Muhammad ﷺ was born in Makkah, in Arabia, around the year 570. He was orphaned young, worked as a shepherd and a trader, and was known even before prophethood as al-Amin, “the trustworthy”. At about forty, while reflecting in a cave outside Makkah, he received the first words of the Qur’an through the angel Gabriel.
For twenty-three years he taught people to worship One God, to free slaves, to feed the poor, to honour women and parents, and to keep their promises. He was persecuted, boycotted and driven from his home, yet when he returned to Makkah in triumph he forgave those who had fought him.
وَمَآ أَرۡسَلۡنَٰكَ إِلَّا رَحۡمَةٗ لِّلۡعَٰلَمِينَ ١٠٧
And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds
القرآن 21:107
Muslims love him deeply but do not worship him. He was a human being and a messenger. When Muslims say his name, they add a prayer for him: sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, “God’s peace and blessings be upon him”, often written ﷺ.