Was Poison the Cause of Prophet Muhammad’s Death?

The Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would accept gifts but would not eat from charity. It is added: A Jewish woman from Khaybar gifted him a roasted sheep, which she had poisoned. The Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) ate from it, and so did the people. Then he said, Raise your hands (stop eating), for it has informed me that it is poisoned. Bishr ibn al-Bara' ibn Ma'rur al-Ansari died from it. The Prophet (peace be upon him) sent for the Jewish woman and asked her, What made you do what you did She replied, If you are a Prophet, it will not harm you; and if you are a king, I would relieve the people of you. So the Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered that she be killed. Later, during the illness from which he passed away, he said: I continue to feel the pain from the food I ate at Khaybar. This is the time when it has severed my aorta.

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to say in the illness during which he died: O Aisha, I still feel the pain from the food I ate at Khaybar, and now is the time I feel my aorta being severed from that poison.

Narrated Anas ibn Malik (may Allah be pleased with him): A Jewish woman brought a poisoned sheep to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he ate from it. She was brought to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), and he questioned her about it. She said, "I intended to kill you." He said, "Allah would never give you power over that". Reported by al-Bukhari (2474) and Muslim (2190).

These hadiths are usually mentioned in discussions about the Prophet’s infallibility (ʿiṣmah), the truth of his prophethood, and in some cases, are even used by some to question the Sunnah or the prophethood itself. These narrations are among the most significant accounts regarding the poisoning incident and its relation to the death of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and the effect of that poison on him.

Several key points in this report are relevant to our research here, especially about the Prophet’s infallibility on one hand, and the confirmation of his prophethood on the other. But before diving into the details, what can we deduce from this incident? Some of what I will say might seem obvious, but often it is the obvious that is overlooked, though the answer lies within it.

First: This incident is taken from authentic Muslim sources that document the life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Second: In the hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Raise your hands, for it — the sheep — has informed me that it is poisoned.

Third: Bishr ibn al-Bara’ died as a result of eating from it.

Fourth: The Jewish woman confessed that she had indeed poisoned the meat.

Fifth: The hadith mentions that the Prophet (peace be upon him) referred to the poison at the time of his death. However, from the totality of the narrations, it is not definitive that he died solely because of the poison, even though the majority of scholars maintain that his death was indeed due to its effects, and this view will be the basis of this article. They also point out that the typical effect of poison is immediate, whereas the Prophet (peace be upon him) died three years after ingesting it, suggesting delayed but eventual consequences. This raises two well-known objections:

How could the Prophet (peace be upon him) die from poisoning if he was divinely protected (Maʿṣūm)?

Doesn’t his death from poisoning contradict the truth of his prophethood?

Poison and the Question of Infallibility

Some people believe that the Prophet's (peace be upon him) exposure to poison contradicts the concept of prophetic infallibility. To evaluate this, we must understand that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was subjected to harm on several occasions, such as at the Battle of Uhud when his tooth was broken, among other known incidents. Being harmed by poison is of the same nature; it is a form of physical harm, which prophets may endure. There is no inherent contradiction between experiencing harm and being a prophet, as long as it does not impact the truth of the message.

Infallibility (ʿiṣmah), in its broadest sense, pertains to three things:

• Infallibility in conveying the message.
• Protection from major sins.
• Protection from disgraceful minor sins.

So, being harmed — even by poison — does not fall under any of these categories and thus does not contradict infallibility. Moreover, the Prophet (peace be upon him) died after the complete delivery of the message, three years post-poisoning, meaning the poison had no impact on the message itself.

Death by Poison and the Invalidity of Prophethood?

Selective Reasoning — A Methodological Flaw

Those who use this event to question the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) prophethood are typically deists/atheists or adherents of other faiths. A deist, for instance, might argue:

The Prophet (peace be upon him) died from poisoning. Therefore, he cannot be a true prophet.

However, this logic is flawed because there is no necessary link between the two premises. Some try to reinforce it with a Qur’anic verse:

“And if he (the Prophet) had fabricated against Us some sayings, We would have seized him by the right hand; then We would have cut from him the aorta.” (Surah al-Haqqah 69:44-46)

They argue: Since the Prophet said his aorta was severed (due to poison), this proves he was a false prophet. But this is based on a superficial reading of the verse. It refers to divine punishment that would immediately follow if the Prophet fabricated speech, not to a natural death years later, especially after delivering the full message of Islam.

Evidence Supporting His Prophethood

Anyone seriously examining the Prophet’s life in search of the truth must consider all the evidence, not cherry-pick a single event. The Prophet (peace be upon him) performed miracles witnessed by thousands, There are some of the miracles of the Prophet Muhammad:

• The splitting of the moon.
• Water flowed from his fingers.
• Food glorifying Allah while being eaten.
• Answered prayers, such as invoking rain during drought and having it stop precisely when requested.

There are also:

• His truthfulness is acknowledged even by his enemies.
• His knowledge of the unseen, e.g., stories from previous prophets and nations.
• The miraculous Qur’an, a literary and prophetic miracle unmatched to this day.

All of this forms a mountain of evidence supporting his prophethood. Ignoring it in favor of a single incident is a methodological failure. In fact, the poisoning event itself contains evidence for his prophethood, such as:

• The woman did not tell anyone the meat was poisoned.
• The Prophet ate from it and then informed others it was poisoned, based on divine knowledge.
• The meat (miraculously) "spoke" to the Prophet, which could only occur through divine intervention.

Thus, the incident contains a miracle, not proof against him.

Do Prophets Die at the Hands of Others?

Read these verses:

“Indeed, those who disbelieve in the signs of Allah and kill the prophets without right…” (Al-Imran 3:21)

“And they killed the prophets without right…” (Al-Baqarah 2:61)

“Is it that whenever a messenger brought you something you did not desire, you grew arrogant? Some you called liars, and others you killed.” (Al-Baqarah 2:87)

“So because they broke their covenant, and rejected the signs of Allah, and killed the prophets without right…” (An-Nisa’ 4:155)

Many prophets were killed, yet their prophethood was never in question. The Qur’an never suggested that being killed disproves prophethood. Rather, what matters is that the Prophet fulfills his duty — conveys the message. If that is done, their death, even by human means, does not contradict their role or authenticity.

For example, the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not die immediately from the poison. He lived three more years and continued his mission — showing divine protection until his task was complete.

And when people quote the verse:

"If he had fabricated against Us... We would have cut his aorta" —

This refers to immediate divine retribution during false claims, not the natural end of life that all prophets experience:

“Indeed, you will die, and they will die.” (Az-Zumar 39:30)

What if the Critic Is from Another Religion?

If the one using this story to disprove Islam is a Christian or Jew, they face another issue: They must first validate their own scriptures, which themselves often portray prophets in severely negative ways (e.g., drunkenness, adultery). Moreover, the historical reliability of the Prophet Muhammad’s life far surpasses that of the Bible. So, using our reliable sources to critique Islam while ignoring their own texts’ flaws is inconsistent.

The verse from the Old Testament is often cited:

“But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak... that prophet shall die.” (Deuteronomy 18:20)

— This does not imply that every prophet who dies is false. If it did, all the prophets killed by their people would be discredited. The context is about false prophecy, not death per se.

Summary

• Poison does not contradict infallibility, because infallibility pertains to message delivery and sinlessness, not immunity from all harm.
• There is no proof in the poisoning event that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was not a true prophet. He completed his mission, then died.
• One must examine the full life of the Prophet, not selectively use one incident and ignore the overwhelming supporting evidence.