Muhammad in

Mecca

Muhammad, t he final Islamic prophet , was born and lived in Mecca for t he first 52 years of his life
(c. 570–632 CE) unt il t he Hijra. This period of his life is charact erized by his proclamat ion of
prophet hood. Muhammad's fat her, Abdullah ibn Abd al-Mut t alib, died before he was born. His
mot her would raise him unt il he was 6 years old, before her deat h around 577 CE at Abwa'.
Subsequent ly raised by his grandfat her, Abd al-Mut t alib, and t hen his uncle, Abu Talib ibn ‘Abd al-
Mut t alib, Muhammad's early career involved being a shepherd and merchant . Muhammad married
Khadija bint Khuwaylid aft er a successful t rading endeavour in Syria. Aft er t he deat h of Khadija
and Abu Talib in t he Year of Sorrow, Muhammad married Sawda bint Zam'a and Aisha.

Muslims believe Muhammad began receiving revelat ion somet ime in t he year 610 CE. Init ially, t he
ranks of t he Muslims only included Muhammad and some of his close friends and relat ives.
However, as more members of t he Quraysh and ot her Arab t ribes respect ed his words and
accept ed his message, t he vast majorit y of t hem, including t ribal leaders and some of his
relat ives, such as Abū Lahab, opposed, ridiculed and event ually boycot t ed his clan, t he Banu
Hashim, and Muhammad and his followers were harassed, assault ed and forced int o exile in
Abyssinia. Aft er experiencing t he Isra and Mi'raj in 620 and receiving delegat ions from Medina and
pledges of prot ect ion from t he t wo Arab t ribes t hat lived in t he cit y at al-'Aqabah, Muhammad
inst ruct ed his companions t o gradually migrat e t o t he cit y, before doing so himself in 622.

The Quran, early biographies of Muhammad (seerah), and hadit h lit erat ure are some of t he primary
sources used by bot h early and modern hist orians in port raying t his period of Muhammad's life.
While quest ions have been raised regarding t he cert aint y of some of t hese sources, most
academics have come t o accept t hese along wit h some of t heir revisions as t he definit ive
sources for Muhammad's early life in Mecca.

Background

The Arabian Peninsula was largely arid and volcanic, making agricult ure difficult except near oases
or springs. Thus t he Arabian landscape was dot t ed wit h t owns and cit ies near t hose oases, t wo
prominent of which were Mecca and Medina (t hen known as Yat hrib).[1] Communal life was
essent ial for survival in desert condit ions, as people needed support against t he harsh
environment and lifest yle. The t ribal grouping was t hus encouraged by t he need t o act as a unit .
This unit y was based on t he bond of kinship by blood.[2] People of Arabia were eit her nomadic or
sedent ary, t he former const ant ly t raveling from one place t o anot her seeking wat er and past ure
for t heir flocks, while t he lat t er set t led and focused on t rade and agricult ure. The survival of
nomads (or bedouins) was also part ially dependent on raiding caravans or oases; t hus t hey saw
t his as no crime.[3][4] Medina was a large flourishing agricult ural set t lement , while Mecca was an
import ant financial cent er for many of t he surrounding t ribes.[1]
 Timeline of Muhammad's life

Important dates and locations in the life of Muhammad

Dat e Age Event

c. 570 – Death of his father, Abdullah

c. 570 0 Possible date of birth: 12 or 17 Rabi al Awal: in Mecca, Arabia

c. 577 6 Death of his mother, Amina

c. 583 12–13 His grandfather transfers him to Syria

c. 595 24–25 Meets and marries Khadijah

Birth of Zainab, his first daughter, followed by: Ruqayyah, Umm Kulthum,
c. 599 28–29
and Fatima Zahra

Qur'anic revelation begins in the Cave of Hira on the Jabal an-Nour, the
"Mountain of Light" near Mecca. At age 40, Angel Jebreel (Gabriel) was
610 40 said to appear to Muhammad on the mountain and call him "the Prophet of
Allah"

Begins in secret to gather followers in Mecca

c. 613 43 Begins spreading message of Islam publicly to all Meccans

c. 614 43–44 Heavy persecution of Muslims begins

c. 615 44–45 Emigration of a group of Muslims to Ethiopia

c. 616 45–46 Banu Hashim clan boycott begins

Banu Hashim clan boycott ends

619 49
T he year of sorrows: Khadija (his wife) and Abu Talib (his uncle) die

c. 620 49–50 Isra and Mi'raj (reported ascension to heaven to meet God)

622 51–52 Hijra, emigration to Medina (called Yathrib)

624 53–54 Battle of Badr

625 54–55 Battle of Uhud

627 56–57 Battle of the Trench (also known as the siege of Medina)

T he Meccan tribe of Quraysh and the Muslim community in Medina signed

628 57–58
a 10-year truce called the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah

630 59–60 Conquest of Mecca

Farewell pilgrimage, event of Ghadir Khumm, and death, in what is now

632 61–62
Saudi Arabia

T his box:
view talk

edit (https://en.wikipedia.org/w/inde
x.php?title=Template:Muhammad_ti
meline_in_Mecca&action=edit)
Approximate locations of prominent tribes of Arabia in 600 AD.

