Following his commission, the Holy Prophetsa stayed in Makkah for approximately thirteen years, and in some narrations, a period of ten years has been mentioned. In one perspective, this is also true, because after the commencement of revelation, the Holy Prophetsa kept his mission secret for three years. As such, if these three years are deducted, only ten years remain. In any case, it is confirmed that at the time of migration, the Holy Prophetsa was fifty-three years of age.
Prior to the advent of Islām, the calendar year was generally calculated from the ‘Āmul-Fīl; as such, in the mention of pre-prophetic instances, historians also give reference to the ‘Āmul-Fīl. However, occurrences after prophethood, are considered in light of the Nabawī calendar year, but this calendar only runs for thirteen years as well, that is until the migration. Following that, the Hijrī calendar year permanently begins, the commencement of which was proposed and implemented in the reign of Ḥaḍrat ‘Umarra.1
It has already been mentioned that the commencement of prophethood occurred in the fortieth year of the ‘Āmul-Fīl, in the month of Ramaḍān. Since Ramaḍān is the ninth of the Arabian months, the first Nabawī year is only about three months and some days, i.e., the remainder of Ramaḍān, Shawwāl, Dhul-Q‘adah and Dhul-Ḥijjah. Moreover, since the migration occurred in the beginning of Rabī‘ul-Awwal in 14 Nabawī,2 the Makkan stay of the Holy Prophetsa after being commissioned to prophethood, in actuality, turns out to be only twelve years, five months and some days. However, if the era of ‘true dreams’, in other words, the initial few months of the era of prophethood are also included, then this total time period approximately becomes thirteen years.
1 Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī, By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Al-Jarīr Ṭabarī, Volume 5, p. 64, Bābu Waḍihit-Tāriīkh, Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002)
2 Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī, By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Al-Jarīr Ṭabarī, Volume 2, p. 259, Bābu Dhikril-Khabri ‘ammā kāna min Amri Nabiyyillāhisa ‘inda Ibtidā’illāhi Ta‘ālā......, Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002)