Abd al-Muttalib: Difference between revisions

| Wellknown Relatives = [[Prophet Muhammad (s)]] • [[Abd Allah b. Abd al-Muttalib|Abd Allah]] • [[Abu Talib]] • [[Abbas b. Abd al-Muttalib|Abbas]] • [[Hamza b. Abd al-Muttalib|Hamza]]

In regards to the epithet Abd al-Muttalib which is most popular, it is said that a couple of years after the death of Hashim, Muttalib (paternal uncle of Abd al-Muttalib) took him from [[Yathrib]] to [[Mecca]].<ref>Ṭabarī, ''Tārīkh al-umam wa l-mulūk'', vol. 3, p. 2-8.</ref> When people saw Muttalib entering the city with 'Abd al-Muttalib they thought he was Muttalib's slave, bought from Yathrib. He, therefore, became known as Abd al-Muttalib and this name stuck.<ref>Rasūlī Maḥallātī, ''Zindigānī-yi Muḥammad (s)'', vol. 1, p. 91.</ref>

Abd al-Muttalib's father, Hashim, married Salma daughter of Amr b. Zayd from the Banu Najjar clan, in one of his trips to Yathrib.<ref>Balādhurī, ''Ansāb al-ashrāf'', vol. 1, p. 65.</ref> Before the birth of his son, he travelled to [[Gaza]] in what is nowadays [[Palestine]], died and was buried there.<ref>Balādhurī, ''Ansāb al-ashrāf'', vol. 1, p. 65.</ref> Based on various historians, Abd al-Muttalib lived with his mother in Medina for seven years or more,<ref>Ibn Hishām, ''al-Sīra al-nabawīyya'', vol. 1, p. 137.</ref> before he went to Mecca with his uncle, Muttalib.<ref>Rasūlī Maḥallātī, ''Zindigānī-yi Muḥammad (s)'', vol. 1, p. 91.</ref>

Muttalib inherited his brother's positions and was appointed as chieftain. Sometime later, he died in [[Yemen]], in a land called Radman. The positions he had inherited from his father passed down to Abd al-Muttalib, who was his nephew. Abd al-Muttalib became a noble in Mecca as a result of his magnanimity, good management and strategies. He became famous and his superiority became clear. [[Quraysh]] acknowledged his nobility as well.<ref>Ibn Saʿd, ''al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubra'', vol. 1, p. 77; Ibn Khaldūn, ''al-ʿIbar'', vol. 1, p. 386.</ref>

[[Al-Ya'qubi]] says: "Abd al-Muttalib was an unparalleled noble of Quraysh in those days, for God had granted him magnanimity He had granted no one else before, and quenched his thirst from the Zamzam well (in Mecca) and Dhu l-Harm (in [[Ta'if]]). Quraysh appointed him as referee for [issues relating to] their wealth. He fed the people in times of famine and hunger, so much that he had even fed the mountains' birds. In this regard [[Abu Talib]] says:

Abd al-Muttalib did not worship idols and believed in the [[oneness of God]]. He was loyal to his pledges and started various traditions, some of which have been mentioned in the Qur'an."<ref>See: Yaʿqūbī, ''Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī'', vol. 2, p. 11.</ref>

Al-Ya'qubi cites himself in a narration that quotes the [[Prophet (s)]], "God will resurrect my grandfather, Abd al-Muttalib, with the looks of the prophets and the awe of the kings."<ref>See: Yaʿqūbī, ''Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī'', vol. 2, p. 14.</ref>

