The Hijra is the decisive turning point of Islamic history and is confirmed by sensory miracles that attest to the truth of Muhammad's prophethood.
The sermon treats the Hijra of the Prophet Muhammad as the starting point of the Islamic calendar and as a turning point of Islamic history. It recounts how Umar ibn al-Khattab, after a request from Basra, gathered the Companions for a Shura and agreed on the Hijra as the beginning of the year. The text emphasizes that the Hijra represents the dividing line between the Meccan and the Medinan era and is connected with the founding of the Islamic state. Subsequently, several miracles on the path of the Hijra are described, including the thwarting of the plan at Dar al-Nadwa and the rescue of the Prophet despite heavy guard. The sermon refers to the torture of Bilal, Sumayya, and Yasir as examples of patience and steadfastness. It calls upon the believers to renew their faith in the prophethood of Muhammad through these miracles. The text connects historical tradition with the present time in the Islamic year 1448 and emphasizes the significance of the Hijra for the identity of the Umma.
Analysed with qwen3.8-27b, version v3.
The same standards apply to every tradition, see Values.
Full text in English
Miracles on the Path of the Hijra
The First Sermon
Praise be to Allah; we praise Him, seek His help, and ask His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our own souls and the wickedness of our deeds. Whomsoever Allah guides, none can mislead, and whomsoever He misleads, none can guide. And I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, with no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and His Messenger. May Allah's blessings and peace be upon him, his family, and his companions...
"O you who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and do not die except as Muslims" [Al Imran: 102].
"O mankind! Fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah, through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed, Allah is ever, over you, a Watcher" [An Nisa: 1].
O servants of Allah, know that the truest of speech is the Book of Allah, the best of guidance is the guidance of our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, the worst of matters are those that are newly introduced, every newly introduced matter is an innovation, every innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire. May Allah protect us and you from innovations, misguidances, and the Fire.
To proceed:
O believers, Imam al-Tabari narrated in his "History," and Ibn Sa'd in "al-Tabaqat al-Kubra," and it was transmitted by Ibn Kathir in "al-Bidaya wa al-Nihaya" and al-Suyuti in "Tarikh al-Khulafa" with a good chain of narration, that in the year seventeen of the Hijra, a letter arrived from Abu Musa al-Ash'ari, may Allah be pleased with him, the governor of Basra, to Umar ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him. The letter contained documents and transfer orders dated only with the month of "Sha'ban," without a year. So Abu Musa wrote to Umar: "O Commander of the Faithful, letters come to us from you that have no date, and it is difficult for us to know which Sha'ban this is—whether it is in the past year or the one after it?" So Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, realized the need of the Ummah for a unified calendar by which rights, transactions, and records could be regulated. He gathered the Companions, may Allah's mercy be upon them, for consultation, and this was the custom of al-Faruq—he did not monopolize his opinion in the affairs of the Ummah. He put the question to them: By what shall we date? One said: Let us date by the birth of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. Umar said: The birth is disputed, and matters occurred in it that are difficult to determine. Another said: Let us date by his mission. He said: And the mission is likewise. Another said: Let us date by his death. Umar said: No, this would divide hearts, and the Muslims would not be pleased to make the beginning of their calendar the day of the death of their Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. Then they unanimously agreed that the beginning should be the blessed Hijra; because it is the dividing line between the weak Meccan period and the strong Medinan period, and it is the day on which the state of Islam was established, and by it Allah distinguished between truth and falsehood. Immediately after the Hijra: the first mosque in Islam, "Masjid Quba," was established, then the Prophet's Mosque, and the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, established brotherhood between the Muhajireen and the Ansar, and the Constitution was put in place that regulated the relationship between the Muslims and others in the city, and the Adhan was legislated, and Jihad was made obligatory, and the expeditions began.
O believers, the Hijra was the true birth of the Ummah; and therefore it deserved to be made by the Muslims the beginning of their Islamic calendar. Then the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, consulted: From which month shall we begin the year? So the opinion of Uthman and Ali, may Allah be pleased with them, was: Let us begin from Muharram, for it is a sacred month, and it is the month of people's return from their Hajj, and it is the first of the Arab months in both the pre-Islamic period and Islam. So Umar and the Companions approved it, and the first date for the Muslims was: 1 Muharram, year 1 AH.
