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| Celebrating Eid Milad-un-Nabi | | |
P S Prakash
The Muslims of the world generally express their pleasure on the birth date of the Beloved Prophet and celebrate this occasion calling it as Eid-e-Milaad-un-Nabi. Thus Mawlid, Mawlid an-Nabi or Milaad un-Nabi is the celebration of the birthday of Muhammad, the final prophet of Islam; also known as "The Seal of the Prophets".
Muhammad was the historical founder of the religion of Islam, considered by Muslims to be the last messenger and prophet of God (Allah).
The name Muhammad etymologically means "the praised one" in Arabic. Within Islam, Muhammad is known as Nabi (Prophet) and Rasul (Messenger).
Sources on Muhammad's life concur that he was born to 'Abdu'llah ibn 'Abdu'l-Muttalib on ca. 570 AD in the city of Mecca in Arabia. Muhammad was orphaned at a young age, was brought up by his uncle. He initially adopted the occupation of a shepherd, and later became a merchant and was married by age 26.
At some point, discontented with life in Mecca, he would retreat to a cave in the surrounding mountains for meditation and reflection. According to Islamic tradition, it was here at age 40, in the month of Ramadan, where he received his first revelation from God.
Three years after this event, Muhammad started preaching these revelations publicly, proclaiming that "God is One", that complete "surrender" to Him is man's religion, and that he was a prophet and messenger of God, in the same vein as Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets.
Muhammad expanded his mission as a prophet, publicly preaching strict monotheism, condemning against the social evils of his day, and warning of a Day of Judgment when all humans shall be held responsible for their deeds.
He gained few followers early on, and was largely met with hostility from the tribes of Mecca. After ignoring Muhammad's preaching, the elites in Mecca, feeling threatened by his message, harassed Muhammad, and persecuted his followers. This continued, and intensified, over more than a decade.
To escape persecution, eventually, in 622, Muhammad left Mecca in a journey known to Muslims as the Hijra (the Migration). He settled in the area of Yathrib (now known as Medina) with his followers, where he was the leader of the first Muslim community. This historic event, the Hijra, marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar.
In Medina, Muhammad managed to unite the conflicting tribes, and after eight years of fighting with the Meccan tribes, his followers, who by then had grown to ten thousand, conquered Mecca. The Muslims subsequently removed everything they considered idolatrous from the Kaaba. Most of the townspeople accepted Islam.
In March 632, Muhammad led the pilgrimage known as the Hajj. On returning to Medina from his 'Farewell pilgrimage', he fell ill and died at age 62, by which time most of Arabia had converted to Islam.
Under the caliphs who assumed authority after his death, the Islamic empire expanded into Palestine, Mesopotamia, Syria, Persia, Egypt, North Africa, Southern Spain, and Anatolia. Later conquests, commercial contact between Muslims and non-Muslims, and missionary activity spread Islam over much of the Eastern Hemisphere, including China and Southeast Asia.
According to Islamic belief, he was visited by the Archangel Gabriel and commanded to recite verses sent by God. These revelations continued until his death twenty-three years later. The collection of these verses is known as the Qur'an.
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