My latest book, Muhammad: A Critical Biography, will be out October 22, and is available for preorder now: click here.
Muhammad: What can we really know about him?
We know a great deal about Muhammad—or so it seems. Islamic tradition contains an astonishing wealth of information about the founding figure of the Islamic faith, and most historians take for granted that this material is generally reliable.
In his latest book, historian and Islamic scholar Robert Spencer shows that there is no agreement in the earliest Islamic sources about the most fundamental details of this towering figure’s life. There are conflicting accounts of key details of his life, including the circumstances and contents of the first revelation he claimed to have received from Allah; the year of his birth; the length of his prophetic career; the name of the angel who supposedly appeared to him; and even his own name.
Muhammad: A Critical Biography takes a detailed look at the Islamic traditions regarding Muhammad and lays bare their contradictions, inconsistences, and incoherence. Spencer continues the groundbreaking research he began in The Truth About Muhammad and Did Muhammad Exist?, exposing the shocking reality of how shaky Islam’s foundations really are. He meticulously explains why competing traditions may have been invented and definitively demonstrates that, contrary to the complacency of establishment historians, the Muhammad of Islam is more legend than history, more fable than fact.
Muhammad: A Critical Biography does the work that mainstream academics—who are either bought by Saudi Arabia or Qatar, or too afraid to depart from the herd—should have done long ago. Not for the faint-hearted, this book will do nothing less than rock the Islamic world to its very core.
“Ernest Renan famously claimed that Islam emerged in the ‘full light of history.’ Spencer’s startling non-biography biography finds quite the reverse. When it comes to Muhammad’s life, ‘we appear to have precise and detailed historical information, but what we actually have is myth, fable, folk tales, sermonizing, factionalism, and guesswork.’ This fascinating book by an accomplished scholar establishes that, in place of Muhammad’s supposedly minutely detailed biography, from birth to death ‘what he said and did, and who he really was, is … thoroughly lost in the mists of time.’ This has immense implications for Islam – and the world.” (Daniel Pipes, Middle East Forum)
“Robert Spencer’s Muhammad: A Critical Biography offers not just an overview of the singular life of the founder of the Islamic religion; it is also a unique evaluation of the historical value of the traditions regarding Muhammad’s life that most historians take for granted as being historically accurate. Spencer demonstrates that virtually every aspect of what Islamic tradition teaches about Muhammad, including the circumstances of his first revelation, the identity of the being who appeared to him, and even the Islamic prophet’s very name, is controverted by other Islamic traditions. He proves definitively that the accounts of Muhammad’s life, which he examines in detail, are not historical records, but the product of mythical and legendary development, with the renowned aspects of Muhammad’s biography being the result of selection from a great mass of material rather than of remembrance by his contemporaries. This is a groundbreaking work that will revolutionize the popular understanding of the figure of Muhammad and the circumstances of Islam’s origins.” (Ibn Warraq, author, The Quest for the Historical Muhammad)
“The always brave Robert Spencer offers his readers once again an amazing opportunity to look at the history of Muhammad — and the stories that have been told about him — in a thought-provoking manner. Spencer is a genius and this book historical. What is simply accepted by many as the historical truth, deserves further consideration. How trustworthy can a narrative be that was written decades and sometimes even centuries later? This paragon of critical literature shows that not everything always has to be accepted at face value, especially when the consequences of what is said and written can be disastrous. This book a must read for anyone interested in the truth.” (Geert Wilders, Party for Freedom, Netherlands)
“What an amazing book! This was such a joy to read, and with all the ‘marking-up’ I’ve done with it, I’ll be using it for decades to come. This latest book studies the biography of Muhammad’s life through the prism of historical criticism, something which has never really been done adequately before, possibly due to the controversy such an endeavor will cause any author who dares take on such a task (something Spencer is well accustomed to and refers to in his closing statements). Yet because this book is so unique, it will, I believe, be foundational for anyone who wants to really understand who this man Muhammad was (or was not), and why so many millions in the world today choose to follow him. This is certainly a ‘must have’ book for your library, not only because it is so interesting and readable, but because Spencer has taken the time to amalgamate the best research by the best scholars, and put them all into one book.” (Dr. Jay Smith, Pfander Films)
