Prophet Muhammad was born around 570 CE in Mecca. His father had died before his birth, and his mother and grandfather, who had raised him, both died before he was 8 years old. His Uncle, Abu Talib, became his guardian, training him in the family business and eventually taking him on trading missions along the caravan routes. As his experience increased, the Prophet took on greater responsibilities and earned a reputation as an able and trustworthy businessman. The Prophet was subsequently approached by a widowed businesswoman, Khadija, to manage her business and caravans. Her trust in him eventually grew into affection and they married.
Although the Prophet was a good family man and an active member of the merchant community, he was concerned about the moral and spiritual life of the community. He often retreated to a cave on Mount Hira to contemplate and reflect. In the year 610, the Prophet received a message, which is believed to be the first revelation of Islam and marks the beginning of the process that continued for 22 years. His wife Khadija was the first to believe in the Prophet and supported him during the early periods of his mission. Initially, the Prophet conveyed the message to the members of his family, eventually delivering the message to the people. “He asked them to submit to One God, Allah, and to forsake their traditions of polytheism, to share their wealth, and exercise good stewardship by paying attention to the poor and the disadvantaged, reminding them of the judgement to come after death.”*
The Prophet continued his mission despite the opposition from Meccans and the persecution of his family. He and his community subsequently migrated to Medina in 622. This migration, Hijra, inaugurated the Muslim calendar. The Prophet and some of the Meccans who had migrated, eventually returned to Mecca. Prophet Muhammad died on the 12th day of Rabi al-Awwal, during year 10 of the Muslim calendar.
The Prophet’s “practice of prayer and devotion; his spirituality; his example of humility, compassion, and justice; his role as husband and parent; his acts of kindness to children, orphans, the disadvantaged, and animals and birds; and his commitment to the use of reason and the pursuit of knowledge, all serve for Muslims as a model of ideal conduct. It is this picture of [Prophet] Muhammad as a teacher, exemplar and friend of God that has given him a special place in the hearts of Muslims through the ages. In their daily prayers and whenever his name is mentioned, they invoke God’s blessings on him and his descendants, as a continuing mark of remembrance and gratitude. Praise of [Prophet] Muhammad, his prophetic qualities and his position as the chosen messenger of God has been recorded in all Muslim languages and folk traditions, celebrated in poetry, and commemorated on his birthday. Above all, for Muslims he is the recipient of God’s final revelation in the Quran.”**
* Azim Nanji, “The Prophet, the Revelation and the Founding of Islam,” The Muslim Almanac, Gale Research Inc., Detriot, 1996
**Azim Nanji, Dictionary of Islam, Penguin Books, London, 2008
Research by Nimira Dewji
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