How Was The Night Journey (Miraj) Be Physically Possible? How Did It Happen In Such a Short Time?
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- In this part of the cross-examination, we have some questions about Mi'raj (Ascension). You have only 60 seconds for each question. What is the reason for the Mi'raj incident? A heart-to-heart conversation could have occurred. Why was such a long adventure needed? Some people say Mi'raj is not possible with the body. What would you say about it? How can so many things happen in such a short time? - Some people deny that Muhammad (peace be upon him) ascended to heaven. They say so because it is not mentioned in the Quran. So, why isn't the Mi'raj incident mentioned in the Quran?
+ First of all, there is something strange about this question: The issue of Mi'raj is something that we have accepted in the Islamic world for 1400 years. That is, all Muslims believe in it. If a Muslim, who is confused due to philosophical reasons, rejects this issue, it won't be very logical for him to say, "Bring evidence from the Quran." According to the science of logic, since all Muslims accept it, such a person has to bring us evidence from the Quran that it didn't occur. And if he doesn't have any evidence, this claim doesn't really matter. As for the issue of it not being mentioned in the Quran, it is actually mentioned in the Quran.
It has even been declared and explained by many tafsir scholars for centuries. Many books deal with this issue. We see it mostly in hadiths, and if we look at how it is mentioned in hadiths, we see that this issue made news in Makkah. In other words, all people of Makkah, including Muslims and polytheists, witnessed this incident. And we see that 40 companions who lived at the time of the Prophet (pbuh) narrated this issue directly. Even the names of the people who reported it and to whom it was reported, what kind of life they led, the life stories and reliability of the people to whom they reported it, and even their memory level are all recorded in our Islamic sources.
They are even recorded in the books called rijal (men). In other words, it is not reasonable to say, "This issue isn't mentioned clearly in the Quran." The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) directly narrated this issue; we understand historically that he narrated it with his mouth and tongue. So, this issue is true. - Well, we're talking about something extraordinary. An unprecedented event in the world. How do we know it was reported correctly? + As I've just said, more than forty Companions reported this issue, and it has reached us today reliably. When we look at hadiths, we see that they weren't written a long time after the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).
Some companions wrote about it directly at the time of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). There were companions who recorded them and the next generation took lessons from the companions with an earnest and delicate study. They confirmed them and passed them down to the next generation. Each generation confirmed them; they asked, "Are the memories of those who reported them sound?" "Is he the hadith narrator a trustworthy person? Does he lie? How is his life?" They recorded the answers themselves. They passed them down to us by memorising and recording them in writing.
When we view the issue, we see that some people say that the hadiths were written 200 years later, but there is clear evidence showing that they were written at the time of our Prophet (pbuh). And when more than one Companion reported it, not just one Companion, we can think of it as follows: Think of more than one string. If we put the strings together, it will become an unbreakable rope after a while, won't it? We can consider each of the Companions as one of those strings. That is when one Companion reported a hadith, and other Companions did not deny it, those strings came together, and they became an unbreakable rope after a while.
One of the most reliable hadiths is as follows: The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: "If a person knowingly reports something false from me, let him prepare his place in the hellfire." The hadith above is included in the most famous hadith sources. To sum up, it is indisputable that the Mi'raj issue and the hadiths related to it have reached the present day soundly. - What is the reason for the Mi'raj incident? A heart-to-heart conversation could have occurred. Why was such a long adventure needed? + We can think of the Mi'raj issue as follows: Think of a commander-in-chief in charge of a whole country.
Suppose that this commander-in-chief gives a task to a soldier, but it is not an ordinary task. It is a task that concerns the whole country and relates to its entire military system. What should he do? First, he should take the soldier; He should start from the lowest military rank, that is, a corporal; then, he should take him to all the offices up to the Army General and show him all the systems there. Why? Because his task is related to all of them. So, this soldier should visit all the military systems. What will happen then? The commander will summon him and assign him his duty. Thus, the commander will enable him to know the entire military system better than anyone else.
