The focal point of the Ummah

سَیَقُولُ ٱلسُّفَهَاۤءُ مِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ مَا وَلَّىٰهُمۡ عَن قِبۡلَتِهِمُ ٱلَّتِی كَانُوا۟ عَلَیۡهَاۚ قُل لِّلَّهِ ٱلۡمَشۡرِقُ وَٱلۡمَغۡرِبُۚ یَهۡدِی مَن یَشَاۤءُ إِلَىٰ صِرَ ٰطࣲ مُستَقِيم
The foolish among the people will ask, “Why did they turn away from the direction of prayer they used to face?” Say, ˹O Prophet,˺ “The east and west belong ˹only˺ to Allah. He guides whoever He wills to the Straight Path.” (2:142)
This verse in Surat al Baqarah talks about a very important event in the life of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and in the history of the Muslim Ummah – the changing of the direction of the Qibla.
There are some narrations that suggest that this took place during Shaban, and others that say it was Rajab, but the most famous narration by the narrators of the seerah place it in Shaban. In summary, the Prophet (peace be upon him) was praying towards Bait al Maqdis for 16-17 months in Madinah. In Makkah, he used to pray towards Bait al Maqdis, but the Kaba was between him and Bait al Maqdis, so they were in the same direction. Salah was obligated 18 months before Hijra, When you add both periods together, it had been 3-4 years that he prayed towards Bait al Maqdis. Until Allah Almighty said:
قَدْ نَرَىٰ تَقَلُّبَ وَجْهِكَ فِي السَّمَاءِ ۖ فَلَنُوَلِّيَنَّكَ قِبْلَةً تَرْضَاهَا ۚ فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ شَطْرَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ ۚ وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنتُمْ فَوَلُّوا وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُ ۗ وَإِنَّ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ لَيَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهُ الْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّهِمْ ۗ وَمَا اللَّهُ بِغَافِلٍ عَمَّا يَعْمَلُونَ
We have seen your face turned towards the heaven. So We will assign to you a Qibla direction that will satisfy you. So turn your face towards the Sacred Mosque. And wherever you may be, turn your faces towards it. Those who were given the Book know that it is the Truth from their Lord; and God is not unaware of what they do. (2:144)
The Prophet (peace be upon him) longed to pray towards the Kaba rather than Bait al Maqdis and eventually Jibril came down with the news that they should change direction. Allah instructed him to face the Kaba and wherever they were to turn their faces towards it.
There are many lessons in this story. The first lesson is that Allah is the controller of everything. Although Kaba has sanctity, Allah wants us to submit to Him. If He tells us not to pray towards Kaba we may not pray towards it. The Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Companions demonstrated complete submission to Allah, even though they loved the Kaba and were attached to Makkah.
It was the du’a of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) to make people’s hearts attached and long for the Kaba. Allah accepted his dua. That is why all our hearts long to go back to the Kaba.
رَّبَّنَاۤ إِنِّیۤ أَسۡكَنتُ مِن ذُرِّیَّتِی بِوَادٍ غَیۡرِ ذِی زَرۡعٍ عِندَ بَیۡتِكَ ٱلۡمُحَرَّمِ رَبَّنَا لِیُقِیمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ فَٱجۡعَلۡ أَفۡـِٔدَةࣰ مِّنَ ٱلنَّاسِ تَهۡوِیۤ إِلَیۡهِمۡ وَٱرۡزُقۡهُم مِّنَ ٱلثَّمَرَ ٰتِ لَعَلَّهُمۡ یَشۡكُرُونَ
Our Lord, I have indeed settled of my offspring in a valley devoid of vegetation at Your House which has been made Inviolable, Our Lord, that they may establish the prayers. So make some people’s burning hearts incline towards them, and provide them with products, that they may give thanks.” (Ibrāhīm, Ayah 37)
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) must have longed for the qibla to be Kaba. Yet Allah commanded the Prophet (peace be upon him) to pray towards Bait al Maqdis. Ibn Ashur commented that it appears that Allah did not want the Quraysh and mushrikeen to become any more arrogant than they already were. They would have mocked him, saying he left Makkah for Madinah but was still praying towards their city. It would have inflated their ego more. So Allah broke their ego. Allah is the one who creates sanctity. It is not us. The Prophet (peace be upon him) and the Companions had to follow His commands, even though in his heart, the Prophet longed to change direction towards the Kaba. He waited almost 3 years before this change came.