In pre-Islamic Arabia gods or goddesses were viewed as prot ect ors of individual t ribes and t heir
spirit s were associat ed wit h sacred t rees, st ones, springs and wells. There was an import ant
shrine in Mecca (called t he Kaaba) t hat housed st at ues of 360 idols of t ribal pat ron deit ies and
was t he sit e of an annual pilgrimage. Aside from t hese t ribal gods, Arabs shared a common belief
in a supreme deit y Allah (akin t o "God" in English, as opposed t o "god") who was however remot e
from t heir everyday concerns and t hus not t he object of cult or rit ual. Three goddesses were
associat ed wit h Allah as his daught ers: al-Lat , Manat and al-Uzza. Some monot heist ic
communit ies also exist ed in Arabia, including Christ ians and Jews.[5][6] According t o t he t radit ion,
Muhammad himself was a descendant of Ishmael, son of Abraham.[7]

Genealogy, birth and childhood

Muhammad was born in t he mont h of Rabi' al-Awwal. Islamic hist orians place t he year of
Muhammad's birt h as 570. corresponding wit h t he Year of t he Elephant , however recent
scholarship has suggest ed earlier dat es for t his event , including 568 and 569.[8] The precise dat e
of Muhammad's birt h varies bet ween different Islamic sect s, wit h most Sunnis accept ing t he
12t h of Rabi'-ul-Awwal as t he dat e of his birt h which is in ibn ishaq's opinion and t here are more
dat es 2,8,10,rabiul awwaland ot her opinion as well[9] while Shi'a Muslims believe it t o have been
t he dawn of 17t h day of same mont h.[10] Muhammad was born int o t he family of Banu Hashim,
one of t he prominent clans forming t he Quraysh t ribe of Mecca, alt hough t he family seems t o
have not been as prosperous during Muhammad's early lifet ime.[11][12] His parent s were 'Abdullah
ibn 'Abd al-Mut t alib of t he Banu Hashim and Aminah bint Wahb, t he sist er of t he t hen-chief of t he
Banu Zuhrah.[13] Muhammad's pat ernal great -grandmot her, Salma bint 'Amr, was an influent ial
Jewish lady from t he Khazraj t ribe of Medina, t hus Muhammad had mixed Arab-Jewish
ancest ry.[14] According t o Ibn Ishaq, an early biographer of Muhammad, 'Abd al-Mut t alib,
Muhammad's grandfat her, came up wit h t he child's name, which was quit e unknown at t he t ime in
t he Arabian Peninsula.

Muhammad's fat her, Abdullah, died almost six mont h before he was born.[15] Muhammad was sent
t o live wit h a Bedouin family in t he desert soon aft er his birt h, as t he desert life was considered
healt hier for infant s.[16] Because he was fat herless, wet nurses refused t o t ake him, fearing t hat
it would not be profit able t o t ake care of an orphan. However, he was accept ed by Halimah bint
Abi Dhuayb al-Sa'diyyah, who had found no child t o t ake care of.[17] Muhammad st ayed wit h
Halimah and her husband unt il he was t wo or t hree years old.[16][18] He lived wit h his mot her in
Mecca for t he next t hree years unt il she t ook him t o Medina (t hen known as Yat hrib) t o visit his
mat ernal relat ives, and died on t he way back around Abwa'. Having lost bot h his parent s,
Muhammad's grandfat her, 'Abd al-Mut t alib, t ook over cust odianship of t he child. Two years lat er,
his grandfat her died and Muhammad was raised under t he care of his uncle Abu Talib, t he leader
of t he Banu Hashim.[8][19] While living wit h his uncle, Muhammad began t ending flocks of sheep on
t he out skirt s of Mecca t o earn his living. He also accompanied his uncle on several of his
commercial journeys. These journeys exposed Muhammad t o cult ural diversit y and varying
religious t radit ions.[20] At t he age of 12, he went wit h his uncle Abu Talib on a business journey t o
Syria, where Muslims believe he met Bahira in t he t own of Bosra, who foret old his prophecy.[21][22]

Adulthood prior to revelation

Lat er in his life, influenced by t he commercial journeys wit h his uncle, Muhammad worked as a
merchant and was involved in t rade bet ween t he Indian Ocean and t he Medit erranean.[23][24][25]
During his career as a merchant , Muhammad became known as "t he Trust wort hy" (Arabic: ‫)اﻷﻣﻴﻦ‬
and was sought out as an impart ial arbit rat or of disput es.[11][26][27]

