Seerah – Part 4
(April 2, 2021)
الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أمعين
The last session of the Seerah was concluded with the story of the Prophet’s birth in the year 570 CE, and we learned that he was named Muhammad by his grandfather – ‘Abdul Muttalib.
A Time with Halimah (حليمة)
Makkah being a hot, dry and dusty city, it was the practice of the Makkans to send their babies to live with nurses in the villages where the air was clean and milk, meat, and vegetables were fresh. Children who lived there grew up healthy and strong. These villagers spoke good Arabic. The city Arabs wanted their children to learn pure Arabic from them. Aminah too wanted to send her baby – Muhammad (S) to live in a village. She wanted him to grow up healthy and strong and to speak good Arabic. But she did not have much money. Without money, she knew it would be difficult to find a good nurse for him.
One day, some village women of the tribe of Bani Sa’d came to Makkah. These women were known for their ability to care for children and also for their beautiful Arabic. They wanted to find babies who needed nursing. Among them was a woman called Halimah. She was not in good health, and had hardly enough milk for her own child. Her camel did not have any milk either. Her donkey was lean and weak. She hoped to find a child from a rich Quraysh family that would pay her well.
Because Halimah’s donkey and camel walked slowly, she arrived in Makkah late. All the other women of the tribe to which Halimah belonged found a child to take back with them, but not Halimah. She was very sad.
The only baby left was Muhammad (S). Usually it was the father who paid the nurse for taking care of the child, but Muhammad (S) was an orphan. His father had died before he was born. So no one wanted to take him, even though he was from one of the noblest families of Quraysh. Halimah did not want to be the only woman to go back to her tribe without a baby to bring up. She asked her husband whether she should take Muhammad (S) or not. He advised her to take him, hoping that Allah will bless them because of the child. They went to Aminah’s house and talked to her and to ‘Abdul Muttalib, the baby’s grandfather. Halimah and her husband were poor, but they were kind people. Aminah decided to send Muhammad (S) with them. She was happy that her baby had found a loving family to care for him. But she would miss him.
Halimah was happy to have this baby even though the compensation for nursing him and taking care of him was not much. Muhammad (S) proved to be a blessed child. As soon as Halimah began to feed Muhammad (S) her milk suddenly increased. Now she had plenty of milk for both her own baby and for Muhammad (S). Her sick donkey became well and strong and could run very fast.
When they were back home, everything began to change. The land became green, and the date trees, one of their main sources of food, gave lots of fruit. Even the sheep and their old she-camel began to give plenty of milk. Halimah and her husband knew that this good fortune had come because they had the new baby, Muhammad (S), whom they had come to love as if he were their own son. Muhammad (S) became very popular with the villagers. Every house he visited was blessed by Allah. The villagers were very pleased to have such a child among them.
After two years, Halimah and her husband took Muhammad (S) back to his mother in Makkah but they were sad to think of parting with him, so they asked Aminah if Muhammad (S) could stay with them longer. Aminah had missed her baby and wanted to keep him, but she thought it would be better for Muhammad (S) to live in the village for a few more years. So Muhammad (S) went back to the village with Halimah. Halimah’s husband was a shepherd. When Muhammad (S) was a few years old, he helped look after the sheep with Halimah’s children. He would act as if he were a little shepherd. The children loved to play with him.
One day when Muhammad (S) was in the fields with Halimah’s children, two angels came to him. They opened his heart, and washed it and filled it with the Nur (Light) of Allah. All the children who saw this became frightened. They ran home to tell their parents. Halimah and her husband rushed to the field. They found Muhammad (S) sitting and looking at the sky. He told them what had happened. Halimah and her husband did not know what this meant. But they decided to take Muhammad (S) back to his mother.
When they finally took Muhammad (S) back to Aminah, he was a healthy, strong boy. Later he would look back with joy on the time he had spent with Halimah, and he always thought of himself as one of the Bani Sa’d – the tribe to which Halimah belonged.
