161 - PROMINENT PROPHETS & MOTHERS OF BELIEVERS THE LAST MESSENGER (Sallal Laho Alaihe Wasallam) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- (1- to be continued) History of mankind has no other example of a revolution so perfect and so great as the one brought about by Prophet Muhammad in a land teeming with vice and evil. A society dominated by idol-worshippers, tribal egos and familial hierarchy was not easy to influence by the new faith. But, the Holy Prophet made it happen. The scattered tribes in Arabia were brought in the fold of Islam, where Islamic cohesion and divine unity was centered. Peace, equality and justice removed the centuries-old dogmas and evils. The criteria of respect based upon the social status and wealth of an individual was removed by taqwa and fear of Allah. The evolution of a society and the establishment of a new set of values, in a short span of twenty-three years by a man who had not attended any school, nor had any formal training, was nothing less than a miracle. This in itself proves the truthfulness of the religion he has preached. Based on this reality, the renowned playwright George Bernard Shaw once said: ‘If a man like Muhammad were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems, and bring it the much needed peace and happiness. I have studied him - the wonderful man - and in my opinion, far from being an anti-Christ, must be called the savior of humanity.’ The credit of preserving the details of the Holy Prophet’s life goes to the sahaba, who closely observed his life from the time of declaration of the Prophethood to his departure from this world. About thirteen hundred names of the companions of the Holy Prophet are mentioned, who associated closely with the Prophet, and provided testimony to his way of life. The Prophecy Among the descendants of Prophet Ismael, there was a man called Adnan who used the title ‘Quraish’. In old Arabic ‘Quraish’ means - small shark fish. The food of Makkans was dates, camel milk, desert animals and dried fish. Being close to the Red Sea, they would catch fish and dry it for use. They also used small shark fish called ‘Quraish’. Adnan used this name to distinguish himself from the other tribes. His clan expanded and became known as the Quraish which, later divided into ten tribes. They always lived near Ka’bah. Among them, Hashim was the most respected man who was later elected as the caretaker of Ka’bah, and by virtue of that position became the head of the clan. Hashim was a businessman and while traveling to Syria for business he died near Madinah. His widow, Salamah, gave birth to a son called ‘Shaybah’ (meaning the old). He was called Shaybah, because he had some white hair from birth. When Hashim’s brother Mutalib learned about the birth, he went to Madinah and brought Shaybah back to Makkah. When he entered Makkah on his camel with Shaybah behind him, the people of Makkah thought the boy was a slave and called him Abdul Mutalib. Abd is an Arabic word for slave. The real name of Abdul Mutalib was Ammar. Mutalib told them that Shaybah was not a slave but his nephew who had come to live with them. From that day on, Shaybah was affectionately called Abdul Mutalib. Abdul Mutalib replaced his father as the caretaker of Ka’bah. After taking over the custodianship of the holy Ka’bah, Abdul Mutalib went to pay respect to the sitting ruler Saif Zee Yazen. It was the custom during those days that the head of a tribe would call on the ruler to show his affiliation. The ruler asked him who he was, and which tribe he represented? ‘Abdul Mutalib, of the Quraish tribe.’ Hearing this, the ruler stood up and treated him with special respect and kept him as his guest for one month. The ruler shared with him the information he had read in the holy books that there would come a person among the Quraish whose religion would spread far and wide and would last till the last day of this world. ‘Who could be that person?’ the pleased Abdul Mutalib asked. ‘That person would be the descendant of Prophet Ismael and would have, on his back between the two shoulders, the seal of the Prophethood. His name would be Muhammad and the holy book Quran would come to him.’ The holy book Torah, sent to Prophet Musa, also mentioned the birth of the Last Prophet and had given some signs regarding it. The Bani Israel were in possession of a white gown that Prophet Yahya used to wear. They believed that bloodstains would appear on that white gown as an indication that the Last Prophet was about to come. With the appearance of the father of the Last Prophet, Abdullah, who was the youngest of ten brothers, the bloodstains appeared. Abdul Mutalib had ten sons from different wives: Al-Harith, Az-Zubair, Abu Talib, Abdullah, Hamzah, Abu Lahab, Ghidaq, Maqwam, Safar and Abbas. Abdullah and Abu Talib were from the same mother, Fatima. Jews, therefore, planned to kill him before the prophecy came true. The basis of their enmity was the belief that the Last Prophet would come amongst them and they therefore would regain their lost glory. But, the signs indicated that he would be born amongst the Quraish. They did not want the Last Prophet to cancel their religion and enforce his own. Abdullah, the Holy Prophet’s father, would often go out of Makkah to the open plains, where he would see a light emanating from him. The same thing his father Abdul Mutalib saw in his dream - that a light came out of his back and spread all around. Then, he saw a lush green tree, under which appeared a very holy person. Sharing his dream with his son Abdullah, Abdul Mutalib said: ‘When I asked that holy person who he was, he said: I am the Last Prophet’. Abdul Mutalib consulted the old and wise people of Makkah about his dream who informed him that the Last Prophet would come soon and would be his descendant. The Jews of Makkah, when they heard this, turned against Abdullah and swore to kill him. One day, finding him at a lonely place they took out their swords to kill him. Suddenly, there appeared the maternal grandfather of the Prophet - Waheb Ibne Abdul Manaf, the leader of the Zohra clan. He rushed to save him but saw some men who appeared from the sky with swords in their hands. They descended and killed all the Jews. Waheb Ibne Abdul Manaf went home and mentioned this to his wife, who immediately sent him to Abdul Mutalib to ask his son Abdullah’s hand in marriage for their daughter, Amenah. They agreed and the nikkah (nuptial knot) of Amenah took place with Abdullah. Both were around twenty years old at the time of their marriage. Arabs before the Prophet Arabia was a place where no one believed in the Oneness of Allah (tawhid). They worshipped idols. Morality had lost all meaning. One woman could have several husbands and the men were free to have as many wives as they could afford. Drinking and merry-making was the order of the day. Women were given no respect. Some tribes would kill their newborn daughters. The most fertile and rich Arab lands were in the hands of foreigners. In the north, for instance, Syria was ruled by the Romans. In the south, the land of Yemen was under Faris (Iran) where the Arab Sheikhs acted as stooges of Iranians. The Arabs had only the areas of Hejaz, Tehama and Najd and some barren land. Politically and socially, they were very backward people. Living Bedouin life for centuries in different tribes, they had developed a very strong tribal life that took them away from cohesion and unity. Tribal strife and hatred was so intense that on the slightest pretext they would start fighting which would last for generations. To bring cohesion, harmony and unity amongst them was not an easy task. The Bani Israel were the only ones who could have played the role model for them as they were the followers of Prophet Musa. But, they were arrogant and conceited. They thought of themselves as the beloved people of Allah. Although they were the followers of Prophet Musa, they distorted his teachings and followed only what suited them. They were greedy and believed in interest (riba). Their holy place, Bait-ul-Maqdes, was not in their possession and they wandered around all over the world, commanding no respect. So they were also a lost people. In short, it was not only Arabia that had plunged into moral degradation and darkness but the same was true of India, Iran and several other parts of the world. In China, for instance, people worshipped their king as god and had made idols for rain, war, peace etc. They believed that total power was in the king’s hands who could punish even their idols who provided them rain, peace and happiness. With Christianity their main religion, the Egyptians were divided into different schisms. They would freely kill their adversaries and throw them into the fire. The people of Makkah had placed idols in the holy Ka’bah and worshipped them. The idols by the name Lat, Manaat, Hubal, and Uzza were the most prominent ones. The leading idol ‘Hubal’ was placed on the roof of Ka’bah. Fighting amongst the various tribes was very frequent and common. A trivial matter could start a fight leading to animosity that would continue for generations. Gambling was their favorite pastime and they would not hesitate to gamble their women. Illicit relations with women were not a taboo. There was