The Mosque of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم - Shaykh Ahsan Hanif

The Mosque of the Prophet ﷺ

These masjids are the most beloved places to Allah. As our Prophet told us ﷺ:

The most beloved of places to Allah are the masajid. (Sahih Muslim, Book 5, Hadith 6)

They are from the sha'air of Islam, from the outward symbols and landmarks of Islam. There is rarely a Muslim community across the world that you will go and visit except that they have for themselves a masjid. Whether they built a purpose-built masjid, whether they have a small room or a house that they rented and they converted that into a masjid. From Turkey in this country until the Outer Hebrides and all across the world where there are Muslim communities, you will find that they have masajid. And that is a practice and a tradition that we have taken from our Prophet ﷺ.

The Building of Masjid al-Nabawi

Urwah ibn al-Zubayr rahimahullah mentions in what is collected in Sahih al-Bukhari that when the Prophet ﷺ left from Makkah upon his hijrah, his migration to Medina, the first place that he settled or he went to was the tribe of Banu Amr ibn Awf. And he went to those people in what today is called the area of Quba in Medina, Masjid Quba. And he stayed there for approximately two weeks. And he laid there the foundation of the masjid, Masjid Quba. And then he left and he entered into the city of Medina itself.

And as the companions were coming towards him, as they were coming to greet him and to welcome him into this city, and as some of them tried to take the reins of the camel or the animal upon which the Prophet ﷺ was riding, he would tell them to stand back. And he let the camel proceed and he let it go until it stopped and settled in a place. And he said:

This, if Allah wills, is the place. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3906)

The Prophet ﷺ, when he said that this is the place, he wasn't referring to the place for his own house — that he would build a home for himself and his family, even though he needed a home in the city of Medina. He wasn't referring to a center where the poor and needy companions who had traveled and left behind their wealth and their families from Mecca and had now newly arrived in Medina would settle, because they too were also in need. Nor was he referring to a military camp or a military facility, because the Muslims were now under attack by the Quraysh of Mecca.

When the Prophet ﷺ said "this, if Allah wills, is the place," he was referring to the place where he would build his masjid — before he took a house and before he did anything else. The Prophet ﷺ began to build his own masjid. And the Prophet ﷺ along with the other companions would come and they would work together and they would lift rocks and boulders and stones and they would mix cement and mortar in order to build what would become the masjid of our Prophet ﷺ.

The companions mentioned that there was from amongst them a man from Yamama who was well-versed and had experience in building. So the Prophet ﷺ would say to the companions, "Let him mix the mortar because he knows how to do it."

Ammar ibn Yasir — in the hadith of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri رضي الله عنه collected in Sahih al-Bukhari — he says:

We were building the masjid of the Prophet ﷺ and all of us would carry one rock at a time, one stone boulder at a time. But Ammar ibn Yasir was carrying two at a time whilst everyone else was carrying one. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 447)

Ammar ibn Yasir رضي الله عنهما — a companion who had lost both of his parents, who were from the early martyrs of Islam — was carrying two at a time whilst everyone else was carrying one. The Prophet ﷺ saw him and said, "O Ammar, why don't you carry one like everyone else?" And he said, "No, Messenger of Allah, I can carry two." The Prophet ﷺ then said:

Woe to Ammar — he will be killed by an oppressive group. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 447)

The Prophet ﷺ himself would carry those stones to build his masjid and he would recite poetry — as is mentioned in Sahih al-Bukhari — poetry along with the companions, and he would say:

"This carrying of stones is more beloved to Allah than the wealth of Khaybar, because this is more dutiful to our Lord and it is more pure."

And he would say:

"O Allah, the true reward is the reward of the Hereafter. So Allah, shower Your mercy upon the Muhajireen and the Ansar." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2780)

The Simple Yet Profound Structure of the Masjid

The Prophet ﷺ built that masjid. And when it was complete, it was not a masjid that we would today recognise as a masjid — not something that we're familiar with as a masjid. It was a masjid that was built in a very simple form from the trunks of date palm trees. Its roof was thatched date palm leaves. And its stones were stones that were made from the rocks that they found in Medina. Its ground didn't have carpet and rugs that we have, but it was the sand that they would pray upon.

