Muhammad (Peace be upon him), the
Master of Prophets, was born in Bani Hashim lane in Makkah on Monday morning,
the ninth of Rabi‘ Al-Awwal, the same year of the Elephant Event, and forty
years of the reign of Kisra (Khosru Nushirwan), i.e. the twentieth or
twenty-second of April, 571 A.D., according to the scholar Muhammad Sulaimân
Al-Mansourpuri, and the astrologer Mahmûd Pasha.
Ibn Sa‘d reported that Muhammad’s
mother said: “When he was born, there was a light that issued out of my
pudendum and lit the palaces of Syria.” Ahmad reported on the authority of
‘Arbadh bin Sariya something similar to this.
It was but controversially reported
that significant precursors accompanied his birth: fourteen galleries of
Kisra’s palace cracked and rolled down, the Magians’ sacred fire died down and
some churches on Lake Sawa sank down and collapsed.
His mother immediately sent someone
to inform his grandfather ‘Abdul-Muttalib of the happy event. Happily he came
to her, carried him to Al-Ka‘bah, prayed to Allâh and thanked Him.
‘Abdul-Muttalib called the baby Muhammad, a name not then common among the
Arabs. He circumcised him on his seventh day as was the custom of the Arabs.
The first woman who suckled him after
his mother was Thuyebah, the concubine of Abu Lahab, with her son, Masrouh. She
had suckled Hamzah bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib before and later Abu Salamah bin ‘Abd
Al-Asad Al-Makhzumi.
It was the general custom of the
Arabs living in towns to send their children away to bedouin wet nurses so that
they might grow up in the free and healthy surroundings of the desert whereby
they would develop a robust frame and acquire the pure speech and manners of
the bedouins, who were noted both for chastity of their language and for being free
from those vices which usually develop in sedentary societies.
The Prophet (Peace be upon him) was
later entrusted to Haleemah bint Abi Dhuaib from Bani Sa‘d bin Bakr. Her
husband was Al-Harith bin ‘Abdul ‘Uzza called Abi Kabshah, from the same tribe.
Muhammad(Peace be upon him) had
several foster brothers and sisters, ‘Abdullah bin Al-Harith, Aneesah bint
Al-Harith, Hudhafah or Judhamah bint Al-Harith (known as Ash-Shayma’), and she
used to nurse the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and Abu Sufyan bin Al-Harith bin
‘Abdul-Muttalib, the Prophet’s cousin. Hamzah bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib, the
Prophet’s uncle, was suckled by the same two wet nurses, Thuyeba and Haleemah
As-Sa‘diyah, who suckled the Prophet (Peace be upon him).
Traditions delightfully relate how
Haleemah and the whole of her household were favoured by successive strokes of
good fortune while the baby Muhammad (Peace be upon him) lived under her care.
Ibn Ishaq states that Haleemah narrated that she along with her husband and a
suckling babe, set out from her village in the company of some women of her
clan in quest of children to suckle. She said:
It was a year of drought and famine
and we had nothing to eat. I rode on a brown she-ass. We also had with us an
old she-camel. By Allâh we could not get even a drop of milk. We could not have
a wink of sleep during the night for the child kept crying on account of
hunger. There was not enough milk in my breast and even the she-camel had
nothing to feed him. We used to constantly pray for rain and immediate relief.
At length we reached Makkah looking for children to suckle. Not even a single
woman amongst us accepted the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) offered to
her. As soon as they were told that he was an orphan, they refused him. We had
fixed our eyes on the reward that we would get from the child’s father. An
orphan! What are his grandfather and mother likely to do? So we spurned him
because of that. Every woman who came with me got a suckling and when we were
about to depart, I said to my husband: “By Allâh, I do not like to go back
along with the other women without any baby. I should go to that orphan and I
must take him.” He said, “There is no harm in doing so and perhaps Allâh might
bless us through him.” So I went and took him because there was simply no other
alternative left for me but to take him. When I lifted him in my arms and
returned to my place I put him on my breast and to my great surprise, I found
enough milk in it. He drank to his heart’s content, and so did his foster brother
and then both of them went to sleep although my baby had not been able to sleep
the previous night. My husband then went to the she-camel to milk it and, to
his astonishment, he found plenty of milk in it. He milked it and we drank to
our fill, and enjoyed a sound sleep during the night. The next morning, my
husband said: “By Allâh Haleemah, you must understand that you have been able
to get a blessed child.” And I replied: “By the grace of Allâh, I hope so.”
