Isra'
and Mi'^raj are miracles of our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
traveled at night from Mecca to
Jerusalem, Isra', and then he went up to the skies, Mi'^raj,
from which he returned to Mecca. The entire journey took him about a
third of the night. Historical proof that our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
physically made this journey is
evidenced by what happened upon his return to Mecca.
When
our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
returned to Mecca, many of the non-Muslims gathered. Now these people
knew our beloved prophet Mu'hammad ,
previous to this time, had not traveled to Jerusalem. They asked him to
describe the Mosque of the Dome in Jerusalem, which he did. Also from
prophet Mu'hammad's description
of what happened to him and what he saw, the Qu'ra'ysh, the
tribe of our beloved prophet Mu'hammad ,
understood that this journey was made in body and spirit and was not a
dream. There is a direct proof in the Qur'an that this
was a physical journey, since there is an 'aya'h which
specifically mentions our beloved prophet Mu'hammad's
journey at night from Mecca to
Jerusalem.
Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
was taken from the house of the mother of Hani'' in
Mecca. The Angels opened his chest and washed his heart, filling it with
wisdom and faith to prepare him to see the wonders that Allah
created.
From
the Mosque in Mecca, our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
was mounted on the Bu'raq by the Angel Ji'bril.
The Bu'raq is an animal from Heaven which is smaller
than a mule and larger than a donkey and whose stride is as far as the
eye can see. One of the proofs that our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
is the best creation is that
when our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
was going to mount the Bu'raq, the Bu'raq
trembled, and Ji'bril told the Bu'raq
what meant to be still, no one better than Mu'hammad
will ever mount you. This proves that our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
is the best creation. Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
sat behind Ji'bril. They passed by Medina, this was
before our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
migrated to Medina. He dismounted and prayed two Ra'k^a'h in
Medina. Then he arrived in Tur Sanai. Then he arrived in Bethlehem where
the Prophet and Messenger Jesus
was born. There he prayed two Ra'k^a'h. Then he arrived in
Jerusalem and tied the Bu'raq to the place the Prophets
used to tie their animals. He entered the mosque which Adam built forty
years after he had built the Ka'^ba'h in Mecca.
Allah
gathered together
all the Prophets from Adam to our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
including Jesus ,
who had been in the second sky, to honor our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
. Ji'bril led our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
to the front of all the Prophets in order to lead them in prayer. All
the Prophets knew about our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
before they saw him, and they had ordered their people to believe in him
in accordance to this vow.
Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
left the mosque. Ji'bril brought him two containers, one
of kha'mr, usually translated as wine, (this does not change
the mind like regular wine because it is the pure and clean drink of
Muslims in Heaven) and one of milk. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
chose the milk. Ji'bril
told him he had chosen the Fi'tra'h. Fi'tra'h
can contain the meanings of purity and innocence.
Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw many things on his night journey. He saw Iblis, the
Devil Satan. Iblis was the first Ji'n. In the
first part of his life, Iblis was Muslim, but became
non-Muslim by objecting to what Allah
ordered. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw Iblis standing on the side of the road calling him. Iblis
did not have the courage to confront our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
directly. Iblis
was defeated by prophet Mu'hammad's greatness .
Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad 's esteem
was so great that Iblis could not even confront him.
Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw the things in this life, (Du'nya) as a very old
woman.
While
passing the grave of a very good Muslim woman, our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
smelled a very good scent. This
was the grave of the woman who brushed Pharaoh's daughter's hair. Her
story is as follows:
One
time while brushing the hair of the Pharaoh's daughter, she dropped the
brush. She picked it up saying, "In the name of God."
Pharaoh's daughter asked her what meant, "Do you have a God other
than my father?" To which she replied, "My God and the God of
your father is Allah." Pharaoh's daughter told her father.
Pharaoh ordered the woman to leave Islam. When she refused to leave
Islam, Pharaoh boiled water and threw the woman's children into it one
at a time. At last there was only her baby, who was still breast
feeding. The baby spoke to his mother. The baby told her the torture of
the next life is worse than the torture of this life, so stay following
your religion, Islam, because you are right. Pharaoh had the baby thrown
into the boiling water. This woman asked Pharaoh to gather all their
bones (hers and her children's) and bury them together. Pharaoh told her
she would have what she wanted, then threw her in the water. It was from
her grave that our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
smelled the lovely scent. This woman was from the Sali'hin
and died Sha'hid.
Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw those who planted, and in two days gathered the harvest. Ji'bril
told him these died fighting for Islam.
He
saw people whose tongues and lips were being rubbed with a file made of
fire. Ji'bril told him these people said things which
cause people to be lost in sins, whose words cheat and betray people.
Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw a bull which came from a small hole, tried to return through it, but
found it too small. Ji'bril told him this is the one who
said something which caused trouble for people, he wanted to take back
his words, but was unable.
He
saw people running back and forth like sheep with only a small cloth
covering the area it is forbidden to show. Ji'bril told
him these are the people who did not pay Za'kah. Za'kah
is that portion of goods or money required by Allah
to be paid, if a Muslim has a certain amount and if certain conditions
are satisfied.
He
saw people whose heads were being smashed, Ji'bril told
him these are those who left their prayers. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw people running to rotten
meat and leaving good meat, Ji'bril told him these are
those who committed adultery.
He
saw people drinking a disgusting liquid, Ji'bril told
him these are the ones who drank alcoholic beverages in this life.
Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw people scratching their faces with copper fingernails, Ji'bril
told him these are those who said things about Muslims which, though
they were true, the Muslim did not accept to be said of him, Ga'yba'h.
