Al-Baqi : A brief Analysis
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- 2021-05-15
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Al-Baqi : A brief Analysis
We begin our article with a tragic speech :
A few years back, there was an Iranian man, who went for the Ziyarah of the Noble Prophet (saws). He was standing at the gates of Jannatul Baqi. By looking at the demolished graves, he profusely wept and said:- "O Prophet of Allah (saws), just visit Iran and see, a child of Your's was once our Guest, look how we have built his Majestic Shrine. What would have occurred ! If your Zahra (sa), also visited Iran. We would sell of the jwelleries of Our daughters for the construction of her Shrine"
: SHAHEED ALLAMA NASIR ABBAS
Notable personalities buried :
The 4 Imams ع
1. Imam Hasan ع
2. Imam Ali ibn Husayn ع
3. Imam Mohammed Baqir ع
4. Imam Jafer Sadiq ع
Sayyidah Fatimah Zahra (sa)
Bibi Fatimah bint Asad (sa)
Bibi Umm al Baneen (sa)
Janab e Aqil ibn Abu Talib ع
Janab e Ibrahim (son of Holy Prophet ﷺ)
Hazrat Abbas ibn Abdul Muttalib
Noble Sahaba's and Tabi'un
Location : Near Masjid al-Nabi ﷺ
Literally “Al-Baqi” means a tree garden. It is also known as “Jannat Al-Baqi” due to its sanctity, since in it are buried many of our Prophet's relatives and companions. Al-Baqi was a piece of land covered by a certain type of thorny plant called Gharqad. It was cleaned from those thorny plants and was allocated for burying Muslims died in Medina. The first person among the Muhajirun buried in al-Baqi was 'Uthman b. Maz'un, the great companion of the Prophet ﷺ who passed away in 2/623-4. During the construction of the Prophet's Mosque, on the site He ﷺ purchased from two orphan children when he arrived after his migration from Mecca to Medina, As'ad b. Zurara, one of the participants in allegiance of al-Aqaba, who passed away before the Battle of Badr was the first individual to be buried in al-Baqi among the Ansar. The last companion of the Prophet (s) who passed away in Medina and was buried in al-Baqi' is known to be Sahl b. Sa'd al-Sa'idi who passed away in 88/707. Today no one is buried in the main part of the cemetery where the graves of the companions and Imams ع are located anymore. In one of his latest nights of his life, Holy Prophet ﷺ went to al-Baqi and asked God for forgiveness of the people buried there by saying :
“Peace be upon you, O abode of the faithful! God willing, we should soon join you. O' Allah, forgive the fellows of al-Baqi”
Al-Baqi as viewed by historians
Umar Ibn Jubair describes Al-Baqi as he saw it during his travel to Madina, saying “Al-Baqi is situated to the east of Madina. You enter it through the gate known as the gate of al-Baqi. As you enter, the first grave you see on your left is that of Safiya, the Prophet's aunt, and further still is the grave of Malik bin Anas, the Imam of Madina. On his grave is raised a small dome.
In front of it is the grave of Ibrahim son of our Prophet ﷺ with a white dome over it, and next to it on the right is the grave of Abdul-Rahman son of Umar bin Al-Khattab, popularly known as Abu Shahma, whose father had kept punishing him till death overtook him. Facing it are the graves of Aqeel bin Abi Talib and Abdullah bin Ja'far Al-Tayyar. There, facing those graves is a small shrine containing the graves of the Prophet's wives, following by a shrine of Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib.