Aft er part s t he Kaaba were dest royed in flash floods, wit h t he reconst ruct ion almost complet e,
disagreement s arose among t he leaders of t he different clans of t he Quraysh as t o which one
should put t he Black St one int o place. These disagreement s led t o an escalat ion in t ensions, and
war seemed imminent before t hey agreed t o t ake t he advice of t he next person ent ering t he
Haram. Muslims believe Muhammad was t his person, and t hat he spread out his cloak, put t he
st one in t he middle and had t he members of t he four major clans raise it t o it s dest ined posit ion,
before ensuring it s secure placement wit h his own hands.[28][29]
Marriage to Khadija bint Khuwaylid and adoption of Zayd ibn Haritha
…

Seal depicting the name of Khadija bint Khuwaylid in Naskh calligraphy, with the honorifics "Mother of the Believers" and
"May Allah be pleased with her"

Khadija bint Khuwaylid, a female merchant and widower, asked Muhammad t o manage her
commercial operat ions in Syria aft er hearing of his t rust wort hiness. Impressed wit h t he
ext radiornarily success of Muhammad's leadership, Khadija sent a marriage proposal t o
Muhammad t hrough her friend Nafisa.[25][30] Muhammad accept ed t he proposal and was married
t o Khadija. Khadija gave Muhammad t he slave boy Zayd ibn Harit hah, whom Muhammad would
adopt lat er.[31] Ibn Ishaq records t hat Khadija bore Muhammad six children: a boy named Al Qasim
(who would die at t he age of t wo), t hen four girls, Zaynab, Ruqayyah, Umm Kult hum, Fat imah, and
anot her boy, Abdullah (who also died at t wo).[32]

Due t o t he deat h of Abdullah, Muhammad's desire t o relieve his uncle Abu Talib of t he burden of
providing for a large family, and Abu Talib's financial sit uat ion, Muhammad t ook Abu Talib's son
and his cousin, Ali, int o his own home. Muhammad also adopt ed Zayd, giving him t he name Zayd
ibn Muhammad. Muslims believe t hat t his renaming was rendered invalid by t he revelat ion of
some verses in Surah 33 of t he Qur'an, Al Aḥzāb, wherein it is st at ed t hat an adopt ed child could
not be t reat ed as a nat ural son by marriage or inherit ance. Consequent ly, t he adopt ed child had
t o ret ain t he name of his or her biological fat her. Therefore, Zayd's name was revert ed t o Zayd
ibn Harit ha.[32][Quran 33:40 (https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asura%
3D33%3Averse%3D40) ]
 Early revelations and opposition

At some point , Muhammad adopt ed t he pract ice of medit at ing alone for several weeks every
year in a cave on Mount Hira near Mecca.[33][34] Islamic belief holds t hat in one of his visit s t o
Mount Hira in t he year 610, 13 years before t he Hijra, t he angel Gabriel began communicat ing wit h
and commanded Muhammad t o recit e t he following verses of t he 96t h Surah of t he Quran, Al
'Alaq:[35]

Proclaim! (or read!) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher, Who
created- Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood: Proclaim!
And thy Lord is Most Bountiful,- He Who taught (the use of) the pen,-
Taught man that which he knew not. (Qur'an 96:1–5 (https://www.perse
us.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asur
a%3D96%3Averse%3D1%E2%80%935) )

Most Sunni t radit ions believe t hat upon receiving his first revelat ions Muhammad was deeply
dist ressed, but t he spirit moved closer and t old him t hat he had been chosen as a messenger of
God, and t hat Muhammad ret urned home and was consoled and reassured by Khadija and her
Christ ian cousin, Waraqah ibn Nawfal. Shiit e Muslims maint ain t hat Muhammad was neit her
surprised nor fright ened at t he appearance of Gabriel but rat her welcomed him as if he had been
expect ing him.[36] The init ial revelat ion was followed by a pause of t hree years during which
Muhammad gave himself up furt her t o prayers and spirit ual pract ices. When t he revelat ions
resumed he was reassured and commanded t o begin preaching:[37][38]

Your lord has not forsaken you nor does he hate [you] (Qur'an 93:3 (htt
ps://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.0
2.0006%3Asura%3D93%3Averse%3D3) )

According t o Welch, t hese revelat ions were accompanied by myst erious seizures, and t he
report s are unlikely t o have been forged by lat er Muslims.[11] W. Mont gomery Wat t furt her adds
t hat Muhammad was confident t hat he could dist inguish his own t hought s from t hese
messages.[39]

