Voices of Islam (82 page)

Meditating on Mustafa’s words, it occurs to me that the timeless implica- tions of the emigration might still have a bearing on my present journey. ‘‘But isn’t it true, my brother, that the Messenger of God permitted some new converts to make a vow of a limited-term emigration to Medina?’’

‘‘There are some recorded examples of this. Such provisional residence in Medina enabled new Muslims to deepen their knowledge and practice of Islam. It also allowed them to imbibe the sanctity and wisdom of the Prophet and to be inspired by the example of his luminary companions.’’

Summoning my courage, I suggest, ‘‘Could the
ziyara
to Medina be considered a temporary emigration?’’

‘‘I have never quite looked at it in that way,’’ Mustafa admits. After a few moments, he remarks, ‘‘Perhaps one could think of your question in light of the famous
hadith
(saying) of the Prophet:

Verily actions will be judged by God according to the intentions behind them, and verily a man will have a reward for what he intends. So whoever’s emigration is for the sake of God and His Messenger, his emigration will be counted for the sake of God and His Messenger; and whoever’s emigration was for the sake of some worldly gain or for a woman he wishes to marry, then his emigration will be counted for the sake of that for which he emigrated.’’
4

Gratifi d by his response, I take further inspiration from a verse in the Qur’an, which speaks of believers ‘‘fl unto God and His Prophet’’ (Qur’an 4:100). For me, the past days spent in Mecca have been a means of seeking refuge in God. I pray that He will accept my sojourn in Medina as a mode of emigration to His Prophet.

A few minutes later, Mustafa speaks again, ‘‘Tonight we should complete this 420 kilometer trip in less than four hours. Not so long ago it used to take up to two weeks by caravan. For centuries, countless generations of pilgrims braved the hardships and perils of this overland trek to Medina. In our age, millions of Muslims travel to the sanctuary every year. Since the
ziyara
is not, legally speaking, an obligatory component of the Greater or Lesser Pilgrimage, what is it that continues to motivate the believers to visit the Prophet’s City?’’

A Spiritual Tour of the Prophet’s City (Medina)
77

Suspecting that his question is only rhetorical, I nevertheless respond, ‘‘Love of the Prophet.’’

‘‘No doubt,’’ he nods. ‘‘As the Messenger of God once said, ‘Not one of you truly believes unless I am more beloved to him than his father and son and all of humanity.’
5
This devoted affection naturally manifests itself in an ardent desire to visit the Prophet’s tomb in Medina. The word
ziyara
itself implies the visitation of a grave. However the basis of this motivation in Islamic law is controversial. Some scholars have argued that the only admis- sible intention for traveling to Medina is to pray in the Prophet’s Mosque, after which it is highly recommended to offer salutations at his grave. Among the Prophet’s reported sayings that support this reasoning is one which states that there are only three mosques which justify a long journey to worship in them: that of Mecca, his own mosque in Medina, and the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.’’
6

Muslim theologians and jurists have written tomes about the contentious question of what constitutes a legitimate intention for traveling to the City of the Prophet. Ultimately, their opinions are based on divergent emphases on the transcendent and immanent aspects of God. The Muslim Testimony of Faith (
al-Shahada
) embraces both by declaring the truth of God’s absolute oneness as well as the status of the Prophet Muhammad as His Messenger.

‘‘Yet it is extraordinary,’’ Mustafa continues, ‘‘that Medina shelters the only burial place of God’s many prophets that can be unmistakably identified. The fact that the Messenger is interred in its hallowed soil is viewed by some as the most peerless of the city’s distinguishing virtues.
7
A couple of tradi- tions of the Prophet indicate that each of us is made of the specific earth in which our bodies will eventually be buried.
8
Thus, the Prophet, the Best of God’s Creation, is of the same substance as the blessed dust of Medina. Some have argued that this unique distinction renders Medina superior to any other spot on earth, including Mecca. Not all scholars accept this conclusion, but none would contest that the city is unrivaled in the number of Prophetic references to the special spiritual blessing (
baraka
) it embodies, especially localizations of Paradisiacal grace.’’

After a few minutes, Mustafa resumes. ‘‘As with Mecca, Medina’s status as a holy sanctuary carries with it a number of legal restrictions. My brother, do you know what any of these are?’’

I venture a partial reply. ‘‘I believe that it is not permitted to hunt game within its precincts.’’

