Hi Americanrevert,
I agree with elts1956. For the other question, some claims of Muhammads sins (like all other prophets) are discussed below.
Note I have lifted the following from various sites (some anti-Islamic) after a quick google, but they seem to quote verses. I haven’t got a copy of the Koran with me (I’m at work at the moment).
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The Qur’an admits that the sins of Muhammad were many and that they weighed heavily on him. Sura 94:1-3 speaks of this when it says: “Have We not expanded thee thy breast? And removed from thee they burden, the which did gall thy back?” These verses indicate that Allah had to remove Muhammad’s burdens (sin) from his back. Muslims contend that these sins were committed before he became a prophet (before 610). We need only refer to Sura 48:2 which says in reference to Muhammad, “Allah may forgive thee thy faults of the past and those to follow…” indicating that even after the Sura was delivered Allah expected him to sin.
In Suras 40:55 and Sura 47:19 we find written, “…and ask forgiveness for thy fault…” This seems straightforward, until you read Yusuf Ali’s note at the bottom (4428), which explains that due to the prophet’s responsibilities he asks forgiveness in a representative capacity.
Q 47:19 has Allah telling Muhammad to repent for his sin. The Arabic is singular: You, Muhammad, repent for your OWN sins; it can NOT mean that he needs to somehow repent for his people’s sins. The Arabic grammar does not permit it.
40:55 Then have patience (O Muhammad). Lo! the promise of Allah is true. And ask forgiveness of thy sin [dh—n—b] and hymn the praise of thy Lord at fall of night and in the early hours.
The Arabic word dhanaba (verb form) come from the root dh—n—b and is defined below. This verse is unambiguous. Muhammad has sin.
47:19 So know (O Muhammad . . .) that . . . none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and ask forgiveness for your sin, [dh—n—b] and also for (the sin of) believing men and believing women. And Allah knows well your moving about, and your place of rest (in your homes). (Hilali and Khan)
The final example of Muhammad’s sin from the Koran comes from Sura 48, which was revealed during and after Muhammad’s Treaty of Hudaybiyah in AD 628. Some scholars see verses that describe Muhammad’s conquest of Mecca in AD 630. Before then, however, Muhammad signed the Treaty. He got a dream or a vision to take a pilgrimage to the Black Stone. But the Meccans understandably stopped him outside of their city. He had been harassing their caravans for six years, after all. After tense negotiations, Muhammad sues for peace, and the Treaty is the way towards that goal.
48:2 That Allah may forgive you your sins [dh—n—b] of the past and the future and complete His Favour on you, and guide you on the Straight Path . . . (Hilali and Khan)
More importantly, this verse was probably revealed in 628, barely four years before he died of a fever in AD 632. Does this mean that the messenger of Allah had sin before AD 628? This seems to be the case. To be forgiven of dh—n—b, one must have it first. So what does this say about his daily guidance for eighteen years, quite apart from his revelations, which traditions say came on him in AD 610?
How is dh—n—b defined? Is it only a small weakness? Merely a minor fault? A Muslim scholar defines it thus: “Crime; Fault; Offence; Sin; Any act having an evil result” (Omar). A western scholar defines it as “a crime, fault, sin” (Penrice).
Sometimes the lighter word, such as “fault,” is chosen as the translation in these three verses. However, other persons in the Quran had or committed dh—n—b. What were they like?
Sources:
- Abdul Mannan Omar, Dictionary of the Holy Qur’an, Noor Foundation, 2004. Omar points out that he uses, among others, the world—class dictionary by Edward Lane, Arabic—English Lexicon.
- John Penrice, A Dictionary and Glossary of the Koran, Dover, 1873, 2004.
Others in the Quran who suffer from dh—n—b
Other persons in the Quran had or committed dh—n—b. The key is to observe what they do to deserve this word and what happens to them afterwards. The following classes of people are taken from verses in the Quran listed in this Appendix, which supports this article.
(1) People generally are blessed by Allah with rain, for example, but they sin, so they are destroyed.
(2) Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph of the Bible.
(3) Jacob’s sons doubt him and call him senile and erroneous.
(4) Polytheists in Noah’s time refuse to listen to the prophet, so they are destroyed.
(5) The people of Thamud refuse to listen to a messenger of Allah and kill the she—camel, so they are destroyed.
(6) The people of Ad refuse to listen to a messenger of Allah, so they are punished.
(7) Moses committed the crime (dh—n—b) of murder before God encounters him in the burning bush.
(8) Korah rebelled against Moses in the desert, so he and his clan are destroyed.
(9) Pharaoh and the polytheistic ancient Egyptians refuse to obey Moses, so they are destroyed.
(10) The jinn (genii or spirit beings) must heed the Quran, or they will be punished.
(11) Believing Muslims have or practice dh—n—b.
(12) Prophets of old confess their sins.
(13) Jews and Christians refuse to listen to Muhammad.
(14) Bedouins mix righteousness with evil, so they have dh—n—b.
(15) If Muslims fight in the cause of Allah, then their dh—n—b will be forgiven.
(16) Unbelievers burning in hell confess their dh—n—b.
To sum up, those who possess or commit dh—n—b do the following: disbelieve, sexually seduce, rebel, murder, defy Allah, refuse his messengers, disobey clear warnings, doubt holy men, or mock sacred truths and messengers or patriarchs.
The worst sin? Polytheists commit dh—n—b because they associate other deities with Allah, who punishes or destroys most of these people, forgiving on occasion.
Therefore, how can anyone correctly say that dh—n—b means a minor “mistake” or “forgetfulness” or a small “fault” and still remain consistent with the Quran? Muhammad may not have committed every sin in the list, but surely his sin is not a small weakness.
