Muhammad -His Life Based on the Earliest Sources

The cover of the 1991 edition
Author	Martin Lings
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Series	1st Edition (1983) 2nd Edition (1991)
Subject	Biography
Genre	Non-fiction
Publisher	Islamic Texts Society (1991), Inner Traditions (2006)
Publication date	1 January 1983
Media type	Print
Pages	362
ISBN	978-0946621330
OCLC	9195533

Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources is a 1983 biography of the Islamic prophet Muhammad by Martin Lings.

Overview[edit]

The book provides a new account of the sira or the life of Muhammad, with details that had not been elaborated in other accounts. It is based primarily on old Arab sources that go back to the 9th century, of which some passages are translated for the first time. It is not contradictory to other accounts but rather offers new insights and new details. The book also includes excerpts from original English translations of speeches by men and women who lived close to Muhammad, heard him speak, witnessed his actions, witnessed the way he interacted with situations and witnessed events he encountered throughout various stages of his life.^[1]

References used are Ibn Ishaq (references here are to Ferdinand Wüstenfeld‘s edition of Sirat Rasul Allah, a life of the Prophet by Muhammad ibn Ishaq in the annotated recension of Ibn Hisham). Also Ibn Sa’ad (the references are to John Leyden‘s edition of Kitab al-Tabaqat al Kabir by Muhammad ibn Sa’d). Also there is Al-Waqidi (and the references are to Marsden Jones‘ edition of Kitab al Maghazi, A Chronicle of the Prophet’s Campaigns, by Muhammad ibn Umar al- Waqidi).^[2]

It is a narrative of the history of Arabia and the birth and the life of Muhammad. The biography consists of 85 short chapters, some as short as just two pages in length. Each chapter deals with an important event in the history of Islam and provides chronological context for the advent of the religion, as well as detailed information about Muhammad.^[2][3]

The biography has gone through many reprints in English and it has been translated and published into many language