Teaching methodology of Prophet Muhammad (peace be

upon him)
[A Paper prepared for presenting in a seminar organized by Asian University of Bangladesh]

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was a perfect teacher and instructor. As
wonderful people like Abu Bakr and `Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) were
all his students, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) enjoyed brilliant teaching
methods. Prophet (PBUH) also declared himself as Teacher ‘Buwastu-muallimun i.e. I
have been sent down as a teacher.’

No wonder, Allah, Glory be to Him, has decreed the Prophet Muhammad (peace
and blessings be upon him) to be an ideal example for all Muslims to follow. In this
context, Allah Almighty says, "Verily in the Messenger of Allah ye have a good
example for him who looketh unto Allah and the last Day, and
remembereth Allah much." (Al-Ahzab: 21)

In bringing up his Companions, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon

him) adopted various educational methods. Following are some of them-

1. Using illustrative parables:

Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah
(peace and blessings be upon him) saying, 'Behold! Can anything of his dirt
remain on the body of any one of you if there were a river at his door in
which he washes himself five times daily?' They said, 'Nothing of his dirt will
remain (on his body).' He said, 'That is like the Five Prayers by which Allah
obliterates sins.'" (Reported by Muslim)

2. Short, Direct and Clear (SDC):

Prophet (pbuh) was short, direct, and clear in his speech. Being moderate he didn’t
use to give lectures always. He (pbuh) used to have gap in between. There is a
hadith that, one could literally count the fingers when he (pbuh) gave
lectures.

3. Being joyful in advice so that his Companions would not get bored:

In this context, we recall the incident when a man came to the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him) and said, "O Messenger of Allah! Give me a mount." The
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "We shall give you a she-
camel's child to ride on." He said, "What shall I do with a she-camel's child?"
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied, "Do any others than
she-camels give birth to camels?" (Reported by Abu Dawud)

4. Considering the state of the addressee:

Abu Wa'il reported that `Abdur-Rahman used to give a religious talk to the people
on every Thursday. Once a man said, "O Abu `Abdur-Rahman! (By Allah) I wish if
you could preach us daily." He replied, "The only thing which prevents me from
doing so, is that I hate to bore you. No doubt, I consider your state in preaching by
selecting a suitable time just as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)
used to do with us, for fear of making us bored." (Reported by al-Bukhari)

5- Narrating stories:

An-Nu`man ibn Bashir reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)
said, "Allah is more pleased with the repentance of His believing slave-servant than that
of a person who set out on a journey with a provision of food and drink on the back of
his camel. He went on until he came to a waterless desert and he felt like sleeping. So
he got down under the shade of a tree and was overcome by sleep, and his camel ran
away. As he got up he tried to see it (the camel) standing upon a mound, but did not
find it. He then got upon the other mound, but could not see anything. He then climbed
upon the third mound, but did not see anything until he came back to the place where
he had been sleeping previously. And as he was sitting (in utter disappointment) there
came to him his camel, till that (camel) placed its nose string in his hand. Allah is more
pleased with the repentance of His slave-servant than the person who found (his lost
camel) in this very state." (Reported by Muslim)

6. Gradual teaching:

The Quran was gradual in correcting the people's faith, manners, acts of worship, legal
system, societal interactions... For all of the above, Prophet Muhammad explained and
implemented the teachings of the
Quran as they were revealed.

7. Places of knowledge:

As is well-known, the first Islamic 'school' was the house al-Arqam in which Muslims
gathered during the Meccan era, away from the disbelievers of Quraysh to learn Quran
and Hadith.
Moreover, the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) would constantly study
the Quran and its explanation and interpretation (ie: the Hadith of the Prophet- peace be
upon him) amongst each other wherever they got the chance. Thus, Hadith was
memorized and studies along side the Quran from the earliest days of Islam.

At a later stage, the masjid became the house of spreading knowledge and Islamic rulings
(fatwa), in addition to a place for performing acts of worship.

Nevertheless, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) did not confine the spreading
knowledge to a particular place. He would be asked questions on the street or in a
gathering and would not hesitate to answer. We know from the stories of the companions
that the Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) would often sit with them, teaching and
purifying them.
8. Practical application:

The Prophet (peace be upon him) would teach his companions a few verses of the Quran
at a time, explaining to them the meanings and the fiqh rulings in the verses. The
companions would learn the verses, understand their meaning, implement them in their
daily lives, and only then would they move on to learn more verses.

