Both of his parents had died by the time he was only six years old, the Prophet (SAW) grew up as an orphan. As difficult as the life of an orphan usually is, Allah (SWT) blessed the Prophet (SAW), providing him with refuge, the love and care of his uncle, and all of his basic material needs.

His father, Abdullah, died while he was still in his mother’s womb. After he was born, he was nursed for a number of days by Thuwaibah, who was a servant of Abu Lahab. Then the Prophet (SAW) was sent away to be cared for in the pure atmosphere of the desert, and there he was nursed by Halimah As-Sa’diyyah. The Prophet (SAW) remained under the care of Halimah, and in the company of the Banu Sa’ad tribe, for approximately four years. It was during his stay with Halimah that he underwent the first major step towards becoming a Prophet (SAW). It was a preparatory and highly symbolic step, one that involved the literal washing of his heart; and it was a miraculous occurrence that took place in the presence of a group of children from the Banu Sa’ad tribe.

In a narration that is related in Sahih Muslim, Anas ibn Malik (RA) said: “While the Messenger of Allah (SAW) was playing with some other boys, Jibril (AS) came to him, took him, forced him to the ground, and split him open, revealing his heart. Jibril (AS) extracted his heart, removed from it a blood clot, and said, ‘This is the portion of Shaitan (the Devil) in you.’ He then washed the heart with Zamzam water in a basin made of gold. He then joined the heart together and returned it to its place. The children hurried off to his mother-i.e. nursing suckling mother. They said to her, ‘verily, Muhammad has been killed.’ They went to him and found that his color had changed (though he was otherwise fine).” Anas (RA) said: “I used to see the marks of that stitching on his chest.”

Halimah loved the Prophet (SAW) a great deal; her life changed completely after she took it upon herself to nurse him, for Allah (SWT) then blessed her with more than sufficient sustenance. Keeping the Prophet (SAW) was in Halimah’s best self-interest, she loved him too much to think selfishly about her own comfort and material well-being. After the above-mentioned incident took place, she became afraid for the Prophet (SAW) and felt that it was no longer safe for him to stay with her. And so she decided to return the Prophet (SAW) to his mother, Aminah bint Wahb.

Later on, Aminah took the Prophet (SAW) with her to Al-Madinah, where she was going to visit her brothers. During their return journey to Makkah, at a place called Al-Abwa’, Aminah died. At the time, the Prophet (SAW) was 6 years, 3 months, and 10 days old.

Even though the Prophet (SAW) was an orphan, he never lacked the love and care that every child needs. Whenever he would lose one loving caregiver, Allah (SWT) would replace that caregiver with another who loved him just as much. After the death of his mother, he (SAW) was taken and cared for by his grandfather, the eminent chieftain, Abdul Muttalib.

For the next two years of his life, The Prophet (SAW) enjoyed the healthy and loving atmosphere of his grandfather’s home. Abdul Muttalib saw in the Prophet (SAW) signs of greatness, and he took special care of him; for instance, he allowed the Prophet (SAW), instead of his many sons, to sit beside him on his mat in front of the Ka’bah. Then with his death imminent, Abdul Muttalib ordered that his grandson be placed in the custody of his uncle Abu Talib. The Prophet (SAW), who was eight years old at the time, could not have been placed under the care of a better guardian – a guardian who cared for and protected him not just as a child, and not just as a young adult, but also during the difficult early years of his prophethood.

Abu Talib loved the Prophet (SAW) deeply, so much, in fact, that despite remaining a polytheist, he supported the Prophet (SAW) during the most difficult years of his prophethood – the years during which he faced constant persecution at the hands of the Quraish. Abu Talib was motivated by avuncular love, and not by faith in his nephew’s mission; that being said, he did know deep down in his heart that his nephew was preaching the truth. But even his love for the Prophet (SAW) and his inner convictions were not enough to counteract this overriding loyalty to the ways, customs, and beliefs of his forefathers. As such, despite being a staunch supporter of the Prophet (SAW), Abu Talib died a polytheist.

(To be continued)

by Sa’eed bin Ali bin Wahf Al-Qahtani