ABDUL MUTTALIB SON OF HASHIM (A.S.)

Abdul Muttalib was the grandfather of the Noble Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.). His father was Hashim and Salma was his mother. He was born in Madinah, and his mother named him Shayba .He was very young when his father Hashim died. On the death bed, Hashim told his brother Muttalib to go to Madinah and bring his beloved son Shaybah to him. When Muttalib brought back Shayba, the people thought that Shayba was his slave. People started calling Shayba as “Abdul Muttalib” which means slave of Muttalib. Although Muttalib tried to explain that Shayba was his nephew and not a slave, but the name stuck. After Muttalib became old, Shayba or Abdul Muttalib took over the duties of Saqaya and Rifadah. He had many good qualities and made many changes to the lives of Quraish.

Some of these changes were:

1.       He stopped the old custom of sons marrying their father’s women. Allah prohibited such                   custom in Surah al-Nisa Ayah 22: “Do not marry, from now on, the ex-wives of your                   fathers, for that custom was sinful and abominable.”

2.       As Abdul Muttalib found a treasure, he gave one-fifth as its alms. Allah revealed in Surah al-           Anfaal Ayah 41: “Know that whatever property you may gain, one-fifth belongs to Allah,           the Messenger, the relative, orphans, the needy and those who need money while on a                   journey…”

3.       He was the first man to make a Nazr or vow and fulfill it. Allah revealed in Surah al-Insan               (Hal-Ata) Ayah 7: “The servants of Allah fulfill their vows and are afraid of the Day in               which there will be great wide spread horror.”

4.       He stopped the people from drinking alcohol. Allah prohibited it in Surah al-Baqarah Ayah           19: “(Muhammad), they ask you about wine and gamble. Tell them there is great sin in               them.”

5.       He discouraged the terrible practice of burying daughters alive. Allah warns in Surah al-                   Takwir Ayah 8 & 9:  “Questions are asked about the baby the baby girls buried alive, such         as, “For what crime were they murdered?”  
 6.  He started the rule of cutting off the hand of a thief. Allah orders the hands of a thief in                     Surah al-Ma’idah Ayah 38: “Cut off the hands of a male or female thief as a punishment for       their deed and a lesson for them from Allah.”

Abdul Muttalib’s Nazr: He made a Nazr that if Allah grants 10 sons to him; he will sacrifice one of them. Allah granted him 10 sons. He wanted to fulfill the Nazr; hence it was decided to select the son by drawing lot. The lot came to the name of Hazrat Abdullah, the father of the Noble Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.), who was the youngest and loved by his father. Although, he wished to proceed with the sacrifice but the people begged him find a solution to this. A wise man advised that a lot should be cast between Hazrat Abdullah and 10 camels. In case the lot still fell for Hazrat Abdullah, an additional 10 camels be added and cast again. In those days, the blood money for accidental killing was 10 camels. Finally when a lot was cast for 100 camels it fell on camels. The people were over-joyed but Abdul Muttalib was not satisfied, so he drew lots 3 more time which fell on camels.

Abraha’s invasion of Ka’ba:

In the year 570 A.D., Abraha who was the ruler of Yemen invaded Ka’ba and camped outside Makkah. He sent some of his men to capture the camels of Makkans which included 200 camels belonging to Abdul Muttalib. Later, on the invitation of Abraha, Abdul Muttalib along with other leaders went to see him. Abdul Muttalib talked about the return of his camels only which surprised Abraha. In response to Abraha’s remarks, Abdul Muttalib gave the historical reply, saying: “I am the owner of the camels. The House (Ka’ba) too has Master who looks after it.” Abdul Muttalib advised his people to go in the hills for safety and prayed to Allah to protect them and the Ka’ba. The next morning Abraha prepared to march towards Makkah. Suddenly a huge flock of birds appeared from the Red Sea, holding tiny stones in their claws and beaks. They dropped the stones on Abraha’s army which killed the elephant and many soldiers and also the head of Abraha. He panicked and ordered his army to retreat. This dreadful and miraculous event is narrated in Surah al-Fil: “Did you not see how your Lord dealt with the people of the elephant? Did He not caused their evil plots to fail by sending against them flocks of swallows which hit them with small pebbles of clay turn them into (something) like the left over grass grazed by cattle?