jobs, as these belonged to slaves and servants. Makkah prospered because of two factors: trade and the status of the Kaʿbah at its centre. The Kaʿbah attracted visitors throughout the year, but at the time of the annual pilgrimage, people came in their thousands. What was there for an adolescent to do, then? The only employment a teenager could have in Makkah at the time, without casting a blemish on his standing, was to be a shepherd. So, Muhammad worked as a shepherd, bringing in a small wage that helped his uncle’s family finances.
A shepherd’s occupation allows much time for contemplation and reflection. As he took his sheep to graze, Muhammad’s only duty was to watch them, ensuring that none went astray or was stolen by a passing Bedouin. Such a job fitted very well with Muhammad’s docile temperament and his position in a family home, in which he stood somewhat apart. He did not speak about those years, and did not tell us in which directions his thoughts took him. He has, however, told us something very significant: that all past Prophets spent some time in their early lives as shepherds. Is the job particularly suitable as preparation for the role of a Prophet? Camel attendants speak of their herd as a community in which every single camel has his own distinctive character. Does this apply to sheep as well? A shepherd endowed with insight and intelligence would be able to look at his flock as individuals and identify them by their special features. Contemplation and reflection would enable such a shepherd to carry that to the wider community and reflect on what distinguishes and influences human characters. Perhaps it is this opportunity to reflect on man, life, aims and destiny that makes a shepherd’s job particularly suitable as preparation for a Prophet’s future role.
The role of a Prophet is a very special one. No human experience can make a person ready to assume it. No instructor or institution can provide training for it. Since God chooses the individuals who undertake this task, He provides them with the necessary preparation. Without such help, preparation and guidance, no one can meet the requirements of the task or successfully undertake it. Muhammad’s preparation for his future task started in his early days. He once explained his exceptional mastery of the Arabic tongue, stating that he had two very good elements contributing to it: belonging to the Quraysh and spending his early years among the Saʿd ibn Bakr tribe. Thus, we can see his extended stay with that tribe as part of such preparation, as it covered the time of a child’s language acquisition. The same applies to his career, particularly his job as a shepherd.
We do not know how many years Muhammad worked as a shepherd, but it must have taken him well into adolescence and probably beyond. As a young man growing up in a society characterized by loose sexual morality, Muhammad heard many stories of his comrades’ sexual adventures, and it was natural that he would think of trying this for himself. He tells us that on two occasions he requested a fellow shepherd to look after his sheep while he tried his luck at having some pleasure. On both occasions, he would stand by a house where a wedding party was going on, only to be overtaken by deep sleep. He was awakened, both times, by the morning sun. He remarked later that it was an act of Divine protection of the future Prophet from sinking into immoral behaviour.
Several incidents took place during this period. He reported that as a young lad, he was once playing with other boys, who were picking up stones for a game. They were naked. Just as he undressed to join them, he felt a painful punch and a voice told him to put his robe on. The same thing occurred much later, when the Quraysh renovated the building of the Kaʿbah. All the people shared in the work and he was carrying stones on his shoulder. His uncle, al-ʿAbbās, suggested that he should use his lower garment as a cushion to protect his shoulder. Again a stern voice warned him against it.
A more important instance of protection against unworthy behaviour relates to religious worship. The Arabs worshipped idols that represented deities, which they claimed were God’s partners. Muhammad had an instinctive dislike of all such idols, recognizing that they were inanimate objects that could bring neither good nor harm. However, people normally go along with the practices of their communities, particularly on festive occasions. Muhammad was protected from that. His nursemaid, 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.5
Yet, Muhammad shared in every good aspect of his community’s life. When he was only fifteen, he helped his uncles as they fought what was known as the Fijār war. This four-year war was started in the sacred months where Arabian tradition prohibited any fighting. Hence its name, which suggests the violation of sanctity. The combatants were the two major Arabian tribes of the Quraysh and the Qays ʿAylān. Shortly after this war was over, when Muhammad was nearly twenty, he took part in forging the noble al-Fuḍūl alliance, which committed the Quraysh clans to stand united in support of anyone subjected to any injustice in Makkah, whether they belonged to Makkah or were visitors.
Around this time, Muhammad was looking for a new job, and trade was the pillar of Makkah’s economy. Muhammad started to work as an agent for a famous businesswoman called Khadījah. She was a wealthy widow who carried business in the famous Arabian markets. Muhammad is reported to have worked for her in the Ḥubāshah market place. He had a partner who worked with him. Apparently, he worked for modest wages. However, the best opportunity a young man of his age could have was to join a trade caravan as an agent of one of the Makkan businessmen. Khadījah needed such an agent, and the experience she had with Muhammad encouraged her to send him as her agent in the traditional summer trade caravan to Syria. The venture was highly successful, as Muhammad secured handsome profits for Khadījah at both ends of the trip. It is not clear whether he went on several such business trips, but his performance was highly impressive. Khadījah had sent a servant of hers called Maysarah with him, who reported to her on Muhammad’s honesty, integrity and business acumen.
As a wealthy widow, Khadījah had no shortage of suitors, including some with favourable social standing, but she had refused them all. Now she realized that she had found her eligible bachelor. Khadījah discreetly proposed marriage with Muhammad, and this was soon accomplished. It is suggested that Muhammad was twenty-five at the time while Khadījah was forty, but this is highly questionable. She gave him two sons and four daughters within ten years, which suggests that she was in the prime of her reproductive life. This means that she could not have been much over thirty. Indeed, a report by Ibn ʿAbbās, the Prophet’s cousin, tells us that she was twenty-eight.
This was a very happy marriage, and Muhammad continued to manage Khadījah’s business and the family lacked for nothing. He was a model husband and she was a very caring and loving wife. She was not disappointed in her choice: she had found a man of great integrity, who was well respected by his people for his honesty, courage and friendly temperament.
Perhaps it is appropriate at this stage to try to discover what sort of man Muhammad was.
We have detailed descriptions of his physical appearance. The most authentic of these are those that were related by al-Bukhārī and Muslim. Al-Barā’