They did not pay attention to the calendars of other nations, neither to the Roman calendar nor to the Persian calendar; because the Islamic Ummah has its independent identity, and it has its great event that changed the course of history, which is the Hijra of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.
O believers, we are still in Allah's sacred month of Muharram, and at the beginning of the Hijri year 1448 from the Hijra of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. It is fitting for us to pause at some of the miracles that accompanied the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, during his Hijra, so that we may renew faith in him in our hearts; for among the greatest things that indicate the truth of the prophethood of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, is that Allah, the Most High, supported him in the most critical moments with tangible miracles, which the enemies and the friends saw, and they became a proof that cannot be refuted, and a light that cannot be extinguished.
O believers, the first miracle: The nullification of the plot of Dar al-Nadwa and his escape from among the swords; for the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, began his peaceful call in Mecca with wisdom and good exhortation, and he called people to worship Allah alone, and he did not compel anyone to enter the religion of Allah. And he remained in this state for thirteen years, enduring harm, and arguing in the best manner, not raising a sword nor seeking status, but rather seeking to guide creation to their Lord. When the polytheists of Quraysh saw that the light of truth had begun to spread, and that hearts had begun to incline toward it, and when they were unable to confront the argument with an argument, they resorted to the scheming of the weak and the plotting of the cowards, and they poured out their wrath upon those who believed in Allah, the Most High, and followed His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him.
This is Bilal, whom the polytheists enslaved and subjected to severe torment. Ahmad narrated in his Musnad with a sound chain that Bilal, may Allah be pleased with him, was taken out by his master, Amiya ibn Khalaf, into the desert during the heat of midday, and he would throw him on his back upon the scorching ground of Mecca, then order a great stone to be placed upon his chest, and say to him: "You will remain like this until you die or deny Muhammad." Bilal would say while under the torment: "Ahad, Ahad" (One, One).
The disbelievers intended to break his faith with this torment, but Bilal repeated the word of monotheism at the top of his voice. Bilal, may Allah be pleased with him, was an enslaved Ethiopian, weak and oppressed, but through his faith in Allah, the Most High, he became a teacher to the world in the meaning of "steadfastness" upon the religion of Allah, the Most High.
Al-Hakim narrated in his al-Mustadrak with a sound chain that the disbelievers of Quraysh tortured Yasir, his wife Sumayya, and his son Ammar, may Allah be pleased with them, upon the scorching ground of Mecca to make them renounce their religion. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, passed by them while they were being tortured and said: "Patience, O family of Yasir, for your appointed meeting is Paradise." When the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, gave them glad tidings of Paradise, the pain became coolness and peace. They intended to abandon the religion, but they purchased Paradise in exchange for it. Sumayya became the first martyr in Islam, and Yasir passed away as a martyr, and Ammar stood firm, and Allah exalted his mention.
O believers, when the harm and affliction intensified upon the companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, permission was given to them to emigrate. In Sahih al-Bukhari, from the Mother of the Believers, Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, she said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said to the Muslims while he was in Mecca: "I have been shown your dwelling place of emigration; I have been shown a land with date palms between two black tracts of land," and the two black tracts are the two volcanic areas (Harratayn). So those who emigrated went to Medina to escape for their religion. Emigration is not defeat; emigration is the tactic of the prophets when the earth is unable to embrace the truth.
O believers, the polytheists did not content themselves with the harm they inflicted upon the companions of the Messenger of Allah, but they moved on to making plans to get rid of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him.
Many of the people of tafsir, such as al-Tabari and al-Bayhaqi in "Dalail al-Nubuwwa," narrated with a good chain that the chiefs of polytheism gathered in "Dar al-Nadwa," the house of consultation and conspiracy, to deliberate on the matter of this religion. One of them said: "Imprison him with chains until he dies," and another said: "Expel him from Mecca so that you may be relieved of him." Until Satan spoke through the tongue of Abu Jahl, saying: "The opinion is that we take from every tribe a young, tough man, and each one is given a sharp sword, and they strike him with the strike of one man, so that his blood is dispersed among the tribes, and Banu Hashim will not be able to wage war against all the people; they will be satisfied with the blood money."
