The Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said: "In my Ummah there shall be born thirty liars, each of them will pretend that he is a prophet but I am the last of the prophets, there shall be no prophet after me. (Abu Dawood and Tirmizi)

No Nabi, no Rasool after me:

From Anas bin Malik (Allah be pleased with him) Allah's Messenger Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said: Verily, risalat and nubuwwat are terminated, so there shall be neither a rasool nor a nabi after me. (Tirmidhi, Kitab-ur-Roo'ya Babu Zahab-un- Nubuwwa, Musnad Ahmad, Marwiyat-Anas bin Malik)

Last Prophet, last Ummah:

From Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him): I heard the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) saying, "We are the last (Ummah) but will precede all on the Day of Resurrection except that the Book was given to them before us. (Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim)

The Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said I am the last Prophet and my mosque is the last mosque among the mosques of all the prophets. (Kanzul Ummal, vol 12, p 270, Hadith No 34999)

Hadhrat Ali (Allah be pleased with him) describing virtues of the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) says: Between his shoulders was the signet of prophethood and he (Prophet Muhammad) was Khatam-un-Nabieen. (Shamail-e-Tirmizi, p 3)

It is narrated by Uqba bin Amir (Allah be Allah's Messenger Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said: "If there could ever be a prophet after me, indeed Umar bin Khattab would have been such." (Tirmizi, vol 2, p 209)

Hazrat Jubair bin Mut'am (Allah be pleased with him) says: I heard the Prophet saying, "Certainly there are some names for me, I am Muhammad, I am Ahmad, I am Mahi the obliterator as Allah shall blot out kufr through me and I am Hashir, the gatherer of people who shall be resurrected at my feet and I am Aaqib; the last to come as there shall be no prophet after me. (Mishkat, p 515)

Conclusion:

It stands proved in the above written lines that the Holy Qur'aan, unbroken chain of "Mutawatir" Ahadith, and Consensus of the Muslim Ummah vouch that Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) was the terminator of the entire chain of venerable prophets with no exception (peace be upon them). Therefore, no person after him (Prophet Muhammad) can be called a prophet in any meaning or sense and nobody can fix for himself a prophetic stance by his guile or guise. Consequently, he who does so or tries to do so or if anybody believes in the prophethood of that claimant, then such a person is a cast off from the fold of Islam.

And this finality of the Holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) is a status, which is most dignified, an honour most distinguished and an esteem most high. It is, therefore, a grave insult to the holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam), if somebody is so insolent as to lay a claim to the line of prophethood.

Moreover, even if one stretches ones human imagination to the furthest end and presumes there is some prophet who has come in the world, he should seek for a proof to substantiate his hypothesis, ie whether or not this new comer has been indoctrinated with some fresh disciplines. If it is said that no new learnings were given to the new prophet; rather the same learnings were again revealed to him as had already been revealed to Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) that would be an inexplicable repetition. With the existing prophetic learnings and the indiminishing Qur'aanic reservoir of knowledge, such repetition by the "new prophet" should turn into a divine exercise in futility, whereas Allah the exalted is absolutely above anything futile. And if the plea is that this later claimant to prophethood was specifically bestowed with such learnings as were not conferred upon the holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam), then this would (Allah forbid) tantamount to:

1. belittling doctrinal learnings sent by Allah through Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam),

2. insinuating that the Holy Qur'aan lacks completeness, and

One of the most difficult decisions many Muslim sisters face is the decision to start wearing Hijab. This is certainly true for reverts, but may also be true for sisters whose families or even whose cultures are not particularly observant. As a revert myself, I have been through the whole thing. I would like to offer some advice that I hope Insha-Allah will be helpful to sisters who are considering wearing Hijab but find that something is holding them back. The first step is to learn about Hijab. There is so much information out there. Many Muslim sisters will assist you in this regard.