And that is why when rain would come into Medina, the Prophet ﷺ would command the muezzin to say:

Pray in your homes. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 666)

Because the water would come and it would mix with the sand and it would turn to mud — they couldn't pray in that masjid when it was raining. But despite its humble structure, despite aesthetically not looking as pleasing as perhaps one would imagine, that masjid was the center from which Islam spread. From that masjid, Islam spread across the world. Our religion today that we practice here 1400 years later in the UK and across the world — it is because of the teachings that spread from that masjid of the Prophet ﷺ.

The Masjid: The Hub of the Community

The masjid of the Prophet ﷺ wasn't just a place where the people came and they prayed and they left. It wasn't a place that was closed after the salah and it wouldn't reopen until the next salah. It wasn't a place where people only came to read Qur'an and they did nothing else. And yes, those are from the primary objectives and purposes of the masjid. For the Prophet ﷺ told us:

These masajid, they are for the remembrance of Allah and to establish the prayer and the recitation of the Qur'an. (Sahih Muslim, Book 2, Hadith 1122)

But that wasn't the only function of the masjid in the time of the Prophet ﷺ. He focused on the masjid before he focused on anything else because it became the center and the hub of the community — the place where all of the companions would come and gather. It was their center of learning and education. Companions like Abu Hurairah and Ibn Abbas and Ibn Umar and those illustrious companions, the scholars from amongst the companions — they graduated not from a university or an institution, but they graduated from the masjid of the Prophet ﷺ.

A Place of Learning

In the hadith of Abu Waqid al-Laythi رضي الله عنه collected in Sahih al-Bukhari, the Prophet ﷺ was teaching the companions in the masjid. Three men entered. One of them came and found a space at the front of the masjid, close to the Prophet ﷺ, and he sat there. The second one stayed at the back of the circle of the companions and sat at the back. And the third man stood, looked, and left.

The Prophet ﷺ, after he finished speaking, said: "Shall I not inform you of those three people?"

As for one of them, he came and wanted to come closer to Allah, so Allah brought him closer to Him. And as for the one who sat at the back of the circle, he was shy of Allah, so Allah was shy of him. And as for the last one who left, he turned away from Allah, so Allah turned away from him. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 66)

A Place of Celebration and Leisure

The masjid was a place where the companions could enjoy themselves on the day of Eid. For in the hadith of Aisha رضي الله عنها, she mentions that the Prophet ﷺ on the day of Eid allowed the Abyssinian companions to come and to play and wrestle in the masjid with shields and spears. And Aisha says that she saw and watched this with the Prophet ﷺ. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 454)

A Place of Community Affairs

The Prophet ﷺ made his masjid a place where the people would gather and when there were serious issues that the community faced, the Prophet ﷺ would address his companions from the masjid. In the battle of Tabuk, when the companions and the Muslims were in need of this army — this army that would go and face the Byzantine Romans — the Prophet ﷺ gathered the companions in the masjid and he said to them:

Whosoever prepares — gives funds for this army of hardship — will have Jannah. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2778)

They used to call it the army of hardship because they would have to travel such a great distance to Tabuk. And Uthman came and he gave and he gave and he gave.

A Place for Delegations and Political Decisions

The Prophet ﷺ would use his masjid as a place for political decisions where the delegations of the Arabs would come and they would want to sit with the Prophet ﷺ. They would come to the masjid and that's where they would find him. In the hadith of Anas collected in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, he says that a man by the name of Dhimam ibn Tha'labah — who was a leader and chief of his tribe — traveled and came into Medina. He was riding a camel and came off his camel by the door of the masjid, tied the reins of his camel to a post of the masjid, and then came into the masjid and asked the companions, "Which one of you is Muhammad?" The Prophet ﷺ was leaning on a wall. So they said to him, "That man who is leaning — that is the Prophet ﷺ." So he came to him and said, "O son of Abdul Muttalib, I am going to ask you a series of questions and I will be harsh in my manner, severe in my questions, so don't take offense." The Prophet ﷺ said to the man, "Ask what you have."

"I ask you by your Lord and the Lord of everyone who came before you, did Allah send you to all of mankind?" And the Prophet ﷺ replied: اللَّهُمَّ نَعَمْ — "By Allah, yes."

"I ask you by Allah, did Allah command you that we should pray five times a day and night?" And the Prophet ﷺ replied: اللَّهُمَّ نَعَمْ — "By Allah, yes."

"I ask you by Allah, did Allah command you that we should fast this month of the year?" And the Prophet ﷺ replied: اللَّهُمَّ نَعَمْ — "By Allah, yes."

