THE LIFE OF MUHAMMAD A TRANSLATION OF ISHAQ’S SIRAT RASOL ALLAH WITH INTRODUCTION AND NOTES BY A. GUILLAUME OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESSOXFORD ‘UNIVERSITY PRESS ‘Great Clarendon Steet, Oxford on Gor ‘oxford Universiy Press is a department of the Univerdy of Oxford, Ie furthers the Cniversiy’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, ‘and education by pabliching worldwide in Oxford New York ‘Auckland Bangkok Busnos Aires Cape Town Chennai ‘Dar os Salaam Delhi Hong Kong Isanbu! Karacli Rotkata ‘Busts Lampar Madrid Metbourae Mexico City Murnbat ‘Sdo Puulo Shanghal Talpei Tokyo. Toronto Oxford isa registered trade mark of Oxford University Press ‘in the UK and in certain other countries “This honk is © Copyright under the Berne Convention: “The moral-righta of the author have been asserted intt published 1955 -Keisaed in Pakistan 1967 _Allrighte reserved. 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ISBN 0 19 696038 1 Seventeenth Impression 2005 bi Printed in Pakistan by Mas Printers, Karachi Published by ‘Ameena Saiyid, Oxford University Press Plot No. $8, Sector 15, Korangi Industrial Area, FO Box 8214 ‘Karachi-74900, Pakistan, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Ir is 2 pleasure to acknowledge the debt that I owe to the friends whom Thave consulted in the many and various dificulties which beset a trans- lator of such a long text as the Sira on which there is no commentary ‘worthy of the name. My thanks are especially due to my old friend Pro- fessor A. A. Affifi of Alexandria, Professor A. Kh. Kinani of Damascus, Dr. Abdullah al-Tayib of Khartoum, Dr. M. A. Azzam of Cairo, and Professor A. K. 8, Lambton of London. Particularly 1 would thank Dr. ‘W. Arafat for his self-sacrificing labour in reading the whole of my transla~ tion ia manuseript, and for bringing its shortcomings to my notice. If, with reference to this book of mine, I am ever able to solace myself with the words kafa'l-mar'a fadlan an in'adda ma'éyibah, it will be in great ‘measure due to his ready help and eagle eye. Last, but not last, I gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the School of Oriental and African Studies in meeting the cost of production. Without this help it would have been impossible to publish the book. I hope that in the years to come it will stand as a modest tribute to the School's great interest in Oriental studies and also help to further co-operation and friendliness between my country and the Islamic world.CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS INTRODUCTION ‘The Author ‘The Stra ‘The Editor Iba Hisham A Pragment of the Lost Book of Misa b. "Ugbs Part I BE ali ‘THE GENEALOGY OF MUHAMMAD; TRADITIONS PROM THE PRE-ISLAMIC ERA; MUHAMMAD'S CHILDHOOD AND EARLY MANHOOD Genealogy “The soochtayers Shiga and Satih ‘AbO Karib’s expedition to Yathuib Dhis Nui ‘Chiatianity in Najran “Abdullah b, al-Thimnit and the Christian marys “Abysrinian domination of the Yoran “Abraha's abortive attack on Mecca Persian domination of the Yaman “The descendants of Nici b. Ma'add Origin of idolatry among the Araba Arab taboos ‘The descendants of Mogar "The digging of Zamaam Kinane and Khuai’a expel Jurbum and oosupy the Ka’ba ‘The haji inthe Jahilya Quraysh predominate in Mecca Taternal dissensions The wells of Mecca ‘Atdu'-Mutfalb vows to sacrifice his son “Abdullah father of the prophet Arming mother of the prophet His birth and fostermother His mother's death Death of ‘Abdu’l-Muttalib and legis thereon [Aba Tilib becomes Muhammad's guardian ‘The monk Bahia 45 fetContents ‘The sacrilegious war ‘Mulammad morries Khadija Jews, Christians, and Arabs predict Muhamroad’s mission ‘Salrnin the Persien Early monothei ‘The Gospel prophecy of the sending of ‘the Comforter! Pare 11 MUHAMMAD'S CALL AND PREACHING IN MECCA ‘His call and the beginning of the Quran Khadija accepts Islam Prayer prescribed ‘Alt the first male Muslim, then Abi Bakr and his converts ‘Muhammad preaches and Quruysh rejeet him Aba Talib protects hitn from Quraysh Persecution of Muhammed Kamza accepts Telarn “tba attempes a compromise Conference with Quraysh leaders. The chapter of The Cave ‘Abdullah b, Mas'td recites the Quran publicly ‘Meccans persecute Muhammad’s