Excerpt from 'The Message':
Abu Talib believed so much in his spirituality and purity that at the time of drought he took him to musallah (the prayer carpet) with himself and invoked Allah in the name of his proximity to Him and requested for rains for the afflicted people, and his prayer was granted by the Almighty. Many historians have quoted the following incident:
Once Quraysh were faced with a terrible drought and the earth and the heavens withheld their blessings from them. They came to Abu Talib with tears in their eyes and requested him earnestly to go to musallah and pray to Allah for rains. Abu Talib held the hand of the Prophet, who was then a young boy, and leaned on the wall of the Ka'bah and raising his head towards the sky, said: 'O Lord! Send rains for the sake of this young boy (pointing towards the Prophet) and favour us with your unlimited blessings.'
The historians write unanimously: 'He prayed to Allah for rains when there was not a single patch of cloud on the sky, but a cloud then appeared immediately from the horizon. A part of the cloud spread in the sky above Makkah and the places round it. Thunder and lightening created great noise. All the places were flooded with water and everyone was happy.'