Period 3 of 18
Youth and Work
He worked as a shepherd and then as a trader, and became known among Quraysh as al-Amin, the trustworthy.
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A shepherd of Makkah
The Prophet ﷺ said: “Allah did not send a prophet except that he tended sheep.” His companions asked: “And you?” He said: “Yes. I used to tend them for a few qirats for the people of Makkah.” Scholars explain qararit either as small pieces of money paid as wages, or, as some say, the name of a place near Makkah. Tending sheep taught patience, care and responsibility, and it was the work of many prophets before him.
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Trade and the title al-Amin
As a young man he worked in trade, and the sirah books record that he became known among Quraysh as al-Amin, “the trustworthy”, for his truthfulness and for returning deposits to their owners. Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, a respected woman of Quraysh, hired him to trade with her goods, and he travelled with her servant Maysarah to Syria; he returned with a good profit and Maysarah spoke highly of his character. This was about 595 CE, when he was around twenty-five.
- Sirah books (early history)
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The Alliance of al-Fudul
The sirah books record that, before prophethood, he took part in the Hilf al-Fudul, a pact made by several clans of Quraysh in Makkah, at the house of Abdullah ibn Jud'an, to defend the wronged and to see that no stranger or weak person was oppressed in the city. It was prompted by a merchant from outside Makkah whose goods had been seized unjustly. The pact is remembered as an early sign of his commitment to justice.
- Sirah books (early history)
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Rebuilding the Kaaba
When Quraysh rebuilt the Kaaba, the Prophet ﷺ carried stones with his uncle al-Abbas, and Jabir ibn Abdullah رضي الله عنهما described how he put his waist-wrapper on his shoulder for protection and fell to the ground (Sahih al-Bukhari 3829). The sirah books record that the clans disputed who should place the Black Stone, and agreed to accept the first man to enter; it was Muhammad ﷺ, and he placed the stone on a cloth carried by all the clan leaders. Quraysh built it shorter than Ibrahim's foundations, which the Prophet ﷺ later mentioned to Aisha رضي الله عنها.
How the sources are used
Sources are chosen in this order: the Quran first, then the hadith collections of al-Bukhari and Muslim, and then other collections such as al-Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud, an-Nasa'i, Ibn Majah and Malik. The sirah books, mainly Ibn Ishaq as transmitted by Ibn Hisham, are used only for details not found in the hadith, and these are marked as “recorded in the sirah books.” Dates in the Christian era are approximate, and hadith numbers follow the hadith library of this website.
Hadith numbers follow the hadith library on this site, and each source opens its hadith there. Details that are not in the hadith collections are marked as coming from the sirah books.
General information for learning, not a fatwa. For your own situation, ask a qualified scholar.