Muhammad
From His Birth to Ministry
Muhammad is said to have been a descendant of Ishmael, even t^1 hough
early Muslim traditionalists express their reservations regarding the
authenticity of such genealogies. Muhammad was the son Abd^2 ullah b. Abdu'l-Muttalib and Amina bt. Wahb, whose marriage is only briefly
related in tradition. Abdullah died before his son's bir^3 th, which is said to^4 have been accompanied with miracles and to have occurred in^5 the Year of the Elephant. As a small child, Muhammad's heart was said to ha^6 ve been cleansed by two men in white, but the narration of this trad^7 ition is thought to have been based on a misunderstanding of Qur'an 94:1-3.^8 Muhammad's mother Amina died when he was six years-old, and he then passed into the custody of his grandfatherAbdu'l-Muttalib. Muhammad's^9 being raised as
an orphan is confirmed by the Qur'an (93:6). `Abdu'l-Muttalib died when
Muhammad was eight, and he was then taken in by his uncle Abu Talib.^10
It is said that when Muhammad was twelve years old, Abu Talib decided to
take him on a trading journey to Syria. At Bostra they met a mo^11 nk, who^12
after recognizing that Muhammad would be a prophet, warned Abu Talib to
protect his nephew from the Jews. When he was a youth, Muhammad^13
tended the goats of his relatives, and as a young man, is said to^14 have been
protected from participating in pagan practices.^15
Muhammad is reported to have been 20 years old at the time of the battle of
al-Fijar which he witnessed with his relatives and at which h^16 e is said to
have shot some arrows. After this battle, the oath of al-Fudu^17 l was drawn
up.^18
Economically, neither Abu Talib and his family, nor Muhammad^19 (Qur'an
93:8a) were wealthy. It is reported that Abu Talib once heard that a wealthy
woman of the Quraysh named Khadija was preparing to send a trading
caravan to Syria. Muhammad was encouraged by his uncle to ask if he
could work for her, and Khadija, after hearing of Muhammad's v^20 irtues,
called for him and offered him employment. When the caravan r^21 eached
Bostra, a monk confirmed that Muhammad would be a prophet. U^22 pon
returning from the journey, one of Khadija's slaves told her about the monk
and how the slave had seen two angels shade Muhammad.^23