The tradition is explicit on the
point that Haleemah’s return journey and her subsequent life, as long as the
Prophet (Peace be upon him)stayed with her, was encircled with a halo of good
fortune. The donkey that she rode when she came to Makkah was lean and almost
foundered; it recovered speed much to the amazement of Haleemah’s fellow
travellers. By the time they reached the encampments in the country of the clan
of Sa‘d, they found the scales of fortune turned in their favour. The barren
land sprouted forth luxuriant grass and beasts came back to them satisfied and
full of milk. Muhammad (Peace be upon him) stayed with Haleemah for two years
until he was weaned as Haleemah said:
We then took him back to his mother
requesting her earnestly to have him stay with us and benefit by the good
fortune and blessings he had brought us. We persisted in our request which we
substantiated by our anxiety over the child catching a certain infection
peculiar to Makkah. At last, we were granted our wish and the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) stayed with us until he was four or five years of age.
When, as related by Anas in Sahih
Muslim, Gabriel came down and ripped his chest open and took out the heart.
He then extracted a blood-clot out of it and said: “That was the part of Satan
in thee.” And then he washed it with the water of Zamzam in a gold basin. After
that the heart was joined together and restored to its place. The boys and
playmates came running to his mother, i.e. his nurse, and said: “Verily,
Muhammad (Peace be upon him) has been murdered.” They all rushed towards
him and found him all right only his face was white.
After this event, Haleemah was
worried about the boy and returned him to his mother with whom he stayed until
he was six.
In respect of the memory of her late
husband, Amina decided to visit his grave in Yathrib (Madinah). She set out to
cover a journey of 500 kilometers with her orphan boy, woman servant Umm Ayman
and her father-in-law ‘Abdul-Muttalib. She spent a month there and then took
her way back to Makkah. On the way, she had a severe illness and died in Abwa
on the road between Makkah and Madinah.
‘Abdul-Muttalib brought the boy to
Makkah. He had warm passions towards the boy, his orphan grandson, whose recent
disaster (his mother’s death) added more to the pains of the past.
‘Abdul-Muttalib was more passionate with his grandson than with his own
children. He never left the boy a prey to loneliness, but always preferred him
to his own kids. Ibn Hisham reported: A mattress was put in the shade of
Al-Ka‘bah for ‘Abdul-Muttalib. His children used to sit around that mattress in
honour to their father, but Muhammad (Peace be upon him) used to sit on it. His
uncles would take him back, but if ‘Abdul-Muttalib was present, he would say: “Leave
my grandson. I swear by Allâh that this boy will hold a significant position.”
He used to seat the boy on his mattress, pat his back and was always pleased
with what the boy did.
When Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was
eight years, two months and ten days old, his grandfather ‘Abdul-Muttalib
passed away in Makkah. The charge of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) was now
passed on to his uncle Abu Talib, who was the brother of the Prophet’s father.
Abu Talib tookthe charge of his
nephew in the best way. He put him with his children and preferred him to them.
He singled the boy out with great respect and high esteem. Abu Talib remained
for forty years cherishing his nephew and extending all possible protection and
support to him. His relations with the others were determined in the light of
the treatment they showed to the Prophet (Peace be upon him).
