I knew from my school days that, there is a world famous book “History’s 100 Most Influential People” and Prophet Mohammad PBUH is placed on top of the list. In those days I didn’t bother much about it. But now a days when I see the newspapers, electronic media and all sort of information channels. Islam seems to be the cause of all problems.
Why Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) tops, Michael H. Hart’s List of 100.
By Michael H. Hart
My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world’s most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels.
Of humble origins, Muhammad founded and promulgated one of the world’s great religions, and became an immensely effective political leader. Today, thirteen centuries after his death, his influence is still powerful and pervasive.
The majority of the persons in this book had the advantage of being born and raised in centers of civilization. Highly cultured or politically pivotal nations. Muhammad, however, was born in the year 570, in the city of Mecca. in southern Arabia. It was a backward area of the world, far from the centers of trade, art, and learning.
Orphaned at age six, he was reared in modest surroundings. Islamic tradition tells us that he was illiterate. His economic position improved when, at age twenty-five, he married a wealthy widow. Nevertheless, as he approached forty, there was little outward indication that he was a remarkable person.
