The Prophet Muhammad is a hero for all mankind. In his lifetime he established a new religion, Islam; a new state, the first united Arabia; and a new literary language, the classical Arabic of the Qur’an, for the Qur’an is believed to be the word of God revealed to Muhammad by the angel Gabriel. A generation after his death he would be acknowledged as the founder of a world empire and a new civilisation.
Any one of these achievements would have been more than enough to permanently establish his genius. To our early twenty-first century minds, what is all the more astonishing is that he also managed to stay true to himself and retained to his last days the humility, courtesy and humanity that he had learned as an orphan shepherd boy in central Arabia. If one looks for a parallel example from Christendom, you would have to combine the Emperor Constantine with St Francis and St Paul, an awesome prospect.
Barnaby Rogerson’s elegant biography not only looks directly at the life of the Prophet Muhammad, but beautifully evokes for western readers the Arabian world into which he was born in 570 AD.
The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ A Biography
65,00 $
Publisher : Abacus (2 September 2004)
Language : English
Paperback : 272 pages
ISBN-10 : 0349115869
ISBN-13 : 978-0349115863
Dimensions : 13 x 2.2 x 19.6 cm
Best Sellers Rank: #11 in Biographies of Religious Leaders & Figures
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Customer reviews: 72 ratings
| Publisher : | Abacus (2 September 2004) |
|---|---|
| Language : | English |
| Paperback : | 272 pages |
| ISBN-10 : | 0349115869 |
| ISBN-13 : | 978-0349115863 |
| Dimensions : | 13 x 2.2 x 19.6 cm |
| Best Sellers Rank: | #11 in Biographies of Religious Leaders & Figures |
| Customer reviews: | 72 ratings |
Zain Ul Abideen –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific ☺️
Fantastic
Jigsawman –
Top quality product & service
Incredibly reasonable price for this book, and it arrived on the first day of the delivery window. Condition of book was, if anything, better than advertised.Very impressed with the service, I’d definitely recommend.
Alp –
great source of understanding the greatest man ever walked on …
people who believe existing of the supreme creator whether you call it Allah or God should read this book. great source of understanding the greatest man ever walked on earth.
3 people found this helpful
MANNY –
Inspite of clearly Teaching A Path of Love Peace and Shunning Violence
Inspite of clearly Teaching A Path of Love Peace and Shunning Violence. JEHAD has become the most misused concept OF the People of the FaithAll religions faith EQUALITY OF THE SEXES and being good to all plus living a SIMPLE LIFE and avoiding opulenceMany of us have forgotten the basic tenets of HIS TEACHINGS
One person found this helpful
peter smith –
Prophet Mohammad peace be apon him
I wanted to understand more about the life of the prophet and this book describes appropriately the life at his time. It gives me a greater understanding
Guy M. Martin –
A very readable insight into the birth of Islam
I wanted to get away from the bias and prejudice of the press and find a balanced account of where Islam comes from and what it is about. Barnaby Rogerson is a great story-teller and brings the story of Muhammad vividly to life. This is a must read for non-muslims who want to know more.
3 people found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Five Stars
This is a good book every good or bad, muslim or otherwise could read to understand things better.
Javed –
Interesting Reading
It is well written account of the Prophet’s life. However, at many places the author makes observations that makes one wonder! The inferences drawn at multiple locations appear to be in conflict the way Muslims believe. The problem with Western writers (non-Muslim) is they tend to rationalize events and injunctions as if Prophet mohammad recited the Quran on his own accord. It is because they cannot comprehend Divine intervention and revelations. The account must be read with other biographies of the Prophet to get a balanced narration.
