BISMILLAH IR RAHMAN IR RAHEEM

OUR BELOVED PROPHET'S CHILDHOOD www.mosque.com Haris Ashraf asked
about the childhood of Prophet Muhammad, praise and peace
be upon him. Faizan Ahmed, Fatima Shaikh, Zar Baqai, Summaya
Auf, Tahreem Fatany, Saiman, and Aisha Tahirkhai also asked
other questions about our Prophet, praise and peace be upon
him, which will we InshAllah add to this in another lesson.
Prophet Muhammad, praise and peace be upon him, was the
orphaned son of Abdullah, the son of Abd al Muttalib and Lady
Amina, the daughter of Wahb. He was born in the house* of
his uncle Abu Talib on Monday 12th of Rabi-al-Awwal, 570 years
after Prophet Jesus ascended into heaven. As he was born
he prostrated on his tiny little hands and knees, then said
"Al Hamdulillah" which is the same praise Prophet Adam offered
as he sneezed when he reached the earth. As soon as he was
born, Lady Amina sent word to his grandfather, Abd Al Muttalib
of his safe arrival and wrapped her darling son in a white
cloth. Abd Al Muttalib was so happy that he rushed immediately
to see him and with tender loving care cradled him in
his arms then took him to the Ka'ba where he offered a prayer
of thanksgiving to Allah for his grandson. The knowledgeable
Jew: Among the citizens of Mecca were several Jews, one
of whom was knowledgeable of the scriptures. He knew from his
learning that the birth of a new prophet was imminent and
anxiously awaited his arrival. On the night our beloved Prophet,
praise and peace be upon him, was born, a strange feeling
came over him which promoted him to rush to the door of his
house and ask some Koraysh tribesmen, who happened to be
passing, if they had heard of any births that night. The tribesmen
told him they knew of none, so he asked them to go and
found out then bring word to him. The Jew felt sure that this
was the night in which the new prophet had been born, and
if his feelings were correct he knew he would be able to recognize
him by a special, prominent mark on his skin that lay
between his shoulders. Sometime later, the tribesmen returned
to the anxious Jew and told him that a son had indeed been
born to Lady Amina, the widowed wife of Abdullah. The Jew
was apprehensive and asked them to take him to see the newly
born, so they went in haste to the house of Abu Talib. *
The house exists today and is used as a library. When they arrived,
Lady Amina presented her darling son to them and as
the cloth that covered him was rolled back the Jew saw the unmistakable
mark and fainted! When he regained consciousness
he announced that the prophethood had been taken away from
the Children of Israel and declared: "O people of Koraysh, by
Allah, he will conquer you in a way that the news will traverse
both east and west!" The mark the Jew referred to was
circular and read: "There is no god except Allah, and Muhammad
is His Prophet", and it was from this identifying mark that
the sweet aroma of musk filled the air. The decision: In
those days it was the custom of noble and well to-do families
to entrust their newly born infants to the care of good families
living far from Mecca where their infants would be less
likely to contract the many diseases that all too often accompanied
the pilgrims and traders who frequented the City.
With this in mind, Lady Amina and Abd Al Muttalib decided to
send Muhammad to be raised in the desert. Among the many advantages
of sending a newly born away was that the people of
the desert spoke Arabic in its purest form, and the ability
to speak pure Arabic was a highly desirable quality. Halima:
Shortly after his birth, several Bedouin families made their
twice yearly journey to Mecca in search of a child to foster.
No fee was requested by the foster parent, as one might
suppose, rather, the intent was to strengthen ties between
noble, well-to-do families, and perhaps receive a favor from
its parents. Amongst the prospective foster mothers was a
lady called Halima from the tribe of Banu Hawazin. Halima's
family had always been poor, and that year in particular had
been harsh for them on account of the drought that had devastated
the area. Halima had a young baby of her own, so together
with her husband, Abu Kabshah, and the baby they traveled
in the company of other families from their tribe to Mecca.