followers ‘The first emigrants to Abyssinie Quraysh try to get them sent back How the Negus gnined his throne “Umar accepts Islam ‘The document proclaiming a boycott Active opposition to Muhammad His temporary concession to polytheism ‘The return of the first emigrsnts “Urhnin b. Mar'n and Aba Bakr renounce thelr protector Annulting of the boyeott Tufayl b. ‘Amr accepts Tslam. Abi JahPs dishonesty Ruksna wrestles with Muhanomad Some Christians accept Istam ‘Soras 108 and 6 ‘The night journey and the ascent to heaven Allah punishes the mockers ‘The story of Abdi Uzayhie Desth of Abi Talib and Khadie ‘Muhammad preaches in al-T3'if 109 m4 18 130 231 132 333 ur 43 146 150 153 359 s6r 165 167 169 175 8 9 180 18 187 187 191 192 Contents ‘Muhammad preaches to the Beduin 4 yas accepts Islam 107 ‘Beginning of Islam among the Helpers 197 “The frst pledge at at"Aquba 198 Tnaicution of Friday prayers in Medina 199 ‘The second pledge at al-’Aqaba ‘Names of the twelve leaders 204 *Ame's idol 207 Conditions of the pledge and names of those present 208 ‘Allah orders Mohamened to fight 312 ‘The Emigrants 10 Medina 213 ‘Those with whom they lodged. 28 Parr TI MUHAMMAD'S MIGRATION TO MEDINA, HIS WARS, ‘TRIUMPH, AND DEATH 219 ‘Muhsmmed’s bij ‘He builds @ mosque and houses in Medina aa Covenant with the Jews and men of Medina 331 Brotherhood between the Emigranta and the Helpers 2a ‘The Call to Prayer 235 Aba Gays 26 Jewish opponents 239 “Abdullah b, Salim accepts Islam. 249 Jews joined by hypocrites among the Helpers a Disaffected rabbis 246 ‘The chapter of The Cave and Jeuish opposition " Deputation from the Christians of Najran pe "The disaffected an Fever in Medina 279 Date of the hijea Bt ‘The frat raid: on Weddin 8 Hamas's raid to the coast 283 Raid on Buwat 285 Raid on al-Ushayra 285 Reid on al-Kharrar 286 Raid an Safawin 286 ‘Fighting in the sacred month 286 ‘The change of the Qibla 89 Bartle of Badr 289 Zayoab sets out for Medina 314 Aba')-Ag accepts Islart 316 “Umaye b. Wah accepts Islam 38 ‘The chapter of The SpoilsContents ‘Names of the Emigrants who fought at Badr ‘Names of the Helpers who fought at Badr ‘Names of the Qurayth prisoners “Verses on the baile Raid on B. Sulaym Raid called a!-Sawig Raid on Dha Amarr Raid on al Fura’ Amick on B. Qaynug’ id on al-Qarada Killing of Ka'b b, aleAshraf ‘Muhayyiga and Elowayyien Barete of Ubud "Phe Quran on Ubud ‘Names of the Muslim slain at Uhud [Names of the polytheists alain at Upud ‘Yeres on Uhud ‘The day of al-Rak? Poems thereon “Dreachery at Bi'r Ma‘tina B. al-Nagis exiled Poetry thereon Raid of Dhatu'-Rici* Last expedition to Badr Raid on Damoatu'-Jandal Battle of the Ditch Arack on B. Qurayaa Poetry thereon Killing of Sallim “Amr b. alvAs and Khalid b. al-W Areack on B. Libyan “Attack on Din Qarad ssceept Islan ‘Those let helpless ‘Woren who migrated ater the armistice Expedition to Khaybar slAnwad the shepherd Division of the spoils of Khaybar ‘i of Fas ames ofthe Diriyon Return of the secon batch of emigrants —————————————— 27 330 338 342 360 362 303 363 es a4 369 301 4 43 4 46 9 433 437 439 44s 47 “9 436 460 470 82 84 485 336 490 493 499 509 sar 523 523 536 “The fulfied pilgrimage Raid on Mu'ta "Phe occupation af Mecca Khalid followed by ‘Ali go forth as missionaries, Khilid destroys ale W223. ‘Rattle of Hunsyn, ‘Verses thereon Cepture ofa Division of the spoils of Hawézin Ka'b b. Zahayr His ode Raid on ‘Tubok ‘The opposition mooque ‘Those who hung back frotn the raid on ‘Tube Dexeruction of al-Lat ‘Abt Bakr leads the pilgrimage ‘Hiassin’s odea on the campaigns ‘The Year of the Deputations ‘The B. Tarnion ‘Kir b. alPufayl and Arba b, Qaye Deputation from B. S2'd ‘Deputation from ‘Abdu'-Qays Deputation from B. Hanifa Deputation from Tey ‘Ady b: Hitin Deputation of Parwa Deputation from B. Zubayd ‘Deputation from Kinda Deputation from al-Azd Depatation from Himyar Farwa b. ‘Amr accepts Islam B. Barith accept Islam ‘The false prophets Musaylima and al-Aswad ‘The farewell pilgrimage Usima's expedition to Palestine Muhammad? missions to foreign rulers ‘of Muhammad's raids and expeditions “Abdullah b, Unayo’s raid to Kill Khalid b. Sufysin “Uyayna's raid on B. ol~’Anbar ‘Ghilib’s raid on B. Murra ‘Arar b, al'Aa's raid on Dhitu'-Salisil 530 sar 