and readiness to help others. He was also known to be a youth who did not indulge in any of the vices which were widely practised in the Makkan society, such as drinking, gambling or promiscuity.
We cannot fail to notice, with hindsight, that Muhammad was being prepared for his great role. One aspect of this preparation was the fact that he never had anything to do with the idols worshipped by his people. He never revered any of those idols or bowed to them, nor did he ever give any offerings to the idols, as was the custom of his people, or attend any of the festivities which were organized as part of idol worship.
His nurse, Umm Ayman, reports that the Quraysh used to pay homage to an idol called Buwābah. On a particular day each year they organized a special festival in its honour. They stayed near the idol all day long and shaved their heads. Abū Ṭālib, the Prophet’s uncle, did not fail to attend the festival. Every year he asked his orphan nephew to attend, but Muhammad declined. Abū Ṭālib was angry with him, and even his aunts spoke to Muhammad about his apparent lack of respect for the idols. They tried to persuade him not to remain the odd one out in his family. In their representation, they touched on a young man’s duty to show his loyalty to his family. They said: “You seem not to wish to share any festival with your people, and not to be counted as one of their number.”
Ultimately Muhammad yielded to his aunts’ pleading and went to the festival. He came back in a state of fear. He told his aunts that he feared he might be possessed by an evil spirit. They assured him that God would never let him suffer such a thing, considering his numerous good qualities. Relating his experience to them, he said: “Every time I came near to an idol, I saw a tall white man telling me to hold back and not to touch the idol.” Umm Ayman stresses that that was the first and the last idol festival Muhammad attended until he began to receive his Qur’ānic revelations.1
This is just one of several reports we have about Muhammad’s attitude towards pagan worship long before the beginning of his prophethood. Taken together, these reports point to the fact that Muhammad was being deliberately kept away from pagan worship. It was only to be expected that God would protect the man He had chosen to be His last Messenger to mankind – bringing them the final message based on the absolute oneness of God – against paying the slightest homage to any idol even in his youth.
Participation in What Serves Justice
Nevertheless, Muhammad lived a normal life among his people. He was sociable, well loved and highly respected. The fact that he did not indulge in any vice earned him greater respect. Moreover, he never failed to take part in any important matter which was of concern to his tribe or his society.
One example was his participation in the war known as ‘al-Fijār’. The name suggests violation of sanctity. It was so called because the war started with a treacherous murder, committed by a man from the Quraysh in one of the four sacred months. Those four months were traditionally sanctified by the Arabs and war was totally forbidden during them. For a treacherous murder to be committed in these months was a violation of sanctities of the worst type. Hence it was not surprising that a war should break out between the Quraysh and the Hawāzin, the tribes to which the murderer and his victim belonged.2
Muhammad was only fifteen when this war broke out. It lasted four years. He took part in it, but according to the more reliable reports he did not participate in the actual fighting. He helped his uncles, however, by shielding them against the arrows directed at them by their enemies, collecting these arrows and preparing them for use by his fighting uncles.
Shortly after the end of this war, when Muhammad was nearly twenty, he took part in forging an alliance between the different clans of the Quraysh. This was a noble alliance which the Prophet continued to praise long after prophethood. The alliance was called ‘al-Fuḍūl’ after three of the main participants, each of whom was named al-Faḍl. It is also suggested that this alliance was called al-Fuḍūl because it was made for such a noble goal: the name suggests maintaining honour.3
The immediate reason for forging this alliance was that a man from the clan of Zubayd arrived in Makkah with some goods to sell. An important man of Makkah, al-ʿĀṣ ibn Wā’il, bought them all from him, but did not pay him. When the man realized that he was about to lose everything, he appealed to several clans of the Quraysh to support him. They all declined to stand against al-ʿĀṣ ibn Wā’il and rebuked the man for his attitude. In his desperation, the man stood on top of a hill immediately overlooking the Kaʿbah at sunrise, when the men of the Quraysh met in groups around the Kaʿbah. He made his appeal to them, stating his case in a passionate and desperate manner. He reminded them of their position as the custodians of the Sacred House of Worship. Al-Zubayr ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib, an uncle of the Prophet, was the first to be moved to act. He stood up and said that injustice must not be allowed.
A meeting was organized in the house of ʿAbdullāh ibn Judʿān, a man of honour well respected in Makkah. Representatives of many clans of the Quraysh were present. The terms of the alliance were agreed at that meeting. Those who attended gave their most solemn pledges, swearing by God that they would stand united, supporting anyone in Makkah who suffered any injustice, whether he was a Makkan or an alien, and that they would stand firm against the perpetrator of that injustice until right and justice were restored.
When they had made their alliance, those people went to al-ʿĀṣ ibn Wā’il and forced him to return to the man from Zubayd the goods he had taken from him.
Knowing the nature of this alliance, we can understand why the Prophet continued to express his support for the ideals which this covenant endorsed. Long after prophethood he said: “I attended in ʿAbdullāh ibn Judʿān’s home the forming of a covenant which I would not exchange for any material gain. If now after Islam I am called upon to honour it, I would certainly do so.” This shows how Islam endorses any action or covenant made for the purpose of ensuring justice for all.4
When the al-Fuḍūl covenant was made, Muhammad, now a young man of twenty, was opening a new stage in his life. His noble birth, strong character and physical strength would surely have put him on the road to prosperity. We have reports suggesting that in his old age Muhammad was endowed with exceptional strength. In his youth, he must have been full of vigour and ability. Combining this with his well-known honesty and wisdom which belied his years in addition to his fine character, it was only to be expected that if he aspired to any material achievement in his society he would have been certain to achieve it.
Muhammad, however, continued to set for himself a high code of honour. The strength of his character and his keen sense of morality provided a balancing factor for his physical desire. He was able to control that desire with his wisdom and spiritual strength.
Moreover, he was fast acquiring a reputation for meticulous honesty. Indeed, he was called by his society al-amīn, which meant ‘trustworthy and honest’. Material gain did not seem to tempt him in any way. He did not despise wealth, nor did he seek any vain ideals. He only had a fine sense of proportion. He realized that wealth was not an end in itself. It was a means to a higher end. Hence he approached the task of searching for a new occupation with seriousness and dignity. It was soon decided that he should try to find employment in trade and business.
Muhammad had no money of his own to establish a business; nor was Abū Ṭālib, his uncle, a man of affluence to provide him with a good start. The only option left for him, therefore, was to prove himself as an agent, trading on someone else’s behalf. Apparently, he had no difficulty in securing such a position, because of his rapidly growing reputation for honesty and sound character. We have some reports which suggest that he was trading in different markets and bazaars. He entered into partnership with a fellow agent called al-Sā’ib ibn Abī al-Sā’ib, whom he praised later for his integrity and honesty. When, many years later, the Prophet met al-Sā’ib on the day he conquered Makkah, he welcomed him warmly, saying: “Welcome