According to religious and regional narrations, Abraha's offensive against Mecca, famously known as the [[Army of the Elephant]], was contemporary to Abd al-Muttalib. Abraha marched from Yemen to Mecca with an army of elephants to destroy the [[Ka'ba]].<ref>Dīnawarī, ''al-Akhbār al-ṭiwāl'', p. 92.</ref> Abraha's army pillaged the camels of Quraysh, for which a meeting between Abd al-Muttalib and Abraha was organized, where Abd al-Muttalib only requested his camels be freed. Abraha said, "I thought you have come to negotiate about the Ka'ba." Abd al-Muttalib replied, "I am the master of the camels, and that house (Ka'ba) has a master for itself." He went back to Mecca and told the people to go to the mountains and take their belongings with them.<ref>Maqdisī, ''al-Bidaʾ wa l-tārīkh'', vol. 1, p. 532.</ref> Only a couple of Abraha's men survived and fled the following day when a giant flock of birds attacked his army.<ref>Ibn Hishām, ''al-Sīra al-nabawīyya'', vol. 1, p. 47.</ref>

According to historical documents of Mecca, before [[Qusay b. Kilab]]'s conquest, who was Abd al-Muttalib's grandfather, the Jurhum tribe ruled over Mecca. The oppressiveness of their tribesmen evoked a rise against them by other tribes. In the end, the Khuza'a tribe defeated them. 'Umar b. Harith, the final Jurhum ruler went inside the Ka'ba and hid all the jewellery, and valuable presents that had been gifted to the Ka'ba, in the [[Zamzam Well]] and filled the well with soil to hide it.

Years later, Abd al-Muttalib attempted to find the well. As it is said, he found the place of the well in a dream and was given the mission to excavate it. Abd al-Muttalib excavated Zamzam, found the jewellery, and spent it for the Ka'ba. Zamzam once again sprang with water.<ref>Ibn Kathīr, ''al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya'', vol. 2, p. 244.</ref>

According to reports, Abd al-Muttalib faced disagreement and obstruction by the Quraysh when he decided to excavate the well. He made a pledge that if God gives him ten sons, he would sacrifice one of them next to the Ka'ba. God Almighty blessed him with ten sons. He randomly selected one of his sons, and [[Abd Allah b. Abd al-Muttalib|Abd Allah]]'s name came out, but he sacrificed a hundred camels instead.

[['Ali Dawani]] believes this story is not true and was composed by the [[Umayyad]]s, arguing based on the weak chain of narrators that includes unknown or weak persons, and the fact that child sacrificing was a pagan tradition while Abd al-Muttalib was a [[monotheism|monotheist]]. He believes that the Umayyads fabricated this story in order to decrease Imam Ali's (a) position by damaging his ancestral nobility.<ref>See: Dawānī, ''Tārīkh-i islām'', p. 54.</ref>

According to some reports Abd al-Muttalib adhered to the religion of [[Hanif]] and was not an idol worshiper. [[Al-Mas'udi]], 3rd/9th-10th century historian, talks of disputes about the religion Abd al-Muttalib professed and explains that one belief is that neither he nor any of the Prophet's (s) ancestors were idol worshipers.<ref>Masʿūdī, ''Murūj al-dhahab'', vol. 2, p. 109.</ref> [[Al-Shaykh al-Saduq]] narrates from [[Imam al-Sadiq (a)]] that the Prophet (s) said to [[Imam Ali (a)]], "Abd al-Muttalib never gambled and never worshipped idols and... and he always said, 'I adhere to the religion of my father, Ibrahim.'"<ref>Ṣadūq, ''al-Khiṣāl'', vol. 1, p. 455.</ref>

In his book, ''[[Al-Khisal]]'', al-Shaykh al-Saduq narrates from Imam al-Sadiq (a) that the [Prophet (s)]] said to Imam 'Ali (a), "Abd al-Muttalib established five traditions during the [[Age of Ignorance]] that God [also] obligated in Islam: He disallowed sons from marrying their father's wives and God has said in the Qur'an:

centered pull quote|Do not marry any of the women whom your fathers had married, excluding what is already past. That is indeed an indecency, an outrage and an evil course.

