The Prophet Muhammad was born in Mecca nearly fourteen hundred years ago. Muhammad's family belonged to an influential clan known as the Quraish, the ruling tribe of Arabia at that time. With 27 wives, 71 children and 33 grandchildren, he was one of the richest men in his time. His contemporaries considered him to be a successful leader and ruler of Mecca's powerful trading partners across Arabia. At around forty-five years old he had two daughters by Amina bint Wahb Ibn Harb Ibn Khiyaal (the mother of Ali) and Fatima bint Asad (the mother of Hassan). One evening, the seventy-two-year-old Prophet Muhammad suddenly awoke in a state of intense pain in his chest. With gasps of desperate anguish, he told his wife Khadija, his cousin and close friend, "Oh Khadija! I am losing my mind. My chest is burning." Khadija raised him up into a sitting position on her lap and ministered to him for the rest of the night. He asked repeatedly about his condition. Even though her own family had many medical doctors who served them, she was unable to provide any diagnosis for this mysterious illness which he suffered from in later life. She was therefore confused over what it could be. Being the chief, most trusted and most faithful of his wives, Khadija continued to care for her ill husband. The following morning, his pain continued to increase. By midday, she announced that he had died on her lap the previous evening. She buried him in a single grave in the garden of their house on the outskirts of Mecca. But the mysterious illness he suffered from did not continue to affect him during his life nor after his death. His fourteen-year-old son Ibrahim became his successor almost immediately. On being elected leader of the Quraish tribe, Muhammad engaged in some military campaigns against non-Muslim tribes who lived around Mecca and protected trade routes. On one such campaign, he was badly injured during the battle of Uhud and his followers feared that he had died. He instructed his followers not to bury him in that ground. The Quraish tribe won the battle and Muhammad's grave was dug up and his body was found in a lifeless condition. The Quraysh tribe buried him in the same grave and marked it with a stone cairn. Although he was now inside his grave, rumors circulated that he was still alive, speaking to his followers. After the death of the Prophet Muhammad, his companions were overwhelmed with grief. One day, they came across a group of people who were reciting his name in worship to the Allah. They asked them about their approach and what they were doing. The believers told them that they had been praising God but suddenly one of them had seen their Prophet outside himself being called by his name in worship. This revelation led to much debate among Muhammad's followers as to whether or not God could be an imaginary being or if it was possible for one man - Muhammad - to be revered as a prophet greater than all others. 8eeb4e9f32 42
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