maturity and his intellectual powers were ready to tackle the
problems of life. Nubuwwah aimed at this result and when it was
accomplished there was no reason for the continuance of this
institution. The glorious line of Anbiya came to its natural end with
Muhammad (PBUH), the bearer of the last Revelation. Nubuwwah had
served its purpose and was no longer necessary. Modern man, with
his mature mind, does not need a personal guide: he needs general
guidance in the form of ideas and principles which are valid for all
time. These ideas and principles have been preserved for all time in
the Qur'an, which enshrines the final Revelation:
We have revealed the Book and We verily are its Guardian (15:9).
Besides this, we have in the life and character of Muhammad
(PBUH) a perfect example of the ideal human life. The sublime ideas
together with the life of Muhammad (PBUH), in which they found
concrete expression, are sufficient for the needs of all genuine
seekers after truth. We have no justification for expecting a new
revelation and no mystic or saint can arrogate nubuwwah to himself.
There is no room for compromise on this point. The claim of a
mystic, or any other person, that he receives communication from
God, cuts at the very root of the belief in the finality of nubuwwah.
The purpose of nubuwwah was to serve and safeguard man's
freedom when it was threatened both from within by his unruly
selfish passions and from without by the arbitrary power of rulers
and priests. The purpose of the abolition of nubuwwah is to widen
the scope of human freedom and to allow man to judge and decide
on all questions affecting his life. He should no longer be a slave to
custom and tradition. He should now exercise his own power of
judgment, work out his way and shape his destiny in the light of his
knowledge and with the help of the Divine Guidance enshrined in
the Qur'an. Man has now come into his own, as a free and
responsible being. He can shape his life as he likes, according to the
dictates of his reason guided by Divine Revelation preserved in the
Holy Qur'an,
VI. Belief in God without Belief in Revelation
It will be appropriate at this point to say something in defence, of
the belief in Divine Revelation. Some great thinkers in the West,
Divine Guidance^106