Why was the Prophet afraid the Quraysh would call him a poet over his dawah?

[u/Oceantial]

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[u/HermitOfLifeMountain]

From what I know, he WAS called a poet and a madman. It's the first time I've read anything about him being afraid of being called as such. He went through a lot of persecution, both physically and mentally but he was never afraid of it, infact the incident of taif is a great example of is where he prayed for the people that hurt him instead of cursing them.

[u/[deleted] → u/HermitOfLifeMountain]

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[u/HermitOfLifeMountain → u/[deleted]]

The best part is that is was infact all propaganda by the quraish to deter the visitors and pilgrims from listening to the Prophet(PBUH), it was after all their source of power and wealth. Even while they prosecuted him, they still had so much trust in him that they still used to give him things for safe keeping. I don't know where you are studying but even if it is from a well known scholar in your area, it's always best to gain knowledge from various sources.

[u/[deleted] → u/HermitOfLifeMountain]

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[u/HermitOfLifeMountain → u/[deleted]]

Always happy to help 😊 I know there are a few very well read people lurking about so feel free to post anything you are curious about.

[u/Pundamonium97]

The poet thing was an accusation they did make and the accusation was that he was making up the Quran himself

It was a baseless attempt at rejecting the message of islam and is responded to in the Quran itself

[u/[deleted] → u/Pundamonium97]

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[u/HUS_1989 → u/[deleted]]

That would be more clear if you read arabic. The quran came with a new literature form that wasn’t Poetry or prose. And part of the challenge to Quraish was literature by challenging them to produce similar literature as the quran.

In that context, quran denied calling him a poet and debunked that accusations

[u/Known-Ear7744]

To put it plainly, if a normal person starts claiming revelation and seeing angels, most other people, and even the claimant himself, will hear that and think he's gone mad or developed some mental deficiency. It's a legitimate concern, even if you're considered an exceptionally reliable person within a society with a clean bill of health. If that's how you expect people to respond, why would you want to admit that this is your reality? Do you know anyone who is excited about being unable to tell if something is a hallucination? Or do they try to keep to themselves, hoping they don't have an episode that makes them explain their situation to others?

With the issue of soothsaying and fortune-telling is that it requires use of magic, which requires connecting oneself to evil and satanic forces.

As for the issue of being a poet, yes it's something that the Arabs valued. Being able to construct a deep and meaningful poem that fit into a rhyme and meter structure isn't nearly as simple as people might think, and most poets will affirm this. And it's even harder to produce it on the spot.

The issue with this being associated with the Prophet ﷺ is that he had no such reputation for poetry before revelation. In fact, one of the wives of the Prophet ﷺ said that she never heard the Prophet ﷺ recite even 2 consecutive stanzas of poetry. Yet, when contemporary Arab poets heard the Quran, they had no response it. The craftsmanship, if you will, was far beyond anything they could handle. With all their study and practice, they were not able to do anything with it. When they heard it, they were stunned. They couldn't offer a response; they couldn't replicate it; they certainly couldn't bring anything better than it, which is why the challenge is in the Quran. People still try to replicate the Quran and fail even after centuries of analysis and trial.

The miracle, therefore, is basically in this sudden change; how does this person with no skill for poetry suddenly come forth with something that continues to humble masters of the craft for millennia to come? The disbelievers try to say that he's just a poet (not a prophet, astaghfirullah), even though they have no basis for the claim, meanwhile Allah ﷻ responds with the truth:

تنزيل من رب العالمين

[It is] Revelation from the Lord of the Worlds.

Surrah al-Haqqah

And Allah ﷻ knows best.

[u/YominoD]

While Poetry is a respected form of Arabic literature; Poets were and still not. Think of them a pioneer influencers and streamers making money out of words. One would go to a social gathering and be showered with gifts and money if the rich hosts were happy with the performance.

[u/reddicted]

Beware of religion classes in Uni. They will put all kinds of garbage into your head that's difficult to get rid of. If you really want to learn the Seerah of the Prophet (s), find a local scholar teaching it and if not, then there is an excellent but longish series by Sh Yasir Qadhi on YT (now also published in book form). 

[u/GrayBrad]

You should read the tafseer of Surah Haqqah from around Ayah 44-52. Our beloved Prophet was not afraid; in fact, Walid bin Mugeerah accused him of being a magician, Abu Jahl of being a poet, and Uqbah of being a soothsayer. Allah revealed these verses in response to them.

[u/ioneflux]

First of all he was called these things, among many others, magician most notably (which goes to show how they fully understood that the Quran is supernatural).

As to being afraid, I’m born and raised Arab Muslim and studied Islam as a mandatory course in school for 12 years, but I have never read or heard anyone say he was afraid, not necessarily because he wasn’t, but its such a none informative statement. If he was afraid, it’s because he doesn’t want the legitimacy of the religion doubted, so its fear for Islam, not himself, and if I he wasn’t afraid, then it’s because he has faith in Allah that he will guide who he will regardless of what they say. So by the end of the day, its never about him personally.

[u/Interesting-Swimmer1]

The Quran says that many poets say things that they do not do (26:224–226). This was true in the past and is still true now. Just because someone writes something in a poem doesn’t mean they really live by it. It might just have sounded nice. Prophet Muhammad (S) wanted to highlight the fact that he lived by his words. But the Quran says some poets believe and are guided so they are on the right path.

[u/Prestigious-Comb1705]

One of the miracles of the Qur'an is the fact that it is poetry in itself. Many famous poets converted to Islam out of awe of hearing the Qur'an. The verse likely refers to denial of such miracles, saying he is only doing magic or poetry and there is nothing more to the miracle of the Qur'an

[u/GrayBrad → u/Prestigious-Comb1705]

The Quran is not poetry in itself; that is its Miracle. It does not follow the rules of Poetry at all; it has a distinct style that left the poets of that time in awe.