02. Madinah Munawwara ke fazaail [ Virtues of Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah]

 Virtues of Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah

Al-Madinah possesses innumerable virtues and uncountable distinctions, and its rank is exalted with Allah and His Messenger(ﷺ) And confirmation of this rank and proof of Al- Madinah’s virtue have been reported in Prophetic Ahadith and narrations from the  Companions(رضي الله عنهم). And the Ahadith and the supplications of the Prophet(ﷺ)  confirm that it combines the blessings of this world and the Hereafter; it is reported in the Hadith of’ Aishah(رضی اللہ عنہا)that Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  said:

اللَّهُمَّ حَيْبُ إِلَيْنَا الْمَدِينَةَ كَحُبْنَا مَكَّةَ أَوْ أَشَدَّ اللَّهُمْ بَارِكْ لَنَا فِي صَاعِنَا، وَفِي مُدْنَا، وَصَحْحْهَا لَنَا، وَانقُلْ حُمَّاهَا إِلَى الْجُحْفَةِ.

“O Allah! Make Al-Madinah beloved to us, as we love Makkah or more. O Allah! Make it conducive to health, and bless us in its Sa [8] and in its Mudd[9], and transfer its fever to Al-Juhfah.”[10]

And Allâh the Most High answered His Messenger(ﷺ) , and Al-Madinah remains shaded by this fine supplication, blessed in its way of life; and Al-Madinah continues to be among the most beloved of places on earth – if not the most beloved place in the heart of every Muslim, in answer to this supplication. And how often did the Prophet(ﷺ)  supplicate for its blessings! It is reported on the authority of Anas bin Malik(رضي الله عنه) that he heard Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  saying:

اللَّهُمَّ اجْعَلْ بِالْمَدِينَةِ ضِعْفَيْ مَا جَعَلْتَ بِمَكَّةَ مِنَ الْبَرَكَةِ “

“O Allah! Bestow upon Al-Madinah twice the blessings which You bestowed upon Makkah.”[11]

And in the Sahihain, it is reported in the Hadith of ‘Abdullah bin Zaid bin ‘Asim(رضي الله عنه) from the  Prophet(ﷺ)  that he said:

“Verily, Abraham declared Makkah as inviolable and supplicated for its inhabitants, and I declare Al- Madinah to be inviolable as Abraham declared Makkah inviolable, and I have supplicated (Allah) to bless its Sâ’ and its Mudd (two units of measure) twice as Abraham did for the inhabitants of Makkah.”[12]

Abdullah bin ‘Umar(رضي الله عنه) said that he heard his father, ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab saying:

“When the conditions in Al-Madinah became hard and the prices of things went high, the Prophet(ﷺ)  said: ‘Be patient, O people of Al-Madinah! And receive glad tidings, for I have invoked Allâh’s blessings on your Sa’ and your Mudd. And eat together, and do not separate, for the food of one man is sufficient for two and the food of two is sufficient for four and the food of four is sufficient for five or six, and verily, the blessing is in the congregation.”[13]

And among the Ahadith reported by Muslim (and not Al- Bukhari) is the Hadith of

Abu Hurairah(رضي الله عنه), who narrated:

اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ لَنَا فِي ثَمَرِنَا ، وَبَارِكْ لَنَا فِي مَدِينَتِنَا ، وَبَارِكْ لَنَا فِي صَاعِنَا ، وَبَارِكْ لَنَا فِي مُدْنَا اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَبْدُكَ وَخَلِيلُكَ وَنَبِيُّكَ، وَإِنِّي عَبْدُكَ وَنَبِيُّكَ ، وَإِنَّهُ دَعَاكَ لِمَكَّةَ، وَإِنِّي أَدْعُوكَ لِلْمَدِينَةِ بِمِثْلِ مَا دَعَاكَ لمكة وَمِثْلَهُ مَعَهُ

“On seeing the first crop yield, the people would bring it to the Prophet(ﷺ)  and if the

Prophet(ﷺ)  took it, he would say: ‘O Allah! Bless for us our city and bless for us our Sa’ and bless for us our Mudd. O Allah! Verily, Abraham is Your slave, Your Khalil[14] and Your Prophet and he supplicated You for Makkah, and I supplicate You for Al-Madinah (to bless it with) th same as he supplicated for Makkah plus the same again.’ Then he would call the youngest boy with him and he would give him that yield. “[15]

[8: Sa: A dry measure equivalent to four scoops of an average man’s hands.]

