As I explored Muhammad's life through a psychological lens, particularly his sensitivity to rejection, I began to see how his personal experiences influenced his decisions and the development of an entire religious tradition.
By Dr. Tim Orr
What if we could look beyond the divine revelations and theological doctrines to uncover the human emotions that shaped one of history’s most influential figures? As I explored Muhammad's life through a psychological lens, particularly his sensitivity to rejection, I began to see how his personal experiences influenced his decisions and the development of an entire religious tradition. This approach invites us to step beyond the familiar and consider the man behind the message—how his emotional responses, especially to the opposition, may have profoundly shaped Islamic theology.
However, to fully understand these influences, we also must engage more deeply with traditional theological interpretations of Muhammad's teachings. While Rejection Sensitivity Theory (RS) provides a compelling psychological framework, Islamic doctrine is a complex interplay of divine revelation and cultural, social, and political dynamics. Theological scholars have long debated the nature of Muhammad's revelations and how his prophetic authority was received, emphasizing divine revelation and the guidance of Allah in shaping Islamic law and belief. Thus, any psychological analysis must be balanced with the broader theological context that acknowledges these divine claims, or it risks simplifying Islamic doctrine's multifaceted evolution.
To truly understand Muhammad’s sensitivity to rejection, we must first look at his early life, which was marked by loss and abandonment. Born into the powerful Quraysh tribe in Mecca, Muhammad’s early years were shaped by a series of traumatic experiences. His father, Abdullah, died before he was born, and his mother, Amina, passed away when he was just six years old. This left Muhammad an orphan, a vulnerable position in Arab society. Though his grandfather, Abdul Muttalib, took him in, and later his uncle, Abu Talib, these early experiences of being left without his parents likely instilled a deep sense of insecurity and rejection.
Growing up without the emotional security of his parents could have heightened Muhammad’s sensitivity to being dismissed or excluded. Orphanhood, often associated with social isolation, would have left him feeling like an outsider within his community. While his Quraysh clan provided for his material needs, Muhammad may have experienced emotional rejection or a sense of displacement, never fully belonging. These early wounds of rejection likely shaped his worldview, influencing how he would respond to opposition and betrayal later.
Mark Durie believes that this early emotional landscape laid the foundation for Muhammad’s heightened sensitivity to rejection, which later became a defining feature of his prophetic career (Durie, 2010). His early experiences of abandonment and loss made him more vulnerable to feelings of rejection from others, especially those who refused to accept his message. In this context, we can understand how deeply personal rejection would have felt for Muhammad, particularly related to his prophetic mission and resistance. However, it's important not to overstate the role of rejection sensitivity. While Muhammad’s experiences likely influenced his actions, other factors, such as political, cultural, and social dynamics, played critical roles.
As already stated, Muhammad’s early life, marked by the loss of his parents and a sense of displacement, likely contributed to his heightened sensitivity to rejection. This emotional vulnerability, combined with opposition from the Quraysh in Mecca and later from Jewish tribes in Medina, shaped his increasingly defensive and aggressive responses. Initially seeking alliances, Muhammad’s reactions hardened when faced with rejection, leading to a more rigid theological outlook. His teachings evolved to emphasize Islam as the sole path, viewing those who rejected it—particularly Jews and Christians—as having deviated from their natural inclination toward monotheism (fitra). To clarify for readers who might not be familiar with Islamic terms, fitra refers to the innate human disposition toward recognizing and submitting to the one true God. At the same time, fitna describes trials, discord, or civil strife that test one's faith and community cohesion.
This personal sensitivity to rejection helped shape Islam into a more rigid and structured faith, particularly through the development of sharia law, which governs nearly every aspect of life for Muslims. Sharia embodies strict adherence to Islamic principles, prescribing rules for personal conduct and societal governance, leaving little room for deviation. The emphasis on maintaining the integrity of the Muslim community and defending it against perceived threats became institutionalized through legal mechanisms like sharia and the distinction between the Dar al-Islam (House of Islam) and Dar al-Harb (House of War). Muhammad’s experiences of rejection shaped his responses and crystallized into a rigid legal and theological structure that continues to influence Islamic thought and practice.