3 people found this helpful
jbarnabasl –
Rebalancing the account
The life of the Prophet Muhammad has always polarized opinion in the West. After 9/11 and 7/7 it has become increasingly difficult to find balanced accounts of Islam and its founder. Having read Robert Spencer’s “The Truth About Muhammad”, which was relentlessly hostile, I was looking for something rather more sympathetic about Muhammad’s life. I found it in Barnaby Rogerson’s book.Rogerson is an excellent storyteller, a professional, in fact. In the preface, Rogerson tells how, when taking Western tourists around Roman sites in a Muslim country, he heard groups of men sitting around in cafes telling tales from the days of the Prophet as if they were fresh and new. “I was on the side of a good story,” says Rogerson. “The life of the Prophet Muhammad is a story of overpowering pathos and beauty. It is history, tragedy and enlightenment compressed into one tale.” And that’s how Rogerson tells it.He has the knack of taking the reader into the picture, of conjuring up the sights and sounds and smells of Arabia in the days of Muhammad. And he gives us a sense of the struggles that Muhammad and his early followers went through, of the Prophet’s family, and of the harsh life of the Arabs in the desert. He tells it in the end as a tale of triumph over challenge, but never implies that victory was a foregone conclusion.But – and it is a big but – I was conscious throughout that Rogerson had omitted much of the very difficult episodes of Muhammad’s apparent cruelty that Spencer includes in his book. In fact, my first reaction to Rogerson’s book was that he was a Romantic, that he had to some extent sentimentalized Muhammad’s story and had evaded these difficult episodes. The problem with writing a biography of Muhammad that is accessible and readable for the non-scholarly Western, non-Muslim reader (which is what I am) is that the writer must inevitably abbreviate the story and cannot really acknowledge the difficulties that a historian would have with the very limited primary sources for the life of Muhammad.This is not to say that Rogerson avoids reference to sources. In fact, he has included a useful note on sources, as well as a timeline, maps, profiles of the main characters in the story, and a glossary of the 99 Names of God. But the main issue, as with all historical material, is one of interpretation. What do the various episodes mean? What frame of reference do we wish to put on the story of Muhammad? Spencer starts with harshly negative assumptions and sets out to prove what he already believes about Muhammad. Rogerson, on the other hand, starts with positive assumptions and sets out to show the beauty and majesty of Muhammad’s life.I have to admit I was repelled by Spencer and beguiled by Rogerson. Beguiled, but always a tad suspicious that he was carried away with the story and not conscious enough of where there could be difficulties and different views of what he was asserting about Muhammad. Somehow, I heard the echoes of Fitzgerald’s translations of the Rubaiyyat of Omar Khayyam in Rogerson’s voice.Never mind, I shall now read Rogerson’s “The Heirs of the Prophet Muhammad” and move on to the next part of the story of Islam. It is essential that we understand Islam’s history and try to avoid the hatred and prejudice that so many in the West accept as the “proper” reaction to Islam. However, we must also acknowledge that extremist voices have captured the attention of the media and, indeed, of the Muslim community. It is my belief that any form of religious extremism is, as Baha’u’llah, Founder of the Baha’i Faith says, “a world-devouring fire”.
60 people found this helpful
Nathik –
Good place to begin
A good primer on the history of Rashidun Caliphate. As with all primer, lacks solid historical analysis.
One person found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Five Stars
Happy with the purchase – promptly delivered. Thanks.
J R LIM –
Five Stars
My children are well educated
Yspain –
Five Stars
Thanks
Luki –
Good book
Very good book
Ishaq Mulla –
Five Stars
Thanks
Paul Duggan –
Essential for understanding the history of Islam, its teachings …
Essential for understanding the history of Islam, its teachings, and the present state of affairs in the Middle East.
2 people found this helpful
Ozzz –
Poor attempt
Nothing in this book is new. Its a very confused attempt to impress multiple audiences and in retrospect satisfies nobody. The work and the paper quality leave much to be desired. The book was not written from the heart its a shabby attempt of someone who travels a lot. Lot of factual mistakes.
One person found this helpful
Ms S Shahima –
Beautifully written, so clear and simple
Beautifully written, so clear and simple
Adil Hussain –
Well written. Not too “scholarly”. Easy to read.
I find it incredibly bizarre how few good, simple, well-written, easy-to-read biographies there are of the Prophet Muhammad in the English language. Martin Lings’ biography is oft-cited by Muslims as the one to read but, truth be told, it doesn’t read like a novel. A bit too scholarly – dry, overly detailed – I found it to be. In terms of language and readability, this one by Barnaby Rogerson is the best I have read so far. Not entirely brilliant but within it is a decent biography of the Prophet Muhammad. I recommend skipping – or skimming over – the second and third chapters on your first read as a lot of it is just boring, bloated, unnecessary history and geography about the old Arabia. The fourth chapter is where the biography really takes off. Sure the book is littered throughout with some strange claims but if you can get past that – and in the absence of other, better, biographies of the Prophet Muhammad in the English language – this is one of the easiest to read.