Ibn ‘Asakir reported on the authority
of Jalhamah bin ‘Arfuta who said: “I came to Makkah when it was a rainless
year, so Quraish said ‘O Abu Talib, the valley has become leafless and the
children hungry, let us go and pray for rain-fall.’ Abu Talib went to Al-Ka‘bah
with a young boy who was as beautiful as the sun, and a black cloud was over his
head. Abu Talib and the boy stood by the wall of Al-Ka‘bah and prayed for rain.
Immediately clouds from all directions gathered and rain fell heavily and
caused the flow of springs and growth of plants in the town and the country.”
When the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be
upon him) was twelve years old, he went with his uncle Abu Talib on a business
journey to Syria. When they reached Busra (which was a part of Syria, in the
vicinity of Howran under the Roman domain) they met a monk called Bahira (his
real name was Georges), who showed great kindness, and entertained them
lavishly. He had never been in the habit of receiving or entertaining them
before. He readily enough recognized the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and said
while taking his hand:
“This is the master of all humans.
Allâh will send him with a Message which will be a mercy to all beings.” Abu
Talib asked: “How do you know that?” He replied: “When you appeared from the
direction of ‘Aqabah, all stones and trees prostrated themselves, which they
never do except for a Prophet. I can recognize him also by the seal of
Prophethood which is below his shoulder, like an apple. We have got to learn
this from our books.” He also asked Abu Talib to send the boy back to Makkah
and not to take him to Syria for fear of the Jews. Abu Talib obeyed and sent
him back to Makkah with some of his men servants.
Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was
hardly fifteen when the ‘sacrilegious’ wars — which continued with varying
fortunes and considerable loss of human life for a number of years — broke out
between Quraish and Banu Kinana on the one side and Qais ‘Ailan tribe on the
other. It was thus called because the inviolables were made violable, the
prohibited months being included. Harb bin Omaiyah, on account of his
outstanding position and honourable descent, used to be the leader of Quraish
and their allies. In one of those battles, the Prophet (Peace be upon him)
attended on his uncles but did not raise arms against their opponents. His
efforts were confined to picking up the arrows of the enemy as they fell, and
handing them over to his uncles.
At the conclusion of these wars, when
peace was restored, people felt the need for forming confederacy at Makkah for
suppressing violence and injustice, and vindicating the rights of the weak and
the destitute. Representatives of Banu Hashim, Banu Al-Muttalib, Asad bin ‘Abd
Al-‘Uzza, Zahrah bin Kilab and Taim bin Murra were called to meet in the
habitation of an honourable elderly man called ‘Abdullah bin Jada‘an At-Taimy
to enter into a confederacy that would provide for the above-mentioned items.
The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) shortly after he had been honoured
with the ministry of Prophethood, witnessed this league and commented on it,
with very positive words: “I witnessed a confederacy in the house of
‘Abdullah bin Jada‘an. It was more appealing to me than herds of cattle. Even
now in the period of Islam I would respond positively to attending such a
meeting if I were invited."
In fact, the spirit of this
confederacy and the course of deliberations therein marked a complete departure
from the pre-Islamic tribal-pride. The story that led to its convention says
that a man from Zubaid clan came as a merchant to Makkah where he sold some
commodities to Al-‘As bin Wail As-Sahmy. The latter by hook or by crook tried
to evade paying for the goods. The salesman sought help from the different
clans in Quraish but they paid no heed to his earnest pleas. He then resorted
to a mountain top and began, at the top of his voice, to recite verses of
complaint giving account of the injustices he sustained. Az-Zubair bin
‘Abdul-Muttalib heard of him and made inquiries into the matter. Consequently,
the parties to the aforesaid confederacy convened their meeting and managed to
force Az-Zubaidy’s money out of Al-‘As bin Wa’il.
