The Simple Life of Muhammad

If we compare the life of muhammad before his mission as a prophet and his life after he began his mission as a prophet, we will conclude that it is beyond reason to think that muhammad was a false prophet, who claimed prophethood to attain material gains, greatness, glory, or power.

Before his mission as a prophet, muhammad had no financial worries. As a successful and reputed merchant, muhammad
drew a satisfactory and comfortable income. After his mission as a
prophet and because of it, he became worse off materially. To clarify
this more, let us browse the following sayings on his life:
n Aa’isha, Muhammad’s
wife, said, “O my nephew, we would sight three new moons in two months
without lighting a fire (to cook a meal) in the Prophet’s houses.” Her nephew asked, “O Aunt, what sustained you?” She said, “The two black things, dates and water, but the Prophet had some Ansar neighbors who had milk-giving she-camels and they used to send the Prophet some of its milk.”1

n Sahl Ibn Sa’ad, one of Muhammad’s companions, said, “The Prophet of God did not see bread made from fine flour from the time God sent him (as a prophet) until he died.”2

n Aa’isha, Muhammad’s wife, said, “The mattress of the Prophet , on which he slept, was made of leather stuffed with the fiber of the date-palm tree.”3

n Amr Ibn Al-Hareth, one of Muhammad’s companions, said that when the Prophet
died, he left neither money nor anything else except his white riding
mule, his arms, and a piece of land which he left to charity.4
Muhammad lived this hard life
till he died although the Muslim treasury was at his disposal, the
greater part of the Arabian Peninsula was Muslim before he died, and
the Muslims were victorious after eighteen years of his mission.

Is it possible that muhammad
might have claimed prophethood in order to attain status, greatness,
and power? The desire to enjoy status and power is usually associated
with good food, fancy clothing, monumental palaces, colorful guards,
and indisputable authority. Do any of these indicators apply to muhammad ? A few glimpses of his life that may help answer this question follow.
Despite his responsibilities as a prophet, a teacher, a statesman, and a judge,

muhammad
used to milk his goat,5 mend his clothes, repair his shoes,6 help with
the household work,7 and visit poor people when they got sick.8 He also
helped his companions in digging a trench by moving sand with them.9
His life was an amazing model of simplicity and humbleness.
Muhammad’s
followers loved him, respected him, and trusted him to an amazing
extent. Yet he continued to emphasize that deification should be
directed to God and not to him personally. Anas, one of Muhammad’s companions, said that there was no person whom they loved more than the Prophet muhammad ,
yet when he came to them, they did not stand up for him because he
hated their standing up for him,10 as other people do with their great
people.
Long before
there was any prospect of success for Islam and at the outset of a long
and painful era of torture, suffering, and persecution of muhammad
and his followers, he received an interesting offer. An envoy of the
pagan leaders, Otba, came to him saying, “...If you want money, we will
collect enough money for you so that you will be the richest one of us.
If you want leadership, we will take you as our leader and never decide
on any matter without your approval. If you want a kingdom, we will
crown you king over us...” Only one concession was required from muhammad
in return for that, to give up calling people to Islam and worshipping
God alone without any partner. Wouldn’t this offer be tempting to one
pursuing worldly benefit? Was muhammad
hesitant when the offer was made? Did he turn it down as a bargaining
strategy leaving the door open for a better offer? The following was
his answer:

{In the Name of
God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful} And he recited to Otba the
verses of the Quran 41:1-38.11 The Following are some of these verses:

A revelation from (God), the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful; a Book
whereof the verses are explained in detail; a Quran in Arabic, for
people who know, giving good news and warning, yet most of them turn
away, so they do not listen. (Quran, 41:2-4)

On another occasion and in response to his uncle’s plea to stop calling people to Islam, Muhammad’s
answer was as decisive and sincere: {I swear by the name of God, O
Uncle!, that if they place the sun in my right-hand and the moon in my
left-hand in return for giving up this matter (calling people to
Islam), I will never desist until either God makes it triumph or I
perish defending it.}12

Muhammad and his few followers did not only suffer from persecution for thirteen years but the unbelievers even tried to kill muhammad
several times. On one occasion they attempted to kill him by dropping a
large boulder, which could barely be lifted, on his head.13 Another
time they tried to kill him by poisoning his food.14 What could justify
such a life
of suffering and sacrifice even after he was fully triumphant over his
adversaries? What could explain the humbleness and nobility which he
demonstrated in his most glorious moments when he insisted that success
is due only to God’s help and not to his own genius? Are these the
characteristics of a power-hungry or a self-centered man