Name
: Muhammad
Nick name
: Abu Alqasim
Prophecy duration : 23 years
Age
: 63 years
Father’s name
: Abdullah son of AbdulMottalib
Mother’s name
: Amina doughter of Wahab
The Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) was born at the dawn of Monday 9th Rabie Al Awal
“AamulFiel” (the year of the Elephant)which corresponds to April 22nd 571 A.D. That morning
brought to the world the most beautiful and honourable gift. It was the birth of God’s final prophet and
Messenger Mohamed (PBUH). His father Abdullah had died shortly before his birth.
In accordance with the tradition on noble families of Mecca, the Prophet’s grandfather Abdul
Muttalib sought his lovely grandson a foster mother, Halima Assadiya. He lived and grew up for a few
years in her house where his pure spirit and blessings pervaded in all her life, for her cattle got well
milk became abundant and God blessed everything she had. After two years,the Prophet Mohamed
(PBUH) was weaned, but Halima begged Amina (the Prophet’s mother) to keep him for more time
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because of the prosperity she knew during his stay. He stayed in the tribe of Bani Saad till the age of
five, then he was brought to his mother who was all a longing for her son.
Following that, the Prophet (PBUH) and his mother, who had always been very faithful to her
husband, went on a trip to Madina (Yathrib) to visit his father in his tomb and call on his uncle, too.
But on their way back home, he lost his mother after a serious illness making him an orphan.
After the death of his mother, he was placed under the custody of his grandfather Abd
Almottalib who had more love, tenderness and sympathy for him, but again death took away from him
the chance to bring up God’s final prophet; and so, our Messenger moved under the care of Abu Talib
(Ibn Abd Almuttalib).
Our Messenger (PBUH) inherited from his parents glory, dignity and social position. He
avoided all vices which were commonly practised at that time such as gambling, drinking wine,
vulgarity and others. He was well-known to be trustworthy, reliable, truthful and sincere; a man of
high morals. He didn’t get from his parents any properties, possessions or trade. In spite of his noble
lineage and distinguished social status, he used to look for his own livelihood, struggle all the time to
survive confronting all hardships and difficulties. He used to look after sheep around Mecca and to
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work in trade for a wealthy woman Khadija whom he later married after she noted his morals and
noble character which nobody ever enjoyed in his tribe (Quraysh). The restoration of Al Kaaba (in
Mecca) and being a mediator between conflicting parties in his homeland (Mecca) remain the most
important events to which the Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) contributed before prophecy.
While God’s final prophet was of these noble manners and principles, people at that time were
plunging into all sorts of vice and sin till they lost their reason. Darkness veiled their sight and
prevented the tiniest hope of belief. Our Messenger Mohamed (PBUH) always got himself away from
this circle of ignorance and paganism. He (PBUH) used to spend whole nights worshipping God in a
cave called Hira outside of Mecca pondering the greatness of God and contemplating the stars, the
moon and other God’s creatures. So far, he knew nothing of the message he would spread later and its
importance to humanity. At the age of forty and while sitting in Hira, he was visited by the Angel
Gabriel who asked the Messenger of God to read, bearing in mind he was illiterate. Gabriel (PBUH)
continually commanded “Iqra!” and the prophet gave the same answer a number of times, until finally,
the “Sura” began : Recite (Iqra) in the name of thy Lord Who created, created a man from a blood-
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clot. Recite and thy Lord is the Most Generous, Who taught by the pen, Taught man that he knew
not”. It was the first Quranic revelation revealed to the Prophet.
After that, shaken and trembling, the Prophet returned home to Khadija, his faithful and reliable
wife who supported, encouraged him and stood by his side. She was the first woman who believed in
him and in his prophecy and the first woman who ensured for herself a pearly palace in paradise.
Following that, Gbriel taught the Prophet his mission which was to take people out of ignorance
and paganism to knowledge and enlightenment; and so did the Prophet. He carried enlightenment to
people around and began to spread his message secretly for three years reciting the verses * revealed
to him.
Once the divine order came to the Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) to spread his mission publicly, he
stood on the mount Asafa announcing the religion he preached and the truth of his mission. However,
the ears which never used to hear the truth, the minds that were accustomed to laziness and the souls
that were passionately devoted to error and astray from the truth to addict did not tolerate the light of
God to shine in Mecca.
