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Truthfulness is the cornerstone of Prophethood. No lies or deceit, whether explicit or implicit, were ever heard from them. The Qur’an declares: Mention Abraham in the Book: Surely he was a most truthful Prophet (19:41); Mention Ishmael in the Book; surely, he was a man of his w

The second attribute of Prophethood is amana, an Arabic word meaning trustworthiness and derived from the same root as mu’min (believer). Being a believer implies being a trustworthy person. All Prophets were the best believers and therefore perfect exemplars of trustworthiness.

The third attribute of Prophethood is communication of Islamic truths, otherwise known as “enjoining good and forbidding evil.” We say Islamic truths because every Prophet came with the same Divine Religion based on submission to God, and had as his sole mission the commun

Intellect is another important attribute of Prophethood. In this context, it has a specific meaning: a composite of reasoning power, sagacity, intelligence, sound judgment, and wisdom far surpassing the ability of ordinary people through a sublime power of understanding. It encompasse

Infallibility is a necessary attribute of the Prophets. The original Arabic word translated here as infallibility is ‘isma, which means protecting, saving, or defending. It appears in the Qur’an in several derived forms. For example, when Prophet Noah asked his son to boar

All Muslim theologians agree that Prophets have no bodily or mental defects. As they were extraordinarily attractive in personality and conduct, they were also graceful and charming in outward appearance. They were perfect in bodily structure, handsome, and well-built. Anas says that

Although every Prophet was intelligent and endowed with a comprehensive understanding and a pure soul, these play no role in God’s choice of a Prophet. Most Prophets, including Muhammad, were unlettered and therefore were taught by God. Prophet Muhammad, despite his illiteracy,

Prophets were completely trustworthy and asked no wage for their services. This very important characteristic is mentioned five times in Surat al-Shu’ara’. All Prophets said the same thing: “I am for you a trustworthy Messenger, so serve you God, and obey you me. I a

Another indispensable characteristic is sincerity, which in this context means “purity of intention, to do everything solely for the sake of God.” We are told to worship God sincerely: They were commanded only to serve God, making the religion His sincerely, men of pure fa