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Volume 2 · Lesson 98
Reading · Trade journeys · Salmā · Shayba
Volume 2 · pages 106–109
Of the four sons of ʿAbd Manāf, Hāshim is the one whose name the Prophet's ﷺ clan still bears. This reading tells, in our own words, what the early historians record about him: his feeding of the pilgrims in a year of famine, the two yearly trade journeys he organised, his marriage in Yathrib, his death on the road, and the boy who grew up to be ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib. The derived forms you have learned carry the narrative, and three small constructions are explained: بَيْنَمَا, عَلَى شَرْطِ أَنْ and the verb سَمَّى with its two objects.
Historical narrative in Arabic moves on a chain of perfects joined by فَ and so and وَ and, with كَانَ + imperfect (كَانَ يُطْعِمُ) for what used to happen and لَمَّا + perfect for when. Watch also for the two words that begin a clause of circumstance: بَيْنَمَا while before a sentence, and وَ + nominal sentence (وَهُوَ فِي طَرِيقِهِ while he was on his way). The names in the story are real: هَاشِمٌ, سَلْمَى, شَيْبَةُ, اَلْمُطَّلِبُ, يَثْرِبُ, غَزَّةُ. Some decline (Hāshim is a triptote), some are diptotes (يَثْرِبُ, شَيْبَةُ, غَزَّةُ), and سَلْمَى ends in alif maqṣūra and never changes.
Why do words end with “-un”?
The -un ending is called tanween (nunation). It marks indefinite nouns — similar to “a/an” in English.
To find the base word, simply remove the final “-un” sound (the double-stacked damma بٌ on the last letter).
هَاشِمُ بْنُ عَبْدِ مَنَافٍ
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رِحْلَةَ ٱلشِّتَآءِ وَٱلصَّيْفِ
Surah Quraysh · 106:2
رِحْلَةَ الشِّتَاءِ وَالصَّيْفِ: the two caravans of Quraysh that this reading describes, 'the journey of winter and of summer'.
أَطْعَمَهُم
Surah Quraysh · 106:4
أَطْعَمَهُم: Form IV أَطْعَمَ 'he fed them', the verb of Hāshim's rifāda, with the object suffix.
لِإِيلَـٰفِ قُرَيْشٍ
Surah Quraysh · 106:1
لِإِيلَافِ قُرَيْشٍ: the verbal noun of Form IV آلَفَ 'to make accustomed, to bind by pact', which commentators connect with the trade agreements of Hāshim and his brothers.
Fill in the blank
Complete with the word meaning 'while':
Type your translation, then check it. Spelling and vowel marks are graded leniently.
كَانَتْ قَوَافِلُ قُرَيْشٍ تُسَافِرُ إِلَى الشَّامِ فِي الصَّيْفِ وَإِلَى الْيَمَنِ فِي الشِّتَاءِ.
عَقَدَ هَاشِمٌ مُعَاهَدَاتِ أَمْنٍ مَعَ قَبَائِلِ الطَّرِيقِ.
بَيْنَمَا كُنَّا فِي الطَّرِيقِ إِلَى غَزَّةَ رَأَيْنَا قَافِلَةً كَبِيرَةً.
سُمِّيَ الْوَلَدُ شَيْبَةَ لِأَنَّ فِي رَأْسِهِ شَعْرًا أَبْيَضَ.
اِزْدَهَرَتْ تِجَارَةُ الْمَدِينَةِ بَعْدَ الْمُعَاهَدَةِ.
مَاتَ التَّاجِرُ فِي سَفَرِهِ وَدُفِنَ فِي بَلَدٍ بَعِيدٍ.
Type your translation, then check it. Spelling and vowel marks are graded leniently.
Hāshim was the first who instituted the two trade journeys.
She married him on condition that she remain among her people.
He fed the pilgrims in the season of the pilgrimage.
The caravan passed through Yathrib while it was on its way to Syria.
The uncle brought the boy to Mecca on his camel.
The merchants of Mecca named their journey 'the winter journey'.
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