540 sor S65 366 572 387 so 597 508 60a 610 6x5 617 627 68 63 64 635 6536, 637 637 639 6a 642 baz 645 648 Gs 652 652 650 660 662 664, 665 666 667 667 668,xii Contents Ton Aba Hadrad’s raid on Tdam. His raid on al-Ghiba *“Abdu’I-Rabmin’s raid on Damatu'l-Jandal Abii “Ubayda’s raid to the coast Salim b, "Umeyr’s raid to kill Aba ‘Afak “Umayr b. ‘Adiy’s raid to kill ‘Asma Coprure of Thumima b. Athal “Algam’s raid Kore's raid on the Bafits “Ali's mid on the Yarman Beginning of Muhammad’ illness His death ‘The meeting in the hall of B, SWida Preparations for burial Haseii’s panezytic IBN HISHAM’S NOTES ADDENDA INDEXES Proper Names Tend Books cited Subjects Gor 799 Bor 810 84 81s INTRODUCTION ‘THE AUTHOR ‘Munson, on of Ishig, son of Yeeds, was bom in Medina about ‘A. 85 and died in Baghdad in 25x." His grandfather Yastr fell into the hands of Khalid b, al-Walid when he captured ‘Aynu'I-Tasr in At. 12, having been held there as a prisoner by the Persian king. Khilid sent him ‘with a number of prisoners to Abi Bakr at Medina, ‘There he was handed ‘over to Qays b. Makhrams b, al-Muttalid b, ‘Abdu Mandf asa slave, and ‘was manumitted when he accepted Islam. His family adopted the family ‘name of theit patrons. His son Ishaq was bom about the year 50, his mother being the daughter of another freedman, He and his brother “Misd were well-known traditionists, so that our author's path in life was Prepared before he reached znanhood.* ‘He associated with the second generation of traditionists, notably sl-Zuhsi, ‘Agim b, ‘Umar b. Qaida, and ‘Abdullah b, Aba Bakr. He must have devoted himself tothe study of apostolic tradition frora his youth, for at the age of thirty he went to Egypt to attend the lectures of Yaatd b. ‘AbO Habib.’ ‘There he was regarded a an authority, for this sarae Yaatd ‘afcerwards related traditions on Ibn Ishiq's authority. On his return to ‘Medina he went on with the collection and arrangement of the material he had collected, Al-Zuhsi, who was in Medina in 123, is reported to have ssid that Medina would never lack itm as long as Ibn Ishq was there. and Ihe eagerly gathered from him the details of the prophets wars, Unfortu nately Ibn Ishig excited the enmity of Malik b, Anas, for whose work he showed his contempt, and it was nat long before his own writings and is ‘orthodoxy were called in question. Probably it was out cuthor’s fort book ‘of Sunan* which excited Mdlik’s ire, for it would have been in the feld ‘of law based on the practice of the prophet that diferences would be most Keeenly felt. He was accused of being a Qadarl and a Shi. Another man attacked his veracity: be often quoted Fatima, the wife of Hishim b. “Urwa, as the authority for some of his traditions, The husband was annoyed and denied that he had ever met hia wife; but as she was nearly forty’ yeare Ton Ishiq's senior it is easily eredible thet they often met ‘without occasioning gossip. Tt is not known whether Thn Ishq was com- pelled to Icave Medina ot whether he went away voluntarily. Obviously he could not have the same standing in a place that housed his chief © 18. hp. * Gn Mint and Ishiq see J. Fic, Muhanad im hd, Frenkfor . M. 1925, p28. » See Bicerapien von Gevalromdmern der Ton shag ed. Fschet, Leiden, iyo. ‘Wich ll dhe whone death-ates runged from hat. 47 to 458 be wat in somtact pesooaly or at second hand "Wasteafeld i. vi rom Lal-Najitr and Fock, 0, * Haji Khali i, 1008xiv The Life of Muhammad informants as he would hold elsewhere, and so he left for the east, stopping in Ria, al-Jazira on the Tigris, and Rey, finally settling in Baghdad. While ‘Manga wasat Hishimiya he attached himself to his following and presented hhim with a copy of his work doubtless in the hope of a grant from the caliph, ‘Thence he moved to Ray and then to the new capital of the empire. He died in 150 (or perhaps 151) and was buried in the cemetery of Hayzuran. THE SIRA Tis certain that Tbn Tsbiq’s biography of the prophet had no serious rival; but it was preceded by several maghdsi books. We do not know when they were first written, though we have the names of several frst-century ‘worthies who had written notes and passed on their knowledge to the rising generation. ‘The first of these was Abin the son of the caliph "Uthman. Fe was born in ¢. 