MAHOMET

(571-632)

The Arabian "Prophet" was born at the city of Mecca, some time during

the sixth century, but the precise year has, after much discussion,

still been left in doubt. Hottinger says, A.D. 571, Reiske, A.D. 572,

and Gagnier, A.D. 578. His lineage has also been the subject of great

altercation, one party exalting him above most of his countrymen, while

the other degraded him to the lowest rank--particularly contemporary

Christian writers, who were desirous of rendering him an object of

contempt; and in the same degree that the Christians felt themselves

called upon to degrade the Arabian prophet, so did the Mahometans think

themselves compelled to exalt him. Mahomet successfully vindicated for

himself a high lineage among his countrymen; the tribe of Koreish, to

which he belonged, laying claim to Ishmael as their progenitor, and this

claim, arising from the vanity of the tribe, was eagerly laid hold of

and supported by his votaries.

[Illustration: Two camel ridders. [TN]]

Abdallah, the father of Mahomet, was the youngest son of Abd al

Motalleb, the son of Hashem. "Hashem," say the authors of the "Modern

Universal History," "succeeded his father Abd al Menaf in the

principality of the Koreish, and consequently in the government of

Mecca, and the custody of the Caaba." So far the genealogy of the

prophet is supported by authentic history--that he was descended from

the princes of his people cannot be denied. This descent from Ishmael,

Gibbon, after Sale, thus disproves: "Abulfeda and Gagnier describe the

popular and approved genealogy of the prophet. At Mecca I would not

dispute its authenticity; at Lausanne, I will venture to observe, 1st,

That, from Ishmael to Mahomet, a period of two thousand five hundred

years, they reckon thirty instead of seventy-five generations. 2d. That

the modern Bedoweens are ignorant of their history, and careless of

their pedigree."

Abdallah, though of high lineage, was possessed of little wealth; and as

he died while his son was yet an infant, we may easily suppose that

little to have been diminished by the rapacity of his kindred. At the

early age of six years Mahomet lost his mother, Amina; and two years

after, his grandfather, Abd al Motalleb, who when dying, earnestly

confided the helpless orphan to the care of Abu Taleb, the eldest of his

sons, and the successor to his authority. From him, though treated with

kindness, Mahomet received a scanty education; but whether that

education was equal or inferior to that of his countrymen, it is not

easy to discover. Tradition states that at the time of Mahomet's first

declaration concerning his mission, only one man in Mecca could write.

If so, it is nothing wonderful that Mahomet, like the rest of his

kindred, should also he unable to write. At thirteen years of age, he is

said to have made a journey to Syria, in the caravan of his uncle, and,

some years after, to have performed the same journey in the capacity of

factor to his mistress, Cadijah.

The next remarkable event in the life of Mahomet, is his appearance in

the character of a soldier. At the early age of fourteen, he served

under his uncle, who commanded the troops of his tribe, the Koreish, in

their wars against the rival tribes of Kenan and Hawazan. The

circumstance is worthy of remark, as illustrative of the perfect

compatibility between the business of a merchant and that of a soldier,

among the Arabian people, and upon the constant and rapid transition

from one to the other.

By the assistance of his uncle he became soon after the factor of a rich

trading widow in his native city. The animosity of his enemies has

degraded the confidential agent into a driver of camels. It has been

confidently and constantly asserted that he was a menial servant in the

household of his mistress, Cadijah; while, in truth, he was employed to

carry on her mercantile transactions, and to superintend her affairs. In

this situation of factor, his conduct and integrity gained him the

affections of his mistress. Cadijah was not, in the eyes of her people,

degraded by an alliance with the grandson of their prince; and in her

own estimation, by bestowing her hand and fortune upon Mahomet, she

gained a young, handsome, and affectionate husband. Twenty years of

constancy, of kind and respectful attention, on the part of Mahomet,

fully justified her choice. It may, indeed, be imagined, and we confess

the supposition bears the appearance of some plausibility, that the

affection of Cadijah was not uninfluenced by the handsome person and

insinuating eloquence of her youthful suitor. And we cannot refuse our

applause to the conduct of Mahomet, who, whatever might have been her

motives, never afterward forgot the benefits he had received from his

benefactress, never made her repent having so bestowed her affection, or

grieve at having placed her fortune and her person at his absolute

disposal. Cadijah, at the time of her marriage, was forty; Mahomet,

twenty-five years of age. Till the age of sixty-four years, when she

died, did Cadijah enjoy the undivided affection of her husband; "in a

country where polygamy was allowed, the pride or tenderness of the

venerable matron was never insulted by the society of a rival. After her

death he placed her in the rank of the four perfect women: with the

sister of Moses, the mother of Jesus, and Fatima, the best beloved of

his daughters. 'Was she not old?' said Ayesha, with the insolence of a

blooming beauty; 'has not Allah given you a better in her place?' 'No,

by Allah!' said Mahomet, with an effusion of honest gratitude, 'there

never can be a better! She believed in me, when men despised me: she

relieved my wants when I was poor and persecuted by the world.'"

