Chapter 8

Eleven years had now transpired since the moment when Sayyiduna Jibrīl presented himself to the Prophet ﷺ in the cave of Hirā’. The Muslims emerged from a debilitating boycott, and the Prophet ﷺ lost his two protectors, Abū Ṭālib and Khadījah (Allah be pleased with her). On top of that, he returned rejected from Ṭā’if, having endured tiring humiliation and trial. The world felt tight around him, making it hard to breathe despite its vastness. At this lowest point, Allah the Exalted destined to honor His Messenger ﷺ with a visit to the noblest group of creation and an ascension into the presence of the greatest light.

The Night Journey

During the 27^th night of Rajab, he was resting in Umm Hānī’s home while his heart lay heavy in his chest, and his eyes began to slumber. In his infinite mercy, Allah the Exalted was well aware of His slave’s state and the difficulties he was enduring for His sake. His words tonight would come into effect, “Glorious is He Who made his slave travel by night from al-Masjid al-Ḥarām to al-Masjid al-Aqṣā whose surroundings We have blessed so that We let him see some of Our signs.” (Surah al-Isrā’ 1) That night, his blessed eyes opened to the sight of Sayyiduna Jibrīl and other angels opening the roof of the abode. They gathered the Prophet ﷺ and transported him to the semi-circular ḥaṭīm area of the Kaʻbah. Like before, they gently opened his chest to remove the dust of worldly difficulties. His heart was extracted and rinsed with water from the Zamzam spring. Once refreshed, a tray containing embodied faith (īmān) and wisdom was brought, and its contents poured into his heart. It was then gently returned to its niche, the chest closed, and a seal put between the shoulder blades.

Once he arose, a glowing white burāq was brought as his ride, and it took off at the speed of light across the darkened deserts towards Masjid al-Aqṣā in Jerusalem. During this journey, it stopped at various places, like lampposts radiant from previous prophetic stays, to allow the Prophet ﷺ to pray in several blessed places, including Yathrib where he would eventually migrate, Mount Saynā’ where Allah spoke to Sayyiduna Mūsā, Madyan where Mūsā was hosted, and Bethlehem the birthplace of Sayyiduna ‘Īsā.

During this flight, multitudes of spectacles presented themselves. The Prophet ﷺ saw the dunyā embodied as an old woman and the Shayṭān as an old man, both vying for the attention of the universal prophet. He represented guidance and divine closeness, while they represented misguidance and divine distance. He ﷺ effectively ignored them, setting the example for his ummah that these are two distractions not worth even one attentive glance. He saw the people of backbiting (ghība), interest (ribā’), fornication (zinā’), and hypocritical preaching suffering their appropriate torments. He also saw the people of jihād reaping their rewards. Both Jannah and Jahannam were shown in their glory and horror. He flew past groups of angels, some standing in prayer, others bowing (rukūʻ), others prostrating (sujūd), and some sitting in prayer. Each group of angels was honored by one of these prayer postures, but only the ummah of Muhammad ﷺ was granted the prayer combining of all the angelic positions.

In this way, the Prophet ﷺ quickly arrived at Masjid al-Aqṣā, where he prayed two rakaʻā of taḥiyya and waited patiently on the instructions of his guide. The prayer area reverberated with the adhān followed by the iqāma. Sayyiduna Jibrīl directed the Prophet ﷺ forward to lead the prayer. Behind him stood all the past prophets, and the angels filled any remaining space. This was a gathering the likes of which the world had never seen nor would see again, a meeting of those closest to Allah. Imagine a packed room of light without a trace of sound. All senses receiving the recitation of the Imam of the Messengers ﷺ fulfilling Allah’s command, “When the Quran is recited, listen to it attentively and be silent, so you may be shown mercy.” (Surah al-A’rāf 204) His position at the forefront indicated that he was the culmination of all prophethood and the messenger to all people.

After the prayer, each prophet felt compelled to praise Allah for the individual blessings they received in their lifetimes. One by one, they listed their blessings until they arrived to the last Prophet ﷺ, who spoke thus:

“Praise be to Allah who sent me as a mercy to the worlds and all of humanity, bringing glad tidings and warnings. He revealed the Quran to me, which is a clarification of everything. He made my community the best community brought forth for mankind, a balanced nation. He made my community the foremost and the last. He expanded my chest, alleviated my burden, elevated my mention, and made me the opener and the seal.”

While the other prophets were given blessings by Allah, our Prophet ﷺ was himself a blessing and a mercy to them!