The grave of Hasan bin Ali ع , situated near the gate to it's right hand, has an elevated dome over it. His head lies at the feet of Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib, and both graves are raised high above the ground, their walls are paneled with yellow plates and studded with beautiful star-shaped nails. This is how the grave of Ibrahim, son of the Prophet ﷺ has also been adorned. Behind the shrine of Abbas there is the house attributed to Fatima (sa), daughter of our Prophet ﷺ , known as “Bayt Al-Ahzaan” (the house of grief) because it is the house she used to frequent in order to mourn the death of her father, the chosen one, peace be upon him. At the farthest end of al-Baqi is the grave of the caliph Uthman, with a small dome over it, and there, next to it, is the grave of Fatima bint Asad, mother of Ali b. Abi Talib ع”
On 8th Shawwal, Wednesday, in the year 1345 AH (April 21, 1925), mausoleums in Jannatul al-Baqi (Madina) were demolished by King Ibn Saud ل . In the same year (1925), he also demolished the tombs of holy personages at Jannat al-Mualla (Makkah) where the Holy Prophet's ﷺ mother, wife, grandfather and other ancestors are buried. While the monarchs have bulldozed and razed these symbols and reminders of the Sirat-e-Mustaqeem to ground, they continue to enjoy a life which is known to all.
Currently, the graves of the four Imams (a) and great Islamic personalities in al-Baqi have no signs other than little pieces of stones on them
Isn't it a matter of shame for the entire Muslim nation that while they build fancy mausoleums and shrines for their political leaders, sufi saints and their parents and family members, but they try to erase the signs and remains of the beloved family of Prophet Muhammad ?
According to some scholars what is happening in Hijaz is actually a conspiracy plotted by the Jews against Islam, under the guise of Tawheed. The idea is to eradicate the Islamic legacy and heritage and to systematically remove all its vestiges so that in the days to come, Muslims will have no affiliation with their religious history.
Where are all those champions and "defenders" of the Sahaaba ?
Why are they silent when not only the name, but the very graves and traces of the noble Sahaba are being erased ?
Where is the Muslim nation which offers durood and blessings on the family of Muhammad, five times a day in their prayers ?
Some Questions and their Answers
1. The excuse is that pilgrims to Mecca and Medina and the lovers of Ahlulbayth ع visit these sites for "Ziyarat" and respect them and perform acts expressing their love and respect for those names and personalities, to whom these sites are attributed.
Reply :
The answer to this may be looked for in the Holy Quran, where Allah declares the hills of Safa and Marwa as His Signs:
"Surely the Safa and the Marwa are among the signs appointed by Allah; so whoever makes a pilgrimage to the House or pays a visit (to it), there is no blame on him if he goes round them both; and whoever does good spontaneously, then surely Allah is Grateful, Knowing"
[Quran, 2:158]
One popular Islamic significance of these places is the memory of Bibi Hajira, (wife of Prophet Ibrahim ع) and performing Sai. Another reason may be that these landmarks are the birthplace of Islam, and the light of Islam shone and spread out from here.. Yet another reason may be that by alluding to Safa and Marwa, the Quran indicates and hints, that respecting and revering historical and religious landmarks and symbols, is not prohibited, and indeed, is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED recommended if they incite love and devotion to Allah, by reminding us of those "blessed" by Allah, on the Sirat-e-Mustaqeem.
2. Another excuse which is often brought up to justify this hideous act is that pilgrims to these sites performed "INAPPROPRIATE" actions and even went to the extent of performing prostration, Sajdah to these graves, which is shirk and a sin, and therefore, it must be prevented
Reply :
We will mention two incidents from the Holy Quran. It may be said that Sajdah is a symbolic act, of love and veneration and every act has an outer form and an inner form to it. The Sajdah which we perform for Allah, the Al-Mighty and Sustainer, is the Sajdah of submission, devotion and an acknowledgement of His Mastership, His Power and His Authority. This Sajdah is reserved only for Allah, and performing it for anyone else, is a shirk and a sin. However we find in Quran that Allah ordered the angels (and Iblis) to prostrate to Hazrat Adam ع , all complied except Iblis, who was condemned and punished for not obeying. Surely this Sajdah was not the one which is reserved for Allah, rather one of love and respect to the Khalifa of Allah.