Many of the greatest companions learnt the Quran this way, 10 verses at a time, including
Abdullah ibn Masoud and Uthman bin Affan.

9. Speaking to people at their level:

The Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) was always conscious of the background,
education, and culture of his audience - always addressing them at their level, with words
they would comprehend and to which they could relate. He (peace be upon him) used to
identify the learners and organize the content appropriate to their level.
Example: There is a hadith that “Whoever says La Ilaha Illallah, will go to Jannah.”
Rasul(peace be upon him) has asked his companions not to spread this hadith to general
people as somebody can misinterpret it taking it as literally.

10. Facilitating:

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) stayed away from excessive strictness in
worship and rulings and would choose the paths which would bring ease to the people, in
any matter. The Prophet (peace be upon him) encouraged his companions to truly
understand the matters of their deen (way of life, i.e.: Islam). He would instruct them to
ask questions on matters they were ignorant of, and forbid them from giving a fatwa
without sufficient knowledge.

11. Teaching women:

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) paid attention to the teaching of women, just
like he did to the teaching of men. He would dedicate a special time to sit with the
Muslim women answering their questions and teaching them their deen.

12. Using Questions & Debates:

He (peace be upon him) questioning techniques. Ex. Who is a Muslim? The one from
whom no harm will come or from people will remain safe from whom.

13. Qias/ Using Analytical Example:

Once a companion asked the Prophet (pbuh) that his mother intended to do Hajj but
she died before performing hajj. Then what to do? Rasul (pbuh) replied if it
happened like this way that your mother died keeping debt/ loan. Then what would
be your responsibility. i.e. it is an obligation.
14. Using Diagrams and drawings:

Prophet(pbuh) ones draw a straight line then lines left and right. The straight is the
straight line (Siratul Mustakim) and others are destruction.
In our classes there are people who needed other activity other then lectures. Only
20% learning get through lecture. The rest come from visual (60%), like- maps.
Diagrams, pictures etc. and activity (80%).

15. Using Gesture when you are talking:

Example, From hadith, “I and the one who take care of orphanage will be together in
Jannah.”
When Prophet(pbuh) delivered the hadith he used his two figures together to show.

16. Using Tangible Examples:

“Silk and Gold are haram for male of my ummah”, When Rasul (pbuh) was narrating
the hadith he(pbuh) showed silk and gold.

17. Taking Advantages of Teaching Moments:

If opportunity comes they can make use of it. As example, Once a child was lost. When
the mother found her child then she was feeding the child. Then Rasul (pbuh) told that,
“Would this mother like to through this child to hellfire?” The answer was certainly
“No”. Then he (pbuh) narrated that “Allah is much more Merciful”.

18. Repetitions Extremely Important:

Whenever he (pbuh) wanted to give importance then he repeated. It happened that,

once some companions were not taking ablution/ awudhu properly. Then Rasul
(pbuh) told, “Beware! Destroy your ankles to hellfire.”(3 times)
Even Al-Quran shows the example in Sura Kafirun, Sura Ar-Rahman.

19. Physical Contacts:

It has much more effectiveness.

Example, “Be in the dunya as if you are a stranger or a passer-by.”
When he (pbuh) was narrating the hadith he (pbuh) touched the companions.

20. Other Methods:

The methods from Hadiths can also be cited here. As
• Kawli: Pedagogically known as Lecture, Conversation and Discussion Methods.
• Feili: Demonstration Method.
• Takriri: Approval of deeds done by others before him.

Through the above methodology, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was able to
ingrain the beliefs and teachings of Islam in the hearts and minds of his companions.
Oh Allah, may Your Mercy, Peace and Blessings be upon our beloved Prophet
Muhammad, and May You grants us his companionship in Jannah, ameen.

Bearing the above in mind, teachers and instructors should study the Prophet’s
methods of education and make use of them in bringing up the Muslim generations

so that they would benefit themselves, their societies and the all humanity.

“It is impossible for anyone who studies the life and character of the great prophet of
Arabia, who knows how he taught and how he lived, to feel anything but reverence for
that mighty Prophet, one of the great messengers of the Supreme. And although in what I
put to you I shall say many things which may be familiar to many, yet I myself feel
whenever I re-read them, a new way of admiration, a new sense of reverence for the
mighty Arabia teacher.” (Annie Besant, The Life and Teachings of Muhammad, Madras
1932, p.4)

Prepared by:
Rowshan Zannat
Lecturer, Dept. of Education,
Asian University Bangladesh.