DO YOU KNOW THIS PERSONALITY

ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA confirms:

".... A mass of detail in the early sources show that he was an honest and upright man who
had gained the respect and loyalty of others who were like-wise honest and upright men."
(Vol. 12)

GEORGE BERNARD SHAW said about him:

"If any religion had the chance of ruling over England, nay Europe within the next hundred
years, it could be Islam."

"I have always held the religion of Muhammad in high estimation because of its wonderful
vitality. It is the only religion, which appears to me to possess that assimilating capacity
to the changing phase of existence, which can make itself appeal to every age. I have
studied him - the wonderful man and in my opinion for from being an anti-Christ, he must
be called the Savior of Humanity."

"I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world he
would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it the much needed peace
and happiness: I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be
acceptable to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to the Europe of
today."

(Sir George Bernard Shaw in 'The Genuine Islam,' Vol. 1, No. 8, 1936.)

He was by far the most remarkable man that ever set foot on this earth. He preached a
religion, founded a state, built a nation, laid down a moral code, initiated numerous social and
political reforms, established a powerful and dynamic society to practice and represent his
teachings and completely revolutionized the worlds of human thought and behavior for all
times to come.

"HIS NAME IS MUHAMMAD" May Peace of God Be Upon Him (pbuh)

He was born in Arabia in the year 570 C.E. (common era), started his mission of preaching the
religion of Truth, Islam (submission to One God) at the age of forty and departed from this
world at the age of sixty-three.

During this short period of 23 years of his Prophethood, he changed the complete Arabian
peninsula from paganism and idolatry to worship of One God, from tribal quarrels and wars to
national solidarity and cohesion, from drunkenness and debauchery to sobriety and piety, from
lawlessness and anarchy to disciplined living, from utter bankruptcy to the highest standards of
moral excellence. Human history has never known such a complete transformation of a people
or a place before or since - and IMAGINE all these unbelievable wonders in JUST OVER TWO
DECADES.

MICHAEL H. HART in his recently published book on ratings of men who

contributed towards the benefit and upliftment of mankind writes:

"My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world's most influential persons may
surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history
who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels." (M.H. Hart, THE
100: A RANKING OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSONS IN HISTORY, New York, 1978, p. 33)

Lamar tine the renowned historian speaking on the essentials of human

greatness wonders:

"If greatness of purpose, smallness of means and astounding results are the three criteria of
human genius, who could dare to compare any great man in modern history with
Muhammad? The most famous men created arms, laws and empires only. They founded, if
anything at all, no more than material powers which often crumbled away before their
eyes. This man moved not only armies, legislation, empires, peoples and dynasties, but
millions of men in one-third of the then inhabited world; and more than that, he moved the
altars, the gods, the religions, the ideas, the beliefs and souls.... his forbearance in victory,
his ambition, which was entirely devoted to one idea and in no manner striving for an
empire; his endless prayers, his mystic conversations with God, his death and his triumph
after death; all these attest not to an imposture but to a firm conviction which gave him
the power to restore a dogma. This dogma was two-fold, the unity of God and the
immateriality of God; the former telling what God is, the latter telling what God is not; the
one overthrowing false gods with the sword, the other starting an idea with the words.

"Philosopher, orator, apostle, legislator, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational

dogmas, of a cult without images, the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and of one
spiritual empire, that is MUHAMMAD. As regards all the standards by which Human
Greatness may be measured, we may well ask, IS THERE ANY MAN GREATER THAN HE?"

(Lamar tine, HISTOIRE DE LA TURQUIE, Paris, 1854, Vol. II, pp 276-277)

The world has had its share of great personalities. But these were one-sided figures who
distinguished themselves in but one or two fields, such as religious thought or military
leadership. The lives and teachings of these great personalities of the world are shrouded in
the mist of time. There is so much speculation about the time and place of their birth, the
mode and style of their life, the nature and detail of their teachings and the degree and
measure of their success or failure that it is impossible for humanity to reconstruct accurately
the lives and teachings of these men.
Not so this man. Muhammad (pbuh) accomplished so much in such diverse fields of human
thought and behavior in the fullest blaze of human history. Every detail of his private life and
public utterances has been accurately documented and faithfully preserved to our day. The
authenticities of the record so preserved are vouched for not only by the faithful followers but
also even by his prejudiced critics.

Muhammad (pbuh) was a religious teacher, a social reformer, a moral guide, an administrative
colossus, a faithful friend, a wonderful companion, a devoted husband, a loving father - all in
one. No other man in history ever excelled or equaled him in any of these different aspects of
life - but it was only for the selfless personality of Muhammad (pbuh) to achieve such
incredible perfections.

