and whose Throne is raised above all the heavens, while the judgments He ordains for His creation never alter.
Ibn Isḥāq relates: Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Ḥakīm told me that Khadīja said to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), “Cousin, if you are able, let me know when this companion of yours comes to you.” He answered, “Very well.” When the companion next appeared he said, “O Khadīja, this is Gabriel.” She replied, “Cousin, stand and sit on my left thigh.” He rose and sat upon it. She asked, “Do you still see him?” “Yes,” he said. She continued, “Then shift and sit on my right thigh.” He shifted and sat on it. “Do you still see him?” she asked. “Yes,” he replied. She said, “Then sit in my lap.” He did so, and she again asked, “Do you still see him?” “Yes,” he answered. She thereupon uncovered herself, cast aside her veil, and said, “Do you see him now?” He said, “No.” She exclaimed, “Remain steadfast and rejoice! By Allah, he is an angel; this is no devil.”
ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ḥasan narrated this same account and added: “I heard my mother, Fāṭima bint Ḥusayn, report it from Khadīja, except that she said: she placed the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) between herself and her robe, whereupon Gabriel departed. She then said, ‘This is an angel, not a devil.’”
Abū Ṣāliḥ reported: al-Layth told us, from ʿUqayl, from Ibn Shihāb, who said: Muḥammad ibn ʿAbbād ibn Jaʿfar al-Makhzūmī informed me that he heard some of their scholars say: The very first revelation sent down to the Prophet was: “Recite in the name of your Lord…” up to “…what he did not know” (Al-ʿAlaq: 1–5). They said: this opening portion was revealed to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) on the day at Ḥirā, and its remainder was revealed later, as Allah willed.
Ibn Isḥāq also said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) first received revelation in the month of Ramadan, for the Exalted says, “The month of Ramadan in which the Quran was sent down” (Al-Qadr: 1), and He, the Most High, also says: “Indeed, We….”