Notes from Chapter 5 of Adil Salahi's book 'Muhammad – Man and Prophet' (published by Islamic Foundation): Up there in the mountain (Beginning of Prophethood).

1. 5. Up there in the mountain
(Beginning of Prophethood)

2. 
 Muhammad would take himself away from Makkah
for periods of total seclusion
 In the month of Ramadan each year, he went to a
mountain called Hira
 Hira was only a few miles away from Makkah but
offered him complete seclusion
The Cave of Hira

3. 
 Up there in the mountain there was a little cave
where Muhammad stayed for several days at a time
 He absorbed himself in contemplation and worship
 He addressed his worship to the Creator of the
Universe but did not follow any particular method of
worship because he was not aware of any
The Cave of Hira

4. 
 It was in the month of Ramadan, in the year AD 610,
when Muhammad was 40 years old that he received
his first revelation
 He was spending the month in the mountain of Hira,
as had been his habit for several years
 Suddenly, Muhammad had a most fascinating
experience
The First Revelation

5. 
 An angel came to him and ordered him, “Read.”
 He replied, “I am not a reader.”
 The angel held him and pressed him hard until
Muhammad was exhausted
An Address from Heaven

6. 
 This repeated twice and thrice until the angel said,
“Read, in the name of Your Lord who created. It is
He Who created man from clots of blood. Read! Your
Lord is the most bounteous, Who has taught the use
of the pen. He has taught man what he did not
know.”
An Address from Heaven

7. 
 The Prophet returned home to Khadijah, trembling,
and said, “Wrap me! Wrap me!”
 She wrapped him and his fear subsided
 He turned to Khadijah and exclaimed, “What has
happened to me?”
Khadijah

8. 
 He related to her what happened and said, “I fear for
myself.”
 Khadijah replied, “You have nothing to fear; be calm
and relax. God will not let you suffer humiliation,
because you are kind to your relatives, you speak the
truth, you assist anyone in need, you are hospitable
to your guest and you help in every just cause.”
Khadijah

9. 
 Khadijah took him to her cousin Waraqah ibn
Nawfal who was a Christian convert, old in age, and
a scholar with good knowledge of Arabic, Hebrew
and the Bible
 The Prophet told him what he had seen
 Waraqah said, “It is the same revelation as was sent
down to Moses. I wish I was a young man so that I
might be alive when your people turn you away
from this city.”
Waraqah ibn Nawfal

10. 
 The Prophet exclaimed, “Would they turn me
away?”
 Waraqah answered, “Yes! No man has ever preached
a message like yours and was not met with enmity. If
I live till that day, I will certainly give you all my
support.”
Waraqah ibn Nawfal

11. 
 The first few days must have been full of worry in
the Prophet’s home
 He needed every possible assurance and it seems
that the Angel Jibril appeared to him more than once
in the days following the first encounter
 But then followed a period during which the Angel
Jibril stopped coming to him
The Angel Jibril

12. 
 This period of absence was perhaps to allow the
Prophet some time to himself, to evaluate his new
situation and its implications for his future role
 When this transitional period was over, revelations
resumed
 From now, not only a Prophet but a Messenger also,
he was to receive revelations without interruption
The Angel Jibril

13. 
(Source: ‘Muhammad – Man and Prophet’, by Adil Salahi)
End