7 people found this helpful
Jaffary –
The Heirs Of The Prophet Muhammad: And the Roots of the Sunni-Shia Schism
This book is good condition and not damaged at all, but the title is The Heirs of Prophet Mohammad, this is the general explanation of Heirs after the prophet and really an interpertation or explanation of events as per the thought of school of Sunni / Wahabi outlook not the Shia perspective.
One person found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Three Stars
A reasonable read with good attempt at impartiality
Ulric Thiede –
Five Stars
just superbly written and highly informational for an European with little knowledge of Muhammad and the rise of Islam
Asad –
very interesting
a very interesting book about a great person.
Zain Ul Abideen –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific ☺️
Fantastic
Jigsawman –
Top quality product & service
Incredibly reasonable price for this book, and it arrived on the first day of the delivery window. Condition of book was, if anything, better than advertised.Very impressed with the service, I’d definitely recommend.
Alp –
great source of understanding the greatest man ever walked on …
people who believe existing of the supreme creator whether you call it Allah or God should read this book. great source of understanding the greatest man ever walked on earth.
3 people found this helpful
MANNY –
Inspite of clearly Teaching A Path of Love Peace and Shunning Violence
Inspite of clearly Teaching A Path of Love Peace and Shunning Violence. JEHAD has become the most misused concept OF the People of the FaithAll religions faith EQUALITY OF THE SEXES and being good to all plus living a SIMPLE LIFE and avoiding opulenceMany of us have forgotten the basic tenets of HIS TEACHINGS
One person found this helpful
peter smith –
Prophet Mohammad peace be apon him
I wanted to understand more about the life of the prophet and this book describes appropriately the life at his time. It gives me a greater understanding
Guy M. Martin –
A very readable insight into the birth of Islam
I wanted to get away from the bias and prejudice of the press and find a balanced account of where Islam comes from and what it is about. Barnaby Rogerson is a great story-teller and brings the story of Muhammad vividly to life. This is a must read for non-muslims who want to know more.
3 people found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Five Stars
This is a good book every good or bad, muslim or otherwise could read to understand things better.
Javed –
Interesting Reading
It is well written account of the Prophet’s life. However, at many places the author makes observations that makes one wonder! The inferences drawn at multiple locations appear to be in conflict the way Muslims believe. The problem with Western writers (non-Muslim) is they tend to rationalize events and injunctions as if Prophet mohammad recited the Quran on his own accord. It is because they cannot comprehend Divine intervention and revelations. The account must be read with other biographies of the Prophet to get a balanced narration.
3 people found this helpful
jbarnabasl –
Rebalancing the account
The life of the Prophet Muhammad has always polarized opinion in the West. After 9/11 and 7/7 it has become increasingly difficult to find balanced accounts of Islam and its founder. Having read Robert Spencer’s “The Truth About Muhammad”, which was relentlessly hostile, I was looking for something rather more sympathetic about Muhammad’s life. I found it in Barnaby Rogerson’s book.Rogerson is an excellent storyteller, a professional, in fact. In the preface, Rogerson tells how, when taking Western tourists around Roman sites in a Muslim country, he heard groups of men sitting around in cafes telling tales from the days of the Prophet as if they were fresh and new. “I was on the side of a good story,” says Rogerson. “The life of the Prophet Muhammad is a story of overpowering pathos and beauty. It is history, tragedy and enlightenment compressed into one tale.” And that’s how Rogerson tells it.He has the knack of taking the reader into the picture, of conjuring up the sights and sounds and smells of Arabia in the days of Muhammad. And he gives us a sense of the struggles that Muhammad and his early followers went through, of the Prophet’s family, and of the harsh life of the Arabs in the desert. He tells it in the end as a tale of triumph over challenge, but never implies that victory was a foregone conclusion.But – and it is a big but – I was conscious throughout that Rogerson had omitted much of the very difficult episodes of Muhammad’s apparent cruelty that Spencer includes in his book. In fact, my first reaction to Rogerson’s book was that he was a Romantic, that he had to some extent sentimentalized Muhammad’s story and had evaded these difficult