Nazar was born into a Pashtun family residing in Herat, Shindand District, where majority of the population were Persian-speaking Tajiks and Farsiwan people.

[2] Only five years after Nazar joined the PDPA, he'd be involved in overthrowing Mohammad Daoud Khan and establishing the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan along with the Khalq and some members of Parcham in a violent military coup referred to as the Saur Revolution.

In 1982, he studied at the Military Academy of the General Staff in Moscow and in 1983, Nazar became a member of the Central Committee of the PDPA and the Revolutionary Council.

Nazar Muhammad would only go on to receive more promotions, as in January 1984, he'd become Chief of the General Staff and on December 4, 1984, he'd finally become the Minister of Defense.

After Mohammad Najibullah became the president of Afghanistan in 1986, replacing Karmal, Nazar's Parchamite colleague General Mohammed Rafie would return to the post of the Minister of Defense who already had experience in this role from 1980 to 1982.

As a result of being removed from his position of Minister of Defense and being replaced by a Parchamite and his “formal diligent work” being unrecognised, Nazar participated in the 1990 Afghan coup d'état attempt led by Shahnawaz Tanai.