The Millennium Biography of Prophet Muhammad (SallAllaho Alaihi Wasallam)
http://groups.msn.com/IslamisUniversal
Note: Before reading the article, the reader should know that Hazrat Abdul Muttalib was the grand father of Prophet Mohammad (SallAllaho Alaihi Wasallam). The previous series of this article can be read at * Other Prophets & Prophet Mohammad
HASHIM AND THE PILGRIMS
Before the pilgrimage each year, Hashim would invite the leaders of the tribes to attend a meeting in the House of Assembly to
discuss the preparations for the pilgrimage. He would remind them that they had been blessed by being the neighbors of the House of Allah, and that the pilgrims were visitors to His House. He told them that because the pilgrims were the guests of Allah they had more rights upon their generosity than ordinary guests and after having drawn their attention to this right he would ask them to give their pledged contribution. Like his grandfather, he told them that if his own wealth had been sufficient, he would have accommodated the expense himself and not asked them for their contribution to the fund. All complied with Hashim's request and the contribution pledge was collected.
HASHIM ESTABLISHES CARAVAN ROUTES
The life of a caravaner was perilous, but for many it brought prosperity. A caravaner could expect to face many hazards other than the extreme heat of the desert followed by the intense cold of the night during certain times of the year. But, perhaps the greatest hazard of all was the fear of being attacked by marauding tribes. All too often caravans were attacked resulting in the loss of both life and merchandise. Hashim knew well the burden of the caravaner so he decided to visit with the tribal chieftains along the trade routes traveled by the Quraish and use his powers of friendly persuasion and fairness to secure a safe passage. One by one the tribes agreed and soon the trade routes became less hazardous. Hashim's sense of fairness and compassion toward his fellow beings was demonstrated yet again during a year in which there was extreme drought followed by famine. Upon hearing of a neighboring tribe's suffering he arranged for a supply of food and water to be distributed among the stricken tribe. This upright act, and others like it, led to the strengthening of bonds between the Quraish and other tribes. Hashim's just character and ability to organize were known not only by his fellow Arabs but to the great powers of the day, namely the Emperor of Rome and the King of Abyssinia, ruler of Yemen. It was through their admiration of Hashim that he succeeded to negotiate peaceful, lasting treaties, which in turn exempted the Quraish from the payment of previously enforced trading taxes. Hashim's popularity was such that whenever Quraish traders reach Angoria -- now Ankara, the Emperor himself would go out to welcome them and show great hospitality and inquire about Hashim. The two great trade routes were now secure, so during the winter when the heat of the desert had died down, caravans would set off on their journey to Yemen, then as summer advanced caravans would set off in the opposite direction on their long trail to the north-west reaching as far away as Palestine or Syria which was at that time part of the Roman Empire.
HASHIM MEETS SALMA, DAUGHTER OF AMR
On the route northwards caravans would make their way to a desert oasis called Yathrib -- now called Medina -- to trade and replenish supplies before setting off again on their long trip. The inhabitants of Yathrib were both Arab and Jew. At first, the Arabs were known as the children of Kaylah but as time passed they had divided into two tribes, the tribes of Aws and the tribe of Khazraj, both of whom were the sons of Kaylah. In those days its was common for a man to have many wives, some as many as forty. Hashim was already married when he met, in Yathrib, a noble, influential lady named Salma, the daughter of Amr from the tribe of Najjar, a branch of Khazraj. Hashim proposed to her and she accepted on condition that she remained in control of her own affairs and that when she gave birth to a son, the boy would remain with her in Yathrib until he reached the age of puberty. Hashim accepted her conditions and the two were married. It was a happy, successful arrangement and Hashim made frequent trips to Yathrib to stay with Salma. On several occasions Hashim continued on from Yathrib to Syria, however, on one such journey he was taken ill in the city of Gaza, Palestine. His illness proved to be serious and he did not recover. Salma was pregnant and later gave birth to a son whom she named Shayba. As Shayba grew up he loved to listen to the heart warming stories about his generous father, and it was through the example of his father’s noble sense of fairness and peaceful character that Shayba modeled his own life.
