His heart was restless about the moral evils and idolatry that were rampant among his people.Privacy and separation from the impurities of worldly life were two indispensable prerequisites for him to meet what Allah had in store for him, preparing him to carry the great trust, to change the face of the earth, and alter the course of history. It was an intense period of privacy which lasted for 3 years prior to the beginning of his mission, entering a new era of lasting contact with the Unseen that Allah would permit him to witness.
Muhammad (pbuh) used to provide himself with saweeq (barley porridge) and water and then directly head for the hills and ravines in the neighbourhood of Makkah. One of these in particular was his favourite resort - a cave named Hira, on the mountain named Jabal Al-Nūr (Mountain of Light) in the Hejaz region of present day Saudi Arabia.