no light and there was no one around who could show them the right path and give them any guidance. The city of Makkah was a center of trade caravans. It already had the House of Allah - Ka’bah built by Prophet Ibrahim 2500 years ago. The people of Makkah were respected in Arabia because they took care of the House of Allah. Makkah was far away from other civilizations. It was in the middle of a desert. The people of the town were shrewd. They knew how to survive in the desert. They had never been ruled by the foreign powers. They had the qualities of a free nation. They were bold and simple. Only a few people in Makkah knew how to read and write. Over centuries, their language had developed to amazing degrees. They were proud of their tribes. They lay down their lives for honor. Despite all the degradation and deprivation, the Arabs were courageous, freedom loving and hard working. It was the divine charisma imbued in the personality of the Holy Prophet that united the Arabs, within twenty-three years under the one banner, tawhid - a feat that no other revolution or political movement in the world could accomplish. Birth of the Prophet Makkah was under the spell of a severe drought and the people were dying of hunger and dryness. Soon after Amenah became pregnant the life-saving rains came pouring down. The dried and withered plants turned green, once again. The drought was over and food became available to everyone. Once, Amenah saw in her dream that a man appeared from the sky and said that the child in her womb was the Last Prophet and that she should name him ‘Ahmed’. She told the dream to her father-in-law, Abdul Mutalib, who advised her not to mention it to anyone. After a few months, the husband of Amenah, Abdullah, went to Syria on a business tour. On his way back, he died in Madinah Munawwra. He was only twenty-five years old. Most historians state that he died two months before the birth of the Holy Prophet. Amenah gave birth to the Prophet on Monday morning, 9 Rabi-ul-Awwal (20 April, 571AD), according to the scholar Muhammad Suleman Al-Mansourpuri and the renowned Egyptian astrologer Alam Mahmood Pasha who confirmed this date with mathematical proofs. Other scholars, however, agree to the date: 12 Rabi-ul-Awwal. Amenah immediately sent someone to inform his father-in-law Abdul Mutalib, who was sitting near Ka’bah at that time. He carried the baby to Ka’bah, prayed to Allah and thanked him. Abdul Mutalib called the baby - Muhammad, a name not common among the Arabs. People asked him: ‘Why a brand new name?’ He responded: ‘I want this child to be praised by everyone and everywhere’ - (Muhammad means - the praised one). The Arabs had a custom of giving their newborn babies to Bedouin foster-mothers for breast-feeding. Following this custom, Abdul Mutalib gave his grandson to a wet nurse called Haleema, to take him away to her village. This custom was in practice to make the child familiar with the original Arab dialects and make him physically strong by being away from the city comforts. After five years, he was returned to his mother Amenah. While Muhammad (pbuh) entered his sixth year, Amenah set off to Madinah Munawwra, called Yathrib in those days, with her maid, Barakah, to visit relatives. On the way back, at a valley called ‘Abwa’, she fell sick and died. Muhammad (pbuh) returned to Makkah with his mother’s maid. Abdul Mutalib took care of the orphan child for two years and then, when he was eight years, two months and ten days old, Abdul Mutalib also left this world at the age of eighty-two, leaving Muhammad (pbuh) under the guardianship of his son Abu Talib1. Abu Talib loved him like his own child. At that time, Abu Talib had only one child - Talib. He and his wife, Fatima bint Asad, were pleased to have Muhammad (pbuh) and reared him like their own son. Abu Talib taught him the trading business. __________________________________________________ (Taken from my book - PROMINENT PROPHETS & MOTHERS OF BELIEVERS, published by FEROZSONS, Lahore, 2011). These stories are based on the literature already available in one form or the other such as Tafseer Ibne Kathir (1301 - 1373), widely considered authoritative, Qisasul Anbiya by Maulana Abdulmannan and several other books. For references, see bibliography of the author’s book. Note: Salutations are mentioned in the beginning of the book. To keep the flow of the text they are not repeated all the time. However, I expect readers to say them for the Holy Prophets when they read the story.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Sep 2014 14:27:34 +0000
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