The narrative of Islam involves both the life of Muhammad and the model of the prophets in the Abrahamic lineage. The sources of narrative in Islam are the texts of the Quran and the hadith. The Hebrew Bible is also a source that is revered by Muslims.

Text and Community: Quran, hadith and sunna

There are two written guides for Islamic life: the Quran, a record of the prophet Muhammad’s revelations; and the hadith, which is a record of Muhammad’s sayings and actions. The Quran, as a revelation from God, is the highest guide. Hadith is a record of rulings that Muhammad made in particular cases, so it shows how the revelation may be applied in a Muslim society.

Quran

The word “quran” means “recite” in Arabic. The Quran is organized into surah or sections. Since it is revelation, the content of the Quran is considered to be the word of God and not the writing of a human being. The organization of the text into numbered verses, and the titles for each surah, however, are the work of Muslim scholars and are not considered part of the divine recitation of the Quran. Each surah has several verses. The arrangement is based on length, not on chronology or by topic. There are 114 sections or surah. The longest is as much as 300 verses.

The word “recite” is an important key to how Muhammad experienced revelation. His experiences were mostly auditory (hearing), not visionary (seeing). Muslims, therefore, understand Muhammad as reciting the words which he heard from God via Gabriel. Because of this close relationship to sound and revelation, Muslims around the world memorize and learn to recite the Quran in its classical Arabic form.

The first surah, called “The Opening” (fatihah) is used as a prayer by all Muslims:

In the name of God, the infinitely Compassionate and Merciful. Praise be to God, Lord of all the worlds. The Compassionate, the Merciful. Ruler on the Day of Reckoning. You alone do we worship, and You alone do we ask for help. Guide us on the straight path, the path of those who have received your grace; not the path of those who have brought down wrath, nor of those who wander astray. (from URL: https://sufism.org/origins/quran-islam/quranic-chapters/the-fatiha-2)

Note the theme of the day of judgment (reckoning) and the emphasis on the one God (“You alone do we ask for help…You alone do we worship”).

Hadith

The hadith are texts that record the sayings and actions of Muhammad during his lifetime. Muhammad is seen as the ideal man whose deeds should be emulated in ones own life. There are several different collections of hadith. Each story is divided into two parts:

1. Transmission of the story, isnadA few sentences at the beginning of the hadith identify how this story of the prophet was transmitted. Who heard it from Muhammad? Whom did he tell? This establishes the credentials of the hadith. If these facts are odd or appear to be manipulated, then the hadith knowledgeable Muslims may not approve it as valid.
2. Report (matn):The second part of each hadith tells the main story or event. The hadith includes the judgment or advice that Muhammad gave on the story.

The function of the hadith is to show how to live as a Muslim. How are matters decided? What is the best way of doing things to express submission to God? The hadith records how the teachings in the revelations of the Quran might be applied. They can be quite practical or more abstract, but the intention is to provide a guide for living.

Muhammad as Prophet

As we learned in the history section, Muhammad is considered to be the final “seal of the prophets”. After Muhammad, there will be no further revelations in the future. We also saw how Muhammad was seen as someone who restored the ancient tradition of Abrahamic ethical monotheism through the mercy of God in granting the revelations. In ethical monotheism, people obey the one God and, in return, are supported by Him. Islam therefore looks both to the past and to the future, with Muhammad as the pivotal point. As the shahada, the statement of Islamic faith, says, “There is no God but God. Muhammad is the Messenger of God.”

