What Were the Stages at the Beginning of the Revelation to the Prophet (PBUH)?
ما هي مراحل بدء الوحي ونزوله على رسول الله ﷺ؟
The commencement of the Divine Inspiration to Allah’s Apostle and the prophethood was in the form of good dreams which came true like bright daylight
Narrated/Authority of Aisha (the mother of the faithful believers): The commencement of the Divine Inspiration to Allah’s Apostle was in the form of good dreams which came true like bright daylight.
The second stage : the love of seclusion was bestowed
As narrated by Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) : “and then the love of seclusion was bestowed upon him. He used to go in seclusion in the cave of Hira where he used to worship (Allah alone) continuously for many days before he would head back to see his family. He used to take with him food for the stay and then come back to (his wife) Khadija, and once again take provisions for his journey and leave.”
It means: that Allah Almighty inspired to His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) the love of seclusion, away from people, so he chose the cave of Hira, and he used to sit in it to worship. The retreat would remain for several days, then he would return to Khadija, take his provision and go back to worship, and so on.
The cave is a hollow part in the mountain and Hira is a well-known mountain that was previously a little away from the heart of Mecca, and it is to the left of the road going from Mecca to Mina.
Third Stage: The descent of the Archangel Gabriel with the Quran to the Messenger of Allah pbuh.
Aisha said: “ till suddenly the Truth descended upon him while he was in the cave of Hira. The angel came to him and asked him to read. The Prophet replied, “I do not know how to read. The Prophet added, “The angel caught me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read and I replied, ‘I do not know how to read.’ Thereupon he caught me again and pressed me a second time till I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read but again I replied, ‘I do not know how to read (or what shall I read)?’ Thereupon he caught me for the third time and pressed me, and then released me and said,
‘(Read, ˹O Prophet,˺ in the Name of your Lord Who created - created humans from a clinging clot. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous, Who taught by the pen - taught humanity what they knew not.)
Then Allah’s Apostle returned with the Inspiration and with his heart beating severely. Then he went to Khadija bint Khuwailid and said, “Cover me! Cover me!” They covered him till his fear was over and after that he told her everything that had happened and said, “I fear that something may happen to me.”
The meaning of “suddenly” is: the revelation came to him suddenly, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) did not expect it, and therefore the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was afraid and returned to Khadija, his heart beating severely.
What confirms this fact is that the Angel embraced the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) so hard, to assure him that he was awake and not in a dream, and that it was not something he was imagining, but a real occurrence.
أول مراحل النبوة هي: الرؤيا الصالحة في النوم: فكان لا يرى رؤيا إلا جاءت مثل فلق الصبح.
أي أنها تقع كما رآها ﷺ، كما قالت عائشة -رضي الله عنها-:” أَوَّلُ ما بُدِئَ به رَسولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ مِنَ الوَحْيِ الرُّؤْيَا الصَّادِقَةُ في النَّوْمِ؛ فَكانَ لا يَرَى رُؤْيَا إلَّا جَاءَتْ مِثْلَ فَلَقِ الصُّبْحِ”.
المرحلة الثانية: أنه حبب إليه الخلاء
كما قالت عائشة-رضي الله عنها-:” ثُمَّ حُبِّبَ إلَيْهِ الخَلاءُ، وكانَ يَخْلُو بغارِ حِراءٍ فَيَتَحَنَّثُ فيه-وهو التَّعَبُّدُ-اللَّيالِيَ ذَواتِ العَدَدِ قَبْلَ أنْ يَنْزِعَ إلى أهْلِهِ، ويَتَزَوَّدُ لذلكَ، ثُمَّ يَرْجِعُ إلى خَدِيجَةَ فَيَتَزَوَّدُ لِمِثْلِها”.
ومعناه: أن الله تعالى حبب إلى نفس رسوله ﷺ أن يخلو بعيدا عن الناس فاختار غار حراء، وكان يجلس فيه ليتعبد، وكانت هذه الخلوة تبقى لعدة أيام، ثم يرجع إلى خديجة فيأخذ زاده ويرجع إلى التعبد، وهكذا.
والغار هو: الكهف والنقب في الجبل، أما (حراء) فهو جبل معروف كان في السابق يبعد قليلاً عن قلب مكة، وهو عن يسار الذاهب من مكة إلى منى.
