Birth in Makkah
Born in the Year of the Elephant (ʿām al-fīl), the same year that Abraha's army attacked Makkah and was repelled by birds (Qurʾān 105). Tribe: Banū Hāshim of Quraysh.
— Ibn Isḥāq · Ibn Hishām Knowledge
Seerah
20 turning points in the life of the Prophet ﷺ — from his birth (570 CE) to his passing (632 CE). A source-bound summary based on Ibn Isḥāq, Ibn Hishām, Bukhārī, Muslim.
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570 CE age birth pre-prophethood -
~576 CE age ~6 childhood His mother Āminah passes away
His father ʿAbdullāh had already died before his birth. At the age of 6 he also loses his mother. He is raised by his grandfather ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib, then by his uncle Abū Ṭālib.
— Ibn Isḥāq -
~595 CE age ~25 pre-prophethood Marriage to Khadījah (rh)
Khadījah bint Khuwaylid was a successful merchant, 15 years older. She married the Prophet ﷺ after observing him as her trader. A 25-year marriage — all his children except one were from her.
— Ibn Isḥāq · Bukhārī -
~605 CE age ~35 pre-prophethood The Black Stone arbitration
Quraysh tribes quarrelled over who should replace the Black Stone after a restoration of the Kaʿbah. The Prophet ﷺ — known as al-Amīn (the Trustworthy) — was asked. He placed the stone on a cloak and had all four tribal leaders lift it together.
— Ibn Isḥāq -
610 CE age 40 first revelation First revelation · cave of Ḥirāʾ
During iʿtikāf in the cave of Ḥirāʾ, Jibrīl ʿalayhi as-salām appeared with the first five āyāt: "Iqraʾ bismi rabbika alladhī khalaq..." (Qurʾān 96:1-5). The beginning of prophethood.
— Bukhārī 3 · Muslim 160 -
610-613 CE age 40-43 Makkah · secret daʿwah 3 years of secret daʿwah
At first only family and friends. First believers: Khadījah, Abū Bakr, ʿAlī (a child), Zayd ibn Ḥārithah. Bilāl al-Ḥabashī breaks the racial barrier.
— Ibn Isḥāq -
613 CE age 43 Makkah · public daʿwah Public call from Ṣafā
After "fa-ṣdaʿ bimā tuʾmar" (Qurʾān 15:94), the Prophet ﷺ climbs the hill of Ṣafā and calls Quraysh to tawḥīd. Persecution begins immediately.
— Bukhārī 4770 -
615 CE age 45 Makkah · persecution First Hijrah to Abyssinia
~83 Muslims emigrate to the Christian king Najāshī of Abyssinia to escape torture. Najāshī protected them when Quraysh sent a delegation demanding their extradition.
— Ibn Isḥāq · Aḥmad -
619 CE age 49 "year of sorrow" Khadījah & Abū Ṭālib pass away
Within a single year he loses his wife (his greatest emotional support) and his uncle (his protector from Quraysh). The most difficult period of his life.
— Ibn Isḥāq -
620 CE age ~50 Makkah Isrāʾ wal-Miʿrāj
Night journey from Makkah to al-Aqṣā then through the 7 heavens. Ṣalāh is made obligatory (first 50, then reduced to 5). The exact year is uncertain — often attributed to 27 Rajab (weak isnād).
— Bukhārī 3887 · Muslim 162 -
622 CE age ~52 hijrah Hijrah to Madīnah
After an assassination attempt, he flees with Abū Bakr hiding in a cave on Mount Thawr. He reaches Yathrib (later Madīnah) on 12 Rabīʿ I 1 AH. The beginning of the Hijri calendar.
— Bukhārī 3905 · Muslim 2009 -
624 CE / 2 AH age ~54 Madīnah · year 2 Battle of Badr
313 Muslims defeat ~1,000 Quraysh. The first open battle. Many Quraysh leaders fall — a turning point in morale and in Madīnah's standing.
— Bukhārī 3953 · Qurʾān 3:123 -
625 CE / 3 AH age ~55 Madīnah · year 3 Battle of Uḥud
70 Muslims are martyred. The archers left their position too early. Ḥamzah (rh) falls. A lesson — even a setback yields wisdom (Qurʾān 3:139-179).
— Bukhārī 4043 -
627 CE / 5 AH age ~57 Madīnah · year 5 Battle of the Trench (Khandaq)
~10,000 enemy troops surround Madīnah. Salmān al-Fārisī proposes a Persian tactic: a trench around the city. The siege lasts ~30 days, then a storm forces the enemy to withdraw.
— Bukhārī 4101 -
628 CE / 6 AH age ~58 Madīnah · year 6 Treaty of Ḥudaybiyyah
On the way to ʿumrah, blocked by Quraysh. A 10-year peace treaty concluded that seemed unfavourable to the Muslims, yet Allāh calls it "a clear victory" (Qurʾān 48:1). Within 2 years more people embraced Islam than in the previous 19 years combined.
— Bukhārī 2731 -
629 CE / 7 AH age ~59 Madīnah ʿUmrah al-Qaḍāʾ
The ʿumrah that was deferred in 628 is now performed. Quraysh evacuated Makkah for 3 days — the Muslims performed ṭawāf and saʿy at the Kaʿbah for the first time since the Hijrah.
— Bukhārī 4255 -
630 CE / 8 AH age ~60 Madīnah → Makkah Conquest of Makkah — Fatḥ Makkah
After Quraysh violated the Treaty of Ḥudaybiyyah, 10,000 Muslims march on Makkah. The city falls without battle. The Prophet ﷺ grants a general amnesty. The Kaʿbah is cleansed of 360 idols.
— Bukhārī 4280 -
631 CE / 9 AH age ~61 "year of delegations" ʿĀm al-Wufūd
Tribes from across the Arabian Peninsula send delegations to accept Islam. The end of the pre-Islamic era in Arabia.
— Ibn Isḥāq -
632 CE / 10 AH age ~62 farewell Farewell Hajj — ḥijjat al-wadāʿ
The first and only Hajj of the Prophet ﷺ. On the Day of ʿArafah the farewell khuṭbah — codifying the human rights of Islam: racial equality, women's rights, sanctity of life, honour, and property.
— Muslim 1218 -
8 June 632 CE / 12 Rabīʿ I 11 AH age ~63 passing Wafāt — passing in Madīnah
He passes away in the house of ʿĀʾishah (rh), with his head resting on her lap. His last words: "Ar-Rafīq al-Aʿlā" (the Highest Companion — a reference to Allāh). Buried on the very spot where he passed away — now part of the Prophet's Mosque.
— Bukhārī 4463 · Muslim 2444