20 and took part in the campaign of ‘Talha and Zubayr against his father’s slayers. He died about 100. The language used by al Waqidi in reference to Tba al-Mughira, ‘he had nothing written down bout hadith except the prophet's maghdzis which he had acquired from ‘Abin’, certainly implies, though it does not demand, that Ibn al-Mughira ‘rrote down what Abin told him. Ivis strange that neither Iba Ishq nor aL-Wagidt should have cited this man who must have had inside knowledge ‘of many matters that were not known to the public; possibly as a follower Of Ali he preferred to ignore the son of the man the Alids regarded as a tisurper. However, his name often appears in the imads of the canonical collections of hadith. (The man named in Tab. 2349 and LS. iv. 29 is ‘Abin b. ‘Uthman al-Bjali who seems to have written a book on maghdsi.") ‘A man of much greater importance was ‘Urwa b. al-Zubayr b. al- “Awwim (23-94), a cousin of the prophet. “Urwa's mother was Abit Bakr's daughter Asml’. He and his brother ‘Abdullah were in close con- tact with the prophet’s widow ‘AVisha, He was a recognized authority on the carly history of Islam, and the Umayyad caliph ‘Abdu'l-Malik applied to him when he needed information on that subject. Again, it is uncertain ‘whether he wrote a book, but the many traditions that are handed down in his name by LLL and other writers justify the assertion that he was the founder of Islamic history.? ‘Though he is the earliest writer whose notes have come down to.us, [have not translated the passages from Tab. which reproduce them because they do not seem to add anything of importance to the Siva. ‘They form part of a letter which ‘Urwa wrote to “Abdu [-Malik who wanted to have accurate knowledge about the prophet’s career. Much of his material rests on the statements of his aunt ‘Aisha, £ B. Suchau, LS. mt mf 2 Fuck 8 ns yr and eet J, orovite in Islam Cutan, 1927, 538+ [Sp Tab acd Ba, are heal indebted to hi. oy tatay ayer 1284, t634, B64, 167 177% il 2458, CE TH. 754, Introduction. x Like ILL. he was given to inserting poetry in his traditions and justified the habit by the example of ‘A'isha who uttered verses on every subject that presented itself’ He was a friend of the erotic poet ‘Umar b. Rabi‘a, but thought very little of the prophet’s poet Hassan b. Thabit.* Of Shurahbil b. Sa'd, a freedman, presumably of South Arabian origin, lite is known beyond the fact that he wrote a maghdsi book. L.. would have none of him, and he is seldom quoted by other writers. He died in 124, and as he is said to have known Ali he must have died a centenarian. He reported traditions from some of the prophet’s companions, and ‘Mast b, ‘Ugba? records that he wrote lists of the names of the emigrants and the combatants at Badr and Ubud. In his old age he was discredited because he blackmailed his visitors: if they did not give him anything he ‘would say that their fathers were not present at Badr! Poverty and extreme age made him centankerous. ‘The victims of his spleen doubted his veracity, though those best qualified to judge regarded him as an authority. ‘Another important Tabi’ was Wahb b. Munabbih (34-110), a Yamanite of Persian origin. His father probably was a Jew. He is notorious for bis interest in, and knowledge of, Jewish and Christian scriptures and tradi- tions; and though much that was invented later was fathered on him, his K. al-Mubtada’ lies behind the Muslim version ofthe lives of the prophets and other biblical stories. With his books on the legendary history of the ‘Yaman, on aphorisms, on free will, and other matters preserved in part LHs K. al-Tijdn we are not concerned; but the statement of Haj Khalifa that he collected the maghéstis now confirmed by the discovery of a fragment of the lost work on papyri written in 228, Unfortunately this fragment tells us little that is new; nevertheless, its importance is great because it proves that at the end of the first century, or some years before ‘A. 109, the main facts about the prophets life were written down much 1s we have them in the Inter works. Further it shows that, like the other carly tradtionists, he had little or nouse forisnads. Miss Gertrud Mélaméde* has compared the account of