(Dr. Imran Khan & Mufti. Shah Rafi Uddin Hamdani)

Literal meanings of the word ‘Revelation’ (وحی) are 'to write, point and convey the secret or message'. ¹ According to Meriam Webster, this word refers to an act of revealing or communicating divine truth or something that is revealed by God to humans. ² Cambridge Dictionary defines it as an act of making known something that was secret, or a fact that has been made known. ³

Terminologically, it refers to those words of Allah Almighty which are revealed on His Prophets. ⁴ Some people quote the Holy Quran and state that Satan also sends Wahi (revelation) to its followers, ⁵ their claim is right if the literal meaning of the revelation, i.e., communication or conveying a secret message is being referred to, and not its terminological definition. Similarly, the claims which state that Allah Almighty sends revelations to the bees (in the terminological sense) ⁶ and to Umm-e-Moosa (Mother of Moses ) ⁷ are also refuted, because in those verses, the literal meaning of the word (indicated, communicated) is being referred to.

The message of Allah Almighty (Al-Wahi) was revealed upon the Prophets via different mediums. Giving their details, Badruddin ‘Aini states:

1. Allah Almighty directly spoke to the Prophets , as Moses used to have conversations with Allah Almighty.
2. Revelation sent via an Angel.
3. Planting a thought in the mind of the Prophet. (It should be noted here that Satan could not plant any thought in the mind of a Prophet since all Prophets were protected by Allah Almighty.)
4. Being revealed in the form of Salsalatu Al-Jaras i.e., sound of an iron bell.
5. Delivered by Gabriel (جبرائیل) in the form of a man.
6. Talking to Allah Almighty directly, like the Holy Prophet did on the night of Ascension.
7. True Dreams of Prophets in which Allah Almighty communicated with them. ⁸

The revelations were revealed on the Holy Prophet via the mediums mentioned above. However, in the beginning, when Prophet Muhammad was meditating and was pre-occupied in the remembrance of Allah Almighty, he only used to see true visions in his sleep. These were revelations as well, but were not a part of the Holy Quran because these visions were Wahi Ghair Matlu ‘وحی غیر متلو’ (reports communicated by the Holy Prophet which are not part of the Holy Quran). ⁹ The revelations which are part of the Holy Quran are known as Wahi Matlu ‘وحی متلو’ (reports communicated by the Holy Prophet which are recited in Salat etc.). ¹⁰ These visions, which were Wahi Ghair Matlu, continued for a time period until Gabriel came to him with the First Revelation (Wahi Matlu). ¹¹

• ¹  Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Abd Al-Razzaq Al-Hussaini (N.D.), Taj Al-Uroos, Dar Al-Hidaya, Kuwait, Vol. 40, Pg. 169.
• ²  Meriam Webster (Online): https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/revelation Retrieved: 20-04-2021
• ³  Cambridge Dictionary (Online) https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/revelation: Retrieved: 20-04-2021
• ⁴  Abu Muhammad Mahmud ibn Ahmed Badr Al-Din Al-Aini (N.D.), Umdat Al-Qari Sharah Sahih Al-Bukhari, Dar Ihya Al-Turath Al-Arabi, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 1, Pg. 14.
• ⁵  Holy Quran, Al-Anaam (The Cattle) 6: 121
• ⁶  Holy Quran, Al-Nahl (The Bee) 16: 68
• ⁷  Holy Quran, Ta-ha 20: 38
• ⁸  Ibid, Pg. 40.
• ⁹  Alauddin Shams Al-Nazar ibn Ahmed Al-Samarqandi (1984), Meezan Al-Usool fi Nataij Al-Usool, Matabi’ Al-Doha Al-Hadeesa, Qatar, Vol. 1, Pg. 720.
• ¹⁰  Abu Muhammad Ali ibn Ahmed Al-Qurtubi Al-Zahiri (N.D.), Al-Ahkam fi Usool Al-Ahkam, Dar Al-Afaaq Al-Jadeeda, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 1, Pg. 97.
• ¹¹  Muhammad ibn Ismail Al-Bukhari (1999), Sahih Al-Bukhari, Hadith: 3851, Darus Salam, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Pg. 646.