Surah Ibrahim (14) — Ayah 37

37. Our Lord! I have settled some of my descendants in a barren valley near Your Sacred House [39], so that they may establish prayer [40]. So, our Lord, make the hearts of some people incline towards them, and provide them with fruits for sustenance, so that they may be grateful.

[39] Here, a lengthy hadith from Bukhari is presented, describing the circumstances in which Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ settled Sayyiduna Isma'ilؑ and his mother in this barren and desolate valley, and how Allah provided them with food and drink. The gushing forth of the well of Zamzam, the construction of the House of Allah, and many other events are detailed in this hadith. Ibn Abbasؓ says that among women, Sayyidah Hajarah was the first to tie a waist-belt so that Sarah would not be able to trace her. Thus, Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ brought Hajarahؑ and her child out from there. Hajarah was nursing Isma'ilؑ. Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ seated them under a large tree where Zamzam is, on the elevated side of Masjid al-Haram. At that time, there was neither any inhabitant nor water there. He left them with a bag of dates and a water-skin and departed. Sayyidah Hajarah followed him and asked, "Ibrahim, where are you going, leaving us in this valley where there is neither any person nor water?" Hajarah asked this several times, but Ibrahimؑ did not look back. Then she said, "Has Allah commanded you to do this?" Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ replied, "Yes." She said, "Then Allah will not let us perish." She returned. When Ibrahim reached the hill where they could no longer see him, he faced the House of Allah, raised his hands, and prayed with these words: "O Allah! I have settled a part of my offspring in a valley without cultivation... up to yashkurun."

How Did the Sa'i Between Safa and Marwah Begin?

Sayyidah Hajarah continued to nurse Sayyiduna Isma'ilؑ and give him that water until the water ran out. She herself became thirsty, and the child also became thirsty. She saw the child writhing from thirst. Unable to bear seeing her child in that state, she left. She saw that the Safa hill was near her, so she climbed it and then came towards the valley. She was looking to see if anyone could be seen, but no one was visible. She descended from Safa until she reached the valley, lifted the hem of her shirt, and began to run like a distressed person until she crossed the valley and reached the Marwah hill. Standing on Marwah, she looked to see if anyone could be seen, but she saw no one. In this manner, she completed seven circuits. The Prophetﷺ said, "From that time, people began the Sa'i between Safa and Marwah." When she climbed Marwah on the seventh circuit, she heard a voice. She said to herself, "Be quiet (listen)." She listened attentively and heard the same voice. She said, "I have heard your voice; can you help us in any way?" At that moment, she saw an angel at the place of Zamzam, who struck the ground with his heel or foot and dug it up, and water gushed forth. Sayyidah Hajarah began to make a basin around it and built up its edges with her hands, and started filling her water-skin with water using her hands. Whenever she scooped up water, it would gush forth even more. The Prophetﷺ said, "May Allah have mercy on the mother of Isma'il. If she had left Zamzam as it was, or (he said) had not scooped up water from it, Zamzam would have become a flowing stream." Thus, Sayyidah Hajarah drank the water and nursed her child. The angel said to her, "Do not fear for your life. This is Allah's House; this child and his father will build it." At that time, the Ka'bah had collapsed and become a raised mound, and rainwater would flow past its sides.

Zamzam Water and the Tribe of Jurhum:

Some time later, the people of Jurhum (a tribe) or their families were coming by way of Kada'. They passed by there and descended into the lowlands of Makkah. They saw a bird circling there and said, "This bird must be circling over water. We know this plain; we have never seen water here." So they sent one or two men, who found water there and returned to inform them, so they all came. Umm Isma'il was sitting by the water. They asked, "Will you allow us to settle here?" Umm Isma'ilؑ said, "Yes, but you will have no right to the water." They said, "Alright." The Prophetﷺ said, "Umm Isma'ilؑ herself wanted people to settle there." So they settled there and called their families as well. When many of their households became settled there and Isma'ilؑ grew up and learned Arabic from them, he became a fine young man in their eyes. They loved him and married him to a woman from their tribe. His mother passed away.

Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ Passing by There for the First Time:

Once, Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ came to see his son and his family, but Isma'ilؑ was not at home. He asked his wife about him, and she said, "He has gone out to seek sustenance." Then he asked her about their livelihood, and she replied, "We are living in great hardship," and she complained to him at length. He said, "When your husband comes, give him my greetings and tell him to change the threshold of his house." When Isma'ilؑ came, he sensed that a guest had come. He asked his wife, "Did anyone come?" She said, "Yes, an old man like this came, asking about you, and I told him. Then he asked how you were living, and I said we are living in great hardship." Isma'ilؑ asked, "Did he say anything else?" She said, "Yes, he conveyed his greetings to you and said to change the threshold of your house." Isma'ilؑ said, "That was my father, and he has instructed me to divorce you. Now go to your family." So Isma'ilؑ divorced her and married another woman.

Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ's Second Visit:

After that, Ibrahimؑ stayed in his country for as long as Allah willed. Then he came again, but Isma'ilؑ was not there. He asked his wife about Isma'ilؑ, and she said, "He has gone to earn a living." Then he asked, "How are you, and how is your livelihood?" She replied, "Thanks to Allah, we are living very well." He asked, "What do you eat?" She said, "Meat." He asked, "What do you drink?" She said, "Water." Then Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ prayed, "O Allah, bless their meat and water." The Messenger of Allahﷺ said, "In those days, there was no grain in Makkah, otherwise Ibrahimؑ would have prayed for blessing in that as well. And if people outside Makkah were to subsist on only these two things, it would not suit them." Anyway, Ibrahimؑ said (to his daughter-in-law), "When your husband comes, give him my greetings and tell him that this threshold is good and that he should keep it." When Isma'ilؑ came, he asked his wife, "Did anyone come (today)?" She said, "Yes, a handsome elderly man came, a very good person. He asked about you, and I told him. He also asked how you were living, and I said, very well." Isma'ilؑ asked, "Did he say anything else?" She said, "Yes, he conveyed his greetings to you and said that the threshold of your door is excellent and that you should keep it." Isma'ilؑ told her, "That was my father, and he has instructed me to keep you with me."

The Third Visit: Construction of the House of Allah and Its Purpose:

Then, after some time, as Allah willed, Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ came, and at that time Isma'ilؑ was sitting under a tree near Zamzam, straightening his arrows. When he saw his father, he stood up, and father and son met warmly. After that, Ibrahimؑ said, "Isma'il! Allah has given me a command; will you help me in this task?" He replied, "Of course I will." Ibrahimؑ said, "Allah has commanded me to build a house at this place," and he pointed to a high mound. So father and son both raised the foundations of this house. Isma'ilؑ would bring stones, and Ibrahimؑ would build. When the walls became high, Isma'ilؑ brought this stone (Maqam Ibrahim) and placed it there. Now Ibrahimؑ would stand on it and lay the stones, and Isma'ilؑ would hand him the stones, and both would recite this supplication: ﴿رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا اِنَّكَ اَنْتَ السَّمِيْعُ الْعَلِيْمُ﴾ Thus, they built the House of Allah from all sides, reciting this supplication. [بخاری۔ کتاب الانبیاء۔ باب یزفون النسلان فی المشی]
[40]
Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ's Supplication for the Prosperity of the House of Allah:

When Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ, by Allah's command, left his son and his family in this barren and desolate valley, only the traces of the House of Allah remained. Then, after a long time, he came when Sayyiduna Isma'ilؑ had grown up. At that time, father and son together raised the House of Allah anew upon its foundations and erected its structure. During this construction, the supplications he made to Allah, some of their phrases are mentioned in these verses. The foremost purpose of this construction, in his view, was that his progeny should remain steadfast in prayer, and that the practice of prayer should continue generation after generation. Then, another concern in his mind was how this mosque would be populated in this rocky and barren land where there is nothing to eat. So, in this regard, he prayed that some people's hearts from among the people of the world be inclined towards this mosque or towards his progeny, so that this place would become inhabited and the mosque would be frequented. And the second supplication was that those who are inclined towards this place, their food and drink be provided for, so that they can settle here.

Acceptance of the Supplication:

His supplication was accepted exactly as he asked. From that time until today, people from different countries and corners of the world come for Hajj and Umrah to the House of Allah, and this mosque has become so populated that no mosque in the world can compare to it. Sayyiduna Ibn Abbasؓ says that his supplication was that some people's hearts be inclined towards them; if he had said all people's hearts, then so many people would have come to the House of Allah that there would not have been enough space to accommodate them. As for the second part of the supplication, its acceptance can be gauged from the fact that there is no fruit in the world that does not reach Makkah. Fruits from all over the world reach there, even though the land of Makkah itself is such that not a single fruit-bearing tree grows there. Even fodder for animals does not grow there.