The second lesson we learn is the connection between Kaba and Bait al Maqdis, as Bait al Maqdis was the first qibla. It could have been any other direction, but Allah connected these two. We cannot delete this part of history to satisfy some people and make them happy. It is embedded in the Quran and Sunnah. This connection keeps the Ummah awake to their role to protect Bait al Maqdis.
The third lesson is that Allah intended to give the Ummah a distinct identity, and thus, He established their focal point. It was not dictated by the terms of jahiliyyah but by His divine command. He is the One who defines sanctity; our role is simply to believe and submit. When the Prophet (peace be upon him) turned his face towards the Kaba, it became a powerful symbol of unity for the entire Ummah.
It teaches us that when we are united we are stronger in worship and actions and relationships. The Jews envied the Muslims for having Friday as their Sabbath, which they lost and being guided to the Kaba.
Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said about the People of the Book:
وقد روى الإمام أحمد في مسنده ( 6/134-135 ) من حديث عائشة أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال في أهل الكتاب : ( إنهم لا يحسدوننا على شيء كما يحسدوننا على يوم الجمعة ، التي هدانا الله لها وضلوا عنها ، وعلى القبلة التي هدانا الله لها وضلوا عنها ، وعلى قولنا خلف الإمام آمين )
They do not envy us for anything as they envy us for Friday, which God has guided us to and from which they have gone astray, and the Qiblah to which He has guided us. God for it and they strayed from it, and according to our saying behind the Imam, Amen. (Ahmad)
People go for Hajj and umrah and in our daily prayers we face the Kaba. It is not just once in your lifetime, or once a year or a week, but five times a day, that we come together as an Ummah when we face the qiblah. It shows us that when we come together, we are stronger in our worship and actions and in relationships. But unfortunately, although we have all the resources to make us stronger we are very weak.
Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
عَنْ ثَوْبَانَ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” يُوشِكُ الأُمَمُ أَنْ تَدَاعَى عَلَيْكُمْ كَمَا تَدَاعَى الأَكَلَةُ إِلَى قَصْعَتِهَا ” . فَقَالَ قَائِلٌ وَمِنْ قِلَّةٍ نَحْنُ يَوْمَئِذٍ قَالَ ” بَلْ أَنْتُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ كَثِيرٌ وَلَكِنَّكُمْ غُثَاءٌ كَغُثَاءِ السَّيْلِ وَلَيَنْزِعَنَّ اللَّهُ مِنْ صُدُورِ عَدُوِّكُمُ الْمَهَابَةَ مِنْكُمْ وَلَيَقْذِفَنَّ اللَّهُ فِي قُلُوبِكُمُ الْوَهَنَ ” . فَقَالَ قَائِلٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَمَا الْوَهَنُ قَالَ ” حُبُّ الدُّنْيَا وَكَرَاهِيَةُ الْمَوْتِ ” .
The people will soon summon one another to attack you as people when eating invite others to share their dish. Someone asked: Will that be because of our small numbers at that time? He replied: No, you will be numerous at that time: but you will be scum and rubbish like that carried down by a torrent, and Allah will take fear of you from the breasts of your enemy and last enervation into your hearts. Someone asked: What is wahn (enervation). Messenger of Allah (ﷺ): He replied: Love of the world and dislike of death. (Abu Dawood)
Even though there is a vast number of Muslims around the globe, we are weak. It is not just about numbers, but connecting together. The focal point of the Ummah is the Kaba, the Quran and the Prophet (peace be upon him). These should be enough to bring us together.
We need to improve our thinking understanding and application of the Quran not just in the mosques, but in our homes and families and everything we plan to do in our politics, our businesses and our communities, then we can become stronger and united. Until then it is hard work and a long way to go.
We ask Allah to bring our hearts together and unite our Ummah. Ameen.
Based on the Khutbah by Shaykh Haytham Tamim 31st Jan 2025
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