'It is Ahmed, stunning on 'one chord to two bows' (qasida 19:10)

This is the motto of this section, which is for talking about our beloved prophet Mohammad [PPBUH].

You can find all special expressions in the Glossary. We need your comments to develop this site for you.

We will turn you to a Qibla that pleases you

The happy memories always come to us, one of them is the great and sublime memory of turning the Qibla (the direction of the prayer) from al-Aqsa Mosque (Jerusalem) to the Sacred Mosque as a tribute, a glory and an honor to sayyduna Mohammad [PPBUH]. That turning was a great sign for Allah’s love and care for His honorable Prophet [PPBUH]. It was also a sign to the harmony of the Prophet’s will with Allah’s will. Allah did not do that with any other creature neither in Qur'an nor in any other Divine Book. Allah singled out His Prophet [PPBUH] with His will to please. Any analyzing reader of the Qur'an would easily notice Allah's great care for His Prophet, and has mercy upon the Prophet's nation because of him [PPBUH]. There are many signs for that, one of them is Allah’s saying: [And verily your Lord will give you until you are satisfied] ad-Doha 93:5.

At this occasion Allah Almighty said: [We have seen your face turning in the heaven, surely We shall turn you to a Qibla that shall please you, so turn your face to the Sacred Mosque, and wherever you are turn your faces towards it. Certainly those, who have been given the Scripture, know well that it is the truth from their Lord. Allah is not unaware of what they do] al-Baqara 2:144. Imam ibn Kathir, narrating from Ibn Abbas [AAT], said "the first thing that was abrogated in Qur'an was the Qibla. When the Messenger of Allah [PPBUH] immigrated from Maccah to Medina, most of which people were Jews. Allah ordered Him to pray towards al-Maqdis House (Jerusalem) for a few months more than ten months. The Jews were very happy. The Prophet loved the Qibla of sayyduna Ibrahim, so He prayed to Allah and looked for the heaven expecting a change from Allah. So Allah revealed [We have seen your face turning in the heaven] until He said [turn your faces towards it]. The Jews doubted that and said: [‘What has turned them from the Qibla they were facing formerly?’ Say: ‘To Allah belong the East and the West. He guides whomever He will to a straight path’] al-Baqara 2:142.

In this context, Imam al-Qushayri said: “The Prophet [PPBUH] abided by the politeness, as He abstained from asking for what He hoped in his heart, of the Qibla. So He looked at the heaven because it was Gabriel's road [PBUH].   Then Allah revealed the verse [We have seen your face turning in the heaven]. This means that Allah wanted to tell him [PPBUH]: [I knew your wish though you did not ask it, so I changed the Qibla for your sake]. This is the most that a beloved would do to his beloved. Allah says that all His devout servants are seeking to please Him, but Allah's will is to please the Prophet.

[surely We shall turn you to a Qibla that shall please you, so turn your face to the Sacred Mosque]. But do not let your heart be attached to the stones and the traces, rather it should be only for Me. Let the Qibla be your self 's aim, while your heart is witnessing the truth. And to all of you believers, wherever you are, turn your faces towards it, but seclude your hearts to Me and witness only Me.

Also ibn Agiba said: “Allah, the Truth Almighty, said to the Prophet [PPBUH] when he wished to turn to the Ka'ba, because it was the Qibla of his father Ibrahim and the father of all Arabs so it would make it easier for them to believe in Islam. It was also the oldest of the two Qiblas, So the Prophet was looking to the heaven and turns his face into it waiting for the revelation to come down solving this matter. That was a sign to His highly polite manner, as He waited instead of asking – He knew that if He was to ask, then Allah would have answered, so He preferred not to interfere with Allah's will– so Allah Almighty said: [We have seen] i.e. We may have seen [your face turning in the heaven] waiting for the revelation. so We will give you what you have wished for, and turn you to a Qibla [that shall please you]. The one that you loved for the religious purposes that matched Allah's will and wisdom. [so turn your face to] i.e. towards [the Sacred Mosque, and wherever you are] O, you believers, wherever you are, [turn your faces towards it], in its direction.

Allah here mentioned the Sacred Mosque not the Ka’ba because the Prophet was in Medina and the far persons should only take the general direction of Ka'ba rather than the exact location because it would be hard for them to do so. But the ones who live closer can easily locate the Ka’ba by mere eye.  It was also said that Gabriel defined it to the Prophet through revelation, so it was called a revelation Qibla.