المرحلة الثالثة: نزول جبريل بالقرآن على رسول الله ﷺ
قالت عائشة: ” حَتَّى فَجِئَهُ الْحَقُّ وَهُوَ فِي غَارِ حِرَاءٍ، فَجَاءَهُ الْمَلَكُ فَقَالَ: اقْرَأْ. قَالَ: “مَا أَنَا بِقَارِئٍ” قَالَ، فَأَخَذَنِي فَغَطَّنِي حَتَّى بَلَغَ مِنِّي الْجَهْدَ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي فَقَالَ: اقْرَأْ. قَالَ قُلْتُ: مَا أَنَا بِقَارِئٍ، قَالَ فَأَخَذَنِي فَغَطَّنِي الثَّانِيَةَ حَتَّى بَلَغَ مِنِّي الْجَهْدَ ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي فَقَالَ: اقْرَأْ. فَقُلْتُ: مَا أَنَا بِقَارِئٍ، فَأَخَذَنِي فَغَطَّنِي الثَّالِثَةَ حَتَّى بَلَغَ مِنِّي الْجَهْدَ. ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي فَقَالَ: ﴿اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ * خَلَقَ الإِنْسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ * اقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ الأَكْرَمُ * الَّذِي عَلَّمَ بِالْقَلَمِ * عَلَّمَ الإِنْسَانَ مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ﴾، فَرَجَعَ بِهَا رَسُولُ اللّهِ ﷺ تَرْجُفُ بَوَادِرُهُ حَتَّى دَخَلَ عَلَى خَدِيجَةَ فَقَالَ: “زَمِّلُونِي، زَمِّلُونِي” فَزَمَّلُوهُ حَتَّى ذَهَبَ عَنْهُ الرَّوْعُ. ثُمَّ قَالَ لِخَدِيجَةَ: “أَيْ خَدِيجَةُ! مَا لِي” وَأَخْبَرَهَا الْخَبَرَ. قَالَ: “لَقَدْ خَشِيتُ عَلَى نَفْسِي””
ومعنى “فجأه”: أي جاءه الوحي بغتة، لأنه ﷺ لم يكن متوقعاً لنزوله، ولذلك خاف ﷺ ورجع إلى خديجة يرجف قلبه.
ومما يؤكد تلك الحقيقة أن الملك احتضن النبي ﷺ احتضانًا شديدًا، ليؤكد له أنه في يقظة لا في منام، وأنه ليس شيئًا يتهيأ له، بل حق واقع.
1. Stage One: True Visions in Sleep (Ar-Ru'ya As-Sadiqah) | المرحلة الأولى: الرؤيا الصالحة الصادقة كفلق الصبح
Aisha's report opens with this stage: "The first of the revelation that came to the Messenger of Allah was true dreams in sleep; he never saw a dream but it came like the break of dawn" (Sahih al-Bukhari 3), that is, it came true exactly as he saw it, as the scholar explains. True dreams are one of the types of revelation.
تبدأ رواية عائشة في صحيح البخاري (3) بهذه المرحلة: «أول ما بدئ به رسول الله ﷺ من الوحي الرؤيا الصالحة في النوم، فكان لا يرى رؤيا إلا جاءت مثل فلق الصبح»، أي تقع كما رآها كما يشرح الشيخ.
2. Stage Two: Love of Solitude in Cave Hira | المرحلة الثانية: تحبيب الخلوة والتحنث في غار حراء
Then seclusion was made dear to him: he would stay alone in the cave of Hira, worshipping (tahannuth) for a number of nights before returning to his family, then take provisions for another stay (Sahih al-Bukhari 3). The scholar adds that Hira is a well-known mountain, then a little outside Mecca, on the left of the road from Mecca to Mina.
ثم حبب إليه الخلاء، فكان يخلو بغار حراء فيتحنث فيه الليالي ذوات العدد قبل أن ينزع إلى أهله ويتزود لذلك (صحيح البخاري 3)، وحراء كما يقول الشيخ جبل معروف كان يبعد قليلا عن قلب مكة عن يسار الذاهب إلى منى.
3. Stage Three: The Sudden Descent of Gabriel | المرحلة الثالثة: المباغتة الكبرى ونزول جبريل عليه السلام
Then the truth came to him suddenly in the cave of Hira; Ibn Kathir states that there is no disagreement that revelation began in Ramadan. The angel said "Read!", he answered "I am not a reader", and the angel pressed him three times before reciting the opening verses of Surah Al-'Alaq (Sahih al-Bukhari 3). See how he reacted afterwards.
اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ خَلَقَ الْإِنسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ (سورة العلق: 1-2)
ثم فجئه الحق وهو في غار حراء، وقد ذكر ابن كثير أن الوحي نزل عليه في رمضان بلا خلاف، فجاءه الملك فقال: اقرأ، قال: «ما أنا بقارئ»، فغطه ثلاث مرات حتى بلغ منه الجهد، ثم قال: {اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ} (صحيح البخاري 3).
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
What was the very first stage of divine inspiration experienced by the Prophet?
True dreams in sleep that materialized in waking reality as clear as the break of dawn.
Where did the Prophet go to spend time in secluded worship?
To the cave of Hira, on a mountain the scholar describes as then a little outside Mecca, on the left of the road to Mina.
What was the first word revealed to Prophet Muhammad by Gabriel?
The command "Iqra" (Read / Recite), from Surah Al-'Alaq.
In which month did the revelation begin?
In Ramadan; Ibn Kathir says there is no disagreement about this.