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maketeaa's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
it must take true skill to encapsulate the life of our prophet (pbuh) within a finite number of pages but lings does it wonderfully. in an accessible narrative, lings recounts not just the life hazrat muhammad (pbuh), but also the life of islam through its final messenger, creating a timeline of the major religious progressions made and how the prophet led them. he takes the time to explore the tribal complexities of arabia, the politics entrenching the religion, the impact of emigration on the community and their interactions with outsiders. but instead of a detached, impersonal account, we are told the story through the intensively human lens of the actors involved -- the love of abd al muttalib for the prophet, the prophet's shock at his meeting with gabriel, his deep friendship with hazrat abu bakr, his adoration for not just his family, but also his followers. lings humanises islam -- he shows the life of the prophet, the last messenger of allah swt, as both being breathlessly pure as its connection to the words of allah, but also strikingly simple and relatable. interspersing the text with revelations brought down to the prophet, lings produces a work that acts not just as an informative biography but almost as an instructional guide on how to live, on the most beautiful way to be human as demonstrated by the prophet (pbuh).
itsrygged's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Wonderful, amazing book
molekkasa's review against another edition
3.0
This was a sandwich. I was upset throughout the middle parts of the book, but the beginning and ending helped. A 2.5. will add more later.
Growing up as a Muslim in a predominantly Islamic country, we were taught from the beginning of our Prophet Muhammad. His humble beginnings, his soft spoken words and bringing a lot of changes back in the day. This is a person that every Muslims look up to and respected
His early years was a good read, how he became to be and the challenges up to the revelation.
The middle part though. I felt everything was flimsy and made me angry a lot of times. There was no mention on how he changed the landscape of the society at the time. The good that he brought, the things that made him be that respectable person that he is. There was no explanation to the changes he made on women's perception, in fact the only thing that was mentioned was the many wives that he got without a proper explaination (in fact it sounds that all the men, not just the Prophet, in there were only thinking of getting more wives).
What frustrates me even more was how the book was written without proper explaination. For example when there are issues arose, it's only written that the Prophet smiled without saying anything to solve the problem. It portrays Him as someone who happens to have abilities that people are astounded with and not much else. At one point I even felt like He sounded like a cult leader. There was no meat and it's so frustrating to read.
The last parts of his years were ok but honestly I couldn't get pass the middle which infuriates me so.
Growing up as a Muslim in a predominantly Islamic country, we were taught from the beginning of our Prophet Muhammad. His humble beginnings, his soft spoken words and bringing a lot of changes back in the day. This is a person that every Muslims look up to and respected
His early years was a good read, how he became to be and the challenges up to the revelation.
The middle part though. I felt everything was flimsy and made me angry a lot of times. There was no mention on how he changed the landscape of the society at the time. The good that he brought, the things that made him be that respectable person that he is. There was no explanation to the changes he made on women's perception, in fact the only thing that was mentioned was the many wives that he got without a proper explaination (in fact it sounds that all the men, not just the Prophet, in there were only thinking of getting more wives).
What frustrates me even more was how the book was written without proper explaination. For example when there are issues arose, it's only written that the Prophet smiled without saying anything to solve the problem. It portrays Him as someone who happens to have abilities that people are astounded with and not much else. At one point I even felt like He sounded like a cult leader. There was no meat and it's so frustrating to read.
The last parts of his years were ok but honestly I couldn't get pass the middle which infuriates me so.
mg2023's review against another edition
5.0
A most beautiful shakespearean narrative! Martin Lings makes the reader almost vividly live through moments from the Prophet's life. Though most of it is an account of the historical sources, his subtle commentary and illustrative narrative throughout makes it all the more enjoyable.
thegulagula's review against another edition
4.0
I had a roller coster reading this one. I was struggling to focus when the author combined a few names in 1 sentence, or even names of different Arab tribes from different places, or when archaic English was used. However, some chapters definitely left me engrossed, especially during passing away moments.
This was my second time to pick this famous book, the first time was the Bahasa version which I read half way. As it’s Ramadhan. I decided to give this book another try with the original version.
It helped me to appreciate more of the story, having performed my pilmigrage 2 months prior. I wouldn’t be able to imagine the places mentioned in the book had I not been there earlier. It gave such a difference compared to my first read.
I’d recommend this book to someone who wants to know the Prophet personally.
This was my second time to pick this famous book, the first time was the Bahasa version which I read half way. As it’s Ramadhan. I decided to give this book another try with the original version.
It helped me to appreciate more of the story, having performed my pilmigrage 2 months prior. I wouldn’t be able to imagine the places mentioned in the book had I not been there earlier. It gave such a difference compared to my first read.
I’d recommend this book to someone who wants to know the Prophet personally.
konain's review against another edition
3.0
A good book. A painstaking work. But a word of caution. "Earliest" sources are still more than a couple of centuries after Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and are likely full of errors, inconsistencies and falsehoods. Many of the sources used by Lings did not conform to that kind of scrutiny that was the hallmark of major writers of hadiths. As a result we find a number of miracles throughout, although the only miracle Prophet Muhammad SAW emphasised and cared about was the Qur'an. It was still OK, but some sequences that really bothered me are those that were exaggerated and used by the earliest Islamophobes to bad mouth the Prophet. So. Read it with a pinch of salt. And don't, if you haven't read a few of better biographies before.
hinalovestoread's review against another edition
4.0
Review originally published on Hina Loves To Read
For the full review, visit the blog.