[9: Mudd: A dry measure equivalent to two handfuls.]

[10: Al-Bukhari (1889) and Muslim (1376).]

[11: Al-Bukhari (1885) and Muslim (1369).]

[12: Al-Bukhari (2129) and Muslim (1360).]

[13: Al-Bazzar in his Musnad (1/240) with a Hasan (sound) chain of narrators.]

[14: Khalil: Friend.]

[15: Muslim (1373).]

And Faith is centered and gathered in Al-Madinah, as Abu Hurairah(رضي الله عنه) narrated that Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  said:

“Verily, Faith will recede to Al-Madinah just as the serpent crawls back to its hole,[16]

That is, just as a snake goes forth from its hole in search of food, and then if anything frightens it, it returns to its hole, likewise, Faith went forth from Al-Madinah. And every believer has a desire within himself to go to Al-Madinah due to his love for the Prophet(ﷺ)  and this includes all times, because in the time of the Prophet(ﷺ) , they desired to go there to learn from him and in the time of the Companions(رضي الله عنهم) and the Tabi’un[17] and those who came after them, in order to follow their guidance and after that, to pray in his Mosque.

And among the great virtues of Al-Madinah is that it expels the evil people from it. As for the good person, he stands out and he remains therein, for it is reported on the authority of

Jabir(رضي الله عنه) that a Bedouin came to the Prophet(ﷺ)  and swore allegiance to Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ) . The next day, he came suffering from a severe fever and said: “Cancel my oath of allegiance,” but Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  refused three times and said:

“Al-Madinah is like the bellows which expels its impurities and purifies what is good therein. “[18]

And he(ﷺ)  said:

“Verily, it removes impurities just as fire removes impurities from silver.[19]

And what is meant is the sinners.

And no one from among the sinners is expelled except that Allâh replaces him with a better person, for it is reported in one of the Ahadith collected by Muslim (and not Al- Bukhari) that Abu Hurairah(رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Prophet(ﷺ)  said:

“A time will come for the people (of Al-Madinah) when a man will invite his cousin and any other near relation: ‘Come (and settle) at (a place) where living is easy, come (and settle) at (a place) where living is easy, but Al-Madinah will be better for them, did they but know it! By Him in Whose Hand my life is, none

[16: Al-Bukhari (1876) and Muslim (147)]

[17: Tabi ‘un: Those who met and learnt from the Companions.(رضي الله عنهم)]

[18: Al-Bukhari (1883) and Muslim (1383)]

[19: Muslim (1381)]

amongst them would go out (of the city) with a dislike for it, but Allâh would make his successor in it someone better than him. Behold, Al-Madinah is like a bellows which eliminates the impurities from it. And the Last Hour will not come until Al-Madinah banishes its evils just as a bellows eliminates the impurities from iron.”[20]

But if someone left it for some reason or other without bearing any dislike for it, there is no objection to that, because the Prophet(ﷺ)  said:

“None amongst them would go out (of the city) with a dislike for it…[21]

And it is clear from the Hadith that Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  used to encourage people to live in Al-Madinah, because he knew of the bounties of this world and the Hereafter which exists therein. And it is reported in the Hadith of Sa’d(رضي الله عنه) from the Prophet(ﷺ)  that he said:

“No one will remain constant in the face of hunger and meager income and hardship therein, except that I will be an intercessor or a witness for him on the Day of Resurrection. “[22]

And if the inhabitant of Al-Madinah possessed nothing good except this, it would be enough for him. And if Al-Madinah possessed no virtue except this, it would be the greatest bounty. And the Companions of Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  knew the bounty of living in Al-Madinah and they patiently endured its difficulties, hoping to share this bounty; and for those who wished to leave it for another land, they advised them not to do so.

It is reported on the authority of Sa’eed bin Abu Sa’eed, from Abu Sa’eed, the freed slave of Al-Mahri, that he came to Abu Sa’eed Al-Khudri during the nights of (turmoil of) Al-Harrah and asked his advice about migrating from Al-Madinah and he complained of its high prices and the large number of his family members and he informed him that he could not stand the hardships of Al-Madinah, he said to him: “Woe to you; I will not advise you to do it, for I heard Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  saying: ‘No one will endure the hardships of Al-Madinah and its privations without my being an intercessor or a witness on his behalf on the Day of Resurrection, if he is a Muslim’.”[23] And he urged (the Muslims) to die there, saying: “Whoever was able to die in Al-Madinah, then let him do so, becauseW hoever died in Al-Madinah, I will be an intercessor for him on the Day of Resurrection.”[24]

[20:  Muslim (1384).]