Mission and early efforts …

Muhammad's early effort s in preaching t he new fait h focused on t he preaching of a single ideal:
monot heism. Surahs of t he Quran believed t o have been revealed during t his period, known as t he
Meccan surahs (Arabic: ‫)اﻟﺴﻮر اﻟﻤ ﻜّ ّﻴﺔ‬, command Muhammad t o proclaim and praise t he name of
Allah, inst ruct him not t o worship idols or associat e ot her deit ies wit h Allah and t o worship Him
alone,[40] warn t he pagans of t heir eschat ological punishment ,[Quran 38:70 (https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/
hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asura%3D38%3Averse%3D70) ][Quran 6:19 (https://www.perseus.tuft

s.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asura%3D6%3Averse%3D19) ]
somet imes referring t o
t he Day of Judgement indirect ly, while providing examples from t he hist ory of some ext inct
communit ies.[Quran 43:13–16 (https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asu
ra%3D43%3Averse%3D13) ][40] Early convert s t o Islam included Muhammad's wife, Khadija, his cousin
Ali, his adopt ed son Zayd, his nursemaid Umm Ayman, and his friend Abu Bakr.

Very few of t he Quraysh gave weight t o Muhammad's message; most ignored it and a few
mocked him.[41] According t o Welch, early Qur'anic verses were not "based on a dogmat ic
concept ion of monot heism but on a st rong general moral and religious appeal," furt her adding
t hat t he key t hemes of t hese Meccan surahs include t he moral responsibilit y of man t owards his
creat or: t he resurrect ion of t he dead, t he Day of Judgement supplement ed wit h vivid
descript ions of t he t ort ures in hell and pleasures in paradise, t he wonders of nat ure and everyday
life, t he signs of God, and t he proof of t he exist ence of a great er power who will t ake int o
account t he greed of people and t heir suppression of t he poor.[42] The foundat ions of early
religious dut ies were also laid and included belief in God, asking for forgiveness of sins, offering
frequent prayers, assist ing ot hers wit h emphasis on t hose in need, eject ing cheat ing and t he love
of wealt h, chast it y, and t he prevent ion of femicide which was prevalent in early Arabia.[42]

There were t hree main groups of early convert s t o Islam: younger brot hers and sons of great
merchant s, people who had fallen out of t he first rank in t heir t ribe or failed t o at t ain it , and t he
weak, most ly unprot ect ed, foreigners.[41] Abu Bakr, who used t o purchase slaves t o set t hem
free in accordance wit h Muhammad's principle of equalit y, at t ract ed a large number of convert s.
Nevert heless, t he number of t hese early convert s remained small, and Muhammad concent rat ed
on quiet ly building a small, but spirit ually st rong, communit y.[43] Around 613, t he Quran
commanded Muhammad t o "admonish your nearest kinsmen,"[Quran 26:214 (https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/
hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asura%3D26%3Averse%3D214) ]
init iat ing t he phase of
public preaching. One day, Muhammad climed t he As Safa mount ain, and called out t he t ribal
chiefs. Aft er receiving assurances t hat t he chiefs, who report edly never heard Muhammad t ell
lies, would believe him, he declared t he Oneness of God. Lat er Muhammad organized dinners in
which he conveyed and advocat ed t he subst ance of his message. At t hese event s, Muhammad
met fierce opposit ion from one of his uncles, Abu Lahab,[43][44] while ot hers such as Hamza ibn
Abd al-Mut t alib and al-'Abbas accept ed him. Several reasons have been given for t he resent ment
of t he Quraysh t oward Muhammad's message, t he most accept ed is t hat t he Quraysh also did
not accept Muhammad as a prophet since he came from a clan less powerful t han his
opponent s'.[44]

Opposition and persecution of early Muslims

…
Conservat ive opposit ion arose t o Muhammad's speeches. According t o Ibn Sa'd, t he opposit ion in
Mecca began wit h Muhammad delivering verses t hat "spoke shamefully of t he idols [t he
Meccans] worshiped ot her t han [Allah] and ment ioned t he perdit ion of t heir fat hers who died in
disbelief."[45] According t o Wat t , as Muhammad's followers gained t ract ion in Mecca, t hey posed
a new, int ernal t hreat t o t he local t ribes and t he rulers of t he cit y, whose wealt h rest ed upon t he
annual pilgrimage t o t he Kaaba, t he focal point of Meccan religious life, which Muhammad
t hreat ened t o overt hrow; his denunciat ion of t he Meccan t radit ional religion was especially
offensive t o his own t ribe, t he Quraysh, as t hey were t he guardians of t he Ka'aba.[41] Some of t he
ranking and influent ial leaders of t he Quraysh t ried and failed t o come t o arrangement s wit h
Muhammad in exchange for abandoning his preaching. They offered him admission int o t he inner
circle of merchant s and est ablishing his posit ion in t he circle by an advant ageous marriage, but
Muhammad refused.[41] During t his period, Muhammad urged his followers t o be pacifist ;
according t o Pet erson, t o "deal gent ly wit h t he infidels".[46]

