Muhammad was born to Aminah and Abdullah, son of Abd al-Muttalib in 570 C.E.

Muhammad was a shepherd as a young boy and went on several trading caravans to Syria with his uncle Abu Talib.

Khadijah, a wealthy widow who employed traders, asked Muhammad to take her goods to Syria and sell them. Khadijah was so impressed by Muhammad’s fine character that she proposed marriage to him. Khadijah and Muhammad had four daughters and two sons, who both died in infancy.

In 610 C.E., on a retreat to a cave on Jabal al-Nur (Mountain of Light) outside of Makkah, Muhammad received the first verses of the Qur’an from God, according to Muslim beliefs. Frightened, Muhammad left the cave and went home to Khadijah, who comforted and reassured him, and accepted the truth of what he said.

A verse told Muhammad to preach the message of the Qur’an to his family and members of his clan. Only his cousin Ali, who was 13 at the time, responded.

Muhammad began preaching to the people of Makkah, telling of a Day of Judgment, the resurrection of the dead, and the promised afterlife.

In the year 617, the Quraysh, unable to convince Muhammad to stop preaching, banished the Muslims and their supporters to a dry valley and refused to trade with them. Muhammad’s uncle, Abu Talib, lost his business and the Muslims nearly starved. Abu Bakr, once a wealthy trader, lost everything. In 619, Muhammad’s wife Khadijah died, and then Muhammad also lost his protector, Abu Talib.

In the year 620, the most remarkable spiritual event of Muhammad’s life occurred – the Night Journey called Isra’ and Miraj--in which Muslims believe Muhammad was transported to Jerusalem and then to Heaven. Muslims believe that God gave Muhammad the order for Muslims to pray the five daily prayers on this night journey.

The Muslims were offered asylum in a city north of Makkah called Yathrib (later, Madinah). The migration of the Muslims to Yathrib, in 622, is called the Hijrah. Hearing of a plot to kill Muhammad, he and Abu Bakr escaped to Madinah together, and received a joyful reception.

Muhammad purchased land for the first masjid, or house of worship, and established a mutual defense and cooperation pact among the tribes of Madinah, with himself as the leader of the city. This document was called the "Constitution of Madinah." Muhammad paired immigrants from Makkah with the Muslims from Madinah in a relationship of brotherhood.

Muslims believe Muhammad was sent a verse from the Qur’an allowing the Muslims to fight against those who had turned them out of their homes because of their beliefs. The first battle between the Muslims from Madinah and the Quraysh from Makkah took place at Badr in 624 C.E. The Muslim army of about 250 defeated the Makkan army of more than a thousand fighters, according to historical accounts.

A year after the Battle of Badr, the Makkans sent an army to get revenge for their defeat. This battle was called the battle of Uhud. With many losses on both sides, the two sides withdrew in a stalemate.

The third major battle between the Quraysh and the Muslims was the Battle of the Trench, in which the Quraysh and their allies besieged Madinah. The Bani Qurayzah, a Jewish tribe in Madinah, sided with Quraysh and broke their treaty with the Muslims. When the Makkans finally left amid storms and the desertion of their allies, the Muslims turned to attack the Bani Qurayzah for siding with the attack against Madinah.

After the Battle of the Trench, in 628, Muhammad decided to lead a pilgrimage to Makkah. The Muslims camped at Hudaybiyyah, just outside Makkah, where they were halted by Quraysh. The Makkans didn’t want to let the Muslims make the pilgrimage but entered into a peace treaty with Muhammad. The treaty at Hudaybiyyah called for ten years of peace between the Muslims and the Makkans, and allowed the Muslims to make their pilgrimage the following year.

A year after the treaty at Hudaybiyyah, Muhammad and his companions completed their pilgrimage. Muhammad asked Bilal ibn Rabah, a former slave and among the earliest Muslims, to give the call to prayer from the top of the Ka’bah. This angered the Makkans, who were camped in the hills outside Makkah until the Muslims completed their pilgrimage. They couldn’t believe that a former slave stood on top of their sacred house.

The Makkans broke their treaty with the Muslims by attacking a tribe allied with the Muslims. Muhammad immediately marched on Makkah and took the city peacefully in 630 C.E.

Muhammad returned to Madinah after the conquest of Makkah. He made a final pilgrimage to Makkah, also called the Farewell Pilgrimage, to define the rites of the pilgrimage. He also gave his farewell address where he told Muslims to treat each other humanely.

Muhammad became ill with a strong fever. On June 8^th, 632, Muhammad died. Abu Bakr, the leader of the Muslim community after Muhammad’s death, reminded the grieving Muslims that Muhammad was only human, and that they should worship God and not Muhammad.