By: Seyyed Ali Shahbaz 
     
“In the Prophet of Allah, certainly there is for you an Excellent Exemplar, for those who look forward to Allah and the Last Day, and remember Allah greatly.” (Holy Qur’an 33:21)
We are on the eve of one of the grandest day in the history of civilization. It is the 17th of Rabi al-Awwal the day the Almighty Creator of the universe decided to bring into the world His Last and Greatest Messenger – Prophet Muhammad (SAWA).
It would be repetitive to say that he was born in the monotheistic Bani Hashem Clan descended from Prophet Ishmael (AS), the firstborn of that great iconoclast, Prophet Abraham (AS) 
A detailed account of the noble ancestors of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) is outside the scope of this brief newspaper column. However, I cite here a famous hadith, narrated by our Sunni brethren as well, and which quotes the Prophet himself as saying: 
“(The Archangel) Gabriel told me: I turned over the easts and the wests of the Earth but did not find anyone superior to Muhammad, then [again] I turned over the easts and the wests of the Earth but did not find any clan superior to the Bani Hashem).”
It is clear from the wordings of this hadith that the Messenger of Mercy was neither born among the polytheists of Arabia nor in any uncouth, ill-mannered, and unprincipled Arab household. 
In other words, terrorism and violence were alien to the nature of the posthumous son of Abdullah; the orphan of the pious lady, Amena bint Wahb; the grandson of the Leader of the Quraish, Abdul-Muttaleb; and the nephew of the Shaikh al-Bat’ha (Elder of Mecca) Abu Taleb. 
The reason I have cited these few names is to emphasize the pure and pristine nature of the Best of God’s creation, who says of his creation: “I was constantly transferred from the loins of the pure ones to the wombs of the pure ones.” 
Now we understand the phrase in the “Ziyarah” or standard form of salutation to Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) that reads: 
“I bear witness that you were (descended) through pure loins and chaste wombs.”
Another point worth stressing here is that, the person prophesied by such great Messengers of God, as Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and others in different ages and various lands, was not just the greatest of them all, but was the offspring of a long line of “Awsiya” or Legatees, of Ishmael.
Entrusted by God with the universal message of Islam, his mission was to bring hearts closers by removing differences and doubts, and to help build the morally sound and peaceful society, where everybody including those that were not yet Muslim and still adhered to what they believed as the ways of the other prophets, should live in peaceful co-existence. 
His invitation to the People of the Book, and his debates and accords, for instance, with the Christians of Najran, indicate these facts. 
Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) was thus the finest example of the perfect-ever person in every sense of the term. He was a paragon of virtue and the most Excellent Exemplar for the human race. The Almighty distinguished him from all others by instilling in his sublime personality such fine qualities as modesty, truthfulness, kindness, patience, loyalty, honesty, courage, bravery, generosity, magnanimity, wisdom and the like.
By studying his lofty characteristics and the amazingly simple life that he led with his household, companions, wives and others, we are able to learn valuable lessons from his conduct and accordingly mould our own lifestyle. 
Our society could never be an Islamic one unless we sincerely tread the footsteps of Allah’s final Messenger to all humanity, heed his sayings, and emulate his practice and behaviour (Sunnah & Seerah), as the faithful among his companions did.
This means to desist from whatever he has forbidden, and obey whatever he has bequeathed to us, especially his last and final public proclamation on God’s commandment at the memorable gathering of Ghadeer-Khom regarding the prime position after him of his dear cousin, ward, son-in-law, and vicegerent Imam Ali (AS). 
To be more precise, since Prophets are infallible and immune from sins and faults, so shall be their legatees – untainted by vices and idolatry. 
As the one and only Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (AS) has said is in record as saying: “By Allah, neither my father Abu Taleb ever worshipped idols, nor my grandfather Abdul-Muttalib, nor his father Hashem, nor his father Abd Munaf. They prayed facing towards the Ka’ba and followed the religion of Abraham.”
No wonder, it is highly recommended to visit the shrine of Imam Ali (AS) in Najaf or to salute him from afar on the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA), in view of the undeniable fact that since Prophets are the emissaries of God, their Vicegerents should also be Divinely-designated.
It is also crystal clear that the advent of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) was foretold in the Evangel, the Torah, and the previously revealed heavenly scriptures, as well as in the religious texts of the Zoroastrians, the Hindus, and others – parts of this prophecy is still preserved in spite of the tampering by interlopers that these books have gone through.   
For instance, in Deuteronomy (18:15) we read the prophecy to Moses:       
“I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren (Ishmaelite Arabs), like unto thee, and will put My Words into his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto My Words which he shall speak in My Name.”
In the Gospel of St. John (18:7-14) we find the following prophecy of Jesus:
“I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. How be it when he, the Spirit of truth (the Comforter), is come, he will guide into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me; for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.”
The Holy Qur’an confirms these prophecies. For instance, Ayah 6 of Surah Saff quotes the tidings of Prophet Jesus (AS) to his followers, some six centuries before the birth of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA):
“O Children of Israel! Indeed I am the Prophet of Allah to you, to confirm what is before me of the Torah, and to give the tidings of the Prophet to come after me, whose name is Ahmad.”
In short, since we are celebrating the birth of the Best of creation, we should scientifically probe the exemplary life of the Best of Creation; the legacy he left, for whom, and did those who claimed to be the political representative of the Prophet of peace, follow his advice and formula for unity, especially the following hadith:
“I am leaving behind among the you the Thaqalayn (Two Weighty Things); the Book of God (Qur’an) and my progeny the Ahl al-Bayt; hold fast to them and you will not go astray, for the two never separate with each other even when they return to me at the Fountain (of Kowthar on Resurrection Day).”