Before the Lord of the Universe (pbuh) was given the duty of prophethood, how was religious, moral and social state of humanity and world?

Before the Lord of the Universe (pbuh) was given the duty of prophethood, how was religious, moral and social state of humanity and world?

Dear Brother / Sister,

It would be useful to recognize and to know the moral state of the humanity and the world before the Lord of the Universe (pbuh) was given the duty of prophethood. Only then can we understand how the Messenger of Allah saved humanity from a religious, spiritual, intellectual, social and political darkness and aberration in such a short time!
Through the end of Gregorian sixth century…
It was a century in which nightmare of unbelief, heedlessness and immorality haunted humanity intensively and tried to drown it with all its power… There were outstanding countries which were important for the world at that time: Byzantine, Persia, Egypt (al-copt), India, Alexandria, Mesopotamia, China, etc. In these countries:

A) There was not a correct belief system

People of that time were writhing in remorse of unbelief and false beliefs and they almost lost their minds and did not know what they were doing.
They worshipped natural events happening in the universe and things which were the works of the Divine Power. They prostrated before stars, fire, lifeless stones and woods as if they were gods.
Since the souls and hearts were buried in darkness, deprived of belief in One and Only Allah, they would not say “Everything is the work of the Divine Power” and thus they considered the universe meaningless, absurd and pointless. Those poor people lacking belief, knowledge and wit were unable to think, in such wretchedness, to such a degree that they considered the book of the universe which contains thousands of mysteries and wisdom masterless and meaningless although they knew that a single letter, a single word or a book could not come out without a master…
The world, in this pitiful state, needed and was waiting for a prophet to convey people the belief of Oneness, belief in existence and oneness of Allah, and to purify humanity’s hearts and souls off idolatry, unbelief and heedlessness.

B) People were Discriminated and Separated into Classes in All of Those Countries

People were separated into classes such as the rich, the poor, the powerful, the weak, the ordinary, the elite, the slaves and the lords. There was a great disconnection and gap between the rich and the poor, and the public and the government.
There was quite a tension between classes. Because of the cruelty, unfairness and tyranny of high-class people, low-class people were like a powder keg ready to explode at any time. To put an example, let us have a look at the situation in Iran (Persia) of that time:
“Like most of the primitive tribes, Persians were separated from each other totally and were divided into four classes, the first three of which (higher classes) were totally isolated from the fourth one. The first three classes consisted of people from Magi tribe, who were priests called Magupat or Mobed, and judges, warriors and officials. The fourth class consisted of farm workers and craftsmen.”
The so-called class of public consisted of free city people and captives and slaves (serfs) bound to agriculture and the duties of the latter ones were to work on farms and for army without any wages. They could not ever imagine being promoted to “city-people”, who can make use of their wealth and properties freely, from which they have been separated by unsurpassable limits…”
The situation in the East Roman Empire was even more pitiable and cautionary: “The Public was separated into many subsidiary classes. They were as follows:

1) The class named “Curule” which consisted of land owners who were neither accepted into army nor could attempt to do any trade.

2) Tributaries, just like their counterparts in Persia, included people who had no land of their own, who paid tax of population, and were bound to guilds which passed from fathers to sons.

3) Military class.

As an author said on the issue; “Farmers, who planted the land, were nothing but instruments which fed and dressed the royal family.”
An eminent historian of the Middle East, Finlay, described the miserable situation of the East Rome as follows:
“No community whose morals were so deteriorated and no nations who lacked self-control and virtues like the Greeks and the Romans in history had ever been seen as the ones who lived in the period of time between the death of Justinian (528-565) and the birth of Muhammad.”
People in Europe were left in the cruel hands of aristocrats, chevaliers, ecclesiastics, kings and barbarians. They were not any different from lifeless items and dumb animals for those. They were bought and sold anytime. They did not have any right to object. The ones who were sold were considered slaves from then on or if not slaves, they would become servants who had no right or power of disobeying their owners. None of them had the right of disliking their owners or choosing their owners. Their only right was this: In some barbaric countries, a servant, on condition of paying his owner a certain price, could leave and work for another owner. It was a big offer for them.
In all of the other countries outside the Arabian Peninsula, people were separated into classes which treated each other with hatred and enmity.
This miserable world needed a great prophet who would declare that human beings were the most precious of all the beings which Allah created on the earth and that they all descended from the same father and thus, all of them had the same rights to the same extent, and that everyone was born free, owning these rights, and who would change the hatred and enmity among people for love, respect and friendship. The World was urgently in need of that great prophet to come soon.

