Chief of the Prophets

Chief of the Prophets — Page 88

Chapter Six 88 opened directly into the mosque. Muḥammad sa would use this door to go into the mosque from his quarters to offer Ṣalāt and attend other matters. Beginning of Adhān 1 Since it was not possible in Makkah to openly offer Ṣalāt , no arrangements had been made to openly call Muslims for Ṣalāt. Now that the Muslims were enjoying peace in Madīnah, many suggestions were presented to call Muslims for Ṣalāt. Finally, it was decided with the consultation of ‘Umar bin al-Khaṭṭāb ra that one person would make a loud announcement at the time of Ṣalāt. This continued for a few days. Then a companion, ‘Abdullāh bin Zaid Anṣārī ra , heard the currently practiced words of Adhān in a dream, and ‘Umar ra also had a dream the same night and heard the same words. Muḥammad sa instructed Bilāl ra to call Adhān in those same words, which has been practiced ever since. Brief Description of the Muslim and non-Muslim Population of Madīnah Yathrib was the old name of Madīnah, but when the Prophet sa of Allah migrated there, people started calling it Madinatun-Nabi (the City of the Messenger) and slowly it became known simply by Madīnah. Madīnah is located about 250 miles north of Makkah. It was primarily inhabited by the Jews and idolaters. The two tribes of idolaters living there were Aus and Khazraj and they lived in the proper city. The Jews consisted of three main tribes, Banū Qainuqā‘, Banū Naīr, and Banū Quraiẓah. They had built smaller fortresses a short distance outside the city. The tribes of Aus and Khazraj were always at odds with each other and usually fighting with each other. But as Islam spread among these tribes, the ancient rivalries and 1 Call for formal five daily prayers ( Ṣalāt ). [Publisher]