Overview of Prophet Ibrahim
Continuing our series of Prophets in Islam, we want to discuss Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) next because Eid ul Adha is fast approaching!
Prophet Ibrahim’s (PBUH) story is a ground-breaking one of sacrifice, devotion to Allah, and belief in Allah and Taqwa. Furthermore, his story tells us always to have faith in Allah and overcome Shaitaan’s evil way of dissuading us.
Read on to learn more about the story of Prophet Ibrahim’s (PBUH) life!
Who is Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH)?
Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) is considered the forefather of many Prophets and one of the most remarkable men ever. He was protected and guided by Allah from a young age. His journey to Islam began when he was a young boy.
Allah says in the Quran:
“Thus did We show Ibrahim the dominions of the heavens and the earth, that he might be of those who possess certitude” [6:75].
Which Country was Prophet Ibrahim from?
Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) was born in the 10th generation after Prophet Nuh (AS). He was born in Babylon, which is present-day Iraq.
Prophet Ibrahim’s Childhood
Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) was born into a disbelieving family. His father was a famous sculptor, and he used to make idols of the gods of their people. Prophet Ibrahim was a very wise child. Additionally, Allah gave him a deep sense of the wrong in his society and protected him. From a very young age, Allah blessed him with the understanding that the idols that his father created could not be gods.
Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) would pray to Allah: [And he said], “My Lord, grant me authority and join me with the righteous” (26:83)
One day, at the age of 7 years, he asked his father about a sculpture he was making. When his father told him it was a god, Prophet Ibrahim laughed. As he grew older, he became angry with his people. He would question them: How can lifeless idols hear or understand anything? How can idols be Gods?
Allah guides Prophet Ibrahim
Prophet Ibrahim always believed that the idols his family and friends worshipped could never do anything for them. One night he left his home and climbed a mountain. As he stood on the top looking at the moon, stars, and the sky, which many people also accepted as their god, he understood that God is much more significant than all these lifeless objects.
Eventually, one day, Allah guided him to the truth. Allah put Imaan in his heart, and finally, Prophet Ibrahim learned that there is only one god: Allah.
It is mentioned in the Quran:
“Allah chose him and guided him to a straight path” [16:121].
He now decided to bring his people to Allah and wanted them to stop worshipping the idols and believe in Allah alone.
Prophet Ibrahim Destroyed the Idols
After Allah guided Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) to Imaan, he made it his mission to preach Islam to all his people. Prophet Ibrahim instructed the people to quit worshipping idols and turn to Allah.
Allah says in the Quran: And [We sent] Abraham, when he said to his people, ‘ Worship Allah and fear Him. That is best for you, if you should know. 29:16
He also asked his father to accept Allah as the only God. But not only did he become angry, but he threatened to stone him. One day there was a big festival near a river, and everyone attended it. While everyone was busy in the festival, Prophet Ibrahim went to the temple and destroyed all the idols with an axe, leaving only the biggest idol. He hung his axe around the neck of the biggest idol and left.
Quran describes this incident as:
So he made them into fragments, except a large one among them, that they might return to it [and question].21:58
The next day, the people were shocked to see the state of the idols. They became furious and started to question who could break their beloved idols. Sure enough, they all thought that Ibrahim was to blame.
They brought Prophet Ibrahim to the temple and asked him if he had broken the idols. Prophet Ibrahim told them to ask the biggest idol who the culprit was. The disbelievers finally realized they were wrong as the idols could not answer their questions. But their arrogance would not let them admit their mistake.
Prophet Ibrahim and the Fire
Besides being very angry at the defying act of Prophet Ibrahim, the disbelievers desperately wanted to punish him, too. They decided to burn him alive in a huge fire pit. The disbelievers built a vast pit and filled it with wood to set it on fire. Furthermore, they tied Prophet Ibrahim’s hands and feet and were ready to place him in the fire.
Finally, Angel Jibraeel came to Prophet Ibrahim and asked him what he wished for. He replied: I only wish for Allah to be happy with me. First, this shows Prophet Ibrahim’s steadfast trust in Allah, and second, his highest level of Taqwa!
But Allah had other plans. He would not let His prophet die at the hands of the disbelievers. Allah ordered the fire to become cold. And miraculously, Prophet Ibrahim remained unscathed! Surprisingly he came out of the fire very peacefully and calmly.
Allah commands in the Quran: “O fire, be coolness and safety upon Ibrahim” [21:69].