Glancing at me approvingly, Mustafa cites several other prohibitions, including bearing arms with hostile intent, damaging its trees, and transport- ing rocks or soil outside of its boundaries. He then falls silent and I drift off to sleep.

I am awakened an hour later as we pull into a brightly lit truck stop. It is 2:30
AM
in the morning; time to take our final meal. Soon we are eating and sipping tea in a simple coffee house. Our joint repast allows me to study my

78
Voices of the Spirit

companions more closely. Mustafa’s serene face shows few signs of age, but his wispy grey beard suggests he is in his sixties. His dignified comportment bespeaks an upbringing in which piety and propriety were the unquestioned norm. Our driver, Ahmed, is Pakistani. With his handsome smile and jet- black hair, he looks to be about 35. In pidgin dialectical Arabic, he tells me he has been working as a Medina-based chauffeur for 10 years. After our meal, we offer the predawn prayer with other clientele in an adjoining room where a rudimentary, hand-painted arch on the southern wall indicates the direction of Mecca.

After driving for about 45 minutes, a distinctively Saudi road-sign flashes past. Like those on the outskirts of Mecca, it bars non-Muslims from pro- ceeding toward the sacred territory, instructing them to take the next exit to a detour road. We come to a checkpoint, where our identification papers are checked. Soon we are moving again in a roughly northeasterly direction and I eagerly scan the landscape for a glimpse of our destination. To our right a jagged mountain is etched against the eastern sky, which grows brighter by the minute. As we pass beyond the rocky curtain, the morning sun is just breaching the horizon. Spread out beneath it is the legendary, forbidden City of the Prophet,
Madinat al-Nabi.

Halting at the side of the road, we emerge to take in the full panorama. In the heart of the sprawling patchwork of white and green, I can make out the minarets of the Prophet’s Mosque. The sight fills me with inexpressible joy. I exclaim, ‘‘May God shower His blessings and benedictions upon His Envoy Muhammad!’’ Mustafa then draws my attention to several prominent land- marks. Gesturing to center left, he points out a solitary massif at Medina’s northern flank. ‘‘That is Mount Uhud,’’ he explains, ‘‘which lies just within the sanctuary’s boundary in that direction.’’ Then, pointing to our right, he says, ‘‘The southern limit of the sacred territory extends to the base of that other peak, which is called Jabal ‘Ayr. Some Prophetic traditions depict these two mountains as antipodes. While Jabal Uhud is a blessed mountain of Paradise that loves us and is loved by us, Jabal ‘Ayr is described as a cursed mountain of Hell that detests us and is detested by us.’’
9

Mustafa looks at me, as if to gauge my reaction. ‘‘This may sound irrational in our age, but we must remember that the Prophet’s perception embraced the spiritual dimensions of both time and space. In Medina, he gave voice to numerous supernatural observations, especially those related to divine
bar- aka,
which is so abundant here.’’ He then points out the course of a dry streambed to our left. ‘‘An example of this is Wadi al-‘Aqiq. When the Prophet prayed there he felt an exceptional celestial presence and referred to it as
al-Wadi al-Mubarak
(the Blessed Valley).
10
The large mosque you see nearby is where the people of Medina don the pilgrim’s garb and make the vows of pilgrimage to Mecca.’’

Motioning toward a dark expanse east of Wadi al-‘Aqiq, Mustafa observes, ‘‘That lava tract, called Harrat al-Wabra, marks the western perimeter of the

A Spiritual Tour of the Prophet’s City (Medina)
79

sanctuary. Harrat Waqim, a larger plain of volcanic rock, defi its limit to the east. The two lava tracts merge to the south of the oasis of Medina. Because the sharp, rough surface of this basalt terrain is almost impossible for loaded camels or mounted warhorses to traverse, it provided Medina with a natural defensive barrier on three sides. For this reason, armies or caravans coming from Mecca or the coast usually followed the sandy bottom of Wadi al-‘Aqiq northward to a point just southwest of Mount Uhud, from where they could advance southward across a saline plain towards the city. The armies of the Quraysh twice attempted to attack Medina by means of this route.’’
11

‘‘Wouldn’t the city have been protected by its fortified walls?’’ I ask, now doing a bit of testing myself. I am aware that the common image of Medina as a walled stronghold has virtually nothing to do with the actual layout of the city in the Prophet’s time.