“Robert Spencer has once again produced a scholarly tour de force. Muhammad: A Critical Biography is a searching enquiry of the earliest islamic texts pertaining to the ostensible prophet of Islam, demonstrating that these are not and cannot be viewed as first-hand historical sources, but at best as posterior apocryphal hagiography. He perspicuously shows their many contradictions, disparities, and sundry inconsistencies. This book is an accessible yet thorough and comprehensive introduction to the overwhelming difficulties that the early Islamic literary traditions present to those wishing to discover the authentic words and deeds of this towering yet mysterious persona who even so remains firmly enshrouded in the shadows of lore.” (Prof. Robert M. Kerr, Research Director, Inârah Institute for Research on Early Islamic History and the Qur’an, Saarbrücken, Germany)
࿗Infidel࿘ says
Does this book delve into the real history of the Arab conquests of the 7th century – where it started? If Mecca or Medina didn’t exist, then it had to have started elsewhere, the most likely hub being Damascus. After all, it hardly makes sense to believe that in the 7th century, w/ there being no modern transportation b/w Medina and Damascus, a group of camel archers got all the way from one to the other and trounced the Syrian army at a location not far from Damascus, and conquered it w/o a fight
The other question that I hope this book addresses is how islam got to be so Arab-centric, given the major role of the Turks in spreading it. If the religion wasn’t finalized by the time the Umayyads lost power to the Abbasids, that would mean that Syria, Egypt, the Mahgreb and Andalusia were not islamized after the initial Arab conquests, but rather much later. On the Eastern side, if Caliph Abd al-Malik and Hajjaj ibn Yusuf were busy “collecting” the quran and the latter distributing it, then the conquest of Sind in 712 was not a muslim conquest as yet. The real islamization of Turkistan and India started w/ Mahmoud of Ghazni, so it would seem that it was only under the Turks that islam really became important in the empire. Which would beg the question of why islam named the Arabs, rather than the Turks or even the Iranians as the best of people, and put all the sacred sites in the Arabian peninsula rather than in Buqhara or Samarqand
Also, that thing about the “Gates of ijtehad” being locked: that would be explained if the development of the quran, hadiths and all the theological literature were done during the Abbasid caliphate: it would explain why the caliphs would want to lock down the system and deny future generations any right to change anything
I think that the real history of the Arab conquests, and the evolution of islam under the Turks would be more interesting than the proof that Muhammad himself never existed
Michalis says
If you think that another book would be “more interesting” to you than the one that is being discussed, I suggest you go off and write that other book.
Jayell1 says
I’m ordering my copy of this book, but I’d also like to see one which focusses on ‘evil’ pure and simple, and shows the parallels between this appalling scam of Islam and other similar manifestations such as in 1930’s Nazi Germany, where those of us who are witnessing the resurrection of this evil monster in its original primitive ‘religious’ guise at close hand are getting the impression of living in a remake of some WW2 movie.
Johanna Jahns says
Agree.I already have a title: Master faith Master race.
Regards from Germany
Reziac says
You bring up some really good questions. Perhaps our host will see fit to investigate them in his next book — it sounds like a large enough topic.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
He’s asked for suggestions for a subsequent book. I think a fascinating one would be the history of the Turks – along the lines of the history of the Byzantines. By Turks, I don’t just mean the ones in Turkey – the Seljuqs and Ottomans, but the ones from Turkistan as well – starting w/ the ones conquered by the Arabs, then the ones who served under the Samanids, the creation of the Ghaznavid and other empires – Karakhanid, Khwarezmid, Seljuq and in India, the Mamluqs, Khiljis and Tughluks. Then it could go into the Mongol conquests, then the resurgence of the Turks under Timur/Tamerlane, then his conquests, and then the fragmentation of his empire later into Mughal, Uzbek & other empires. He could also cover the Tatars in Russia, be it the ones in Qashliq, Tatarstan and Crimea
It would be a pretty extensive project, like the History of Jihad was
In some aspects, it would be a subset of his book “The History of Jihad”, but he’d get the opportunity to go deeper into the Turkish conquests,
Hudders. says
Yippeeee!
Early Christmas presents for the family.
The more we know, the better armed against the islamic death cult lies we all are.
