Abu Talib becomes guardian of the apostle
After the death of Abdul-Mutallib the apostle lived with his uncle Abu Talib for (so they alleged) the former had confided him to his care because he and Abdullah, the apostle's father, were brothers by the same mother, Fatima d. Amr. It was Abu Talib who used to look after the apostle after the death of his grand-father and he became one of his family.
Yahya b. Abbad told me that his father told him that there was a man of Lihb who was a seer. Whenever he came to Mecca the Quraysh used to bring their boys to him so that he could look at them and tell their fortunes. So Abu Talib brought him along with the others while he was still a boy. The seer looked at him and then something claimed his attention. That disposed of he cried, 'Bring me that boy.' When Abu Talib saw his eagerness he hid him and the seer began to say, 'Woe to you, bring me that boy I just saw just now, for by Allah he has a great future.' But Abu Talib went away.
The story of Bahira
Abu Talib had planned to go in a merchant caravan to Syria, and when all preparations had been made for the journey, the apostle of God, so they allege, attached himself closely to him so that he took pity on him and said that he would take him with him, and that the two of them would never part; or words to that effect. When the caravan reached Busra in Syria, there was a monk there in his cell by the name of Bahira, who was well versed in the knowledge of Christians. A monk had always occupied that cell. There he gained his knowledge from a book that was in the cell, so they allege, handled on from generation to generation. They had often passed by him in the past and he never spoke to them or took any notice of them until this year, and when they stopped near his cell he made a great feast for them. It is alleged that that was because of something he saw while in his cell. They allege that while he was in his cell he saw the apostle of God in the caravan when they approached, with a cloud overshadowing him among the people. Then they came and stopped in the shadow of a tree near the monk. He looked at the cloud when it overshadowed the tree, and its branches were bending and drooping over the apostle of God until he was in the shadow beneath it. When Bahira saw that, he came out of his cell and sent word to them, 'I have prepared food for you, O men of Quraysh, and I should like you all to come both great and small, bond and free.' One of them said to him, 'By God, Bahira! something extraordinary has happened today, you used not to treat us so, and we have often passed by you. What has befallen you today?' He answered, 'You are right in what you say, but you are guests and I wish to honour you and give you food so that you may eat.'
So they gathered together with him, leaving the apostle of God behind with the baggage under the tree, on account of his extreme youth. When Bahira looked at the people he did not see the mark which he knew and found in his books, so he said, 'Do not let one of you remain behind and not come to my feast.' They told him that no one who ought to come had remained behind except a boy who was the youngest of them and had stayed with their baggage. Thereupon he told them to invite him to come to the meal with them. One of the men of Quraysh said, 'By al-Lat and al-Uzza, we are to blame for leaving behind the son of Abdullah b. Abdul-Mutallib. Then he got up and embraced him and made him sit with the people. When Bahira saw him he stared at him closely, looking at his body and finding traces of his description ( in the Christian books). When the people had finished eating and gone away, Bahira got up and said to him, 'Boy, I ask you by al-Lat and al-Uzza to answer my question.' Now Bahira said this only because he had heard his people swearing by these gods. They allege that the apostle of God said to him, 'Do not ask me by al-Lat and al-Uzza, for by Allah nothing is more hateful to me than these two.' Bahira answered, 'Then by Allah, tell me what I ask' ; he replied, 'Ask me what you like' ; so he began to ask him about what happened in his sleep, and his habits, and his affairs generally, and what the apostle of God told him coincided with what Bahira knew of his description. Then he looked at his back and saw the seal of prophethood between his shoulders in the very place described in his book. When he had finished he went to his uncle Abu Talib and asked him what relation this boy was to him, and when he told him he was his son, he said that he was not, for it could not be that the father of this boy was alive. 'He is my nephew,' he said, and when he asked what had become of his father he told him that he had died before the child was born. 'You have told the truth,' said Bahira. 'Take your nephew back to his country and guard him carefully against the Jews, for by Allah! if they see him and know about him what I know, they will do him evil; a great future lies before this nephew of yours, so take him home quickly.'
So his uncle took him off quickly and brought him back to Mecca when he had finished his trading in Syria. People allege that Zurayr and Tammam and Daris, who were people of the scriptures, had noticed in the apostle of God what Bahira had seen during that journey which he took with his uncle, and they tried to get at him, but Bahira kept them away and reminded them of God and the mention of the description of him which they would find in the sacred books, and that if they tried to get at him they would not succeed. He gave them no peace until they recognized the truth of what he said and left him and went away. The apostle of God grew up, God protecting him and keeping him from the vileness of heathenism because he wished to honour him with apostleship, until he grew up to be the finest of his people in manliness, the best in character, most noble in lineage, the best neighbour, the most kind, truthful, reliable, the furthest removed from filthiness and corrupt morals, through loftiness and nobility, so that he was known among his people as 'The trustworthy' because of the good qualities which God had implanted in him. The apostle, so I was told, used to tell how God protected him in his childhood during the period of heathenism, saying, 'I found myself among the boys of Quraysh carrying stones such as boys play with; we had all uncovered ourselves, each taking his shirt and putting it around his neck as he carried the stones. I was going to and fro in the same way, when an unseen figure slapped me most painfully saying, "Put your shirt on" ;so I took it and fastened it on me and then began to carry the stones upon my neck wearing my shirt alone among my fellows."
Suhayli, after pointing out that a somewhat similar story is told of the prophet's modesty and its preservation by supernatural means, at the time that the rebuilding of the Ka'ba was undertaken when Muhammad was a grown man, says significantly that if the account here is correct divine intervention must have occured twice. I.Hamid said that Salama told him that Ibn Ishaq related from Muhamad b. Abdullah b. Qays from al-Hassan b. Muhammad heard the apostle say, "I never gave a thought to what the people of the pagan era used to do but twice, because God came between me and my desires. Afterwards I never thought of evil when God honoured me with apostleship. Once I said to a young Qurayshi who was shepherding with me on the high ground of Mecca, 'I should like you to look after my beasts for me while I go and spend the night in Mecca as young men do.' He agreed and I went off with that intent, and when I came to the first house in Mecca I heard the sound of tambourines and flutes and was told that a marriage had just taken place. I sat down to look at them when God smote my ear and I fell asleep until I was woken by the sun. I came to my friend and in reply to his questions told him what had happened. Exactly the same thing occured on another occasion. Afterwards I never thought of evil until God honoured me with his apostleship."
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