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There were alot of challenges which face spreading of Islam at that time . the Prophet Mohamed
(PBUH) met in his mission the resistance of the people of Mecca, Quraysh. They were greedy people,
eager to power and wealthy, afraid to lose their trading advantages. They did not have the least doubt
within themselves that the Prophet’s mission was true beacause he was well-known in the pre-Islamic
time as As-sadiq (the truthful) and Al Amine (the trustworthy). However, the agreements the leaders
of Quraysh used to sign with the other tribes to facilitate the traversing of their caravans across the
desert in exchange for placing idols in Kaaba representing these tribes was the main reason behind
their hostility towards the Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) and his companions so as not to lose their trade
and their distinguished social status they enjoyed at that time as nobles and leaders of Mecca.
When the local tribes of Quraysh used up all their ways of torture, abuse and persecution against
the prophet and his companions, they resorted to bargaining and temptations by means of money,
power and sometimes beautiful women which the Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) again strongly rejected
because the mission he was sent to accomplish was greater than those temptations. He (PBUH) called
people to worship God, the Compassionate,and the Merciful. to love tolerance and to respect women
who were deprived of the tiniest right. It is well-known that Arabs before the coming of Islam used to
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bury the girls at their birth because they thought it was a shame to have afemale baby. More over that,
women were deprived of inheritance or even to express themselves.
The Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) endured persecution from the closest people to him. From his
uncle Abu Lahab, he was subject to cursing, strangling, boycotting and hunger. He (PBUH) witnessed
his followers and companions under severe physical torture, but never thought of revenge. He was
patient and tolerant and carried on his mission which God had entrusted to him till a new dawn of
Islam came out. Hamza (the Prophet’s uncle) and Omar Ibn Khattab converted to Islam and they were
really two important people who made great sacrifices for the spreading of the religion publicly.
Assaults and oppression against the Prophet’s companions and followers intensified and grew
worse and so he ordered that they should leave their homes and go to Habsha seeking the protection of
the Christian king Negus who rejected all attempts from the leaders of Quraysh to get back the
Prophet’s followers and sometime later he believed in the message of Allah and converted to Islam.
The prophet’s mission did not remain within the boundaries of Mecca. Isn’t it a message from
Allah to humanity? Isn’t it a message to Man on earth till the Hour of Resurrection? So why should it
remain in Mecca? So far it stayed there for 10 years and it was time for the Prophet Mohamed (PBUH)
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to carry his mission beyond Mecca. The first station in his journey was the city of Tai'f for which he
walked 60 mileson foot. He spent there 10 days calling peopto worship Allah but he was forced to
leave. He was maltreated during his stay there. The people cursed him, shouted at him and even threw
him with stones. The prophet Mohamed was badly hurt and went back to Mecca very sad and
depressed begging God to forgive the people everything they did to him. He was forgiving, patient and
brave. He strongly believed in the message entrusted to him and its importance to Man on earth
Seeing that the message of Allah is for all mankind, the Prophet Mohamed (PBUH)
began to move among the Arab tribes to spread his message making advantage of the
pilgrimage season. Now after 10 years of prophecy, Mohamed (PBUH) altered his policy in
calling people to Islam. Requesting protection from the Arab tribes was the first step before
he could proceed in his mission.
All the tribes refused and rejected the Prophet’s call for Islam. However, the firdt
indications of a successful mission came from the tribe of Yathrib (Madina). The Prophet
Mohamed (PBUH) was able to win converts there.six young enthusiastic people from Yathrib
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converted to Islam and their conviction was confirmed because even the jews of Yathrib knew
that a prophet called Mohamed would come with a mission to mankind which fact made it
easier for the spreading of Islam in Yathrib.
Following that and sometime in 620, the prophet Mohamed (PBUH) experienced the
Isra and Miraj, a miraculous journey that accomplished in one night along with angel Gabriel.
In the first part of the journey, he (PBUH) travelled from Mecca to the Furthest Mosque
(Masjid Al Aqsa). In the second part, the Miraj, the Prophet toured Heaven and Hell,
witnessed God’s miracles and wonders, and stood between the hands of Allah. Returning,he
brought for his community a divine gift : the five daily prayers (Assalat) which constitutes a
communion between God and Man. After he came back from his Isra and Miraj, he conveyed
to his people the marvels he had witnessed, but still hostility against him increased because
not their eyes but their hearts were blind.