Especially in these days of the emerging modern caliphate.
Walter Sieruk says
Those scheming and malice-filled jihadists who have infiltrated into and throughout the United States are very dangerous
Therefore it’s best that many Americans be aware for anything that seems to look wrong or out of place.
Then is something questionable is observed then go an inform the police about it.
As it has been said “If you see something, say something”
To put this in another way , the wisdom of the specific words of Thomas Jefferson apply now even more than they did in his own time.
For Mr. Jefferson had ,rightly, declared “Let the eye of vigilance never be closed.”
Pete Roderic says
Any plans to make an accurate and unexpurgated translation of ‘Reliance of a Traveler’ in the future Mr. Spencer?
Tony Rice says
Bearing in mind what we are told re Muhammad and his sexual exploits and fancies, makes me question why God, in this case the Moon God of the Arabs ( Allah ) among whom he seemed to have lived, chose such a person, whose peccadillos were unusual to say the least. The character of Muhammad is in such direct contradiction to that of Jesus, that they seem opposites, and not as Muslims declare, prophets of the same God?. Thus bringing about and legitimizing the conditions which prevail in Islam today ( eg bride marriages , sexual slavery of females) unless changed by governments to more ” acceptable ” standards. I also find difficulty , bearing in mind the actions and behaviours around the world, in Muslim countries and non- Muslim ones by Muslims, that Islam is a religion of Love and Peace or that it is not a misogynist set-up?.
deze MN bee says
In reply to Johanna Jahns:
Allah Uber Alles.
cornelius says
I relied on ‘The Truth About Muhammad’ for critical arguments regarding the ethics of Muhammad.
The interesting thing is, even if we take the Ahadith and the Sirat Rasul as the unvarnished truth, the portrait they paint of Muhammad is hardly flattering. In them, we witness him defiling his child-bride Ayesha, usurping the wife (Zainab) of his adopted son (Zaid), soliciting the murders of the poets (Ka’b bin Ashraf, Asma bint Marwan, Abu Afek), ordering the torture and mutilation of “renegades”, presiding over the mass murder of all the adult males of an entire tribe (Banu Qurayzah), etc., etc.
Muhammad’s moral failings are quite pronounced….and when one examines why Islam stands out among major world religion’s for its violence and intolerance, one need look no further than the Prophet, whom Muslims emulate as the “model of conduct” for all humanity.
FYI says
Maybe some day they will make it into a movie
Starring muhammed in various roles..
muhammed as “allah”
muhammed as himself “the prophet”
muhammed wih a yarmulke as “The Jew”
muhammed as 6 year old Aisha
muhammed dressed up in a horse costume as Buraq
etc
All stunts performed by muhammed…many infidels were injured during the making of this movie..
࿗Infidel࿘ says
It’ll have to be left to an AI platform – probably one that ain’t as woke as Gemini or ChatGPT – to create such a movie. Since Hollywood ain’t gonna do it, neither is the movie industry in any other country. But if we get one, and it does happen, it will be fascinating to watch. Since there will be no real actors or humans, it’ll be hard to target anybody, other than the people who requested such a creation
Tony Rice says
It may well be the Muslims who carry out the instructions directed to them in the Koran re killing others , and atrocities of extreme vile nature , such as carried out on the 7th Oct., are inherently evil and there are those who are more normal in their outlooks and beliefs, such as those I meet and befriend. Seems to me Islam is made by evil ones for evil ones and there are those of more normal natures who more ascribe to decent living and mores but are Muslim because of where they are born, live and are brought up. VERY few people think for themselves re religious beliefs but automatically belong to THE religion indigenous to where they are born
loek says
After reading all of the above: Who can tell me what is true about Mohammed: His wives, his marriage (his fiancee being 6 years old and her being 9 at consumation, the people who led Islam after Mohammed’s death. Robert is any of this doubtful as well????
Troybeam says
Where exactly did you find all this ground breaking new information on Mohammed from birth to death, his life in between that lead him to write Islam’s books? Is he actually buried inside that square cube in Mecca,
has science actually looked to see if bones that have DNA, be checked & family chain prove he really existed. Did insanity run in the family? BTW: what popular understanding is there?