The Honored One

From the work, "Any person who has had any engagement with the topic at hand, or possesses the slightest degree of understanding, will be aware of the great esteem in which Allah Exalted holds our Prophet ¿. He singled him out for virtues and qualities too numerous to quantify, and any attempt to do so would exhaust tongues and pens.

We can glimpse the honouring of the Almighty for His Prophet ¿ from that which is stated in His Book, that which He informs us of his elevated positions, and that which He praises of his character. He encourages His slaves to hold tight to the way of the Prophet ¿ and to join him in obeying His Commands. Allah ¿ is the One who favoured His Prophet ¿ [above all creation], then purified him, then praised him on account of that, and finally rewarded him with the greatest reward. To Him belongs Grace in beginning and returning, and to Him belongs Praise and Gratitude in this world and the next.

He presented His Prophet ¿ to His creation in the most complete and perfect form, and distinguished him with beautiful characteristics and a praiseworthy manner. He had a noble way and was blessed with innumerable virtues. Furthermore, Allah Exalted supported him with the ability to perform astounding miracles and deliver irrefutable signs. These were witnessed by his contemporaries and Companions and their knowledge was passed down to those who came after them, until the understanding of this reality reached us and we were overwhelmed with his light. May the abundant praise and salutations of Allah be upon our Prophet ¿."

Al-Shifa bi Ta¿rif ¿uquq al-Mu¿¿afa, directly translated as, ‘The Remedy (or Cure) Through Recognizing the Rights of the Chosen One’, is one of the most celebrated works in the genre of Shama’il. It stands uniquely amongst the works of Qa¿i ¿Iyad as his most celebrated effort with many surviving manuscripts and commentaries found throughout the Islamic world. Shama’il is a genre of works that deals with the life, characteristics, and descriptions of the Prophet ¿ and his station.

Al-Shifa, as it is called for short, stands alone as perhaps the most thorough work in this genre, dealing with both the descriptions of the Prophet ¿, his station and his perfections, and with the rulings pertaining to one’s belief and treatment of him ¿. It is exhaustive in its treatment of the subject, expounding on topics that range from Allah’s praise of the Prophet ¿ and his status and station before Him, to the obligation of loving him and what that entails. In short, the uniqueness of this work can be attributed to its holistic coverage of the Messenger ¿.