Prophet’s (s.a.w.a.) Migration to Medina
The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.), during his migration from
Mecca to Medina,first halted in the cave of Thaur for three days. He then
reached a place called Quba on 12thRabi al-Awwal. Abu Bakr, who was
accompanying the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) insisted that they proceed towards Medina
so that the people would be happy to see him but the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) refused
to go there without Ameerul Momineen Ali Ibn Abi Talib (a.s.). He (s.a.w.a.)
said to Abu Bakr, “No. I shall not proceed and do not wish (to do so) until
my cousin, my brother for the sake of Allah, and the dearest to me among my
Ahle Bait (a.s.) who endangered his own life to save mine from the polytheists,
arrives.” Then Abu Bakr felt angry and disgusted and due to this he became
envious of Ali (a.s.). This was the first instance where his enmity against the
Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) due to Ali (a.s.) was evident. It was the first time
when he went against (the wishes of) Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.). Then he went
ahead until he reached Medina and Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) stayed back at Quba
until he met Ali (a.s.). [1]
Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) had to return trusts of a few
people in Mecca. He (s.a.w.a.) made Ali (a.s.) responsible for returning these
trusts to their respective owners. He (s.a.w.a.) also left his family behind.
Ali (a.s.) stayed in Mecca for three days to fulfill the task which the Holy
Prophet (s.a.w.a.) had given him. During his stay in Mecca, Ali (a.s.) also
arranged for food and water supplies for the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) in the cave of
Thaur. Since the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) did not have any mounts with him to reach
Medina, Ali (a.s.) purchased three camels from the people of Bahrain who had
camped in Mecca and sent it to the Prophet (s.a.w.a.). [2]
Ali (a.s.) joins the Prophet (s.a.w.a.)
After completing the responsibilities assigned to him,
Ali (a.s.) proceeded towards Medina along with 4 ladies whom the Prophet
(s.a.w.a.) had asked him to bring along viz. Janabe Fatima Zahra (s.a.), Janabe
Fatima binte Asad (s.a.), Janabe Fatima binte Hamza (s.a.) and Janabe Fatima,
the aunt of the Prophet (s.a.w.a.). The Quraish sent eight men to stop him but
he fought with them killing one and driving away the rest. Since he had only
two camels with him, Ali (a.s.) made the ladies sit on the camels and he walked
the entire distance due to which his feet were injured when he reached Quba. [3]
Ibn Aseer writes in his Kaamil: When Ali (a.s.) reached
Quba, his feet were bleeding. The Prophet was informed that Ali had arrived,
but was not in a position to come up before him. The Prophet immediately went
to the place where Ali (a.s.) was, and took him in his lap, and when he saw the
swollen feet of Ali (a.s.) tears began to flow from his eyes. [4]
Constructing Masjid-e-Quba
Quba was approximately two kilometers outside
Medina.During his stay at Quba, the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) constructed the world’s
first mosque with the help of local Muslims. He himself participated in the
construction work and carried stones and mud on his head. After completing the
construction of the mosque, the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) and his followers prayed in
it facing Bait al-Muqaddas.
During the Prophet’s (s.a.w.a.) stay at Quba, the
strength of the Muslims grew constantly. People broke their idols and embraced
Islam. The Prophet (s.a.w.a.) then left for Medina with this entire group.
Buraidah Ibn al-Haseeb and his 70 men, who had just embraced Islam, took the
Prophet (s.a.w.a.) in a procession. [5]
The Holy Quran talks about Masjid-e-Quba
Once a group of people from the hypocrites came to the
Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) and said: O Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.)! Please give
us the permission to construct a mosque in the area of Bani Saalim for the weak
and old and also for other people during monsoon. The Messenger of Allah
(s.a.w.a.) gave them the permission while he was preparing for the expedition
to Tabuk. They requested the Prophet (s.a.w.a.): O Messenger of Allah
(s.a.w.a.)! Will you come and pray in it? He (s.a.w.a.) replied: As of now
I’m in a hurry to go. I shall pray in it, if Allah wishes, after my return.
When Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) returned from Tabuk, the
following verse was revealed in criticism of the mosque which these hypocrites
had built:
وَ
الَّذينَ اتَّخَذُوا مَسْجِداً ضِراراً وَ كُفْراً وَ تَفْريقاً بَيْنَ
الْمُؤْمِنينَ وَ إِرْصاداً لِمَنْ حارَبَ اللَّهَ وَ رَسُولَهُ مِنْ قَبْلُ وَ
لَيَحْلِفُنَّ إِنْ أَرَدْنا إِلاَّ الْحُسْنى وَ اللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّهُمْ
لَكاذِبُونَ
“And those who built a masjid to
cause harm and for unbelief and to cause disunion among the believers and an
ambush to him who made war against Allah and His Apostle before; and they will
certainly swear: We did not desire aught but good; and Allah bears witness that
they are most surely liars.”[6]
It was revealed that this mosque belonged to Abu Amir,
the Christian monk who was at war with Allah and His Apostle even earlier. It
was built for him although they promised Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) that they had
built it for peace and goodness but Allah had termed them as liars.
Immediately, Allah revealed the following verse
admonishing the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) and his companions to not pray in that mosque
and instead, they should pray in a mosque established on piety from the very
first day:
لَا
تَقُمْ فيهِ أَبَداً لَمَسْجِدٌ أُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوى مِنْ أَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ
أَحَقُّ أَنْ تَقُومَ فيهِ فيهِ رِجالٌ يُحِبُّونَ أَنْ يَتَطَهَّرُوا وَ اللَّهُ
يُحِبُّ الْمُطَّهِّرينَ
Never stand in it; certainly a
masjid founded on piety from the very first day is more deserving that you
should stand in it; in it are men who love that they should be purified; and
Allah loves those who purify themselves.”[7]
In the above verse, the ‘mosque established on piety from
the very first day’ refers to Masjid-e-Quba and the ‘men who love that they
should be purified’ refers to those who use water for purification. [8]
Halabi narrates from Hazrat Abu Abdillah Imam Ja’farSadiq
(a.s.) that I asked him regarding the verse “in it are men who love that
they should be purified”. He (a.s.) replied: “Those who love that
they are purified for the cleanliness of ablution (wudu) and using water after
urination. This verse was revealed for the people of Quba.”[9]
Zurarah, Humran and Muhammad Ibn Muslim have narrated
from Imam Baqir (a.s.) and Imam Sadiq (a.s.) regarding the verse “certainly
a masjid founded on piety from the very first day”. He (a.s.) said: It
is Masjid-e-Quba. [10]
This incident is a great reminder to all of us working in the way of Imam
Zamana (atfs). We need to have a pure intention while learning, teaching,
working, implementing decisions, giving suggestions etc. Ill intentions,
deception, hypocritical approach, dishonest reports, selfishness, nepotism etc
will not escape from the knowledge of Allah and His Wali (as). All those
treading this path should await embarassment and unveiling of their plans by
Allah like He did for those who build the Masjid Ziraar.
Visiting Masjid-e-Quba and the Reward of Praying in it
The narrator asked Imam Sadiq (a.s.): Which Masjid should
I visit first when I go the Masjids around Medina? Imam (a.s.) replied: “Begin
with Quba Masjid and pray more in it, for it is the first Masjid in this area
in which Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.a.) prayed.”[11]
Imam Sadiq (a.s.) said: You must not neglect visiting
the holy sites around Medina or Quba Masjid, for it is the “Masjid founded on
piety from the very first day.”[12]
The Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) said: One who enters
my Masjid, that is Quba Masjid, and prays two Rakats prayer in it, will receive
the reward of performing an Umrah.[13]
To conclude, let us look at a rare incident which
occurred in Masjid-e-Quba after the martyrdom of Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.). In
the beginning of this article, it was mentioned that Abu Bakr was envious of
Ali (a.s.) because the Prophet (s.a.w.a.) did not proceed to Medina with him
and opted to wait for Ali (a.s.) at Quba. The unmatchable virtues of
AmeerulMomineen Ali Ibn Talib (a.s.) caused this envy to grow deeper and the
result was that after the martyrdom of the Holy Prophet, Abu Bakr usurped the
caliphate of Imam Ali (a.s.).
