Title: The Importance of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) Question: Can you please explain me what prophet-hood actually means? On what criteria Allah gives prophet-hood. Why does Allah loves Prophet Muhammad(p.b.u.h) above all his creations in the world. As Allah might be knowing the he would be creating Prophet Muhammad(p.b.u.h) who will indulge himself in propagating Islam. Without Allah's order a person/creature cannot do anything of his own.Then whatever the prophets used to do/know was because Allah has willed it and so they can do it.Then why is that Allah loves Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) above all his creation. Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) used to pray for his Ummat as he was shown about the punishments of his Ummat in Meraj,when the destiny of his Ummat was shown then he would definitely pray for his Ummat. Then can you please let me know th importance of Prophet Muhammad(p.b.u.h)?All the other Prophet's use to follow the Allah's word,the why is the difference? At times I feel guilty thinking about all this things,Am I showing my disrespect to Prophet Muhammad(p.b.u.h). Please clarify my doubts so that i get peace of mind. Answer: I think you are raising three questions here: On what criteria Allah gives the position of 'Prophet-hood' to a person? Whatever the prophets used to do/know was because Allah has willed it and so they could do it, why then they were credited for being prophets? Why does Allah love Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) above all his creations, including other Prophets? As for the first two questions (since they relate to each other): By reading the Qur'an it is possible to understand that while ultimately it is God's choice and blessing that gives the honour of prophethood to a human being, the person needs to have some extraordinary (but within the reach of human being) qualifications to be qualified for the choice: "And we gave to him (Ibrahim) Ishaq and Yaqoub; each did we guide, and Nuh did we guide before, and of his descendants, Dawood and Sulaiman and Ayub and Yusuf and Musa and Haroun; and thus do we reward those who do their deeds in the best of manners (Muhsenin) . And Zakariya and Yahya and Isa and Ilyas; every one was of the Muhsenin" - Al An'aam 6:84-85 Some other features that the Qur'an describes for all or some of the Prophets are: Being pious ( Saleh ) - Ala Imran 3:39 Being pure ( Mukhlis ) - Maryam 19:51 Having a heart free from any evil ( Qalban Saleem ) - Al Saffaat 37:84 While all the above features are within the reach of a human being, it takes lots of effort, sacrifice and strength for an individual to attain them. Prophets (pbut) attained the highest levels of these features. Ibrahim (pbuh), among all the Prophets, reached such a high level of these qualifications that God chose many of the Prophets from the qualified ones among his descendents. Although it is true that everything happens with God's will, this does not mean that people have no choice and they only do what God wants them to do (otherwise there were no meanings for rewards and punishments in the hereafter). God has in fact given human beings the choice to choose between right and evil. Therefore, 'human beings having choice' and 'everything happening with God's will' do not contradict each other. It is God's will that a human being has choice. The Prophets were among those rare people who made the best choices in their lives. While excellent qualifications like the ones mentioned above were prerequisites of an individual becoming a Prophet, the Qur'an tells us that even after becoming a Prophet, the Prophets of God had to go through tremendous trials and challenges to keep themselves the way that God wished them to be and to be able to accomplish their hugely demanding mission. For instance the Qur'an is full of verses that correct or remind our Prophet (pbuh) about his duties and the way he should react to others and lead his mission. The point I am trying to make is that prophethood is not like a title that God gives to a lucky human being for him to have a free ride for the rest of his life. Only exceptionally pious human beings could be chosen by God as prophets and then this was only the beginning of a very difficult and breathtaking journey for them. It is beyond our imagination to try to understand what hardships the Prophets of God went through to be able to meet the crucial covenant they had made with their Lord: "And when we made a covenant with the prophets and with you, and with Nuh and Ibrahim and Musa and Isa, son of Mariam, and we made with them a strong covenant" - Al Ahzab 33:7 As for why Allah (swt) loves Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) above all His creations, including other Prophets, it is obvious from the Qur'an that in principal Allah (swt) loves his Prophets above all his creation but there are no reliable evidences in the Qur'an to tell us that Allah (swt) loves our beloved Prophet (pbuh) above all the other Prophets (pbut). Abdullah Rahim