Umayya is best known as the master of Bilal ibn Rabah, a slave he tortured for embracing Islam who eventually became the first mu'azzin.
He married three times: Umayyah was involved in the pagan religious ceremonies of Mecca, where he distributed perfume in the square of the Kaaba.
[citation needed] After Muhammad began to preach against idolatry, Umayyah became a staunch opponent of the new teaching.
He forced Bilal to lie on hot desert sand and pinned him down with a heavy stone on his chest.
[3] All of these events caused pain and dismay, but in tribal societies at that time, ties of childhood friendship were extraordinarily strong and lasting.
It is another measure of the reciprocity of affection between them that Abd al-Rahman yielded, and was referred to as "Abdu Amr" in the document.
[5] Prior to the Battle of Badr, Sa'd visited Mecca once to perform his Umrah with Umayyah, when they came across Abu Jahl.
[5] In the build-up to the battle of Badr, Umayyah received a visit from his childhood friend Sa'd, who had become a Muslim, emigrated to Medina, and was close to Muhammad.
[citation needed] In March 624, the Meccans decided to confront the Muslim forces that threatened a caravan from Syria led by Abu Sufyan ibn Harb.