Abu Talib Abd-Manaf ibn Abd al-Muttalib (539-619) was the son of Shaiba ibn Hashim (Abd al-Muttalib) and the father of Ali ibn Abu Talib. Abu Talib was one of the elders that ruled the Quraysh tribe, and he was used as an intermediary between the pagan Quraysh rulers and the Muslims led by his nephew Muhammad.
Biography[]
Abu Talib Abd-Manaf , was the son of Shaiba ibn Hashim (Abd al-Muttalib), and was raised a pagan. However, he converted to Islam when his nephew Muhammad laid out the commandments of Allah to the people of Mecca. Despite a declining fortune, Abu Talib was respected in Mecca, growing angry at other Quraysh leaders when they wanted to raise the prices on goods to trick pilgrims into spending more; Abu Talib reminisced on how the Quraysh used to pride themselves on giving shelter and water to the pilgrims. Abu Talib protected Muhammad from those who were angry at him during the rise of Islam, and the old Abu Talib he died in 619 at the age of 80 in the "Year of Sadness" (Muhammad's wife Khadija bint Khuwaylid died the same year). On his deathbed, he told Muhammad of an offer from the Quraysh to tolerate Islam if Muslims stopped preaching against paganism, but Muhammad graciously refused, asking the Quraysh to acknowledge that there was only one God, not many. Abu Talib died a happy person, saying that he always knew that Muhammad was a special person, ever since he took care of him as a child. His son Ali ibn Abu Talib would go on to be a great and loyal companion of Muhammad as well as a caliph.