Can we call the Angel Gabriel peace be upon him the Holy Spirit?
Let us look at the following Noble Verses from the Noble Quran:
"We gave Moses the Book and followed him up with a succession of apostles; We gave Jesus the son of Mary Clear (Signs) and strengthened him with the holy spirit. Is it that whenever there comes to you an apostle with what ye yourselves desire not, ye are puffed up with pride?- Some ye called impostors, and others ye slay! (The Noble Quran, 2:87)"
"Those apostles We endowed with gifts, some above others: To one of them God spoke; others He raised to degrees (of honour); to Jesus the son of Mary We gave clear (Signs), and strengthened him with the holy spirit. If God had so willed, succeeding generations would not have fought among each other, after clear (Signs) had come to them, but they (chose) to wrangle, some believing and others rejecting. If God had so willed, they would not have fought each other; but God Fulfilleth His plan. (The Noble Quran, 2:253)"
"Then will God say: "O Jesus the son of Mary! Recount My favour to thee and to thy mother. Behold! I strengthened thee with the holy spirit, so that thou didst speak to the people in childhood and in maturity. Behold! I taught thee the Book and Wisdom, the Law and the Gospel and behold! thou makest out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, by My leave, and thou breathest into it and it becometh a bird by My leave, and thou healest those born blind, and the lepers, by My leave. And behold! thou bringest forth the dead by My leave. And behold! I did restrain the Children of Israel from (violence to) thee when thou didst show them the clear Signs, and the unbelievers among them said: 'This is nothing but evident magic.' (The Noble Quran, 5:110)"
"Say, the Holy Spirit has brought the revelation from thy Lord in Truth, in order to strengthen those who believe, and as a Guide and Glad Tidings to Muslims. (The Noble Quran, 16:102)"
In the above Noble Verses, we clearly see that Allah Almighty uses the Holy Spirit to bring the Truth (Revelations) to the Prophets of Allah Almighty, and to bring the Good Inspirations to the believers so they wouldn't be lead astray. According to Islam, Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him received the Divine Revelations of the Noble Quran through the direct communication with Angel Gabriel peace be upon him. Prophet Muhammad, however, also received Divine Inspirations through the Holy Spirit as well (16:102).
So who is the Holy Spirit then?
The Holy Spirit is the Angel Gabriel peace be upon him! Let us look at the following Sayings from our beloved Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him and Noble Verses from Allah Almighty's Holy Book, the Noble Quran:
Narrated Al Bara: "The Prophet said to Hassan, 'Lampoon them (i.e. the pagans) and Gabriel is with you.' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Beginning of Creation, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 435)"
Narrated Hassan bin Thabit Al-Ansari: "I asked Abu Huraira 'By Allah! Tell me the truth whether you heard the Prophet saying, 'O Hassan! Reply on behalf of Allah's Apostle. O Allah! Help him (i.e. Hassan) with the Holy Spirit.' Abu Huraira said, 'Yes .' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Prayers (Salat), Volume 1, Book 8, Number 444)"
Narrated Sa'id bin Al-Musaiyab: "Umar came to the Mosque while Hassan was reciting a poem. (Umar disapproved of that). On that Hassan said, 'I used to recite poetry in this very Mosque in the presence of one (i.e. the Prophet ) who was better than you.' Then he turned towards Abu Huraira and said (to him), 'I ask you by Allah, did you hear Allah's Apostle saying (to me), 'Retort on my behalf. O Allah! Support him (i.e. Hassan) with the Holy Spirit?' Abu Huraira said, 'Yes.' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Beginning of Creation, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 434)"
"Say: Whoever is an enemy to Gabriel-for he brings down the (revelation) to thy heart by God's will, a confirmation of what went before, and guidance and glad tidings for those who believe, Whoever is an enemy to God and His angels and apostles, to Gabriel and Michael,- Lo! God is an enemy to those who reject Faith. (The Noble Quran, 2:97-98)"
As we clearly see in the Saying of our beloved Prophet peace be upon him, the Prophet had asked Allah Almighty to enforce Hassan with Gabriel in one narration, and with the Holy Spirit in two narrations above. Noble Verses 2:97-98 tell us that Angel Gabriel is the one who brings down the Divine Revelations from Allah Almighty into the heart of Prophet Muhammad. Noble Verse 16:102 above, however, tells us that it is the Holy Spirit that brings down the Divine Revelations.