Commerce now occupied his attention, and till the age of forty nothing

remarkable happened in the life of the future prophet. His marriage with

Cadijah raised him to an equality with the first citizens of Mecca, gave

an importance to his opinions, and, combined with the power of his

family, probably rendered it impossible to punish or interrupt the first

steps he made toward the propagation of his new religion. When relieved

from the pressure of indigence, his mind seems almost immediately to

have been turned toward religious meditation. The result of this

meditation was an opinion exceedingly unfavorable to the religion of his

countrymen. The first statement of this conviction was met rather by

ridicule than anger, being considered the fantasy of a dreaming

enthusiast, who was little to be dreaded, and unworthy of opposition. We

are told that he retired to a cave in Mount Hara, near Mecca, where, as

he assured his first proselyte, his wife, he regularly received the

visits of the angel Gabriel. This tale his wife believed, or affected to

believe. The next on the list of true believers were Zeid, the servant

of the prophet, and Ali, the son of his uncle, Abu Taleb. The impetuous

youth, disdaining his two predecessors in the true faith, proudly styled

himself the first of believers. The next and most important convert was

Abu Bekr, a powerful citizen of Mecca, by whose influence a number of

persons possessing great authority were induced to profess the religion

of Islam. Three years were spent in the arduous task of converting six

of these men. They were afterward his chief companions, and with a few

others, were the only proselytes to the new religion before it became

publicly known.

The apostle, who was at first derided, came at length to be feared. The

people flocked to hear his doctrines, and as they retired, wondering and

believing, general consternation reigned among the governors of Mecca.

Frightened by his growing influence, they imprudently endeavored to

arrest the evil by punishing the offender. For some time, however, the

power of Abu Taleb, the prophet's uncle, defended him against these

hostile attacks, which served, by manifesting the alarm and hatred of

the nobles, to increase Mahomet's fame and importance. Persecution gave

him strength by bringing him before the public. Once known, he gained

sympathizing listeners among the benevolent, because a persecuted man;

and blindly believing votaries among the ignorant and fearful, because a

bold and vehement declaimer against wickedness, as well as an eloquent

describer of the horrible torments attached to unbelief. In the seventh

year of his mission, the heads of the tribe of Koreish made a solemn

league one with another, engaging themselves to have no commerce or

connection with the families of Hashem and Al Motalleb. While Abu Taleb

lived the league was of no avail; the power of the uncle defended the

nephew against the designs of his enemies. At length, at the end of the

seventh year, Abu Taleb died; and a few days after his death Mahomet was

left a widower, by the decease of Cadijah. In his affliction he termed

this fatal year the year of mourning.

The unprotected prophet was now completely exposed to the attacks of his

enemies. His only safety was in flight, and had not the city of Medina

been friendly to his cause, the religion of Islam would have been

crushed in the bud. The fame of Mahomet, however, had extended far

beyond the walls of his native town. Distance, by shrouding him in

mystery, increased his influence. While he was scorned and derided at

Mecca, he was worshipped at Medina. A secret deputation from the city of

Medina waited on the apostle, and an alliance was entered into "during

two secret and nocturnal interviews, on a hill in the suburbs of Mecca."

Seventy-three men and two women having professed the faith of Islam, as

well as some yet unbelievers, met the prophet and proffered him

assistance. "What recompense," said they, "have we to expect, should we

fall in your defence?" "Paradise," exclaimed the confident apostle. They

promised him fidelity and allegiance.

From a fugitive Mahomet became a monarch; no sooner had he arrived at

Medina than he found himself at the head of an army devoted to his

person, obedient to his will, and blind believers in his holy office.

The _fugitives_ from Mecca and the _auxiliaries_ of Medina (the two

parties into which Mahomet's followers were now divided) gathered round

their chief, and with friendly emulation vied with each other in

obedience and in valor. To prevent all jealousy between the brethren,

Mahomet wisely gave each one a friend and companion from the rival band;

each _fugitive_ had for his brother one of the _auxiliaries_. Their

fraternity was continued in peace and in war, and during the life of the

prophet their union was undisturbed by the voice of discord.

The commands of the prophet were followed to the letter. The first

warlike attempt of the believers was, nevertheless, unsuccessful.

Mahomet having learned that a caravan, the property of the hostile

Koreish, was on its way from Syria to Mecca, despatched his uncle Hamza,

with a party of thirty horse, to capture it. Hamza, however, discovering

the caravan to be guarded by 300 men, desisted from his hostile

enterprise, and returned without the expected booty. On the plain of

Beder, Mahomet, at the head of his troops, effaced the shame of this

failure. A rich caravan, proceeding to Mecca, and guarded by Abu Sofian,

with between thirty and forty men, occasioned the contest. The spies of

Mahomet informed him that this rich and apparently easy prey was within

his grasp. He advanced with a few followers in pursuit of it; but before

he could overtake the unprotected band, Abu Sofian had sent for a

reinforcement from Mecca. A troop consisting of 950 men, among whom were

the chief persons of that city, instantly obeyed the summons. Mahomet

was posted between the caravan and the coming succor, being able to

oppose to this formidable force no more than 313 soldiers, mounted for

the most part on camels; some few (according to some authors, not more

than two) being mounted on horses.