the mecting at ‘Aqaba (cf. i. H. 288, 293, 299) ‘with the literature on the subject and her criticism, literary and historical, leads her to some important conclusions which do not concern us here. An interesting detail is that Muhammad speaking to ‘Abbiis calls Aus and Khazraj ‘my and your maternal uncles’, ‘Abbis throughout runs with the hare and hunts with the hound ‘A little later comes ‘Agim b. ‘Umar b. Qatida al-Ansitt (d, ¢ 120). He lectured in Damascus on the campaigns of the prophet and the exploits of his companions and seems to have committed his lectures to writing. ‘He too is quite inconsistent in naming his authorities: sometimes he gives an imndd, more often he does not. He rewmed to Medina to continue his ‘work, and LI. attended his lectures there, Occasionally he inserted verses in his narrative, and sometimes gave his own opinion, Fischer, Asad 46. ) LHe, Takai 2 961 2 Horovits, op. ct ast. + Le Monde Ortotale, xxii 1934, 17-38.wi The Life of Muhammad ‘Muhammad b. Muslim . ...b. Shihab al-Zuhri (51-124) was a member of 4 distinguished Mccean family, He attached himsclf to ‘Abdu'l- Malik, Misham, and Yasid, and wrote down come traditions for hie princely pupils. "He was the forerunner of the later traditionists in that he took ‘extraordinary puns imesrogate people, young aul okt of bath seara, who might possess knowledge of the past. He left a history of his own family and a book of maghdai. Most of his traditional lore survived in the notes ‘of his lectures that his pupils wrote down quoting his authority for the traditions they record. He spent some years in Medina as a young man, LI. met him when he came south on pilgrimage and he is often named as an authonty in the Siva. He was the most important traditionist of his generation, and his influence is to be seen in all collections of canonical hadith. (See further J. Horovitz, Islanie Culture, i. 33 ff.) ‘Abdullah b. Aba Bakr b, Muhammad b. ‘Ame b. Hazen (4. 130 oF 138) was one of L.'s most important informants. His father had been ordered by ‘Umar b. ‘Abdu'l-'Aziz to write a collection of prophetic hadith, especially what ‘Amra d, ‘Abdu'-Rabman ssid. ‘This latter was a friend ‘of ‘Aisha and she was the aunt ofthis AbG Bakr. Already i the time of his son ‘Abdullah these writings had been lost. Though we have no record of a book by ‘Abdullah, its substance probably once existed in the maghazi of his nephew ‘Abdu'l-Malik, As one would expect, the iendd is a matter of indifference to ‘Abdullah; he stood too near the events among many who ‘knew of them to need to cite his authorities. ‘Tab. (i, 1837) contains an interesting note on how I.I, got his information. ‘Abdullah told his wife tell him what he knew on ‘Amra’s authority. ‘Aswad Muhammad b, ‘Abdu’I-Rahman b. Naufal (d. 131 oF 157) left a maghdet book which sticks closely to ‘Urwa’s tradition.” ‘Contemporary with our author in the third generation was Misa b. “Uqha (c. 55-142), a freedman of the family of al-Zubayr. A fragment of his work has survived and was published by Sachau in 1904." As it once rivalled LLL’s work and is one of our earliest witnesses to the Sira I have given a trandlation of the extant traditions.? Although Malik b. Anas, al-Shafi'i, and Ahmad b. Hanbal—an impressive trio—asserted that his book was the most important and trustworthy ofall, posterity evidently did not share their opinion or more of his work would have survived.* LL. never mentions him. One cannot escape the conviction that petty Professional jealousy wes as rife in those days as how, and that scliolars deliberately refrained from giving their predecessors credit for their achievements, Misi leaned heavily on al-Zuhr, He seems to have carried farther the process of icealiring the prophet! He is freely quoted by al-Wagiai, I. $3'd, al-Baladhuri, Tabasi, and 1. Sayyidut-Nis. He gave * See Fleck, 17 * S.BB.A. 3. 