First Revelation in Cave of Hira

The modality of the revelation of the Holy Quraan to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ is the supreme metaphysical subject which Muslim theologians and mystics have concerned themselves with. Nubuwwa or “prophecy” is the central institution of Islam. It is regarded as the highest station that a mortal human may attain; the position of being a conduit through which the Lord Allah Most High speaks to mankind.

 

It is well known that the first Quraanic revelation to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was when he was secluded in the Cave of Hira. The Angel Gabriel came to him and revealed the first five Ayaat of Surat al-Alaq. However, something that is typically unknown to most Muslims, who are otherwise acquainted with this monumental, defining event in the Religion of Islam, is that the Prophet ﷺ was asleep when the Angel Gabriel came to him, and only woke up after Angel Gabriel departed. This fact is narrated by Ibn Hisham in his Sira (biography) of the Prophet:

 

قَالَ ابْنُ إسْحَاقَ: وَحَدَّثَنِي وَهْبُ بْنُ كَيْسَانَ قَالَ: قَالَ عُبَيْدٌ: فَكَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يُجَاوِرُ ذَلِكَ الشَّهْرَ مِنْ كُلِّ سَنَةٍ، يُطْعِمُ مَنْ جَاءَهُ مِنْ الْمَسَاكِينِ، فَإِذَا قَضَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ جِوَارَهُ مِنْ شَهْرِهِ ذَلِكَ، كَانَ أَوَّلُ مَا يَبْدَأُ بِهِ، إذَا انْصَرَفَ مِنْ جِوَارِهِ، الْكَعْبَةَ، قَبْلَ أَنْ يَدْخُلَ بَيْتَهُ، فَيَطُوفُ بِهَا سَبْعًا أَوْ مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ مِنْ ذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ يَرْجِعُ إلَى بَيْتِهِ، حَتَّى إذَا كَانَ الشَّهْرُ الَّذِي أَرَادَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى بِهِ فِيهِ مَا أَرَادَ مِنْ كَرَامَتِهِ، مِنْ السّنة الَّتِي بَعثه اللَّهُ تَعَالَى فِيهَا، وَذَلِكَ الشَّهْرُ (شَهْرُ) رَمَضَانَ، خَرَجَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إلَى حِرَاءٍ، كَمَا كَانَ يَخْرُجُ لِجِوَارِهِ وَمَعَهُ أَهْلُهُ، حَتَّى إذَا كَانَتْ اللَّيْلَةُ الَّتِي أَكْرَمَهُ اللَّهُ فِيهَا بِرِسَالَتِهِ، وَرَحِمَ الْعِبَادَ بِهَا، جَاءَهُ جِبْرِيلُ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ بِأَمْرِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى. قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: فَجَاءَنِي جِبْرِيلُ، وَأَنَا نَائِمٌ، بِنَمَطٍ مِنْ دِيبَاجٍ فِيهِ كِتَابٌ، فَقَالَ اقْرَأْ، قَالَ: قُلْتُ: مَا أَقْرَأُ ؟ قَالَ: فَغَتَّنِي بِهِ حَتَّى ظَنَنْتُ أَنَّهُ الْمَوْتُ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي فَقَالَ: اقْرَأْ، قَالَ: قُلْتُ: مَا أَقْرَأُ؟ قَالَ: فَغَتَّنِي بِهِ حَتَّى ظَنَنْتُ أَنَّهُ الْمَوْتُ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي، فَقَالَ: اقْرَأْ، قَالَ: قُلْتُ: مَاذَا أَقْرَأُ؟ قَالَ: فَغَتَّنِي بِهِ حَتَّى ظَنَنْتُ أَنَّهُ الْمَوْتُ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي، فَقَالَ: اقْرَأْ، قَالَ: فَقُلْتُ: مَاذَا أَقْرَأُ؟ مَا أَقُولُ ذَلِكَ إلَّا افْتِدَاءً مِنْهُ أَنْ يَعُودَ لِي بِمِثْلِ مَا صَنَعَ بِي، فَقَالَ: اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ خَلَقَ الْإِنْسانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ. اقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ الْأَكْرَمُ الَّذِي عَلَّمَ بِالْقَلَمِ

عَلَّمَ الْإِنْسانَ مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ 96: 1- 5. قَالَ: فَقَرَأْتهَا ثُمَّ انْتَهَى فَانْصَرَفَ عَنِّي وَهَبَبْتُ مِنْ نَوْمِي، فَكَأَنَّمَا كَتَبْتُ فِي قَلْبِي كِتَابًا. قَالَ: فَخَرَجْتُ حَتَّى إذَا كُنْتُ فِي وَسَطٍ مِنْ الْجَبَلِ سَمِعْتُ صَوْتًا مِنْ السَّمَاءِ يَقُولُ: يَا مُحَمَّدُ، أَنْتَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَأَنَا جِبْرِيلُ، قَالَ

فَرَفَعْتُ رَأْسِي إلَى السَّمَاءِ أَنْظُرُ، فَإِذَا جِبْرِيلُ فِي صُورَةِ رَجُلٍ صَافٍّ قَدَمَيْهِ فِي أُفُقِ السَّمَاءِ يَقُولُ: يَا مُحَمَّدُ، أَنْتَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَأَنَا جِبْرِيلُ. قَالَ: فَوَقَفْتُ أَنْظُرُ إلَيْهِ فَمَا أَتَقَدَّمُ وَمَا أَتَأَخَّرُ، وَجَعَلْتُ أَصْرِفُ وَجْهِي عَنْهُ فِي آفَاقِ السَّمَاءِ، قَالَ

فَلَا أَنْظُرُ فِي نَاحِيَةٍ مِنْهَا إلَّا رَأَيْتُهُ كَذَلِكَ، فَمَا زِلْتُ وَاقِفًا مَا أَتَقَدَّمُ أَمَامِي وَمَا أَرْجِعُ وَرَائِي

The Prophet ﷺ said: “Gabriel came to me while I was asleep with a brocade cloth in which was writing, and said: ‘Read!’ I said, ‘I do not read.’ He took me and squeezed me so vehemently that I thought it was death; then he let me go and said: ‘Read!’ I said, ‘I do not read.’ He took me and squeezed me so vehemently that I thought it was death; then he let me go and said, ‘Read!’ I said, ‘What shall I read?’ He took me and squeezed me so vehemently that I thought it was death; then he said, ‘Read!’ I said, ‘What then shall I read?’ He said,

 

‘Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created, has created man from a clinging substance. Read, and your Lord is the most Generous. Who taught by the pen. Taught man that which he knew not.’ (Sura 96: 1–5)

 

So I read, and he left me. When I got up from my sleep, it was as if these words were firmly written in my heart. When I went out midway on the mountain, I heard a voice from the sky saying, ‘O Muhammad! You are the Messenger of Allah and I am Gabriel.’ I raised my head up to the sky to see (who was speaking) and it was Gabriel in the form of a man with feet astride the horizon, saying, ‘O Muhammad! You are the Messenger of Allah and I am Gabriel.’ I stood still, staring at him, neither moving forward nor backward; then I made my face turn away from him, but whichever direction of the sky I looked, I found him the same.”

Reference: as-Siratun Nabawiyya (Ibn Hisham); v.1, pp.236–237

 

An objection raised against this Hadith is that there is no mention of Gabriel coming to the Prophet ﷺ while he was asleep in the more famous Hadith of A’isha about the commencement of divine Revelation as related in both Bukhari and Muslim. However, omission is not necessarily proof of negation, until  and unless a sound Hadith is brought forth which manifestly states that the Prophet ﷺ was awake during the first revelation to him in the Cave of Hira.