C) Slavery was an Official Institution in all of These Countries

Human beings are reverend and honorable. However, appreciation of this fact is only possible with true belief.
People of that time whose hearts were deprived of this true belief, of course, were unaware of the honorability of the humankind, of the fact that the humankind was the most reverend species on the earth and they would of course be barbaric enough to sell and buy their fellow beings.
Poor people who were called slaves were sold and bought in auctions in markets just like ordinary goods. Owners were fully authorized to insult and torment their slaves and make them work however they wanted.
The humankind was in desperate need of someone who could give an end to this barbarity and unappreciativeness, of a guide who would not begrudge of anyone his light of mercy, like the sun.

D) Conflict between Sects would not seem to End

In Christian countries, the creed of “tawhid (oneness of God)” which was conveyed and taught by Prophet Jesus was replaced by the perverted belief of “trinity”. Clergymen had invented a whole different religion instead of the religion conveyed and taught by Jesus. In all countries, and especially the East Roman Empire, incredible torment and cruelties were made in the name of religion. Historians put forward the case of Patrician Phocas who poisoned himself in order to escape from being converted into Christianity by force, as an example.
People who converted from Mazdaism, the religion in Persia, to any other religion or who betrayed this religion were sentenced to death mercilessly. Scratching one’s eye out, crucifixion, stoning, starving to death were amongst common kinds of death.
Although China was developed in terms of civilization with Confucius, it was experiencing the most chaotic days of its history and facing the danger of the fall of the country just before the Sun of Bliss (Hazrat Muhammad) emerged. Civil wars were indispensable. People were fighting each other to death because of disagreement between sects.
Abyssinia was suffering from civil wars at the time Islam emerged.

E) Immorality was to be Found Everywhere in Those Countries

People lacking in virtues, morals and fears which are the results of belief in Allah were involved freely in all kind of immoral acts which tread upon honorability and purity of the humankind. Gambling, alcohol and immoral parties were amongst daily routines. Cases of murder, fornication, rape and incursion which never seemed to decrease almost swept the blessed and divine meaning of the humankind away from the earth.
Here is an example:
Moral values were so deteriorated in the Byzantine Empire that the Patriarch of Constantinople himself solemnized the marriage between the Emperor and his own niece.
Women were nothing but items which were bought and sold.
Yes, the end of sixth century A.D. was the century of such barbarism, unbelief, idolatry, ignorance and cruelty. All kinds of anarchy, blasphemy, various perverted belief systems and all kinds of disgrace were ruling the world in this century.
Maybe the world had not witnessed and had not been the place of such perversion, immorality, barbarism and violence since the creation of humankind.
Having no a spiritual guide, the humankind was flowing crushing on stones on its way like an untamed river. And with every crush, it was losing a bit of its heart, soul, consciousness, and honor. All the mortal doors it knocked on hoping for help said that they could not help and closed the door.
The people of the world, who did not know and recognize Allah, and could not find the true aim which He declared through His prophets, almost had the personality of a monster. Like monsters, which are ready to eat someone up any time, they were storming all over the world with the winds of anarchy and enmity, with aggressiveness and cruelty, and shedding blood everywhere.
The humankind was like an orphan. The Universe was mournful. The earth reminded a place of mourning. Everyone was enemy to each other; everything was considered to be meaningless, lifeless, and aimless.
Sorrowful screams of the humanity, deprived of a true guide, were echoing in the skies; the universe, with all its particles and the sun, was crying over this miserable situation of humanity.

