certain that they did not influence Muhammad in any way. We have to remember that he was still a child, and he could not have aspired to any distinction as a result of Baḥīrā’s discourse. Moreover, it seems that the men who heard Baḥīrā’s conversation with Abū Ṭālib did not bother to relate it to other people. The only value of these reports is that they confirm the fact that learned men of other religions were aware of the imminent appearance of a Prophet in Arabia. Their knowledge is based on what is definitely contained in their scriptures.
Muhammad was only twelve when he went on this trip with his uncle, Abū Ṭālib. Some reports suggest that he was even younger. Not long after he came back to Makkah he realized that he had to do something in order to help his poor uncle, who had a large family to support. Although from the time of his birth Muhammad brought his blessings to his immediate environment, wherever it happened to be – as clearly related by Ḥalīmah, his wet nurse – he was not meant to enjoy a life of affluence. There always seemed to be enough for everyone around, but there was little to spare. Muhammad himself needed very little: he was content with whatever was available to him. But he always had a keen sense of what was going on around him. His uncle’s situation cried out for help, and Muhammad was aware of that.
First Employment
In the Makkan society of that time there was little a young boy of Muhammad’s age could do. The life of the whole community depended largely on trade, which thrived through the regular trips to Syria and Yemen. These trips meant that the Makkan trade was essentially what we call nowadays ‘foreign trade’, depending on export and import. To be successful in such a field required multifaceted experience which could not have been acquired by a young boy in his early teens. Moreover, travelling at such a tender age through a difficult terrain like that of Arabia was too much of an adventure for a young boy. There was little or no agriculture in Makkah or the area around it. Few, if any, industrial occupations were available. The Arabs actually looked down upon anyone engaged in such employment. The only occupation worthy of the Arabs of Makkah was trade. Hence there was nothing Muhammad could do to help his uncle except to work as a shepherd.
The life of a shepherd is associated with contemplation and patience. A shepherd has long periods of time when there is little for him to do, except watch his animals grazing. As he sits alone, his thoughts must inevitably turn to the universe around him. He thinks of its creation, and its limitless expanse. He thinks how different varieties of creatures share their lives in a little corner of it, and of what lies beyond the realm of human perception. He thinks of the great variety of plants that come from the earth, each with its distinctive characteristics and widely different fruits. Yet they all come out of the same type of soil and feed on the same water. His thoughts are bound to lead him to think of the great power that controls everything in the universe.
A shepherd needs patience, and as he goes about his work he is bound to develop that quality without which he cannot really tend his sheep. Perhaps it is for these two qualities, along with other less important ones, that God has chosen this type of work for His messengers and Prophets. It is well known that Moses and David were given prophethood when they were actually engaged in tending sheep. The Prophet was once asked whether he also tended sheep, and he answered: “Yes, indeed. Every Prophet tended sheep at one time or another.” When we think carefully about it, we are bound to conclude that Prophets, who in the latter part of their lives look after human beings and shepherd them, receive their early training when they begin their practical life as shepherds. This particular occupation is a form of education. It helps the shepherd to acquire a keen sense of what is around him and develop his ability to attend to detail. He also develops another quality which is essential in his later career – an ability to work consistently towards the achievement of a definite goal set in advance, and to persevere with it until it is achieved.
Muhammad was not the only boy who worked as a shepherd in Makkah – this was the job which noble families in Makkah did not despise. Other boys of similar age also tended camels and sheep. Sometimes some of them met and developed friendships. They talked about what they did at night. On many occasions, parties and social events were organized in Makkah. Boys of Muhammad’s age frequented these. When they met during their long days, they talked about the fun they had at these parties. It was natural, therefore, that Muhammad should think of doing as other boys did. He is quoted by ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, his cousin, to have said:
I never thought about taking part in what the people who lived in ignorance were organizing in the way of entertainment except on two nights. On both occasions, God protected me against evil. One night I said to one of my fellow shepherds: “Would you kindly look after my sheep to give me a chance to go down to Makkah and attend a social function like other boys do?” He was willing to do that. I went to Makkah. As I entered, I heard music and singing in the first house. I asked what the occasion was and I was told that it was a wedding party. I sat down to look. Soon my head was heavy and I slept. I was awoken only next morning by the heat of the sun. I went back to my friend and reported to him what had happened. I did it again, and the same thing happened to me. I never again thought or did anything of this sort, until God honoured me with prophethood.17
In this way Muhammad was protected by God against indulging in any form of entertainment which was unbecoming of the one who would become the last of His Messengers to mankind.
Other reports exist which suggest that Muhammad was ‘protected’ against any moral slip from the time when he was a young boy. Certain values introduced by Islam were unheard of in the Makkan society in which he grew up, as indeed they have always been unfamiliar in societies that do not observe a strict moral code. For instance, to appear in the nude in front of people of the same sex is acceptable in most non-Islamic societies. Some communities go even further. In our modern times the ‘naturist’ idea has found many supporters, and naturist clubs which promote communal nudity have been established in many places in Europe. This is contrary to the Islamic idea of propriety. In his youth, Muhammad was totally unaware of the Islamic values of propriety. Nevertheless, he was made to abide by them.18
A few years before the beginning of Qur’ānic revelations, the Quraysh decided to repair the building of the Kaʿbah (which we shall discuss in more detail later on). The Prophet helped in the repair work along with many Makkans. Those who carried the stones and went to and fro took off their lower garments and put them on their shoulders as cushions on which to place the stones. Since the Arabs had no underwear at that time, those who did this were working in the nude. Only Muhammad carried the stones with his lower garment on. His uncle, al-ʿAbbās, who was working with him, suggested to him that he should use his garment to protect his shoulder. When Muhammad did this he fell to the ground unconscious. A moment later he regained consciousness, searched for his garment and tightened it round his waist. He then resumed work.
A very similar report suggests that the same thing happened to him much earlier. The Prophet is quoted to have said that when he was a young boy he was playing with boys of his own age, carrying stones from one place to another. He said: “We were all undressed. We took our garments and placed them on our shoulders to put the stones on them. I was moving around with the other children when someone I did not see levelled at me a very hard punch. He said: ‘Put on your garment.’ I wrapped myself with it and made it tight. I continued to carry the stones on my shoulder, but I was the only one wearing my garment.”19
Both reports are clear examples of how essential moral values of undistorted human nature were applied to Muhammad even before he became a Prophet. This was part of the ‘education’ he received. Although Muhammad was not educated in a formal school or by any particular tutor, he was placed in the thick of many events which gave him a keen sense of the values which needed to be preserved in any morally healthy society. Personal education was also given to him so that he could develop a code of behaviour which made all types of frivolity alien to his nature. Such an education is far more effective and longer lasting than any formal schooling. As we shall see in the next chapters, Muhammad’s understanding of all aspects of life was much more profound than that of any philosopher or man of wisdom.
NOTES
1. BH signifies ‘prior to the start of the Islamic Calendar’, which dates from the Prophet’s settlement in Madinah.