of Arabia. His clan had long been responsible for feeding and caring for the pilgrims visiting the Kaaba. Muhammad’s father was named Abdullah. Abdullah was a merchant and the tenth son of Abdul Muttalib. Abdullah married a woman named Amina, who was Muhammad’s mother. Abdullah fell sick and died on a business trip while Amina was still pregnant with Muhammad. Muhammad was born and raised in the city of Mecca.
Arabs to send their children to live for a few years with the Bedouin Arabs. The Bedouin woman who took Muhammad in was named Halimah. At first, Halimah was reluctant to care for Muhammad because he was an orphan with no father. However, she did take him in, and her wealth and sustenance increased miraculously. Halima raised Muhammad for four years. Muhammad returned to live with his mother, but tragedy struck again. Amina took ill a couple of years later. She died when Muhammad was just six years old. Thereafter, his uncle Abu Talib raised him. Abu Talib would raise Muhammad until adulthood.
well known for his honesty and integrity. His reputation for honesty was such that he was nicknamed Al-Amin which means The Truthful. There also lived in Mecca a wealthy widow named Khadijah. She needed someone she could trust to help with her business dealings in other lands. She knew Muhammad was very trustworthy and hired him as her business manager. Khadijah was very pleased with Muhammad’s business dealings. She was equally impressed with his character and honesty. She proposed marriage to Muhammad, and he accepted. At the time of their marriage, Muhammad was 25 years old and Khadijah was 40. Together, they had 5 children. There came a time when Muhammad’s uncle Abu Talib came across hard times. Some of the members of the Hashim clan offered to help out. They took in members of Abu Talib’s family to raise, and ease the burden on Abu Talib. Muhammad took in Abu Talib’s son Ali. Muhammad would raise Ali until adulthood. Many years later Ali would become the fourth Righteous Caliph of the Islamic Empire. There was also a young slave boy named Zaid who lived in Muhammad’s house. Zaid’s village was raided by an enemy tribe and Zaid was captured. The raiders sold Zaid as a slave to Khadijah, who gave him to Muhammad as a gift. Muhammad loved Zaid like his own son, and raised him as such. One day, Zaid’s father and uncle found out that Zaid was living in Mecca with Muhammad. They traveled to Mecca in the hopes that they could ransom him back. Even though Zaid loved his family, he was treated so well by Muhammad that he preferred to stay in Mecca. Zaid’s father and uncle were pleased to see that Zaid was well cared for and agreed to let him stay in Mecca. From that point on, Muhammad freed Zaid, and adopted him as his own son. Muhammad’s children included four daughters: Fatima, Ruqayyah, Um Kalthoum, and Zaynab. He also had a son named Qasim, but he died while still a child. |
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Prophet Muhammad - His Early Life
| Islamic Learning Materials |
