The Arabs too, were anticipating the birth of a Messiah of their own, who was to descend from the sacred guardians of the Caaba; so that circumstances seemed to point out to the precocious youth, this road to greatness.
Well born, of insinuating manners and graceful address, noble and majestic in appearance, Mohammed became the object of affection to the wealthy widow Khatijeh, who married him, and thus riches were added to his facilities.
The great crowd of pilgrims who assembled in Mecca, afforded the Prophet constant occasions for the discussion of various systems of religious faith, until Mohammed resolved to announce himself as the completion of the revelation of God to the Jews and Christians—the predicted by Moses and Christ, who coming after them, should be the greatest of all the prophets.
To the idolatrous Arabs he proclaimed one God, omnipotent and imperishable; to the Christians he revived the unity of their Maker, and recalled to the Jews the Jehovah, whose worship they had so corrupted.
The confusion of the Asiatic states, rent with wars, tumults and heresies, wonderfully favored the spread of Mohammedanism, even beyond the warmest anticipations of the Prophet.
Arming himself with the sword, and promising the joys of paradise to every soldier of the Crescent who should die on the battle-field, he led on this wonderful prodigy of a religious faith, conquering and to conquer.
At this day there are no less than 200,550,000 Mahommedans! The Koran, or the written, is the compendium of the faith, practice and civil laws of Mussulmans, ingeniously compiled by their great Arabian Prophet, and is styled by the Faithful, The Light of God, Sole Guide to Paradise, Divine Director to Heavenly Glories, and in common parlance, The Eternal Word—Kelamu-Kadim. They acknowledge the divine origin of the Pentateuch, the Psalms of David, and the four Gospels, and upon these books, with the Koran, their oaths are taken.
The Koran declares, “Verily the true religion in the sight of God is Islam,” which is the proper name of the Mohammedan faith, and it signifies resignation or submission to the service and commands of God. It consists of two principles, Iman, or Faith, and Din, Religion or Practice.