Again in Quran we find that Hazrat Yaqub ع and the brothers of Hazrat Yusuf ع prostrated before him. First we see that Hazrat Yusuf ع mentioned his dream to his father :
"When Yusuf said unto his father: O my father! Lo! I saw in a dream eleven planets and the sun and the moon, I saw them prostrating themselves unto me"
[Quran, 12:4.2]
and then the realization and fulfilment of this vision:
"And he raised his parents upon the throne and they fell down in prostration before him, and he said: O my father! This is the significance of my vision of old; my Lord has indeed made it to be true; and He was indeed kind to me...."
[Surah Yusuf :100]
We can see that even Hazrat Yaqub ع , a Prophet himself performed this prostration alongwith his sons, to Hazrat Yusuf ع . Therefore, since one cannot dare attribute their actions to "shirk", we can safely conclude that the Sajdah, the prostration, can also be performed out of love, and as a token of respect and veneration, and is different in intentions and spirit from the Sajdah reserved for Allah, the Al-Mighty
A traveller who visited al-Baqi after it's demolition described al-Baqi like "ruins of a town hit by an earthquake"
It is said that the report of demolition of the graves of al-Baqi made Ayatullah Ha'iri, the founder of the seminary of Qom cry on the pulpit of teaching and he closed his teaching session and the market of Qom was closed.
List of some instances to prove the point that building graves is as old as Islam itself:
1. Existence of the structure ie. Prophet’s ﷺ chamber inside which He ﷺ lies buried.
(Akhbaar al-Madinah, v 1 pg 81)
Initially the Prophet’s ﷺ room where he lies buried did not have walls. It was Umar b. Khattab who first constructed walls around it and gave it the shape of a structure.
(Wafaa al-Wafaa be Ikhtiyaar al-Mustafa, v 2 pg 521)
In fact, constructing and re-constructing walls around the Prophet’s ﷺ grave was an ongoing effort with Ayesha, Abdullah b. Zubair (during his brief reign in Medina) and Mutawakkil, among others.
2. Constructing a mosque over the grave of Hazrat Hamzah ع
(Ibid)
3. Grave of Ibrahim – son of the Prophet ﷺ in the house of Muhammad b. Ali b. Zaid
(Ibid)
4. Building a structure over the grave of Ameerul Momineen ع in the year 372 AH
(Sair-o- Aalam-e-Nobala, vol 1 pg 251)
5. Building a structure over the grave of Zubair in the year 386 AH
(Al-Muntazim, vol 14 pg 377)
6. Building a structure over the grave of Sa’d b. Maaz in the second century
(Sair-o-Aalam-e-Nobala, vol 13 pg 285)
7. Embellishing the grave of Imam Bukhari – compiler of Sahih-e-Bukhari in 256 AH
(Al-Tabaqaat al-Shaafiyyah al-Kubra, vol 2 pg 234)
8. Abbaside Caliph Haroon al-Rashid ل constructed a dome over the tomb of Ameerul Momineen ع during his reign in the second century
(Sair-o-Aalam-e-Nobala, vol 16 pg 251)
If leveling graves to the earth was ever mandated in Islam we can be certain that Haroon al-Rashid ل would definitely have done it given his animosity with the Ahlulbayth ع of the Prophet ﷺ and his role in the murder of the Prophet’s grandson – Imam Musa al-Kazim ع . On the contrary, we find that he has constructed a dome as a mark of respect for someone who he did not particularly love.
9. The respected companion of the Prophet ﷺ – Hazrat Salman-e-Muhammadi (ar) passed away in 36 AH. Khateeb-e-Baghdadi writes about his tomb – His grave is present even today near the palace of Kasra in Madaaen, Iraq. It is well-known heritage site and has a structure over it
(Taarikh-e-Baghdadi, vol 1 pg 163)
10. Regarding Talhah b. Abdullah – who died while fighting the caliph of his time, Ibne Batutah writes in his journal, “His grave is at the entrance of the city and over the grave is a dome and a mosque”
(Safarnaameh Ibn Batutah, vol 1 pg 208)
When this is the respect accorded by the Muslims to the grave of a companion who died on falsehood, graves of those like the Imams of the Ahlulbayth ع who were martyred on truth and were in fact Imams of truth, deserve even more embellishment, veneration and respect.
