5.3 Indirect Revelation
The vast majority of Allaah’s revelation was conveyed to the prophets by way of the angel of revelation, Jibreel. The final book of revelation, the Qur’aan, was revealed in this way for the most part. This form of revelation reached the Prophet (ﷺ) in two ways: either in the form of the reverbrating sound like the gong of a bell, or in the form of the direct speech of the angel.
In the first case, the angel remained in a spiritual state and the Prophet (r)
was required to raise spiritually to a suitable state in which to receive the revelation. This method was extremely taxing on the Prophet (ﷺ). During it the voice of the angel resembled the loud ringing of a giant bell. The sahaabee alHaarith ibn Hishaam once asked the Prophet (ﷺ) to describe how the revelation came to him. The Prophet (ﷺ) replied,
“Sometimes it comes to me like the ringing of a bell—this is the most severe form for me—then the ringing ceases and I have understood what (the angel) said.” 20
‘Aa’ishah described the intensity of this form as follows: “I have seen him when revelation (wahy) descended upon him on an extremely cold day, yet when it stopped his forehead would be dripping with sweat.”21
The second method was much easier for the Prophet (ﷺ) to bear than the first.
In this case, the angel would leave the spiritual world, appear to the Prophet (ﷺ)
in human form and pass on the revelation in the medium of human speech. The Prophet (ﷺ) described this form to al-Haarith ibn Hishaam as follows:
“Occasionally the angel appears before me in the form of a man and speaks to me, and I grasp all that he says.” 22