MAHATMA GANDHI Speaking on the character of Muhammad, (pbuh)

says in YOUNG INDIA:

"I wanted to know the best of one who holds today's undisputed sway over the hearts of
millions of mankind.... I became more than convinced that it was not the sword that won
a place for Islam in those days in the scheme of life. It was the rigid simplicity, the utter
self-effacement of the Prophet, the scrupulous regard for his pledges, his intense
devotion to this friends and followers, his intrepidity, his fearlessness, his absolute trust
in God and in his own mission. These and not the sword carried everything before them
and surmounted every obstacle. When I closed the 2nd volume (of the Prophet's
biography), I was sorry there was not more for me to read of the great life."

THOMAS CALYLE in his HEROES AND HEROWORSHIP, was simply

amazed as to:

"How one man single-handedly, could weld warring tribes and wandering Bedouins into a
most powerful and civilized nation in less than two decades."

"The lies (Western slander) which well-meaning zeal has heaped round this man (Muhammad)
are disgraceful to ourselves only."

"A silent great soul, one of that who cannot but be earnest. He was to kindle the world, the
world's Maker had ordered so."

DIWAN CHAND SHARMA wrote:

"Muhammad was the soul of kindness, and his influence was felt and never forgotten by
those around him." (D.C. Sharma, THE PROPHETS OF THE EAST, Calcutta, 1935, pp. 12)

EDWARD GIBBON and SIMON OCKLEY speaking on the profession of

ISLAM write:
"'I BELIEVE IN ONE GOD, AND MAHOMET, AN APOSTLE OF GOD' is the simple
and invariable profession of Islam. The intellectual image of the Deity has
never been degraded by any visible idol; the honor of the Prophet has never
transgressed the measure of human virtues; and his living precepts have
restrained the gratitude of his disciples within the bounds of reason and
religion." (HISTORY OF THE SARACEN EMPIRES, London, 1870, p. 54)

Muhammad (pbuh) was nothing more or less than a human being. But he was a man with a
noble mission, which was to unite humanity on the worship of ONE and ONLY ONE GOD and to
teach them the way to honest and upright living based on the commands of God. He always
described himself as, 'A Servant and Messenger of God,' and so indeed every action of his
proclaimed to be.

The famous poetess of India, SAROJINI NAIDU says:

"It was the first religion that preached and practiced democracy; for, in the mosque, when
the call for prayer is sounded and worshippers are gathered together, the democracy of
Islam is embodied five times a day when the peasant and king kneel side by side and
proclaim: 'God Alone is Great'... I have been struck over and over again by this indivisible
unity of Islam that makes man instinctively a brother." (S. Naidu, IDEALS OF
ISLAM, vide Speeches & Writings, Madras, 1918, p. 169)

In the words of PROF. HURGRONJE:

"The league of nations founded by the prophet of Islam put the principle of international
unity and human brotherhood on such universal foundations as to show candle to other
nations." He continues: "The fact is that no nation of the world can show a parallel to what
Islam has done towards the realization of the idea of the League of Nations."

The world has not hesitated to raise to divinity, individuals whose lives and missions have been
lost in legend. Historically speaking, none of these legends achieved even a fraction of what
Muhammad (pbuh) accomplished. And all his striving was for the sole purpose of uniting
mankind for the worship of One God on the codes of moral excellence. Muhammad (pbuh) or
his followers never at any time claimed that he was a Son of God or the God-incarnate or a
man with divinity - but he always was and is even today considered as only a Messenger chosen
by God.

K. S. RAMAKRISHNA RAO, an Indian Professor of Philosophy in his

booklet,

"Muhammad, The Prophet of Islam," calls him the "PERFECT MODEL FOR HUMAN LIFE." Prof.
Ramakrishna Rao explains his point by saying: "The personality of Muhammad, it is most
difficult to get into the whole truth of it. Only a glimpse of it I can catch. What a dramatic
succession of picturesque scenes! There is Muhammad, the Prophet. There is Muhammad,
the Warrior; Muhammad, the Businessman; Muhammad, the Statesman; Muhammad, the
Orator; Muhammad, the Reformer; Muhammad, the Refuge of Orphans; Muhammad, the
Protector of Slaves; Muhammad, the Emancipator of Women; Muhammad, the Judge;
Muhammad, the Saint. All in all these magnificent roles, in all these departments of human
activities, he is alike a hero."

Today after a lapse of fourteen centuries, the life and teachings of MUHAMMAD (pbuh)
have survived without the slightest loss, alteration or interpolation. They offer the same
undying hope for treating mankind's many ills, which they did when he was alive. This is not a
claim of Muhammad's (pbuh) followers but also the inescapable conclusion forced upon by a
critical and unbiased history.

The least YOU could do as thinking and concerned human being is to stop for a moment and
ask yourself: Could these statements sounding so extraordinary and revolutionary be really
true? And supposing they really are true and you did not know this man MUHAMMAD (pbuh)
or hear about him, isn't it time you responded to this tremendous challenge and put in some
effort to know him?

It will cost you nothing but it may prove to be the beginning of a completely new era in your
life.