Relat ions bet ween Muhammad's Islamic fact ion and t he ot her members of t he Quraysh rapidly
det eriorat ed. Muhammad's open denunciat ion of t he Meccan idols provoked host ile react ions,
and he was mainly prot ect ed from physical harm for he belonged t o t he Banu Hashim; injuring
Muhammad t hreat ened t o open up a blood feud bet ween t he Banu Hashim and t he rest of t he
Quraysh, undermining t he legit imacy and moralit y of t he t ribal leaders, t hus, t he Quraysh were
reluct ant t o hurt or kill Muhammad.[46] Regardless, several at t empt s were made at Muhammad's
life.[47][48] Tradit ional Islamic account s maint ain t hat t he Quraysh first t aunt ed Muslims by
int errupt ing t heir prayers. West ern scholars have accept ed records of persecut ion and ill-
t reat ment of Muhammad's followers. Many of Muhammad's followers were harassed, assault ed
and forced int o exile—and t wo, Yasir bin 'Amir and Sumayya bint Khabbat , were t ort ured and
killed.[49]
Depiction of the Negus of Axum, Ashamah al-Negashi (also spelled Najashi), rejecting the Meccans' demands of
surrendering the Muslims in Rashid ad-Din Sinan's World History.

In 615, at a t ime of height ened violence against t he Muslims, Muhammad arranged for his
followers t o emigrat e t o t he Kingdom of Aksum and found a small colony t here under t he
prot ect ion of t he Christ ian king, al-Negashi.[11] While t he t radit ions view t he persecut ions of
Meccans t o have played t he major role in t he emigrat ion, William Mont gomery Wat t , a professor
of Islamic st udies, st at es "t here is reason t o believe t hat some sort of division wit hin t he
embryonic Muslim communit y played a role and t hat some of t he emigrant s may have gone t o
Abyssinia t o engage in t rade, possibly in compet it ion wit h prominent merchant families in
Mecca."[11] The Meccans sent Amr ibn al-As and Abdullah ibn Rabi'ah t o negot iat e t he surrender
of t he Muslims t o t he Quraysh, however, t he Negus refused t heir request .[50]

Umar's acceptance of Islam and banishment of the Hashemites

…
Sunni Muslims believe Muhammad prayed for t he st rengt hening of t he cause of Islam t hrough
t he conversion of eit her Umar ibn al-Khat t ab or Amr ibn Hishām.[51] Umar init ially react ed t o
Muhammad's preaching by ardent ly opposing it . Angered by Muhammad's preaching which had led
t o divisions wit hin Meccan societ y, he event ually decided t o kill Muhammad, whom he held
responsible for t he divisions.[52] While en rout e t o assassinat e Muhammad, Umar was informed of
his sist er's conversion t o Islam. Approaching his sist er's house, he heard her recit ing t he Quran.
Event ually considering t he words beaut iful and noble, Umar convert ed t o Islam, making his
conversion public inst ant ly. Tempered by Umar's conversion, Muslims could now pray openly at
t he Kaaba, as t he pagans were reluct ant t o confront Umar, known for his forceful charact er.[52]

Two import ant clans of Quraysh declared a public banishment against t he clan of Banu Hashim in
order t o put pressure on t he clan t o wit hdraw t heir prot ect ion of Muhammad.[53][54] The t erms
imposed on Banu Hashim, as report ed by Ibn Ishaq, were t hat "no one should marry t heir women
nor give women for t hem t o marry; and t hat no one should eit her buy from t hem or sell t o
t hem."[55] The banishment last ed for t wo or t hree years but event ually collapsed mainly because
it was not achieving it s purpose and sympat hizers of t he Hashemit es wit hin t he Quraysh finally
unit ed t o annul t he agreement .[54][56]

Events leading up to the Hijra

Modern road from Mecca to Ta'if

Deaths of Khadija and Abu Talib and Muhammad's visit to Ta'if

…
9 years int o Muhammad's claim t o prophet hood, t wo of t he most commit t ed defenders of
Muhammad's message, his wife Khadija and his uncle Abu Talib, died. Wit h t he deat h of Abu Talib,
t he leadership of t he clan of Banu Hashim was passed t o anot her uncle of Muhammad, Abu
Lahab, an invet erat e enemy of Muhammad and Islam. Abu Lahab soon wit hdrew t he clan's
prot ect ion from Muhammad, placing Muhammad in mort al danger since t he wit hdrawal of clan
prot ect ion implied t hat t he blood revenge for his killing would not be exact ed. Muhammad t hen
t ried t o find a prot ect or for himself in anot her import ant Arabian cit y close t o Mecca, Ta'if, but
his effort failed as he was pelt ed wit h st ones in t he cit y.[11][54]

