The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1591 page)

(570–632).
The last of the
Prophets
, from whose proclamation of
Qur’
n
Islam derives. Mu
ammad was born in
Mecca
in the ‘Year of the Elephant’ (i.e. when an Abyssinian army attacked Mecca). At an early age, he had an experience of a visitation by two figures (later identified as angels) who ‘opened his chest and stirred their hands inside’. It was the first of several unusual experiences which led Mu
ammad increasingly to search for the truth of God and religion on his own. By now he was under the protection of his uncle, Abu T
lib, and at the age of 25 he married
Khad
jah
; they had two sons who died and four daughters. Mu
ammad was increasingly influenced by the
an
fs
(pl.,
unaf
’), those who were seeking to preserve a monotheism which they traced back to
Abraham
(Ibr
h
m); Arabia was an important refuge for Jews and unorthodox Christians when they came under persecution, and their beliefs are clearly reflected in the Qur’
n. Mecca was polytheistic, with revered idols, and Mu