He found a treasure (this could be the treasure he excavated from the Zamzam well) and gave a fifth of it as a charity, God says in the Qur'an:

When he excavated Zamzam he named it Siqayat al-hajj (Station for Hajis to drink), and God has said:

Abd al-Muttalib set the [[blood money]] for killing a man at one hundred camels, and God also applied this in Islam. The [[Quraysh]] did not know how many times they must circumambulate the Ka'ba (do tawaf), Abd al-Muttalib set this to seven, and God applied these seven circumambulations to Islam as well.<ref>Ṣadūq, ''al-Khiṣāl'', vol. 1, p. 455.</ref>

Loyalty to pledges, a hundred camels for blood money, illegalized [[marriage]] with [[mahram|maharim]], refraining from entering a house from its roof, amputation of a thief's hand, disapproved of killing daughters, [[Mubahala]], the prohibition of wine, the prohibition of [[adultery]] and appointing a punishment for it, lottery, prohibition of circumambulating the Ka'ba naked, respect for guests, supplying [[Hajj]] expenses with legitimate money, respect for [[Haram months]], avoid ostentation and hypocrisy.<ref>Yaʿqūbī, ''Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī'', vol. 2, p. 10.</ref>

According to some sources, Abd al-Muttalib passed away on [[Rabi' I 10]].<ref>Ṭūsī, ''Miṣbāḥ al-mutahajjid'', vol. 2, p. 791; Majlisī, ''Biḥār al-anwār'', vol. 97, p. 222.</ref> It is mostly believed that the Prophet (s) was eight years old when Abd al-Muttalib passed away (45 BH/578 CE)<ref>Ibn al-Jawzī, ''al-Muntaẓam'', vol. 2, p. 282.</ref> at the age of eighty-two, or one hundred and eight, or one hundred and forty.

It is said that before his demise Abd al-Muttalib summoned his daughters, "Cry for me and read the elegies you want to read about me, so I can hear what you want to read for me after death before I die." His daughters did so, they mourned and each read their elegies.

[[Umm Ayman]] has been quoted saying that the Prophet (s) followed the corpse of Abd al-Muttalib in his funeral and cried until they buried him next to his grandfather, Qusay b. Kilab, in al-Hajun neighborhood.<ref>Ibn Athīr, ''Usd al-ghāba'', vol. 1, p. 73.</ref>

Abd al-Muttalib had ten sons: [[Haritha b. Abd al-Muttalib|Harith]], [[Abd Allah b. Abd al-Muttalib|Abd Allah]], [[al-Zubayr b. Abd al-Muttalib|al-Zubayr]], [[Abu Talib]], [[Hamza b. Abd al-Muttalib|Hamza]], [[Muqawwim b. Abd al-Muttalib|Muqawwim]] (Miqwam), [['Abbas b. Abd al-Muttalib|Abbas]], [[Dirar b. Abd al-Muttalib|Dirar]] (Darar), [[Quthum b. Abd al-Muttalib|Quthum]], [[Abu Lahab]] (who was also called Abd al-Uzza), [[Ghaydaq b. Abd al-Muttalib|Ghaydaq]].<ref>Maqdisī, ''al-Bidaʾ wa l-tārīkh'', vol. 2, p. 722.</ref>

He had six daughters: [[Atika bt. Abd al-Muttalib|'Atika]], [[Safiyya bt. Abd al-Muttalib|Safiyya]], [[Umama bt. Abd al-Muttalib|Umama]], [[Barra bt. Abd al-Muttalib|Barra]], [[Arwa bt. Abd al-Muttalib|Arwa]], and [[Umm Hakim bt. Abd al-Muttalib|Umm Hakim]] (al-Bayda).<ref>Maqdisī, ''al-Bidaʾ wa l-tārīkh'', vol. 2, p. 722.</ref>

Apart from Hamza, Abbas, and Abu Talib, none of the Prophet's (s) paternal uncles, and none of his paternal aunts except Safiyya, and according to some narrations Arwa, became Muslim.<ref>Maqdisī, ''al-Bidaʾ wa l-tārīkh'', vol. 2, p. 722.</ref>

* [[Abd Allah b. Abd al-Muttalib]]

* [[Hamza b. Abd al-Muttalib]]

* [['Abbas b. Abd al-Muttalib]]