WEEKLY REVIEW

Title of the Book : When The Moon Split (A Biography of Prophet Muhammad)

Author : Safiur-Rahman Mubarakpuri

Publisher : Darussalam Publisher and Distributor
The Number of Page : 310 pages
Coverage : Page 41-65
Muhammad was born in She'eb Banu Hashim in Makkah. It was a Monday
morni ng in spring, the ninth day of Rabi ' Al Awwal (accordi ng to some sources
it was the twel fth of Rabi ' Al-Awwal ), fifty to fifty-fi ve days after Abraha's failed
attack on the Ka 'bah. In Arabic, the word for elephant is "Feel," and hence the year
came to be known as 'Amm Al-Feel (the Year of the Elephant) . In the Gregorian
calendar, the date corresponds to Apri l 22, 571 C.E.

While Ami na was pregnant, she had a dream that a light was emitted
from her lower body that i l luminated the palaces of Syria. When she went
into labor, Shifa bi nt Amr, the mother of Abdul Rahman bin Auf, served as
midwife. Abdul Muttali b recei ved the news of his grandson 's birth wi th joy.
He took the newborn to the Ka'bah and invoked Allah's blessings and gave
thanks.

Believi ng his grandson would grow up to be highl y praised, Abdul

Muttali b named him Muhammad, which means "he who is praised." In
keepi ng wi th Arab tradi tion, he then shaved the baby's head and circumcised
him on the seventh day. Afterwards, he i n vited his fellow-Makkans to a
feast.

Muhammad was fi rst n ursed by his mother, and then by Umm

Ayman, his father's slave. An A byssinian whose real name was Barakah,
she embraced Islam and migrated to Madinah, where she died six months
after the Prophet's death.

Thuwaybah, the slave of Muhammad's uncle Abu Lahab, also

nursed the infant. At that time, Thuwaybah was also nursing her own chi
ld, Masrooh, as we11 as Hamzah bi n Abdul Muttalib and Abu Salamah bi n
Abdul Asad Makhzoomi. Hence, these three men became foster brothers because
they were nursed at the same breast.

It was customary among the citizens of Makkah to put thei r new

borns i n the care of Bedoui n women who would raise them for a couple of
years in the desert. The Makkans bel ieved that the u nspoi led, rugged desert
envi ronment would make their children strong and hardy. Furthermore, an
upbri ngi ng among the Bedoui ns ensured that the chi ldren would learn the
purest form of the Arabic language spoken throughout Arabi a.

A bdul Muttal i b was looki ng for one such Bedoui n woman w ho would
serve as a wet nurse and take hi s grandson to the desert. Some women from Ban
u Sa'd bi n Bakr bi n Hawazen came to Makkah to offer their services to local
fami lies. A bd ul Muttalib asked each of them to take hi s grandson Muhammad .
but al l of them decl ined the offer when they were told the chi ld's father was
dead . They felt the famil y of a fatherless chi ld would not be able to reward them
handsomely.

Haleemah bi nt Abu Dh uwayb had also came to Makkah that day. Whi le
all the other Bedoui n women had found chi ldren to nu rse, she was not so
fortunate. She saw Abdul Muttali b with an infant in his arms and took pi ty on
the chi ld who had been rejected by the other women. She and her husband took
the infant Muhammad back to the desert. Haleemah was happy she was not
returning empty-handed .
Personal View :

The facts about the l i fe of the Prophet ha ve been collected from the Qur'an,
authentic Ahadith and other authoritati ve and rel iable sources on factual basis wi thout
any distortions. The biography of the Prophet is a very noble and exal ted subject. It teaches
Muslims about the rise of Islam, and how the Prophet Muhammad :'i was chosen by Al l ah to
recei ve divine revelation . Muslims also learn of the hardshi ps the Prophet and his
Companions faced, and how they eventually succeeded with Allah's help.