The Belief in Prophet Muhammad: an overview for fresh converts

Muslims believe that Muhammad (son of ^Abdullah, the son of ^Abdul Muttalib, the son of Haashim, the son of ^Abdu Manaaf, of the noblest Arab tribe: Quraysh) was God's last Prophet and Messenger (may Allah raise his rank). He was sent to both Jinn (invisible beings that God created from fire– the non-Muslims among them are called devils) and all mankind. He was born in Mekkah, but immigrated to Medinah where he is buried.

A prophet is someone who receives a revelation to teach Islam, whereas a messenger is a Prophet that brings new rules that his followers must follow. Muslims must believe in all prophets, such as Jesus, Moses, Abraham, Noah and Adam (the first prophet) and that they all taught the same belief; that there is no god but God, the Creator of everything. Muslims must also believe in the books Allah sent to them, such as the Quran for Prophet Muhammad and Injeel for Jesus.

Allah created the Prophets with attractive attributes so that people would believe them when they taught Islam, such as: honesty, trustworthiness, intelligence, courage, beauty and good manners. Muslims must accordingly believe that the prophets never (even as children) lie, cheat, steal anything, betray or do anything indicating meanness or lowly character, such as committing adultery or even intending it. They are all born Muslims and never commit blasphemy, such as believing that Allah has a partner or a son, or worshipping celestial bodies, or believing that Allah resembles His creation or that He has created attributes, or doubting Allah's existence, or hesitating about any of these blasphemies. They are truthful about everything they say about this life and the next, as well as about what happened in the past. The best human beings are the Prophets (may Allah increase their honor), and the best Prophet is our beloved prophet Muhammad.

A prophet supports his claim of prophethood by miracles. A miracle is an (1) extraordinary event that (1) happens in support of a Prophet's claim to Prophethood. His opponents cannot duplicate it.

Believing in Prophet Muhammad entails believing in his teachings. Some of these are about what is to come in the future, such as:

• the torture in the grave for non-Muslims and sinful Muslims
• the pleasure in the grave for good Muslims
• the questioning of two Angels in the grave (except for Prophets, martyrs, and children)
• the Resurrection of all people, Jinn and animals from their graves
• the gathering of all people on the Plain on the Day of Judgment
• the Scale with pans and a fulcrum on which deeds are weighed
• the Bridge which connects the Plain to Paradise and extends over Hell
• the suffering of non-Muslims in Hell forever because they did not believe in Islam
• the suffering of the Muslims that Allah did not forgive in Hell for some time (before entering Paradise)
• the Day of Judgment that begins with the resurrection and ends when all those who will be in Heaven for eternity are in Heaven, and all those who will be in Hell for eternity are in Hell
• the Basins from which the followers of each particular Prophet will drink and quench their thirst forever before entering Paradise
• the intercession of prophets, angels and great Muslims (by the Will of Allah) by which some Muslims benefit by being forgiven or suffering less
• the everlasting pleasure of the Muslim's body and soul in Paradise (even those who will suffer in Hell first)
• the greatest pleasure in Paradise, which will be to see Allah without Him being in a place, direction, distance or shape (because Allah is the Creator of time and place and does not exist in them; He is not seen as a creation is seen, and cannot be imagined).

Muslims are further required to believe:

• that Angels are beings Allah created from light to worship Him, are completely obedient to Him, and never sin; Angels are neither male nor female, and they do not eat, sleep or drink.
• that all things both good and bad happen according to God's will.