Similarly, the duty of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) is not an ordinary one. It concerns the whole universe. He's brought a Light to illuminate the whole universe. He tells us that nothing, from the simplest grain of sand to the galaxies, is created in vain, artlessly, coincidentally or randomly. He tells us that everything occurs with the will, art and control of God, and he tells people about Paradise, Hell and the like. Therefore, for the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) to explain them, and to continue the unfinished duties of all the previous prophets for hundreds of years until doomsday, a blessing that has not been given to anyone should be given to him.
In a duty that concerns the whole universe, he should travel around the whole universe. Therefore, God Almighty will take him around the whole universe, bring him back to His presence in the end, and will give him the revelation Himself; thus, he will be sent back to his place of duty. When such a lofty duty is in question, saying, "Was such a long journey necessary?" won't be reasonable. - What is the benefit of the Mi'raj incident for us? + We all have people we admire in our lives, don't we? We say, "We wish we had an opportunity to thank that person, " or feel grateful.
In other words, he has made an outstanding contribution to our lives or changed our lives or enabled us to attain different things. He has added significant value to us. What does one want to do? He wants to meet or thank that person even if only once or at least he says: "I wish I had the chance and knew how to please him, I wish I knew how to make him happy." He thinks like that, doesn't he? He wants to do it. When we look at the incident of Mi'raj, we see that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) met with God Almighty, to whom we are grateful. He met with God Almighty personally and brought us the five daily prayers. Prayer was made fard for us there.
Now, when you look at the prayer, you see that it contains several deeds of worship. That is, it contains prostration, reading the Quran, dhikr; besides, you turn towards the Kaaba, don't you? Or you give one-fortieth of the day, a kind of zakah. It contains several deeds of worship. In other words, it is the worship that will please God Almighty. When we ask how we can attain the consent of God Almighty, we see these five daily prayers before us. That is what Muhammad (pbuh) brought to us from Mi'raj and there are several other benefits too. In addition, let me say this: Suppose that someone will tell you about Mars.
Is it more interesting if this person told you about Mars, or would it be more interesting if someone who set foot on Mars told you about Mars? When we think about it, what the person who set foot on it will tell you will be more interesting, won't it? It will appeal to you more. Just like that, in this example, our Prophet (pbuh) saw with his own eyes almost everything that the Quran mentions. Paradise, Hell, seven layers of the sky, what was going on there; he also saw the Throne (Arsh) and the Chair (Kursiyy) and many other things there. and he told us about them knowingly. Just think about it; God Almighty chose one of us and showed him all the incidents.
Thus, he told us about them in a confident manner. Therefore, the understanding of Mi'raj is definitely beneficial for us. - Some people say Mi'raj is not possible with the body. What would you say about that? + Since God Almighty created the universe and He Himself imposed the laws, He can change the laws He wants for His servants whenever and however He wants. If you say, "He can't change", you're implying that " Allah is weak - God forbid." And that doesn't make a person a Muslim. For the proof of the prophet's prophethood, God Almighty should grant him such extraordinary things.
Suppose that you and I were in that period and the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) informed us about his prophethood. What would we need to see to believe? We would ask to see an extraordinary thing that Allah gave him, won't we? Only then can we trust him easily. It's hard to believe if we don't see a miracle. If we look at the Quran, when the prominent disbelievers denied, what word did they usually use? They said, "This is magic. You've cast a spell on us." What is necessary when the disbelievers say, "This is magic" and deny it? An extraordinary event is necessary. If I just say to you: "I am a prophet." Can you say: "You've cast a spell on me?" No.
You need to see a miracle to use the word "magic" while denying it. Those miracles are confirmed and mentioned in the Quran, but no disbeliever said, "We didn't call anything magic. Don't make it up. We didn't say anything like that." Thus, they confirmed that they called those incidents magic. In other words, we see that even the prominent disbelievers saw and accepted those miracles. However, they just didn't believe. How can we have doubts regarding such an issue even though we believe in him, or how can we deny it? Besides, we can also understand this issue if we look at the body of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).
