collection entitled 'The Genuine' (_al-Ṣaḥíḥ_), he limited it to some 7,000, which he picked out of 600,000. The credibility of Tradition, so far as it concerns the life of the Prophet, cannot be discussed in this place.[280] The oldest and best biography, that of Ibn Isḥáq, undoubtedly contains a great deal of fabulous matter, but his narrative appears to be honest and fairly authentic on the whole. [Sidenote: Birth of Muḥammad.] If we accept the traditional chronology, Muḥammad, son of ‘Abdulláh and Ámina, of the tribe of Quraysh, was born at Mecca on the 12th of Rabí‘ al-Awwal, in the Year of the Elephant (570-571 A.D.). His descent from Quṣayy is shown by the following table:-- Quṣayy. │ ‘Abd Manáf. │ ┌────────┴───────────┐ │ │ ‘Abd Shams. Háshim. │ │ Umayya. ‘Abdu ’l-Muṭṭalib. │ ┌───────────+─────────────┐ │ │ │ ‘Abbás. ‘Abdulláh. Abú Ṭálib. │ MUḤAMMAD. [Sidenote: His childhood.] Shortly after his birth he was handed over to a Bedouin nurse--Ḥalíma, a woman of the Banú Sa‘d--so that until he was five years old he breathed the pure air and learned to speak the unadulterated language of the desert. One marvellous event which is said to have happened to him at this time may perhaps be founded on fact:-- [Sidenote: Muḥammad and the two angels.] "He and his foster-brother" (so Ḥalíma relates) "were among the cattle behind our encampment when my son came running to us and cried, 'My brother, the Qurayshite! two men clad in white took him and laid him on his side and cleft his belly; and they were stirring their hands in it.' When my husband and I went out to him we found him standing with his face turned pale, and on our asking, 'What ails thee, child?' he answered, 'Two men wearing white garments came to me and laid me on my side and cleft my belly and groped for something, I know not what.' We brought him back to our tent, and my husband said to me, 'O Ḥalíma, I fear this lad has been smitten (_uṣíba_); so take him home to his family before it becomes evident.' When we restored him to his mother she said, 'What has brought thee, nurse? Thou wert so fond of him and anxious that he should stay with thee.' I said, 'God has made him grow up, and I have done my part. I feared that some mischance would befall him, so I brought him back to thee as thou wishest.' 'Thy case is not thus,' said she; 'tell me the truth,' and she gave me no peace until I told her. Then she said, 'Art thou afraid that he is possessed by the Devil?' I said, 'Yes.' 'Nay, by God,' she replied, 'the Devil cannot reach him; my son hath a high destiny.'"[281]