To serve him would have been far superior to this sovereignty.”(354)

In addition to these tidings given by these learned men through Divine inspiration from the Unseen, soothsayers too gave news from the Unseen of the coming of God’s Messenger (Upon whom be blessings and peace), and of his prophethood, by means of jinn and spirit beings. These are numerous also, and we shall mention a few which are well-known, have reached the degree of ‘consensus in meaning,’ and are related in most of the books of history and the Prophet’s biography. Referring the lengthy accounts of them to those books, we shall give only a summary of them.

The First is the famous soothsayer, Shiqq, who had only one eye, one arm, and one leg; he was quite simply half a man. His repeated predictions concerning the messengership of Muhammad (PBUH) have passed into the history books, with the certainty of ‘consensus in meaning.’(355)

The Second is the famous soothsayer of Damascus, Satih, who was a monstrosity lacking bones, and even limbs, whose face was in his chest and who lived a very long time. He was highly reputed at that time for the correct information he gave concerning the Unseen.

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(354) Qadi Iyad, al-Shifa: i, 365; Yusuf Nabhani, Hujjat Allah ‘ala’l-‘Alamin 115; Bayhaqi, Dala’il al-Nubuwwa ii, 285.
(355) Qadi Iyad, al-Shifa: i, 364; Ali al-Qari, Sharh al-Shifa: i, 747; Yusuf Nabhani, Hujjat Allah ‘ala’l-‘Alamin 168-72; Abu Na’im, Dala’il al-Nubuwwa i, 123, 125.