The Orphan’s Childhood
Muhammad (S) was about five years old when he went back to live with his mother and grandfather. Aminah was very happy. So was ‘Abdul Muttalib who loved Muhammad (S) dearly. He was a special child who reminded him of his son, ‘Abdullah – the father of Muhammad (S) who had passed away.
Muhammad (S) had many uncles. His eldest uncle, Abu Talib was very fond of him. His two other uncles, Hamzah and Abbas, were about his own age. They were his friends, and the three boys played together. Those were happy days for the little boy, Muhammad (S).
When Muhammad (S) was six years old, Aminah took him to a trip to Madinah. There Muhammad (S) visited the grave of his father, ‘Abdullah. On their way back to Makkah, Aminah became sick, and soon she died. She was buried in the village at al-Abwa not far from Madinah.
Thus, Muhammad (S) lost both his parents at a very young age. He was brought back to Makkah to his grandfather, ‘Abdul Muttalib. The loving grandfather took Muhammad (S) in his arms and comforted him. “I will take care of you now, my child,” he said. ‘Abdul Muttalib kept Muhammad (S) very close to him all the time. He took Muhammad (S) with him wherever he went. It was the custom of ‘Abdul Muttalib to sit on a blanket near the Ka’bah. There he was always surrounded by people who had come to speak to him. No one was allowed to sit on the blanket with him, except his grandson Muhammad (S), which shows how close they were to each other. Many times ‘Abdul Muttalib was heard to say: “This boy will be very important one day.”
But after two years, ‘Abdul Muttalib also passed away. Again Muhammad (S) lost a loved one. We can imagine how much he must have been grieved for his grandfather. His loving uncle, Abu Talib, now took care of him. This uncle was not rich but he was a very kind man. He looked after Muhammad (S) well and did everything he could to make his orphaned nephew happy. He loved Muhammad (S) like his own son. Muhammad (S) loved his uncle too. He stayed close to him all the time. He listened to him and respected him.
Muhammad (S) had a very loving nature. Everyone liked him. He did not fight with other children, and he always played fairly. He never used bad language. He always spoke the truth. He respected those who were older and was kind to those who were younger. People liked him so much that they would tell Abu Talib, “You are lucky to have such a nephew.” “Muhammad is very dear to me,” Abu Talib would answer. “I love Muhammad (S) more than I do my own children.”
Meeting with Bahira (بَحِيرَىٰ) – the Monk
Abu Talib was a merchant. He had many children and was not wealthy. Muhammad (S) wanted to help his uncle. As a merchant, Abu Talib often took goods to other places. Muhammad (S) went with his uncle on such trips. When Muhammad (S) was eleven years old, he went to Syria with his uncle on a business trip. It was Muhammad’s (S) first journey to the north. After days of travel, the caravan arrived at a place near Syria where the Romans used to come to trade with the Arabs. Near this marketplace lived a monk called Bahira. His cell had been used by generations of monks before him and contained ancient manuscripts.
Bahira saw the caravan in the distance and was amazed to see that over it was a large white cloud. It was the only cloud in a clear blue sky and it appeared to be shading one of the travelers. The monk was even more surprised to see that the cloud seemed to follow the caravan but disappeared when the person it was shading sat down under a tree. Bahira knew from the scriptures that a Prophet was expected to come after Jesus and it had been his wish to see this prophet before he died. Realizing that what he had just seen was a miracle, he began to think that his wish might, after all, come true.
Bahira sent an invitation to the Makkans to come and eat with him. The Arabs were surprised because they often passed by that route and Bahira had never invited them before. When the group was all together for the meal, Bahira asked if everyone was there. ‘No’, someone said, ‘a boy was left watching the camels.’ Bahira insisted that the boy should join them. The boy was Muhammad (S). When he arrived Bahira said nothing, but watched him all through the meal. He noticed many things about his appearance which fitted the description in the old manuscripts.