[21: Muslim (1381).]

[22: Muslim (1363).]

[23: Muslim (1374).]

[24: Ahmad (74/2) and At-Tirmidhi (3917).]

And among the virtues of the City of the Prophet(ﷺ)  is that he dispraised those who cause fear to its inhabitants or plotted against them, for it is recorded in Sahih Al-Bukhari, on the authority of ‘Aishah(رضی اللہ عنہا) that[25] she heard Sa’d(رضي الله عنه) saying:

“I heard the Prophet(ﷺ)  saying: ‘Whoever plots against the people of Al-Madinah, will dissolve as salt dissolves in water.”

And An-Nasa’i reported in the Hadith of As-Sa’ib bin Khallad:

“Whoever caused the people of Al-Madinah to fear by oppressing them, Allâh will cause him to fear and Allâh’s curse will be upon him.”[26]

And among the Ahadith reported by Muslim (without Al- Bukhari) is by way of’Amir bin Sa’d, from his father:

“None wishes to harm the people of Al-Madinah, except that Allâh will cause him to be melted in the Fire as lead melts or as salt melts in water.” [27]

And the highest limit of warning is the indication of the Prophet(ﷺ)  that when a person causes fear to the people of Al- Madinah, it is as if he caused fear to him(ﷺ) . And it has been reported that Allah will not accept neither his obligatory acts of worship nor his supererogatory acts of worship, for Jabir bin ‘Abdullah(رضي الله عنه) narrated that Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  said:

“Whoever caused the people of Al-Madinah to fear, the curse of Allah and that of the angels and all of the people is upon him; Allâh will accept from him neither Sarf[28]nor Adl[29][30]

And in the Hadith of Jabir(رضي الله عنه) it is reported that he said: “Perish the person who causes Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  to fear.” His two sons or one of them said: “O my father! How could he cause fear to Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  when he is already dead?” He said that he heard Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  saying:

“Whoever caused the people of Al-Madinah to fear, has caused fear to what is between my two sides (i.e., to me).[31]

And in another version:

“Whoever caused the people of Al-Madinah to fear, has caused fear to what is between these two.” – and he placed his hands in his sides under his breast. [32]

And among the virtues of Al-Madinah is that neither plague nor Ad-Dajjal may enter it, for a number of authentic Ahadith have been reported to that effect, as it is reported in the Sahihain

in the Hadith of Abu Huraira h:

“On the roads to Al-Madinah are angels- neither plague nor Ad-Dajjal may enter it.”[33]

[25: Aishah bint Sa’d bin Abu Waqqas,(رضي الله عنه)]

[26: Majma’uz-Zawa’id (3/306). Al-Haithami said: “All of its narrators are trustworthy.”]

[27: Muslim (1363).]

[28: Sarf: Recompense.]

[29: Adl: Compensation.]

[30: 17 An-Nasa’i in Al-Kubra (4265) and As-Sahihah (2304).]

[31: Ahmad (3/354).]

[32: Ibn Abi Shaibah (6/409).]

[33: [Al-Bukhari (1880) and Muslim (1379)]

And it has also been reported in the Sahihain in the Hadith of Anas(رضي الله عنه) from the Prophet(ﷺ) :

“There will be no land which will not be covered by Ad-Dajjal but Makkah and Al-Madinah, and there will be no passage among the passages leading to them which would not be guarded by angels arranged in rows. Then he (Ad-Dajjal) will appear in a barren place adjacent to Al-Madinah and it will rock three times so that every disbeliever and hypocrite will get out of it and head towards him.” [34]

And in one of the Ahadith reported by Al-Bukhari (and not Muslim), Abu Bakrah narrated that the Prophet(ﷺ)  said:

“The terror of Al-Masih Ad-Dajjal will not enter Al- Madinah; on that day, it will have seven gates and on each gate there will be two angels.” [35]

In addition to these virtues, there are two great virtues which no other virtue can equal and they are: (i) that in it is the grave of the Prophet(ﷺ)  and (ii) in it is the Mosque of the Prophet(ﷺ)

and we shall speak about them-if Allah wills- separately.