Deciding to wear Hijab:

This is where the difficulties usually come in. For many sisters, it truly is a Jihad. I remember very vividly how scared I was the first day I put on the headscarf and went out into public. As long as you are just wearing the modest clothes, nobody has to know that you are a Muslim. Once you complete your Hijab with the headscarf, you are suddenly announcing to everyone who sees you that "I am a Muslim". Here is some advice based on own experiences:

1) Wear it for the sake of Allah Almighty: Various statements are made about why you should wear Hijab, such as for modesty or for protection. But the real reason that we wear Hijab is that Allah Almighty has commanded it. Whenever anyone asks you, why do you dress like that, that's the only answer you need to give him. Allah Almighty is the source of everything we have -- our existence, our life, our capability, even our goodness. If He even stopped sustaining us, we would vanish in that instant. If He took away what He gives us, we would never have even a speck of it. If we worked for millions of years, we could never repay Him for all that He has given us. And yet He does give it to us, and all He asks in return is that we do our best to obey what He has commanded us to do. Surely, wearing Hijab is a very small thing that you can do for Him compared to what He does for you!

2) Wear it for hope of the paradise: Allah Almighty makes tests for us in this world. He makes things difficult for us. He wants to see if we will remember Him, if we will have faith in Him, and if we will trust in Him. These qualities are what is meant by "sabr" (patience). Allah Almighty does not lose the work of anyone, ever (see Surah al-Imran, verse 195). Even if it seems like nobody is paying attention to you or notices or appreciates the good things that you do, Allah Almighty has seen them and He will not forget them. Even when it seems like the whole world is against you, Allah Almighty is always there for you when you turn to Him. Remember this. Allah Almighty always wants the best for us and in His wisdom He knows why each thing that happens to us is in fact best for us. When it seems like everything is going wrong and life is just one disaster after another, it is easy to forget this and to become bitter and skeptical. Yet we must remember always to have faith that Allah Almighty knows best why He has willed this for us, and we must always ask Him only "Make me pleased with what You have willed for me". This world we live in, although it seems at times to be the only real thing, is actually fleeting compared to the Hereafter, which is better and more abiding. The trials of this world will seem as fleeting as a nightmare when seen from the Hereafter, and the pleasures of this world will also seem as fleeting as a dream when seen from the Hereafter. It's our happiness in the Hereafter that we should be most worried about attaining, because it is what will last forever, and it's our suffering in the Hereafter that we should be most worried about avoiding, because it also will last forever. Allah Almighty has promised the paradise to those who remain steadfast in their faith in Him and who trust in Him. The more difficult it is for you to be patient, the greater the reward for it. So what will it be? Ease in this world and perhaps the eternal sufferings in Hell? Or difficulty in this world and Insha-Allah the eternal bliss of the paradise? Let's face it, the old cliches are true. There's no such thing as a free lunch and you can almost never have your cake and eat it too. We've all got to face difficulties some time. Better by far that they be in this world than in the Hereafter. So that's what you should set your mind to. Yes, it's difficult to wear Hijab. You may be rejected by your family or your friends, you may face harassment and persecution or be fired from your job. These are very scary thoughts, but if you have sabr and keep trusting in Allah Almighty, I swear to you sister, this is the path to the paradise, and when you look back on the Day of Judgement, you will know that it was worth it and have no regrets.

3) Wear it today and trust in Allah Almighty for tomorrow: What do I mean by that? What I mean is that you should take it one day at a time, or even one outing at a time. Sometimes the future seems to stretch on forever and ever and you don't think you can make it that long. You want to give up before you even begin. So sometimes the best thing to do is keep your mind focussed on what is immediately at hand. Allah Almighty will take care of the future. If you have to go out to the market, then concentrate on being able to wear Hijab just for this activity and on getting through it. If you do get through it and nothing bad happened, then give thanks to Allah Almighty for making it easy for you, and turn your mind to your next outing. Or if you have to go out to school or work, then concentrate on being able to wear Hijab just for this one day and on getting through it. And give thanks to Allah Almighty when you have made it, and turn your mind to the next day. Eventually the outings will turn into days and the days into weeks, and the weeks into months. One day you will realise that you have been wearing Hijab for quite a long time and it isn't really as bad as you feared, and Allah Almighty helped you get through it. Don't be ashamed. Sometimes it is like this. The most important thing is to be patient and keep your trust in Allah Almighty always.

4) Wear it and spite the Satan: My dear sister, the worries and fears in your mind are the whisperings of the Satan. He wants to talk you out of obeying Allah Almighty. It is very easy to keep going around in circles in your mind and to dwell on all the things that could go wrong. I know that I myself have a tendency to do this. I put it off and I dither and wait for "the perfect time". If I let myself be, I would never do anything at all! So the thing you have to remember is that you do not need to be perfect in faith to wear Hijab. If perfection were a qualification, where is the sister who could wear it?? You must also not fall into the trap of thinking that you should wait until all your worries and fears have disappeared. They never will. Trust me on this, sister. True courage is going ahead to do what's right even though you are still nervous and scared. So don't listen to the Satan. Ignore the worries and fears he whispers into your mind. Tell him that you will not let him keep you from obeying Allah Almighty and you will not let him rule your life.

5) Make the decision to wear it: Once you have come to know in your heart that you must wear Hijab, then all you have to do is set a day and JUST DO IT!! This is the only way. Set a day and when that day comes, you have to do it. Don't back down. Don't give up. Do it. Offer Salat al-Istikhara. Make Du'a. Make lots of Du'a. Do not stop making Du'a. Ask Allah Almighty to give you strength. Ask Him to make it easy for you. Ask Him to help you. He will, I swear it to you. He is always there for you when you turn to Him. Remember how much He has given you, how everything that you have, even your very existence, is due to Him. Remember that He deserves this from you. Remember the promise of the paradise. Remember that remaining patient and faithful through difficulty now may lead to the paradise, Insha-Allah. Even if bad things happen, keep these thoughts in your mind. Don't worry about tomorrow. Just concentrate on getting through today and leave tomorrow to Allah Almighty until it gets here. That's how you do it. Final words of encouragement I have been wearing Hijab since September 1999. I do not regret it. I have never for one instance regretted it. Insha-Allah, you will discover that you feel the same. Within a few months I came to feel that I would not be properly dressed if I went out not wearing Hijab.

Why Islam? The question "why?" demands a rational answer. However, many people think that it is not possible to give rational answers to ideological commitments (by ideology, we mean a system of thought). They believe that a commitment to any theistic ideology is an irrational act. One cannot deny the fact that many people do commit themselves illogically to various ideologies and continue to hold onto them only because they find themselves to be raised up in particular communities. They accept such ideologies in just the same way as they would accept a traditional form of dress handed down to them through the generations. For example, a person might be deeply committed to a nationalistic ideology simply because it may be the best way to win the support of the masses and thereby gain personal political power.

Let us analyse two commonly found views regarding ideological commitments:

1. The first states that a commitment to any ideology, which involves some type of deity must necessarily be irrational.

The premise of those who say this is that the fundamental claims of all such ideologies are beyond the comprehension of the human mind. Those who have accepted such a premise have concluded that all types of such ‘belief' must be based on irrational and imaginary thoughts rather than on reality.

2. The opposite view is held by people who seek to justify their ‘belief' in certain irrational ideas by claiming that reason is limited.

In fact, the followers of this ideology state that people should commit themselves to such ideas by simply having ‘faith'. The conclusion of these people is that ultimate reality must be irrational in essence and, therefore, incomprehensible to the human mind. They go on to say that their ideology must be accepted or ‘believed' without reason, in order to attain some type of ‘salvation'.