In short, the whole world had been surrounded by a cloud of a disgusting shirk, ignorance, unbelief, torment and immorality. That cloud needed to be torn away with the unique light of a fresh, spiritual sun which dazzles eyes, spirits and hearts so that the world would be enlightened again.
That Sun of Bliss had to rise in the horizon of humanity so that the sorrowful faces might have a smile. So, the Universe, from its particles, sun, mountains, stones, to human beings and animals would not be considered meaningless and useless any more. So it would be known and comprehended that everything was a letter of Allah, written to be displayed to people. So unbelief would be replaced by pure belief, cruelty would be replaced by justice, enmity by peace, ignorance by knowledge and pain by bliss. So, every believer would be brothers and friends. So, the anger of the universe would turn into joy. Thus, the stars would smile and atoms would dance like mawlawis. Thus, the sun and the moon, the earth and the sky would continue to do their jobs with love and eagerly.
And so the humankind would know that the wisdom and reason why it was brought out of the darkness of nothingness and hosted on the earth is to know Allah, to believe in and to worship Him. Thus, they would reach true peace and happiness.

What was the religious life, moral life and social life like in Arabia before the Prophet (pbuh) was given the duty of prophethood?

Arabia - which covers a significant place in terms of politics, geography and trading on the world map - was not any different from other countries. In Arabia, too, everything was in a miserable, disgraceful situation except for language and literature.

Religious Situation

In terms of belief, Arabia was absolutely suffering in anarchy. Weird beliefs were to be found everywhere in Arabia.
Some of the people were unbelievers. They would not accept anything other than life on the earth and say, “What is there but our life in this world? We shall live and die, and nothing but time can destroy us” (1), they used spent their lives in entertainment only.
When the Honorable Messenger began to receive revelations, Allah would address those people with the following words:
“Say: "It is God Who gives you life, then gives you death; then He will gather you together for the Day of Judgment about which there is no doubt": But most men do not understand.” (2)