What do I rate it?
To answer this question, I have to first answer as to what am I rating it on.
For the way it is written, I give it a 4. In between, it sort of gets confusing, Though I understand the reason for that is not on the part of the author. People in Arabia had a penchant for some names and people for the part had the same names and it got confusing as to who was being referred to at the time.
For the subject the matter of the book, I believe I am not qualified to rate that.
Thus, the rating will be a 4.
Why?
Why I believe I am not qualified for rating the subject matter is because this is sensitive information and in places also differs from what I have been hearing since I was a kid. As of right now, with my limited (very limited) research into the subject, I cannot say which incidents happened and how they happened (in some cases minute details differ from what I had previously been told).
For the full review, visit the blog.
What do I rate it?
To answer this question, I have to first answer as to what am I rating it on.
For the way it is written, I give it a 4. In between, it sort of gets confusing, Though I understand the reason for that is not on the part of the author. People in Arabia had a penchant for some names and people for the part had the same names and it got confusing as to who was being referred to at the time.
For the subject the matter of the book, I believe I am not qualified to rate that.
Thus, the rating will be a 4.
Why?
Why I believe I am not qualified for rating the subject matter is because this is sensitive information and in places also differs from what I have been hearing since I was a kid. As of right now, with my limited (very limited) research into the subject, I cannot say which incidents happened and how they happened (in some cases minute details differ from what I had previously been told).
hanzy's review against another edition
4.0
Absolutely loved the narration and the way it was written, a fresh approach from the many other ‘seerahs’ of the Prophet I’ve read before.
It started off from before the birth of the Prophet ﷺ and ended with his death detailing in on a lot of aspects of his life and Prophethood. I’m still a bit skeptic about the authenticity of the information however as the writer of this book was a Sufi scholar.
There were bits and pieces that I’d never heard of before but blended so well with the rest of the narrative that it had me questioning my own prior knowledge. It’s the only reason why I couldn’t give it 5 ⭐️s despite it deserving it very much so. It has also inspired me to do some extensive research to clarify my understanding further.
It started off from before the birth of the Prophet ﷺ and ended with his death detailing in on a lot of aspects of his life and Prophethood. I’m still a bit skeptic about the authenticity of the information however as the writer of this book was a Sufi scholar.
There were bits and pieces that I’d never heard of before but blended so well with the rest of the narrative that it had me questioning my own prior knowledge. It’s the only reason why I couldn’t give it 5 ⭐️s despite it deserving it very much so. It has also inspired me to do some extensive research to clarify my understanding further.
brujamm's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
palwashahere's review against another edition
5.0
One of the things I loved about this book was how the author started it way before Hazrat Muhammad's S.A.W birth. He introduced us to his forefathers first.
The author starts the book with an introduction of Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S) and how he became a father in his late years of age. We gradually get to know about the forefathers of Abd ull-Mutalib, Hashim and Sarah's son, and how they came to be responsible for feeding and watering the pilgrims of Kaba'h.
It was quite interesting to know that Hazrat Muhammad (S.A.W) was married to only one woman (i.e. Hazrat Khadijah R.A) till her death before he became the prophet. And that he had a dream (twice) about Hazrat Ayesha (R.A) before they got married.
This book is a masterpiece taking us from the Prophet (S.A.W)'s birth, through the great battles he led, his sacrifices, the enmity He (S.A.W) faced from his dear ones, the friends he found in strangers - all because of His (S.A.W) message, till his death.
Its was a journey!
It was my first biography of the last Prophet (S.A.W), but it won't be the last for sure (In Sha Allah).
I had some knowledge about His (S.A.W) life having read The Holy Quran with translation, also Islamic Studies being a compulsory subject for us Pakistanis, but there were still alot of things I had no prior knowledge of before reading this book. I had a great time reading it. Highly recommended to Muslims and Non-Muslims alike.
The author starts the book with an introduction of Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S) and how he became a father in his late years of age. We gradually get to know about the forefathers of Abd ull-Mutalib, Hashim and Sarah's son, and how they came to be responsible for feeding and watering the pilgrims of Kaba'h.
It was quite interesting to know that Hazrat Muhammad (S.A.W) was married to only one woman (i.e. Hazrat Khadijah R.A) till her death before he became the prophet. And that he had a dream (twice) about Hazrat Ayesha (R.A) before they got married.
This book is a masterpiece taking us from the Prophet (S.A.W)'s birth, through the great battles he led, his sacrifices, the enmity He (S.A.W) faced from his dear ones, the friends he found in strangers - all because of His (S.A.W) message, till his death.
Its was a journey!
It was my first biography of the last Prophet (S.A.W), but it won't be the last for sure (In Sha Allah).
I had some knowledge about His (S.A.W) life having read The Holy Quran with translation, also Islamic Studies being a compulsory subject for us Pakistanis, but there were still alot of things I had no prior knowledge of before reading this book. I had a great time reading it. Highly recommended to Muslims and Non-Muslims alike.