3 Stkwhers same doubtu'shout the authenticity of some of them ex ted. * Goldater, MLS: i 207, shows tat i was in ctculon at Ite a8 the end ofthe oth cxnsiry a Fach 22. Introduction awit lista of those who went to Abyssinia and fought at Badr. ‘The latter ‘Milk regarded ss authoritative. He generally gives an ind, though it is not always clear whether he is relying on a written or an oral source. Once at least he refers to a mass of records let by Ibn “Abbas (ILS. v. 2161. Occasionally he quotes poems, ‘Apart from the fragment of Wahb b. Munabbih’s maghtsi the Berlin ‘MS, if itis authentic, is the oldest piece of historical Kteraturein Arabiein existence, and if only for that reason deserves moze than a passing not here. It fs of importance also because it carries back some of the traditions {in Bukhiei (d. 256) more than a century. Other maghdsi works were produced in Iraq, Syria, and the Yaman during the second century, but none of them is likely to have inftuenced LL. and they ean safely be disregaeded.' What is of significance is the great interest in the life of the prophet that was shown everywhere during this century. But no book known to the Arabs or to us can compare in comprehensiveness, arrangement, or systematic treatment, with L.'s work which will now be discussed The Sira ‘The titles The Book of Campaigns or The Book of Campaigns and (the prophet's) Biography or The Book of the Biography and the Beginning and the ‘Campaigns* are all to be met with in the citations of Arabic authors. Al-Bakka', a pupil of I, made two eopies ofthe whole book, one of which mutt hae reached 1H, (4.218) whose text, abbrevite annotate, and sometimes altered, is the main source of our knowledge of the original = ae eee principles underlying ILH.’s revision are set out in his Introduction. Sachau suggests thatthe copy used by’[. was made when LI. was in Ray by Salama b. Fadl al-Abrash al-Angisi, because T, quotes LI. according to I, Fadl’s riwwdya. A third copy was made by Yunus b. Bukayr in Ray. ‘This was used by I. al-Athir in his Usde'/-Ghaba, A copy of part of this reeegion extn the Qarayin mosueat Fez. ‘The et, which cons me important additions to the reecived text, I hope to publish shortly. A fourth copy was that ofthe Syrian Tirin b. Abs'Tsa, ‘These last two copies were used by I. Sad Taetly the Fibritt mentions the edition of al-Nufaylt (4! 254). It must not he supposed that the book ever existed in three separate parts: ancient legends, Muhammad's early ife and mission, and his wars ‘These are simply sections ofthe book which contained T.l‘a fetures, For the Mubtada’ (Mabda’) we must go to T'e Tafar and History. The first quotation from it in the latter® runs thua: ‘I, Hamid said, Salama b, al-Padl told us that LI. said: “The first thing that God ereated was light * See Nékste, Gach, Or. 129,221 Sta oe "Fie, ta, biii The Life of Muhammad and darkness, ‘Then He separated them and made the darkness night, black exceeding dark; and He made the light day, bright and luminous." From this it is clear that ‘Genesis’ is the meaning of the title of the first section of the book. IH. skipped all the intervening pages and began with ‘Abraham, the presumed ancestor of Muhammad. Al-Azragt quotes some passages from the missing section in his Akbar Mecea and a few extracts are given by al-Mutahhar b, Tahir.’ "The Mubtada’ in so far a it lies outside LH1's recension is not our concern, though it is to be hoped that one day a scholar will collect and publish a text of it from the sources that survive so that L.'s work can he read in its entirety as its importance warrants, In this section L1. relied on. Jessish and Christian informants and on the book of Aba ‘Abdullah Wahb }, Munabbih (34-110 of 114) known as K. al-Mubtada’ and also al-Isrd~ ilfyat of which the original title was Qisayut-Anbiya’. To him he owed the history of the past from Adam to Jesus* and also the South Arabian legends, some of which IH. has retained. ‘This man also wrote a maghdst ‘book, and a fragment of it has survived.’ LI. cites him by name only once.