THE JOURNEY OF A LIFETIME WITH PROPHET MUHAMMAD THE PROPHET OF ALLAH 027 THE CALL TO PRAYER & LADIES SAWDAH & AYESHA by Khadeijah A. Stephens Copyright © 1984-2012 by Allah.com Muhammad.com Mosque.com Khadeijah A. Stephens Bismillah Ir Rahman Ir Raheem The Call to Prayer & Ladies Sawdah & Ayesha The Death of Two Companions and Two Adversaries, and The First Born in Medina During the first year after the Prophet's migration, Kulthum, Hidm's son, and Asad, Zurarah's son passed away. Both the Companions had been very close to the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam). It was in Kulthum's house that the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) had stayed during part of his time in Quba; Kulthum had been especially kind to the migrants and given many of them a home. Asad, Zurarah's son had been among the first men of Yathrib to pledge his allegiance at Aqabah and it was in his house that Mus'ab, Umair's son, the envoy of the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) stayed in the very early days of Islam, in Medina. Later, Asad had become the Imam of his tribe, the tribe of Najjar. Prophet Muhammad (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) told his Companions that, “Allah, the Exalted says, 'I have no better reward than Paradise for My believing worshiper who is patient when I take away his loved one who is among the most cherished by him in the world.'” There were those in Medina who chose to take these deaths as an argument against the prophethood, contending that if Prophet Muhammad (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) had been a prophet, then these deaths would not have occurred. When the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) heard what was being said he was not angered but commented, "I have no power with Allah either for myself or for my Companions." It was also during this first year that the infamous enemies of Islam, Waleed, Mughirah's son, father of Khalid and Al-As the son of Wa'il Sahmi, the father of Amr Al-As, who was later to become the famous Opener of Egypt, died. Asma, the eldest daughter of Abu Bakr and her husband Zubair were blessed with a son whom they named Abdullah. Up until that time no child had been born to a Muslim family in Medina. The Call to Prayer Up until that time, Muslims used their own judgment to determine the time of prayer by estimating the sun's passage through the heavens and as a result, they arrived at the Mosque to pray at varying times. This state of affairs concerned the Prophet, (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) who asked his Companions if they had any suggestions as to how best the prayer might be announced at its due time. Several suggestions were made, amongst which was the hoisting of a flag, the rattling of a wooden clapper and the blowing of a horn. However, these suggestions were not acceptable. Not long after, Abdullah Zayd's son had a vision. In his vision a man with a clapper in his hand, dressed in a green robe pass by. When Abdullah noticed the clapper he asked if he would sell it. The man inquired why he wanted it, whereupon Abdullah told him that he wanted it to call his fellow Muslims to prayer. The man told him he knew a better way than that and that the summoning to the prayer should be made by a caller in saying: "Allah is the Greatest – Allah is the Greatest. Allah is the Greatest – Allah is the Greatest. I bear witness that there is no god except Allah I bear witness that there is no god except Allah. I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. Come to prayer – come to prayer. Come to success – come to success. Allah is the Greatest – Allah is the Greatest There is no god except Allah" The following day Abdullah went to the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) and told him of his vision. Omar mentioned that he too had seen the same vision. Happiness spread over the face of the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) as he told Abdullah and Omar that they had both seen a true vision and informed them that this was the method they would now use to call the people to prayer. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) then asked one of his Companions to look for Bilal and ask him to come to him. Bilal, the former slave who had been so badly tortured by the Koraysh for his belief had a very pleasant voice and was honored to be chosen as the caller to prayer, and from that time onward, before each prayer, he made his way to the roof-top of the highest house near the Mosque and the sweetness of his voice would ring out across the City, calling believers to the prayer. Later on, the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) told his Companions that when the call to prayer is made, satan, the stoned and cursed, turns his back and rushes away passing wind to prevent himself from hearing the words of the call. The reason for his running away and passing wind is that all those who hear the call to prayer become a witness to it and satan does not want to be a witness. However, once the call has finished he returns until the second call to prayer is made, then he runs away again only to return after it has finished to distract the minds of worshippers with his whispering, “Remember this, remember that”, putting in the mind of the believer irrelevant matters until he/she does not know how many units of prayer they have offered. The Palm-Trunk and the Pulpit As the number of followers grew it was thought that a pulpit should be built on which the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi was sallam) might stand so that everyone could see him. The Companions set about finding a suitable piece of wood and soon the sound of carpenters could be heard. The pulpit was finished and put in place and the palm-trunk on which the Prophet, (salla Allahu alihi was sallam), use to lean when giving his sermon was moved to another part of the Mosque. Suddenly, as the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi was sallam) started to deliver his sermon there was a wailing sound that was so intense that everyone looked to see from where the sound came; it came from the old palm-trunk that had been replaced by the pulpit. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi was sallam) went to the palm-trunk and comforted it, and it was consoled. Then, the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi was sallam) told the congregation, "This tree trunk wailed on account of what it had lost." Lady Sawdah and Lady Ayesha When Lady Sawdah arrived in Medina, she lived in her quarters built onto the outside of the Mosque together with the daughters of the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam). Lady Ayesha had known the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) from a very tender age. She loved to be in his company and after his marriage to her he would often play and run races with her. Although he was very capable of outrunning her, he always, out of the kindness of his heart, let her win until she was older. Although she was married to the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) her life had changed but a little; she still played with her girl friends from Mecca and also made new friends with the girls of Medina. However, the parents of her friends had taught their daughters that they must at all times respect the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) and not to make a nuisance of themselves. Fearing that he might disturb Lady Ayesha, Prophet Muhammad (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) would often take great delight watching her play with her friends from behind a curtain. However, if her friends happened to realize he was there they would stop playing and try to slip away, whereupon the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) would reassure them that there was no need for them to go and to continue enjoying themselves. On many occasions he would sit down and join them in their games, just as he had done with his own daughters, for he loved children and never turned them away. There was a time, when the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) returned home after a journey and found Lady Ayesha playing with a small wooden horse having a piece of cloth attached to its back. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) was amused and inquired why she had tied the cloth to its back whereupon Lady Ayesha replied, "O Prophet of Allah (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam), don't you know, it is the winged horse of Solomon," and the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) smiled as happiness spread over his caring face. Illness in Medina The native people of Medina were, for the most part, immune to the fevers that came during certain seasons of the year. However, for strangers who happened to be in the City during these seasons there was always the risk that they might contract them. One day, Lady Ayesha went to visit her father, Abu Bakr and found that he, Bilal, and Aamir had been taken ill with the fever; although Bilal was nearing recovery he remained extremely weak. She spoke to her father, but he answered her in a rhyme that she did not fully understand, although she remembered his words. Aamir and Bilal also spoke to her in rhyme and once again she remembered the words but did not fully comprehend. Seeing them in such a pitiful condition distressed Lady Ayesha greatly, so she returned home to the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) to tell him of their circumstances. The Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) comforted her and gently asked what they had said, so she repeated their words, whereupon the Prophet (salla Allahu alihi wa sallam) supplicated saying, "O Allah, make Medina as dear to us as You have made Mecca, or yet even dearer. Bless its water and grain for us and remove the fever from it as far as Mahya'ah." Allah accepted the supplication and they recovered. The Call to Prayer Lady Sawdah and Lady Ayesha 027 Back Cover Subtitles The Death of Two Companions and Two Adversaries, and The First Born In Medina The Call to Prayer The Palm-Trunk and the Pulpit Lady Sawdah and Lady Ayesha Illness in Medina