It is narrated through many authentic chains of narrators
from Imam Sadiq (a.s.) that when Abu Bakr usurped the Caliphate of Ali (a.s.),
he (Ali) asked him, “Did the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) not order you to obey
me?” “No,” he replied, “If he had ordered me, I would have obeyed you.”
Imam (a.s.) said, “Will you obey if right now you were to see the Holy
Prophet (s.a.w.a.) and he were to order you?” “Yes” he replied. Imam Ali
(a.s.) said, “Come with me to Masjid-e-Quba.” When they reached
Masjid-e-Quba, Abu Bakr saw that the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) was standing
up in prayers.When the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) concluded his prayer,
AmeerulMomineen (a.s.) said, “Abu Bakr denies that you ordered my
obedience.” The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) told Abu Bakr, “I ordered you
time and again. Go now and do not deviate from his obedience.” Abu Bakr was
highly terrified at this scene and when he was returning from there, he met
Umar, who asked him what the matter was. Abu Bakr said that the Holy Prophet
(s.a.w.a.) said this and this.Umar said, “That Ummah was destroyed that
appointed a fool like you as their ruler. Perhaps you don’t know all this is
the sorcery of BaniHashim.”[14]
Even
after this incident, Abu Bakr did not return the caliphate to Ali (a.s.). It is
indeed shameful on the part of Abu Bakr and Umar that even after clear
instructions from the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.) they continued to disobey,
oppress and hurt Ali (a.s.).
Lastly,
we pray to Allah to keep us steadfast on the Wilayat and Obedience of
AmeerulMomineen Ali Ibn AbiTalib (a.s.),hasten the reappearance of
Imam-e-Zamana (a.t.f.s.) and give us the Taufeeq to pray behind him in
thismosque built on piety.
[1]Behaar
al-Anwaar, vol. 19, p. 116
[2]
Ali the Miracle of Mohammad (s.a.w.a.) by Yaqoob Hasan Rizvi, p. 40-41
narrating from Tafseer al-Durr al-Mansoor, vol. 3, p. 240
[3]
Ali the Miracle of Mohammad (s.a.w.a.), p. 41
[4]Kaamil
by Ibn Aseer, vol. 2, p. 75; The Message by AyatullahJafarSubhani, chapter 25
[5]Ali
the Miracle of Mohammad (s.a.w.a.), p. 42
[6]
Surah Tawbah (9): 107
[7]
Surah Taubah (9): 108
[8]Behaar
al-Anwaar, vol. 21, p. 255 narrating from Tafseer al-Qummi
[9]Mustadrak
al-Wasael, vol. 1, chapter 25, p. 278, H. 4
[10]Mustadrak
al-Wasael, vol. 3, chapter 48, p. 428, H. 2 narrating from Tafseer al-Ayyashi
[11]Kaamil al-Ziyaaraat, chapter 5, p. 22, H. 2,
published by As-Serat Publications, 2010
[12]Kaamil al-Ziyaaraat, chapter 6, p. 23, H. 1,
published by As-Serat Publications, 2010
[13]Kaamil al-Ziyaaraat, chapter 6, p. 24, H. 3,
published by As-Serat Publications, 2010
[14]Hayaat
al-Quloob (English), vol. 2, chapter 21, p. 380 printed by Ansariyan
Publications – Qum, 2nd Edition, 2003
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