Basics of Religious Education — Page 221
221 221 221 221 221 B ASICS OF R ELIGIOUS E DUCATION - F IFTH E DITION The Holy Prophet Muhammad sa belonged to the tribe of Quraish, the leading tribe of Mecca which was a principal town of Arabia. The Quraish were descendants of Prophet Ibraheem as , through his son, Prophet Isma`eel as. The Ka`bah was rebuilt by Ibraheem as and his son Isma`eel as some 2,600 years before the Holy Prophet Muhammad sa. At the time of the birth of prophet Muhammad sa , the whole world seemed to be passing through a period of extreme moral and religious decline. The conditions in Arabia were specially worse. The Arabs suffered from extreme moral vices such as drinking, gambling, and brutal deeds during frequent and endless fights due to tribal rivalries. Although the Arabs believed in a Supreme God and in the prophethood of Abraham as , yet they worshipped many other gods in the form of idols. They had installed some 360 idols in the Ka`bah itself where the Arabs from all over Arabia used to come for their annual pilgrimage. However, they pos- sessed some good qualities such as hospitality, sense of honour, bravery, and love for poetry. Women enjoyed little status in the Arab society. Certain families had the savage custom of burying alive their baby girls. Slavery was common among them and the condition of slaves was full of misery and extreme hardships. It was among such people that the Holy Prophet Muhammad sa was born. Some time before the birth of the Holy Prophet Muhammad sa , Abraha, Ethiopia’s viceroy in Yemen, led an expedition against Mecca with the intention of destroying the Ka`bah. But his expedition completely failed. A large part of his army of 20,000 strong, which rode on elephants, was destroyed by an epidemic and their rotting bodies were eaten up by swarms of birds. This year is known as the Year of the Elephant. The Qur’anic Surah Al-Feel refers to the same event. (Al-Qur’an 105:1-6) His Family Background Arabia at the Time of His Birth Abraha’s Invasion of Mecca Lif Lif Lif Lif Life of e of e of e of e of the Hol the Hol the Hol the Hol the Holy Pr y Pr y Pr y Pr y Prophet ophet ophet ophet ophet Muhammad Muhammad Muhammad Muhammad Muhammad sa sa sa sa sa Adapted from the book Seerat Sayyedul Ambiyaa authored by Hadrat Sheikh Abdul Qadir rh , Ex. Sodagar Mal. 6. 1 6. 1 6. 1 6. 1 6. 1 H H H H H O L O L O L O L O LY Y Y Y Y P P P P P ROPHET ROPHET ROPHET ROPHET ROPHET SA SA SA SA SA A N D A N D A N D A N D A N D S S S S S UCCESSORS UCCESSORS UCCESSORS UCCESSORS UCCESSORS — L — L — L — L — L I F E I F E I F E I F E I F E O F O F O F O F O F H H H H H O L O L O L O L O LY Y Y Y Y P P P P P ROPHET ROPHET ROPHET ROPHET ROPHET SA SA SA SA SA