MY UMRAH: Journey to Madinah (From Asian Image)

MY UMRAH: Journey to Madinah

12:00pm Friday 12th June 2009

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In the second part of a personal account of his recent visit to the holy lands Maulana Hanif Dudhwala tells of his time in Madinah.

We had mixed emotions as we left Makkah and headed towards the blessed city of Madinah the final resting place of the Best of creations, the Holy Prophet Mohammad (SAW).

En route to Madinah, the Hijrah (migration) of the Holy Prophet (SAW) comes to mind again and again. Today we were travelling in luxury and comfort in an air conditioned vehicle, so different from the time when this journey was undertaken on camels in the scorching heat of the desert.

It was late evening when we arrived in Madinah Munawwarah, The Illuminated City. The calm & peaceful atmosphere of Madinah is just beyond imagination, for surely this is the place the dwellers of which invited the Holy Prophet (SAW) to be their guest, this is where He (SAW) spent the last 10 years of his blessed life and this is the place where He (SAW) will rest until the Day of Judgement.

It was a very emotional moment as we entered door no.1 known as Bab-us-Salam in order to present our salutations to the Holy Prophet (SAW) & His 2 Companions, Hazrat Abu Bakr (R.A.) & Hazrat Umar (R.A.).

We walked along the gallery and soon we were within the sight of the resting place of the Holy Prophet(SAW).

Words will do no justice to the feelings of that precise moment.

Here we were, standing a few metres away from the Leader of the Prophets and Leader of the whole of mankind, the same Exalted Personality whose sacrifices had blessed us with this beautiful religion of Islam, we presented our Salams and the Salams of our near and dear ones who had made special requests.

Moving along a few paces, we were standing facing the Blessed Grave of our Prophet`s lifetime Companion Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA).

Once again, the sacrifices made by this First Khalifah of Islam comes to mind & as he was always by the side of the Holy Prophet (SAW) during his lifetime, The Almighty has blessed him with a resting place right next to the Prophet (SAW).

After presenting our salams to Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) we moved a little further to face the Blessed Grave of Hazrat Umar (RA), the same Hazrat Umar(RA) whose coming into the fold of Islam strengthened the Muslims and whose courage and valour saw Islam flourish within a very short period.

After presenting our Salam to Hazrat Umar (R.A.) we left the gallery through the door of `Baqi`. Masjid-e- Nabawi, known as the Prophet`s Masjid, houses the graves of the Holy Prophet (SAW) and His 2 Companions. Upon the arrival of the Holy Prophet (SAW) to Madinah over 1400 years ago, one of the first tasks to be completed was the construction of this Masjid.

Over the centuries, many extensions have taken place and today the size is just unbelievable.

The most famous sign of Masjid-e-Nabawi is the Green Dome, this dome has been erected upon the chambers which house the Blessed Grave, it is part of the original Masjid which was present in the time of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) The segregation facilities within the Masjid is remarkable.

Totally separate designated entrances for Sisters with separate praying areas. The Masjid is now open 24 hours and there are 3 specific timings (morning, afternoon & night) when sisters are allowed to present their Salams.

The Blessed Grave of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) is situated at the front of the Masjid. The section between the grave & the Mimbar (Pulpit) from where the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) used to deliver His sermon is known as a Garden from the Gardens of Paradise, this particular section is always very crowded with thousands of worshippers.

This section has many blessed areas including the Mehrab (place from where our Prophet (S.A.W.) led the Salaah) & specific spots where prayers & forgiveness is accepted, these are marked by pillars.

We were very fortunate to perform our Salaah a number of times within this Garden of Paradise, the feelings of tranquillity & peace here is just amazing.

We spent 11 truly memorable days in Madinah. We visited many historical sites such as Mount Uhud (where the battle of Uhud took place), Masjid-e-Quba (the first Masjid to be constructed), Masjid-e-Qiblatayn (where the Qiblah changed) & Jannatul Baqi (The Blessed Graveyard of Madinah Munawwarah).

As with all things in this world, our stay in the Holy Lands came to an end.

We departed from Madinah on Sunday 19 April and en route to Jeddah requested the driver to take us through the plains of Badar, the place where the first battle of Islam took place.

We offered our Zohar Salaah at Badar and after making a brief stop we moved on to Jeddah airport for an evening flight to Dubai & from there on to Birmingham.

In total we spent 25 days in the Holy Lands, each and every moment will be cherished by all of us for a very long time to come.

I take this opportunity to request all readers to embark on this journey and make a humble request to remember us all in their duas during their visit.

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