Ministry of Hajj
Ministry of Hajj
Ministry of Hajj
Hajj Notices
Hajj Questionnaire

Childhood

The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was born in Makkah on the west side of the Arabian peninsula about 570 CE into a prosperous family of the Quraysh tribe. His father Abdullah died before his son was born so, from birth through his early years, Muhammad (peace be upon him) was brought up by his grandfather, Abdul Muttalib, the father of Abdullah. As an infant, Muhammad (peace be upon him) was taken out of Makkah to benefit from the healthier climate of the desert and placed in the care of a Bedouin wet nurse, Halima.

At the age of six, Muhammad (peace be upon him) lost his mother Aminah and, two years later, his grandfather who had been his guardian also died.

The young Muhammad (peace be upon him), who had now lost both his parents and his grandfather, came under the care and protection of his uncle Abu Talib who succeeded Abdul Muttalib as head of the Hashem clan of the Quraysh tribe. Abu Talib, a prominent figure in Quraysh society, was a successful merchant. As soon as Muhammad (peace be upon him) was old enough, he began to gain experience of Makkah's commercial life, accompanying his uncle on business trips to Syria

The world into which Muhammad (peace be upon him) had been born was a pagan world of polytheism. Pagan rites desecrated the Kaaba (the House of God) which, long before, the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and his first-born son Ishmael (peace be upon him) had built in Makkah as the House of the one true God. While the young Muhammad (peace be upon him) led the life of a typical young Qurayshi male, he distinguished himself quickly in two respects. First, his honesty and sincerity in all his dealing with others soon earned him the soubriquet Al Amin (the trustworthy one). Secondly, he showed an untypical revulsion at the pagan rites of idolatry which were the focus of Makkah's religious life at this time.

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