This kind of argument is very difficult to accept because as human beings, we may ask: What do we have other than the usage of our minds for acquiring knowledge? If we are told to ‘believe' in something that is irrational (ie beyond all reason), such as a type of being which is both mortal and immortal, we cannot possibly digest such an idea. Therefore, it does not seem unnatural for us to demand that our way of thinking and living be based solely upon those concepts, which can be verified as being true.

Going back to the first view regarding ideological commitments, we see that this view contends that we cannot and should not believe in that which we cannot comprehend. The emphasis lies on the word comprehend, and so it must be defined. It is true that one cannot have an adequate mental picture of some mathematical and scientific facts. For example, one cannot have an adequate mental or visual picture of the curvature of space, or one of the mathematical concepts of infinity. Nor can we really have an adequate mental picture of the way in which certain animals experience things, such as the way in which bats ‘see' by using ultrasonic waves. However, know these concepts to be true because of solid evidence and not because of some non-rational ideas. Therefore, we can say that we do indeed comprehend them.

Now what about the concept of a singular, all-knowing entity, which has created the universe. It is impossible to have any mental or visual picture of such an entity, for evidence tells us that this entity must be unlike anything in the universe because this entity must be independent of space and time. The evidence for the existence of this single intelligence lies in the design of nature itself, which we can freely examine; hence, such an ideology is rational. If one realises this -- through confirmation -- then one can proceed to answer the question: Why Islam?

One of the main problems with an atheistic ideology is that it cannot explain intelligence in the processes of the universe. Another problem is that it tends to deprive life of meaning. Furthermore, we know that human beings are naturally inclined to be honest; however, in atheism there is a denial of an ultimate originator and of anything beyond death, which creates a contradiction and leads to an inconsistency in behaviour -- on the one hand a person would be inclined to be honest, and on the other to be dishonest ‘to make the most of this world'. [If everyone insisted on ‘making the most of this world', society as we know it would not exist. As a case in point, let us suppose that all those who wanted to ‘make the most of this world' resorted to thievery. If this happened, no one would be producing the goods (growing food for instance) that the rest of us could steal. Hence, it seems that ‘making the most of this world' as system of action is doomed to failure. Could it then be a viable system of belief?]

Broadly speaking, with regard to theistic ideologies we have the revealed, the distorted and the man-made. One can easily say that a way of life communicated to humankind by the creator of this universe is preferred to man-made ideologies. If one wants to follow the advice of that which has made the universe and all that it contains -- regarding what is beneficial or harmful -- then it is better to refer to pristine communication from this originator, than to that communication, which has been fabricated or distorted by man.

Those ideologies claiming to be based on revelations can be subjected to a number of tests, the first and most important of which is that of consistency. We must look for two types of consistency: internal and external. Internal consistency means that a statement made in a book must not contradict another statement in the same book. External consistency means that a statement made in a book must not contradict facts as we know, be they psychological, physical, chemical, historical, geographical, biological and so on. Applying these tests, consider the most important truth that all the supposedly revealed ideologies proclaim, that is, the existence and perfect attributes of Allah. Allah for all ideologies, that claim to be revealed, is supposed to be All-knowing, All-merciful, Everlasting, etc. However, some books imply that Allah's knowledge is limited and imperfect by saying that, for example, Allah was deceived by a human. In contrast, the Holy Qur'aan provides the perfect concept of an All-knowing, Singular Originator of this universe.

This leads us to the next test -- that of authenticity. The question that should be asked is whether the scriptures that we have today are indeed a communication from the Originator to humankind. A study of the history of Islam would show that the present Qur'aan is exactly the same as that which was communicated about one thousand four hundred years ago. During its revelation it was committed to memory by a large number of people and written down also.

Yet another test is that of comprehensiveness. A truly comprehensive ideology, revealed to humankind by the designer of the universe, would describe the most beneficial system in all spheres of life including the political, economical, social, medical and environmental spheres.

Lastly, we might look at the test of universality. Clearly, an ideology, which is historically or graphically bound, is not as good as that which applicable to all human beings, irrespective of the time and place of their origin.