Muhammad (Peace be upon him), had no
particular job at his early youth, but it was reported that he worked as a
shepherd for Bani Sa‘d and in Makkah. At the age of 25, he went to Syria as a
merchant for Khadijah (May Allah be pleased with her) Ibn Ishaq reported
that Khadijah, daughter of Khwailid was a business-woman of great honour and
fortune. She used to employ men to do her business for a certain percentage of
the profits. Quraish people were mostly tradespeople, so when Khadijah was
informed of Muhammad (Peace be upon him), his truthful words, great honesty and
kind manners, she sent for him. She offered him money to go to Syria and do her
business, and she would give him a higher rate than the others. She would also
send her hireling, Maisarah, with him. He agreed and went with her servant to
Syria for trade.
When he returned to Makkah, Khadijah
noticed, in her money, more profits and blessings than she used to. Her
hireling also told her of Muhammad’s good manners, honesty, deep thought,
sincerity and faith. She realized that she homed at her target. Many prominent
men had asked for her hand in marriage but she always spurned their advances.
She disclosed her wish to her friend Nafisa, daughter of Maniya, who
immediately went to Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and broke the good news to
him. He agreed and requested his uncles to go to Khadijah’s uncle and talk on
this issue. Subsequently, they were married. The marriage contract was
witnessed by Bani Hashim and the heads of Mudar. This took place after the
Prophet’s return from Syria. He gave her twenty camels as dowry. She was, then,
forty years old and was considered as the best woman of her folk in lineage,
fortune and wisdom. She was the first woman whom the Messenger of Allâh (Peace
be upon him) married. He did not get married to any other until she had died.
Khadijah bore all his children,
except Ibrahim: Al-Qasim, Zainab, Ruqaiyah, Umm Kulthum, Fatimah and ‘Abdullah
who was called Taiyib and Tahir. All his sons died in their childhood and all
the daughters except Fatimah died during his lifetime. Fatimah died six months
after his death. All his daughters witnessed Islam, embraced it, and emigrated
to Madinah.
When the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be
upon him) was thirty five, Quraish started rebuilding Al-Ka‘bah. That was
because it was a low building of white stones no more than 6.30 metres high,
from the days of Ishmael. It was also roofless and that gave the thieves easy
access to its treasures inside. It was also exposed to the wearing factors of
nature — because it was built a long time ago — that weakened and cracked its
walls. Five years before Prophethood, there was a great flood in Makkah that
swept towards Al-Ka‘bah and almost demolished it. Quraish was obliged to
rebuild it to safeguard its holiness and position. The chiefs of Quraish
decided to use only licit money in rebuilding Al-Ka‘bah, so all money that
derived from harlotry, usury or unjust practices was excluded. They were, at
first, too awed to knock down the wall, but Al-Waleed bin Al-Mugheerah Al-Mukhzumi
started the work. Seeing that no harm had happened to him, the others
participated in demolishing the walls until they reached the basis laid by
Abraham. When they started rebuilding its walls, they divided the work among
the tribes. Each tribe was responsible for rebuilding a part of it. The tribes
collected stones and startwork. The man who laid the stones was a Roman mason
called Baqum. The work went on in harmony till the time came to put the sacred
Black Stone in its proper place. Then strife broke out among the chiefs, and
lasted for four or five days, each contesting for the honour of placing the
stone in its position. Daggers were on the point of being drawn and great
bloodshed seemed imminent. Luckily, the oldest among the chiefs Abu Omaiyah bin
Mugheerah Al-Makhzumi made a proposal which was accepted by all. He said: “Let
him, who enters the Sanctuary first of all, decide on the point.” It was
then Allâh’s Will that the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) should be the
first to enter the Mosque. On seeing him, all the people on the scene, cried
with one voice: “Al-Ameen (the trustworthy) has come. We are content to
abide by his decision.” Calm and self-possessed, Muhammad (Peace be upon him)
received the commission and at once resolved upon an expedient which was to
conciliate them all. He asked for a mantle which he spread on the ground and
placed the stone in its centre. He then asked the representatives of the
different clans among them, to lift the stone all together. When it had reached
the proper place, Muhammad (Peace be upon him) laid it in the proper position
with his own hands. This is how a very tense situation was eased and a grave
danger averted by the wisdom of the Prophet (Peace be upon him).
