The Prophetic Biography: From Birth to the Hijra

The section of the Bidayah dedicated to the Seerah of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, is the most detailed component of the entire work and was also circulated separately as a seerah text in its own right. Ibn Kathir begins with the blessed genealogy, tracing the Prophet's lineage through 'Abdullah, 'Abd al-Muttalib, Hashim, and the Quraysh tribe back to 'Adnan and ultimately to Isma'il ibn Ibrahim. He documents the miraculous events surrounding the Year of the Elephant (approximately 570 CE), when Abraha al-Ashram led an Abyssinian army with elephants toward Makkah with the intention of destroying the Ka'bah, and was repelled by flocks of birds (ababil) that pelted the army with stones of baked clay. This event, commemorated in Surah al-Fil, is understood as divine protection of the sacred house in the year of the Prophet's birth. Ibn Kathir carefully documents the narrations about the Prophet's birth, the nursing period with Halimah al-Sa'diyyah among the Bani Sa'd, the opening of the chest (shaqq al-sadr) that purified the Prophet's heart, and the early signs of his extraordinary nature.

The early life of the Prophet is treated through the available seerah narrations: the death of his mother Aminah when he was six years old, his upbringing by his grandfather 'Abd al-Muttalib and then by his uncle Abu Talib, his journey to Syria with the trading caravan where the monk Bahira recognized the signs of prophethood upon him, his participation in the Hilf al-Fudul (the pact of the virtuous), his employment by Khadijah bint Khuwaylid and their subsequent marriage. Ibn Kathir notes that all authenticated accounts of the Prophet's pre-prophetic life indicate a man of exceptional character, truthfulness, and integrity, qualities that earned him the designation al-Amin (the trustworthy). The rebuilding of the Ka'bah by Quraysh and the Prophet's inspired resolution of the dispute over who would place the Black Stone, accomplished by having representatives of all clans collectively lift it on a cloth, is presented as a demonstration of his natural wisdom and peacemaking ability.

The first revelation in the cave of Hira' in 610 CE, the descent of Jibril, the first words revealed ('Iqra' bismirabbikalladhi khalaq'), and the Prophet's state of intense trembling as he returned to Khadijah are narrated from the detailed account in Sahih al-Bukhari. Khadijah's immediate support, her consultation with her cousin Waraqah ibn Nawfal, and Waraqah's recognition of the prophetic revelation on the basis of his knowledge of the previous scriptures are all presented. Ibn Kathir documents the early Muslims: Khadijah the first believer, then 'Ali ibn Abi Talib among the youth and Zayd ibn Harithah, then Abu Bakr al-Siddiq who brought several prominent companions into Islam. The early years of open preaching following the private period, the persecution of the Muslims by the Qurayshi leadership, the torture of the early converts such as Bilal ibn Rabah and the family of Yasir, and the two migrations to Abyssinia under the protection of the Negus al-Najashi are documented with their historical and spiritual significance.

The years of boycott against Banu Hashim, the deaths of Khadijah and Abu Talib in the same year (described as the Year of Grief), and the attempted outreach to Ta'if followed by its people's humiliating rejection are among the most personally difficult moments of the Meccan period. Ibn Kathir presents the Night Journey (Isra') and Ascension (Mi'raj) as one of the most significant events before the Hijra: the journey from Makkah to Jerusalem, the ascent through the seven heavens, the encounters with previous prophets, and the approaching of the divine presence. The isnad analysis for the events of the Mi'raj receives careful treatment, and Ibn Kathir affirms that the journey was physical and while awake, the position of the majority of scholars. The pledge of Aqabah with the people of Madinah who came for Hajj, first twelve people and then seventy, the permission to migrate, and the Hijra itself represent the transition from the Meccan to the Medinan period and from a persecuted minority to an emerging Islamic polity, marking the beginning of a new era in the universal history of Islam.