Regarding the virtue of Al-Madinah, Malik bin Anas says: “It is the home of migration and the Sunnah and it encompasses the martyrs and Allah the Almighty, the All- Powerful chose it for His Prophet(ﷺ)  and placed his grave therein and in it is a Garden from the Gardens of Paradise and in it is the pulpit of Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ) [36]. Also in it is Quba’ Mosque.[37]

[34: (Al-Bukhari (1881) and Muslim (2943).]

[35: Al-Bukhari (7125,7126).]

[36: Al-Bukhari (1888) and Muslim (1390, 1391)]

[37: The first mosque built by the Prophet(ﷺ)  upon his arrival in Al- Madinah.]

              The Love of the Messenger(ﷺ)  for Al-Madinah and His Declaration of its Inviolability

You can sense the love of Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  in all of his sayings regarding it and you feel it in his supplications for goodness for it; and he asked Allah that He make Al- Madinah beloved to them, saying:

اللَّهُمَّ حَيْبُ إِلَيْنَا الْمَدِينَةَ كَحُبْنَا مَكَّةَ أَوْ أَشَدَّ

“O Allah! Make Al-Madinah beloved to us, as we love Makkah, or more.” [38]

And there is no doubt that his supplication is answered and the Ahadith which inform us of his love for Al-Madinah are numerous: Look at his words:

“Al-Madinah is the place to which I migrated and in it is my house and it is an obligation upon my people (i.e., the Muslims) to protect my neighbors.”[39]

In this Hadith one sees the affection and love which needs no evidence and does not require explanation.

And a Hadith is reported on the authority of Anas(رضي الله عنه) which makes clear this love and confirms it, for it states that whenever the Prophet(ﷺ)  returned from a journey and saw the walls of Al-Madinah, he would hasten his mount and if he was on a horse, he would make it gallop due to his love for it (i.e., Al-Madinah),[40]

 ✿The Inviolability of Al-Madinah

The inviolability of Al-Madinah is one of its greatest virtues, but we assign for it a separate heading due to its importance and the Islamic rulings connected to it. And Al-Madinah’s inviolability is confirmed in authentic Ahadith, such as the Hadith of ‘Abdullah bin Zaid bin ‘Asim, who narrated that the Prophet(ﷺ)  said:

“Verily, Abraham(علیہ السلام) declared Makkah inviolable and supplicated for its inhabitants and I have declared Al- Madinah inviolable just as Abraham(علیہ السلام) declared Makkah inviolable and I have supplicated (for Al- Madinah) in its Sa’and its Mudd (to be showered with) twice the blessings which Abraham invoked for the people of Makkah,”[41]

And this Hadith is a proof for those who say that Al-Madinah is inviolable and that is the saying of the majority and it was transmitted from the Prophet by more than ten Companions.

And it is reported in the Sahihain in the Hadith of’Ali bin Abi Talib(رضي الله عنه) from the

 Prophet(ﷺ)  that he said:

الْمَدِينَةُ حَرَمُ مَا بَيْنَ غَيْرِ إِلَى ثَوْرٍ ، فَمَنْ أَحْدَثَ فِيهَا حَدَثًا أَوْ آوَى مُحْدِثًا، فَعَلَيْهِ لَعْنَهُ اللهِ وَالْمَلَائِكَةِ وَالنَّاسِ أَجْمَعِينَ ، لَا يَقْبَلُ اللَّهُ مِنْهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ صَرْفًا وَلَا عَدْلاً”.

All of Al-Madinah that lies between ‘Ayr and Thawr (mountains) is inviolable, so whoever commits a sin therein or gives sanctuary to a sinner therein, the curse of Allah and that of the angels and all of the people is upon him. And Allâh will accept neither Sarf nor ‘Adl from him on the Day of Resurrection.[42]

Also in the Sahihain, in the Hadith of Abu Hurairah(رضي الله عنه) it is reported that he said: “If I saw gazelles in Al-Madinah grazing, I would not startle them.” And the Prophet(ﷺ)  said:

“What lies between its two mountains is inviolable.”[43]

This proves that hunting therein and cutting down its trees are forbidden; and it has been reported in the Hadith also that what lies between Thawr and ‘Ayr is inviolable.

Thawr is a small mountain behind Mount Uhud and its color is red and it rises up straight, like a man standing and the airport road now passes behind it, leading to Jeddah, and it

[38:Al-Bukhari(1889) and Muslim (1376)

[39:Ad-Dailami in Al-Firdaws (6953).]

