Makkan Scene at the Start of Prophethood
IT HAS BEEN explained how the tribe of the Quraysh came to gain ascendancy in Arabia as they won supremacy in Makkah. It was Quṣayy ibn Kilāb, an ancestor of the Prophet, who established their rule in Makkah and many of the institutions of government which were still in operation when the Prophet began to receive his message. By the standards of the time, that was quite an advanced standard of government which helped Makkah to undergo a significant transition from a semi-Bedouin town to a civilized city. The system of government provided for a balanced distribution of responsibilities and functions, as well as government by consensus, which is normally achieved after an open consultation. In his scholarly work on the life of the Prophet, Shaykh Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī al-Ḥasanī Nadwī devotes a full chapter to setting the scene at Makkah in the period immediately preceding the start of the Islamic message.1 He mentions that the ascendancy of the Quraysh in Makkah attracted a number of smaller Arabian tribes to move to Makkah, where they could live in the neighbourhood of the Kaʿbah and the Sacred Mosque. That led to a flourishing building industry and the expansion of Makkah in all directions. At first, the Makkans avoided building their houses in a square shape in order to keep them different from the Kaʿbah. Gradually, however, they relaxed that restriction but continued not to raise their buildings higher than the Kaʿbah.
As mentioned earlier, the Quraysh organized two commercial trips every year: to Syria in summer and to the Yemen in winter. These two trips provided the backbone of the city’s economy. In addition to that, Professor Nadwī points out, a number of seasonal bazaars and markets were organized in Makkah, as well as specialized markets which were in business throughout the year. Makkan merchants travelled to many parts of Africa and Asia. This encouraged a highly active foreign trade. That flourishing trade ensured for many people in Makkah a life of affluence. With wealth normally come several aspects of luxurious life. The wealthy Makkans had their gatherings close to the Kaʿbah; poets attended and read their poems. Poetry was the most respected form of literature, considering that the overwhelming majority of Arabs at that time could not read or write. However, poetry was a highly valued national and individual talent. In a tribal society, it is highly important for every individual to know his tribe and where he belongs because the tribe affords protection to every individual member. An individual would suffer a great deal if he could not enjoy such protection. Hence, everyone was keen to know his ancestry. This importance of lineage and ancestry continued in Makkah, and there were people who monitored the ancestry and lineage of every tribe. Most prominent among these was Abū Bakr, the closest companion of the Prophet.
Many elements of civilization were recognizable in Makkah and several aspects of science began to develop, such as astronomy and elementary medicine. People valued their horses highly and were able to learn a great deal about them. Few industries, however, developed in Makkah because its inhabitants did not like to work with their hands. Only such crafts as were absolutely necessary managed to develop, such as the manufacture of swords and spears which were needed for fighting, and the construction industry for housing. Most building workers, however, were either Persians or Byzantines.
From the military point of view, the Quraysh could muster a force strong enough to repel any would-be attacker. For this they did not rely merely on their own numbers, but forged alliances with many of the Arabian tribes which lived close to Makkah. In addition, the Quraysh had a large number of slaves and individuals who were allied to the various clans, branching out of the Quraysh. They were expected to side with the Quraysh in any battle it found itself fighting. The army raised by the Quraysh and its allies in the Battle of the Moat was 10,000 strong, the largest military force ever known in the Arabian Peninsula. The Quraysh, however, tended to prefer a settled, peaceful life. It was always prepared to live peacefully with its neighbours, provided that there was no challenge to its position or religious beliefs. When it encountered a challenge, it was always ready to take it up, relying on its superior strength.
Makkah enjoyed its position as the largest city in Arabia, serving as a religious and economic capital, eclipsing other cities, such as Ṣanʿā’ in the Yemen and northern centres which were subject to Byzantine or Persian rule.
However, morally speaking, life in Makkah left much to be desired. The affluence of the Makkan people tempted them to indulge in all sorts of vice. Gambling and drinking parties and other sorts of organized entertainment, where all inhibitions were thrown to the wind, were common practice. Coupled with that, the Makkan people were not very scrupulous in their dealings with others. Cruelty, unjust practices and depriving others of their rights by force went unpunished. This inevitably led to tension, which was bound to undermine the fabric of the Makkan society.
The wealth which Makkah enjoyed and the fact that this wealth came mainly from foreign trade gave its people a pattern of life which allowed them ample spare time. As mentioned above, few of the people of Makkah were engaged in any type of work other than trade, much of which was done through organizing trade caravans and missions on which only those who had valuable experience in the conduct of such trade travelled, together with an adequate number of assistants, porters and camel drivers. Perhaps the largest trade caravan the Makkans dispatched was the one which the Muslims in Madinah tried to intercept, shortly after the Prophet had settled there. It was that attempted interception which led to the Battle of Badr, in which the Muslims achieved a great victory. That caravan consisted of something like 1,000 camel loads, while all in all only 300 people travelled on that mission. Many of the Makkan notables travelled on these caravans when they were young, because such trips gave them a great deal of experience. When they had had enough, they entrusted the task to their children or some of their assistants who had distinguished themselves in business. An example of such able people acting for Makkan notables on their trade was Ṣuhayb, who travelled on behalf of ʿAbdullāh ibn Judʿān, one of the wealthiest people in Makkah. Ṣuhayb, a former slave, acquired considerable wealth from commission, which he later began to use as capital of his own.
With such a relaxed and easy life in Makkah, it was inevitable that social vices would spread and become commonplace. Much time was devoted to the pursuit of pleasure in different ways and forms. Religious concepts and moral values were at a low ebb. Deviation from the pure faith of Abraham and Ishmael started long before the birth of the Prophet. With time, that deviation ensured that the religious beliefs of the Arabs bore very little resemblance to the faith preached by prophets. The Arabs borrowed idolatrous worship from other nations and forgot about their monotheistic faith, taught to them by Ishmael and Abraham. Idols were everywhere and in every tribe. Certain idols were revered by all the Arabs, while others were considered as special gods for special tribes. Certain families had idols of their own, and sometimes when a person travelled he took his idol with him to grant him its blessings. Although those idols were no more than inarticulate objects, the Arabs would worship them, offer sacrifice to them, consult them in their affairs and assign to them a portion of their cattle and agricultural produce. They assigned certain tasks to certain idols: some of them specialized in bringing rain or blowing wind, some in giving parents their offspring, curing illnesses, sparing the community from famine or other social evils, and so on. In order to overcome the obvious fact that those idols were no more than objects of their own making, the Arabs allocated their idols a middle position between them and God. The idols acted as intermediaries, appealing to God on their behalf, so that He did not punish them severely for their sins.
There were 360 idols in and around the Kaʿbah. Most prominent of all were Hubal, al-Lāt and al-ʿUzzā, which were considered the chiefs of all Arabian idols. Hubal was made of red carnelian, in the shape of a man. When the Quraysh gained supremacy in Makkah, Hubal was found to have one arm broken. The Quraysh replaced it with an arm of gold. It was the supreme idol. Al-Lāt was in Ṭā’if, while al-ʿUzzā had a place of its own near ʿArafāt.
When the Arabs wanted to embark on any important venture, they went to the Kaʿbah and offered a certain man who drew lots an amount of money and a camel to draw lots with the assistance of Hubal. They would accept the outcome as final. If a crime was committed and they could not determine who the criminal was, they drew lots. If the result accused a