After each night the sun rises and after darkness there comes light. In the 12th year of
his prophecy, a dozen of new Madinans took the oath of allegiance to the prophet (PBUH) in
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Minan and in the following year another group from Yathrib (Madina) did the same thing and
Islam found itself a nation where the Muslim community can live. The Prophet Mohamed
(PBUH) ordered all the people who had embraced Islam to migrate to Yathrib (Madina).
Quraysh leaders felt that things started to slip out of their hands and secretly devised a plot to
assassinate him, but Allah saved him. He left Mecca secretly in company of his faithful
friend, Abu bakr. After several adventures, they succeeded in reaching Madina safely. It was a
migration of a messenger who carried the truth from his own home to the promised town
which received him and his followers warmly.
Developing a society to the better remains is one of the main difficult tasks that man
may encounter in the sense that one should deal with a very complicated situation where
people’s hopes and sufferings are mixed up with their customs and values in addition to their
social, economic and political situations. That was the first responsibility the Prophet
Mohamed (PBUH) shouldered since he set foot in Yathrib (Madina) till his death. He started
by building a mosque and for a better rehabilitation of the displaced migrants, he created a
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fraternization between them and the people of Yathrib by signing a treaty of alliance (the
constitution of the state) and spreading moral values.
In spite of all this, incitement against the prophet’s mission did not know a rest while
new converts entered Islam which got strength day by day. Quraysh leaders could not forget
their disliked and malice.The started to threaten all the Muslims and the prophet’s followers,
and so God (swt) allowed fighting but only to defend the Muslim community and to establish
justice.
Then, wars and fighting came successively between pagans and Muslims which made
the prophet’s mission more difficult. In all frankness, the jews and some hypocrites played a
very dishonest role making the task of defending Madina not confined only to the protection
of its borders, but including the fight against the enemies inside.
The Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) was wise, compassionate, a skillful planner. He
favoured a truce with Quraysh of which he took advantage to focus on religious issues and
spread his mission peacefully till Quraysh violated the armistice killing some of the prophet’s
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followers which made it easier for the Muslims to invade Mecca and return to the motherland
victoriously. But the great victory was the conversion of thousands of people to Islam.
In the 10th year after the migration (Al Hijra), the Prophet (PBUH) went to pilgrimage.
It was his last pilgrimage in his blessed life before his death in 571 AD. Leaving behind him a
nation, an ideal example of a country in trust of his companions, believers and everybody
following his path and going after his example.
If you ever pay a visit to Yathrib, you will see that there is nothing which distinguishes
the prophet’s house from the rest of the Muslims’ houses; a hut with walls of unbaked clay and a
thatched roof of palm leaves covered by camel skin built next to the mosque. He (PBUH) and his
wives used to live mostly on dates and water. However, there was an atmosphere of happiness,
peace and contentment stretching all over his blessed house. The prophet (PBUH) used to assist his
wives at home. He was very sympathetic and caring for children. More than that, he used to sew his
own clothes and milk his ewe.
In spite of the fact that the prophet’s wives had different characters and enjoyed various levels
of beauty and charm, he was very fair with them and never even thought of any sort of violence
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against them. On the contrary, he used to refer to his wives and consult them in all the matters even in
political issues.
By nature he was gentle and kind hearted, always inclined to be gracious and to overlook the faults of
others. Politeness and courtesy, compassion and tenderness, simplicity and humility, sympathy and sincerity
were some of the keynotes of his character. He had charming manners which won him the affection of his
followers and secured their devotion. Though a messenger of Allah, he never assumed an air of superiority. He
was always the first to greet another and would not withdraw his hand from a handshake till the other man
withdrew hishand. He did not like people to stand up for him., however,he stand s up when any dignitary came to
him. He had stood up to receive the foster mother who had reared him in infancy and had spread his own sheet
for her. He avoided sitting at a prominent place in a gathering, so much so that people coming in had difficulty in
spotting him and had to ask which was the Prophet (PBUH).
He used to visit the poorest of ailing
persons and exhorted all Muslims to do likewise. He would sit with the humblest of persons
saying that righteousness alone was the criterion of one's superiority over another. He
invariably invited people, whether they be slaves, servants or the poorest believers, to partake
with him of his scanty meals.
So, how can one with such morals be humiliated?
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