Rejection Sensitivity (RS) is a psychological concept exploring how heightened reactions to rejection can lead to defensive or aggressive behavior. Looking at Muhammad’s life through this lens helps explain how his emotional responses influenced his theological and political decisions. In Mecca, Muhammad faced rejection from the Quraysh leaders, who opposed his teachings and subjected him to significant persecution. These early experiences likely intensified his sensitivity to rejection, leading to feelings of alienation.
When Muhammad moved to Medina, he hoped to form alliances with the Jewish tribes, assuming their shared belief in monotheism would unite them. But when these tribes rejected his prophetic claims, it likely triggered a deeper sense of personal rejection, causing a shift in his approach. Instead of seeking partnerships, Muhammad began to adopt a more defensive and hostile stance toward them. The actions he took—such as the expulsion and execution of certain Jewish tribes—show how his personal experiences of rejection may have influenced his increasingly aggressive responses. This shift from seeking alliances to enforcing dominance fits well within the framework of RS theory. His reactions were not only politically motivated but also deeply personal, leading to more rigid policies against non-Muslims, like the development of dhimmitude. This legal system enforced the subordination of Jews and Christians under Islamic rule.
While these insights help unpack the emotional layers of Muhammad’s life, it is crucial to place his experiences within the broader historical and cultural context of 7th-century Arabia. Muhammad lived in a society where tribal loyalty, political struggles, and pre-Islamic religious practices shaped individual and communal responses to leadership. His sensitivity to rejection was undoubtedly influenced by the tribal dynamics and honor-shame culture that governed Arab life. These additional factors highlight the complex milieu in which Muhammad’s responses evolved and help prevent oversimplifying the relationship between his personal experiences and Islamic doctrine.
How Fitna and Fitra Were Shaped by Rejection
Muhammad’s sensitivity to rejection influenced his interpersonal relations and shaped key Islamic concepts like fitna (trial or civil strife) and fitra (innate human nature).
In Muhammad’s experience, fitna represented the external trials he encountered—such as the persecution in Mecca or the rejection by Jewish tribes in Medina—which tested his resolve and leadership. Viewed through the psychological lens of rejection sensitivity, these moments of fitna were not just political or religious challenges; they were deeply personal crises that shaped his responses to opposition. Muhammad’s heightened sensitivity to rejection transformed these external trials into episodes that demanded political solutions and theological reinterpretations. As a result, fitna became a symbol of the trials that the Muslim community would face, linking their endurance of hardship to Muhammad’s own experiences of rejection.
Fitra, the innate human inclination toward recognizing and submitting to God, was also influenced by Muhammad’s rejections. Initially, fitra was understood as a general predisposition toward monotheism. But as Muhammad encountered more rejection, particularly from Jews and Christians, he began to emphasize that fitra was tied specifically to Islam. Those who rejected his message were viewed as straying from their original, divinely given nature. This redefinition of fitra served to reinforce the idea that Islam was the natural and untainted path to God. At the same time, rejecting it represented a corruption of one’s inherent spiritual nature.
The Transfer of Rejection: From Muhammad to the Islamic Faith
Over time, Muhammad’s personal experience of rejection didn’t just shape his actions—it became embedded within the Islamic tradition itself. The emotional intensity of his sensitivity to rejection found expression not only in theological texts but also in the broader Muslim community’s attitudes toward those who rejected Islam. What started as Muhammad’s personal defense mechanism eventually evolved into a collective identity.
As Islam spread, the stories of Muhammad’s rejection, particularly by the Jewish tribes, became a powerful narrative within Islamic thought. Rejection was no longer just something that Muhammad had faced; it became something that the Muslim ummah (community) inherited. The idea of being rejected by others—whether Jews, Christians, or other groups—began to resonate deeply within the faith. This sense of being rejected by outsiders often fueled defensive and exclusionary policies within Islamic society, such as the formalization of dhimmitude and the division of the world into the Dar al-Islam (House of Islam) and Dar al-Harb (House of War). In this way, Muhammad’s personal experiences of rejection became baked into the very foundation of the Islamic worldview. Muslims, like their prophet, often saw themselves as being in opposition to those who rejected their faith, which in turn shaped their theological, social, and political structures.