The Significance of Prophet Ibrahim’s Miracle
All the disbelievers were amazed at how Ibrahim survived the fire. Furthermore, this fantastic story of the miracle of Prophet Ibrahim carries two powerful lessons for all:
Test of Faith in Allah
The first lesson is that Allah tested His Prophet’s faith in Him. Would Prophet Ibrahim show his deep faith? Or would he panic in the face of a trial?
The Miracle of Prophet Ibrahim
When Prophet Ibrahim miraculously walked out of the fire pit, it became evident to the disbelievers that he was a real prophet, and he brought the word of Allah. The second lesson proves that Allah had sent Prophet Ibrahim as a divine messenger.
Prophet Ibrahim and the King of Babylon: Nimrood
When the King of Babylon, Nimrood, heard about the miracle of Ibrahim, he became furious and called him to his court.
Besides being evil, Nimrood was an arrogant and proud man. He believed himself to be God. He asked Prophet Ibrahim: What can your God do that I cannot?
Prophet Ibrahim replied that Allah could give life to people. Nimrood disagreed with him and said that he could also grant life to someone given a death sentence and order the death of anyone in his kingdom.
Finally, Prophet Ibrahim said Allah could make the sunrise from the east. He questioned Nimrood: Can you make the sun rise from the West? This left Nimrood speechless.
Who was prophet Ibrahim’s wife?
After spending many years in Babylon and preaching to the non-believers, Prophet Ibrahim could only persuade two people to accept Islam: the first was a woman, Sarah, and the second was a man, Lut, his nephew.
Lut later became a prophet. Allah chose Sarah to become Prophet Ibrahim’s wife.
Where did prophet Ibrahim migrate to?
The trio traveled far from Babylon through Syria, Egypt, and Palestine. Along the way, they helped the needy and did many good deeds.
Prophet Lut eventually settled near the Dead Sea. Prophet Ibrahim and Sarah settled in Egypt.
Prophet Ibrahim and the Dead Bird
One of the lesser-known miracles of Prophet Ibrahim is that Allah showed him how the dead would rise on the Day of Judgement. Prophet Ibrahim often asked Allah how he would raise the dead.
So, Allah showed him yet another miracle!
Allah instructed Prophet Ibrahim to get 4 dead birds, cut their bodies into pieces, and mix and scatter them on 4 different mountaintops. Then he should call them in the name of Allah.
After Prophet Ibrahim completed the task, he called the dead birds, and Lo and Behold! The birds flew back to Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH).
And when Abraham said, ‘My Lord! Show me how You revive the dead,’ He said, ‘Do you not believe?’ He said, ‘Yes indeed, but in order that my heart may be at rest.’ He said, ‘Catch four of the birds. Then cut them into pieces, and place a part of them on every mountain, then call them; they will come to you hastening. And know that Allah is all-mighty and all-wise.’ 2:260
The King Of Egypt
At the time Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) and Sarah settled in Egypt, it was ruled by an evil king. The king tried to harm Sarah.
But Allah knows very well how to protect His good people. Every time the king tried to touch Sarah, his hand would turn to stone. He then asked Sarah to pray to Allah to fix his hand. This happened twice, and he finally realized Sarah was not ordinary.
The king offered Sarah a young maid as an apology. The maid was called Hajara.
prophet Ibrahim’s second wife
Who was Prophet Ibrahim’s Second Wife?
Many years had passed since the marriage of Prophet Ibrahim and his first wife Sarah, but they had no children. So Sarah requested Prophet Ibrahim to marry her maid, Hajar. They soon married and were blessed with a child: Prophet Ismail (PBUH).
The Story of ZamZam Water
When Prophet Ismail was a baby, one day early in the morning, Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) woke up and instructed his wife Hajar to prepare and pack her things as they were leaving on a long journey.
Hajar kept asking him where they were going and why, but Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) did not reply. They traveled many miles and finally reached the valley of Mount Safa and Mount Marwa. This was a barren place with no food or water.
Prophet Ibrahim prayed to Allah:
“O our Lord! I have made some of my offspring to dwell in a valley without cultivation, by Thy Sacred House; in order, O our Lord, that they may establish regular Prayer: so fill the hearts of some among men with love towards them, and feed them with fruits: so that they may give thanks”.
Allah was with Them
Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) would leave his wife and infant son here. Hajar kept asking him why he was leaving them, but Prophet Ibrahim did not reply. She understood that his silence meant Allah had instructed him to do this. Hajar realized that she and her son would not be alone: Allah would be with them.
They had only a little water with them. Eventually, it ran out, and Prophet Ismail started to cry out of thirst. Hajar ran between the two hilltops of Safa and Marwa in search of water for her infant. Today, Muslims commemorate this act of running between the hills in Umrah and Hajj.