episodes. The problem with writing a biography of Muhammad that is accessible and readable for the non-scholarly Western, non-Muslim reader (which is what I am) is that the writer must inevitably abbreviate the story and cannot really acknowledge the difficulties that a historian would have with the very limited primary sources for the life of Muhammad.This is not to say that Rogerson avoids reference to sources. In fact, he has included a useful note on sources, as well as a timeline, maps, profiles of the main characters in the story, and a glossary of the 99 Names of God. But the main issue, as with all historical material, is one of interpretation. What do the various episodes mean? What frame of reference do we wish to put on the story of Muhammad? Spencer starts with harshly negative assumptions and sets out to prove what he already believes about Muhammad. Rogerson, on the other hand, starts with positive assumptions and sets out to show the beauty and majesty of Muhammad’s life.I have to admit I was repelled by Spencer and beguiled by Rogerson. Beguiled, but always a tad suspicious that he was carried away with the story and not conscious enough of where there could be difficulties and different views of what he was asserting about Muhammad. Somehow, I heard the echoes of Fitzgerald’s translations of the Rubaiyyat of Omar Khayyam in Rogerson’s voice.Never mind, I shall now read Rogerson’s “The Heirs of the Prophet Muhammad” and move on to the next part of the story of Islam. It is essential that we understand Islam’s history and try to avoid the hatred and prejudice that so many in the West accept as the “proper” reaction to Islam. However, we must also acknowledge that extremist voices have captured the attention of the media and, indeed, of the Muslim community. It is my belief that any form of religious extremism is, as Baha’u’llah, Founder of the Baha’i Faith says, “a world-devouring fire”.
60 people found this helpful
Nathik –
Good place to begin
A good primer on the history of Rashidun Caliphate. As with all primer, lacks solid historical analysis.
One person found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Five Stars
Happy with the purchase – promptly delivered. Thanks.
J R LIM –
Five Stars
My children are well educated
Yspain –
Five Stars
Thanks
Luki –
Good book
Very good book
Ishaq Mulla –
Five Stars
Thanks
Paul Duggan –
Essential for understanding the history of Islam, its teachings …
Essential for understanding the history of Islam, its teachings, and the present state of affairs in the Middle East.
2 people found this helpful
Ozzz –
Poor attempt
Nothing in this book is new. Its a very confused attempt to impress multiple audiences and in retrospect satisfies nobody. The work and the paper quality leave much to be desired. The book was not written from the heart its a shabby attempt of someone who travels a lot. Lot of factual mistakes.
One person found this helpful
Ms S Shahima –
Beautifully written, so clear and simple
Beautifully written, so clear and simple
Adil Hussain –
Well written. Not too “scholarly”. Easy to read.
I find it incredibly bizarre how few good, simple, well-written, easy-to-read biographies there are of the Prophet Muhammad in the English language. Martin Lings’ biography is oft-cited by Muslims as the one to read but, truth be told, it doesn’t read like a novel. A bit too scholarly – dry, overly detailed – I found it to be. In terms of language and readability, this one by Barnaby Rogerson is the best I have read so far. Not entirely brilliant but within it is a decent biography of the Prophet Muhammad. I recommend skipping – or skimming over – the second and third chapters on your first read as a lot of it is just boring, bloated, unnecessary history and geography about the old Arabia. The fourth chapter is where the biography really takes off. Sure the book is littered throughout with some strange claims but if you can get past that – and in the absence of other, better, biographies of the Prophet Muhammad in the English language – this is one of the easiest to read.
7 people found this helpful
Jaffary –
The Heirs Of The Prophet Muhammad: And the Roots of the Sunni-Shia Schism
This book is good condition and not damaged at all, but the title is The Heirs of Prophet Mohammad, this is the general explanation of Heirs after the prophet and really an interpertation or explanation of events as per the thought of school of Sunni / Wahabi outlook not the Shia perspective.
One person found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
Three Stars
A reasonable read with good attempt at impartiality
Ulric Thiede –
Five Stars
just superbly written and highly informational for an European with little knowledge of Muhammad and the rise of Islam
Asad –
very interesting
a very interesting book about a great person.