ISLAMIC STUDIES

Assignment # 04

Submitted To :-

Submitted By :- Mazhar Abbas

(17-IE-12)

Date : 07-05-2018

INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY, TAXILA
 Prophet Muhammad ‫’ ﷺ‬s Birth and Forty Years Prior to
Prophethood

Holy Prophet’s ‫ ﷺ‬Ancestors:-

The Holy Prophet’s ancestors up to the twentieth before his father included: Abd al-Muttalib,
`Abd Manaf, Qusay, Kilab, Murrah, Ka`b, Lu’ay, Ghalib, Fihr, Malik, al-Nazr, Kinanah,
Khuzaymah, Mudrikah, Ilyas, Muzar, Nizar, Ma`ad, and `Andan.[1] However, there is no
agreement concerning his other ancestors up to Prophet Ishmael, Prophet Abraham’s son.

Among the Holy Prophet’s ancestors, we have a lot of information about `Abd al-Muttalib,
the first ancestor, since he lived at a time close to the Islamic era. `Abd al-Muttalib was a
beloved, generous, wise and unique personality.

Prophet Muhammad's household was a household of monotheism. According to the beliefs of

researchers who believed in Imamate, Prophet Muhammad's father and his ancestors from
Adam to `Abdullah were all monotheists. There was no atheist among them—a fact asserted
by many Qur'anic verses and narrations. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said, “God led
me from the clean men's loin into the clean women's wombs and put me into your world and
never let me be mingled with the corruptions of the Ignorance Era.”

The Birth:-

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was born in Makkah, Arabia, on Monday, 12 Rabi Al-Awal
(A.D. 571). His mother name is Aminah, daughter of Wahb Ibn Abdu Manaf of the Zahrah
family. His father name is Abdullah, son of Abdul Muttalib, bin Hashim bin Abd-e-Manaaf
of Quraish family. Muhammad’s father died before his birth.

Infancy and Childhood:-

When Prophet Muhammad (saw) became two years old, his father, `Abdullah, on his
mercantile journey from Damascus, passed away in Yathrib, where he was buried. Referring
to the orphanage of the Holy Prophet, the Holy Qur'an states:

Did He not find you an orphan and give you shelter; and find you lost (i.e. unrecognized by
men) and guide them to you; and find you in want and make you to be free from want? (93:6-
8)
Aminah's infant was breast-fed by his mother for the first days of his birth; he was then
breastfed by Thuwaybah, a female servant freed by Abu-Lahab.[27] According to Arab
customs, he was submitted to a nurse, named Halimah al-Sa`diyyah, from the tribe of Banu-
Sa`d ibn Bakr who used to live in the desert. Halimah breastfed the Holy Prophet for two
years, cared for him for five years and finally submitted him to his family.

Most probably, they put the keeping of the Holy Prophet in the hands of a desert-dwelling
nurse because his wanted him to nourish in the clean air of the desert and to stay away from
the disease of cholera epidemic in Mecca. Another reason was that they wanted him to learn
the eloquent Arabic from the nomadic tribes. Some historians have referred to this factor.[33]
Attesting this fact, the Holy Prophet is reported to have said, “I am more well-expressed than
all of you because I am both a Qurayshite and have been breastfed among the tribe of Banu-
Sa`d ibn Bakr.”

Prophet‫ ﷺ‬Upbringing:-
Halimah raised the Prophet until he was 2 years and 2 months old, after which she returned
him to his mother. The Prophet’s growth was unlike any other person’s. He used to grow in
one day as much as a regular child would grow in a whole month. He would grow in one
month as much as a regular child would grow in a whole year.

One day while the Prophet was playing with his brothers (sons of Halimah) behind the
house, an extraordinary thing happened. The Prophet's brother ran terrified to his parents and
said: "Help my brother, two men came to him and opened his Chest." Halimah and her
husband ran out to the Prophet. They found him standing with a pale face. Halimah hugged
him and so did her husband who asked: "What's with you son?!!" The Prophet replied that
two men wearing white clothes came to him, laid him down and opened his abdomen, but he
did not know what they did.

The fact is that those two men were the angels Jibril and Mika’il who came in the shape of
men. It was said that they opened his abdomen and washed it with Zamzam water, hail water,
and snow water. Then they stitched it by the Will of Allah and stamped him on his back
between his shoulders with an oval mark, which was the seal of Prophethood.
 Even as a growing child, Prophet Muhammad displayed particular habits. If he ever
wanted to urinate or defecate, he would go so far where no houses are in sight. When he used
to go through the valleys and the mountains every tree and stone he would pass by would say:
"Peace be upon you O Messenger of Allah." The Prophet would look left and right, but he
would not see anyone.

After Halimah returned the Prophet to his mother ‘Aminah, he stayed with her till the age
of five. ‘Aminah then took him to see his uncles in al-Madinah. She stayed there for one
month. On her way back she died leaving the Prophet to be raised by his grandfather ^Abdul
Muttalib. It was said that when the Prophet's mother died his grandfather hugged him and
showed feelings towards the Prophet that he never showed towards his own son.

When his grandfather ^Abdul-Muttalib was dying, he recommended to the Prophet's uncle
Abu Talib to take care of the Prophet. The Prophet's uncle used to love Prophet
Muhammad sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam very much, and he used to favour him over his own
children.

The Prophet‫ ﷺ‬As A Shepherd And A Thoughtful Man:-

Although Abu Talib was rated as a man of status among the Quraysh, his income, was not
sufficient to support his family. Now that Muhammad was of mature age, he was naturally
inclined to find a job to ease the heavy burden upon his uncle's shoulders. But what kind of
job should he engage in to suit his supreme character?

