Book Reading
The Nocturnal Journey
HOW THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD saw LED THE OTHER PROPHETS IN THE RITUAL PRAYER IN THEIR PHYSICAL BODIES OR THEIR SPIRITS.
First of all: It must be understood that this salât (ritual prayer) was not farida (obligatory), because it was prior to the ordainment of the ritual prayer (as an obligatory religious duty). Nevertheless, the Prophet used to perform the ritual prayer before it was made obligatory for him, and it has been established that he SAW used to perform rak’atayn (two prayer-cycles) in the early morning and two prayer-cycles in the evening.
Shaykh Abd al-Halim Mahmud says about this ritual prayer: As for the ritual prayer which they used to perform; it was neither an obligatory duty nor a ceremony. It was simply an expression of thanks and praise to Allah for His gracious favors, for there is no ceremony in the Hereafter. If the ritual prayer contains a spiritual yearning, it never ends, because the Divine support never ends, but one of the degrees of this support is the awareness of praise and eulogy for Allah, and giving thanks to Allah in accordance with the appropriate degree. As Allah says SWT:
Their prayer therein will be: ‘Glory be to You, O Allah!’ and their greeting therein will be: ‘Peace!’ and the conclusion of their prayer will be: ‘Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds!’ (10:10)
Secondly: The ritual prayer in which the Prophet Muhammad led the other Prophets (peace be upon him and upon them) in Jerusalem was sensory, performed in their physical bodies and their spirits.
Shaykh al-Hajj Ibrahim Niasse RA has said:
As for the ritual prayer in which the Prophet Muhammad led the other Prophets, it was sensory, performed in their physical bodies and their spirits. That it was similar to our ritual prayer is not ruled out by the hitherto nonexistence of the ordainment of the obligatory ritual prayer, because it was not claimed to be an obligatory ritual prayer. The ordainment applies to both the elite and the common folk, and they were not present at that ritual prayer. As for those Prophets whom he met with in the heavens- each according to the difference of their degree and rank- they are the (same) prophets whom he led in prayer on earth! And the capability and omnipotence of Allah is even more dazzling and magnificent than that!
Page 13
…To be continued in shaa Allah
You can participate in publishing this newsletter by supporting it financially; one way is to cashapp: $Bachirzak
Thank you for your support. Please also visit the FB page Nasrul Ilm GLobal Love to like it and share. Thanks again.