Halima carried her son as she rode upon their donkey whilst
her husband walked by her side as their sheep ran along beside
them. When they set out, the sheep's milk had be a constant
source of nourishment for them, but the strain of the
journey took its toll and its milk dried up. Halima's own milk
was insufficient to satisfy her baby, and many a time her
baby cried itself to sleep because it was hungry. Before reaching
Mecca, there was another setback. Halima's donkey started
to show signs of lameness, so they proceeded slowly at
their own pace whilst the others went on ahead. Because of the
delay, Halima and her family were the last of the prospective
foster parents to reach Mecca. By the time she arrived
each of the other prospective foster mothers had visited the
homes of parents wishing to send their newly born to the safety
of the desert, and chosen a baby. However, all had declined
the offer to take Lady Amina's baby on account of him being
an orphan, and so he was the only one available. As Halima
entered Lady Amina's house she found the tiny babe sleeping
upon his back wrapped in a white woolen shawl under which
a green piece of silk had been placed. Immediately, Allah
filled her heart with love for the babe whereupon she was overcome
by his beauty, and as she bent down to pick him up she
smelt the delicate fragrance of musk. Fearing she might disturb
him, she placed her hand over his chest and as she did
he smiled, then opened his eyes and from his eyes beamed a
radiant light. Gently, she kissed him between his eyes and offered
him her right breast and immediately felt a surge of
milk, he accepted, and suckled away contentedly. After a little
while she offered him her left breast but he did not want
any more and left it for his foster brother. Whilst Halima
was with Lady Amina and her baby, her husband, Abi Kabshah,
went to tend his sheep and found its udder full of milk, in
fact there was more than enough milk to suffice the whole family.
That night they drank their fill and slept peacefully.
When they awoke, Abi Kabshah said: "Halima, by Allah, I see
you have chosen a blessed spirit, did you notice how we spent
such a blessed night and are enjoying its benefits?" The
return journey: The time soon came for the foster parents to
return to the desert with their charges, so Halima took her
farewell from Lady Amina as she handed her beloved son up
to her as she sat upon her donkey. Halima and her husband were
quick to notice the multiple blessings that constantly came
their way. Their donkey had always been the slowest ride
because it was weak, and more recently showed signs of progressive
lameness, but now it out-ran the others whilst the rest
of the party looked on in amazement and asked Halima if the
donkey was the same one she had come with! The land of the
Bani Sa'd: Before they reached the land of Bani Sa'd, the
vegetation had already become very scant, but now that they
had reached it there was no vegetation at all, the land was
barren with the signs of drought everywhere. However, Halima's
sheep would wander off yet always return full! It was so
noticeable that the others in her party told their shepherds
to take their sheep and follow Halima's, however, hers always
returned full and yielded milk but theirs did not. Our Prophet's
early days: Halima had several other children, amongst
whom was their daughter Al Shaima. Al Shaima loved here new
brother dearly and never waited to be asked to look after
him. It was a very happy time and Halima's foster child grew
rapidly in strength and soon outgrew other children of similar
age. As time passed, Halima thought it would be nice for
Lady Amina to see her son, so she decided to take him to see
her. Lady Amina was delighted to see and hold him again,
but an epidemic had broken out in Mecca so it was agreed that
Halima should take him back with her to their desert home.
The two angels: Little Muhammad loved to play with his foster
brothers but also enjoyed sitting alone by himself. Several
months had passed since his return from Mecca, when one day
as his brothers were playing not far away among the sheep,
and he sat alone, two angels, having taken the appearance
of men, dressed in pure white robes came to him with a gold
bowl containing snow. Muhammad was neither afraid, nor concerned
when they miraculously opened his chest, felt around his
heart, washed it, then sealed his chest once more and left.
His brothers saw the two men, and had watched in awe and as
soon as they left they ran as fast as their legs could carry
them to tell their mother. Halima and her husband rushed
to Muhammad and found him standing alone. His face looked somewhat
pale and Halima held him gently in her arms then asked
what had happened. He told her about the two men and how they
had opened his chest and looked for something, but what
it was they were looking for he did not know. Halima was alarmed
and looked at his chest but there were no signs of it having
been opened, nor yet were there any traces of blood. The
only difference she could find was that the small mark she
had taken to be a birth mark between his shoulders appeared
to be raised a little more than usual. Halima and her husband
were worried and questioned their sons repeatedly, but none
changed their story, which convinced them that the boys
were speaking the truth. Halima and her husband were greatly
distressed about the affair and feared evil spirits were trying
to harm their beloved foster son. So, fearing for his safety,
it was decided to return him to Lady Amina, whereupon
Halima made arrangements for the journey to Mecca, however
she decided not to tell his mother what had happened. Lady Amina
realized there must be an underlying reason for his return
and at last persuaded Halima to tell her the real reason.