And some of Arabs used to believe in Allah and the Day of Judgment, however, they would not admit the presence of a prophet. The Quran describes these people with the following verse:
“What kept men back from belief when Guidance came to them, was nothing but this: they said, "Has God sent a man (like us) to be (His) Apostle?” (3)
They could not comprehend how a prophet could be from the humankind and thought it should have been an angel for this duty. The Quran, with its following verse, told those people how unreasonable their claim was:
“If there were settled, on earth, angels walking about in peace and quiet, We should certainly have sent them down from the heavens an angel for an apostle.” (4)
And some of them believed in Allah; however, they would not believe in the afterworld, in resurrection after death and punishment and reckoning in the hereafter.
The Quran points out to this group of people with the following verse:
“And he makes comparisons for Us, and forgets his own (origin and) Creation: He says, "Who can give life to (dry) bones and decomposed ones (at that)?" (5)
And the Quran answers those people with the following verse:
“Say, "He will give them life Who created them for the first time! For He is Well-versed in every kind of creation!” (6)
And another group of them worshipped idols. This group was the majority. They worshipped idols which they made of stones, wood and sometimes of halwa and said:
“We only serve them so that they may bring us nearer to God.” (7)
Yes, the majority of Arabs used to worship idols which were made of stones, wood and sometimes of halwa when they were in wartime, and they were in a miserable and disgraceful state of hoping help from them. They had filled Baytullah, the first house of Tawhid on the earth, with 360 idols. Hazrat Umar, who is known for his justice after being honored with conversion into Islam, told a memory of his about worshipping idols in the Era of Ignorance:
“There were two things we did in the Era of Ignorance. When I remember them, one of them makes me cry and the other makes me laugh. What makes me cry is this: We used to bury our daughters alive. I do not know how we could do this to those innocent and miserable babies in need of compassion. Whenever I remember this, my heart breaks and I cannot help crying.
As for the one which makes me laugh: There were idols in our houses in the Era of Ignorance. When we were on travel, we would make a statue of them from flour or halwa and worship them, respect them during travel. When the travel lasted longer, we would become hungry and eat our idols made of halwa, which we had respected before. Is there anything funnier than it? Whenever I remember it, I realize what silly things we had done in the Era of Ignorance and I laugh at that”.
However, traces of religion of Tawhid conveyed by Prophet Abraham were seen in Arabia as well. People who used to follow these religious traces, despite the heedlessness and the long time that passed since then were called “Hanif”, with regards to Abraham. As a matter of fact, the word “Hanif” is used for Abraham in the Quran:
“Abraham was not a Jew nor yet a Christian; but he was hanif (translated as “true” in English translations) in Faith” (8)
People called “Hanif” hated idols and believed in the existence and oneness of God. As a matter of fact, in a funfair which was organized in the honor of one of the idols, Waraqa bin Nawfal, Ubaidullah bin Jahsh, Uthman bin Huwairith and Zaid bin Amr, who considered it despicableness to prostrate before idols which cannot speak, hear and cannot give anyone harm or benefit, and declared it clearly. 9
There were people who were able to understand that it was meaningless to worship lifeless idols by using their reasoning and struggled against this false belief. Umayya bin Abi Salt, the leader of Taif tribe and famous Arabian poet, was one of them. He read the holy books in the Era of Ignorance and converted from idolatry to the religion of Abraham. He was the first poet who found the expression of “Bismika Allahumma”. Later, Arabs liked this expression and started to write it at the beginnings of their books. He mentioned about the necessity of a prophet in his poems and stated that prophethood was an indispensable need for humanity. Since he found out from the holy books that a prophet would come out from Arabs, he desired to be the one. For this reason, when Muhammad was given the duty of prophethood, he became a victim of jealousy and grudge, and eventually did not accept him. Moreover, he cited his poems for the idolaters who were killed in the Battle of Badr. (10)
A few hadiths were narrated about Umayya, who died in the second year of the Migration (Hijrah) without faith, from the Honorable Messenger. The Messenger was one day riding with Sharid bin Suwaid at his back. He asked the Companion: “Do you know anything about Umayya’s poems?” The Companion answered: “Yes, I do.” And he started to recite some of his poems. Having liked the poems so much, the Messenger asked Sharid to recite some more. The Companion finished reciting the whole poem. And the Messenger said:
“Umayya was very close to being a Muslim.” (11)
In another narration, the Messenger said: “Umayya’s poems had faith yet he stayed in aberration himself.” (12)
In this context, another one whose name we would mention is, for sure, Quss bin Saidah one of the famous Arabian rhetoricians. Later, we will talk about the khutbah of this person, who heralded the prophethood beforehand.

Idols

There is a story about how idols were brought to Makkah first: Amr bin Luhay is the first person who brought idols to the city and encouraged people to worship them. When Amr went to Damascus, he passed by somewhere called Maab and he saw a tribe descending from Noah there, worshipping idols. When he asked them why they were worshipping idols, they answered: “We ask for help from them and we are helped; we ask for rain and we get rain.” Upon this, Amr wanted an idol from them in order to take it to Makkah. They accepted it and gave him an idol named Hubal. Amr took Hubal with him to Makkah and put it there. He encouraged people to worship it. Ignorant people became convinced and started to worship idols.
This is how the first idol was brought to Makkah and how people started to worship idols.

Every Tribe had a Different Idol of Their Own

After that, idolatry started to spread in Makkah. Every tribe had a different idol of their own. People of Quraish used to consider Uzza as the greatest idol and worship it. Tribes of Aws and Khazraj used to worship an idol named Manat. This idol was somewhere called Mushallal between Makkah and Madinah. Later, these two tribes started to worship idols called Lat and Uzza, in addition to Manat. The idol of the tribe of Kalb was Wad and it was somewhere called Dumatu’l-Jandal. The tribe of Huzail used to worship an idol called Suwa. It was in Ghatafan. One branch of the tribe of Hamdan, Haywan, used to worship an idol called Yauk. It was somewhere about Hamdan. Tribes of Tayy and Nasr used to worship an idol called Yaghuth. And the people of Himyari tribe used to worship Nasr. Sons of Bakr and tribe of Kinana used to worship Sa’d.