Later on he took Muhammad (S) aside and asked him many questions. He soon found out how Muhammad (S) felt about the idols in the Ka’bah. When Bahira tried to make him swear by the idols, as the Arabs of those days used to do, Muhammad (S) said, “There is nothing in this world that I hate more.” Bahira was certain that this was indeed the Prophet who would follow ‘Isa ibn Maryam (Jesus). Then he went to Abu Talib and asked him how he was related to Muhammad (S). Abu Talib told him that Muhammad (S) was his son. Bahira replied that this could not be so because the boy was destined to grow up an orphan. He said to Abu Talib, “Your nephew will be a great leader and a Prophet. Protect him from his enemies.” After this, Abu Talib started taking greater care of Muhammad (S).
There are many stories told about Muhammad’s (S) youth. Some tell of how he used to take the family’s sheep to graze and was always kind to them. While they grazed he would sit thinking about the mysteries of nature. Unlike those around him, he never worshipped the idols and never swore by them. He also wondered why people were always struggling for power and money, and this saddened him and made him feel lonely, but he kept his feelings to himself. He was a quiet, thoughtful boy, and rarely played with other boys of his age.
On one occasion, however, Muhammad (S) went with some of the boys to a wedding in Makkah. When he reached the house he heard the sounds of music and dancing but just as he was about to enter the house, he suddenly felt tired and, sitting down, fell asleep. He didn’t wake up until late the next morning and thus missed the celebrations. In this way Allah prevented him from doing anything foolish for He was keeping Muhammad (S) for something much more important.
The Sacrilegious War (Harb ul-Fijar)
Between the ages of 15 and 20, the Prophet (S) had some profound experiences which had a huge impact on him. One incident was that of the Harb ul-Fijar – the ‘Sacrilegious War.’ ‘Fijar’ relates to something which is inappropriate and in violation of the ethics, morals or religion of the people. The conflict started because of a dispute between two men, one from Quraysh and another from a tribe in Ta’if. The man from Quraysh had some customers, who the man from Ta’if also approached to take their business for himself. Later, the man from Quraysh attacked and killed the man from Ta’if on account of his anger. As well as being unjust, this murder also occurred in one of the four sacred months, when killing was forbidden, hence the name ‘Sacrilegious War.’
The infuriated tribe from Ta’if gathered an army and headed to Makkah. The Quraysh were upset with the man of their tribe who had killed the man from Ta’if unjustly, but due to tribal allegiances, they felt compelled to defend the tribe’s honor, instead of acting justly e.g. paying blood money.
There was a stalemate. Neither tribe wished to hold a full-scale war, because the stakes were high. The conflict remained for about five years, with only five days of actual fighting. The Prophet (S) was at an age when it was expected he would participate in defending his own tribe. However, he disliked to participate because of the unjust pretext the war was being engaged under. He wanted the war to stop. He was very sad to see all the bloodshed. He managed to avoid the first two days, but had to participate on the third day. His role in the war was to collect the arrowheads and line them up for the warriors to use. He never raised a sword against anyone unjustly.
At the end of the five years of conflict, the leaders of both tribes sat together for discussions. The leaders of the Quraysh wanted to end the war. They made a peace treaty with the other tribes. The treaty stated that they would live in peace with everyone and help the poor and needy. This treaty made Muhammad (S) very happy. Years later he said, “I still accept this treaty. It is dearer to me than the most valuable things in the world.”
The treaty made Makkah a city of peace. All the Arabs respected the Quraysh even more than before. Now no one would fight the Quraysh. The Quraysh sent their trading caravans to other cities and no one robbed or harmed them on the way. The Quraysh did well in business, and many of them got very rich.
So, at this point, we’ll conclude tonight’s session, and take up Part 5 of the session next Friday inshaAllah.
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Resources and References:
Imam Ibn Kathir – Stories of the Prophets
Leila Azzam & Aisha Gouverneur – the Life of the Prophet Muhammad
Anwar Al-Awlaki – The Life of Muhammad (Makkan Period) & The Life of Muhammad (Medina Period): https://www.kalamullah.com/muhammad.html
Aisha Stacey – The Religion of Islam (islamreligion.com)
