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Abu Talib tookthe charge of his nephew in the best way. He put him with his children and preferred
him to them. He singled the boy out with great respect and high esteem. Abu Talib remained for
forty years cherishing his nephew and extending all possible protection and support to him. His
relations with the others were determined in the light of the treatment they showed to the Prophet
(Peace be upon him).
Ibn ‘Asakir reported on the authority of Jalhamah bin ‘Arfuta who said: “I came to Makkah when it
was a rainless year, so Quraish said ‘O Abu Talib, the valley has become leafless and the children
hungry, let us go and pray for rain-fall.’ Abu Talib went to Al-Ka‘bah with a young boy who was as
beautiful as the sun, and a black cloud was over his head. Abu Talib and the boy stood by the wall of
Al-Ka‘bah and prayed for rain. Immediately clouds from all directions gathered and rain fell heavily
and caused the flow of springs and growth of plants in the town and the country.
BAHIRA, THE MONK:
When the Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) was twelve years old, he went with his u ncle Abu
Talib on a business journey to Syria. When they reached Busra (which was a part of Syria, in the
vicinity of Howran under the Roman domain) they met a monk called Bahira (his real name was
Georges), who showed great kindness, and entertained them lavishly. He had never been in the
habit of receiving or entertaining them before. He readily enough recognized the Prophet (Peace be
upon him) and said while taking his hand: “This is the master of all humans. Allâh will send him with
a Message which will be a mercy to all beings.” Abu Talib asked: “How do you know that?” He
replied: “When you appeared from the direction of ‘Aqabah, all stones and trees prostrated
themselves, which they never do except for a Prophet. I can recognize him also by the seal of
Prophethood which is below his shoulder, like an apple. We have got to learn this from our books.”
He also asked Abu Talib to send the boy back to Makkah and not to take him to Syria for fear of the
Jews. Abu Talib obeyed and sent him back to Makkah with some of his men servants.
THE ‘SACRILIGIOUS' WARS:
Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was hardly fifteen when the ‘sacrilegious’ wars— which continued
with varying fortunes and considerable loss of human life for a number of years — broke out
between Quraish and Banu Kinana on the one side and Qais ‘Ailan tribe on the other. It was thus
called because the inviolables were made violable, the prohibited months being included. Harb bin
Omaiyah, on account of his outstanding position and honourable descent, used to be the leader of
Quraish and their allies. In one of those battles, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) attended on his
uncles but did not raise arms against their opponents. His efforts were confined to picking up the
arrows of the enemy as they fell, and handing them over to his uncles.
ALFUDOUL CONFEDERACY:
At the conclusion of these wars, when peace was restored, people felt the need for forming
confederacy at Makkah for suppressing violence and injustice, and vindicating the rights of the weak
and the destitute. Representatives of Banu Hashim, Banu Al-Muttalib, Asad bin ‘Abd Al-‘Uzza,
Zahrah bin Kilab and Taim bin Murra were called to meet in the habitation of an honourable elderly
man called ‘Abdullah bin Jada‘an At-Taimy to enter into a confederacy that would provide for the
above-mentioned items. The Messenger of Allâh (Peace be upon him) shortly after he had been
honoured with the ministry of Prophethood, witnessed this league and commented on it, with very
positive words: “I witnessed a confederacy in the house of ‘Abdullah bin Jada‘an. It was more
appealing to me than herds of cattle. Even now in the period of Islam I would respond positively to
attending such a meeting if I were invited."
In fact, the spirit of this confederacy and the course of deliberations therein marked a complete
departure from the pre-Islamic tribal-pride. The story that led to its convention says that a man
from Zubaid clan came as a merchant to Makkah where he sold some commodities to Al-‘As bin Wail
As-Sahmy. The latter by hook or by crook tried to evade paying for the goods. The salesman sought
help from the different clans in Quraish but they paid no heed to his earnest pleas. He then resorted
to a mountain top and began, at the top of his voice, to recite verses of complaint giving account of
the injustices he sustained. Az-Zubair bin ‘Abdul-Muttalib heard of him and made inquiries into the
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