Birth Of Hazrat Muhammad (S.W.A.L)

The Prophetsa born in Makkah in August 570 A.D.He was given the name Muhammadsa which means, the Praised One. To understand his life and character we must have some idea of the conditions which obtained in Arabia at the time of His birth. When he was born almost the whole of Arabia believed in a polytheistic form of religion. The Arabs traced their descent to Abrahamas. They knew that Abrahamas was a monotheistic Teacher. In spite of this, they entertained polytheistic beliefs and were given to
polytheistic practices. In defence, they said that some human beings are outstanding in their contact with
God. Their intercession on behalf of others is accepted by God. To reach Him is difficult for ordinary human
beings. They must have others to intercede for them in order to obtain God's pleasure and help. Thus they were able to combine their reverence for Abrahamas with their own polytheistic beliefs. Abrahamas, they said, was a holy man. He was able to reach God without intercession, whilst ordinary Meccans could not do so. The people of Mecca, therefore, had made idols of holy and righteous persons, and these they worshipped and to these they made offerings in order to please God through them. This attitude was primitive, illogical and full of defects. But the Meccans were not worried by
these. They had not had a monotheistic Teacher for a long time, and polytheism, once it takes root, spreads
and knows no bounds. The number of gods begins to increase. At the time of the Prophet (s.w.a.l) birth, it is saidthat in the Ka‘ba alone, the Sacred Mosque of all Islam and the house of worship built by Abrahamas and his son Ishmael, there were 360 idols. It seems that for every day of the lunar year the Makkah people had an idol. In other big centres there were other idols, so that we can
say that every part of Arabia was steeped in polytheistic belief. The Arabs were devoted to the culture of speech. They were much interested in their spoken language and were very keen on its advance. Their intellectual ambitions, however, were scant. Of History, Geography, Mathematics, etc., they knew nothing. But as they were a desert people and had to find their way about in the desert without the assistance of landmarks, they had developed a keen interest in Astronomy. There was in the whole of Arabia not a single school. It is said that in Makkah only a few individuals could read and write.

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