adminThe Muslims of Madinah heard that the Messenger of Allah had set off for Madinah from Makkah. Therefore, they went to the place called Harra after the morning prayer every day and waited there impatiently until the weather got very hot at noon.
One day, they waited for the arrival of the Prophet for a long time as usual and returned when they saw that it became very hot.
Meanwhile, a Jewish person who was on the roof of his house saw a few people in white clothes walking through the hot desert, mirages and fog. He knew that Muslims were waiting for the Messenger of Allah. He could not help shouting, “O community of Arabs! The person you have been waiting for is coming!” giving Muslims the good news. (1)
This good news traveled like lightning among the streets of Madinah. The city was like a place of festival because the person who offered peace and happiness to humanity was coming. Muslims took their weapons and ran toward that area.
They reached the Prophet and Hazrat Abu Bakr while they were resting in the shade of a date tree. Hazrat Abu Bakr was standing near the Prophet. They greeted the Master of the Universe, for whom they had been waiting excitedly, impatiently and longingly, who was in a white garment, and started to stare at his luminous blessed face.
After having a rest for a while in the shade of the date tree, the Messenger of Allah and his friends proceeded to the village of Quba, which was to the right of Madinah, together with the people who came from Madinah to welcome them.
It was a very hot day in the month of Rabiulawwal.
The sun was sending its arrows made of fire down to the earth. The Messenger of Allah and the group of believers with him arrived at the village of Quba, which was an hour away from the city of Madinah, before noon. He went to the house of Kulthum b. Hidam, the leader of Banu Amr b. Awf. The fast journey on the scorching sand exhausted the Prophet. He decided to stay in Quba for a while due to the wishes of the people who wanted to talk to him.
The Prophet stayed in the house of Kulthum b. Hidam, who was quite old, at night and went to the house of Sa’d b. Haythama, who was a single Companion, during the day in order to talk to the Muslims. Besides, the other single Companions stayed in his house, too. Therefore, his house was called “Daru’l-Uzab [the House of Bachelors]”. (2)
Hazrat Ali Rejoins the Prophet
Hazrat Ali had stayed in Makkah in order to return the valuables and goods that the Qurayshis entrusted to the Prophet to their owners due to the order of the Prophet.
Hazrat Ali fulfilled this duty and left Makkah three days after the Prophet left. He rejoined the Prophet when he was in Quba. His feet had swollen and blistered because he had walked all the way. The Prophet hugged him in tears, prayed for him so that his feet will recover and rubbed them with his hand. God Almighty cured his feet at once. The blisters and pains in his feet disappeared. (3)
CONSTRUCTION OF THE QUBA MOSQUE
The Messenger of Allah stayed for more than ten nights in the house of Banu Amr b. Awf. During this period, he established the Quba Mosque and performed prayers in it.
Although some Muslims built a mosque for themselves before the mosque established by the Prophet, the first mosque built for the community of Islam is the Quba Mosque.
The Messenger of Allah himself worked in the construction of this lofty mosque, which was built on Kulthum b. Hidam’s land, where he dried his dates. Once, the Prophet was carrying a very heavy stone. One of the Companions approached him and said, “O Messenger of Allah! May my father and mother be sacrificed for you. Give it to me.” The Prophet said to him, “No, I won’t! Get another stone.”, expressing that he got pleasure from working. Thus, he served as a model with his efforts and hard work along with his other good attributes like, worship, taqwa, loyalty, mercy, resoluteness and courage.
Quba Mosque
Observing his efforts and hard work, Muslims worked enthusiastically without showing any signs of laziness or fatigue. The Prophet did not stop working until the construction of the mosque finished; he did not treat himself differently from other Muslims.
Importance and Superiority of the Quba Mosque
The Quba Mosque is a blessed monument of the luminous and magnificent period that started with the migration of the Messenger of Allah and that continued especially with his arrival at the village of Quba. Therefore, it was defined as a “mosque of taqwa” in the Quran. The following is stated in the relevant verse:
“There is a mosque whose foundation was laid from the first day on piety; it is more worthy of thy standing forth (for prayer) therein. In it are men who love to be purified; and Allah loveth those who make themselves pure!” (4)
The Respectable Prophet always went to the Quba Mosque on Saturdays during his life sometimes on foot and sometimes riding and performed prayers there. Besides, he encouraged believers to perform prayers there giving the good news that a person who performed prayers in that blessed mosque in a nice and clean way would receive the reward of an umra.
The Quba Mosque is significant and important because it was built in a period when the barriers in front of Islam started to be removed gradually and the development and advancement of Islam started.
Suhayb b. Sinan Goes to Quba
Suhayb b. Sinan was one of the helpless and lonely Muslims who were exposed to the tortures of polytheists. When the Prophet was given the permission to migrate to Madinah, he could not find an opportunity to leave Makkah.
When he saw that Hazrat Ali was about to migrate, he packed his things, and set off. When some Makkans saw him, they followed him and said, “When you came here, you were poor; you became rich here. You want to take your wealth with you. We will not let you do it!”
Acting upon the courage based on his belief, Suhayb dismounted and took his arrows out of his bag. He said to the Qurayshis, who were trying to stop him from migrating, “You know that I am one of the best archers among you. I will shoot all of my arrows; if I run out of arrows, I will draw my sword! As long as I have one of them with me, I will not let you approach me!”
The polytheists could not answer this heroic call back. They knew that this hero of Islam would not surrender easily. On the one hand, there was Suhayb b. Sinan, who stood up with the courage supported by his belief; on the other hand, there were polytheists who were afraid due to the polytheism in their hearts.