[40::Al-Bukhari (1802).]

[41:Al-Bukhari (2129) and Muslim (1360).]

[42:Al-Bukhari (1870) and Muslim (1360).]

[43:Al-Bukhari (1873) and Muslim (1372).]

skirts the borders of the Haram[44] so that non-Muslims may pass along it. As for ‘Ayr, it is a large, black mountain, which is located to the northeast of Dhul-Hulaifah.[45]

This inviolability requires that its game be not chased, nor its trees cut down, nor may its lost property be picked up. In all respects, it is like Makkah, for it is reported in a Hadith narrated by ‘Ali bin Abi Talib(رضي الله عنه) that Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  said:

“Its plants may not be cut down, nor may its game be chased, nor may its lost property be picked up except by one who searches for its owner and it is not right that its trees be cut down, except so that a man may provide fodder for his camel.”[46]

And it is narrated by Jabir bin ‘Abdullah(رضي الله عنه) that Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ) said:

“Its trees may not be shorn of their leaves, nor its leaves”[47]

And all of the Ahadith reported confirm that Al-Madinah is inviolable (Haram) and its game is forbidden to be hunted and its trees and grass may not be cut and it is not lower in the degree of its inviolability than the Haram (in Makkah).[48]

[44: Haram: The inviolable area, the area forbidden to non-Muslims.]

[45: Ad-Durruth-Thamin by Ash-Shanqiti (p. 17016).]

[46: Abu Dawud (2035)]

[47: Abu Dawud (2039)]

[48: Ibn Uthaimin said in his Ikhtiyarat: “The correct opinion is that it is not permissible to hunt in the Haram of Al-Madinah.” Although he said regarding the matter of the penalty for hunting: “The correct opinion is that there is no penalty imposed for hunting in Al-Madinah, but if the Judge considered that a person who transgresses the law on hunting should be punished by taking away the game he has caught or by imposing a monetary fine on him, there is no objection.” (Those who wish like to read it are advised to refer to Ikhtiyarat of The Uthaimin (p. 244).]

 ✿Mount’Ayr

‘Ayr (with the Arabic vowel sound Fathah over the letter Ayn) is a mountain in the south of Al- Madinah Al- Munawwarah and it is the limit of the inviolable area in the south and the

Prophet(ﷺ) passed by its eastern side when he arrived as an emigrant (from Makkah); and it has been reported in Ahadith that the Prophet(ﷺ)  declared inviolable what lies between ‘Ayr and Thawr. And he descended at Wadi Ranuna’ from its eastern slopes[49]. And ‘Ayyad said: “And the rejection of ‘Ayr being a part of Al-Madinah is without foundation, for it is well known and it has been mentioned in the poetry of the Arabs.“[50]

[49:Ad-Durruth-Thamin by Ash-Shanqiti (p.252-253).]

[50:See Mu’jamul-Buldan (4/194 in the margin)]

 ✿Mount Thawr

It is well known that the cave in which Allah’s Messenger(ﷺ)  and his Companion, Abu Bakr As-Siddiq(رضي الله عنه) hid, is located in a mountain called Mount Thawr and that is in Makkah, as is known. And there is another mountain in Al-Madinah which is called Mount Thawr and the people of Al-Madinah during the Jahiliya[51] and after Islam know it, and it is a small, red mountain, which stands like a bull behind Mount Uhud. And when Thawr is mentioned in a genitive construction, governed by the word Mount, then that is Mount Thawr in Al-Madinah. As for the one in Makkah, it is Thawr, without being governed by the word Mount. And that completes the distinction between them and any confusion is removed Allâh the Most High willing. And it has been reported in the Hadith that the Prophet(ﷺ)  declared what lies between Thawr and ‘Ayr to be inviolable. And the airport road passes to the north of this Mount Thawr, which leads to Jeddah and passes by the Pilgrims’ City. And the reason why it passes behind this mountain is to allow non- Muslims to pass by it outside the limits of Al-Madinah.[52]

[51:Jahiliyah; The days of ignorance prior to the start of the Prophet’s Mission]

[52:Ad-Durruth-Thamin by Ash-Shanqiti (p. 200-201).]

REFERENCE:

Book: “History of Madina Munawwarah”

Prepared by a group of Scholars  under the supervision of  Shaikh Safir ur Rahman Mubarak puri. (Darussalam)