Just think about it; throughout his life, in his cause, in all the hardships he went through, that body was always his companion, his comrade. Stones were thrown at his body; he worshipped and conveyed his message to people with his body. He continued his cause for 23-years with it. Allah Almighty lifted the angels to the sky with ease; similarly, He ascended his blessed body, which served Islam so well, to the sky together with his spirit and talked to him. There is nothing that can be regarded as illogical in it. - When the Mi'raj incident is mentioned, several other incidents are also narrated. How is it possible for so many things to happen in such a short time?
+ Actually, the answer I have just given is enough to understand it, but if we examine this issue separately, we can think of it as follows: There is an excellent example of it in Risale-i Nur: Think of a huge clock. What do clocks have? They have a second, minute and hour hand. Think of such a big clock, in addition to the second hand, it also has other hands. Third hand, even a lower hand than a third hand and yet another lower hand. Let's go down to the 10th hand like this. Now, if you get on the minute hand and I get on the bottom 10th hand, if I sit on that hand and if the clock starts ticking, when you complete one cycle in 1 minute, I will have completed thousands of cycles, right?
If I said to you, "I've completed so many cycles around this clock in one minute", Can you ask me, "How can so much happen in such a short time?" No, you can't. Similarly, since God Almighty created time, He can use it as He wishes for His servant. There is nothing wrong with that. Besides, when we look at the things that God Almighty created in the universe, and when we look at the other speeds He has created, we can understand it. For example, He has given light a speed of 300,000 kilometers per second, Hasn't He? Or, He has given a heavy object like the Earth a speed of 107,000 kilometers per hour.
So, He can create thousands of events in different realms in 1 minute and create thousands of minutes. His power is enough for it; there is nothing wrong with it either. - In the incident of Mi'raj, it is said that there were 50 daily prayers at first, and then as a result of the consultation of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) with other prophets during Mi'raj, it was reduced to 5 daily prayers. Isn't it regarded as bargaining with Allah - God forbid? + When we look at the issue, there are important lessons for us to learn.
When one talks to argue for the sake of argument, not to learn the truth, "Oh, I don't believe it; I can't accept such a thing", Islam closes some of its light for that person. First of all, it is not a bargain. Since God Almighty created everything, He looks at the past and the future simultaneously. Therefore, He already knows that there will be five daily prayers, that our Prophet (pbuh) will meet with other prophets, and that he will talk to them and that Moses will give him advice. Therefore, we can't call it a bargain. So why did that conversation take place? Because there are important lessons for us to learn.
1- We understand how acceptable the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was in the eyes of Allah and how important his request was for Allah. He reduced daily prayers from fifty to five for his sake. So, what lesson can I learn from it? If I want to attain Allah's pleasure, there is someone I need to adhere to directly. If I follow Him, if I follow His attitudes and actions, I can attain Allah's pleasure directly. Because he is the most beloved servant of Allah; all the beautiful traits came together in him. The daily prayers were reduced from fifty to five for his sake. That's the lesson I learn from it. We can even support it with a verse of the Quran.
What is said in verse 31 of the Chapter of Ali 'Imran? بِسْــــــــــــــــــــــمِ اﷲِارَّحْمَنِ ارَّحِيم قُلْ اِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللّٰهَ فَاتَّبِعُونٖي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللّٰهُ It means: "Say: 'If ye do love Allah, follow me: Allah will love you'." The 2nd lesson we learn is: Prayer is such a deed of worship that even if it is 50 times, it is not too much for a person. but unfortunately, even 5 times can be too much for us sometimes. Apart from these, the third lesson is: Although we pray five times a day, its reward is equal to that of fifty daily prayers.
There are many other lessons we can learn; when scholars have talked about this issue for centuries, they mentioned these benefits and lessons. - Thank you for your answers. See you in the next cross-examination. Our questions are not over yet. We continue to prepare questions on many issues. + You can ask all kinds of questions. We are always ready and as we always say We trust in the Quran, not ourselves. 0.06 What is the reason for the Mi'raj incident? A heart-to-heart conversation could have occurred. Why was such a long adventure needed? 0.15 Some people say Mi'raj is not possible with the body. 0.17 What would you say about it? 0.22 How can so many things happen in such a short time?
