A HOUSE & PERSONALITY
A HOUSE
In a dark milieu and ignorant environment where the feeling was inactive, the sence was lost and the eyes were closed to see every sign showing that God was but one and only with no participant in His rule.
Among these and those of the crowded masses of people a man might excel to see with a new eye and a full-blown heart a ray of light, which would light his way through that darkness…he would read in the divine books to quiet his heart and conscience after long doubting where he passed by a critical stage, which was the worse stage of change and development with all its fears and fatigues.
From among those houses there was one house that no thread of that darkness entered and the lamp, which Prophet Abraham (s) had lit, was still alight and no wind could put it out.
This house still believed in the rule belief of Abraham. This house never doubted about the trustfulness of the mission of Abraham, by which he had proved the monotheism of the one and only God.
In this faithful house, which neither ignorance nor polytheism had soiled..in this honored house Abu Talib opened his eyes towards the route of life. He saw in this house a life different from the life he saw among people and he lived a life different from that people lived.
He saw in his father, Abdul Muttalib, the obeyed leader and the respected man, who carried out whatever he said and judged and no one would deny his judgment. He was so generous.
He saw in his father many excellences that no one other than his father had. Abdul Muttalib enacted many laws that showed his guidance, sublimity, purity of inner-self and the great faith that he complied with what Abraham (s) had preached at.
Islam came and ratified all those rules enacted by Abdul Muttalib. He was the first to devote himself to God in the cave of Hara’.
Abu Talib was among his nine brothers when his father Abdul Muttalib taught them his valuable lessons, ordered them to obey the divine orders, forbade them from committing bad doings, ordered them to avoid injustice and oppression, encouraged them to keep to the nobilities of character and wanted them of a day where everone would get one’s reward according to what one had done whether good or bad. Abu Talib often heard his father saying like this: “ No unjust one leaves this life unless he is revenged on and is afflicted with punishment. “
Abu Talib saw his father Abdul Muttalib when he was newsed that his son Abdullah ( Abdul Muttalib’s son ) had begot a newborn baby…this newborn baby, which the universe had been waiting for to receive the shine of it’s brightness. As soon as this baby faced the universe, the grandfather was newsed.
He came to the baby’s mother asking her to tell him of all what she saw during the giving birth to her baby. Then he took the baby to the kaaba to pray Allah and to thank him for this great favor.
Abdul Muttalib took much care of this orphan ( Muhammad ) and tried his best to bring him up.
He looked at this boy with a deep inspective look piercing through the future and seeing that this orphan would make the earth; east or west, submit to his greatness and would make the hearts pulse with his love and follow his mission and the tongues speak of him and praise him with the signs of honoring constantly.
When he was dying, he turned his eyes towards his sons, who surrounded him,to choose one among them in order to entrust him with a task that busied his mind too much. It was not an ordinary task. He had to choose the most sutaible one for the task to die with delighted eyes.
His sight roved here and there until it met Abu Talib, whom no one was better than to undertake this heavy task, besides that he had participated in carrying out the task since the light of this shinning lamp had shone.
PERSONALITY
In that great highbred house and under the care of that merciful father, from whose high instructions and great school Abu Talib had graduated. He entered from the wide gate of life armed with the high principles of the great house and the glorious past of his fathers.
Since heredity had important effect in forming the personality of man, as the psychologists said, so Abu Talib had made infinite use of his heredity.
Abu Talib was a clear image of a bright past.
He had qualities of his father Abdul Muttalib, his grandfather Hashem and his great grandfathers that made of him that bright wonderful image.
No one would deny that Abu Talib, as Allah willed, was the adopter of the Prophet of Islam, who was the perfect image of man and ideal copy of humanity.
No one would deny that the Prophet had grown, been brought up and spent his youth, which was the greater and the more effective, critical, sensitive and affective stage of man’s life, under the care of Abu Talib.
Hence many qualities gathered into the personality of Abu Talib; greatness, exaltedness and self-making. He was the adopter of the orphan Muhammad, the protector and supporter of Prophet Muhammad and the believer in Muhammad’s mission. He was Sheikhul Bat~ha` and Baydhatul Balad.
It had been decided by the Heaven that Abu Talib would undertake this task and carried out the task in the best way. He supported the mission of the Heaven as possible as he could.
No one would deny that Abu Talib had participated his father in the leadership when he was alive to be the first personality after his father Abdul Muttalib. He also participated in taking care of the Prophet (s) and finally, after the death of his father, he was alone with the two tasks; the leadership ( of Quraysh ) and the taking care of the orphan Muhammad. So he became the only leader and the only guardian without any partner.
Leadership and sovereignty wouldn’t be gained without plenty of money but although Abu Talib was not so rich, he was the respected leader, the first master and the obeyed chief and this might be the characteristic of Abu Talib alone and no one else other than him.
Even though he was empty-handed but he had a great rich spirit. He was so great with his qualities and virtues and no one would ever replace him.
He inherited hid father’s qualities.
He forgave without being asked for and gave open-handedly without considering it as doing favor.
He often gave people in spite of that he himself was in need of money.
He burdened himself with debts lest he would leave a favor his father used to do before.
He had so much high qualities that made him a leader surrounded by honor and glory and made him as a fortress that no defame might reach him nor he might be shaken before a wind.
His qualities imposed upon us to believe that he had followed the belief of Prophet Abraham (s).
The pre-Islamic age with all its filths, evils and sins wouldn’t affect him or make or make him deviate from the right way he had followed.
Neither the environment he lived in could adapt him nor was he affected by its evils. He still had his exalted thinking, his high insight, his virtuous soul and all his inherited good qualities.
All these made him so strong that he wouldm’t be drifted by the sins of the milieu he lived in. Nevertheless he was so firm enough to educate that low society with high lessons of morals and principles.
No one would deny that the personality of Abu Talib had all the qualities of the well-qualified leader, the virtuous aspects and the high excellences, which made him distinguished from all around him and surrounded him with a halo of respect and admiration.
He was the fount of goodness and the protective fortress, to which wronged and weak people resorted.
He was the generous, from whose hand the destituteladled. He was the one, whom people entreated when the Heaven held its rain.
He was so humane towards his relatives.
He hurried to relieve the distressed.
He was merciful, pious, generous, determined, eloquent, heartsome, certain, handsome, respected, honored and glorified. He knew much about divine laws.
He was of comprehensive knowlegde and science.
He forbade himslef from drinking wine, committing sinsand all of the dirt of polytheism and evils of the low milieu around him.
His soul was high in a wide exalted horizon flying in a pure space.
With these high qualities, virtues and excellences Abu Talib had has his high position and made the hearts submit to him lovingly, surround him with respect and glorification and let the leadership to be for him alone..and who would be better than him for that?
He was like his father; a carpet was put to him around the kaaba and he sat on it alone. Muhammad came and sat with his uncle on the carpet.
Abu Talib said: “ My nephew feels blessedness or great glory. “
By: Om Rayhana El Dorr
