Horizon of Heaven

Muhammad's Call to Prophecy

Susanne Hicks

Duane Damon

The people of Mecca rejoiced. The danger was passed.

Just months earlier, the Christian king of Saba had marched his armies from southern Arabia to destroy their city and the Ka’ba, the once holy shrine of Abraham that now drew thousands of pilgrims, in worship of hundreds of different gods, to Mecca every year. With the king came his war machines, one of which was a terrible, rampaging beast called an elephant.

But on the eve of the planned assault, a deadly plague swept the ranks of the Sabaens. Sick and dying, they retreated southward, their mission forgotten. Soon after, the king himself died. The jubilant Meccans celebrated their good fortune, dubbing this year of c.e. 570 the "Year of the Elephant." With far less fanfare, a grandchild was born to the house of Abdul Muttalib, guardian of the Ka’ba. The baby was named Muhammad.

The world into which the future prophet was born was torn by divisions and revolts. Then, the early 600s found the western half of the Roman empire occupied by barbaric tribes. Sprawling east and west above Arabia itself, the giant empires of the Byzantines and the Persians clashed repeatedly over their common borders. Both also cast jealous looks at the profitable trade routes in Arabia that were controlled by the merchants in Mecca.

The religions of these regions were no less at odds. The Persians worshiped the sun. The Byzantines carried the banner of a Christian faith often doubted and disputed by its followers. The desert people of Arabia worshiped spirits of nature and feared demons called "jinns." At the Ka’ba, residents and pilgrims could pay homage to more than 300 different idols, including one local deity called "Hubal." Over the centuries, they had turned away from the God of Abraham, Moses, and Jesus.

Muhammad was born into the Hashemite clan of the Quraysh tribe, a respectable position, but not a wealthy one. He was still an infant when his widowed mother sent him to live with a Bedouin family in the desert. After his mother's death, Muhammad lived with his grandfather until he, too, passed away. At about the age of eight, Muhammad was taken in by an uncle, Abu Talib, a caravan trader by profession. A willing student, Muhammad grew to young manhood learning the subtle art of buying and selling.

Muhammad remained unmarried longer than was usual among his people, probably because he was poor and unable to provide for a family. However, his intelligence and abilities made an impression upon a wealthy business woman, Khadija bint Kuwaylid. The two eventually married. Muhammad was 25 years old; his bride about 40.

Though this favorable match afforded Muhammad a comfortable life, he felt a deep restlessness underneath. Surely there was more to life than material success. In seeking after the mystery of life, he followed the example of Jewish and Christian people, who also felt a spiritual calling. He began to retreat to a cave in the hill of Hira, in the desert outside of Mecca. Here, he could seek his God in a place of silence and freedom from worldly distractions.

One day, when Muhammad was 40 years old, a momentous event took place as he meditated in his cave. According to some accounts, the archangel Gabriel appeared before him with a coverlet of brocade. On this length of cloth some words were written. "Read!" the angel commanded him. Muhammad, unable to read, protested, "I cannot read." Three more times Gabriel repeated his command, and then read to Muhammad:

Read: In the name of thy Lord Who createth.
Createth man from a clot.
Read: And it is thy Lord the Most Bountiful
Who teacheth by the pen,
Teacheth man that which he knew not.

When this first brief meeting had ended, Muhammad felt as if these words had been written upon his heart. He went outside of the cave onto the hillside, where he again heard the Voice:

Oh, Muhammad, I am Gabriel, and you are the messenger of God.

And when Muhammad raised his eyes he saw an angel, in the likeness of a man, standing on the horizon of heaven and, with every turn of his head, there the angel stood on the horizon.

Trembling all over, Muhammad crawled home on his hands and knees and sought comfort from his wife. "Rejoice and be of good heart," Khadija said, "for I have hope that you will be the prophet of these people."

At first, Muhammad revealed these events only to his wife and closest friends, who became his first followers. Over the next 20 years, Muhammad received many more messages from God, which his followers recorded in the Qur’an, the sacred book of Islam.

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