The word Me’raj (Ascent of Prophet Muhammad PBUH) is derived from ‘Urooj’, which means ‘height’, ‘ascension’. It occurs in holy Hadith. The Quranic word for the event is ‘Israa’, meaning ‘the journey’. The event is briefly mentioned in the Qur’an, its details provided by Hadith. ‘Shab-e-Me’raj’ means the ‘Night of Ascent’. It is the blessed night when the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was taken very close to the Throne of Allah with utmost nearness to Him. After having drunk fully at the Divine Fountain of spiritual knowledge he came down to the earth. The spiritual Ascension took place on 27th of Rajab, two years before Hijra. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) had a unique experience in the history of all religions.
The Prophet accompanied by angel Jibreel (AS) was taken for Night journey (Israa) from Makkah to Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. There he led a congregation of the souls of all the earlier Prophets. Then accompanied by angel Jibreel he had the Ascension (Me’raj) to the Heavens. In the Heavens he met again with the Prophets individually. Then he was taken to see the Paradise and the Hell. He was shown what would be the fate of the humans after the Day of Judgement. How the believers and the righteous would be rewarded in the Paradise and also how the non-believers and the wicked would be chastised in the Hell. After seeing several important Divine Signs he was led by Jibreel (AS) to the Sidrah (The Berry Tree). Jibreel stopped there. The Prophet proceeded from there to the Divine Proximity. Five obligatory prayers were ordained by the way of thanksgiving. The Prophet was brought back to the earth and to his own place before the dawn prayers in the same night.
The most important things about the Me’raj are noted below:
The night journey (Israa) and the Ascension (Me’raj) took place with the ‘body and soul’, and the Prophet was fully awake. Quran says that “Glorified be He who carried His servant by night”. The word’ Abad’ (servant) applies to a ‘person’ with his body and soul. Therefore to say that the ascension was only spiritual, is not correct. In fact it was with the body and soul and in full awareness. The Prophet did not go for Me’raj for seeing Angel Jibreel in his original form. The Prophet had the vision of his Lord and that is the essence of the Me’raj as believed by a majority of the companions of the Prophet. The Prophet had seen Angel Jibreel in his original form on the earth earlier. Hence, there was no need to see him again by ascension to the Heavens. What will happen in the Paradise and the Hell after the Day of Judgement was shown to the Prophet as if these were happening before his eyes.
The heavenly Journey of Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessing be upon him and his progeny, has been explained in two Surahs of the Glorious Quran. In the Surah Al-Isra (Surah 17-also known as Bani Israil) it is mentioned: Glory be to Him who made His servant (Prophet Muhammad) to go on a night from the sacred Mosque -Masjid-al-Haram to the Farthest mosque -Masjid al-Aqsa. We have blessed the precincts, so that We may show to him some of Our Signs, surely, He is the Hearing, the Seeing” From this verse, we come to the conclusion that Holy Prophet Muhammad travelled with his physical body through the worlds of Ascension. ‘Further, by the Greatness of the Hidden Power, Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBHU) was able to complete his journey in a very short span of time.
The Holy Prophet in addition to this trip, also had other trips towards the higher world since another part of his journey of Ascension is explained in verses of Surah-an-Najm.
The objective of this grand journey was to make known to Holy Prophet Muhammad, the various aspects of the existence of the great universe. The night of Ascension of our Prophet (PBHU) is a night of great significance for us because it is a night of great rewards, blessings and bounties of Allah. It should not be wasted by sleeping or in worldly pleasures etc. Believers should spend the whole night worshipping, begging for forgiveness, seeking Divine Mercy and aspiring for His true love. We should spend this auspicious night in the following manner:
Start Zikrullah- Remembrance of Allah right from the sunset. Offer Maghrib and Isha prayers in congregation or jamaat and continue Zikr up to sunrise, as far as possible.
Try to be with Wazu (ablution) during the whole night. Whenever it is lost, take a fresh ablution. It should be followed with offering thanksgiving prayer.
Pray for a firm, strong and unshakable Iman (Faith) for yourself and for all the loved ones. Pray for the well-being of yourself and all the fellow human beings. Solicit His love and purity of heart from the lust and greed of the world and mundane attraction. Ask for Halal or permissible means of living. Pray for making our conduct to be in obedience to His Book and His Prophet. Pray for health and well-being of the self and the loved ones. Pray for the ultimate bounty, within this lifetime.
We should seek forgiveness from the questioning in the grave for our failure in offering the prayers and obeying the Commandments of Allah during our lifetime.
Fortunate believers, men and women who have been regularly offering Tahajjud or late night prayers may offer it now i.e., before dawn.
After offering Fajr prayer in congregation stay performing Zikrullah or remembrance of Allah with love and devotion up to sunrise.
May Allah on this gracious night make us His wholehearted worshippers. We must remember that worship of our beloved, Compassionate and Merciful Lord is the very purpose of our coming into this world.
-Agencies