The tribes mentioned above used to worship those idols and ask for help, rain and victory from them. According to their belief, these lifeless, soulless items made of stones or wood were capable of making their wishes come true. However, anyone who is sane enough knows and agrees that lifeless, soulless items can neither give benefit nor cause harm to people. They have neither capability nor power to help people. Nevertheless, Arabs of that time were so unreasonable that they could not even think of that.
So, Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah was going to come in order to save those people suffering from ignorance and aberration in terms of faith, with the light of knowledge and righteousness. He was going to undertake the duty of giving them light and peace.

Moral Situation

Moral situation of Arabia in the Era of Ignorance was desperately miserable. People were slaves of their wretched desires and aims… Alcohol, fornication, lying, theft, torment, cruelty and whatever else there is of immorality were spread all over Arabia.
Cruelty was the most merciless whip used against the weak by the strong. The strong ones were always the right ones. They could have the weak and powerless ones do whatever they want by force. Humans and human life were not cared even as much as a fly. People who were captivated with incursions were killed suffering in torments or sold in markets like simple items as slaves. Women were just a material which could be bought and sold. Owners of young maids used encourage them to commit fornication, and even force them into fornication in order to make money through them. The Quran mentioned about this event which does not comply with human dignity and prohibited them from doing this disgraceful tradition:
“Let those who find not the wherewithal for marriage keep themselves chaste, until God gives them means out of His grace. And if any of your slaves ask for a deed in writing (to enable them to earn their freedom for a certain sum), give them such a deed if ye know any good in them: yea, give them something yourselves out of the means which God has given to you. But force not your maids to prostitution when they desire chastity, in order that ye may make a gain in the goods of this life. But if anyone compels them, yet, after such compulsion, is God, Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful (to them)” (13)
A woman could live with more than one man at the same time. Such a woman used to declare this to public by planting a pole on the roof of her house.
A step-mother was inherited to her step-son from her husband just like a household item.

The Tradition of Burying Little Girls Alive

Some of the Arabs living in the desert used to consider it a sign of an upcoming disaster, a shameful thing to have a daughter. For this reason, when their daughters were born, cruel fathers used to bury them alive under the ground or throw them into wells, sometimes even without letting anyone see them. They tried to prove this cruel tradition right by putting forward some imaginary reasons. They used to say: “They will grow and taint our honor one day, or they will become miserable. Moreover, they will become a burden on us because of their living expenses and we will not be able to meet their needs.”
Sometimes a mother would have a hole dug up in the ground when the birth drew near. When the baby was born, if it was a girl, they would throw her into the hole right away and cover it with earth.
Fathers used to dress up their daughters, whom they decided to kill, in beautiful dresses as if they were taking them for a visit to relatives, and used to take them to the desert. Poor children would be put into the graves which had been prepared for them and buried alive. If they did not want to kill their daughters, they would dress them in thick, woolen gowns and isolate them from society by sending them away as sheep herders.
The Quran tells about this barbaric tradition of Arabs living in desert to us with the following verse:
“When news is brought to one of them, of (the birth of) a female (child), his face darkens, and he is filled with inward grief! With shame does he hide himself from his people, because of the bad news he has had! Shall he retain it on (sufferance and) contempt, or bury it in the dust? Ah! What an evil (choice) they decide on!” (14)
Someone who had applied this barbaric tradition in the Era of Ignorance and later became a Muslim told this case to the Messenger in tears as follows:
“O Messenger of Allah! We are a people who had lived the Era of Ignorance. We used to worship idols and kill our daughters. I used to have a daughter. She used to come to me in joy when I called her. One day I called her again. She came running and followed me to a well which was not so far from our house. I held her hand and threw her into the well. Her last words to me were: Daddy! Daddy!”