03.33 "If a person knowingly reports something false from me, let him prepare his place in the hellfire." 12.54 "Say: 'If ye do love Allah, follow me: Allah will love you'." Aal-i Imran, verse 31
+ First of all, there is something strange about this question: The issue of Mi'raj is something that we have accepted in the Islamic world for 1400 years. That is, all Muslims believe in it. If a Muslim, who is confused due to philosophical reasons, rejects this issue, it won't be very logical for him to say, "Bring evidence from the Quran." According to the science of logic, since all Muslims accept it, such a person has to bring us evidence from the Quran that it didn't occur. And if he doesn't have any evidence, this claim doesn't really matter. As for the issue of it not being mentioned in the Quran, it is actually mentioned in the Quran.
It has even been declared and explained by many tafsir scholars for centuries. Many books deal with this issue. We see it mostly in hadiths, and if we look at how it is mentioned in hadiths, we see that this issue made news in Makkah. In other words, all people of Makkah, including Muslims and polytheists, witnessed this incident. And we see that 40 companions who lived at the time of the Prophet (pbuh) narrated this issue directly. Even the names of the people who reported it and to whom it was reported, what kind of life they led, the life stories and reliability of the people to whom they reported it, and even their memory level are all recorded in our Islamic sources.
They are even recorded in the books called rijal (men). In other words, it is not reasonable to say, "This issue isn't mentioned clearly in the Quran." The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) directly narrated this issue; we understand historically that he narrated it with his mouth and tongue. So, this issue is true. - Well, we're talking about something extraordinary. An unprecedented event in the world. How do we know it was reported correctly? + As I've just said, more than forty Companions reported this issue, and it has reached us today reliably. When we look at hadiths, we see that they weren't written a long time after the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).
Some companions wrote about it directly at the time of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). There were companions who recorded them and the next generation took lessons from the companions with an earnest and delicate study. They confirmed them and passed them down to the next generation. Each generation confirmed them; they asked, "Are the memories of those who reported them sound?" "Is he the hadith narrator a trustworthy person? Does he lie? How is his life?" They recorded the answers themselves. They passed them down to us by memorising and recording them in writing.
When we view the issue, we see that some people say that the hadiths were written 200 years later, but there is clear evidence showing that they were written at the time of our Prophet (pbuh). And when more than one Companion reported it, not just one Companion, we can think of it as follows: Think of more than one string. If we put the strings together, it will become an unbreakable rope after a while, won't it? We can consider each of the Companions as one of those strings. That is when one Companion reported a hadith, and other Companions did not deny it, those strings came together, and they became an unbreakable rope after a while.
One of the most reliable hadiths is as follows: The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: "If a person knowingly reports something false from me, let him prepare his place in the hellfire." The hadith above is included in the most famous hadith sources. To sum up, it is indisputable that the Mi'raj issue and the hadiths related to it have reached the present day soundly. - What is the reason for the Mi'raj incident? A heart-to-heart conversation could have occurred. Why was such a long adventure needed? + We can think of the Mi'raj issue as follows: Think of a commander-in-chief in charge of a whole country.
Suppose that this commander-in-chief gives a task to a soldier, but it is not an ordinary task. It is a task that concerns the whole country and relates to its entire military system. What should he do? First, he should take the soldier; He should start from the lowest military rank, that is, a corporal; then, he should take him to all the offices up to the Army General and show him all the systems there. Why? Because his task is related to all of them. So, this soldier should visit all the military systems. What will happen then? The commander will summon him and assign him his duty. Thus, the commander will enable him to know the entire military system better than anyone else.
Similarly, the duty of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) is not an ordinary one. It concerns the whole universe. He's brought a Light to illuminate the whole universe. He tells us that nothing, from the simplest grain of sand to the galaxies, is created in vain, artlessly, coincidentally or randomly. He tells us that everything occurs with the will, art and control of God, and he tells people about Paradise, Hell and the like. Therefore, for the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) to explain them, and to continue the unfinished duties of all the previous prophets for hundreds of years until doomsday, a blessing that has not been given to anyone should be given to him.
