Did The Prophet Muhammad have a particular faith before he received the revelations of the Quran?

[Tranquil Servant]

I've read more than a couple of times that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) went to the cave of Hira for seclusion and to pray but I've also read that he did not know religion before the revelations. Is this a misunderstanding or mistranslation of the word or term for prayer? Or is this a contradiction?

 

[Pastek]

If i remember, in the Sira (biography) of the Prophet Muhammad i've read that he didn't have a religion in particular.
And that he never took part at the polytheist rites.

He was thinking a lot about the creation, the universe etc, like prophet Abraham.
Maybe he was monotheist.

 

[Matemkar]

Salam. I suggest the book, http://www.al-islam.org/message/ or as pdf: The Message - Ayatullah Ja'far Subhani.pdf 12th part is about this, "The Faith of the Prophet before the Prophetic Mission" ma salam

 

[Rainbow Mage]

Wasn't there a movement of Arab Monotheists in mecca prior to Muhammad calling themselves Hanifs? If I recall

 

[Matemkar]

Yeah, there was.. And Banu Hashim were pioneers in that faith..

 

[Ingledsva]

Salam. I suggest the book, The Message or as pdf: The Message - Ayatullah Ja'far Subhani.pdf 12th part is about this, "The Faith of the Prophet before the Prophetic Mission" ma salam

It basically just says he knew Allah from birth, before he was commissioned.

*

 

[Caladan]

Apparently Muhammad was not the first to preach monotheism in Arabia at the time and the time before his mission. There are traditions which hold that he had contact with such monotheists in early age.
While Muhammad was born into a powerful tribe, the Quraysh, which ruled Mecca and its sacred site the Kaaba when it was still a Pagan or at least a Henotheistic site, he was influenced by existing monotheistic groups and individuals: Jews, Christians, and local monotheists who were inspired by the Abrahamic faiths.
Little by little Muhammad took the Arabic pantheon and religion and removed the deities of the pantheon, making Allah the sole deity. More than a religious theology, it was a crucial political and strategic goal that was part of breaking the monopoly of the Quraysh over the Kaaba.

 

[Tranquil Servant]

So he knew of religion but didn't adhere to a specific religion...So why did he go to the cave of Hira to pray??

 

[Shia Islam]

Wasn't there a movement of Arab Monotheists in mecca prior to Muhammad calling themselves Hanifs? If I recall

Yes...the grandfather and the uncle of prophet Muhammed SAWA were among the successors to prophet Abraham a.s., and prophet Muhammed SAWA was following their religion...

We have great number of Hadiths supporting this...

The following is a related topic:
Was Abu Talib (as) a disbeliever?
Islam: Shia/Sunni

 

[ZooGirl02]

I have no idea whether he had a particular faith or not. I know that there was Paganism in the Arabian peninsula at the time. I am pretty sure that Catholicism existed there as well. I have also heard that there was a Christian heresy that existed in the area which was quite prevalent. I am not sure which heresy that is though.