Contemplate the intensity of the scheme and the malice of the plot: a gathering, planning, distribution of responsibility, young men on alert surrounding the house at night, swords drawn, and eyes watching. If any one of us had seen them that night, he would have said with certainty: "Muhammad will surely be killed." This is the logic of humans, and this is the calculation of this world, but there is another reckoning... there is a Lord who sees, and a Lord who hears, and a Lord who plans. So Allah revealed to His Prophet their scheme, and He revealed to him: "And when those who disbelieved plotted against you to restrain you or kill you or expel you, and they plot and Allah plans, and Allah is the best of planners" [al-Anfal: 30], and He sent down Gabriel, peace be upon him, who commanded him to emigrate. So he, peace and blessings be upon him, came out of his house despite the heavy guard, and he left Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, sleeping on his bed, then he took a handful of dust and scattered it over their heads while reciting: "And We placed before them a barrier and behind them a barrier, and We covered their eyes, so they do not see" [Ya Sin: 9]; so they slept, and Allah, the Most High, veiled the eyes of the soldiers besieging the house of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, passed among them, and none of them saw him.
It is a magnificent miracle by which Allah nullified the plot of the schemers. Allah, the Most High, saved His Messenger from the conspiracy of Dar al-Nadwa, and in the morning Abu Jahl came to the soldiers besieging the chamber of his house, peace and blessings be upon him, and found the young men asleep, and the dust on their heads, and the news reaching them: "Muhammad has gone out"; so they were stunned, and they realized that their plot had failed, and that Allah had saved His Messenger and completed His light, even though the disbelievers may hate it.
O believers, "Dar al-Nadwa" in Mecca was a place where the disbelievers of Quraysh would gather to conspire against the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and against his religion. So "Dar al-Nadwa" has not been demolished, O servants of Allah, but it stands until the Hour. Dar al-Nadwa in our era may be a political council that conspires in palaces and closed chambers against Islam and Muslims, and Dar al-Nadwa in our era may be a media house that distorts and lies and inverts the truth, and Dar al-Nadwa in our era may be an economic house that besieges and starves and humiliates. And it may be an intellectual council that spreads doubts and attacks the constants of this religion. And our confidence is that Allah, the Most High, will nullify the scheme of every Dar al-Nadwa and will turn their plot back upon their own necks; for He is the One who nullifies the plot of the schemers.
So have confidence, O servants of Allah, for the promise of Allah is fulfilled, His preservation of His religion is established, His plot prevails, and true is the saying of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic: "And they plot, and Allah plots. And Allah is the best of planners" [Al-Anfal: 30].
I say this and I seek forgiveness from Allah for myself and for you, for He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.
The Second Sermon
All praise is due to Allah, who supported His messengers with brilliant miracles and aided His Prophet with manifest signs, a testimony of truth to his prophethood and a compelling proof of his mission. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and His messenger. May Allah send abundant blessings and peace upon him, upon his family, and upon his companions.
As for what follows:
O believers, Islam is the religion most exposed to plotting and enmity from its enemies throughout history. From the moment its light dawned in Mecca, plotting against it was being hatched in secret, and enmity toward it was being declared openly. To affirm this truth, Allah, the Most High, said: "And when those who disbelieved plotted against you to restrain you or kill you or expel you. And they plot, and Allah plots. And Allah is the best of planners" [Al-Anfal: 30]. The verb "they plot" is in the present tense, indicating that the plotting is renewed, continuous, and unceasing until the Hour. Were it not that Allah undertook the preservation of this religion and turned back the plots of the plotters upon their own throats, nothing of it would have remained.
The plotting of the enemies of this religion is no small matter. It is a great plot that, if unleashed upon the firmly rooted mountains, would shake them and bring them down. But Allah, in His exaltedness and His subjugation of all things, is aware of their plotting, encompassing it, and nothing of it is hidden from Him. Allah, the Most High, said: "And they have plotted their plot, and with Allah is their plot, and even if their plot were to make the mountains disappear" [Ibrahim: 46].