"Did Allah command you that you should take this zakah, this charity from the rich from amongst us and distribute it amongst the poor?" And the Prophet ﷺ replied: اللَّهُمَّ نَعَمْ — "By Allah, yes."

The man then said:

"I have believed in what you have come with. I am the messenger of my people who are following me. My name is Dhimam ibn Tha'labah and I am the chief of Banu Sa'd ibn Bakr." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 63; Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 14)

A Place of Medical Care

The Prophet ﷺ used his masjid as a hospital. As is mentioned in the hadith of Aisha رضي الله عنها in Sunan Abi Dawood, during the battle of Khandaq — the battle of the trench — when the illustrious companion of the Ansar, Sa'd ibn Mu'adh رضي الله عنه, was seriously injured:

The Prophet ﷺ commanded that a tent be pitched in his masjid for Sa'd ibn Mu'adh رضي الله عنه — who would later pass away — so that he would be in close proximity to the house of the Prophet ﷺ. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 463)

A Place for Prisoners

The Prophet ﷺ even used his masjid as a prison. As is mentioned in the hadith of Thumamah ibn Uthal رضي الله عنه — a man who was a leader of his people and was captured. He was brought to the masjid and was tied to one of the posts and pillars of the masjid. And the Prophet ﷺ came out to him in the morning and said:

"What do you have to say, O Thumamah?" And Thumamah said:

"If you kill me, O Muhammad ﷺ, you will kill someone whose people will avenge his death. And if you let me go, you let go a man who will show you gratitude. And if it is wealth and money that you want, then ask and I will give you what you wish." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 462; Sahih Muslim, Book 32, Hadith 26)

The Prophet ﷺ left him that day, still tied in the masjid. The second day he came back and asked the same question and Thumamah gave the same reply. So the Prophet ﷺ left him. And on the third day he came and asked the same question again. Three nights this man was in the masjid as a prisoner. But he was watching the Muslims pray and he was watching the Prophet ﷺ interact with the companions.

On the third day, asked the same question, he gave the same reply. The Prophet ﷺ told the companions to let him go. So they freed him and he left the masjid. He went a short distance, bathed, came back — and accepted Islam. But the point here is that the Prophet ﷺ used the masjid as a place even for prisoners sometimes.

A Place for Children and Families

The Prophet ﷺ would allow the children to come in the masjid. We have narrations that the Prophet ﷺ would be leading the salah and in sajdah his granddaughter would come and she would ride his back and she would play on him ﷺ. And in the hadith collected in Sunan Abi Dawood, when the Prophet ﷺ was giving the khutbah on a Friday, he saw his two young grandsons al-Hasan and al-Husayn enter the masjid wearing clothes that were too long for them. As they were walking they would trip and they would fall and they would stand and they would walk and they would trip and fall. So the Prophet ﷺ cut off the khutbah. He left the minbar, went to his two grandsons, picked them up, brought them back and set them down on his minbar. And he said:

"Your wealth and your children are a trial for you. I saw my two grandsons walk and trip and my heart couldn't bear it. I wasn't patient enough for this to happen before me." (Sunan Abi Dawood, Hadith 1109)

The Qur'anic Praise of the People of the Masjid

The Prophet ﷺ used his masjid in a wide variety of issues. It was the hub of the community. It was the place where the companions gathered. It was the place when people had an issue or they wanted to speak to the Prophet ﷺ — they knew that more often than not they would find him in the masjid. And so the masjid had an important role. It was from the masjid that the major decisions in Islam were taken. And it was from the masjid that Allah praised the companions because of the actions that they performed. Everything else emanated and came from the masjid.

That is the role of the masjid. The role that the masjid should play in our religion. And that is why Allah praises the people of the masjid. Allah says in the Qur'an:

Indeed, those who tend to the masjid — those who come and they live in the masjid, they spend their time in the masjid — they are those who only believe in Allah on the Last Day, and they establish the prayer, and they give the zakah, and they fear none except Allah. Perhaps those will be the people of guidance.

And Allah speaks about the importance of the masjid in the Qur'an, and He says:

The masjid that has more right that you should worship in is a masjid that has been established upon piety and taqwa from its first day. In it, you will find people who seek to purify themselves, and Allah loves those who seek to purify themselves.

