Life and Teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
2. The Life of the Prophet Muhammad
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body of the Prophet was never missed from his bed. Rather God
caused only his soul to travel. Aishah, the Prophet’s wife, was also
of the same view. A third opinion is that Miraj from Makkah to
Jerusalem took place in the flesh, while from Jerusalem to the
heavens it took place only in spirit.
ISLAM SPREADS TO YATHRIB (MADINAH)
The Prophet used to convey the message of Islam to the
people coming from outside Makkah. In the eleventh year of
prophethood six men from the tribe of Khazraj of Yathrib (later
came to be known as Madinatun-Nabi, Prophet’s city) accepted
Islam during their pilgrimage to Makkah in 620. The following year
twelve more men from Yathrib accepted Islam. This time they took
an oath pledging allegiance to the Prophet. This oath is known as
the First Pledge of Aqabah, named after the Aqabah pass, at Mina,
near Makkah, where they had been sworn. They requested the
Prophet to send Musab bin Umayr, a companion of the Prophet, to
Yathrib to convey the message of Islam to the inhabitants. There
the divine message was immediately well received, and within a
year, a number of people converted to Islam as a result of the
preaching of Musab ibn Umayr.
In the thirteenth year of Prophethood, seventy two Muslims
from Yathrib came for the Hajj. On behalf of their people they
invited the Prophet to make Yathrib his home. During the
pilgrimage they also took the oath, known as the second pledge of
Aqabah. These men from Yathrib, of the tribes of Aws and Khazraj,
