What is known about the life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) before the age of 40?

Not many details are known, because he was a humble man who did not seek attention. What is certain is his character: his people called him the Truthful and the Trustworthy.

There are only a few detailed accounts of the first forty years of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw). The reason is simple. He was a quiet and humble man who did not want to be the centre of attention. What we know comes from some accounts of his childhood, from reports of friends who knew him, and from what was common knowledge in Mecca.

That common knowledge is remarkable. The people of his town called him the Truthful and the Trustworthy. He was known for honesty, justice and keeping his word. The first verse above draws on this. He had lived a whole lifetime among them, and they knew him as a man who never lied.

The most detailed account comes from his wife Khadijah. When he came home shaken after the first revelation and feared for himself, she comforted him. She listed his qualities. He kept ties with his relatives, carried the burdens of the weak, was hospitable and helped those who fell into hardship. Such a person, she said, would never be forsaken by God. This is the picture held by those who knew him best.

Beyond that there are a few glimpses. He grew up as an orphan, as the second verse above recalls. Later he travelled with trading caravans and so came to know life in the lands to the north. There are not many more details. Yet this itself speaks for him. He did not seek fame, and when he came forward with his message, no one could accuse him of a single lie from his past.