Allah says in the Qur'an:

Houses of Allah — masajid that Allah has given permission that His name be raised therein. He is glorified therein by morning and by evening, by people who are not distracted by commerce or by trade from the remembrance of Allah and from establishing the prayer and from giving the zakah. They fear a day in which the hearts and the eyes of the people will turn.

The Prophet ﷺ told us that from the people that Allah will shade on the day that there will be no shade except His shade is:

The one whose heart is attached to the masjid. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 660; Sahih Muslim, Book 12, Hadith 91)

Because that is the importance of the masjid. And that's why the Prophet ﷺ gave us so many etiquettes, so many manners, so many things that we had to abide by when we came to the masjid. Because Allah told us first and foremost in the Qur'an:

O children of Adam, adorn yourselves — beautify yourselves — when you come to the masjid.

The Masjid as a Shelter: Ahl al-Suffah

All of this is to show you the role of the masjid. The masjid of the Prophet ﷺ may not have been an architectural masterpiece. It may not have been something aesthetically pleasing to look at. It may not have been a masjid of comfort where you could come and find the comforts of that time. But the masjid of the Prophet ﷺ had something that we need to bring back into our masajid today — the role of it being the center of the community, a place where all segments of the community come. For the mosque of the Prophet ﷺ was even a shelter for the poor and the needy.

The homeless companions were known as Ahl al-Suffah. As Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنه said, that he saw seventy companions from Ahl al-Suffah sleeping in the masjid of the Prophet ﷺ. And the masjid was small, but seventy companions who had nowhere else to go — no home. Some of them famous companions like Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنه himself. They would come and they would sleep in the masjid of the Prophet ﷺ. The children, the women, the men, the elderly, the homeless, the poor, delegations, people who are sick — all of these people had a place in the masjid, because that is when the masjid takes on the role that is so important in Islam.

Lessons from Recent Events: Strengthening Our Masajid

We live in a time when the institution of the masjid has been diminished. Three weeks ago we had the attacks in New Zealand. And then afterward we had those attacks in Birmingham — those five masajid in Aston that were vandalized. The masjid is the most outward symbol of Islam. It is the landmark: when you go to a place and you look for Muslims, you see the masjid. But the masjid is a place that has an important, central role in our religion.

In light of the recent attacks that took place in New Zealand and here as well in Birmingham, my message from this khutbah is a very simple yet important one. From the lessons that we take from those recent events is how important and central the role of the masjid is within our communities. And how — if anything, after those attacks — our role as members of this community should be to support our masajid even more. To strengthen them even more. To give more of our time and our money and our effort in establishing and fortifying these institutions. Why? Because they play the central role in the life of the Muslim.

This is the place where we come when we need help with our marriages and our divorces. This is the place where we come when our loved ones pass away. This is the place where we come when we need spiritual upliftment and we need to learn about the religion of Allah. The masjid is not just a place for salah. It's not just a place that we come to on Fridays or in the month of Ramadan. It is a place that is central.

Our elders — may Allah reward them with good — they were the ones who established these masajid. Our role now is to make sure, by the permission of Allah, that these masajid are used in the ways that they were used in the time of the Prophet ﷺ. To model our masjid after his masjid, alayhis salatu wassalam.

Because the question, my dear brothers and sisters today, is not our role in our community alone, but what would the situation of our children, our grandchildren, our great-grandchildren be when we have fourth, fifth, sixth generation Muslims? When they don't have the cultural ties to the lands of their grandparents as some of us do. When they don't speak probably any other language except English. When they won't have any other attachment to this religion that they will see outwardly — except, after the permission of Allah and by the will of Allah, these masajid.

If today we don't fix our masajid, we don't strengthen them, we don't support them financially — by volunteering our time and also by partaking in the roles and in the activities that these masajid provide — then how will our children have that link with the masjid? And how will our grandchildren have that link with the masjid?

The Prophet ﷺ prophesized that a time would come when the masajid would be abandoned. That is from the signs of Yawm al-Qiyamah. And from the signs of Yawm al-Qiyamah is that the people will use masajid as walkways — meaning, to get from one side to another, not to pray, not to worship Allah, but simply because it's convenient to walk through the masjid and go out the other side. That is what the Prophet ﷺ told us.

It is our responsibility to strengthen these masajid, to support them, and to ask Allah that He gives us the ability to do so. Support your masajid, its imams, its administrations. Support those people who are trying to revive these masajid and make them models of the masjid of the Prophet ﷺ.

Du'a