Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources » (Older Edition)

Martin Lings (1909-2005) was a renowned British scholar who taught at several European universities and the University of Cairo. He was the keeper of Oriental manuscripts in the British Museum and the British Library and the author of numerous books on religion and spirituality, including The Book of Certainty, What is Sufism?, Ancient Beliefs and Modern Superstitions, and the internationally acclaimed Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources.

• This is the first paperback edition of this important work, which sold 7,500 copies in the cloth edition

• The Muslim population of the U.S. is on a strong growth curve. It is estimated that there are now between 4 and 7 million Muslims in the U.S.

This is the definitive, objective biography of the Prophet, drawn from primary Arabic sources of the 8th and 9th centuries, and includes passages never before translated. It owes its freshness and directness of approach to the words of the men and women who heard Muhammad speak and witnessed the events of his life.

Martin Lings holds degrees from both Oxford and London University. He lectured for twelve years at Cairo University, and has served as Keeper of Oriental Manuscripts at the British Museum. He has participated in several international Islamic councils and conferences. His other works inlude three books on Islamic mysticism, The Secret of Shakespeare, Ancient Beliefs and Modern Superstition, and The Koranic Arts of Calligraphy and Illumination.

Parabola

“For those interested in Islam . . . it is mesmerizing.”

Muhammad
His Life Based on the Earliest Sources

1 The House of God
2 A Great Loss
3 Quraysh of the Hollow
4 The Recovery of Loss
5 The Vow to Sacrifice a Son
6 The Need for a Prophet
7 The Year of The Elephant
8 The Desert
9 Two Bereavements
10 Bahira the Monk
11 A Pact of Chivalry
12 Questions of Marriage
13 The Household
14 The Rebuilding of the Ka'bah
15 The First Revelations
16 Worship
17 "Warn Thy Family"
18 Quraysh Take Action
19 Aws and Khazraj
20 Abu Jahl and Hamzah
21 Quraysh Make Offers and Demands
22 Leaders of Quraysh
23 Wonderment and Hope
24 Family Divisions
25 The Hour
26 Three Questions
27 Abyssinia
28 'Umar
29 The Ban and its Annulment
30 Paradise and Eternity
31 The Year of Sadness
32 "The Light of Thy Countenance"
33 After Years of Sadness
34 Yathrib Responsive
35 Many Emigrations
36 A Conspiracy
37 The Hijrah
38 The Entry into Medina
39 Harmony and Discord
40 The New Household
41 The Threshold of War
42 The March of Badr
43 The Battle of Badr
44 The Return of the Vanquished
45 The Captives
46 Bani Qaynuqa'
47 Deaths and Marriages
48 The People of the Bench
49 Desultory Warfare
50 Preparations for Battle
51 The March to Uhud
52 The Battle of Uhud
53 Revenge
54 The Burial of the Martyrs
55 After Uhud
56 Victims of Revenge
57 Bani Nadir
58 Peace and War
59 The Trench
60 The Siege
61 Bani Qurayzah
62 After the Siege
63 The Hypocrites
64 The Necklace
65 The Lie
66 The Dilemma of Quraysh
67 "A Clear Victory"
68 After Hudaybiyah
69 Khaybar
70 "Whom Lovest Thou Most?"
71 After Khaybar
72 The Lesser Pilgrimage and its Aftermath
73 Deaths and the Promise of Birth
74 A Breach of the Armistice
75 The Conquest of Mecca
76 The Battle of Hunayn and the Siege of Ta'if
77 Reconciliations
78 After the Victory
79 Tabuk
80 After Tabuk
81 The Degrees
82 The Future
83 The Farewell Pilgrimage
84 The Choice
85 The Succession and the Burial Map of Arabia (by Steven w. Johnson)
Quraysh of the Hollow (genealogical tree)
Note on Pronunciation of Arabic Names Key to References Index