drinking wine...

drinking wine, forbade marrying the mahrams, (1) limited the circumambulation around the Kaaba with seven turns after it was unlimited, forbade circumambulating around the Kaaba nakedly, ordered to cut the stealer's hand, forbade adultery, forbade burying newborn girls alive, forbade gambling, forbade eating from the meat of the animals sacrificed for the idols and enacted carrying out the vow. (2) Islam came and ratified all those rules enacted by Abdul Muttalib.

Abdul Muttalib associated with Harb bin Umayya bin Abd Shams -the father of Mo'awiya- for some time. One of the Jews was under the protection of Abdul Muttalib. One day this Jew spoke roughly to Harb in one of the markets of Tehama. Harb became angry. He incited someone to assassinate the Jew. He inherited treachery from his grandfather Abd Shams. Treachery was a characteristic of this family along the ages.

When Abdul Muttalib knew about the doing of Harb, he deserted him for he didn't want to associate with a treacherous man. But he didn't let Harb get free. He forced him to pay one hundred she-camels to the killed Jew's cousin as blood-money. (3) ____________ 1 Mahram: the near relative, with whom marriage is not permissible.

2 Refer to as-Seera al-Halabiyya, vol.1 p.5, As-Seera an-Nabawiyya, vol.1 p.21, Biharul Anwar, vol.6 p.38, al-Abbas p.17 and Yanabee'ul Mawadda, vol.2 p.90 3 Ibid p.4 Ibnul Atheer, in his Tareekh p.209, mentioned this event in another way. He said that the Jew was a rich merchant and that made Harb envious and angry. He sent him someone to kill him and seize his wealth. The author added that they prosecuted their suit to an-Najashi the king of Abyssinia but he refused to intervene between them.

Then Nufeil bin Abdul Ozza al-Adawi judged between them. He said to Harb: "O Abu Amr! Do you dispute with a man, who is taller than you, more handsome, stronger, less blamable, has more sons, more generous, more able to quarrel than you ... etc." It was mentioned in Haleef Beni Makhzoom p.27 in a way someone different and it was mentioned in al-Bayan wet-Tebyeen, vol.1 p.293.

Besides all that Abdul Muttalib refused to lower his head to prostrate before an idol, to worship a solid stone or a ragged piece of wood where he was of high reason, prudence and acumen. (1) He was the first to devote himself to God in the cave of Hara'. When the month of Ramadan came, he went up the mountain to worship for some nights and to think about the loftiness and the greatness of Allah.