In a duty that concerns the whole universe, he should travel around the whole universe. Therefore, God Almighty will take him around the whole universe, bring him back to His presence in the end, and will give him the revelation Himself; thus, he will be sent back to his place of duty. When such a lofty duty is in question, saying, "Was such a long journey necessary?" won't be reasonable. - What is the benefit of the Mi'raj incident for us? + We all have people we admire in our lives, don't we? We say, "We wish we had an opportunity to thank that person, " or feel grateful.
In other words, he has made an outstanding contribution to our lives or changed our lives or enabled us to attain different things. He has added significant value to us. What does one want to do? He wants to meet or thank that person even if only once or at least he says: "I wish I had the chance and knew how to please him, I wish I knew how to make him happy." He thinks like that, doesn't he? He wants to do it. When we look at the incident of Mi'raj, we see that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) met with God Almighty, to whom we are grateful. He met with God Almighty personally and brought us the five daily prayers. Prayer was made fard for us there.
Now, when you look at the prayer, you see that it contains several deeds of worship. That is, it contains prostration, reading the Quran, dhikr; besides, you turn towards the Kaaba, don't you? Or you give one-fortieth of the day, a kind of zakah. It contains several deeds of worship. In other words, it is the worship that will please God Almighty. When we ask how we can attain the consent of God Almighty, we see these five daily prayers before us. That is what Muhammad (pbuh) brought to us from Mi'raj and there are several other benefits too. In addition, let me say this: Suppose that someone will tell you about Mars.
Is it more interesting if this person told you about Mars, or would it be more interesting if someone who set foot on Mars told you about Mars? When we think about it, what the person who set foot on it will tell you will be more interesting, won't it? It will appeal to you more. Just like that, in this example, our Prophet (pbuh) saw with his own eyes almost everything that the Quran mentions. Paradise, Hell, seven layers of the sky, what was going on there; he also saw the Throne (Arsh) and the Chair (Kursiyy) and many other things there. and he told us about them knowingly. Just think about it; God Almighty chose one of us and showed him all the incidents.
Thus, he told us about them in a confident manner. Therefore, the understanding of Mi'raj is definitely beneficial for us. - Some people say Mi'raj is not possible with the body. What would you say about that? + Since God Almighty created the universe and He Himself imposed the laws, He can change the laws He wants for His servants whenever and however He wants. If you say, "He can't change", you're implying that " Allah is weak - God forbid." And that doesn't make a person a Muslim. For the proof of the prophet's prophethood, God Almighty should grant him such extraordinary things.
Suppose that you and I were in that period and the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) informed us about his prophethood. What would we need to see to believe? We would ask to see an extraordinary thing that Allah gave him, won't we? Only then can we trust him easily. It's hard to believe if we don't see a miracle. If we look at the Quran, when the prominent disbelievers denied, what word did they usually use? They said, "This is magic. You've cast a spell on us." What is necessary when the disbelievers say, "This is magic" and deny it? An extraordinary event is necessary. If I just say to you: "I am a prophet." Can you say: "You've cast a spell on me?" No.
You need to see a miracle to use the word "magic" while denying it. Those miracles are confirmed and mentioned in the Quran, but no disbeliever said, "We didn't call anything magic. Don't make it up. We didn't say anything like that." Thus, they confirmed that they called those incidents magic. In other words, we see that even the prominent disbelievers saw and accepted those miracles. However, they just didn't believe. How can we have doubts regarding such an issue even though we believe in him, or how can we deny it? Besides, we can also understand this issue if we look at the body of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).
Just think about it; throughout his life, in his cause, in all the hardships he went through, that body was always his companion, his comrade. Stones were thrown at his body; he worshipped and conveyed his message to people with his body. He continued his cause for 23-years with it. Allah Almighty lifted the angels to the sky with ease; similarly, He ascended his blessed body, which served Islam so well, to the sky together with his spirit and talked to him. There is nothing that can be regarded as illogical in it. - When the Mi'raj incident is mentioned, several other incidents are also narrated. How is it possible for so many things to happen in such a short time?
