European scholarly debates on the Prophet's mission
خلاف المستشرقين في البعثة المحمدية
In his chapter on the mission Arslan surveys disagreements among European scholars about the Prophet ﷺ and the sources of his preaching. He notes that French, English, German, Belgian and Dutch orientalists contradicted one another, each rejecting what another had established. He cites a Dutch scholar who thought the Prophet had a stronger religious imagination than his people, and mentions the Bahira legend as a Christian explanation. He also quotes European writers such as Carlyle who defended the Prophet's sincerity. The entry describes Arslan's debate with other authors and is not a verdict on the Prophet.
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Overview
In the chapter "The Prophetic mission", Shakib Arslan presents a debate among European scholars over the personality of the Prophet and the sources of his call. This is a presentation of the author's debate with other writers, not a judgement on the person of the Prophet. 1
What Arslan reports
He mentions that the writings of the French, English, German, Belgian, and Dutch orientalists contradict one another on the matter, and each scholar sets out what the others have refuted. He notes that some of them held that the Prophet differed from his people in the strength of his imagination and his piety. 1
He mentions that some Christian writers made the legend of Bahira the origin of the teaching of the Qur'an. He presents testimonies from fair-minded European writers such as Carlyle, and holds that they show that the image current in Europe was being reviewed. 1
A further source is needed: the scholars to whom Arslan attributes these views have not yet been checked against their original books.
Sources
- Stoddard, Hadir al-ʿalam al-islami (Arabic translation with Arslan's commentary)
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “European scholarly debates on the Prophet's mission”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/orientalist-debates-on-the-mission/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.