The Universal Mission of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) from a Quranic Perspective

The day when, once again, God's door of blessing was opened to His servants and Hara Cave was the host to the first divine verses and welcomed the Last Prophet (PBUH) and Gabriel, Mohammad, in his heart, received divine revelation and recited, "Read in the Name of your Lord Who created …" (The Clot, verse 1). He did not know anything about these verses before, but then he recited them and was missioned to convey them to other people. However, how could it be possible for a people who have for years been accustomed to their ancestor's culture and manners to leave their tradition aside, in whole or part, and listen to the apostle of God and accept his words? How could the holy Prophet (PBUH) get his words across and accomplish his mission? Is this mission, as some orientalists claim, peculiar to a specific society, tribe or race or it applies to all people, everywhere and in all times? Is there any possible response to those who claim that the mission of the Prophet is limited to a certain time and place? The present paper is an attempt to address these issues and it arrives at the conclusion that Islam and the mission of the holy Prophet are not restricted or peculiar to a special group, but universal.