How many of you know about Masjid al Nabawi? As Muslims, we believe that everyone should be familiar with the holiest places in the world, and we should even let our children know about it.

All Muslims know nothing could be more worth having than the love for our beloved Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). We always love to visit Masjid e Nabvi where our Prophet’s grave is. Al masjid An Nabawi was constructed by our beloved Prophet (PBUH) in (622 CE).

Its reconstruction kept on happening with time under different rulers.

And the purpose was to make it one of the biggest mosques in the world. Look at why it’s the most holy mosque in the world for all Muslims.

Abu-Huraira reported:

 قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ، بْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ الْمُسَيَّبِ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، يَبْلُغُ بِهِ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ “‏ صَلاَةٌ فِي مَسْجِدِي هَذَا أَفْضَلُ مِنْ أَلْفِ صَلاَةٍ فِيمَا سِوَاهُ إِلاَّ الْمَسْجِدَ الْحَرَامَ‏”

“The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “A prayer in my mosque is a thousand times more excellent than a prayer in any other mosque, except Masjid al-Haram (Mosque of the Ka’ba).”Sahih Muslim 1394a

Now you better understand why pilgrims love to visit this mosque and worship there. The serenity, peace, and calmness will give you a different soul-purifying experience in this mosque. 

Today, we will explain all the critical factors you need to know about Al Masjid An Nabawi. You can also tell your loved ones about the history of the mosque of our prophet. Let’s have a deeper view together!

Why Do We Call It “Nabawi”? 

This holy mosque is called “Al Masjid an Nabawi” worldwide. Our Prophet PBUH built it himself after he migrated from Makkah to Madina.  

This mosque became his resting place, along with his companions Abu Bakr (RA) and Umar (RA). It is also considered the home of the Prophet PBUH’s belongings and his family members.     

Importance of Al Masjid An Nabawi

Masjid e Nabvi is the second largest and holiest mosque in the world. All of the architectural styles and the rest of the things are matchless, where all of the Muslims can sit and recite the holy Quran. The Arab rulers tried to enhance the grooming of this mosque according to their own will. And now it’s in front of you as the only best architectural model ever. 

Every year, millions of Muslims visit Saudi Arabia to see this mosque. If you are planning to visit this holy mosque, December will be the most suitable month for you, with less heat. The Muslims can go to Umrah this month, too. You must approach any trustworthy travel agency to get the December Umrah packages. 

You can have a better understanding of the importance of this mosque from the following hadith:

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), on visiting Masjid Nabawi, said, “Whoever asks blessings for me at my grave, I hear him, and whoever asks blessings upon me from afar, it is conveyed to me.”  

Have a look at the following hadiths:

عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ قَالَ ‏ “‏ لاَ تُشَدُّ الرِّحَالُ إِلاَّ إِلَى ثَلاَثَةِ مَسَاجِدَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ، وَمَسْجِدِ الرَّسُولِ ﷺ وَمَسْجِدِ الأَقْصَى“‏ 

The Prophet (PBUH) said, “Do not set out on a journey except for three Mosques ie Al-Masjid-AlHaram, the Mosque of Allah Messenger (PBUH), and the Mosque of Al-Aqsa, (Mosque of Jerusalem).” 

(Sahih al-Bukhari 1189 (Book 20, Hadith 2)

Can you imagine that you can have thousands of the time more rewards by praying in this mosque: 

‏ صَلاَةٌ فِي مَسْجِدِي هَذَا أَفْضَلُ مِنْ أَلْفِ صَلاَةٍ فِيمَا سِوَاهُ إِلاَّ الْمَسْجِدَ الْحَرَامَ

“Prayer in this mosque of mine is better than a thousand prayers (observed in other mosque) besides it, except that of Masjid al-Haram.” Sahih Muslim 1395a (Book 15, Hadith 583)

Jannat al Baqi is also situated near this mosque, and according to Hazrat Aisha (RA):  

“‘A’isha said that whenever it was her turn for God’s messenger to spend the night with her, he would go out towards the end of the night to al-Baqi’ and say, “Peace be upon you, household of a people who are believers. What you were being promised will come to you tomorrow, you will receive it after some delay, and if God will, we shall join you. O God, grant forgiveness to the inhabitants of Baqi’ al- Gharqad.” (This is the full name of the cemetery at Medina. Baqi’ properly means a place with tree roots, and gharqad is the name of a thorny type of tree. The name was retained even when all signs of trees were removed.)

(Mishkat al-Masabih 1766)

Historical Point Of View 

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) migrated from Makkah to Madina and was warmly welcomed by the Yathrib’s nobles and chiefs. All the people of Madina were impatiently waiting for him.

All of them were offering the prophet (PBUH) to stay in their home, but he kindly declined all the offers. His camel’s name was Qaswa, and he told the people, “[This camel] is commanded by Allah; wherever it stops, that will be my home.”

She continued walking, then stopped and sat in a very large courtyard of two orphan brothers, Suhail (RA) and Sahl (RA). The Prophet (PBUH) said, “This is the home.” That place was the perfect choice from all perspectives. Having enough date trees and grass makes it an ideal place for construction and many other benefits. The Prophet Muhammad bought this place for 10 dinars from Asad ibn Zurarah (RA), the guardian of these two orphans. 