Marriages to Sawda bint Zam'a and Aisha

…
Somet ime in 620, t he year following t he Year of Sorrow, Muhammad sent a proposal of marriage
t o Sawda bint Zam'a, an early convert t o Islam. The proposal was accept ed by bot h her and her
fat her, Zam'a ibn Qays. Muhammad and Sawda were married in Ramadan of t hat year. Muhammad
also married Aisha, a daught er of his friend and companion Abu Bakr, when she was somewhere
bet ween 6 t o 9 years old, which has caused cont roversy in modern scholarly discussion. Bot h
Sawda and Aisha would out live Muhammad, dying around somet ime bet ween 642–672 and in 678,
respect ively. Aisha would narrat e more t han 2,200 hadit hs in t he 44 years she lived aft er
Muhammad, covering several diverse t opics, including inherit ance, pilgrimage, eschat ology and
Muhammad's privat e life.

Isra, Mi'raj, and pledges at al-'Aqabah

…

The Al-Aqsa Mosque congregation building, the site from which Muhammad is believed by Muslims to have ascended to
heaven in the Mi'raj.

Some t ime in 620, Muhammad t old his followers t hat he had experienced t he Isra and Mi'raj, a
supernat ural journey t o Jerusalem (Isra) and ascension t o t he Seven Heavens (Mi'raj), said t o have
been accomplished in one night along wit h t he angel Gabriel. Muhammad is said t o have t oured
heaven and hell, and spoken wit h earlier prophet s, including Adam, Ibrahim, Musa, and Isa. Ibn
Ishaq, aut hor of first biography of Muhammad, present s t his event as a spirit ual experience while
lat er hist orians like al-Tabari and Ibn Kat hir present it as a physical journey.[57] Some west ern
scholars of Islam hold t hat t he oldest Muslim t radit ion ident ified as a journey t raveled t hrough
t he heavens from t he sacred enclosure at Mecca t o t he Bayt al-Ma'mur (a celest ial recreat ion of
t he Kaaba); ot hers ident ify it as Muhammad's journey from Mecca t o t he Bayt al-Maqdis in
Jerusalem.[58]

Since t he Quraysh gave lit t le weight t o Muhammad's message, Muhammad t ook t o spreading his
message t o t he merchant s and pilgrims t hat frequent ed Mecca. Aft er several unsuccessful
negot iat ions, he found hope wit h some men from Medina.[11] The Arab populat ion of Yat hrib were
somewhat familiar wit h monot heism because a Jewish communit y exist ed in t hat cit y.
Muhammad met wit h a few members of t he t wo t ribes of Medina, t he Aws and Khazraj, t wice, at
a hill known as al-'Aqabah near Mina, where t hey pledged t heir allegiance t o Muhammad and
agreed t o prot ect Muhammad if he were t o migrat ed t o Medina. Following t he pledges at al-
'Aqabah, Muhammad encouraged his followers t o emigrat e t o Medina. The Quraysh at t empt ed t o
st op t he Muslims from emigrat ing t o t he cit y, however, almost all Muslims managed t o leave.[59]

Hijra

Muslims believe Muhammad wait ed unt il he was commanded by Allah t o migrat e t o Medina. Upon
receiving t his divine direct ion, Muhammad planned t o leave Mecca t he same night . The Quraysh
had besieged his house hearing of t he large numbers of Muslims who had emigrat ed prior t o him.
Muhammad slipped from his home t he night of t he planned assassinat ion. Due t o his possession
of several art icles t hat belonged t o members of t he Quraysh, Muhammad asked Ali t o st ay
behind t o set t le his out st anding financial obligat ions. Ali had worn Muhammad's cloak, leading t he
assassins t o t hink Muhammad had not yet depart ed. By t he t ime t he assassins came t o know of
t his, Muhammad had already left t he cit y wit h Abu Bakr. Ali survived t he plot , but risked his life
again by st aying in Mecca t o carry out Muhammed's inst ruct ions: t o rest ore t o t heir owners all
t he goods and propert ies t hat had been ent rust ed t o Muhammad for safekeeping. Ali t hen went
t o Medina wit h his mot her, Fat ima bint Asad, and Muhammed's daught ers, Fat imah and Umm
Kult hum as well as t wo ot her women, Muhammad's wife, Sawda, and wet nurse, Umm
Ayman.[60][61] Muhammad and Abu Bakr t ook refuge in a cave at op t he Thawr mount ain out side
Mecca before cont inuing t heir journey. To furt her delude t he Quraysh, Muhammad t ravelled sout h
for t he first few days of his journey, in t he opposit e direct ion t o Medina. Lat er, Muhammad and
Abu Bakr t urned t o t he Red Sea, following t he coast line up t o Medina, arriving at Quba' on
Monday, 27 Sept ember 622.[59]

