How did the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) receive the first revelation?

The Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) had withdrawn to the cave of Hira to worship. There an angel came to him and said “Read”. With the verses he then repeated exactly, the revelation of the Holy Qur’an began.

Even before he was called to be a prophet, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) sought solitude. He would go to a cave on Mount Hira to remember God and pray. He often took food for a few days and stayed there alone, cut off from the life outside.

During one of these times he suddenly became aware that someone was calling him. A mighty angel was holding him and saying “Iqra”. The Arabic word means to read, but in everyday use also to recite. The Holy Prophet (saw) could neither read nor write. So he took the word in its first sense and replied that he could not read.

The angel repeated the word and held him tightly. Then he understood that he was simply to repeat what he heard. And he repeated it exactly, even the word “Iqra” itself, although it was a command addressed to him. Then came the verses shown above.

This event shows his sincerity. He had not sought prophethood and was not prepared for it. It also shows how revelation came to him from then on. Whatever he heard, he repeated word for word, with no introduction and no additions of his own. That is why the Holy Qur’an is exactly what was revealed to him, the word of God and nothing else.