After Halima had finished telling her she told of the fear
she had for his safety whereupon Lady Amina comforted her.
She told her that she was sure no evil would ever come to him
as she had been told during her pregnancy that he was destined
for important role, she also told her of the many miraculous
things that had happened to her before he was born. Halima's
heart was now at peace and so they returned once again
to their desert home where he continued to live until he was
five years old. A new life in Mecca: It wasn't long before
the young Muhammad had settled down very happily to his new
lifestyle in the City of Mecca and found that he had lots
of cousins, an affectionate grandfather, as well as many uncles
and aunts. Among the children Muhammad loved most were Hamza
and his young sister Saffiyah, the children of his grandfather,
Abd Al Muttalib. Muhammad and Hamza were practically
the same age as himself, however, Muhammad was the elder,
but technically, Hamza was his uncle and Saffiyah his aunt.
The journey to Yathrib: One day, Lady Amina learned that a caravan
would soon be leaving Mecca and pass through Yathrib
(Medina) on its way north. It was a wonderful opportunity for
Muhammad, who was now six, to meet the rest of his cousin
and relatives living in Yathrib. Barakah, Lady Amina's maid,
made the necessary preparations for the eleven day journey
and they left with the caravan riding two camels, one ridden
by Lady Amina and her son, the other by Barakah. They stayed
in Yathrib for a month where the young Muhammad was introduced
to his cousins, the children of Adiyy. He enjoyed being
with them and went kite flying and sometimes they would take
him to their large well where he learned to swim. It was a
happy time, but the month soon passed and the caravan destined
for Mecca was ready to leave, so they made their farewells
and departed. The death of Lady Amina: As the caravan journeyed
to Mecca, Lady Amina became seriously ill and did not
recover. The angels took her soul away at a village called
Al Abwa and it is there that she lies buried. Barakah did her
best to comfort the young Muhammad, and together they made
the heartbreaking journey to the house of his grandfather in
Mecca. Abd Al Muttalib, deeply saddened by the loss, took
his grandson into his own household and a very special love
bonded them even more closely together. The love of Abd Al Muttalib:
For many years Abd Al Muttalib had taken to sleeping
near the Ka'ba at Hijr Ishmael, the place where he had been
told in a vision to dig for the well of Zamzam years before
Abdullah, Muhammad's father was born. At Hijr Ishmael his
couch would be spread out for him and more often than not it
was there that one would find him. There was an unwritten rule
that no one sat on his couch, not even his young son Hamza,
however, such was the love he had for his grandson that
he alone was welcome to join him there. One day some of Muhammad's
uncles found him sitting on the couch and suggested he
should not do so. Immediately, his grandfather told them:
"Let my son stay, by Allah, he has a great future." The young
Muhammad was a constant source of pleasure to his grandfather,
and both enjoyed each others company. The wisdom of the
young Muhammad: It was noticeable that even at such a tender
age, Muhammad showed signs of wisdom far beyond his years,
so when Abd Al Muttalib attended important tribal meetings
in the House of Assembly with other elders of the tribe, he
would take his grandson with him. Muhammad's opinion was often
sought in earnest despite his age, whereupon, Abd Al Muttalib
would proudly comment: "There is a great future ahead for
my son!" Abd Al Muttalib always referred to his grandson
as being his son. The death of Abd Al Muttalib: Abd Al Muttalib
was now eighty-two years of age and a few months after his
grandson's eighth birthday he was taken ill and passed away.
Before he died he entrusted the care of his grandson to
his son Abu Talib, the blood brother of Muhammad's father Abdullah,
so Abu Talib willingly became Muhammad's guardian and
took him into his own household. Like his father before him,
Abu Talib became a loving guardian to his nephew and his
wife, Fatima, daughter of Asad, Hashim's son did all she could
to compensate for the mother he had lost. Indeed, such was
the degree of her care that in later years after her beloved
trust had become a prophet, he told those around him that
rather than let him go hungry, Fatima would prefer to let her
own children go without. The guardianship of Abu Talib: When
Abd Al Muttalib passed away there was very little left for
his heirs to inherit and Abu Talib was poor, but like his
father, he loved his nephew dearly, and there wasn't anything
he wouldn't do for him. Many a night the young Muhammad would
be found snuggled up to his uncle in bed, sleeping peacefully
until the light of the morning. During the day the young
Muhammad would go with him wherever he might go and when
he was old enough Abu Talib entrusted him with the responsibility
of shepherding his flock of sheep which was a vital source
of food and income for his family. Unfortunately, some
people tried to imply that Abu Talib made his nephew look after
his sheep in order to demean him -- indeed, this is not
the case. It was a position of great trust and one must remember
that most of the prophets, peace be upon them, were shepherds
at one time or another during their life. The drought
and the miracle: Drought had stricken Mecca and its neighboring
settlements in the valley yet again. It was a hard time
for everyone both old and young alike. Abu Talib was highly
respected in his tribe and in times of need, such as this,
they would often turn to him for help and advice. The situation
continued to worsen and so in desperation several of the
Koraysh went to Abu Talib and asked him to pray for rain.
