Historic Figures
WITH THE NAME MUHAMMAD
Muḥammad ibn-‘Abd-AllÄh ibn-‘Abd-al-Muttalib was born in Mecca (present day Saudi Arabia) in the latter half of the 6th century. His grandfather ‘Abd al-Muttalib was a prominent leader within Mecca’s most influential tribe overseeing the sacred Ka’bah, a shrine believed to have been erected by the Biblical Abraham and his son Ishmael over two thousand years before Muhammad’s birth. It is also the symbol of the destination of the Mecca pilgrimage. By the time Muhammad was a young boy of eight, he had lost his father, his mother and then his grandfather who had been his guardian. At this point, one of his uncles stepped in to care for the orphan, although the relative did not hold the same high position among his tribesmen. In his twenties, Muhammad married a wealthy widow 15 years his senior; they remained together for over 20 years until her death (and despite polygamy being a common practice in his time, Muhammad married no other woman during his first wife’s lifetime). They had four surviving daughters together (Fatima being the most esteemed). In his late thirties, Muhammad was drawn into contemplative life as he often meditated in a cave on Mount Hira. This is where the angel Gabriel first appeared to him stressing the importance of the Creator, God, and that Muhammad would be His Messenger. At first, he only told his wife and a few people he trusted but eventually the revelations became stronger and more detailed. Similar to Jesus’ beginnings, Muhammad’s first followers were primarily the poor and downtrodden, but eventually his flock grew. His dissenters only served to strengthen his resolve as he continued to preach the oneness of God amidst a pagan culture. Opposition continued to be fierce, and Allah warned Muhammad about an imminent assassination attempt. Muhammad and his followers fled to Medina. Against a hostile backdrop, Islam continued to gain widespread acceptance and belief in its monotheistic message of the equality of brotherhood under one God. The rest is, as they say, history.
Muḥammad ibn-‘Abd-AllÄh ibn-‘Abd-al-Muttalib was born in Mecca (present day Saudi Arabia) in the latter half of the 6th century. His grandfather ‘Abd al-Muttalib was a prominent leader within Mecca’s most influential tribe overseeing the sacred Ka’bah, a shrine believed to have been erected by the Biblical Abraham and his son Ishmael over two thousand years before Muhammad’s birth. It is also the symbol of the destination of the Mecca pilgrimage. By the time Muhammad was a young boy of eight, he had lost his father, his mother and then his grandfather who had been his guardian. At this point, one of his uncles stepped in to care for the orphan, although the relative did not hold the same high position among his tribesmen. In his twenties, Muhammad married a wealthy widow 15 years his senior; they remained together for over 20 years until her death (and despite polygamy being a common practice in his time, Muhammad married no other woman during his first wife’s lifetime). They had four surviving daughters together (Fatima being the most esteemed). In his late thirties, Muhammad was drawn into contemplative life as he often meditated in a cave on Mount Hira. This is where the angel Gabriel first appeared to him stressing the importance of the Creator, God, and that Muhammad would be His Messenger. At first, he only told his wife and a few people he trusted but eventually the revelations became stronger and more detailed. Similar to Jesus’ beginnings, Muhammad’s first followers were primarily the poor and downtrodden, but eventually his flock grew. His dissenters only served to strengthen his resolve as he continued to preach the oneness of God amidst a pagan culture. Opposition continued to be fierce, and Allah warned Muhammad about an imminent assassination attempt. Muhammad and his followers fled to Medina. Against a hostile backdrop, Islam continued to gain widespread acceptance and belief in its monotheistic message of the equality of brotherhood under one God. The rest is, as they say, history.
Muḥammad ibn-‘Abd-AllÄh ibn-‘Abd-al-Muttalib was born in Mecca (present day Saudi Arabia) in the latter half of the 6th century. His grandfather ‘Abd al-Muttalib was a prominent leader within Mecca’s most influential tribe overseeing the sacred Ka’bah, a shrine believed to have been erected by the Biblical Abraham and his son Ishmael over two thousand years before Muhammad’s birth. It is also the symbol of the destination of the Mecca pilgrimage. By the time Muhammad was a young boy of eight, he had lost his father, his mother and then his grandfather who had been his guardian. At this point, one of his uncles stepped in to care for the orphan, although the relative did not hold the same high position among his tribesmen. In his twenties, Muhammad married a wealthy widow 15 years his senior; they remained together for over 20 years until her death (and despite polygamy being a common practice in his time, Muhammad married no other woman during his first wife’s lifetime). They had four surviving daughters together (Fatima being the most esteemed). In his late thirties, Muhammad was drawn into contemplative life as he often meditated in a cave on Mount Hira. This is where the angel Gabriel first appeared to him stressing the importance of the Creator, God, and that Muhammad would be His Messenger. At first, he only told his wife and a few people he trusted but eventually the revelations became stronger and more detailed. Similar to Jesus’ beginnings, Muhammad’s first followers were primarily the poor and downtrodden, but eventually his flock grew. His dissenters only served to strengthen his resolve as he continued to preach the oneness of God amidst a pagan culture. Opposition continued to be fierce, and Allah warned Muhammad about an imminent assassination attempt. Muhammad and his followers fled to Medina. Against a hostile backdrop, Islam continued to gain widespread acceptance and belief in its monotheistic message of the equality of brotherhood under one God. The rest is, as they say, history.
