Prophet Muhammad (SAW)

There is no God but God, Muhammad (SAW) is the prophet of God.

  Prophet Muhammad (SAW)  (571-632 CE), founder of Islam, whose prophetic teachings, encompassing political and social as well as religious principles, became the basis of Islamic civilization.

Muhammad (SAW) was born in Mecca to Hazrat Abdullah and Hazrat Amna. He belonged to the clan of Hashim, a branch of the influential tribe of Quraysh. Orphaned as a small child, he was brought up by his uncle Abu Talib (RA). Like his fellow tribesmen, he became a trader. At the age of 25, he married Khadija (RA), a rich widow.

Muhammad (SAW) periodically withdrew to a cave outside Mecca to meditate and pray for guidance. During one of these retreats he reported experiencing a vision of the archangel Gabriel, who proclaimed him a prophet of God. He began to preach in public, reciting the verses of his revelation, which came to be known as the Qura'an. Muhammad (SAW)'s earliest teachings emphasized his belief in one transcendent but personal God, the Last Judgment, and social and economic justice. God, he asserted, had sent prophets to other nations throughout history, but, having failed to reform, those nations had been destroyed. Muhammad (SAW) proclaimed his own message, the Qura'an, to be the last revealed Book and himself to be the last of the prophets, consummating and superseding the earlier ones.

Insisting on the necessity of social reform, Muhammad (SAW) advocated improving the lot of slaves, orphans, women, and the poor and replacing tribal loyalties with the fellowship of Islamic faith. Muhammad (SAW) fled Mecca to escape his enemies, who were angered by his advocacy of social reforms. In 622 CE, he went to Medina, a city about 400 km (about 248 miles) to the north. This departure from Makkah is the hijrah (emigration), from which date the Muslim calendar begins. And from this date, Yathrib also became known as Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah. Muhammad (SAW) was given supreme authority in Medina, and he began to establish the ritual practices of Islam.

Resistance from Mecca remained, but after several battles the Meccans finally submitted peacefully to Muhammad (SAW) in 630. As tribes throughout Arabia were converted to Islam, Muhammad (SAW) became the most powerful leader in Arabia. He enforced the principles of Islam and established the foundation of the Islamic empire. In 632 he died suddenly and unexpectedly in Medina at the age of 63. Only one of his children survived, a daughter named Fatima (RA), who married Hazear Ali (RA), the fourth caliph.

  Timeline of Muhammad (SAW) (PBUH) 
Important dates and locations in his life

c. 569   Death of his father, `Abd Allah
c. 570   Possible date of birth, April 20: Mecca
c. 576   Death of Mother
c. 578   Death of Grandfather
c. 583   Takes trading journeys to Syria
c. 595   Meets and marries Khadijah
c. 610   First reports of Qur'anic revelation
c. 610   Appears as Prophet of Islam
c. 613   Begins spreading message of Islam publicly
c. 614   Begins to gather following in Mecca
c. 615   Emigration of Muslims to Ethiopia
c. 616   Banu Hashim clan boycott begins
c. 618   Medinan Civil War
c. 619   Banu Hashim clan boycott ends
c. 619   The year of sorrows: Khadijah and Abu Talib die
c. 620   Isra and Miraj
c. 622   Emigrates to Medina (Hijra)
c. 624   Battle of Badr: Muslims defeat Meccans
c. 624   Expulsion of Banu Qaynuqa
c. 625   Battle of Uhud: Meccans defeat Muslims
c. 625   Expulsion of Banu Nadir
c. 626   Attack on Dumat al-Jandal (Syria)
c. 627   Battle of the Trench
c. 627   Destruction of Banu Qurayza
c. 627   Subjugation of Dumat al-Jandal
c. 628   Treaty of Hudaybiyya
c. 628   Gains access to Meccan shrine Kaaba
c. 628   Conquest of the Khaybar oasis
c. 629   First hajj pilgrimage
c. 629   Attack on Byzantine empire fails: Battle of Mu'tah
c. 630   Attacks and bloodlessly captures Mecca
c. 630   Battle of Hunayn
c. 630   Siege of Taif
c. 630   Conquest of Mecca
c. 631   Rules most of the Arabian peninsula
c. 632   Attacks the Ghassanids: Tabuk
c. 632   Farewell hajj pilgrimage
c. 632   Death (June 8): Medina
 

  The Qura'an,  sacred scripture of Islam. Muhammad (SAW) applied the name to individual revelations that he received from Allah. The name was later used for the book containing the divine revelations given to Muhammad (SAW). Recorded by secretaries and memorized by his followers, the collection was compiled shortly after Muhammad (SAW)'s death in 632. Arabic scholars produced an authorized version in the early 650s. The earliest known work in Arabic prose, the Qura'an consists of 114 suras (chapters) and contains the Islamic religious, social, civil, commercial, military, and legal codes. The chief doctrines in the Qura'an are that only one God and one true religion exist; all will undergo final judgment; and when humankind turned from truth, God sent prophets to lead the way back. Accepted by Muslims as the utterance of the Almighty, the Qura'an is held to be above criticism. Copies of the book are treated with great reverence. Read All About Qura'an