- Abdul Muttalib
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For other persons named Abdul Muttalib, see Abdul Muttalib (name).
Shaiba ibn Hashim (Arabic: شيبة ابن هاشم; ca. 497 – 578), better known as Abdul Muttalib or Abd al-Muttalib, since he was raised by his uncle Muttalib, was the grandfather of Islamic prophet Muhammad.
Contents
Early life
This article is part of the series: Islam 
Lineage of six prominent prophets according to Islamic tradition Adem (Adam) Nuh (Noah) Ibrahim (Abraham) Ishmael Is'haq (Isaac) Musa (Moses) Maryam (Mary) Isa (Jesus) Abdul Muttalib Muhammad Dotted lines indicate multiple generations His father was Hashim ibn `Abd Manaf and his mother was Salma bint `Amr from the Banu Najjar tribe in Yathrib (later called, Madinah). On his father's side he belonged to the distinguished Banu Hashim clan, a subgroup of the Quraish tribe of Makkah which traced their genealogy to Isma'il and Ibrahim. His father died while doing business in Gaza, before he was born.
He was given the name "Shaiba" meaning 'the ancient one' or 'white-haired' for the streak of white hair amidst his jet-black hair on his head. After his father's death he was raised in Yathrib with his mother and her family until about the age of eight, when his uncle Mutallib went to see him and asked his mother Salma bint `Amr to entrust Shaiba in his care. Salma was unwilling to let her son go and the Shaiba refused to leave his mother without her consent. Mutallib then pointed out that the possibilities Yathrib had to offer were incomparable to Makkah. Salma was impressed with his arguments, so she agreed to let him go. Upon first arriving in Makkah, the people assumed the unknown child was Muttalib's slave, giving him the name `Abdu'l-Muttalib (slave of Muttalib). When Muttalib died, Shaiba succeeded him as the chief of the Banu Hashim clan.
Vow to Sacrifice `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib
For a long time, `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim had only one son Harith. He always prayed for more sons. He also made a vow to Allah, he would sacrifice one of them, if all of them grew up to young age. With time `Abdul Muttalib had nine more sons. When all his sons grew up into fine young men, `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim remembered that he had made a vow to sacrifice one of them to Allah. Before Islam, Arabs used to make their decisions by drawing arrows of divinity placed at the feet of their deities. `Abdul Muttalib took all of his sons to Ka'bah. He had to select one of his sons for sacrifice. `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim decided to select one of his sons for sacrifice, by drawing arrows that were placed at the feet of Hubal, a statue inside Ka'bah. `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim asked each of his sons to bring an arrow each with his name written on it which were then drawn at the feet of Hubal inside Ka'bah. `Abdul Muttalib approached the arrows and picked one of them. The name of his youngest son `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib was picked up for the sacrifice. `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim took `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib to the sacrificial spot near Ka'bah, for sacrificing him.
`Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib was loved by every one. His sisters, brothers and other residents of Makkah requested `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim to spare the life of `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib. They advised `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim to get another opinion. `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim and his family went to Yathrib (Madinah) to seek advise from a priestess, Shiya, who lived there. She advised them to barter the life of `Abdullah with ten camels, the normal Diyya (Blood Money) for murder. She further advised them to go on adding ten camels till `Abdullah's name was not picked.
`Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim and his family returned to Makkah and tried their luck again at the feet of Hubal. Another draw was made between `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib and ten (10) camels. Again, the `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib name was picked-up. Ten camels were added to the lot. Another draw by made. This process was repeated many times. Finally, a draw was made between `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib and one hundred camels. This time the camels were picked up. `Abdul Muttalib ibn Hashim got this result verified. One hundred camels were picked up three times in a row. One hundred camels were slaughtered in exchange of `Abdullah ibn `Abdul Muttalib.
The Year of the Elephant
According to Muslim tradition, the Ethiopian governor of Yemen, Abraha al-Ashram, envied the Ka'bah's reverence among the Arabs and, being a Christian, he built a cathedral in Sana'a and ordered pilgrimage be made there. The order was ignored and someone desecrated (some saying in the form of defecation) the cathedral. Abraha decided to avenge this act by demolishing the Ka'bah and he advanced with an army towards Makkah.
There were many elephants in Abraha's army and the year came to be known as 'Am al-Fil (Year of the Elephant), beginning a trend for reckoning the years in Arabia which was used until Umar ibn al Khattab replaced it with the Islamic Calendar.
When news of the advance of Abraha's army came, the Arab tribes of Quraish, Banu Kinanah, Banu Khuza'a and Banu Hudhail united in defense of the Ka'bah. A man from the Himyar tribe was sent by Abraha to advise them that Abraha only wished to demolish the Ka'bah and if they resisted, they would be crushed. `Abdu'l-Muttalib told the Meccans to seek refuge in the nearest high hills while he with some leading members of Quraish, remained within the precincts of the Ka'bah. Abraha sent a dispatch inviting `Abdu'l-Muttalib to meet with Abraha and discuss matters. When `Abdu'l-Muttalib left the meeting he was heard saying, "The Owner of this House is its Defender, and I am sure He will save it from the attack of the adversaries and will not dishonor the servants of His House."
It is recorded that when Abraha's forces neared the Ka'bah, Allah commanded small birds which destroyed Abrah's army with raining pebbles from their beaks. Abraha was seriously wounded and he retreated towards Yemen but died on the way. This event is referred to in the following Qur'anic chapter:
"Have you not seen how your Lord dealt with the owners of the Elephant? Did He not make their treacherous plan go astray? And He sent against them birds in flocks, striking them with stones of baked clay, so He rendered them like straw eaten up."—Qur'an sura 105 (Al-Fil)This conflict occurred in 570, the same year Muhammad was born.
Descendants of Shaiba ibn Hashim
Shaiba ibn Hashim married Sumra bint Jandab, Lubna bint Hajira, Fatimah bint Amr, Halah bint Wahab, and Natila bint Khabab - Khizriji.
From Sumra bint Jandab:
From Lubna bint Hajira:
- Abu Lahab ‘Abd al-Uzza ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib
From Fatimah bint Amr:
- Abu Talib ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib - Father of Ali, the first Shia Imam & fourth Caliph
- Az-Zubayr ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib
- ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib - Father of Muhammad
From Halah bint Wahib:
- Hamza ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib
- Muqum ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib
- Hijl ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib
- Safiyyah bint ‘Abd al-Muttalib
From Natila bint Khabab - Khizriji:
- ‘Abbas ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib
- ‘Zarrar ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib
‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib of Banu Hashim and Aminah bint Wahab of Banu Zuhra were the parents of the Muhammad. ‘Abdullah died four months before Muhammad's birth, and Aminah bint Wahab was taken care of by Shaiba. Aminah also died six years later and Shaiba ibn Hashim died in 578 when Muhammad was eight. Shaiba ibn Hashim's grave can be found in Jannatul Mualla cemetery in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Following the death of his grandfather, Muhammad was then taken into the care of his uncle Abu Talib (the father of Ali), a prominent Quraysh chief and custodian of the Ka'bah.
See also
External links
Categories:- 497 births
- 578 deaths
- Sahaba's ancestors
- Muhammad family
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