Muhammad Ali (nee Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.) is an American icon, loved by some, hated by others, but hardly ever ignored. Born January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky, Cassius Clay rose to fame by winning an Olympic Gold Medal for boxing in the 1960 Olympics and went on to even greater acclaim as a three-time World Heavyweight champion, making the game glamorous to a much wider audience than usual in the early to mid sixties. A handsome man, a powerful fighter, and a lyrical wit, he reached the masses with his good looks and quotable charm. Converting to Islam in 1964, after having been recruited by Malcolm X, he changed his name to Muhammad Ali. He was subsequently stripped of his title when he refused to fight in Vietnam, famously asserting: “I ain’t got no fight with them Viet Cong…†His conviction as a draft dodger was later overturned. Operating under the assertion that in the ring he would “float like a butterfly, sting like a beeâ€, Muhammad Ali maintained the title over such luminaries as Archie Moore, George Foreman, Sonny Liston, Ken Norton and Joe Frazier. He was forced into retirement after the onset of Parkinson’s Disease. In his later years, Muhammad Ali has been a kind of elder statesman, giving time and money to various charities and causes. President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005. His life story was made into a very successful movie called Ali in 2001, starring Will Smith, who was nominated for an Oscar for the role. Married four times, he is the father of nine children.
Muhammad Ali (nee Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.) is an American icon, loved by some, hated by others, but hardly ever ignored. Born January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky, Cassius Clay rose to fame by winning an Olympic Gold Medal for boxing in the 1960 Olympics and went on to even greater acclaim as a three-time World Heavyweight champion, making the game glamorous to a much wider audience than usual in the early to mid sixties. A handsome man, a powerful fighter, and a lyrical wit, he reached the masses with his good looks and quotable charm. Converting to Islam in 1964, after having been recruited by Malcolm X, he changed his name to Muhammad Ali. He was subsequently stripped of his title when he refused to fight in Vietnam, famously asserting: “I ain’t got no fight with them Viet Cong…†His conviction as a draft dodger was later overturned. Operating under the assertion that in the ring he would “float like a butterfly, sting like a beeâ€, Muhammad Ali maintained the title over such luminaries as Archie Moore, George Foreman, Sonny Liston, Ken Norton and Joe Frazier. He was forced into retirement after the onset of Parkinson’s Disease. In his later years, Muhammad Ali has been a kind of elder statesman, giving time and money to various charities and causes. President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005. His life story was made into a very successful movie called Ali in 2001, starring Will Smith, who was nominated for an Oscar for the role. Married four times, he is the father of nine children.
Muhammad Ali (nee Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.) is an American icon, loved by some, hated by others, but hardly ever ignored. Born January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky, Cassius Clay rose to fame by winning an Olympic Gold Medal for boxing in the 1960 Olympics and went on to even greater acclaim as a three-time World Heavyweight champion, making the game glamorous to a much wider audience than usual in the early to mid sixties. A handsome man, a powerful fighter, and a lyrical wit, he reached the masses with his good looks and quotable charm. Converting to Islam in 1964, after having been recruited by Malcolm X, he changed his name to Muhammad Ali. He was subsequently stripped of his title when he refused to fight in Vietnam, famously asserting: “I ain’t got no fight with them Viet Cong…†His conviction as a draft dodger was later overturned. Operating under the assertion that in the ring he would “float like a butterfly, sting like a beeâ€, Muhammad Ali maintained the title over such luminaries as Archie Moore, George Foreman, Sonny Liston, Ken Norton and Joe Frazier. He was forced into retirement after the onset of Parkinson’s Disease. In his later years, Muhammad Ali has been a kind of elder statesman, giving time and money to various charities and causes. President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005. His life story was made into a very successful movie called Ali in 2001, starring Will Smith, who was nominated for an Oscar for the role. Married four times, he is the father of nine children.
Muhammad Ali (nee Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.) is an American icon, loved by some, hated by others, but hardly ever ignored. Born January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky, Cassius Clay rose to fame by winning an Olympic Gold Medal for boxing in the 1960 Olympics and went on to even greater acclaim as a three-time World Heavyweight champion, making the game glamorous to a much wider audience than usual in the early to mid sixties. A handsome man, a powerful fighter, and a lyrical wit, he reached the masses with his good looks and quotable charm. Converting to Islam in 1964, after having been recruited by Malcolm X, he changed his name to Muhammad Ali. He was subsequently stripped of his title when he refused to fight in Vietnam, famously asserting: “I ain’t got no fight with them Viet Cong…†His conviction as a draft dodger was later overturned. Operating under the assertion that in the ring he would “float like a butterfly, sting like a beeâ€, Muhammad Ali maintained the title over such luminaries as Archie Moore, George Foreman, Sonny Liston, Ken Norton and Joe Frazier. He was forced into retirement after the onset of Parkinson’s Disease. In his later years, Muhammad Ali has been a kind of elder statesman, giving time and money to various charities and causes. President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005. His life story was made into a very successful movie called Ali in 2001, starring Will Smith, who was nominated for an Oscar for the role. Married four times, he is the father of nine children.