Then, Suhayb made them this offer:
“Will you let me go if I show you where all my wealth is and leave it to you?”
The polytheists, who loved worldly possessions so much, said, “Yes…”
Hazrat Suhayb left his wealth to them and migrated on the way of Allah in order to practice his religion and belief freely.
He rejoined the Messenger of Allah in Quba in the middle of the month of Rabiulawwal. He had a pain in his eye on the way and he was very hungry. There was a bunch of fresh palms with leaves in front of the Prophet, Hazrat Abu Bakr and Hazrat Umar. Hazrat Suhayb started to eat the fresh dates immediately.
Hazrat Umar said, “O Messenger of Allah! Do you see Suhayb? He says he has a pain in his eye and he is eating fresh dates!”
When the Messenger of Allah said, “O Suhayb! You have a pain in your eye but you are eating fresh dates.”, he said, “O Messenger of Allah! I am eating them with the sound part of my eye.” This witty answer made the Prophet smile.
Then, Hazrat Suhayb said, “O Messenger of Allah! When you left Makkah, the polytheists imprisoned me. I gave them my wealth and bought (saved) my family and myself!”
The Messenger of Allah said, “Suhayb won! Suhayb won! Abu Yah¬ya! The sale turned out to be profitable! The sale turned out to be profitable!” He gave the good news and made Suhayb very happy. (5)
Then, the following verse was sent down:
“And there is the type of man who gives his life to earn the pleasure of Allah; and Allah is full of kindness to (His) devotees.” (6)
They Leave Quba
After staying in Quba more than ten nights, the Messenger of Allah set off to Madinah on Friday. He was on his camel, Qaswa. Hazrat Abu Bakr was behind him; there were about one hundred people with weapons from Banu Najjar, from the tribe of his maternal uncles and many Muslims of Madinah on the right and on the left.
The scene was challenging, pleasing and hopeful. The Messenger of Allah, who was left alone in Makkah, was being accompanied by hundreds of luminous people! They were uttering takbirs (Allahu Akbar); their hearts were full of joy. They had waited for the Prophet, who presented them with the real belief and Islam, which is the source of the happiness in the world and in the hereafter, impatiently for days. Now, they were experiencing and feeling the unmatched joy of meeting him.
FIRST FRIDAY PRAYER IN MADINAH
During the journey, the Messenger of Allah turned to the left side and reached the land of Banu Salim b. Awf. When they arrived at a place called Ranuna, it was time for the Friday prayer. The Prophet dismounted his camel in the middle of the Ranuna valley, the place of the Friday Mosque, and performed the Friday prayer there.
It was the first Friday prayer the Prophet performed in Madinah.
The Prophet recited two sermons, one after the other, there. After thanking and praising Allah, he addressed the Muslims as follows:
“O people! Make preparations for the hereafter when you are healthy. You know very well that every one of you will be asked about the sheep that you left without a shepherd on the Day of Judgment. Then, God Almighty will say to him, without any intermediary, directly, ‘Did My Messenger not come and inform you? I gave you property and I granted you many bounties. What did you prepare for yourself?’ That person will look to the right and left but will not see anything. When he looks to the front, he will see nothing but Hell! Then, anyone who can save himself from the fire even with a half date should give it away at once. If he cannot find a half date, he should save himself by kalima at-tayyiba [nice word]. Through it, one good deed is rewarded by ten to seven hundred times. May Allah’s peace, mercy and bounties be on you!” (7)
The Second Sermon
The Messenger of Allah stated the following in his second sermon:
“I praise Allah. I praise Allah and I ask His help. We took refuge in Allah from the evil of our souls and our bad deeds. He whom Allah guides is rightly guided; but he whom Allah leaves to stray,- for him wilt thou find no protector to lead him to the Right Way.
I witness that there is no god but Allah. He is One; He has no partners.
The Friday Mosque
The best word is the word of Allah. A person whose heart Allah decorates with the Quran, whom Allah includes in Islam though he was an unbeliever, who prefers the Quran to other words will definitely be saved.
Doubtlessly, the Book of Allah is the most beautiful and eloquent word. Love what Allah loves. Love Allah heartily. Do not get tired of the word of Allah and mentioning the names and attributes of Allah. Do not let the word of Allah cause gloom in your heart because the word of Allah distinguishes the best ones among everything. It informs you about the best deeds, the prophets, who are the most distinguished people, and the best stories; it states what is halal and haram. Worship Allah and do not associate any partners with Him. Fear Him truly.
Do good deeds and confirm them with your tongue.
Love one another with the word of Allah. Know very well that Allah punishes severely those who break their promise.
May Allah’s peace be upon you!” (8)
In the first pledge of Aqaba, the Muslims of Madinah had promised to protect the Messenger of Allah fully when he arrived in their land.
After staying in Quba for a while, the Messenger of Allah was about to enter Madinah, the heart of their land; it was time for them to keep their promise.
Therefore, the Messenger of Allah finished the second sermon by stating that God Almighty would punish severely those who broke their promise.
1. Ibn Hisham, ibid., V. 2, p. 137; Ibn Sa’d, ibid., V. 1, p. 233.
2. Ibn Hisham, ibid., V. 2, p. 138; Ibn Sa’d, ibid., V. 1, p. 233.
3. Halabi, Insan, V. 2, p. 233.
4. at-Tawba, 108.
5. Ibn Sa’d, Tabaqat, V. 3, p. 227-229.
6. al-Baqara, 207.
7. Ibn Hisham, Sirah, V. 2, p. 146.
8. Ibn Hisham, ibid., V. 2, p. 147.