O believers, this is not the first time that the enemies of Allah have plotted against His religion. Their forefathers before them plotted against the prophets of Allah, His messengers, and the righteous ones before them. So the decree of Allah passed over them, and Allah came to their structure from its foundations, and the roof of their plotting collapsed upon them while they were not aware. Allah, the Most High, said: "Those before them had already plotted, but Allah came to their structure from its foundations, and the roof fell upon them from above them, and the punishment came to them from where they did not perceive" [An-Nahl: 26].
So the entire matter belongs to Allah, and all plotting is in the hand of Allah. However far the plotting of mankind may reach and however high their plans may rise, Allah is above them. He knows the treachery of the eyes and what the breasts conceal, and the outcome is with Him alone. Allah, the Most High, said: "Those before them had already plotted, but to Allah belongs all plotting. He knows what every soul earns, and the disbelievers will come to know for whom is the final home" [Ar-Ra'd: 42]. So the plotting of the enemies of Islam will come to an end, and their schemes will come to ruin. Evil returns to its owners, and evil plotting does not encompass except its own people. And this is the sunnah of Allah, which does not change and does not shift. Allah, the Most High, said: "Out of arrogance in the land and evil plotting. But the evil plot does not encompass except its own people. So do they expect anything but the sunnah of the former ones? You will not find in the sunnah of Allah any change, and you will not find in the sunnah of Allah any turning" [Fatir: 43].
O believers, in history there are many proofs and testimonies to the plotting of the enemies of Islam against it, and how Allah, the Most High, nullified their plotting and their schemes. Among the greatest of what was plotted against Islam was the Crusader assault. They came from the far reaches of Europe under the pretext of the cross, and they entered the Holy Sanctuary in the year 492 AH, committing atrocities that would gray the hair of infants. They slaughtered more than seventy thousand Muslims in a single day inside Al-Aqsa Mosque until the blood flowed through the alleys and reached the knees. They trampled the Qur'ans under their feet, they defiled Al-Aqsa Mosque and turned it into a stable for horses, they raped women before their husbands and children, and they captured the elders and the scholars and killed them in the worst manner. And Al-Aqsa Mosque remained captive in their hands for eighty-eight years, and they thought they would never be driven out of it and that Islam had come to an end. But Allah appointed for this nation Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, may Allah have mercy upon him. He raised a generation upon monotheism, he united the ranks, and he prepared the means. In the Battle of Hattin in the year 583 AH, he crushed their armies, and on Friday, the 27th of Rajab, he entered the Holy Sanctuary, liberating Al-Aqsa Mosque pure and clean. And he wept with joy and said: "How can we laugh while Al-Aqsa Mosque is captive?"
O believers, and after the Crusaders by a hundred years came a calamity more severe. The Tartars and Mongols, of whom history has known no equal in savagery. They swept through the lands of Islam and entered Baghdad, the seat of the Caliphate, in the year 656 AH, and killed therein more than a million Muslims, and they threw the books of knowledge into the Tigris River until the river turned black from their ink, and they demolished the mosques, and they killed the Caliph and the scholars and the women and the children, and they brought down the Abbasid Caliphate which had lasted five hundred years. They thought that they had put an end to Islam forever, and that there would be no rising for the Muslims after them; but Allah was lying in wait for them, and He prepared for this nation the hero Sayf al-Din Qutuz, may Allah have mercy upon him. And on the 25th of Ramadan in the year 658 AH, in the Battle of Ain Jalut in Palestine, the two armies met, and Qutuz went out calling out "Wa-Islamahu!" (O Islam!), so Allah broke the Tartars with a breaking after which they never rose again, and Allah purified by him the lands of the Muslims from their filth, and He preserved by him the fortress of Islam.
O believers, the greatest cause that has been subjected to plotting and scheming in our time is the cause of Palestine, the land of the Night Journey and the Ascension, the land of the Blessed Al-Aqsa. A cause that has not been resolved since eighty years, eighty years of occupation and displacement and killing, eighty years and its people between successive injustice, renewed scheming, and a tightening siege, eighty years and they are defending their land, and enduring their wounds, and awaiting the promise of Allah of victory and establishment, so in the contemporary Dar al-Nadwa, political organizations have gathered against them to decide their fate in closed rooms, and economic organizations besiege them and starve their children, and media organizations portray the victim as a killer and the killer as a victim, and "human rights" organizations tur