11. Muhammad b. Idris al-Shaafei – Imam Shaafei, one of the four jurists of the Sunni school, passed away in 204 AH. Zahabi writes, “The entire city collectively constructed a dome over his grave”
(Duwal al-Islam pg 344)
Building mosques over graves is advocated by Sihaah-e-Sittah (the six compendiums of traditions regarded as highly reliable by the Ahle Tasannun)
While these Muslims are quick to advance traditions from Sahih-e-Bukhari and Sahih-e-Muslim that suit their motive to brand accepted Islamic practices as apostasy, they appear oblivious to the scores of other traditions that reject their contention
1. Umar’s grave has a structure
Bukhari narrates in his Sahih in the Book of Janaaiz :
When Umar was stabbed, he sent his son Abdullah with a message to Ayesha to – ask her – If I can be buried with my two companions ie. in her room, next to the Prophet ﷺ and Abu Bakr. Ayesha replied: I wanted the spot for myself, but I will prefer him (Umar) to myself today. It had been her custom that if a man from among the companions requested her for that spot, she would always refuse. She herself gave the following instructions before her death: Bury me with my lady-friends (the wives of the Prophet in al-Baqi but do not bury me with the Prophet in the house, for I dislike to be held in reverence). Ibn Umar came back with the news whereupon Umar said: Nothing in the world was more important to me than that resting-place
(Sahih-e-Bukhari, Book of Janaaiz)
2. Elevation of graves
Abu Bakr b. Ayyaash narrates that Sufyan al-Tammar told me that he had seen the grave of the Prophet elevated and convex
(Sahih-e-Bukhari, vol 2 book 23, tradition 473)
It is established that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ placed a rock on top of Usman b. Maz’un’s (ra) grave
(Sunan-e-Abi Dawud, Al-Bayhaqi in al-Kubra, vol 3, pg 412)
The detailed report states that the Holy Prophet ﷺ asked a man to place a rock on top of Usman b. Maz`un’s grave; when he was unable to move it, he rolled up his sleeves and helped him till the whiteness of his arms was visible. Usman b. Maz`un was the first of the migrants buried in Baqi.
Ibrahim, the Holy Prophet’s ﷺ son, was buried next to him
Kharijah b. Zaid states: I can see myself when we were young men in the time of Usman (b. Affaan). The strongest one of us in high jump was he who could jump over the grave of Usman b. Maz`un and clear it
(Sahih-e-Bukhari in Chapter: (Placing) a stalk on top of the grave; Ibn Hajar in Fath al-Baari vol. 3 pg 256 of 1959 ed., Al-Bukhari in his Al-Tarikh al-Saghir vol. 1 pg 42)
These references are clear evidences for raising the grave and elevating it above the surface of the earth.
Al-Shawkaani, a leading Salafi scholar, admitted that the Salaf built up the graves high as proved from above references.
Ibn Hibban (in his Sahih-e-Ibn Hibban) who according to many Sunni scholars ranks as the most reliable scholar after Bukhari and Muslim has documented his visitation (Ziyaarah) to the tomb of Imam Ali b. Musa al-Reza ع in Mashshad, Iran :
I have done ziyaarah of his tomb many times, during my stay at Tus. Whenever I got into any difficulty I went to the grave of Imam Ali b. Musa al-Raza ع and asked Allah for the fulfillment of my need. Every time I was answered and my difficulty was removed. This is such a reality that I found it to be true no matter how many times I did it. May Allah grant us death in the true love for Prophet ﷺ and his blessed Ahlulbayth ع
(Ibn Abi Haatim al-Raazi, Kitab al-Theqah, vol. 8 pg 457, tradition 14,411)
Therefore, we can conclude by saying that these ruins of al-Baqi identify and expose the hypocrates and the black-sheep amongst the Muslim ranks, snatching away the masks from their faces and revealing their true intentions and feelings of hatred for Islam
The Burning Door
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