Is it possible for the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (pbuh), to see every believer and to take care of their problems?

Dear Brother / Sister,

According to a narration from Abu Hurayra, the Prophet (pbuh) said,

“When a person greets me, Allah returns my spirit to me and I answer his greeting.” (see Abu Dawud, Manasik, 100)

In another narration from Abu Hurayra, the Prophet (pbuh) said,

“… Utter salawat to me because your salawat reach me no matter where you are.” (Abu Dawud, ibid)

The word “reach” is used in the hadith, not “are conveyed”, which clearly means salawat will reach him directly. 

According to what the scholars who explain the hadith “...Increase salawat to me on Friday because your salawat are presented to me on Friday” included in Abu Dawud and other hadith resources say, the Prophet (pbuh) becomes happy due to the good deeds of his ummah and becomes sad due to their bad deeds. According to what Ibn Hajar al-Makki states, all prophets are alive in their graves; they perform prayers but they do not eat or drink; they lead a kind of life that is peculiar to angels. Bayhaqi wrote a separate book regarding the issue. (For detailed information, see Awnul-Mabud, the explanation of the hadiths in question.)

We can see some clues that will shed light on the issue in the following explanations made by Badiuzzaman Said Nursi in the form of questions and answers:  

“If you say: Since he is God’s Beloved, what need does he have of all these blessings and supplications?"

"The answer: This Being (UWBP) is concerned with the happiness of all his community and shares in the good fortune of each of its members. So too, he is disturbed by all their tribulations. For sure, the degrees of his own happiness and perfection are endless, but since he desires ardently the numberless kinds of happiness for the numberless members of his community for an unlimited time, and is saddened at the numberless kinds of their wretchedness, he is surely worthy of and needy for endless blessings and supplications and mercy.”(Mektubat, Yirmi Dördüncü Mektup, Birinci Zeyl)

 “Now hath come unto you a Messenger from amongst yourselves: it grieves him that ye should perish: ardently anxious is he over you: to the Believers is he most kind and merciful” (at-Tawba, 9/128)

Similarly, when Badiuzzaman Said Nursi explains the verse above, he shows “the need of the Prophet (pbuh) for innumerable prayers (salawat) of his ummah” as an evidence that he is closely interested in the state of his ummah. The following statements indicate it:   

“...This verse describes the perfect compassion and mercy of God’s Noble Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace) towards his community. According to sound narrations, when at the terror of the resurrection everyone including the prophets will cry out for themselves, God’s Messenger (UWBP) will demonstrate his pity and compassion by calling out: ‘My community! My community'. As is affirmed by those who disclose the realities, when he was born, his mother heard the same words among his supplications."

"Then the whole history of his life, as well as the benevolence he taught demonstrate his perfect compassion and clemency. Also, by evincing an infinite need for his community’s innumerable prayers, he showed a boundless compassion, for he showed that because of it he was concerned with the happiness of all of them. You can understand, therefore, how lacking in gratitude and conscience it is not to observe the practices of so kind and compassionate a leader.” (Lem'alar, Dördüncü Lem'a)

Let us quote another question and answer that will help us understand the issue from Risale-i Nur Collection:

"Question: Azrail is one; he takes the spirits of those whose time of death come. Jibril was in his original form in Sidratul-Muntaha but he was disguised as 'Dihya' or somebody else when he asked the Prophet (pbuh) about belief and principles of Islam in Masjid an-Nabawi or when he conveyed something to the Prophet. Only Allah knows in how many places he is present at the same time. The Prophet (pbuh) said,

"Man raani fil-manami faqad raani haqqan" Its meaning: He who sees me in his sleep has actually seen me. (Majmauz-Zawvaid, h. no: 11754)"

"What is the key of the secrets like the Prophet’s being manifest in the sleep of thousands of ordinary people from the ummah as it is mentioned above and in a state between sleep and wakefulness for the distinguished people at the same time, hearing the greetings (salawat) of the whole ummah, meeting the whole ummah and using his intercession in the hereafter and a saint’s being seen in several places at the same time?"

"The answer: The image of a luminous being owns its characteristics; it is not other than the being itself. The mirrors of transparent bodies, which are a window of the realm of shapes and images opening to this realm, take the shape of the dense bodies without their characteristics, but with the image of the luminous being, it also takes its essential characteristics."

"For instance, if a man stands in the middle of thousands of mirrors, a person will be present in each mirror but they are without spirit, feelings and thoughts."

"However, if the sun becomes manifest in thousands of mirrors, each image does not have the nature of its greatness and level of perfection but each of them has the three properties: its heat, which is like the feeling of the sun, its light, which is like its life, its illumination, which is like its mind. The image of a luminous being is related to life. The image of a dense being is moving dead. The spirit is the most enlightened light. The unconfined images of a spirit that look from the windows of the realm of similitude, which does not accept limitations, are embodied spirits. They have their characteristics; they are not other than them." (İctimâi Reçeteler, pp. 201-202)

- The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) went from Makkah to Jerusalem, then to the heavens, sidratul-muntaha and qab qawsayn in a very short time and returned; his bed was still warm when he returned. Is it possible to say that something similar to those incidents cannot take place though those extraordinary incidents are known?

- We should not forget that no believer regards it possible that the Prophet (pbuh) or saints can do things or be present in several places at the same time all the time or whenever they want on their own, without the permission and help of Allah. Those who regard it possible are out of the scope of this issue.

Questions on Islam