Incidents before the birth of Holy Prophet ﷺ
Some exceptional incidents happened before the birth of our Holy Prophet ﷺ. Allah has shown some signs that his last Prophet is about to arise and brighten the whole world. These events are about his miracles and proofs of his prophet hood because they are associated with the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and the blessed location where he was born.
Some extraordinary incidents took place before the birth of our Holy Prophet ﷺ
- The restoration of the well of Zamzam by Abdul Muttalib (the grandfather of the Holy Prophetﷺ)
- Abraha’s terrifying attempt to damage The Holy Kaaba.
- The year of Elephants or Aamul Feel.
The restoration of the well of Zamzam
The restoration of the well of ZAMZAM made Abdul Muttalib the most revered among the people of Makkah. Hazrat Ibrahim A.S has left his wife, Hazrat Bibi Hajra, and son Hazrat Ismail in the deserted area of Makkah. There was no population, water, or food at the time because it was Allah’s command, and he had to abide. When Ismail, the baby, cried for water, he rubbed his feet on the ground while his mother, Hajra, ran around looking for water.
Allah sent relief to both mother and son after constant rubbing of his feet on the barren ground, and a fountain of water gushed forth from the ground just beneath the feet of baby Ismail. In Arabic, Hajra cried out ZAMZAM, which means “stop, stop.” As a result, it was given the name Zamzam Well.
“Our Lord! Some of my descendants have taken up residence in the uncultivated valley near the HOLY HOUSE. Our Lord! so that they may establish proper worship, so that some men’s hearts may yearn for them, and provide you with fruits so that they may be thankful.” SURAH IBRAHIM, verse 37
Returning to point one, Abdul Muttalib had the honour of rediscovering Zamzam’s sacred well. Since the tribe of JURHAM covered the well when they exiled from Makkah, the location had been forgotten. Abdul Muttalib had a dream one night in which Allah instructed him to dig the well of Zamzam. The water of Zamzam began to flow again when he started digging next to the Kaaba.
Abraha’s terrifying attempt to damage The Holy Kaaba
The attempted destruction of the Holy Kaaba by the king of Yemen, Abraha, occurred shortly before the birth of the Holy Prophet. Abraha witnessed Arabians worshiping a variety of gods and goddesses in the Holy Kaaba. As a result, Abraha decided to build his temple Al-Qalis or Al-Qulyas in Sanaa, Yemen.
He invited people from all over the ARABIAN PENINSULA to visit the temple and worship. No one came to worship his temple, despite his belief and hope. He decided to attack the HOLY KAABA and finish it out of extreme rage and disappointment.
He captured Abdul Muttalib’s animals, which included goats and camels, on the outskirts of Makkah. “Aren’t you afraid that I have gathered a large army and have come to destroy the Kaaba?” Abrahah said when Abdul Muttalib went to him and asked about his animals.
Abdul Muttalib responded magnificently, and his immortal words were in the history of Islam. He said, “Because the animals are mine, I should be in charge of them. The Kaaba is God’s property, and he will look after it. Abraha was stunned by Abdul Muttalib’s words and his heart felt fear and pressure. Although, It was a great conversation between Abraha and our beloved Prophet Muhammad’s grandfather.
The year of Elephants or Aamul Feel
Then Hazrat Abdul Muttalib ordered his people to flee to caves and mountain tops, which they did. After that, he went to the Kaaba’s door and prayed to Allah. He also climbed the mountain after finishing his Dua.
After this conversation Abraha ordered his army to attack Kaaba next morning. He reached the Muhassi Valley between Muzalifa and Mina, ready to invade Makkah. The elephants suddenly refused to move forward as he advanced with his army and the ELEPHANTS. Allah sent FLOCKS OF BIRDS to pelt the invaders with stones, each bird having three stones at that time. The army of birds attacked the army of Abraha in such a powerful manner that the army of Abraha tried to run away. But these small stones were the punishment from Allah.
The army lay dead due to the stones, their bodies mashed like corn. These small stones shattered people’s caps, passed from their heads, cut their bodies, and cut the elephant’s body, which fell to the ground. Their names were carved into the stones that killed them. In this way, Allah preserved the Kaaba and ruined the army of Abraha .The year was 571 A.D., the same year as the birth of our beloved Prophet. This incident is mentioned in the Holy Quran in a Surah al feel.
1. O beloved (Prophet), did you not see how your Lord dealt with the people of the elephants? 2. Did He not put their trick into devastation? 3. And sent folks of birds over them. 4. Pelted them with stones of baked clay. 5. So He leave them like the leftover consumed leaves of harvest.
