The Prophetic Era
Study the life of Prophet Muhammad and the early Muslim community in Mecca and Medina.
Start LearningBegins with Abd al-Muttalib: Grandfather and Guardian of the Prophet
Learning Sequence
Articles are ordered so each builds on the one before. You can also read them in any order that suits you.
- Abd al-Muttalib: Grandfather and Guardian of the ProphetpersonProphetic EraChief of the Quraysh and custodian of Zamzam. Born at Yathrib as Shayba, he redug the lost well, ransomed his son Abdullah with a hundred camels after a vow of sacrifice,…
- Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib: Father of the ProphetpersonProphetic EraThe father of Prophet Muhammad and the youngest, best-loved son of Abd al-Muttalib. When his father's vow of sacrifice fell on him by lot he was ransomed with a hundred c…
- Amina bint Wahb: Mother of the ProphetpersonProphetic EraAmina bint Wahb al-Zuhriyya was the mother of Prophet Muhammad. Married to Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib and widowed almost at once, she bore her son at Mecca, saw him fos…
- Prophet Muhammad ﷺpersonProphetic EraProphet Muhammad ﷺ (c. 570–632 CE) was the final prophet and messenger in Islam. Born in Mecca, he proclaimed the Qur'an, formed a community in Medina, and led it through…
- Halima bint Abi Dhu'ayb al-Sa'diyya: Foster-Mother of the ProphetpersonProphetic EraA Bedouin woman of the Banu Sa'd ibn Bakr who came to Mecca in a famine year seeking an infant to nurse. She took the orphaned Muhammad only because no other woman would,…
- The Meccan Period: The Foundation of Islam and Early PersecutionconceptProphetic EraThe Meccan Period (610-622 CE) encompasses the first thirteen years of Prophet Muhammad's mission, from the first revelation to the Hijra. This period saw the establishme…
- Khadijah bint Khuwaylid: The First BelieverpersonProphetic EraKhadijah bint Khuwaylid (d. 619 CE) was the first wife of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and the first person to believe in his prophethood. A woman of independent …
- Waraqah ibn Nawfal: The Christian Scholar Who Confirmed the First RevelationpersonProphetic EraWaraqah ibn Nawfal, a Christian scholar of Mecca and cousin of Khadijah, identified the first revelation to Prophet Muhammad as the same that had come to Moses, and the P…
- Addas: The Christian of Nineveh Who Recognised the Prophet at Ta'ifpersonProphetic EraAddas was a Christian slave from Nineveh, owned by one of the sons of Rabi'a of Mecca, who served grapes to Prophet Muhammad in an orchard outside Ta'if and recognised hi…
- Sumayyah bint Khayyat: The First Martyr of IslampersonProphetic EraSumayyah bint Khayyat was an early convert in Mecca and the mother of the companion Ammar ibn Yasir. Killed under torture by Abu Jahl for refusing to renounce Islam, she …
- Ammar ibn Yasir: The Early Convert Who EnduredpersonProphetic EraAmmar ibn Yasir (c. 567-657 CE) was among the earliest converts to Islam and the most severely persecuted, son of Sumayyah bint Khayyat, the first martyr of Islam. He gov…
- Bilal ibn RabahpersonProphetic EraBilal ibn Rabah (580-640 CE), the first muezzin of Islam and one of the most beloved companions of Prophet Muhammad, known for his beautiful voice, unwavering faith under…
- Ja'far ibn Abi Talib: The Flying Martyr of Mu'tahpersonProphetic EraJa'far ibn Abi Talib, Ali's full brother and the Prophet's cousin, led the Muslim emigrants who took refuge in Abyssinia, spoke on their behalf before the Negus, and was …
- Isra and Miraj - The Night Journey and AscensioneventProphetic EraThe miraculous night journey of Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem and his ascension through the heavens, one of the most significant spiritual events in Islamic hi…
- Hijra - The Migration to MedinaeventProphetic EraThe Hijra (622 CE) was Prophet Muhammad's migration from Mecca to Medina, marking the Islamic calendar's beginning and establishing the first Islamic state. This pivotal …
- Constitution of MedinaconceptProphetic EraThe Constitution of Medina (622 CE) was a written agreement between Prophet Muhammad and the communities of Medina — Muslim emigrants, Muslim Medinan tribes, and several …
- Battle of Badr - The First Great VictoryeventProphetic EraThe first major military victory of the Muslim community on March 13, 624 CE, where 313 Muslims defeated a much larger Meccan army. This decisive battle established the m…