Historiography and sources

The Quran is t he only primary source for t he life of Muhammad in Mecca.[62] The t ext of t he
Quran is generally considered by universit y scholars t o record t he words spoken by Muhammad
as t he search for variant s in West ern academia has not yielded any differences of great
significance.[63] The Quran, however, mainly records t he ideological and spirit ual considerat ions of
Muhammad, and only fragment arily references t o t he det ails of his life in t he cit y, which makes it
difficult t o reconst ruct t he chronological order of t he incident s in his or his followers' lives in
Mecca.[64] Modern biographers of Muhammad t ry t o reconst ruct t he socioeconomic and
sociopolit ical aspect s of Mecca and read t he ideological aspect s of t he Quran in t hat
cont ext .[64]

Fath al-Bari, a commentary on the Sahih al-Bukhari by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani

Ot her lat er hist orical works, part icularly t hose of t he 3rd and 4t h cent ury of t he Islamic calendar,
are also of considerable import ance in mapping Muhammad's life in t he cit y.[65] These include t he
early biographies of Muhammad (seerah), part icularly t hose writ t en by Ibn Ishaq (c. 704–767 CE)
and Ibn Sa'd (c. 784–845 CE), and quot es at t ribut ed t o Muhammad in hadit h lit erat ure, compiled
by Islamic scholars such as Al Bukhari (c. 810–870 CE) and Muslim ibn Hajjaj (c. 815–875 CE)
which provide furt her informat ion on his life.[66] The earliest surviving seerah is t he "Sīrah Rasūl
Allah" by Ibn Ishaq.[67] Alt hough t he original is lost , port ions of it survive in t he recensions of Ibn
Hisham and al-Tabari.[68] Many hist orians accept t he accuracy of t hese biographies, t hough t heir
accuracy is unascert ainable.[69] According t o William Mont gomery Wat t , in t he legal sphere, it
would seem t hat sheer invent ion could have very well happened. In t he hist orical sphere,
however, aside from except ional cases, t he mat erial may have been subject t o "t endent ial
shaping" rat her t han being complet ely fabricat ed.[64]

Hadit hs are t he record of t he t radit ions or sayings of Muhammad, defined as t he biography of

Muhammad perpet uat ed by t he long memory of his companions and communit y for t heir
exemplificat ion and obedience.[70] The development of hadit hs is a vit al cont ribut ive element t o
t he biography of Muhammad in early Islamic hist ory. There had been a common t endency among
earlier west ern scholars against t hese narrat ions and report s gat hered in lat er periods, who
regarded t hem as fabricat ions. Leone Caet ani considered t he at t ribut ion of hist orical report s t o
Abdullah ibn 'Abbas and 'Aisha as most ly fict it ious while examining account s report ed wit hout
sanad by t he early compilers of seerah such as Ibn Ishaq. Wilferd Madelung has reject ed t he
st ance of indiscriminat ely dismissing everyt hing. Madelung and some lat er hist orians do not
reject t he narrat ions which have been compiled in lat er periods and t ry t o judge t hem in t he
cont ext of hist ory and on t he basis of t heir compat ibilit y wit h t he event s and figures.[71]

Sunni Muslims consider t he Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, t he collect ion of hadit hs made by
Al Bukhari and Muslim ibn Hajjaj, t o be t he most aut horit at ive hadit h collect ions. Al Bukhari is said
t o have spent over 16 years gat hering over 1,600,000 hadit hs and finding t he best 7,397 of t hem.
Most of t hese t radit ions deal wit h t he life of Muhammad.[72] For Shiit es, t he words and deeds of
t heir Imams, t he progeny of Muhammad, are given t hat aut horit y. Originally t ransmit t ed from
generat ion t o generat ion orally before being compiled, some of t hese sayings, according t o t heir
chain of t ransmission, are sayings of Muhammad.[73]

See also

Hist ory of Islam

Timeline of Islamic hist ory

Hijra

References

Citations
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2. Watt (1953), pp. 16–18

3. Loyal Rue, Religion Is Not about God: How Spiritual Traditions Nurture Our Biological,2005, p.224

4. John Esposito, Islam, Expanded edition, Oxford University Press, p.4-5

5. See:
Esposito, Islam, Extended Edition, Oxford University Press, pp.5–7

Qur'an 3:95

. Hanifs – native pre-Islamic Arab monotheists – are also sometimes listed alongside Jews and
Christians in pre-Islamic Arabia, although their historicity is disputed amongst scholars cf. Uri Rubin,
Hanif, Encyclopedia of the Qur'an

7. Louis Jacobs(1995), p.272

 . Watt (1974), p. 7.