These
are some of the things our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw on his night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem.
After leaving
the mosque in Jerusalem, Ji'bril took our beloved
prophet Mu'hammad
up to the skies. Ji'bril called to the Angel to open the
door of the first sky. The Angel asked Ji'bril who was
with him. Ji'bril answered, "Mu'hammad",
. The Angel
asked if Mu'hammad
had received his revelation, and Ji'bril answered,
"Yes." The door of the first sky opened for them.
In the first sky
he saw prophet Adam ,
this was after our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
had met him in Jerusalem. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
told him, "Assa'lamu' ^a'la'yku'm," and
prophet Adam
answered his Sa'lam. Adam welcomed our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
and asked Allah
for good things for our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
and his
followers. On the right and left of prophet Adam ,
our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw shapes of people. When prophet Adam
looked to the right he laughed, and when he looked to the left he cried.
On the right, prophet Adam
saw his descendants who died Muslim, and on the left he saw his
descendants who died non-Muslim. In the first sky, our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw seven
other Prophets.
In the second
sky, our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw prophet Jesus
and prophet Ya'hya .
In the third sky he saw prophet Yusu'f .
In the fourth sky he saw prophet Idris .
In the fifth sky he saw the prophet Haru'n .
In the sixth sky he saw prophet Moses
and in the seventh sky he saw prophet Ibrahim .
Each of the Prophets asked Allah
for good things for our beloved prophet Mu'hammad .
Among the
wonders that our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw in the skies was the Angel named Mali'k, who manages
the things in Hell. Mali'k did not smile, as did the
other Angels, upon meeting our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
. Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
asked Ji'bril, "Why?" Ji'bril
told him that Mali'k had not smiled since Allah
created him but if he did smile, he would
have smiled for prophet Mu'hammad .
Our beloved
prophet Mu'hammad
saw Al-Ba'ytu'l-Ma'^mur in the seventh sky. It is the
honored house of the inhabitants of the skies (Angels), as the Ka'^ba'h
is the honored house of the inhabitants of the earth (Muslims). Every
day, 70,000 Angels enter it, pray, leave, and never return to it.
Angels' bodies are created from light, they are neither male nor female,
they do not eat, sleep nor drink, and they never disobey Allah
. The number of Angels is so great, only Allah
knows the number.
Our beloved
prophet Mu'hammad
saw a great tree (Si'dra'tu'l-Mu'nta'ha) which begins in
the sixth sky and continues into the seventh sky. It is so beautiful
that none of God's creations can describe it. Gold butterflies fly
around it.
Our beloved
prophet Mu'hammad
saw Heaven. It is above the seventh sky. In Heaven there are things the
eye has not seen, the ear has not heard of and the heart has not
imagined, which Allah has
created for the pious Muslim. There are other great things Allah
has prepared for both the pious Muslims
and other Muslims. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
saw that most of those in Heaven were those who were poor Muslims on
earth.
He saw the Al-Huru'l
^in. Ji'bril asked prophet Mu'hammad
to tell
them, "Assa'lamu' ^a'la'yku'm." They told
prophet Mu'hammad
they are beautiful wives for those who go to Heaven. He also saw
immortal children whom Allah
created without a mother or a father. They are neither human nor Angel
nor jinn. They are scattered like pearls, their purpose is to serve the
people of Heaven. Each person in Heaven has at least 10,000 of these
children.
Our beloved
prophet Mu'hammad
saw the Throne (Al-^a'rsh). It is one of the greatest
creations. It is surrounded by Angels and is carried by four of the
largest of them. The size of the Throne was described by comparison. The
Chair (another one of God's creations) is like a ring in the desert
compared to the Throne, and the skies are like a ring in the desert
compared to the Chair.
It is important
to know that our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
parted from Ji'bril. He went to a place where the Angels
worship Allah , it is a
place where Allah
has never been disobeyed. It is not a place in which Allah
exists, because Allah
exists without a place. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
was not closer to Allah
in this place, because distance is connected to places and since Allah
exists without a place, no one can be
closer nor further from Him. It is important to know that Allah
does not resemble any of His creations,
and Allah exists without
a place. Therefore, our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
was in a place, but Allah
is not. Beware of translations and explanations, no matter how
widespread they are, which state that prophet Mu'hammad
was any distance from Allah ,
because they are false and will cause a person to leave Islam if he
believes them.
When our beloved
prophet Mu'hammad
was in that place, Allah
removed the thing which prevented prophet Mu'hammad
from hearing the Ka'lam of Allah .
Ka'lam is usually translated as speech, however, God's Ka'lam
is an attribute of God and has no beginning and no end. It is not a
sound, letter or language, and it does not resonate in the ear. Our
beloved prophet Mu'hammad
understood the following from the Ka'lam of Allah
: He understood that Muslims are required
to pray five times a day, he understood that Allah
will forgive the large sins of some of those who follow prophet Mu'hammad
, but Allah
will not forgive ku'fr, the sin
which causes one to be a non-Muslim, no matter how well a non-Muslim
behaves in this life, Allah
will not have mercy on him after death. Our beloved prophet Mu'hammad
also
understood from the Ka'lam of Allah
that each Ha'sa'na'h (good credit) a person earns is multiplied
by ten, whereas each sin a person commits remains as only one. These are
three things prophet Mu'hammad
understood form the Ka'lam of Allah .
Near the tree
that is beyond description, prophet Mu'hammad
saw Ji'bril in his original form. Ji'bril's
body covered the horizon, he had six hundred wings and two of his wings
reached from the east to the west
Our beloved
prophet Mu'hammad
returned to Mecca.