In the Presence of an Angel
After 7 rounds between Safa and Marwa, she finally sat beside her baby, tired. Suddenly, she heard a sound, she looked up and saw an Angel! The angel started digging near where Prophet Ismail lay crying, and as the Angel dug the ground, water came through it like a little fountain!
Hajar drank the water, washed herself and her baby, and proceeded to nurse her baby. The place where the water flowed out was called Zamzam.
Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) said about Hajar and the Zamzam water:
Ibn ‘Abbaas said: the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, "This is the source of the tradition of the walking between them (i.e. al-Safa and al-Marwa). When she reached al-Marwa (for the last time) she heard a voice and she asked herself to be quiet and listened attentively. She heard the voice again and said, “O (whoever you may be)! You have made me hear your voice; have you got something to help me?" And she saw an angel at the place of Zamzam, digging the earth with his heel (or his wing), till water flowed from that place. She started to make something like a basin around it, using her hand in this way, and started filling her water-skin with water with her hands, and the water started flowing out after she had scooped some of it."
Allah’s Pleasure with Hajar
Allah was very pleased with Hajar’s faithful behavior towards not only her husband but Allah as well. Soon a crew of travelers came towards Hajar and, seeing the water set up their camp near her. Sure enough, the valley became a trade center and a resting place for travelers.
It bloomed into a bustling city. This was all with the blessing of the baby Ismail and the Zamzam water!
DID PROPHET IBRAHIM SACRIFICE HIS SON?
The story of Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail is the foundation of Eid ul Adha. It shows the intensity of faith and Taqwa that Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) had.
PROPHET IBRAHIMS DREAM
One day, Prophet Ibrahim woke up from a dream in which Allah instructed him to sacrifice his son Ismail. The next night he had the same dream again. After the second dream, he was ready to sacrifice his son for the sake of Allah.
He told Ismail about his dream and asked him his opinion. And the brave son of a courageous father agreed instantly. Ismail’s acceptance of Allah’s plan shows his patience, resilience, and Taqwa.
The Quran mentions this :
‘My son! I see in a dream that I am sacrificing you. See what you think.’ He said, ‘Father! Do whatever you have been commanded. If Allah wishes, you will find me to be patient.’
The father and son set out to fulfill Allah’s command. Along the way, they passed Mina, and the Shaitaan stopped them in three separate places to convince Prophet Ibrahim not to sacrifice his son. At each place, Prophet Ibrahim would gather a handful of pebbles and pelt the Shaitaan to make him disappear.
Near Mount Arafat, Prophet Ibrahim laid Ismail on the ground and was about to sacrifice him when Allah called out and replaced Ismail with a ram.
Allah was very pleased with Ibrahim and Ismail and said:
'Abraham! You have indeed fulfilled the vision! Thus indeed do We reward the virtuous! This was indeed a manifest test.'
THE BIRTH OF PROPHET ISHAAQ
Many years passed, and Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) and Sarah grew very old. One day, Angels came to visit them in the guise of guests. Initially, Prophet Ibrahim was scared of the message they brought. But the angels reassured them that they brought glad tidings.
They were informed they would have a son who, like his brother Ismail, would become a prophet! He would be named Ishaaq.
Prophet Ibrahim and Sara were shocked because they were both frail and old. But sure enough, Allah’s command came true!
The Quran mentions how Ibrahim thanked Allah: Praise to Allah, who has granted to me in old age Ishmael and Isaac. Indeed, my Lord is the Hearer of supplication.14:39
WHEN WAS THE Kaabah built?
Allah soon instructed Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) to build a place of worship for his followers: Allah’s home, or the Kaabah.
Prophet Ibrahim approached Ismail for his help in building the foundation of the Kaabah. Together they laid the foundations of the Kaabah with their bare hands. The foundation stone of the Kaabah came from Heaven: the Black Stone.
Then they built the walls of the Kaabah with stones. When the walls were too high for Prophet Ibrahim to reach, Ismail brought a big stone for him to stand upon. This stone, with Prophet Ibrahim’s footprints embedded in it, is called the Makaam-e-Ibrahim.
Allah says in the Quran:
And [mention, O Muhammad], when We designated for Abraham the site of the House, [saying], ‘ Do not associate anything with Me and purify My House for those who perform Tawaf and those who stand [in prayer] and those who bow and prostrate. 22:26
Prophet Ibrahim’s Death and Grave
Prophet Ibrahim lived a long life:175 years! His life was full of tests, trials, and tribulations. But whatever his circumstances, his faith and belief in Allah were unwavering.
His grave is located in Hebron, Jerusalem.
