Prophet Ibrahim’s (peace be upon him) son, Prophet Ismail (peace be upon him), had twelve sons. Their descendants multiplied to such an extent that they could no longer be confined to Makkah and eventually spread throughout the Hijaz region. Among Prophet Ismail’s sons was Qaydar, whose lineage included a man named Adnan. Adnan had a son named Ma‘ad and a grandson named Nizar.
Nizar had four sons, one of whom was named Mudar. From Mudar’s lineage emerged Quraysh bin Malik, also known as Fihr bin Malik. The descendants of Quraysh became numerous and divided into different tribes. Among Quraysh’s descendants was Qusay, who attained power and leadership.
Qusay had three sons, one of whom was Abd Manaf. From the lineage of Abd Manaf came Hashim, who married a woman from Madinah. Hashim and his wife had a son named Shaybah. Unfortunately, Hashim passed away shortly after his son’s birth.
Hashim’s brother, Muttalib, became the leader of Makkah. Shaybah was raised in Madinah until Muttalib learned that his nephew had grown up. Muttalib personally went to Madinah to bring Shaybah to Makkah. Upon their arrival in Makkah, the people mistakenly assumed that Shaybah was Muttalib’s slave. Despite Muttalib’s clarification that Shaybah was his nephew and Hashim’s son, people continued to call Shaybah “Abd al-Muttalib” (the slave of Muttalib).
From Abd al-Muttalib came many sons, including Abu Talib, Hamzah, Abbas, Abdullah, Abu Lahab, Harith, Zubair, Dirar, and Abdur Rahman. From Abdullah, the son of Abd al-Muttalib, was born our beloved Prophet, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
Among all the sons of Abdul Muttalib, Abdullah (the father of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him) was the most handsome and the most virtuous. Abdul Muttalib received a command in a dream to dig the Zamzam well, which was originally the well of Prophet Ismail (peace be upon him). This well had been sealed by Mudadh, the leader of the Jurhum tribe.
At that time, the Jurhum tribe were the custodians of Makkah and the Ka’bah. However, they began to desecrate the sanctity of the Ka’bah. Their leader, Mudadh bin Amr, was a righteous man who advised his people to stop dishonoring the sacred house, but his warnings went unheeded. When Mudadh realized that his people would not change their ways, he decided to leave them to their fate and depart from Makkah.
Before leaving, Mudadh collected all the wealth, swords, armor, and other treasures from the Ka’bah and buried them inside the Zamzam well. To hide it completely, he sealed the well with soil. By that time, the well had already dried up, and after being covered, it disappeared entirely from sight.
For a long period, the well remained buried and forgotten. Later, the Banu Khuza‘ah tribe drove the Jurhum tribe out of Makkah. During the era of the Khuza‘ah and later the leadership of Qusay, the well remained in this sealed state. It was only during the time of Abdul Muttalib that the well was rediscovered.
Abdul Muttalib had a dream in which he was shown the location of the Zamzam well and was instructed to dig it up.
It is narrated by Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) that Abdul Muttalib said:
“I was sleeping near the Black Stone when someone came to me in my dream and said, ‘Dig Tayyibah (the pure).’ I asked, ‘What is Tayyibah?’ but he left without explaining.”
On another night, the same figure appeared in his dream and said, “Dig Barrah.” I asked, “What is Barah?” but he left without explaining. On the third night, while I was sleeping, the same person appeared in my dream again and said, “Dig Madhnunah.”
I asked, “What is Madhnunah?” but he left without explaining.
The following night, as I was sleeping, the same person came again and said, “Dig Zamzam.”
I asked, “What is Zamzam?” This time, he replied, “Zamzam is the well whose water never runs out, and it provides abundant water for the large gatherings of pilgrims.”
Abdul Muttalib continued, “I asked him, ‘Where is this well located?’ He replied, ‘It is where there is filth and blood, and a crow is pecking at the ground.’”
The next day, Abdul Muttalib went to the indicated location with his son Harith. At that time, Harith was his only son. They found the place where there was filth and blood, and a crow was indeed pecking at the ground. On both sides of the spot stood idols, and the filth and blood were the remains of sacrificial animals offered to these idols.