Quraish ran short of the licit money,
they collected, so they eliminated six yards area on the northern side of
Al-Ka‘bah which is called Al-Hijr or Al-Hateem. They raised its door two metres
from the level ground to let in only the people whom they desired. When the
structure was fifteen yards high they erected the roof which rested on six
columns.
When the building of Al-Ka‘bah had
finished, it assumed a square form fifteen metres high. The side with the Black
Stone and the one opposite were ten metres long each. The Black Stone was 1.50
metre from the circumambulation level ground. The two other sides were twelve
metres long each. The door was two metres high from the level ground. A
building structure of 0.25 metre high and 0.30 metre wide on the average
surrounded Al-Ka‘bah. It was called Ash-Shadherwan, originally an integral part
of the Sacred Sanctuary, but Quraish left it out.
Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon
him) was, in his youth, a combination of the best social attributes. He was an
exemplary man of weighty mind and faultless insight. He was favoured with
intelligence, originality of thought and accurate choice of the means leading
to accurate goals. His long silence helped favourably in his habit of
meditation and deep investigation into the truth. His vivid mind and pure
nature were helpfully instrumental in assimilating and comprehending ways of
life and people, individual and community-wise. He shunned superstitious
practices but took an active part in constructive and useful dealings,
otherwise, he would have recourse to his self-consecrated solitude. He kept
himself aloof from drinking wine, eating meat slaughtered on stone altars, or
attending idolatrous festivals. He held the idols in extreme aversion and most
abhorrence. He could never tolerate someone swearing by Al-Lat and Al-‘Uzza.
Allâh’s providence, no doubts, detached him from all abominable or evil
practices. Even when he tried to obey his instinct to enjoy some life pleasures
or follow some irrespectable traditions, Allâh’s providence intervened to curb
any lapse in this course. Ibn Al-Atheer reported Muhammad (Peace be upon him)
as saying:
“I have never tried to do what my
people do except for two times. Every time Allâh intervened and checked me from
doing so and I never did that again. Once I told my fellow-shepherd to take
care of my sheep when we were in the upper part of Makkah. I wanted to go down
to Makkah and entertain myself as the young men did. I went down to the first house
of Makkah where I heard music. I entered and asked: ‘What is this?’ Someone
answered: ‘It is a wedding party.’ I sat down and listened but soon went into
deep sleep. I was awakened by the heat of the sun. I went back to my
fellow-shepherd and told him of what had happened to me. I have never tried it
again.”
Al-Bukhari reported on the authority
of Jabir bin ‘Abdullah that he said:
“While the people were rebuilding
Al-Ka‘bah, the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) went with ‘Abbas to carry
some stones. ‘Abbas said: ‘Put your loincloth round your neck to protect you
from the stones.’ (As he did that) the Prophet (Peace be upon him) fell to the
ground and his eyes turned skyward. Later on he woke up and shouted: ‘My
loincloth... my loincloth.’ He wrapped himself in his loincloth.” In another
report: “His loins were never seen afterwards.”
The
authorities agree in ascribing to the youth of Muhammad (Peace be upon him)
modesty of deportment, virtuous behaviour and graceful manners. He proved
himself to be the ideal of manhood, and to possess a spotless character. He was
the most obliging to his compatriots, the most honest in his talk and the
mildest in temper. He was the most gentle-hearted, chaste, hospitable and
always impressed people by his piety-inspiring countenance. He was the most
truthful and the best to keep covenant. His fellow-citizens, by common consent,
gave him the title of Al-‘Ameen (trustworthy). The Mother of believers,
Khadijah (May Allah be pleased with her) once said: He unites uterine
relations, he helps the poor and the needy, he entertains the guests and
endures hardships in the path of truthfulness.