Undismayed by this disparity of force, Mahomet determined to try the

event of a battle, and risk his fortune and perhaps his life upon the

contest. The troops were persuaded to engage the superior forces of the

enemy, and for the present to abandon the tempting prize of Abu Sofian's

rich caravan. Mahomet animated them by his prayers, and in the name of

the Most High promised them certain victory. However assured he might

have been of divine assistance, he was careful to let slip no human

means of securing success. An entrenchment was made to cover the flanks

of his troop, and a rivulet flowed past the spot he had chosen for his

encampment, and furnished his army with a constant supply of water. When

the enemy appeared, descending from the hills, Mahomet ordered his

soldiers to the attack; but before the armies could engage, three

combatants, Ali, Al Hareth, and Hamza, on the side of the Moslems, and

three of the Koreish, joined in single conflict. The Moslem warriors

were victorious, and thus gave to both armies a presage of the coming

engagement. The prophet, with Abu Bekr, at the commencement of the

battle, mounted a pulpit, fervently demanding of God the assistance of

Gabriel and three thousand angels; but when his army appeared to waver,

he started from his place of prayer, mounted a horse, and flinging a

handful of dust into the air, exclaiming, "May their faces be

confounded!" rushed upon the enemy. Fanaticism rendered his followers

invincible; the numerous forces of the Koreish were unable to break the

ranks or resist the furious attacks of his confiding soldiers. They

fled, leaving seventy of their principal officers dead upon the field,

and seventy prisoners in the hands of the enemy. Of the Moslems, only

fourteen were slain. The names of the slaughtered warriors have been

handed down to posterity, and enrolled among the list of pious martyrs

whom the faithful Mussulman is taught to worship.

Space will not permit us to enumerate the various battles fought by

Mahomet; according, however, to the computation of some authors, no less

than twenty-seven expeditions were undertaken, in which he personally

commanded, and in which nine pitched battles were fought. During the

same period, he was besieged in Medina, by the implacable Koreish; but,

by his own skill, and the bravery of his troops, he repelled all their

attacks. In the sixth year of the Hegira, with 1,400 men, he meditated

what he asserted to be a peaceful pilgrimage to the holy temple of

Mecca. Entrance into the city being refused by the people, the prophet,

in his anger, determined to force his way. At this critical juncture an

ambassador was despatched from Mecca to demand a peace. The policy of

Mahomet induced him to lay aside his determination of assaulting his

native city, and to accept the peaceful offers of his countrymen. A

truce of ten years was consequently concluded between the prophet and

the Koreish.

Two years had hardly elapsed when Mahomet accused the people of Mecca of

a breach of their engagement. When a man is really desirous of

quarrelling, a pretext is never wanting. He was now strong, and his

enemies were weak. His superstitious reverence for the city of his

nativity, and for the temple it contained, served also to influence his

determination for war. The time since the concluding of the truce had

been skilfully employed in seducing the adherents of the Koreish, and

converting to his religion the chief citizens of Mecca. With an army of

10,000 men he marched to besiege it, and no sooner did he appear before

the walls than the city surrendered at discretion.

[Illustration: The Muezzin.]

The religion of Mahomet may be considered now to have been permanently

settled. The conquest of Mecca and of the Koreish was the signal for the

submission of the rest of Arabia. The events of the prophet's after-life

cease, therefore, to possess an interest for a Western reader. They

were, for the most part, merely expeditions undertaken for the purpose

of reducing the petty tribes who still resisted his authority, and were

all of them eventually successful. The influence and religion of Mahomet

continued rapidly to extend; his difficulties were over; and the hour of

his prosperity has nothing to instruct or to amuse the general reader.

Between the taking of Mecca and the period of his death, not more than

three years elapsed. In that short period he had destroyed the idols of

Arabia; had extended his conquests to the borders of the Greek and

Persian empires; had rendered his name formidable to those once mighty

kingdoms; had tried his arms against the undisciplined troops of the

former, and defeated them in a desperate encounter at Muta. His throne

was now firmly established, and an impetus given to the Arabian nations

that in a few years induced them to invade, and enabled them to subdue,

a great portion of the globe. India, Persia, the Greek Empire, the whole

of Asia Minor, Egypt, Barbary, and Spain, were reduced by their

victorious arms. The Muezzin[10] was heard throughout an empire greater

than Alexander's; and though the temporal power of his successors has

now faded to a shadow, the religion which he founded still holds sway

throughout all that empire, and is even endeavoring to extend itself.

Although Mahomet did not live to see such mighty conquests, he laid the

first foundations of this wide-spreading dominion, and established over

the whole of Arabia, and some part of Syria, the religion he had

proclaimed.

[Footnote 10: The Muezzin is the Mahometan official who

announces to the faithful the hour of prayer. Three times in

the day and twice at night he goes up to the balcony of one of

the minarets of the mosque, and chants the call. It is a simple

but solemn melody, which floats down from the height of his

turret upon the sleeping or bustling city with vast

impressiveness, and receives immediate and universal

obedience.]