Zayd: The Little Known Story of Muhammad’s Adopted Son

(University of Pennsylvania Press) Shortly before his first revelation, Muhammad adopted a man called Zayd who acted as his heir for more than a decade. Later repudiated by the prophet and sent to die on a battlefield, Zayd remains a marginal figure in Islamic history. In Zayd, Powers attempts to restore the place of this “son of Muhammad” in the foundation story of Islam and in the life of its prophet. Powers is a professor of Near Eastern studies at Cornell University.