THE BROTHERS OF HASHIM
Hashim had two blood brothers named Abdu Shams and Muttalib, and a half-brother named Nawfal. Both Abdu Shams and Nawfal were traders, Abdu Shams' trade route lay between Makkah, Yemen and Syria, whereas, Nawfal's trade route, for the most part, took him to distant Iraq. On account of their commerce, the brothers were away from Makkah for long periods of time resulting in Muttalib, their younger brother, assuming the responsibility of the rights to collect the pilgrimage contribution pledge.
MUTTALIB'S SUCCESSOR
As time passed, Muttalib pondered over who should be his successor. His deceased elder brother Hashim had married four wives and from them he had three sons. Shayba, the son of Salma, although younger than his half-brothers, displayed signs of leadership at an early age. Traders passing through Yathrib would relate reports about him to Muttalib, and the more he heard about his nephew the more impressed he became as his character appeared to be developing to be much like that of his father. Wishing to know more about Shayba he decided to go to Yathrib to see for himself and visit with his extended family. Muttalib was not disappointed, the reports he received were correct, so he asked his mother to entrust Shayba to his guardianship. At first Salma was reluctant to let her son go with him, and Shayba, out of love and respect for his mother, refused to leave without her consent. Muttalib explained to Salma that Makkah had more to offer her son than Yathrib. He reminded her of the nobility of the Quraish tribe and that it was they who had been entrusted with the prestigious custodianship of the House of Allah. He told her that he was of the opinion that her son stood an excellent chance of receiving the office his father had once held and thereby become one of the chieftains of the Quraish tribe. Muttalib stressed the point however, that in order for her son to be considered as a candidate for such honors it was imperative for the people of Makkah to know him in person, otherwise he would simply be overlooked. Salma, was convinced by Muttalib's reasoning and knew the proposal was in her son's best interest, so she agreed to let his uncle take him to Makkah. She consoled herself with the knowledge that she could visit him fairly regularly as the journey to Makkah was relatively short, taking ten to eleven days of travel.
THE ARRIVAL OF SHAYBA IN MAKKAH
Muttalib, with Shayba riding behind him on the camel set out for Makkah. As they entered the City, the people saw Muttalib and thought the youth riding behind him was his new servant and commented: "Look, the servant of Muttalib -- Abdul Muttalib!" Muttalib was amused and replied, "Be off with you, he is the son of my brother Hashim!" The mistake was a source of amusement and news of his arrival spread throughout Makkah, but the name stuck, so Shayba became affectionately known as Abdul Muttalib.
NAWFAL DISPUTES SHAYBAH'S INHERITANCE
It wasn't long after Shayba's arrival when Nawfal disputed the young man's right over his father's estate. Muttalib stood by his nephew, and pressure was also brought to bear from Yathrib and Shayba, now known as Abdul Muttalib, received his rights.
THE DEATH OF MUTTALIB
As time passed, Abdul Muttalib's character continued to grew in both integrity and honor; the people of Makkah loved him and without doubt he lived up to and surpassed the expectations of his uncle. From an early age he had displayed strong capabilities of just leadership. His uncle had taught him the importance of administering the rights of the pilgrims and he diligently assisted his uncle in its preparation. Several years after is arrival in Makkah, Abdul Muttalib's uncle passed away. No one in Makkah disputed his nephew's qualifications to succeed him. In fact many Makkans were of the opinion that Abdul Muttalib surpassed both his father and uncle in fulfilling the duties of Custodian of the House of Allah with all its weighty responsibilities.
Continue.......
SOURCE: www.islamic-paths.org
Join: Muslimah with Taqwa
(Only for Sisters)
Islam Is Universal
(For Islam Learners & New Muslim Reverts)
Subscribe at Yahoo Subscribe at MSN
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Small Business - Try our new resources site!
***************************************************************************
{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.}
(Holy Quran-16:125)
{And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33)
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim]
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all."
[Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
All views expressed herein belong to the individuals concerned and do not in any way reflect the official views of IslamCity unless sanctioned or approved otherwise.
If your mailbox clogged with mails from IslamCity, you may wish to get a daily digest of emails by logging-on to http://www.yahoogroups.com to change your mail delivery settings or email the moderators at [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the title "change to daily digest".
| Yahoo! Groups Sponsor | |||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
Yahoo! Groups Links
- To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/islamcity/
- To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
- Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.