9. "By Mufti Taqi Usmani" (http://www.darulkautsar.com/pemurniansyariat/rabiulawal.htm) .

10. Allameh Tabatabaei, A glance at the life of the holy prophet of Islam, p.20

11. Muhammad, Encyclopedia of Islam.

12. See also [Quran 43:31 (https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2002.02.0006%3Asura%3D43%3Avers

e%3D31) ] cited in EoI; Muhammad

13. Lings (1983), p. 17

14. "Interfaith Institute of the Islamic Center of Long Island | The Prophet Muhammad and The Children of
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15. Recep Senturk, Muhammad, the Prophet, Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia

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1 . Peterson (2006), p. 38

19. Peterson (2006), pp. 38 and 39

20. Peterson (2006), p. 40

21. Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. "Muhammad" (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105853/Muhammad) .

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22. Abel, A. "Baḥīrā". Encyclopaedia of Islam. Brill. Brill Online, 2007

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24. Ramadan (2007), p. 19

25. Berkshire Encyclopedia of World History (2005), v.3, p.1025

2 . Encyclopedia of World History (1998), p.452

27. Esposito(1998), p.6

2 . F.E.Peters(2003), p. 54

29. Jonathan M. Bloom, Sheila S. Blair (2002), p. 28-29

30. "Chapter 4: The Prophet's first Marriage" (https://www.al-islam.org/glance-life-holy-prophet-islam-dar-rah

-haqq/chapter-4-prophet%E2%80%99s-first-marriage) . Al-Islam.org. Retrieved 17 October 2018.

31. Peterson (2006), p. 45

32. Ramadan (2007), p. 22-4

33. Emory C. Bogle(1998), p.6

34. John Henry Haaren, Addison B. Poland(1904), p.83

35. Brown (2003), pp. 72–73

3 . *Emory C. Bogle (1998), p.7

Razwy (1996), ch. 9

Rodinson (2002), p. 71.

37. Brown (2003), pp. 73–74

3 . Uri Rubin, Muhammad, Encyclopedia of the Quran

39. Watt, The Cambridge History of Islam (1977), p. 31.

40. Uri Rubin, Muhammad, Encyclopedia of the Qur'an

41. The Cambridge History of Islam (1977), p.36

42. Welch, Muhammad, Encyclopedia of Islam

43. Ramadan (2007), p. 37-9

44. Peterson (2006), p. 26-7

45. Francis Edwards Peters,Muhammad and the Origins of Islam, SUNY Press, p.169

4 . Peterson (2006), p. 70-1

47. Sirat Ibn Hisham, vol. 1, p. 298

4 . Sahih Bukhari: Volume 6, Book 60, Number 339

49. *Watt (1964) p. 76;

Peters (1999) p. 172

Michael Cook, Muhammad. In Founders of Faith, Oxford University Press, 1986, page 309.

50. van Donzel, Emeri (2007). Encyclopaedia of Islam.

51. at-Tirmidhī, Abū ʿĪsā Muḥammad. Jami' al-Tirmidhi. Hadith 3681.

52. Peterson (2006), p. 72-3

53. Francis E. Peters, The Monotheists: Jews, Christians, and Muslims in Conflict and Competition, p.96

54. Moojan Momen, An Introduction to Shi'i Islam: The History and Doctrines of Twelver Shiʻism, Yale
University Press, p.4

55. Francis E. Peters, Mecca: A Literary History of the Muslim Holy Land, Princeton University Press, 1994,
ISBN 0-691-03267-X, p.54

5 . Daniel W. Brown,A New Introduction to Islam, Blackwell Publishing, p.76, 2004, ISBN 0-631-21604-9
57. Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World (2003), p. 482

5 . Sells, Michael. Ascension, Encyclopaedia of the Quran.

59. Peterson (2006), pg. 86-9

0. Tabatabaei (1979), p.191

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s/v1f8/v1f8a043.html) . Encyclopedia Iranica. Archived from the original (http://www.iranica.com/new
site/articles/v1f8/v1f8a043.html) on 12 August 2007. Retrieved 25 October 2007.

2. Welch, Muhammad, Encyclopedia of Islam

3. F. E. Peters, The Quest for Historical Muhammad, International Journal of Middle East Studies (1991)
pp. 291–315.

4. William Montgomery Watt, Muhammad in Mecca, p.xv

5. William Montgomery Watt, Muhammad in Mecca, Oxford University Press, p.xi

. Reeves (2003), pp. 6–7

7. Robinson (2003), p. xv

. Donner (1998), p. 132

9. Islam, S. A. Nigosian, p. 6 , Indiana University Press

70. Cragg, Albert Kenneth. "Hadith" (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9105855/Hadith) .

Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved 30 March 2008.

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73. Moojan Momen, An Introduction to Shi`i Islam: The History and Doctrines of Twelver, Yale University
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