To clarify this direction matter more, we need to understand the meaning of the word used in Qur'an for ‘towards’ in Arabic which is ‘Shatr’. This word means also half. The direction is determined by the half, meaning that each direction is determined by the opposite one. For example: the north direction is opposite to the south one, the east direction is opposite to the west one. So each direction is divided into two opposite parts east & west, north & south, … So each direction is on a 180 degree scale. So the direction of Qibla is the direction of its half, a 180 degrees. So the word ‘Shatr’ was used on purpose, to make easier for The Prophet and His nation.  So they only have to face the direction of the half that contains the Ka’ba. For example, in the picture, if you do not know the direction of the Ka’ba, you may use the direction of the sun as close enough direction to the Ka’ba.

It was narrated that when the Prophet came to Medina, He prayed towards the house of Maqdis (Jerusalem) for 16 months, then He was directed to the Ka’ba, at noon in the month of Rajab, two months before the Badr battle. While He was praying with His companions at Bani Salma's mosque and after two Rak'as, He turned during the prayer and faced the back of the mosque, then men and women lines exchanged places. That is why this mosque was called the mosque with two Qiblas. Stated by Albaidawi

In this verse there is a sign that complete politeness, and no one would be more polite that the Prophet [PPBUH], would require abandoning statement. There is a wise saying: "Politeness may lead them to leaving the demand, because how can your late asking be the reason for doing your previously determined fate? The eternal judgment is too exalted to be attributed to reasons". So if you hoped for something and need it badly, you should be patient, polite, and follow the example of our Prophet [PPBUH], until you either get what you want or be compensated the rank of the gratification.    There is more to this matter, as it should be connected to what a man feels in his heart. So if his heart is directed towards asking Allah, then he should do it, and if he feels he should not, then he should not. Allah gives whomever He wants with no cause, reason, or even reckoning.

When the Qibla is turned to Ka’ba the Jews were angry because He left their Qibla, in an act of obstinacy and obduracy. They said: if He had sticked to our Qibla, we would have hopped that He would be the Prophet of the end of time, and we would have followed Him. Allah replied to them showing their lies: [Certainly those, who have been given the Scripture, know well that it is the truth from their Lord. Allah is not unaware of what they do. Yet if you should bring to those who have been given the Scripture every sign, they will not follow your Qibla, and you are not a follower of their Qibla neither are they followers of one another’s Qibla. If you were to follow their whims, after the knowledge that has come unto you, then you will surely be among the evildoers. Those to whom We have given the Scripture, they recognize him as they recognize their sons, even though there is a party of them that conceal the truth, while they know. The truth comes from your Lord; then be not among the doubters.] al-Baqara 2:144-147.

Umar asked Abdullah ibn Salam about the Messenger of Allah [PPBUH], he replied: I know Him more than I know my son. Umar said: Why is that? He said: I do not doubt his prophethood, but as for my son, his mother may have betrayed me.

Although the Jews had very clear knowledge, yet they denied him and concealed his characters, except those whom Allah protected with faith; such as Abdullah ibn Salam and his companions. Their rabbis hid the truth though they knew it because of their obstinacy and envy.

So Allah’s words came to honor and glorify the Prophet [PPBUH] in spite of the denying Jews. Allah also showed their lies, what they have been hiding, and the threat He promised them with. Allah said all that to support the Prophet [PPBUH].

O Mohammad, the truth is what you have and it is [The truth comes from your Lord; then be not among the doubters] al-Baqara 2:147. i.e. among the ones who doubt that it is the truth or those who know that it is the truth but hide it. This speech is for the listener not for the Prophet [PPBUH] Himself because He is not expected to do so. What is meant is to clear the Prophet's facts to be undoubted to all people. Also it is an order to the Muslim nation to gain the required knowledge to wash off all doubts completely. By al-Baydawi.

Allah's way in His creation is that the people of truth are always denied by the people of regulations (Shari'a), or the people of intrinsic essence are always denied and hurt by the people of superficial knowledge, although they know that their knowledge are the truth from Allah and that the intrinsic knowledge is true. The Prophet [PPBUH] said: (There is a kind of knowledge that is in a hidden shape, no one knows it but the knowledgeable people of Allah. If the people of vanity for Allah were to hear it, they would deny it). He also said: (each verse has an exterior, an intrinsic, a boundary, and an outset meaning).

Allah Almighty said: [and We did not appoint the Qibla you were facing except that We might know who followed the Messenger from him who turned on his heels] al-Baqara 2:143. As if Allah is saying that He did not postponed the turning of the Qibla to hurt or to annoy His Messenger, but that was to purify the companions from the hypocrites who has no faith and hiding among them waiting for a chance to show their hostility to you. We showed and revealed them to you. So how much was the care Allah gave to his devout servant and Messenger [PPBUH].

Edited by Samer el-Lail   

Translated by Ahmad AF

Whoever wants to get more about this subject, can seek it in the website of Al-Nabi [PPBUH]. 

the Editorial Team