The Lord of the Universe could not help crying upon hearing this violent memory. He cried so much that his beard got wet with his tears. Then he said:
“Verily, Allah leaves what you did in the Era of Ignorance there, unless you do them again. He does not transfer them into the Era of Islam.” (15)
In those times, high characteristics called compassion and mercy were uprooted and thrown out of souls, hearts and consciousness. As a matter of fact, there can never be compassion and mercy in a heart in which there is no place for true belief in the Sultan of the Universe and for fear of the Sultan.

Political System

Arabia did not have a proper political system and social system in the Era of Ignorance. The majority of the people were leading a nomadic life. They were separated into tribes. A tribe is a community which determines its own social system. These nomadic tribes were continuously in conflict with each other. They had a lifestyle in which they were always ready to attack one another. Incursion and plunder were their means of livelihood. They used to attack an enemy tribe of theirs and take away their camels, and captivate their women and children.
There was not any time during which there was peace between them. If a tribe wronged another tribe, that tribe would try to revenge on it with the philosophy of an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. Wars, fighting and incursion were so rooted in their souls and lives that they would fight each other if they could not find any hostile tribe to fight against. Poet Qutami means to express it with his lines “If we cannot find anyone else, we will attack Bakrs, who are our brothers.” (16)

They had been living as tribes and clans for a long time. They had never thought of gathering around a central government. For this reason, the Peninsula was deprived of civilized and social laws. Eventually, there were always cruelty, conflicts, battles and fights. Anyone could do anything he wanted if he had enough power. Anything that the powerful and reputable people did would never be punished. (17)

Literary Situation

In addition to all of these, it is an unobjectionable fact that Arabs were at the zenith of talent in literature, rhetoric and eloquence at the time Islam emerged. There were not any nations who could challenge them in this issue all over the world. Poetry and poets meant everything for them, because, poetry was the only trusted mirror which showed them the social life, traditions and beliefs of their ancestors. Poets were deemed very important in the society and they were highly respected. Arabs would even prefer a famous poet to come out of their tribes rather than a hero. As a matter of fact, it was only a poet who could spread their fame, which was their only aim. They were afraid of poets’ satires as they were afraid of snakes. Poets were considered heroes. Tribes could wage war against each other because of a single word of a poet. And yet, an enmity which had been going on between tribes could come to an end with a single word of poets.
In old times, poetry was called “Arab’s Notebook”. Frankly, Arabs’ moral values, traditions, religion and rules could be known only through poems and passed over to generations. In those times, there were many factors supporting and encouraging poetry. A strong poet would enable both himself and his tribe to be respected.
Moreover, funfairs organized at specific times played an important role in the development of poetry. These funfairs were a kind of literature fair. Poetry and rhetoric competitions were organized in the presence of juries in those funfairs. Poets and rhetoricians coming from various places used to recite their poems and make their speeches and do their best to beat each other. They were very proud of beating one another. At last, juries would choose the winner and the winning poem would be written with golden letters on a linen fabric and hung on the wall of the Kaaba.
Suq Uqaz, which was between Taif and Nahla, was the largest of all the funfairs. Mostly, poetry competitions were organized there…
Funfairs used to serve also as a sort of fair in which all tribes would come together for commercial, social and political activities. Funfairs organized in the month of Dhul-hijjah lasted for 20 days. Everyone who wanted to save a captive with ransom, to sort out a case, to find their enemy, to recite poems and to make speeches would rush into the funfairs. “Importance attached to poetry served to the result of the language being deeply investigated.” Eventually, literature, eloquence and rhetoric were at their zenith in Arabia by the time Islam emerged. So to speak, an invisible hand was readying minds and souls for the preternatural style of the Miraculous Quran.
Because Arabs had an outstanding talent in literature, the Quran was sent down at the zenith of literature, rhetoric and eloquence. It challenged Arabian litterateurs, poets and rhetoricians to spar with its miraculousness and conciseness. However, it was not long before that they understood that it was impossible to excel this unique book and had to quit.
The style of the Quran is so concise, so sweet, so clear and so fluent that Arabs who were experts on literature could not hide their surprise. One day, one of Arab fellahs’ leader read the verse “Therefore expound openly what thou art commanded, and turn away from those who join false gods with God.” (18) and fell down in prostration, losing himself. This infuriated idolaters. They pointed their hateful looks on him and shouted out:
“You became a Muslim too?”
“No”, said the fellah litterateur. “I just prostrated before the eloquence and fluency of this verse.” (19)
Imru’l Qais was one of the poets of Muallaqa. One day, his sister heard the verse “Then the word went forth: "O earth! Swallow up thy water, and O sky! Withhold (thy rain)!" and the water abated, and the matter was ended. The Ark rested on Mount Judi, and the word went forth: "Away with those who do wrong!” (20), she went to the Kaaba right away and took her brother’s poem down, which was hung on the wall at the top of all other poems and said: “Nobody has got something to say any more. Even my brother’s poem cannot stand before this eloquence.” When others saw that the most famous poem was taken down, they took down the other poems one by one, too. (21)
The most famous and the oldest examples of poems of the Era of Ignorance are definitely the poems of “Muallaqat as-Sab’a” (Seven hangers). These poems were passed around and around, and reached the time when the Quran was sent down. It is strongly thought that these poems were collected by Hammad ar-Rawiya.
The poets whose poems were hung on the walls of the Kaaba are as follows:
Imru’l Qais, Tarafa, Labid, Zukhair, Amr bin Kulthum, Antara (a.k.a. Nabigha), Haris bin Hiliza (a.k.a. A’sha).