The Psychological Roots of Islamic Antisemitism
Framing Islamic antisemitism through RS theory gives us a more complex understanding of its origins. Instead of viewing Muhammad’s hostility toward the Jewish tribes only as a matter of theology, we can see how his personal experiences of rejection played a role. Early in his mission, Muhammad tried to incorporate elements of Judaism into Islam, presenting it as part of a shared Abrahamic tradition. But as the rejection of his message continued, his attitude toward the Jews became harsher, and this shift can be traced to both his teachings and the later development of Islamic theology.
Muhammad’s heightened sensitivity to rejection likely influenced the portrayal of Jews as obstacles to Islam's success. This can be seen in both the Qur’an and Hadith. Many stories in early Islamic sources show how deeply Muhammad struggled with rejection. The Qur'an frequently mentions the opposition he faced, especially from the Quraysh tribe in Mecca. For example, in Surah 6:33, God reassures Muhammad, saying, "We know that you are saddened by what they say. But it is not you they reject; it is the signs of Allah that the wrongdoers deny." This verse reveals how much the rejection affected Muhammad emotionally and reminds him that refusing to accept his message was ultimately a rejection of God’s words, not just his own.
Another verse, Surah 3:186, talks about the hardships and insults that Muhammad and his followers would endure: "You will certainly be tested in your wealth and your lives, and you will surely hear much abuse from those who were given the Scripture before you and from those who associate others with Allah. But if you are patient and mindful of Allah, that is of the matters [worthy] of determination." These verses show that rejection wasn’t just personal for Muhammad—it was a challenge for the entire Muslim community, teaching them to respond with patience and perseverance.
Beyond the Qur'an, we see how rejection affected his actions in early biographies of Muhammad, like the Sira of Ibn Ishaq. A well-known example is his conflict with the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza in Medina. After they rejected his message and were accused of betraying the Muslim community during the Battle of the Trench, Muhammad responded with military action, resulting in their execution or enslavement.
The Hadith also gives us insight into Muhammad's feelings about rejection. In Sahih al-Bukhari (Vol. 6, Book 60, Hadith 362), Muhammad says, "No prophet was rejected by his people more than I have been." This powerful statement reveals how deeply Muhammad felt the sting of being turned away, even though he believed he delivered a divine message.
Aggression and Theological Development
RS theory also helps explain aggression's role in Muhammad’s changing theological responses. According to the Defensive Motivational System (DMS), individuals with heightened rejection sensitivity often respond defensively and aggressively to perceived threats. For Muhammad, the repeated rejection by Jewish tribes was not just a challenge to his authority but also a personal insult. This likely contributed to his defensive approach in framing Jews and Christians as dhimmis—protected but subordinated non-Muslims under Islamic rule.
This defensive response marked a significant shift from personal feelings of rejection to the formalization of legal structures. The creation of the dhimmi system reflects how Muhammad’s emotional reactions were transformed into policies that lasted well beyond his lifetime.
Conclusion
Applying Rejection Sensitivity Theory to Muhammad’s life offers deeper insights into how his personal experiences of rejection shaped key elements of Islamic theology and law. This approach provides a more nuanced understanding of how Islamic antisemitism developed, showing the complex interplay between personal emotions and religious doctrine. Moreover, the transfer of Muhammad’s rejection sensitivity to the broader Islamic community highlights how personal experiences can become woven into the fabric of an entire faith, influencing its historical and contemporary trajectory. Concepts like fitna and fitra, too, reflect this emotional depth, transforming personal rejection into theological principles that continue to influence Islamic thought and practice today.
By integrating deeper theological engagement, contextualizing within 7th-century Arabia, providing clearer definitions of key terms, and incorporating more textual evidence, this analysis strives to offer a balanced and comprehensive perspective on how rejection shaped both Muhammad’s personal life and the broader Islamic tradition.
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Tim Orr is a scholar, Evangelical minister, conference speaker, and interfaith consultant with over 30 years of experience in cross-cultural ministry. He holds six degrees, including a master’s in Islamic studies from the Islamic College in London. Tim taught Religious Studies for 15 years at Indiana University Columbus and is now a Congregations and Polarization Project research associate at the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture at Indiana University Indianapolis. He has spoken at universities, including Oxford University, the University of Tehran, and mosques throughout the U.K. His research focuses on American Evangelicalism, Islamic antisemitism, and Islamic feminism, and he has published widely, including articles in Islamic peer-reviewed journals and three books.