Bukhari

Hadith Commentary:
During the time of Uthman (radi Allahu anhu), the Noble Qur’an used to be kept in a box near a pillar in the Prophet’s Mosque.
That pillar used to be called the Pillar of the Mushaf.
Here, this is what is being referred to. Among the Thulathiyat (three-chained narrations) of Sahih al-Bukhari, this is the third hadith.

Hadith Commentary:
1.
From these two narrations, Imam Bukhari rahimahullah has established that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, Salamah ibn al-Akwa radi Allahu anhu, and other senior Companions—may Allah be pleased with them all—used pillars as a sutrah (barrier) during prayer.
In the first narration, it is mentioned that Salamah ibn al-Akwa radi Allahu anhu would make a point to pray near the pillar where the Qur’an was kept.
In Sahih Muslim, it is stated that he would pray behind a chest.
This indicates that a copy of the Noble Qur’an was kept locked in a chest near one of the pillars of the Prophet’s Mosque.
Regarding this pillar, Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah writes:
There was a chest for the Mushaf Sharif in which it (the Qur’an) was kept (since the time of Uthman radi Allahu anhu).
Since a specific place was designated for it, the pillar was identified by it.
Some of our shaykhs have informed us through research that this pillar is in the middle of the Rawdah Mubarakah and is famous as the Pillar of the Muhajirun (As-Sutwanah al-Muhajirin).
Aisha radi Allahu anha used to say that if people recognized it, they would seek nearness to it by drawing lots.
She had told Abdullah ibn Zubayr radi Allahu anhu this as a secret, so he would frequently pray near it. Later, I also saw this mentioned in Ibn Najjar’s Tarikh al-Madinah.
It is also mentioned there that the Muhajirun of Quraysh used to gather near this pillar.
And before this, Muhammad ibn Hasan had also reported a similar practice in Akhbar al-Madinah.
(Fath al-Bari: 1/446)
2.
There is a place in the Prophet’s Mosque which the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam declared to be one of the gardens of Paradise.
There are several pillars in it, for example:
1. The Pillar of Knowledge (Ustuwanat al-‘Ilm) of the Prophet’s Place of Prayer
2. The Pillar of Aisha
3. The Pillar of Repentance (Tawbah)
4. The Pillar of the Bed (Sarir)
5. The Pillar of Ali
6. The Pillar of Delegations (Wufud)
Below, we will mention only two pillars which are related to the narration of Salamah ibn al-Akwa radi Allahu anhu and the aforementioned clarification by Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah:
©.
The Pillar of Knowledge (Ustuwanat al-‘Ilm) of the Prophet’s Place of Prayer:
This pillar is adjacent to the pillar attributed to Aisha radi Allahu anha, on its western side.
In the aforementioned hadith of Salamah in Sahih Bukhari, this very pillar is mentioned.
Salamah ibn al-Akwa radi Allahu anhu would seek out this pillar and pray near it.
When he was asked the reason, he replied:
“I saw the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam also seeking out this place and praying there. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam led prayer here until the end of his life.”
During the caliphate of Uthman radi Allahu anhu, the Mushaf Sharif, which was kept in a chest as mentioned in the hadith, was to the right of this pillar.
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The Pillar of Aisha:
This pillar is in the middle of the Rawdah from the Gardens of Paradise.
Its name is also written on it in golden letters.
It is also called the Pillar of the Muhajirun, the Pillar of Drawing Lots (Qur‘ah), and the Pillar of Mukhallaqah.
The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam led prayer near it for a few days after the change of the qiblah, then continued to lead prayer at his place of prayer until the end of his life.
And the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam used to lean against it and sit facing north.
Since Aisha radi Allahu anha identified it, it became famous as the Pillar of Aisha.
Clarification:
The first place of prayer (musalla) of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam in the Prophet’s Mosque was in the north, where he led prayer facing Bayt al-Maqdis for sixteen or seventeen months.
The second place of prayer was near the Pillar of Aisha, where he led prayer for a few days after the change of the qiblah.
The third place of prayer was near the Pillar of Knowledge (Ustuwanat al-‘Ilm), adjacent to the western side of the Pillar of Aisha radi Allahu anha, and this remained until the end of his life.
The distance between the Prophet’s pulpit (minbar) and his place of prayer is fourteen cubits and one span.
(Wafa’ al-Wafa: 1/267)
From this detail, it is clear that the pillar near which the Mushaf Sharif was kept was not the Pillar of the Muhajirun, but rather the Pillar of Knowledge (Ustuwanat al-‘Ilm) of the Prophet’s Place of Prayer.
This is contrary to the research stated by Hafiz Ibn Hajar rahimahullah.
And Allah knows best.

Benefit:
It is correct to strive to pray in the most virtuous place, provided that this does not cause inconvenience to others and that the one who arrived there first is not displaced.