Recognizing the signs, Abdul Muttalib fetched a pickaxe and prepared to start digging. However, just as he was about to begin, the leaders of Quraysh arrived. They exclaimed, “By Allah! We will not let you dig here. You intend to dig a well between our two idols, where we perform our sacrifices!”
Hearing their objections, Abdul Muttalib turned to his son Harith and said, “Do not let these people come near me. I will continue digging because I have been commanded to complete this task, and I will fulfill it.”
When the Quraysh saw that they (Abdul Muttalib and his companions) were determined and would not back down, they stopped opposing them. Eventually, Abdul Muttalib and his people began digging. Soon, signs of a well started appearing. Seeing this, they shouted, “Allahu Akbar!” and exclaimed, “This is the well built by Ismail (علیہ السلام).”
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When the Quraysh realized that Abdul Muttalib had indeed discovered the well, they approached him and said:
“By Allah, this is the well of our father Ismail (علیہ السلام), and we have the rightful claim to it. Therefore, we must share it with you.”
Hearing this, Abdul Muttalib replied:
“I cannot share it with you. This is a task assigned to me alone.”
The Quraysh argued:
“Then we will dispute with you over this matter.”
Abdul Muttalib responded:
“Let someone arbitrate between us.”
They agreed to let the clan of Banu Sa’d bin Hudhaym decide the matter. This tribe resided in the upper region of Syria. Thus, Abdul Muttalib and other members of the Quraysh set out to seek their arbitration. A group of Abdul Muttalib’s clan, the sons of Abdu Manaf, accompanied him, while other Quraysh tribes also sent representatives.
At that time, between the lands of Hijaz and Syria, there was a vast desert wilderness where no water could be found. During their journey, their water supply ran out, and everyone was overwhelmed by thirst, certain of their impending death. They asked the other Quraysh tribes for water, but they refused to share it. Desperate, they decided to search for water in the surrounding area.
In this dire situation, Abdul Muttalib returned to his camel. As soon as his camel rose, a spring of water gushed forth from under its feet. Seeing this, he exclaimed, “Allahu Akbar!” Abdul Muttalib dismounted, and everyone drank their fill of water and filled their water bags. Then Abdul Muttalib invited the other Quraysh tribes, saying:
“Come, drink your fill of water as well.”
The Quraysh approached and drank the water. After quenching their thirst, they said:
“By Allah, Abdul Muttalib, this matter has already been decided in your favor. We will no longer contest your claim to Zamzam. The One who provided you with water in this barren desert will surely grant you Zamzam as well. Let us return from here.”
Thus, the Quraysh acknowledged that Allah (سُبْحَٰنَهُۥ وَتَعَٰلَىٰ) had favored Abdul Muttalib and realized that disputing with him was futile. They abandoned their journey to the arbitrator and returned to their homes.
Upon returning, Abdul Muttalib resumed digging the well. After digging just a little further, treasures including wealth, swords, and armor were uncovered. Among them were gold, silver, and other valuable items. Seeing this wealth, greed overtook the people of the Quraysh. They approached Abdul Muttalib and said:
“Abdul Muttalib! We have a share in this too.”
Hearing this, Abdul Muttalib replied:
“No, you have no share in it. You should resort to a fair method. Let us cast lots using arrows.”
They agreed to this proposal. Two arrows were allocated for the Kaaba, two for Abdul Muttalib, and two for the rest of the Quraysh. When the lots were cast, the wealth was allocated to the Kaaba, the swords and armor to Abdul Muttalib, and the arrows in the name of the Quraysh yielded nothing. Thus, the matter was settled. Abdul Muttalib adorned the door of the Kaaba with gold.
Before the excavation of Zamzam, Abdul Muttalib had made a supplication:
“O Allah! Make this task of digging the well easy for me, and I will sacrifice one of my sons in Your path.”
When the well was finally uncovered, he saw a dream commanding him:
“Fulfill your vow—sacrifice one of your sons.”
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