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The Jewish feast at the Conquest of Khaibar and the allegations concerning Muhammad's (peace be upon him) death Regarding Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), we face loads of allegations, and every allegation's conclusion is that Muhammad (peace be upon him) was a false prophet. At the moment, we will deal with the allegations about Prophet Muhammad's death and about the feast offered by a wicked Jewish woman at the conquest of Khaibar. At Khaibar, where a lot of Jews lived, the Prophet was once offered a meal by a Jewish woman. However, the woman's plot was to poison the meal so that the Prophet may die. The Jews thought that if the Prophet was true, then he wouldn't eat it, and if he was false, he would eat it. Before continuing further, please fit the following in your mind: Muhammad is no more than a Messenger, indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him. If he died or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels (as disbelievers)? ... (Surah 3: 144) Then, after the meal was placed before the Prophet, he ate some of it.... also with a man named Bishr. Bishr at once shouted that it was poisoned. When the Prophet realized that it was poisoned, and the others too knew it, they ran towards the woman to beat her. Bishr had died... The Prophet stopped the Muslims to kill the woman. It is said that the Prophet also passed away because of this poison. However, some biographies of the Noble Prophet maintain that he ordered the woman to be killed. The Attack of Christian Missionaries What is the criticism that Christian Missionaries see here? They see one thing, that the Prophet ate from it, and he died, and he did not pass the test of the Jews, and thus he was as false Prophet. In response to the above attack, I would recall the verse: Muhammad is no more than a Messenger, indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him. If he died or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels (as disbelievers)? ... (Surah 3: 144) Don't Christian Missionaries see that how excellently the Qur'an has responded to such attacks? Once again, I quote it with my emphasis: Muhammad is no more than a Messenger, indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him. If he died or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels (as disbelievers)? ... I think that this response is enough. But continuing it will be better. Further responses and how the Prophet passed the Jews' test The Christian Missionaries argue that the Prophet didn't know that he was going to die. They continue by saying that various Surahs were revealed about the future but why didn't God tell Muhammad about his death, and why didn't he "pass the Jews' test"? The truth is that he later passed the Jews' test. Please view the following: Narrated Abu Huraira: When Khaibar was conquered, a roasted poisoned sheep was presented to the Prophet as a gift (by the Jews). The Prophet ordered, "Let all the Jews who have been here, be assembled before me." The Jews were collected and the Prophet said (to them), "I am going to ask you a question. Will you tell the truth?" They said, "Yes." The Prophet asked, "Who is your father?" They replied, "So-and-so." He said, "You have told a lie; your father is so-and-so." They said, "You are right." He said, "Will you now tell me the truth, if I ask you about something?" They replied, "Yes, O AbuAl-Qasim; and if we should tell a lie, you can realize our lie as you have done regarding our father." On that he asked, "Who are the people of the (Hell) Fire?" They said, "We shall remain in the (Hell) Fire for a short period, and after that you will replace us." The Prophet said, "You may be cursed and humiliated in it! By Allah, we shall never replace you in it." Then he asked, "Will you now tell me the truth if I ask you a question?" They said, "Yes, O Ab Li-AI-Qasim." He asked, "Have you poisoned this sheep?" They said, "Yes." He asked, "What made you do so?" They said, "We wanted to know if you were a liar in which case we would get rid of you, and if you are a prophet then the poison would not harm you." Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 4.394. You see how excellently he passed their test! He, the Great Prophet, even told the Jews about the fathers! The Noble Prophet passed away, as all Prophet's did. Christian Missionaries claim that he didn't know about his death. The also claim that Allah didn't accept Gabriel's prayer to heal the Prophet. Let's deal with these claims. Gabriel Prayed for the Prophet's health It is reported that Gabriel prayed for the Prophet's health, but Allah didn't respond. "Why?" Ask the Missionaries and continue that "it means he was a false Prophet and the Devil visited him!" This is a very high level allegation and a grave sin in my opinion. But of course, Christian Missionaries will never listen and they will always want to have to "push" their junk in Islam. To answer this allegation, I will again quote the Qur'an with my emphasis: Muhammad is no more than a Messenger, indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him. If he died or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels (as disbelievers)? ... Allah Almighty asks us that if Muhammad (peace be upon him) is killed or dies, then will we turn to disbelievers? No, we won't. A Muslim believes that what ever has been written by the pen, in the heavens, must pass. What will happen, according to Islam, cannot be changed. If our beloved Prophet had to pass away, then of course, if all the heavens and earths joined together with the all the nations, animals, birds, insects, men, and every thing, and they prayed to Allah to heal the Prophet, their prayer would not be accepted because what ever has been written has to pass. Did Prophet Muhammad (p.) know about his death? Christian Missionaries say that Muhammad didn't know when he was going to die. Thus, the enemies of Islam give superiority to Prophet Jesus over Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon them). Comparing Prophets, in my view, should not be done. For example, a hadith in Sahih Al-Bukhari has a narration about a Muslim and a Jew. The Jew said that, "Musa bin Imran (Moses the son of Amran) is better than Muhammad," while the Muslim said that, "Muhammad is better than Moses!" The Muslim raised his hand and slapped the Jew. The Jew then took this matter to the Prophet. The Prophet told the Muslim to not to give superiority to Moses over him, neither to give superiority to Muhammad over Moses. So, in a way, comparing prophets is some how, in my opinion, forbidden. But I shall have to continue to give a response to Christian Missionaries. The Prophet did know about his death. He never claimed it openly because the Muslims loved him so much and the Prophet didn't want them to be hopeless. But still, he left small clues. For example, he said the following in his last sermon: "I may not be seen here during the next Hajj." In Dr. Abdur Rauf book, "Stories from the Prophet's life," the following is written: Earlier once while offering fateha for thee martyrs at the Uhud Mountain he had thus addressed the departed souls: "I shall join you soon." The words "I shall join you soon" give a clear view about the picture of the death of the Prophet in his own mind. I end my discussion by once again quoting the Qur'an (as my conclusion): Muhammad is no more than a Messenger, indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him. If he died or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels (as disbelievers)? ... (Surah 3: 144)
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