* X is natural that a book about Muhammad, ‘the seal of the prophets’, should give an account of the history of the carly prophets, but the ory, or legends, of South Arabia demand another explanation. As Goldziher showed long ago,* it was in the second half of the first century that the antagonism of north and south, ie, Quraysh and the Angir of Medina, fret showed itself in literature. The Ansir, proud of theirsouthern origin and of their support of the prophet when the Quraysh rejected him, smuarted under the injustice of their rulers and the northerner’s claim to superiority. One of the ways in which their resentment manifested itself was in the glorification of Himyae’s great past. LI. as a loyal son of ‘Medina shared the feelings of his patrons and recounted the achievements of their forefathers, and 1.H., himself of southern descent, retained in the ‘Sira as much of the original work as he thought desirable, ‘To this accident that LH. was a Himyari we owe the extracts from stories of the old South jbian kings, LH, devoted a separate book to the subject, the KC. al- sma'rifati mulitki zaman (fi akhbari Qaktan).* "The second section of the book which is often called al-Mab'ath begins with the birth of the prophet and ends when the first fighting from his base jn Medina takes place. ‘The impression one gets from this section is of hazy memories; the stories have lost their freshness and have nothing of that vivid and sometimes dramatic detail which make the maghdst stoties— especially in al-Wagidi—so full of interest and excitement. ‘Thus while the Medinan period is well documented, and events there are chronologi- fanged, no such accuracy, indeed no such attempt at it, can be cally dc and tr Cl Har, Pu, de Pole det lame ne, 4.3, sol avi, ivi, Pais 18g on, i nnmary af the contents is given in Ts See 4 p20. + MS 86-98 6 Figydarsbad 1342 Introduction xix claimed for the Meccan period. We do not know Mukammad’s age when he first came forth publicly as a religious reformer: some say he was forty, others say forty-five; we do not know his precise relation to the Band Naija; the poverty of his childhood if fts the assertion that he belonged to the principal family in Meeca. ‘The story of those years is filled out with legends and stories of miraculous events which inevitably undermine the modern reader's confidence in the history of this period as a whole. In this section particularly, though not exclusively, TI. writes historical introductions to his paragraphs. A good example is his foreword to the account of the persecution the prophet endured at the hands of the Meccans: ‘When the Quraysh became distressed by the trouble caused by the enmity between them and the apostle and those of their people who accepted his teaching, they stired up againat him foolish fellows who called him a Tir, insulted him, and accused him of being a poet, a sorcerer, a diviner, and of being possessed. However the apostle continued to pro- claim what God had ordered him to proclaim, concealing nothing, and exciting their dislike by contemning their religion, forsaking their idols, and leaving them to their unbelie.t This is not a statement resting on tradition, but a concise summary of the citeumstances that are plainly indicated by certain passages of the Quran which deal with this period. (Of the Maghaai history ttle need be said. For the most part the stories rest on the aecount of eyewitnesses and have every right to be regarded as ‘trustworthy. Characteristics “Thecpinionsif Muelim critics on 1.1’s trustworthiness denerve a special paragraph ; but here something may he said of the author's caution and his fairness. A word that very frequently precedes a statement is sa’ama or za‘ami, ‘he (chey) alleged’. T+ carries, with it more than a hint thet the statement may not be true, though of the other and it may be sound, “Thus thece are fourteen or more orrurrences of the caveat from p. 87 t0 48 alae, besides a frequent note that only God knows whether a parti- ‘culer statement ig true or not. Another indication of reserve if not scepti cism underlies the expreseion ff md dhukira F, a8 in the story of the jinn “who listened to Mubaromad a he prayed; Muhammad’s order to “Uraar ‘ta kill Suwayd; one of Gabtie’s visits to Muhammad; the reward of two martyrs to the man killed by awontan.* An expression of similar import is Sim balegharni® ‘Very seldom does LI. make any comment of his own on the traditions he records apart from the mental reservation implied in these terns ‘Therefore when he does express an opinion it is the more significant, In his neeount of the night journey to Jerusalem and the ascent into heaven 2 py e8gy ae ano 187, et penn 2 po. 281,336, 357,308 Fagor age 1 pete. Extrove enationintoauce the Jeger of she Ht at the prophets th foe