Muhammad was with him and heard their request so together, with
Abu Talib carrying him on his shoulders, they made their
way to the Ka'ba to supplicate to Allah for rain. As they entered
the precincts of Ka'ba the sky was blue and the heat
of the sun beat down just as it had done for so many weeks.
Muhammad held on tightly to his uncle's fingers and together
they supplicate for rain. Within moments, clouds gathered from
all directions and rain started to fall -- the drought was
over, Allah had heard and accepted their supplications. Like
Halima, Abu Talib was quick to recognize the multiple blessings
he and others shared on account of his nephew. The annual
trip to Syria: It was time for the annual trip to Syria.
Even though Hashim, their famous ancestor, had secured alliances
with tribes along the caravan route many years before,
the journey was arduous and not without danger. With this
in mind Abu Talib decided to leave his nephew behind thinking
it was better for him to remain with Fatima and his other
children. When the time came for the caravan to depart, Muhammad,
who was now twelve years old, rushed up to him and threw
his arms around him. Abu Talib could never refuse his nephew
and so it was agreed that Muhammad would join him on the
long journey north. Buhairah, the monk: After many weeks of
arduous travel the caravan reached a place called Tayma that
lay on the outskirts of Basra. It was there that a monk by
the name of Buhairah lived alone in a cell that had been inherited
by a succession of hermit monks. Over the centuries,
important religious documents had been brought to the cell
and left by his predecessors and Buhairah had made it his life's
work to study them well and had become very knowledgeable.
In the documents were prophecies that told of another prophet
to come after Jesus. The prophecies described in detail
the time in which he would be born, his appearance, character
and background, and it was Buhairah's dearest wish that
he would be blessed to live long enough to see him. As Buhairah
was meditating outside his cell one day he noticed a caravan
in the distance making its way down towards the city.
It was a common sight to see caravans making their way to the
city, but as he gazed towards it he noticed there was something
different about this one. In the blue sky was a lone white
cloud that floated just above the caravaner's heads, when
the caravan changed direction the cloud would follow. He
watched the caravan more intently and when it started to descend
the neighboring hills he witness the palm tress bow their
branches as the caravan passed by. He noticed something else
that was even more strange, when the caravan came to rest
under the trees the cloud disappeared and the palm branches
bowed down still further to provide a dense, cooling shade.
Just before the caravan reached the market place it halted
again under the shade of some trees and Muhammad, being the
youngest, was asked to tend to the camels while the others
went to the market place. Buhairah made haste to greet the caravaners
and invited them to eat with him; caravans had stopped
there many times before, but Buhairah had never invited
them, nor yet any other caravan to join him. As they sat down
to eat Buhairah looked at each one in turn, then asked if
there was anyone missing from the party. They informed him
that there was another, a boy, whom they had asked to tend the
camels. Buhairah insisted that the boy should join them,
and the caravaners felt embarrassed at their unintentional forgetfulness,
and so Muhammad joined them. When Muhammad arrived,
Buhairah observed his appearance and manners closely.
