The Muhammadan Call could be divided into two phases distinctively demarcated:

• The Makkan phase: nearly thirteen years.
• The Madinese phase: fully ten years.

Each of the two phases included distinctive features easily discernible through accurate scrutiny into the circumstances that characterized each of them.

The Makkan phase can be divided into three stages:

• The stage of the secret Call: three years.
• The stage of the proclamation of the Call in Makkah: from the beginning of the fourth year of Prophethood to almost the end of the tenth year.
• The stage of the call to Islam and propagating it beyond Makkah: it lasted from the end of tenth year of the Prophethood until Muhammad’s   (Peace be upon him) emigration to Madinah.

The Madinese phase will be considered later in its due course.

THREE YEARS OF SECRETE CALL:

It is well-known that Makkah was the centre for the Arabs, and housed the custodians of Al-Ka‘bah. Protection and guardianship of the idols and stone graven images that received veneration on the part of all the Arabs lay in the hands of the Makkans. Hence the difficulty of hitting the target of reform and rectitude in a place considered the den of idolatry. Working in such an atmosphere no doubt requires unshakable will and determination, that is why the call unto Islam assumed a clandestine form so that the Makkans should not be enraged by the unexpected surprise.