The Prophet's Life Before His Prophethood

 Prophet Muhammad was brought up in God's sight and care. His father 'Abd Allah died before he was born, which meant that he had to put all his trust in God and submit completely to Him. He visited his father's tomb in Madina years later, cried his heart out, and on his return said: "I wept for my father and entreated God to forgive him."

With the death of his father, God deprived him of all human support and directed him to the realization that there is no deity but God, Who has no partners.

His grandfather and uncle protected him to some extent, but he came to perceive that his real guardian was God. Behind every phenomenon and every cause and effect, he could discern the hand of the Single Creator of the universe and of causes. The Oneness of God would be manifested to him in the light of Divine Unity.

The Matchless Orphan Pearl also lost his mother, Amina, at an early age. When she died in Abwa at age 25 or 26 on her way back from visiting her husband's tomb in Madina, Muhammad was only 6 years old. Thus, he learned the pain of having no father or mother. Indeed, he would learn and suffer everything, for he was sent to teach everything to humanity and to be an example in every respect.

Abu Talib assumed Muhammad's protection and, in return, his son 'Ali would be blessed with being the father of Muhammad's progeny. After Prophethood, the Messenger of God said to 'Ali: "Every other Prophet's progeny descended from himself, but my progeny will descend from you." 'Ali would be the father and the greatest saint until the Last Day, as the representative of the Prophet's sainthood. This is Abu Talib's reward for helping Muhammad

Prophet Muhammad made a second journey when he was 25 years old, with the trade caravan of Khadija, a respected widow he would later marry. On the journey, he encountered Bahira once more. The monk was very pleased with this second meeting, and told him: "You will be a Prophet, the Last Prophet. I wish that God would allow me to live to see you raised as a Prophet. I would follow you, carry your shoes and protect you against your enemies!"

Another important event was his presence at the meeting that resulted in the hilf al-hudul (the alliance of the virtuous). This league against injustice was sponsored mainly by the Banu Hashim and the Banu al-Muttalib tribes. It was formed to ensure that foreign merchants would no longer be deprived of their rights, as happened when the Qurayshi 'As ibn Wa'il usurped a Yemeni merchant's goods. The Yemeni appealed to the Qurayshi leaders for help, but they ignored him. When the Banu Hashim, Muhammad's clan, heard of this, they decided to form the hilf al-fudul and force the return of the merchant's money. They also took an oath that whenever they someone in Makka, whether citizen or stranger, suffered an injustice, they would offer their support until justice was done. Muhammad was so impressed with its noble objectives that he would say long after: "I attended the conclusion of an agreement at 'Abd Allah ibn Jud'an's house. I would not exchange it for the best material gain. If someone appeals to it in Islam, I would respond."

Those who knew him from his childhood immediately believed in him when he declared his Prophethood. Among them were Abu Bakr, 'Uthman, Talha, Zubayr, Abu Dharr, and Yasir. When 'Ammar told Yasir (his father) that he believed in Muhammad the latter responded: "If Muhammad says that God is One, it is true. He never lies."

In the early days of his Prophethood, Prophet Muhammad once summoned the Qurayshis to the foot of Abu Qubays hill. He asked them: "Would you believe me if I told you an enemy host was waiting behind this hill to attack you?" Everyone answered that they would, even his uncle Abu Lahab, who would become his bitterest enemy. [3]

When humanity was in dire need of someone to destroy unbelief and breathe new life into the world, God raised Muhammad to stop all forms of wickedness. In the words of Ahmad Shawky: