1. Ask A Question About Islam And Muslims
  2. Ask A Question About Islam And Muslims

Ask A Question About Islam And Muslims

7 Questions

Did Prophet Muhammad (SAW) practice any meditation before he announced his Prophethood? If so, what kind of meditation was it?
Zoheir Ali Esmail

Bismillah

Thank you for your question. It depends what you mean by meditation. If it is akin to thinking (tafakkur) or watching over oneself (muraqaba) then these are practices which are condoned in Islam and indeed recommended for people seeking a spiritual life. But as for the Prophet's own states, much of that is unknown as they are states after the station of reaching. The Prophet's (saw) spiritual journey was different to most of ours as his beginning was further than where we will end up. Every station has its practice and the Prophet (saw) had states with Allah that we cannot quite imagine as we have not experienced the like of those states. Meditation in the sense that it is discussed as a spiritual or mental practice is much below these levels.

May you always be successful
Did Prophet Muhammad (SAW) practice any meditation before he announced his Prophethood? If so, what kind of meditation was it?
Sayyed Mohammad Al-Musawi

There was No meditation at all in the life of the Prophet Muhammad (S) but he was worshipping Allah (SWT) as all the prophets used to worship Allah.

Meditation is a term used by non Muslims who do not recognise the prophetic worshipping. We, Muslim believe that spiritual uplift meant comes only through worshipping Allah (SWT) in the same way that all the prophets and Ahlul Bayt (A) performed.

Wassalam.
Meditation is normally seen as a Buddhist thing but is there any scope for it in Islam? How can we use it to gain a better relationship with our Creator, and is there anything we should definitely not do?
Zoheir Ali Esmail

Bismillah

Thank you for your question. Meditation is of many types but the most commonly discussed is where a person watches over their thoughts without judging or trying to stop them. With the passage of time, those thoughts become more silent and a person can reach a heightened state of calmness.

This type of meditation is called Muraqaba in Islamic spirituality, which literally means watching over one's self. In the beginning, muraqabah is over one's actions, it then moves onto thoughts, then a person's states and then into deeper aspects of the heart. Muraqabah is usually discussed in a three-stage system of Musharata (making conditions), Muraqabah (watching over one's self) and Muhasabah (taking one's self to account). The important point is that a person should not rush to stop thoughts or to be heavy in judging themselves negatively. Some Islamic mystics have said that Muraqabah is the most important discipline in self-purification and is applicable at every stage of the spiritual journey. 

Some scholars have also recommended spending a few moments clearing your thoughts before starting the obligatory prayers. While clearing the mind is an end in some traditions, it is an introductory aspect to worship in Islam as the mind must be ready to start to comprehend the secrets of worship.

When using techniques from any other tradition it is important to stay within the bounds of the Shariah and therefore, especially with some forms of Buddhist meditation, you must be careful not to call on anyone other than Allah in the mantras that are sometimes recited.

There is much more that can be said on the topic but I hope this answers your question.

May you always be successful.