However in spite of all that, he did not become leader of his tribe for many reasons re-
lated to age and other circumstances on the one hand, and on the other because of Allah’s
divine wisdom and secret protection of the message of Islam from being mixed up with
worldly ambitions that insincere people are drawn to.
As a result, one of the reasons the pagan Arabs rejected Islam was because they won-
dered amongst themselves why Muhammed was chosen for this mission.
That was because they did not fully realize the virtue of his moral excellence and the spe-
cial quality of his personality. Therefore they were not of the opinion that he was better
than them or their equal rather they thought that such and such person from the great,
important men of distinction from one of the tribes should have been chosen to bring the
message. Allah the Most High says:
And they say: “Why is not this Qur’an sent down to some great man of the two towns
(Makkah and Ta’if)?” [Soorah Az-Zukhruf, Verse 31]
Obviously the pagan Arabs had no business trying to involve themselves in the matter of
Allah’s divine choosing of whomever He wills as a Prophet. Especially since they, with their
corrupt souls and confused intellect and bad natures, refused to even follow the chosen
Prophet of Allah (r)!
They even went to the extreme of requesting from Allah that every single one of them be
raised to the position of a Prophet and Messenger and that angels come to them and that
they be given revelation! As if each one of them could never follow anyone else! Allah the
Most High says:
"And when there comes to them a sign (from Allah) they say: “We shall not believe until
we receive the like of that which the Messengers of Allah had received.” Allah knows best
with whom to place Message. Humiliation and disgrace from Allah and a severe torment
will overtake the criminals (polytheists, sinners) for that which they used to plot." [Soorah
Al-An’aam, Verse 124]
They attached great importance to themselves and haughtily refused to follow another
human being even if he was a Prophet (r) who received revelation from the heavens. They
proclaimed: “If you were to obey another human being like yourselves, then verily you
indeed would be losers.” [Soorah Al-Mu’minun, Verse 34]
As a result of the importance of adhering to tribal customs regarding leadership, the
people who were from the same clan as the Messenger Muhammed (r) refused to follow
him, arguing that he was not a chieftain of their clan nor was he one who held a leadership
position amongst them. Meanwhile those who were from a different clan refused in order