It is quite clear from the above, that Allah Almighty and Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him had called Angel Gabriel peace be upon him "Gabriel" in some instances, and the "Holy Spirit" in other instances.
It is not strange for Angel Gabriel to hold such an important place in Islam, because he is Mighty.
The place of Angel Gabriel in Islam:
Let us look at Noble Verse 35:1 "Praise be to Allah, Who created (out of nothing) the heavens and the earth, Who made the angels Messengers with wings- two, or three, or four (pairs): He adds to Creation as He pleases: for Allah Has power over all things."
Let us look at Prophet Muhammad's hadith (saying):
Narrated Abu Ishaq-Ash-Shaibani: "I asked Zir bin Hubaish regarding the Statement of Allah: And was at a distance Of but two bow-lengths Or (even) nearer; So did (Allah) convey The Inspiration to His slave (Gabriel) and then he (Gabriel) Conveyed (that to Muhammad). (53.9-10) On that, Zir said, Ibn Mas'ud informed us that the Prophet had seen Gabriel having 600 wings. (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Beginning of Creation, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 455)"
Also let us look at further Hadiths (sayings) regarding Angel Gabriel (peace be upon him):
Narrated Aisha: "Whoever claimed that (the Prophet) Muhammad saw his Lord, is committing a great fault, for he only saw Gabriel in his genuine shape in which he was created covering the whole horizon. (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Beginning of Creation, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 457)"
Narrated Masruq: "I asked Aisha 'What about His Statement:-- 'Then he (Gabriel) approached And came closer, And was at a distance Of but two bow-lengths Or (even) nearer?' (53.8-9) She replied, 'It was Gabriel who used to come to the Prophet in the figure of a man, but on that occasion, he came in his actual and real figure and (he was so huge) that he covered the whole horizon.' (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Beginning of Creation, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 458)"
Let us look at Noble Verses 53:9-11 "And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer; so did (Allah) convey the inspiration to His servant- (Conveyed) what He (meant) to convey. The (Prophet's) (mind and) heart in no way falsified that which he saw."
Let us look at Noble Verses 53:5-7 "He (Gabriel) was taught by one Mighty in Power, Endued with Wisdom: For he appeared (In stately form) while he was in the highest part of the horizon:."
Let us look at Noble Verses 81:19-21 "Verily this is the word of a most honourable Messenger (Gabriel), Endued with Power, with rank before The Lord of the Throne, with authority there, (and) faithful to his trust."
Let us look at Noble Verses 81:23 "And without doubt he (Muhammad) saw him (Gabriel) in the clear horizon."
The Hadith (saying) in (Volume 4, Book 54, Number 455) clearly states that Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) did see the Angel Gabriel (peace be upon him) with 600 wings. We also see that in Noble Verses (53:9-11) Allah Almighty telling us that everything Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) claims that have seen is absolutely true.
In Noble Verse (35:1) above we see that Allah Almighty clearly says that he created the Angels (peace be upon them) in different kinds: Some have 2 pairs of wings, others have 3 pairs, and others have 4 pairs. However, this Noble Verse (35:1) does not restrict the angel Gabriel (peace be upon him) from changing his appearance; in Noble Verses (53:5-7, 81:19-21, 81:23, Hadith in Volume 4, Book 54, Number 457, and Hadith in Volume 4, Book 54, Number 458) above we see Gabriel (peace be upon him) changing his form by meeting Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in a form of a man. We also see that Gabriel (peace be upon him) has a very special value in Allah Almighty's sight. Gabriel (peace be upon him) is not an ordinary Angel.
Important Note: Noble Verse (35:1) is speaking of ordinary Angels, but does not mean that Gabriel (peace be upon him) can not change his form and shape and make himself appear with 600 wings. We saw that Gabriel is (1) mighty; (2) has a special value in Allah Almighty's sight; and (3) is capable of changing his appearance and form according to (53:5-7, 81:19-21, 81:23, Hadith in Volume 4, Book 54, Number 457, and Hadith in Volume 4, Book 54, Number 458), which clearly explains that he is capable of appearing with 600 wings.
Further sites to research:
What is the wisdom of Islam? And how will Allah Almighty Judge both Muslims and non-Muslims?
What is the place of Jesus, Jews, and Christians in Islam?
Regarding the Christian Concept of Gabriel - The Holy Spirit
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