Exiting the Masjid, he was presented with four cups of varying drinks as a test on behalf of his ummah. Sayyiduna Jibrīl congratulated him on choosing milk, a pure and nourishing drink, symbolizing his pure nature (fiṭra) and that his deen is consistent with pure nature.

Isrā’ forever strengthened the symbolic and physical connection between Masjid al-Ḥarām and Masjid al-Aqṣā. Both locations are deeply tied to the prophets and Allah’s worship. The foundations for both were built initially by Sayyiduna Ādam. Later, Sayyiduna Ibrāhīm would rebuild and sanctify both masājid with his sons Ismāʻīl and Ishāq, respectively. Generations of prophets made it a place of worship of the One Allah. And now, the Prophet ﷺ connected the two in this night journey. Thus, Muslims are dutybound to revere, visit, and defend both places. May Allah the Exalted never allow impure hands to come upon them.

The Ascension

Thereafter, the Prophet ﷺ ascended with Jibrīl through the heavens. We should pause here for a moment to try to understand the magnitude of this moment. The heavens have been above the earths since the creation of the universe. During this miʻrāj (ascension), what transpires now is a one-time event for the universe. It is the moment when the earth and the heavens reach out to one another. They came together to honor a single creation, one who is a mercy for everyone above and below.

At each stop, the angels of that heaven welcomed him joyously and guided him to the prophet of that heaven. In order, he met his father Ādam, the cousins Yaḥyā and ‘Īṣā, and his brothers Yūsuf, Idrīs, Hārūn, Mūsā, and Ibrāhīm, Allah’s peace be on all of them. From here, he ascended further to the Sidrah al-Muntahā, a station where everything ascending from below and everything descending from above must stop. He was shown both the beauty of Jannah and the horrors of Jahannam.

The pinnacle of this journey was being in the presence of Allah and communicating with Him without an intermediary or screen. Enjoy the idea that our Prophet ﷺ was granted an honor never known before. Leave words and thoughts aside for they fail in describing the event. A poet described his frustration thus:

I saw what lies beyond mere sight,

Ask not of its nature, for it cannot be described.

In that realm, there is neither quantity nor quality,

No bounds of less or more can contain it.

I then heard a voice without sound,

A speech filled with layers of meaning and mystery.

There is no awareness from the mouth or tongue,

No speech or expression can accompany it.

Instead, suffice with Allah’s description, “Thus [Allah] revealed to His slave what He revealed.” (al-Najm 10) However, the way of Allah is that he grants no favor to our Prophet ﷺ without also granting honors to his ummah. He gifted us the daily prayers so that we could stand in His presence as well, the last verses of Surah al-Baqarah in duʻā form, and ultimate forgiveness for every person of his ﷺ ummah free of shirk.

Allah the Exalted praised our Prophet ﷺ thus:

“I have taken you as my close friend and beloved. It is written in the Torah that you are the Beloved of the Merciful. I have sent you to all people as a bearer of glad tidings and a warner. I expanded your chest, removed your burden, exalted your mention thus, I am not remembered except you are remembered with Me. I have made your ummah the best nation ever brought forth for humanity. I made your ummah a balanced nation, and the foremost and the last. Your community’s sins are not counted until they testify that you are My servant and My messenger. I have made some of your followers such that their hearts are like gospels. I have made you the first of the prophets in creation, the last in being sent, and the first for whom judgment shall be rendered. I have granted you the seven oft-repeated verses (Surah al-Fātiḥah), which I have not granted to any prophet before you. I have granted you the concluding verses of Surah Al-Baqarah from a treasure beneath the Throne, which I have not granted to any prophet before you. I have granted you Al-Kawthar. I have granted you eight merits: Islam, migration, striving in the way of Allah, prayer, charity, fasting in Ramadan, enjoining good, and forbidding evil. And, I have made you the opener and the seal.”

The Prophet ﷺ was then escorted the way he came, descending through the heavens to Masjid al-Aqṣā and from there to Masjid al-Ḥarām by the burāq.

In the morning, he informed every ear what had transpired of blessed events. The news of this incident separated the true believer from the disbelievers, the wheat from the chaff. The unfortunate fell into disbelief, whereas the fortunate strengthened their resolve. Sayyiduna Abū Bakr, upon hearing the news, immediately confirmed it and earned the moniker the Ṣiddīq. The Prophet ﷺ, now reinvigorated and his Companion now elevated further in status, set out to meet the people of Yathrib, who would turn out to be the greatest of helpers.