- Ubayda ibn al-HarithpersonProphetic EraUbayda ibn al-Harith (c. 561-624 CE) was a Companion of Prophet Muhammad from the Banu al-Muttalib, among the earliest Muslims of Mecca, commander of the expedition to Ra…
- Abu Hudhayfa ibn UtbapersonProphetic EraAbu Hudhayfa ibn Utba (d. 11 or 12 AH / 632 or 633 CE) was an early Companion of Prophet Muhammad, a son of the Meccan leader Utba ibn Rabi'a, an emigrant to Abyssinia an…
- Safiyya bint Abd al-Muttalib: The Aunt Who Took Up a Club at KhandaqpersonProphetic EraSafiyya bint Abd al-Muttalib, paternal aunt of Prophet Muhammad and mother of Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, killed an armed intruder at the fortress sheltering Medina's women duri…
- Battle of UhudeventProphetic EraThe Battle of Uhud (March 625 CE) was the second major engagement between Medina's Muslims and the Meccan Quraysh. After an early Muslim advantage, archers left their pos…
- Battle of KhandaqeventProphetic EraThe Battle of Khandaq (627 CE), also called the Battle of the Trench, was a twenty-seven-day siege of Medina by a coalition of some ten thousand Quraysh and allied tribes…
- Treaty of HudaybiyyaheventProphetic EraThe Treaty of Hudaybiyyah (628 CE / 6 AH) was a ten-year truce between the Muslims of Medina and the Quraysh of Mecca. Though its terms seemed to favor the Quraysh and ma…
- Conquest of MeccaeventProphetic EraThe conquest of Mecca in 630 CE (8 AH) was the decisive event of the Prophetic era. After eight years of exile, Prophet Muhammad led ten thousand Muslims into the city, d…
- Abu Sufyan ibn Harb: Leader of Quraysh and Father of a DynastypersonProphetic EraThe Meccan chief who led Quraysh against the Muslims at Uhud and the Trench, whose caravan set off the Battle of Badr, and who was questioned about the Prophet by the emp…
- Abu Sufyan ibn al-Harith: The Prophet's Cousin Who Fought Him for Twenty YearspersonProphetic EraAbu Sufyan ibn al-Harith, born al-Mughira, was a first cousin of Prophet Muhammad who opposed him in verse and in battle for two decades before converting on the eve of t…
- Ikrima ibn Abi JahlpersonProphetic EraIkrima ibn Abi Jahl (d. 13 AH / 634 CE) was the son of Abu Jahl and among the most determined Meccan opponents of Prophet Muhammad, condemned to death at the conquest of …
- Battle of HunayneventProphetic EraThe Battle of Hunayn (630 CE) was fought a month after the conquest of Mecca between the Muslims and a coalition of the Hawazin and Thaqif tribes. A near-disastrous ambus…
- The Farewell Pilgrimage: The Final Testament of Prophet MuhammadeventProphetic EraThe Farewell Pilgrimage (Hajjat al-Wada) of 632 CE was the only Hajj Prophet Muhammad performed after the Hijra. Its rites, recorded in detail by his companions, became t…
- Aisha bint Abu Bakr: The Scholar and Mother of the BelieverspersonProphetic EraA wife of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), daughter of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, and the most prolific woman transmitter of hadith in Islam. The Prophet died in her ap…
- The Children of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him)conceptProphetic EraProphet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) had seven children according to the majority of early sources: three sons, al-Qasim, Abdullah and Ibrahim, who all died in childhood,…
- Abu Bakr al-SiddiqpersonRashidun CaliphateThe first Rashidun Caliph (632-634 CE) and closest companion of Prophet Muhammad. Known as 'Al-Siddiq' (The Truthful), he preserved Islamic unity after the Prophet's deat…
- Umar ibn al-KhattabpersonRashidun CaliphateThe second Rashidun Caliph (634-644 CE), known as 'Al-Faruq' (The Criterion). Under his leadership, the Islamic empire expanded dramatically, conquering the Sassanian Emp…
- Uthman ibn AffanpersonRashidun CaliphateThe third Rashidun Caliph (644-656 CE), known for standardizing the Quran and expanding the Islamic navy. A wealthy merchant from the Umayyad clan, he was one of the earl…
- Ali ibn Abi TalibpersonRashidun CaliphateThe fourth and final Rashidun Caliph (656-661 CE), cousin and son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad. Known for his courage, eloquence, and commitment to justice. His caliphate w…