Did the people near the Prophet also hear the revelation that came to him?

- The revelation that came when the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was awake was in the form of the angel’s putting it into his heart. That type of revelation is stated in the following hadith:

- Revelation came to the Prophet when he was awake too. “Ruhul-Quds blew the following into my heart: ‘No soul will die before consuming his sustenance.’ Therefore, fear Allah and seek your sustenance through legitimate ways.”

- Did the verses come to the prophet’s heart through inspiration in that type of revelation; that is, did he think what he would say, or did that type of revelation occur only related to hadiths, not verses?

- When the revelation came, there were also companions near the Prophet. Did those who were with him sometimes not hear his talk with Jibril (Gabriel) and the voice of Jibril when he read the verse to the Prophet?

Dear Brother / Sister,

 ”It is not fitting for a man that Allah should speak to him except by inspiration, or from behind a veil, or by the sending of a messenger to reveal, with Allah’s permission, what Allah wills: for He is Most High, Most Wise.” (ash-Shura, 42/51)

In the verse above, three of the forms of divine revelation are emphasized; and indirect and direct forms of revelation are pointed out.

- The way of revelation that came to the Prophet (pbuh) had different forms:

True dream: According to what Hz. Aisha states, the first revelation came to the Prophet in the form of a dream. Hz. Aisha said, “The dreams that the Prophet saw turned out to be true like the bright gleam of dawn.” (Bukhari, Badul-Wahy)

The revelation that Jibril brought without being seen. The angel sometimes put the revelation in the Prophet’s heart when he was awake without being seen.

“Ruhul-Quds blew the following into my heart: ‘No soul will die before consuming his sustenance.’ Therefore, fear Allah and seek your sustenance through legitimate ways.“ (Ajluni, Kashful-Khafa, I/231)

The hadith above indicates that type of revelation.

Jibril’s bringing revelation by being disguised as a human being. (Bukhari, Badul-Wahy, 2)

The famous Jibril hadith, which mentions belief, Islam and ihsan, shows an example of that kind of revelation. (Bukhari, Iman, 57)

Siyar books state that Jibril generally came disguised as Dihya, one of the Companions. (see Keskioğlu, Osman, Kur’a’n-ı Kerim Bilgileri, 30)

The angel’s addressing with a voice similar to the sound of a bell: According to what Hz. Aisha reported, Hz. Prophet (pbuh) said,

“I am sometimes addressed by a sound like the sound of a bell. That is the hardest type of revelation for me.” [Bukhari, Badul-Wahy, 2; For types of revelation, see also Ibn Qayyim al- Jawzi, Za’dul-Maad, (Translated by Şükrü Özen), I/24-25; Niyazi Beki, Kur’an’ın yüksek ve parlak bir tefsiri Risale-i Nur, 51-54]

 ”Move not thy tongue concerning the (Qur’an) to make haste therewith. It is for Us to collect it and to promulgate it: But when We have promulgated it, follow thou its recital (as promulgated).” (al-Qiyamah, 75/16-18)

The reason for the revelation of the verse above is as follows: According to what Abdullah b. Abbas narrates, the Prophet repeated the revelation that the angel sent down to his heart, fearing that he would forget it; in the meantime, he moved his tongue (though all parts of his body were calm during revelation). His haste is emphasized in the verse above and it is pointed out that he needs to be calm, that he will not forget the revelation, and that Allah, the owner of the revelation, will fix it in his memory. (see Razi, the interpretation of the verse in question)

- The revelation of the Quran is not inspiration. However, it was also placed into the heart of the Prophet in the form of meaning and words by Jibril.

“Verily this is a Revelation from the Lord of the Worlds: With it came down the spirit of Faith and Truth-To thy heart and mind, that thou mayest admonish. In the perspicuous Arabic tongue.” (ash-Shuara, 26/192-195)

That fact is underlined in the verses above.

- The word “Wahy” is the infinitive form of the verb (W-H-Y) and it lexically means to speak secretly, to order, to imply, to hurry, to call out, to whisper, to write (a letter) and inspiration. (see al-Jawhari, as-Sihah; Ibn Manzur, Lisanul-Arab, “WHY” item)

- That is to say, the fact that no one other than the prophet can hear the divine revelation even if others are present when the revelation is sent down is a requirement of the meaning of “secrecy” contained in the concept of Revelation.

Therefore, it is normal for the Companions not to hear the revelations and it is a requirement of the meaning of revelation.

Besides, when revelation was sent down to the Prophet (pbuh), he did not hear the voice of the angel. As it is mentioned above, “He was sometimes addressed by a sound like the sound of a bell. That was the hardest type of revelation.”

Questions on Islam