This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amanpuri's book Khatm-e-Nubuwwat.
Meaning of Aqib
Sayyiduna Jubair bin Mut'im رضي الله عنه narrates that the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said:
أنا محمد، وأحمد، والحاشر، والماحي، والخاتم، والعاقب .
"I am Muhammad, Ahmad, Hashir, Mahi, Khatam, and Aqib."
Reference: (Musnad al-Imam Ahmad: 81/4, Al-Mu'jam al-Kabir al-Tabarani: 1563, and its chain is authentic)
Imam Hakim رحمه الله
Reference: (604/2)
declared this hadith "Sahih" according to Imam Muslim's criteria, and Hafiz Dhahabi رحمه الله agreed with him.Sayyiduna Jubair bin Mut'im رضي الله عنه narrates that the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said:
إن لي أسماء، أنا محمد، وأنا أحمد، وأنا الماحي الذى يمحو الله بي الكفر، وأنا الحاشر، الذى يحشر الناس على قدمي، وأنا العاقب الذى لا نبي بعدي .
"I have many names; I am Muhammad, I am Ahmad, I am Mahi, through whom Allah has erased disbelief, I am Hashir, after me the resurrection will take place, I am Aqib, after me there is no prophet."
Reference: (Al-Mu'jam al-Kabir al-Tabarani: 1523 and its chain is Hasan)
Sayyiduna Jubair bin Mut'im رضي الله عنه narrates that the Messenger of Allah صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم said:
إن لي أسماء أنا محمد وأحمد والعاقب والماحي والحاشر الذى يحشر الناس على عقبي، والعاقب آخر الأنبياء .
"I have many names; I am Muhammad, Ahmad, Aqib, Mahi, Hashir. Hashir means the one after whom the resurrection will occur, and Aqib means the last prophet."
Reference: (Musnad al-Bazzar: 3413 and its chain is authentic)
Imam Bazzar رحمه الله declared its chain "Sahih."
Warning :
In some hadiths, the words العاقب الذى لا نبي بعده appear, about which some scholars say that this is an insertion by Imam Zahri, may Allah have mercy on him. The correct view is that the interpretation of 'Aaqib' as Marfoo' (attributed to the Prophet) is also established, and Imam Zahri, may Allah have mercy on him, also gave this interpretation upon the student's inquiry, because the above-mentioned hadith clearly indicates that these words are Marfoo'. In the above hadiths, one of the names of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is mentioned as 'Aaqib'. What is its meaning? Observe:
Imam Nafi' bin Jubair, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 99 AH), says:
أما العاقب فإنه عقب الأنبياء .
"'Aaqib' means the one who comes after all the Prophets."
Reference: (Tabaqat Ibn Sa'd: 105/1, Al-Ma'rifah wal-Tarikh lil-Fasawi: 266/3, Ash-Shari'ah lil-Ajri: 1014, Sharh Mushkil al-Athar lil-Tahawi: 1151 and its chain is authentic)
Imam Zahri, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 125 AH), explaining the meaning of 'Aaqib', says:
الذي ليس بعده نبي صلى الله عليه وسلم .
"The one after whom there is no Prophet."
Reference: (Musnad al-Imam Ahmad: 80/4 and its chain is authentic)
Imam Yazid bin Harun, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 206 AH), says:
سألت سفيان عن العاقب؟ فقال : آخر الأنبياء .
"I asked Imam Sufyan bin Husayn, may Allah have mercy on him, about the meaning of 'Aaqib', and he said: The last Prophet."
Reference: (Gharib al-Hadith li Abi Ubaid: 243/1 and its chain is authentic)
Imam Abu Ubaid, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 224 AH), writes:
كذلك كل شيء خلف بعد شيء ، فهو عاقب له .
"Among two things, the one who comes later is called 'Aaqib'."
Reference: (Gharib al-Hadith: 243/1)
The famous linguist Imam Ibn Duraid, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 321 AH), writes:
العاقب : الذى يجيء فى أثر صاحبه، ومنه قول النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم : أنا العاقب لأنه ختم الأنبياء .
"'Aaqib' means the one who comes after his companion. The Prophetic statement is: 'I am the Aaqib,' because you, peace be upon him, have ended the chain of Prophets."
Reference: (Jamhara al-Lugha: 346/1)
Imam of language, Abu Mansur Azhari, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 370 AH), writes:
من أسمائه العاقب أيضا معناه آخر الأنبياء .
"The name of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, is also 'Aaqib', meaning the last Prophet."
Reference: (Tahdhib al-Lugha: 138/7)
Imam of language, Abu Nasr Johari, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 393 AH), writes:
قول النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم : أنا العاقب، يعني آخر الأنبياء، وكل من خلف بعد شيء، فهو عاقبه .
