Surah Al-Israa (17) — Ayah 1

1. Exalted is He who took His servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram [1] to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed [2], so that We might show him some of Our signs [3]. Surely, He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.

[1]
Proofs of the Physical Nature of the Mi'raj Incident:

This incident occurred approximately one year before the Prophet’s migration. There are two parts to this event. The journey from Masjid al-Haram to Masjid al-Aqsa is called "Isra," and only the incident of Isra is mentioned in the Quran. The second part, the journey from Masjid al-Aqsa to the heavens and back, is called "Mi'raj," and the incident of Mi'raj is mentioned in many hadiths—even the number of Companions who narrated the event exceeds twenty-five. The consensus of the Ummah is that this journey was physical, not merely spiritual (like in a dream) or visionary. However, some people also consider it spiritual, and the deniers of hadith reject the incident of Mi'raj altogether. Since the incident of Isra is mentioned in the Quran, they make incorrect interpretations of it. In our view, this incident was a physical journey, and the reasons are as follows:
1. The incident begins with emphatic words like ﴿سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي﴾, and this word is generally used at places of wonder and amazement and to manifest the power of Allah. If this incident were merely a dream or a vision, there would have been no need to use such words at the beginning.
2. The word "abd" (servant) refers to the combination of body and soul. This word is not used solely for the body or solely for the soul.
3. If, after the incident, the denial of the disbelievers is established, then it is an extraordinary event or a miracle. Thus, Allah says: ﴿وَاِنْ يَّرَوْا ايَٰةً يُّعْرِضُوْا وَيَقُوْلُوْا سِحْرٌ مُّسْتَمِرٌّ﴾ [3: 54] "And when these (disbelievers) see any sign or miracle, they say, 'This is nothing but passing magic.'"
And this is proven by authentic hadiths that when you ﷺ narrated this incident in the morning, the disbelievers mocked it, saying that the journey from Makkah to Bayt al-Maqdis takes forty days, and the round trip takes eighty days—how could this be possible in a single night? And (God forbid) they attributed it to your ﷺ insanity. It reached the point that those who used to travel to Bayt al-Maqdis began to ask questions. At that time, you were standing in Hatim. Allah removed all the veils, so you saw Masjid al-Aqsa before you and answered the disbelievers' questions as they asked, as is clear from the hadith of Jabir ibn Abdullah Ansari mentioned ahead. And those who considered it a dream base their argument on the following words of verse 60 of this Surah: ﴿وَمَا جَعَلْنَا الرُّءْيَا الَّتِيْٓ اَرَيْنٰكَ اِلَّا فِتْنَةً لِّلنَّاسِ﴾ [40: 17] "And this (incident) which We showed you, We made it only as a trial for the people."

Refutation of Those Who Consider It a Spiritual Journey:

In this verse, since the word "ru'ya" is also used for a dream, those people were led to the misunderstanding of a spiritual journey. There are three reasons for the weakness of this view:
1. Linguistically, the word "ru'ya" can be applied to any incident seen with the eyes, whether seen in a state of wakefulness or in sleep.
2. If this incident were merely a dream, there would be no trial for the people in it. Anyone can see such a dream.
3. This view is rare compared to the consensus of the Ummah.

Interpretations of the Deniers of Hadith and Their Refutation:

And the deniers of hadith interpret the verse to mean that Isra refers to your migration, which began at night, and Masjid al-Aqsa refers to the distant mosque, i.e., 'Masjid Nabawi.' This interpretation is wrong for several reasons, for example:
1. According to the authentic narration of Bukhari, the migration journey began from the house of Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ, whereas this incident began from Masjid al-Haram.
2. According to Bukhari's narration, the migration incident occurred in the scorching heat of midday when people were resting, whereas the Mi'raj began at night.
3. The migration incident did not occur in a single night or overnight; rather, the journey took fifteen days and fifteen nights, whereas the Mi'raj occurred in a single night.
4. Abandoning the conventional meaning of Masjid al-Aqsa and taking its literal meaning as "distant mosque" is against custom and therefore invalid.
5. Masjid Nabawi was built much later, so how could it be the final destination of your journey? And the incident of Mi'raj is denied on the basis that it assigns a direction to Allah, whereas Allah is present everywhere. This is actually the discussion of "Istiwa 'ala al-'Arsh" and is lengthy, which cannot be covered here. [تفصيل كے ليے ديكهئے ميري تصنيف آئينه پرويزيت]
Now we present some hadiths regarding Isra and Mi'raj so that the details of this incident become clear.
1. Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ said: "The night I was taken to Bayt al-Maqdis, two bowls were brought before me—one of milk and the other of wine. I looked at both, then took the bowl of milk. At that time, Jibril said, 'All praise is due to Allah who guided you to the natural way (i.e., Islam). If you had taken the bowl of wine, your Ummah would have gone astray.'"
2. Sayyiduna Anas ؓ narrates that on the night of Mi'raj, Buraq was brought to the Prophet ﷺ, which was bridled and saddled. It acted restlessly, so Jibril ؑ said, "Are you being restless before Muhammad ﷺ, whereas there is no one more honored by Allah who has ridden you?" The narrator says that then Buraq began to sweat. [ترمذي، كتاب التفسير]
3. Sayyiduna Buraydah ؓ narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said: "On the night of Mi'raj, when we reached Bayt al-Maqdis, Jibril ؑ pointed with his finger and split a stone, then tied Buraq to it." [ترمذي۔ ايضاً]
4. Sayyiduna Jabir ibn Abdullah Ansari says that the Prophet ﷺ said: "When the disbelievers of Quraysh denied me, I was standing in the Hijr (Hatim). Allah brought Bayt al-Maqdis before me, and whatever signs they asked me about, I would see and inform them." [بخاري۔ كتاب التفسير]
5. Sayyiduna Abu Dharr Ghifari ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ said: "The roof of my house was opened while I was in Makkah. Jibril ؑ descended. He split open my chest, washed it with Zamzam water, then brought a golden tray filled with faith and wisdom and poured it into my chest, then closed it up. Then Jibril ؑ took my hand and ascended with me towards the sky. When I reached the first heaven, Jibril ؑ said to the gatekeeper, 'Open the door.' He asked, 'Who is it?' Jibril replied, 'It is I, Jibril.' He asked, 'Is there anyone with you?' Jibril ؑ said, 'Yes, Muhammad ﷺ is with me.' He asked, 'Has he been called?' Jibril ؑ said, 'Yes.' Then the gatekeeper opened the door, and we ascended to the lowest heaven (the first heaven). There was a man sitting there, with a group on his right and a group on his left. When he looked to his right, he laughed, and when he looked to his left, he wept. He said, 'Welcome, righteous Prophet and righteous son.' I asked Jibril ؑ, 'Who are these people?' Jibril ؑ said, 'This is Adam. On his right are the people of Paradise, and on his left are the people of Hell. When he looks to his right, he laughs, and when he looks to his left, he weeps.' Then Jibril ؑ ascended with me to the second heaven and said to the gatekeeper, 'Open the door.' He said the same as the first. Then you saw Adam ؑ, Idris ؑ, Musa ؑ, Isa ؑ, and Ibrahim ؑ in the heavens, but their stations were not described. However, it was mentioned that Adam ؑ was on the first heaven and Ibrahim ؑ on the sixth. When we passed by Prophet Idris, he said to me, 'Welcome, righteous Prophet and righteous brother.' I asked Jibril, 'Who is this?' Jibril said, 'This is Idris.' Then I passed by Musa ؑ, and he said the same. I asked Jibril ؑ, 'Who is this?' Jibril ؑ said, 'This is Musa.' Then I passed by Isa ؑ, and he said the same. I asked Jibril ؑ, and he said, 'This is Isa.' Then I passed by Ibrahim ؑ, and he said the same. I asked Jibril, and he said, 'This is Ibrahim.' Then Jibril ؑ ascended with me until I reached a high, level place where I heard the sound of pens moving. Then Allah made fifty prayers obligatory upon my Ummah. I returned with this command. When I reached Musa ؑ, he said, 'Return to your Lord, for your Ummah will not be able to bear this.' I returned, and Allah reduced it somewhat. Then I came to Musa ؑ, and he said, 'Return to your Lord, for your Ummah will not be able to bear this.' I returned again (and this happened several times). These five prayers are actually fifty (in reward), and My word does not change. Then I came to Musa again, and he said the same. I said, 'Now I feel shy to return to my Lord.' Then Jibril ؑ took me, and we reached Sidrat al-Muntaha. It was covered with many kinds of colors—I do not know what they were. Then I was taken to Paradise. There I saw that its domes were of pearls and its soil was musk." [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوٰة۔ باب كيف فرضت الصلوة نيز كتاب بدأ الخلق۔ باب ادريسؑ]
6. Sayyidah Aisha Siddiqa ؓ says that when Allah made prayer obligatory (on the night of Mi'raj), two rak'ahs were made obligatory for each prayer, whether in travel or at home. Later, the prayer in travel remained two rak'ahs, and the prayer at home was increased. [حواله ايضاً]
7. Malik bin Sa'sa'ah ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ said: "Once I was sitting near the Ka'bah in a state between sleep and wakefulness, and the middle one of three men split open my chest and filled it with faith and wisdom. Then Buraq was brought to me, which was slightly smaller than a mule and larger than a donkey. Then I reached the first heaven with Jibril ؑ (the conversation is the same as in the previous narration), where I met Adam. On the second, I met Isa ؑ and Yahya ؑ; on the third, Yusuf ؑ; on the fourth, Idris ؑ; on the fifth, Harun ؑ; on the sixth, Musa ؑ; and on the seventh, Ibrahim ؑ. Then I was shown Bayt al-Ma'mur (the Ka'bah of the angels). I asked Jibril ؑ about it, and he said that every day seventy thousand angels pray here, and when they leave, they never return. Then I was shown Sidrat al-Muntaha, whose berries are like the jars of Hajar and whose leaves are like elephant ears. Four rivers flow from its root—two hidden and two visible. The hidden ones go to Paradise (Salsabil and Kawthar), and the visible ones are the Nile and the Euphrates. Then fifty prayers were made obligatory upon me. I passed by Musa ؑ, and he said (I know the people better than you, and I have tried greatly with Bani Israel, so go back). Thus, ten prayers were reduced (as in the previous narration), then thirty, then twenty, then ten, and then five. When Musa ؑ told me to go again, I said, 'I have accepted them well.' Then a call came from Allah: 'I have fulfilled My obligation and have given relief to My servants. For every good deed (prayer), I will give tenfold reward.'" [بخاري۔ كتاب بدأ الخلق۔ باب ذكر الملائكه بخاري۔ كتاب المناقب، باب المعراج]
Most of the details of this incident have come in these hadiths; however, some details are also mentioned in other hadiths, and the noteworthy headings of those details are as follows:
1. The gathering of all previous prophets in Bayt al-Maqdis, Jibril ؑ advancing you to lead, and your ﷺ leading the prayer, which proves your superiority over all the prophets.
2. Your meeting with some of the resolute messengers on different heavens, which shows the ranks of these messengers.
3. The obligation of five prayers or the gift of Mi'raj, after which prayers began to be performed at five times.
4. The journey above the seven heavens to Sidrat al-Muntaha, witnessing the wonders of Allah, seeing Paradise and Hell, and witnessing the exemplary punishments for some crimes, etc. Where did this journey begin? One remaining discussion about this incident is: Where did the journey of Isra begin? According to the hadith of Sayyiduna Abu Dharr Ghifari ؓ, it began from your ﷺ house. According to the narration of Malik bin Sa'sa'ah ؓ, it began from the Ka'bah. And according to a third narration, it began from the house of Umm Hani ؓ. The decisive statement in this matter is that it began from Masjid al-Haram, and the Quran supports this. As for the other narrations, two ways of reconciliation are mentioned: one is that the whole of Makkah is considered Masjid al-Haram, and there are proofs for this. The second way is that wherever you were, you were first brought to Masjid al-Haram, and then the journey to Masjid al-Aqsa began.

[2] That is, outwardly, this region is fertile, lush, and green, and spiritually, it has been the center of preaching, residence, and burial of many prophets. Therefore, blessings from Allah continue to descend there at all times, and by this is meant the region of Syria and Palestine.

[3] These words also support the incident of Mi'raj, and the purpose was to show you the "Malakut al-Samawat wal-Ard" (the dominion of the heavens and the earth). Even the scenes of Paradise and Hell were shown to you ﷺ. And all resolute prophets are shown such things so that they can invite people with full conviction to those unseen matters which they have witnessed with their own eyes.