The religious, moral, political, social and literary state of Arabia at the time Hazrat Muhammad was about to be given the duty of prophethood was like that…
Of course, there was a need for a person who would change this scene of violence and barbarism. That person was already decided by the command of pre-eternal Fate: Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).

He was going to change world’s physical and metaphysical face with the Divine Light he brought with him… He was going to turn people’s faces from world to the otherworld, from mortal lovers to the Eternal Beloved One and by doing this, he was going to provide people with worldly and unworldly happiness.
This person who was going to be assigned as a prophet by Allah was going to declare that people were not on their own, and everything in the universe from atoms to Solar systems, from stars to galaxies were wandering for a divine reason, and that universe was in the service of a sublime reason.
This person was going to save humanity from the marsh of immorality, in which they were swamping, by teaching them the most beautiful lessons of morality.
He was going to answer the questions such as “Why was the universe created?” “Where did the human beings come from?” and “Why did they come and where are they going to go?”
This person was going to inform people about Allah, who is the owner of the human beings, of what He wants from humans, what He likes and what He dislikes clearly.
This person was going to guide not only a specific tribe or a specific nation but also the whole humankind with orders he would take from Allah.
The Arabian Peninsula, too, like the whole world, was looking forward for that person to come in order to complete such significant duties.

References
1. al-Jathiya 24
2. al-Jathiya, 26
3. al-Isra, 94
4. al-Isra, 95
5. Ya Seen, 78
6. Ya Seen, 79
7. az-Zumar, 3
8. Aal-i Imran, 67
9. Ibn-i Hisham, Sira, 1/237-238
10. Baghdadi Muhammad Fahmi, The History of Arabic Literature: 1/19
11. Zabidi, Tajrid Translatiob: 10/38-39.
12. Baghdadi Muhammad Fahmi, The History of Arabic Literature: 1/43
13. an-Nur, 33
14. an-Nahl, 58-59
15. Darimi, Sunan, 1/34
16. Ahmad Emin, Fajr'l-İslam, Trnsl: Ahmed Serdaroğlu, p.37.
17. Ahmad Emin, Fajr'l-İslam, Trnsl: Ahmed Serdaroğlu, p.37-38
18. al-Hijr, 94
19. Ahmed Cevdet Paşa, Kısas-ı Enbiya, 1/78; Badiuzzaman Said Nursi, Sözler (The Words), p. 350
20. Hud, 44
21. Ahmed Cevdet Paşa, Kısas-ı Enbiya, 1/79; Badiuzzaman Said Nursi, Sözler (The Words), p. 416
Salih Suruç

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