"The Prophetic statement: 'I am the Aaqib' means that you, peace be upon him, are the last Prophet. Among two things, the one who comes later is called 'Aaqib'."
Reference: (As-Sihah Taj al-Lugha: 184/1)
Linguist Imam Ibn Faris, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 395 AH), writes:
رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم العاقب؛ لأنه عقب من كان قبله من الأنبياء صلوات الله عليهم .
"The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, is 'Aaqib', meaning he came into the world after the earlier Prophets."
Reference: (Mujmal al-Lugha: 395)
The famous linguist Imam Ibn Sida, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 458 AH), writes:
العاقب : الآخر، وفي الحديث : أنا العاقب، أى آخر الرسل .
"'Aaqib' means the last; in the hadith where انا العاقب appears, its meaning is: I am the last Prophet."
Reference: (Al-Muhkam: 239/1)
Qadi Iyad, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 544 AH), says:
أنا العاقب جاء مفسرا فى الحديث : الذى ليس بعده نبي يعني أنه جاء آخرهم، قال ابن الأعرابي : العاقب هو الذى يخلف من قبله فى الخير .
"The word 'Aaqib' explains this hadith, which states that after the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, there is no Prophet, meaning you, peace be upon him, came at the end of all the Prophets. Ibn al-A'rabi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: 'Aaqib' is the name of the one who comes after the first in goodness."
Reference: (Mashariq al-Anwar: 98/2)
Hafiz Ibn al-Jawzi, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 597 AH), says:
من أسماء رسول الله العاقب، وهو آخر الأنبياء، فإنه خلف من قبله وجاء بعدهم .
"One of the names of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, is also 'Aaqib', which means the last Prophet, because he came after the Prophets before him."
Reference: (Gharib al-Hadith: 111/2)
Allama Ibn Athir, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 606 AH), says:
في أسماء النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم العاقب هو آخر الانبياء، والعاقب والعقوب الذى يخلف من كان قبله فى الخير .
"One of the names of the Noble Prophet, peace be upon him, is 'Aaqib', meaning the last Prophet. 'Aaqib' and 'Uqoub' are called to the one who comes after the first in goodness."
Reference: (An-Nihaya fi Gharib al-Hadith: 268/3)
Allama Qurtubi, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 671 AH), says:
ذهب قوم إلى أن بنزول عيسى عليه السلام يرتفع التكليف، لئلا يكون رسولا إلى أهل ذلك الزمان، يأمرهم عن الله تعالى وينهاهم، وهذا أمر مردود بالأخبار التى ذكرناه من حديث أبى هريرة، وبقوله تعالى : وَخَاتَمَ النَّبِيِّينَ ، وقوله عليه الصلاة والسلام : لا نبي بعدي، وقوله : وأنا العاقب ، يريد آخر الأنبياء وخاتمهم، وإذا كان ذلك فلا يجوز أن يتوهم أن عيسى ينزل نبيا بشريعة متجددة، وغير شريعة محمد نبينا صلى الله عليه وسلم، بل إذا نزل، فإنه يكون يومئذ من أتباع محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم .
"Some people say that after the coming of Jesus, peace be upon him, people will no longer be bound by Shariah; if people of that time follow Shariah, it would imply that Jesus, peace be upon him, was sent to them and warned them about Allah's commands and prohibitions. But this is a rejected and false view. Considering Jesus, peace be upon him, as the bearer of a new Shariah is wrong. Read the hadith of Sayyiduna Abu Huraira, may Allah be pleased with him, and observe Allah's statement: وَخَاتَمَ النَّبِيِّينَ Similarly, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: There is no Prophet after me. He also said: I am the last Prophet to come. With these hadiths, it is not conceivable that Sayyiduna Jesus, peace be upon him, will come with a new Shariah; rather, he will descend as a follower of Muhammad Rasul Allah, peace be upon him."
Reference: (Sahih al-Bukhari: 3532, Sahih Muslim: 2354, At-Tadhkirah bi Ahwal al-Mawta wa Umur al-Akhirah: 792/2)
Imam of language, Ibn Manzur al-Afriki, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 711 AH), writes:
العاقب أيضا، ومعناه آخر الأنبياء .
"'Aaqib' means the last Prophet."
Reference: (Lisan al-Arab: 165/12)
Allama Ibn Rajab, may Allah have mercy on him (d. 795 AH), says:
العاقب : الذى جاء عقيب الأنبياء كلهم، وليس بعده نبي، فكان إرساله من علامات الساعة .
"'Aaqib' is called the one who comes after all the Prophets, after whom there is no Prophet. Your coming, peace be upon you, is among the signs of the Day of Judgment."
Reference: (Fath al-Bari Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari: 336/4)