‘‘No,’’ Mustafa replies. ‘‘The first city walls weren’t constructed until more than two-and-a-half centuries after the Prophet’s death. During his lifetime, the Prophet’s mosque and the residential quarter around it constituted the nucleus of the oasis, but most of the inhabitants lived in widely dispersed farming settlements according to tribal affiliation, including several indige- nous Jewish clans. Each settlement had one or more fortifi communal keeps to which residents retired in times of conflict.’’

Mustafa then points toward the suburb of Quba, whose celebrated mosque gleams white among date palm gardens. ‘‘Because of its relative elevation, the southern area of Medina is often referred to as
al-‘Aliya
(the Heights).
12
The northern zone, including the district around the Prophet’s Mosque, is called
al-Safila
(the Lowlands). The south-to-north inclination determines the flow of rare surface water and also that of underground channels, which feed the wells of the oasis. When there is a heavy rain, several rivulets drain off the surrounding lava plains, eventually merging into a major torrent bed that traverses the entire length of Medina. Called Wadi Buthan, this gulley was described by the Prophet as lying upon one of the channels of Paradise.’’
13

With that fi reminder of the heavenly nature of Medina, we continue driving eastward toward the city. ‘‘The Prophet and Abu Bakr (d. 634
CE
), his faithful friend and disciple,’’ Mustafa says, ‘‘descended near here after their miraculous escape from Mecca. Their arrival was the cause of great rejoicing among the Muslims. They stayed in Quba for a number of days, and the Prophet participated in the construction of its mosque.’’

We exit right and turn northward in the shadow of the magnificent prayer hall of the mosque of Quba. ‘‘When the Prophet departed Quba in search of a more permanent place of local residence,’’ Mustafa continues, ‘‘each settlement he passed through beseeched him to reside with them. But the Messenger of God told them that his undirected she-camel was under God’s Command. The Prophet only stopped when it was time for the noon prayer. It was Friday, and on that occasion he led the first public congregational

80
Voices of the Spirit

prayer and sermon.’’ Mustafa points out a mosque to our right, built at the historic spot, and continues, ‘‘Then he again let his camel wander until it finally kneeled at the location where he was to build his mosque and adjoin- ing dwellings.’’ Looking ahead, still some distance away, I behold the green dome of the Prophet’s Mosque.

The
ziyara
to Medina is governed by traditional protocol and, obviously, I must begin with the Prophet’s Mosque. But first I stop at my hotel, where I perform ritual ablutions and change into clean robes. Half an hour later, Mustafa and I set out on foot across the vast, marble-decked esplanade surrounding the sanctuary. For well over a millennium, the mosque was nestled in dense residential quarters behind fortified walls, but beginning in the late 1970s, these were gradually razed. By the late 1980s bulldozers had demolished the last vestiges of the old city to allow for the mosque’s unprecedented expansion and the radical reconfi of its environs. It saddens me to think of all the historic sites that were permanently erased, but, given the unprecedented numbers of pilgrims that now converge on Medina, the Saudi authorities probably had few options.

As a Saudi citizen, Mustafa evinces an understandable pride in the most recent expansion of the Prophet’s Mosque, which he often simply refers to as
al-Haram,
the Sanctuary. The floor space of the gargantuan prayer hall is fi times greater than the older structure, making it the second largest mosque in the world after Mecca. When the roof and the paved surface around it are used, up to a million Muslims can pray together here simultane- ously. The nine-year project was personally inaugurated in 1984 by the late King Fahd, whose honorific title, ‘‘Custodian of the Two Holy Sanctuaries,’’ is indicative of the immense prestige attached to the Kingdom’s guardianship of Mecca and Medina.

At the southwestern entrance of Bab al-Salam, the Portal of Salutation and Peace, we place our footwear in cubbyholes at the door. Pausing, Mustafa reminds me of the Qur’anic verse urging the believers not to raise their voices above that of the Prophet (Qur’an 73:2–4). He then whispers, ‘‘According to a hadith, Prophets continue to be conscious in their graves, so let us speak only in hushed voices inside.’’
14
As we enter, we utter the time-honored for- mula, ‘‘Peace be upon you, Oh Prophet of God, and God’s Mercy and Bless- ings! Oh God, forgive me my sins and open for me the doors of Your Mercy!’’