After a while he questioned him and then asked him to swear
by the idols of Mecca -- which was common practice amongst the
Arabs. Muhammad refused saying: "There is nothing more hateful
to me than to do that." The answers Muhammad gave Buhairah
convinced him ninety-nine percent that the young boy, in
whose company he was, was none other than the one prophesied
in the scriptures to be the last Prophet of Allah. However,
one thing bothered him, Abu Talib had referred to Muhammad
as being his son, and the scriptures stated quite clearly
that the last prophet would be an orphan, so he inquired about
Muhammad's parents and was told that Muhammad was an orphan,
and that Abu Talib was not his real father, rather, he was
his paternal uncle. Now, Buhairah knew for certain that he
had been blessed to live long enough to meet the boy destined
to be the last Prophet of Allah. He was overcome with joy
but at the same time a great sense of fear struck deep within
his heart. He told Abu Talib that he must take great care
of the young boy and advised him not to continue to Basra
as he feared the descendants of the Jews that had migrated to
Arabia many years before to await the arrival of the last
Prophet would also notice his signs and try to harm him as he
was not of their race. Abu Talib took Buhairah's advice and
they returned to Mecca. His early character: Muhammad had
grown up into a quiet, thoughtful youth preferring to look after
his uncle's sheep rather than playing with the other children
of Mecca. He loved the peace and tranquility of the valleys
with their mountains and whilst tending his flock he
would pass his time observing and marveling at the wonders of
the creation of Allah. Like all boys of the Koraysh tribe
he was taught the art of manhood and how best to defend himself.
Muhammad had very keen eyesight and so it wasn't surprising
that he became an excellent archer like his ancestor Prophet
Ishmael. The Battle of Fijar: Muhammad was fifteen years
of age when a clash between the tribes of Koraysh under the
command of Harb, Umayyah's son and the Banu Hawazin erupted.
Since the time of Prophets Abraham and Ishmael, certain
months of the year had been held sacred. During these months
physical hostilities between the tribes had become strictly
forbidden. However, the rule was broken when Al Barrad, Kais
Al Kinani's son son, killed Urwah Al Rahal, Utba Al Howazini's
son The battle that ensued became known as the "Battle
of Fijar" because it took place during the forbidden months.
Abu Talib took part in the fighting, which was destined to
erupt spasmodically over a period of four years, however, Muhammad
did not take part in the fighting, rather, he would gather
the stray arrows for his uncle. The Treaty of Fudal: After
the recent battle the chieftains of the divided tribe of
Koraysh known as the "Perfumed Ones" and the "Confederates"
put aside their differences and met together in the house
of Abdullah, Judan's son. They realized that if they were to
show any sign of weakness between them it could result in either
party falling prey to an enemy and in the long term bring
about the fall of the Koraysh tribe. There was also another
important factor to take into account that related to the
protection of not only those living in Mecca but also visitors
who suffered injustice on account of their weakened position.
Muhammad was present during the meeting and all took
an oath that from that day onward they would protect these rights
and that if a person was harmed they would come to his
aid and he would receive his rights. Such was the importance
of this treaty that the Prophet, praise and peace be upon
him, later told his companions: "Indeed, I witnessed with my
uncles, in the house of Abdullah, Judan's son a treaty which
is more beloved to me than a herd of cattle. Now, in Islam,
if I were to be asked to partake in something similar, I would
accept." Trade: By now, Muhammad was a young man. The caravan
journeys he had made with his uncle had taught him many
things, so it was natural that he too should take to trading
as a livelihood, although his own resources were limited.
There were those in Mecca who gained much wealth through trading.
Some of them, for one reason or another, chose not to
accompany the caravans on their missions, preferring to entrust
their goods and money to a caravaner, who would in return
be given a share of the profit. However, reliable, trustworthy
people had become increasingly difficult to find. Muhammad's
reputation for fairness, honesty and trustworthiness
were known by all in Mecca so when he took to trading, Meccan
business men welcomed him as their profit-sharing partner.
Such was his reputation that both businessmen and tribesmen
would refer to him as "Al Amin", the trustworthy. The unsettled
transaction: Muhammad had negotiated a business transaction
with a man by the name of Abdullah, however, part of the
transaction remained unsettled, so it was agreed that the
two should meet again to finalize the matter on a specific
day. The matter slipped Abdullah's memory and Muhammad waited
patiently for him to arrive for three days. On the third day
when Abdullah finally arrived, Muhammad neither raised his
voice, nor did he take offense at being kept waiting, the
only comment he made was that he had been concerned for him
on account of his delayed arrival. It was not in him to quarrel,
nor yet to turn anyone away. This degree of tolerance was
indeed a very rare quality to be found in Arabs of that day,
for they were dark days, a time of ignorance.----

This is a shortened account of the childhood of our beloved Prophet,
praise and peace be upon him. InshAllah, its expanded
edition will appear in the Mosque of the Internet's file devoted
to the Prophetic Biography (Serah) - "In Love of Our
Prophet Muhammad". The first chapters are already accessible
on our site at www.mosque.com © 2004 The Mosque of the Internet