Anas bin Malik I narrates:

“The location where the Prophet’s Mosque was built belonged to Banu Najjar. In it, there were date-palm trees and graves of the idolaters. The Prophet said to them: ‘Name its price’. They said: ‘We will never take any money for it.’ The Prophet ﷺ built it, and they were assisting him, and the Prophet ﷺ was saying: ‘The real life is the life of the Hereafter, so forgive the Ansar and the Muhajirah.’ Before the mosque was built, the Prophet would perform prayer wherever he was when the time for prayer came“

[Narrated in Sunan Ibn Majah 742 (Book 4, Hadith 8)]

Then, the Prophet of Allah (PBUH) ordered the Ansar and Muhajireen to clean the bushes to clear the land. Then, the Prophet ﷺ and his companions started the construction of the Al Nabawi Mosque from stone-made clay and bricks. Then, the Ottoman Empire renovated this mosque and increased it several times more. That’s how it kept expanding and became the second-largest mosque in the world.

Rare Facts About Masjid Al Nabawi

Let’s explore the most rare facts about Masjid Al Nabawi to make this blog (conversation) more interesting.  

We know you are all very interested in knowing the facts about this mosque and what’s inside it, which you need to know and visit. There are so many of them, but we will try to cover most of them. 

  • Roda Rasool: Prophet (PBUH) is buried at this place.
  • Riyadh ul Jannah: This area is covered with a green carpet and situated between the Roda Rasool and Pulpit. 
  • Mimbar: The Mimber was built on the Ansar’s request so that the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) could rest by leaning back with the palm tree.  
  • House of Fatima (RA): You can find the door of Hazrat Fatima’s (RA) house on the east side of Roda Rasool. 
  • Mehrab-e-Nabawi: Standing here after the change of Qibla Prophet (PBUH) leads the prayers. 
  • Jannat al-Baqi: This is situated on the eastern side of the Prophet’s Mosque, where more than 10,000 Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) companions are buried.

Architectural  View

  • Rawdah Rasool

It’s located at the southeastern corner of the Ottoman Prayer Hall, and its literal meaning is the Garden of the Prophet (PBUH). The prophet’s grave isn’t even visible because of the current grilling structure. Inside is a 10X12 room where the graves of the Prophet (PBUH) and his companions are present.

Two more walls cover this portion again. This is to ensure safety and keep the rest of the things safe. This portion is considered one of the holiest parts of this mosque, where all pilgrims try their best to offer voluntary prayers.

  • Riyad ul-Jannah

It’s also called the Garden of Paradise and is present in the heart of Al-Masjid an-Nabawi. It is from the Tomb to the pulpit. It was narrated from Abdullah bin Zaid that the prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said “

“‏ مَا بَيْنَ بَيْتِي وَمِنْبَرِي رَوْضَةٌ مِنْ رِيَاضِ الْجَنَّةِ ‏”

“The area between my house and my minbar is one of the gardens of Paradise.” 

Sunan an Nasa (695)  Book 8, Hadith 8 

Many notable historical places are here, including the Eight Pillars and Mihrab Nabawi. Whenever you visit this place, you will experience serenity and peace. 

  • Minarets of Masjid an-Nabawi

Minarets were added to this mosque during various renovations and upgrades. From 1994 to the present, there have been a total of 10 minarets, each 104 meters high. 

There were so many different structures and shapes applied. The only purpose was to expand it as much esthetically as possible. Because millions of Muslims every year visit this mosque, they need to make it capable enough to adjust them accordingly.

A few new minarets were added in the reign of King Abdul Aziz al-Saud.   

  • Green Dome 

This Green Dome was built over the graves of the Prophet (PBUH) and his companions. It’s one of the oldest parts of this mosque, and it looks very aesthetic and glorious to all pilgrims. 

This Dome is located in the southeast corner of the mosque and is considered one of the most well-known symbols in Madina. It was first painted green in 1837 and is still famous as the Green Dome.  

  • Prophet’s Mosque Library

This Library in the Prophet’s mosque is located in the western wing. It was built and well taken care of but caught fire, destroying all of it. Afterwards, this portion was reconstructed. (1481/82 CE)

Many manuscripts along with a large number of books are also present over there for all of you to read and to have a better understanding of Islam. There you can find many different varieties of books along with the Quran for free to read.   

  • Gates of Masjid an-Nabawi

The main complex of Masjid Al Nabawi contains 42 gates, of which King Fahad Gate, situated on the north side of the mosque, is one of the most major ones.

In the early days, this mosque had only three gates. As it started expanding, it now has two hundred gates. Still, the area is expanding gradually, and only a few gates are present in their original places. The rest of the gates’ places have changed with time. 

  • Jannatul Baqi

Jannatul Baqi is situated on the eastern side of this mosque, which is 170000 square metres wide. The interesting fact is that more than ten thousand of the Prophet’s (PBUH) companions are available.

In the early days, this was present on the outskirts of Madina city, but now it has become the most important and separate part of the Prophet Muhammad’s Mosque.

Conclusion 

After a deep and keen analysis of all the information, we tried our best to convey the most authentic information. All of the relevant Hadiths are also available along with the given information to strengthen the information.

Al-Masjid An Nabawi Mosque is the holiest place for all Muslims. Therefore, you should also share this blog with your loved ones to educate them about this Holy Mosque.