+ Actually, the answer I have just given is enough to understand it, but if we examine this issue separately, we can think of it as follows: There is an excellent example of it in Risale-i Nur: Think of a huge clock. What do clocks have? They have a second, minute and hour hand. Think of such a big clock, in addition to the second hand, it also has other hands. Third hand, even a lower hand than a third hand and yet another lower hand. Let's go down to the 10th hand like this. Now, if you get on the minute hand and I get on the bottom 10th hand, if I sit on that hand and if the clock starts ticking, when you complete one cycle in 1 minute, I will have completed thousands of cycles, right?
If I said to you, "I've completed so many cycles around this clock in one minute", Can you ask me, "How can so much happen in such a short time?" No, you can't. Similarly, since God Almighty created time, He can use it as He wishes for His servant. There is nothing wrong with that. Besides, when we look at the things that God Almighty created in the universe, and when we look at the other speeds He has created, we can understand it. For example, He has given light a speed of 300,000 kilometers per second, Hasn't He? Or, He has given a heavy object like the Earth a speed of 107,000 kilometers per hour.
So, He can create thousands of events in different realms in 1 minute and create thousands of minutes. His power is enough for it; there is nothing wrong with it either. - In the incident of Mi'raj, it is said that there were 50 daily prayers at first, and then as a result of the consultation of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) with other prophets during Mi'raj, it was reduced to 5 daily prayers. Isn't it regarded as bargaining with Allah - God forbid? + When we look at the issue, there are important lessons for us to learn.
When one talks to argue for the sake of argument, not to learn the truth, "Oh, I don't believe it; I can't accept such a thing", Islam closes some of its light for that person. First of all, it is not a bargain. Since God Almighty created everything, He looks at the past and the future simultaneously. Therefore, He already knows that there will be five daily prayers, that our Prophet (pbuh) will meet with other prophets, and that he will talk to them and that Moses will give him advice. Therefore, we can't call it a bargain. So why did that conversation take place? Because there are important lessons for us to learn.
1- We understand how acceptable the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was in the eyes of Allah and how important his request was for Allah. He reduced daily prayers from fifty to five for his sake. So, what lesson can I learn from it? If I want to attain Allah's pleasure, there is someone I need to adhere to directly. If I follow Him, if I follow His attitudes and actions, I can attain Allah's pleasure directly. Because he is the most beloved servant of Allah; all the beautiful traits came together in him. The daily prayers were reduced from fifty to five for his sake. That's the lesson I learn from it. We can even support it with a verse of the Quran.
What is said in verse 31 of the Chapter of Ali 'Imran? بِسْــــــــــــــــــــــمِ اﷲِارَّحْمَنِ ارَّحِيم قُلْ اِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللّٰهَ فَاتَّبِعُونٖي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللّٰهُ It means: "Say: 'If ye do love Allah, follow me: Allah will love you'." The 2nd lesson we learn is: Prayer is such a deed of worship that even if it is 50 times, it is not too much for a person. but unfortunately, even 5 times can be too much for us sometimes. Apart from these, the third lesson is: Although we pray five times a day, its reward is equal to that of fifty daily prayers.
There are many other lessons we can learn; when scholars have talked about this issue for centuries, they mentioned these benefits and lessons. - Thank you for your answers. See you in the next cross-examination. Our questions are not over yet. We continue to prepare questions on many issues. + You can ask all kinds of questions. We are always ready and as we always say We trust in the Quran, not ourselves. 0.06 What is the reason for the Mi'raj incident? A heart-to-heart conversation could have occurred. Why was such a long adventure needed? 0.15 Some people say Mi'raj is not possible with the body. 0.17 What would you say about it? 0.22 How can so many things happen in such a short time?
03.33 "If a person knowingly reports something false from me, let him prepare his place in the hellfire." 12.54 "Say: 'If ye do love Allah, follow me: Allah will love you'." Aal-i Imran, verse 31