Was the memory of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) really perfect?

The Details of the Question

- I read a hadith that I found on dawahoverdunia YouTube channel that the Prophet sometimes forgot some verses of the Quran (Narrated by Sahih al-Bukhari 5038 from Aisha (ra):
The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) heard a man reciting the Quran at night and said: “May Allah have mercy on him, because he reminded me of so and so verse of so and so chapter that I had forgotten.
“ حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ أَبِي رَجَاءٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو أُسَامَةَ، عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ عُرْوَةَ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ، قَالَتْ سَمِعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم رَجُلاً يَقْرَأُ فِي سُورَةٍ بِاللَّيْلِ فَقَالَ “ يَرْحَمُهُ اللَّهُ لَقَدْ أَذْكَرَنِي كَذَا وَكَذَا آيَةً كُنْتُ أُنْسِيتُهَا مِنْ سُورَةِ كَذَا وَكَذَا “. )
(Note: I only copied and pasted the Arabic words; please forgive me if the edited words are random; I cannot speak or read Arabic)
- According to Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, the Messenger of Allah sometimes forgot the Quran and remembered it through others: Here is the hadith(!):
- Hisham narrates the following from Aisha, the mother of the believers:
 ”When the Prophet (pbuh) heard the voice of someone reciting the Quran in the mosque one day, he said: “May Allah have mercy on him! He reminded me of so-and-so verses that I had forgotten and I had omitted from so-and-so chapters!”

The Answer

Dear Brother / Sister,

- One of the greatest proofs of the Prophet’s (pbuh) memory is that he recorded all of more than 6,000 verses - every part of revelation - in his memory at once.

- However,  

“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): Nay more, it is for Us to explain it (and make it clear).” (al-Qiıyamah, 75/16-19)

It is emphasized in the verses above that the memory of the Prophet (pbuh) was not only a human memory, but also a memory preserved under the protection of Allah.

“None of Our revelations do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, but We substitute something better or similar: Knowest thou not that Allah Hath power over all things?” (al-Baqara, 2/106)

It is stated in the verse above that the abrogation of a verse or the erasure of a verse from the memory of the Prophet (pbuh) is dependent on Allah’s will. Therefore, it is never appropriate to imply that the Prophet (pbuh) may have forgotten some verses because of his memory; such an implication carries a RELIGIOUS risk.

- Every name of Allah has a manifestation. Although all the Names are manifest in every human being, some Names are manifest at a higher degree in some individuals. For example, the name Wadud is manifest some of the awliya (saints), the name Hayy in some, and the name Hakim in some. However, the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was a person in whom all the names of Allah were manifest at their maximum degree. Therefore, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is the person with the highest degree of the manifestation of Allah’s name Hafiz. Therefore, his memory was more perfect than any memory that existed, exists or will exist.

Questions on Islam

Was this answer helpful?
Author:
Questions on Islam
Subject Categories:
Read 15 times
In order to make a comment, please login or register