The first revelation tells us something about Muhammad. He had already been deeply involved in spiritual practices for some years. The Quran states that when Muhammad saw the vision of the angel Gabriel approach him, he did not try to avoid the encounter, but gazed steadily at it even though he was apprehensive. The angel said to him “Recite”, to which Muhammad replied: “What shall I recite?” Muhammad reports: “He took hold of me and pressed me, till I was hard pressed; thereafter he let me off and said: Recite.” The angel continues to press Muhammad three times, each time demanding that he “recite.” The last time the angel commands:

Recite in the name of your Lord Who created, created man from a clot of blood. Recite. And your Lord is the Most Generous, who taught by the Pen, taught man what he knew not. (Quran 96: 1-5; Denny 2006, 49)

The point of the story is not simply the idea that Muhammad, an uneducated person, was given the revelation. Reciting is itself part of the revelation: repeating the words of God is the act of revelation. In the narrative, we see Muhammad go through a stressful experience of confusion and difficulty until he understands that simply repeating is what is being asked of him.

This story of the first revelation supports the Islamic practice of memorizing and reciting the Quran. Muslims memorize the entire Quran in Arabic, often at an early age. They then become what is called a “walking Quran,” a person who can speak the Quran, the words of God.

Hadith also tells of the night journey, an important revelation that Muhammad experienced some time later. He had been sleeping near the Kabah during a prayer retreat when he had a supernatural experience. The angel Gabriel came to him, split open his chest and removed his heart and bowels, bathing them in a golden bowl filled with faith. He then returned these organs purified with faith into the body of Muhammad. The angel then led Muhammad to a steed named Buraq who galloped through the sky to Jerusalem, identified in the hadith as the “farthest mosque.” At Jerusalem, Muhammad prayed. The angel then led Muhammad up through seven heavens to the presence of God. At each of the heavens, Muhammad meets important people in the history of Judaism and Christianity: Mary and Joseph, the parents of Jesus, and prophets, including Moses.

When Muhammad asks what the people should do, God says that his community should say fifty prayers day and night. When Muhammad descends, Moses asks what God had asked him to do. Hearing that the command was 50 prayers, Moses advises Muhammad to go back and ask for a reduction. The story repeats this exchange between Muhammad, God, and Moses until the final result is five prayers a day.

The dramatic story of the night journey confirms a deep connection between Islam, the prophets of Judaism, and the important figures of Christianity. It also connects Islam to Jerusalem, the sacred land of ethical monotheism. The amusing negotiations between Moses, Muhammad, and God also strengthen the bond between these religions. Moses understands how hard it is to be a prophet and convince the people to obey God. Finally, the night journey is different from other revelations because in this experience Muhammad ascends to receive the revelation directly from God, rather than the revelation descending to him.

Biblical Narratives

Muslims regard Jews and Christians as connected to them as “people of the book.” This means that they value the “books” of the Hebrew Bible and the Gospels. Muslims regard the Quran, however, as the ultimate authority, especially in its interpretation of narratives from these earlier works. One of the most important narratives in Islam is about Abraham, his two wives, Sara and Hagar, and their sons, Isaac and Ishmael.

Abraham and his wife Sara were unable to produce a son and heir. Sara encouraged Abraham to conceive a son through their servant, Hagar. This was a typical solution to producing an heir when the wife was older and no heir had been born. Hagar conceived and gave birth to Ishmael. Then Sara herself miraculously became pregnant and gave birth to a boy whom she named Isaac. All was well until the boys began to grow and Sara realized that Ishmael, being older, could provide a legitimate challenge to Isaac as heir. She urged Abraham to turn Hagar and Ishmael out of the family and send her away. According to the story in the Bible, God commanded Abraham to send Hagar away.

Hagar and Ishmael were sent into the desert with water and some food. But soon, the water was gone and Hagar became desperate. She put her child under a bush to let him die naturally. Then she heard God speak: “What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not; for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Get up, pick up the child and hold onto him by your hand. I will make him a great nation.” (Genesis 21: 17-18). God then showed Hagar a well which saved their lives. Ishmael grew up and became an expert archer. Arabs trace their lineage to Ishmael, the son of Abraham and Hagar.

The story of Abraham, Ishmael, and Hagar is a foundational story in Islam and has an important role in the ritual of the pilgrimage to Mecca that Muslims hope to complete at least once in their lives.