Q:
When and how
did the parents of our Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ
وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم pass away?
A:
When Lady
Āminah رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهَا was two months
pregnant, her husband ‘Abd Allah رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ
was returning home from a business trip, stopping in Madinah to visit his
father’s maternal relatives from the Banū ‘Adi bin Najjār. He became unwell and
passed away a month later at the age of 25. He was buried in Dār Nābighah (in
Madinah).²
² Madarij al-Nubuwwah, vol. 2, p. 14
When the
Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم
was 6 years of age, he and his mother set out for Madinah al-munawwarah to meet
with relatives or visit the grave of ‘Abd Allah رَضِيَ
اللهُ عَنْهُ. Lady Umm Ayman رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهَا
also accompanied them on this journey. On the journey home, Lady Āminah رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهَا passed away in the
village of Abwā, on the western coast of Arabia. Her blessed burial occurred in
the same location.¹
¹ Al-Muwahib al-Ladunniya, vol. 1,
p. 88
Q:
Who was Lady
Umm Ayman?
A:
She was the
blessed woman who had the honour of raising the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم after the passing of
his mother, Lady Āminah رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهَا.
The Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم
himself said to her, أَنْتِ أُمِّي بَعْدَ أُمِّي
– “You are my mother after my (biological) mother.”²
² Al-Muwahib al-Ladunniya, vol. 1,
p. 97
Q:
Mention some
qualities of the beloved Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ
عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم from his childhood.
A:
He did not
scream and shout like other children, nor did he cry excessively.
At 2 months
of age, he began to crawl.
3 months: he
began to stand.
4 months: he
began to walk whilst leaning against walls with his hand.
5 months:
fully capable of walking independently.
8 months: at
this age, he began to speak. His speech was easily understood and discernibly
clear.
9 months: he
began speaking with linguistic eloquence.
In the
initial part of his sacred life, he would say اللَّهُ
أَكْبَرُ كَبِيرًا وَّالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ كَثِيرًا - "Allah is the
greatest, and for Allah is every form of praise." He would speak to the
moon as his cradle was being rocked, and it moved wherever he pointed his
blessed finger.¹
¹ Aakhiri Nabi Ki Pyari Seerat, p.
21
Q:
What was the
environment like in Arabia before the Prophet صَلَّى
اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم arrived?
A:
Before the
Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم,
the moral state of the Arabs had languished severely. Due to ignorance, they
began worshipping idols instead of Allah. They believed stones, trees, the
moon, the sun, mountains, rivers, etc., to be gods. They worshipped statues
they had fashioned from mud and stone with their own hands.
Alongside
these erroneous beliefs, their deeds had also spiraled out of control. Murder,
robbery, gambling, consumption of alcohol, impermissible relationships,
kidnapping of women, burying young girls alive, immorality, foul language and
countless other evils had become embedded in their society.¹
¹ Seerat-e-Rasool-e-Arabi, p. 44
Q:
How and when
did the first instance of revelation (waḥī) take place?
A:
When Allah
Almighty willed to elevate truth and complete His bounty upon creation, He sent
His final Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ
وَسَلَّم to this world in order to guide humankind.
In terms of
the first revelation, the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ
عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم was 40 years of age at that time. He was
worshipping Allah whilst inside the cave of Hirā, when an angel suddenly
appeared before him. (This was the Archangel Jibril عَلَيْهِ
السَّلَام, who was commissioned the task of conveying the message of
Allah to His Messengers).
The angel
immediately asked, اِقْرَأْ – “Read”. “I am not a
reciter”, the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ
وَسَلَّم responded. The angel then held the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم, proceeding to
embrace him with great zeal and affection. Upon letting go, he again asked, “اِقْرَأْ”, but the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم issued the same
reply. The angel embraced him yet again, let go, and then began to say:
اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ
خَلَقَ الْإِنْسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ اقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ الْأَكْرَمُ الَّذِي عَلَّمَ بِالْقَلَمِ عَلَّمَ الْإِنْسَانَ
مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ
Read
with the Name of your Lord Who created (everything). He created human beings
from a clot of blood. Read, and only your Lord is the Most Generous. The One
Who taught to write with the pen. The One Who taught man what he knew not.
¹ [Kanz-ul-Iman (translation of
Quran)] (Part 30, Surah Al-‘Alaq, verses 1-5)
Q:
In what
manner did the final Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ
وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم invite his family towards Islam?
A:
As per the
command of Allah, when the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ
عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم announced his prophet hood, he began
inviting people to worship Allah and not commit idolatry. In the beginning, he
kept this private and would not make public invitations in gatherings of the
Quraysh. He began to openly invite towards Islam when this verse was revealed:
وَأَنْذِرْ عَشِيرَتَكَ الْأَقْرَبِينَ
And
O Beloved, warn your closest relatives.
² [Kanz-ul-Iman (translation of
Quran)] (Part 19, Surah Al-Shu’araa, verse 214)
To this end,
he stood upon Mount Safa and began to call upon various branches of the
Quraysh; “O Banī Fihr! O Banī ‘Adī!” People began to gather, and those unable
to personally attend sent representatives to catch wind of what was taking
place.
Once the
people had assembled, the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ
عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم asked them, “Suppose I was to say that a
vast army can be found on this side of the valley, seeking to attack you. Would
you consider me truthful?” They all responded, “Yes! We will believe you, for
we have always heard you speak the truth.” The Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم proceeded to declare,
“I then warn you from the severe punishment of the Day of Judgement, which is
openly apparent to all.”1
¹ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, vol. 3, p. 294,
hadith 7470
Q:
On what occasion
did the angel appointed upon mountains present himself to the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم?
A:
10 years
after announcing his prophethood, the Prophet صَلَّى
اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّم went to Tāif, so he may invite its people
to Islam. Instead of being accepting of this, they caused harm and difficulty
to the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ
وَسَلَّم, such that his sandals became full of blood. As he returned,
the angel of the mountains presented himself and said, “O Messenger of Allah!
Command me as you will; if you grant permission, I will cast Akhshabayn (two
large and tall mountains in Tāif) over them.”
“I do not wish for their destruction”, he
replied. “Rather, I have hope Allah will bring forth such people from their
offspring who will worship Him alone and not enjoin partners with Him.” 1
¹ Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, vol. 2, p. 386,
hadith 3231, Seerat-e-Rasool-e-Arabi, p. 294
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