Since he was destined to become a great Prophet and a sublime leader, to face unrestrained
obstinate people, to fight against the superstitious beliefs and wrong customs of the period of
ignorance, and to lay the foundations of the magnificent palace of justice and proper laws and
regulations, he found it expedient to become a herdsman.

Our Holy Prophet would take the sheep and cattle of his relatives and those of the people of
Makkah to the surrounding deserts to graze. He gave his uncle the wages he received in
return.

This engagement outside the noisy, agitated environment of the city and away from people's
disputes and conflicts gave him an invaluable opportunity to acquire much experience, of
which the sweet fruits appeared during his Prophethood and time of leadership.
Indeed, during this period, he acquired many superior human characteristics such as
generosity, good temper, magnanimity, good behaviour towards neighbours, tolerance,
truthfulness, trustworthiness, and avoidance of vices. He became known as 'Muhammad, the
Trustworthy’.

The Character Of The Prophet‫ﷺ‬:-

Even before the Holy Prophet Muhammad ‫ ﷺ‬was given his prophethood, he was known
among his people as ‘Al‐Ameen’, the Trustworthy. People would entrust him above others
with their valuables when they wanted to travel. He was also known as ‘As‐Saddiq’ – the
Truthful, for he never told a lie.He was well mannered, well‐spoken, and loved to assist
people in need. He was loved by children, women spoke of his modest personality, and he
never cheated people or hurt the weak.

Journey to Damascus and the Monk's Prediction:-

On his journey to Damascus for trade, Abu-talib accompanied Muhammad with him
according to his request while he was 8, 9, 12 or 13 years of age, according to different
documents. When the caravan reached Busr, they rested next to a hermitage in which there
was a monk, called Bahira, who was a well-known Christian priest.

Among the crowd, the monk paid a special attention to Muhammad in whom he could see
some signs of the expected Prophet. Talking with Muhammad (s) for a short time and asking
him some questions, the monk predicted his prophethood and advised Abu-talib to take good
care of and protect him against the Jews' danger molestationsHowever, the following points
should be taken into consideration concerning this event:

(1) This event is referred to in some historical records briefly; while in others, it is dealt with
in more details. The essence of the event is not doubtful, because in several verses of the
Holy Qur'an, the predictions of previous Prophets about Prophet Muhammad have been
stated.

(2) The signs that the religious scholars had about Muhammad (s) were of two kinds:
indicative of his personal life and body features (for instance, his orphanage, facial features
and his name) and others related to his family background (such as his being an Arab and his
marriage).One of the most distinguished signs on his body was a speckle (birthmark) between
his shoulders, which is called the Prophet's speckle or the Prophet’s seal.

(3) Bahira's prediction was only new to the people of the caravan because Abu-talib and
Muhammad's other close relatives had already been aware of his bright future

Holy Prophet First ‫ ﷺ‬Wife Khadijah:-

Prophet Muhammad stayed with his uncle Abu Talib and went out with him to trade
caravans. When the Prophet became 25 years old, he was offered to marry lady Khadijah. She
was the owner of some caravans and at that time the Prophet used to work for her. The
Prophet accepted to marry Khadijah who became his first wife. Lady Khadijah Bintu
Khuwaylid was highly respected, honourable and a patient woman. She was the richest
amongst her people. Lady Khadijah was presented with many suitors for marriage but she
refused in spite of all generous offers she had.

The Installation of The Black Stone:-

When the Holy Prophet was 30 years old, the Quraysh decided to repair the House of God,
the Ka'aba, and since all the tribes of the Quraysh wished to have the honour of this great
task, each took on the task of repairing one part of the House of God.

First Walid started to demolish the House and then the others helped him until the pillars that
the Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) had laid down, appeared. Now it was the time for
the reconstruction of the Holy House, and each tribe undertook one part of it. When the
process of construction reached the point where the Black Stone was to be installed, severe
disputes arose among the Quraysh tribes. All of them wanted to have the honour of
completing the task.

Little by little, the dispute turned into harsh enmity, and the various tribes got ready for a
bloody war. The sons of Abdul Dar filled a large jar with blood and put their hands into it,
thereby giving each other a pledge of death at the battlefield.

This terrible discord went on for four or five days until Abu Amayah, who was the oldest of
the Quraysh, said, `My proposal is that we select the first person who enters the mosque as an
arbiter and that all of us accept his view on the problem so it will be solved'.
The Quraysh accepted his proposal and waited to see who would enter the mosque first.
Suddenly the Holy Prophet of Islam came in. As soon as the people caught sight of him, they
said, `This is the Trustworthy one. This is Muhammad. We will accept his decision'.

The Prophet did not know about the matter. When they explained their problem to him, he
said, `Bring me a piece of cloth'. Although the Quraysh did not know what he meant by that
order, they brought the cloth immediately. The Holy Prophet spread the cloth, put the Black
Stone in the middle of it, and said, `Each tribe should take hold of one side of the cloth so all
can share in the honour'. The Quraysh did as he had told them and lifted the Black Stone to
the point where it was to be installed. Then the Holy Prophet, who observed that if he let any
of them install it, conflict and disputes would arise, himself lifted the Black Stone and
installed it in its place. Through this excellent device, he put an end to the terrible enmity and
conflicts.

This incident clearly demonstrates the supreme character of the Holy Prophet of Islam and his
excellent thought and intelligence, which ended a serious dispute without any bloodshed.