Apostate prophet searching for the roots; Abrahamic remnants in pre-Islam?

In answer to the video "Muhammad's Destruction of Idols"

The history records this legacy of Ibrahim and Ismail, especially with the hanifs, a term used first and foremost as an uncompromising opposition to polytheism 10:105,22:30-1,98:5. It also describes mankind's original predisposition to uprightness 30:30. Hanif stems from H-N-F, which is lexically very interesting. It means the foot that is tilted inwards so that the sole is exposed. In the highly metaphorical language of the Arabs, it became used for the one that exposes his inner self, his secrets, has nothing to hide due to his uprighteness, rectitude. The opposite of hanaf is janaf, indicating the outward inclination of the feet. It is used to imply crookedness of intent in 2:182. As to hanaf, a water tap is called hanafiya, from the same root, because of the straight manner that water comes out of it. A person born with a condition that made both feet point to eachother when walking was referred to as rajulun "ahnaf" because that person walks in a straight manner and can only change direction with difficulty. The common denominator to all these subtle meanings, is straightness, rectitude.

Because to the pre-islamic Arabs, their forefather Ibrahim's spiritual way was independant of all belief systems of the time, be it the loathsome distortions of Judaism and Christianity or Idolatry, it was considered as close to man's original upright predisposition as one can be, and thus the word became associated with those seeking to emulate him 3:67,6:161. They were a minority that tried preserving the original monotheism of Ibrahim. They neither wanted to belong to Christianity with its notion of dying god incarnate nor to Judaism and its ethno centered deity.

These hanif remnants and keepers of the way of Ibrahim, like their forefather, severed their ties with their community and kinsfolk whom they found walking an erroneous path

43:26-9"And when Ibrahim said to his father and his people: Surely I am clear of what you worship, Save Him Who created me, for surely He will guide me. And he made it a word to continue in his posterity that they may return.".

These small groups of Meccan men and women detested the use of the Kaaba by the polytheists and kept their practice of religion monotheistic. They affirmed that the Abrahamic legacy had been distorted beyond recognition, whether by the Jews, Christians or Ishmaelites brethren, and these personalities were seeking a return to the pristine religion. The traditions mention their names and how their ways of life would lead them to harassement by the Idol worshipers. They include names like Uthman ibn Huwayrith, Ubaydullah bin Jahsh, Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nawfal Al-Nabighah al Ja'adi etc, as well as Muhammad the orphan whom they all knew and hence couldnt accuse him of change of heart

10:16"I have lived a lifetime among you before it".

Muhammad essentially raised himself, never worshiped the idols, never entertained the idea of doing so in the past 109:1-6. He would retreat away from the pagan environement to contemplate as some of his forefathers did, such as his great grand father the hanif, Hashim ibn Abd al-Manaf. He would remain in such wandering perplexity until his prophetic call came unexpectedly. His firm stance against associating with God and polluting the Kaaba reached its peak then, despite his opponents' demands to compromise his message with their beliefs 68:9.

 The Hanif rejected the consumption of meat slaughtered in the name of idols as well as other pagan rituals and abominable practices like the burrying of infants alive, which they openly decried. They performed circumcision and rites that were similar to the Israelite rites of the altar sacrifice even before the coming of Muhammad. Josephus in his Antiquites speaks of the Arabs as Ishmael's descendants, way before the time of Muhammad, almost 500 years, saying they circumcized their children at 13 years old, as was still done in the times of the prophet, to commemorate their forefather Ishmael. There is a reason why virtually every non-Muslim writer that witnessed the rise of Islam, from polemicists the likes of John of Damascus that had every reason to refute Muslim claims, to Sebeos in Armenia and beyond, regardless of precise dating and authorship of the works attributed to various Judeo-Christian elite accross the region, almost all of them refer to the Abrahamic ancestry of Muhammad and the Muslims. In a short Nestorian chronicle, the Khuzistan Chronicle written around 660, in the section concluding the death of Heraclius, the writer says

"the victory of the sons of Ishmael who overpowered and subdued these two strong empires, came from God."

The chronicler further observes

"Regarding the dome of Abraham, we have been unable to discover what it is except that, because the blessed Abraham grew rich in property and wanted to get away from the envy of the Canaanites, he chose to live in the distant and spacious parts of the desert. Since he lived in tents, he built that place for the worship of God and for the offering of sacrifices. It took its present name from what it had been, since the memory of the place was preserved with the generations of their race. Indeed, it was no new thing for the Arabs to worship there, but goes back to antiquity, to their early days, in that they show honour to the father of the head of their people. Hasor, which scripture calls "head of the kingdoms" (Joshua 11:10), belongs to the Arabs, while Medina is named after Midian, Abraham's fourth son by Qetura; it is also called Yathrib. And Dumat Jandal [belongs to them], and the territory of the Hagaraye, which is rich in water, palm trees and fortified buildings. The territory of Hatta, situated by the sea in the vicinity of the islands of Qatar, is rich in the same way; it is also thickly vegetated with various kinds of plants. The region of Mazon also resembles it; it too lies by the sea and comprises an area of more than 100 parasangs. So [belongs to them] too the territory of Yamama, in the middle of the desert, and the territory of Tawf, and the city of Hira, which was the seat of king Mundar, surnamed the "warrior;" he was sixth in the line of the lshmaelite kings".

Even among the polytheist Arabs, remnants of rites commemorating the Abrahamic legacy were maintained.

For example, though they used to sacrifice animals on various idol altars at different places, their sacrificing of animals at Mina at the time of the pilgrimage was only in pursuance of the Abrahamic tradition. It was no sacrificing for any particular idols or their idols in general. Neither any idol nor any altar was there at Mina or Arafat. The ritual of sa'i or running between the two hills of Safa and Marwah is among God's signs. Just like foreign idols were brought to Mecca and integrated into the Kaaba, corrupting the Abrahamic legacy, some idols were placed on these hills. We read in the history books what caused this innovation. When 2 lovers named Assaf and Naila hid inside the Kaaba to be intimate, Allah turned them to stone statues. Associating this with a miracle, the Quraysh placed them each on one of the 2 hills, and as the generations passed, took them for deities. The association of the site with paganism repulsed some early Muslims, but God told them plainly not to worry, for the Safa and Marwa are among His signs, regardless of how the sinful generations mishandled them

2:158-9"Surely the Safa and the Marwa are among the signs appointed by Allah...Surely those who conceal the clear proofs and the guidance that We revealed after We made it clear in the Book for men, these it is whom Allah shall curse, and those who curse shall curse them (too)".

The re-institution of this location as a monotheistic pilgrimage site comes in the context of patience in adversity and trust in Allah, just as Hagar was as she frantically searched for help, running back and forth between these 2 hills, when she was settled in the location by Abraham, together with her infant child Ismail. It is important noting, the Quran itself, throughout the verses laying out the hajj rituals 2:196,5:95-6,22:26-37etc doesnt link these rituals to Ibrahim, although it gives credit to Ibrahim for having initiated worship at the site and instaured the pilgrimage.

This was part of the Quran's denationalization test of the Kaaba, placing it above any national pride, making its primary purpose to be a location where the one God is praised by all of humanity indiscriminately. These rituals should be done in God's name only. Every capable Muslim is bound to perform them at some point 3:97 with an upright state of mind before and during the journey 2:197.