WHAT IS A MIRACLE?

The difference between miracles, karamahs and magic.

Islam defines a miracle as an extraordinary act or event that contradicts the laws of nature, and can only come about through the direct intervention of God, the Almighty Self. The Arabic word for miracles is Mu'jizah. It comes from the word Ajz, which means something that disenfranchises, that can not be resisted, unique. According to Islam, miracles are accomplished with the permission of God, by the prophets of God. Miracles are neither magic, which is defined as a trick or illusion, nor is a miracle an event produced by learned, righteous people who are not prophets of God. These events are called Karamahs. So we distinguish three categories: miracles, karamahs and sorcery.

God has sent the prophets and messengers first and foremost to guide humanity. They were people of extraordinary character, pious and trustworthy, so that people can take them as role models and follow them. They were not gods, demigods, or saints with divine attributes, but simple mortals entrusted with a difficult task. They had extraordinary qualities because they had to endure extraordinary trials and temptations to convey the message that God is to be worshiped alone.

In order for every prophet to be credible in his particular time and place, God has granted him miracles relevant, authoritative, and understandable to the people to whom they were sent. In the time of Moses, magic and magic were spread before the miracles of Moses appealed to the people that he was sent to guide them. In the time of the Prophet Muhammad, even though the great majority of them were illiterate, the Arabs were masters of the spoken word. Their poetry and poetry were considered outstanding and a model of literary superiority, and the miracles of Prophet Muhammad, God's peace and blessings be upon him, were of that nature and many more. The miracle granted to Prophet Solomon was his unique kingdom. At the time of Jesus, the Israelites were well known for their knowledge in the field of medicine. Accordingly, the miracles he accomplished were of this nature, and included the replaying of the eyesight, the healing of leprosy, and the bringing to life of the dead.

A Karamah is an extraordinary event or matter brought by the hand of a believer who obeys God, refrains from sin, and whose piety is very high from God's point of view. Unlike a miracle done in public so that people recognize the truthfulness of a prophet, a karamah usually only uses the one given it. A Karamah could contain things, such as knowledge, power, or something amazing, like the Karamah granted to Usayd ibn al-Hudayr, a Companion of the Prophet Muhammad. A group of angels in a cloud of light donated Usayd shadow when he recited the Qur'an. A Karamah also appeared for Maryam, the mother of the Prophet Jesus.

A miracle yields only good and is given by the prophet of the Almighty as a sign of its credibility. This is associated with extraordinary morality and good character, as well as a message of kindness.

Magic can also produce something extraordinary, but magic can not produce good. It is practiced by bad people and it is accomplished by claiming and approaching the devils' help. Miracles can not be learned or undone while magic can be learned, destroyed and undone.

The meeting of the Prophet Moses with the wizards at Pharaoh's court explains the difference between magic and miracles.

The sorcerers understood that Moses did not perform any trick or illusion as they had done. They got on well with deceptions and knew that Moses performed a miracle. Therefore, they accepted the truth and fell before God, knowing that this would bring them death because they had disobeyed Pharaoh.

There are two types of miracles: those that occur at the request of men who demand a sign of the credibility of the prophet who was sent to them, and the second type that occurs without being requested. An example of the first kind is when the people of the prophet Saleh demanded that from behind the mountain a camel mare with her foal emerge. And just as the unbelievers in Mecca asked the Prophet Muhammad to show them a miracle, he showed them the splitting of the moon. One of the companions of Prophet Muhammad mentioned this event when he said, "We were at the Messenger of God in Mina when the moon was split in two, one part was behind the mountain and the other part was on that side of the mountain God's Messenger said to us: "Be witnesses for this."

An example of the second type is what happened when the tree trunk wept and longed for the Prophet Muhammad. He, the Prophet, used to do his Friday sermon, leaning against the palm trunk. One of his followers suggested building a pulpit for him and they did. Then the tree began to whine after him like a child when the Prophet stood in the pulpit the following Friday.

Muslims believe that the Qur'an itself is a miracle. The Prophet Muhammad said, "Every prophet has been given miracles by which their people believed them, but I have been given a divine revelation that Allah has revealed to me, so I hope that my followers will surpass the followers of other prophets on the Day of Judgment . " The Prophet Muhammad indicated that the Qur'an itself is the greatest miracle of all time; he is a wonderful book full of wonders of all kinds. His revelation, his literary excellence and his content, including scientific, prophetic and historical information, all contribute to the status of the Qur'an as a miracle.