Rasūl

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rasūl ( Arabic رسول 'Messenger, messenger, apostle ', plural rusul ) is a term from the vocabulary of the Koran , which is used for Mohammed , certain other prophets and occasionally for angels . The term also occurs in the Islamic Creed , the second part of which reads: I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of God أشهد أنّ محمدا رسول الله / ašhadu anna muḥammadan rasūlu Llāh . The expression Rasūlu Llāhi (“Messenger of God”) is therefore often synonymous with Mohammed.

In contrast to the Arabic term Nabī (“prophet”), which the Koran only used for Mohammed in the late Meccan period, the term rasūl already appeared at the end of the early Meccan period. In addition, the following prophets are referred to as Rasūl in the Koran :

  1. Noah ( Nuh ), 26: 106-107
  2. Salih , 26: 142-143
  3. Lot ( Lut ), 26: 161-162
  4. Jitro ( Schuaib ), 26: 177-178
  5. Moses ( Musa ), 19:51
  6. Ishmael ( Ismail ), 7:54 pm
  7. Eber ( Hūd ), 11: 58–59
  8. Jesus ( Isa bin Maryam ), e.g. B. 2: 253, 4: 171
  9. Mohammed ( Muhammad ), e.g. B. 33:40

The term Rasūl also refers to angels in some places . Thus the angels of death are referred to as messengers of God (7:37 and 6:61). In the Koran, the two terms nabi and rasul are not sharply demarcated from one another. Prophets like Musa (Moses), Isa (Jesus) or Mohammed are called both Nabi and Rasul .

literature

  • WA Bijlefeld: A prophet and more than a prophet? Some observations on the quranic use of the terms 'prophet' and 'apostle' . In: Muslim World 59 (1969), pp. 1-28.
  • AJ Wensinck: Art. "Rasūl" in The Encyclopaedia of Islam. New Edition Vol. VIII, pp. 454b-455a.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Tilman Nagel: Mohammed. Life and legend . Munich 2008, p. 178