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[quote]Salam,

This is for Abm19

Q:- If you think that this incident of Miraj occurred in vision or in dream, and the journey was spiritual in nature, then you will find very logical answers to all the questions that I posed.

REPLY:- Nowhere in the Qur’an you find the word “Miraj” regarding the subject and also Prophet Muhammad was not the subject of this incident.

This is for Raushan,

Q:- The majority of jurists, scholars of Hadith, and Muslim philosophers agreed that it was in both body and soul for many reasons.

First, according to Almighty Allah's words: (Glorified be He Who carried His servant by night from theInviolable Place of Worship to the Far Distant Place of Worship.) (Al-Israa’ 17: 1), He Almighty has referred to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as “His servant.” The word “servant” does not refer to one's soul only; it refers to the servant as a whole, body and soul.

REPLY:- Your majority of jurists, scholars of hadith are completely wrong because the soul (on its own) can also be called the servant of God, everything in the universe is the servant of God, body, soul,  trees, animals, suns, moons, ....... etc

[42:21]   THEY FOLLOW IDOLS WHO DECREE FOR THEM RELIGIOUS LAWS NEVER AUTHORIZED BY GOD. If it were not for the predetermined decision, they would have been judged immediately. Indeed, the transgressors have incurred a painful retribution.

[6:116]   If you obey the majority of people on earth, they will divert you from the path of GOD. They follow only conjecture; they only guess.

Q:- Second, had the Prophet's journey of Al-Israa’ and Al-Mi`raj been in soul only, it would not have been regarded as a miracle.

REPLY:- Please tell me where Qur’an says that Al-Israa was a miracle. Also where did you find in the Qur’an the word “ Al-Mi’raj”?

Q:- Third, Allah Almighty says about the journey of Al-Israa’ and Al-Mi`raj: (We appointed the vision which We showed thee as an ordeal for mankind.) (Al-Israa’ 17: 60). “Ordeal” here refers to its being a trial. Contemplating this, the journey would not be a trial unless it was in both body and soul. Had it been in soul only, there would not have been a trial or something extraordinary regarding it.

REPLY:-  Please read my earlier reply at no.1.

Secondly, you opined as “ the journey would not be a trial unless it was in both body and soul. Had it been in soul only, there  would not have been trial or something…”

Brother, please give any reference from the qur’an in support of your above opinion.

Q:- Besides, when the unbelievers knew about the journey of Al-Israa’ and Al-Mi`raj, they wondered how the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) could make it on one night, when they would make a similar journey in a month. [Why should they disbelieve it, if it were a mere dream?]

REPLY:- Where did you find in the Qur’an that after knowing the incident, disbelievers were wondered? Rather they claimed for it and if Muhammad could not do that they would not believe on him. Please read the followings;

[17:90]   They said, "WE WILL NOT BELIEVE YOU unless you cause a spring to gush out of the ground. 
[17:91]   "Or unless you own a garden of date palms and grapes, with rivers running through it. 
[17:92]   "Or unless you cause masses from the sky, as you claimed, to fall on us. Or unless you bring GOD and the angels before our eyes. 
[17:93]   "Or unless you own a luxurious mansion, or UNLESS YOU CLIMB INTO THE SKY. EVEN IF YOU DO CLIMB, WE WILL NOT BELIEVE UNLESS YOU BRING A BOOK THAT WE CAN READ." Say, "Glory be to my Lord. AM I ANY MORE THAN A HUMAN MESSENGER?"

The words “any more than” are indeed self explanatory. They assert that what the disbelievers demand of Muhammad (to climb into the sky) is not something that is going to happen. This clear Quranic verse as a matter of fact provides us with the knowledge that Muhammad was commanded by God to specifically DENY that he would ascend unto heaven, as the disbelievers asked of him.

Q:- Fourth, it was Allah Almighty Who made His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) have that journey, and, certainly, nothing is impossible for Allah Almighty to do; He Almighty is able to do all things. Hence, there is nothing that calls us to doubt the occurrence of the journey in both body and soul.

REPLY:- No brother, there are many many doubtful things, which you overlooked. Please read the followings;

“Most Glorified is the One who summoned His servant during the night, from the ‘Masjid Al-Haraam’ to the ‘Masjid Al-AqSsa’ whose surroundings We have blessed, in order to show him Our signs.  He is the Hearer, the Seer” (Sura 17, verse 1).

Muslim scholars believe that 17:1 confirms the celestial journey of prophet Muhammad (mounted on the gigantic creature ‘Al-Buraaq’) from the ‘Masjid Al-Haraam’ (Sacred Masjid) in Mecca to the ‘Masjid Al-AqSsa’ (Farthest Masjid) in Jerusalem, from whence he ascended past the seven universes to where no being can go (not even Gabriel) where he received the prescribed prayers and saw heaven and hell.

To analyze these claims, these specifically are:

FIRST CLAIM

That  the  prophet  received  the  prescribed  prayers while he was at the highest place in the heavens.

SECOND CLAIM

That the words ‘Al-Masjid Al-AqSsa’ refers to the mosque in Jerusalem.

THIRD CLAIM

That the words ‘His servant’ refer to prophet Muhammad.

It must be said that there is no evidence in 17:1, nor for that matter in all of the Quran, to confirm any of the above claims, instead these claims may only be supported by a number of ‘hadeeth’, and for that, it deems necessary for us to verify each of these claims.  The Quran, as God Himself tells us, will always guide the believers to the truth;
“....We have revealed to you this Book to provide explanations for everything, and  guidance and mercy and good news for the submitters.”   (16:89)

FIRST CLAIM

The first claim is that Muhammad received the prescribed prayers at the highest point in the heavens.

The Quran does not give us any indication of this claim, this claim can only be found in hadith. Since there has already been a lot that has been written about this matter, and the issue has been conclusively dealt with, I can move on to the next issue.

It was also thought that Muhammad was given the Quran at the highest point in the heavens?

A careful study of the Quran in fact alerts us to quite the opposite situation.  God tells us that the Quran was “sent down” to Muhammad.  Nowhere in the Quran is there any indication that Muhammad went up to receive the Quran.  Consider the following verses that relate the process of the revelation of the Quran.  Note that they all denote a ‘sending down’ process:

·	“We brought it down in a blessed night, for We are warners.”  (44:3) 
·	“We brought it down in the Night of Destiny.”  (97:1) 
·	“We brought down to you this book ……….”  (39:2)
·	“Say, ‘Anyone who opposes Gabriel should know that he has brought it down unto your heart, in accordance with God’s will.”  (2:97)

It is true that since God be praised will always be higher than anyone or any place, and therefore wherever “His servant” in 17:1 was elevated to the Quran would still have been “brought down”, nevertheless there is sufficient evidence in these verses to suggest that the Quran was brought down to Muhammad here on earth and not somewhere up in the heavens:

First

We notice that although 17:1 on one hand (that describes the ‘Israa’), and the other verses on the other (that describe the revelation of the Quran), contain the word ‘night’, yet there is a marked difference between these verses concerning the use of the word ‘night’.  
In 17:1 the words are ‘during the night’, while as in the other verses the words are ‘in a night’.  To realize the difference in meaning it is necessary first to confirm three matters:

1-	The ‘Israa’ was an upward phenomenon, while the revelation of the Quran to Muhammad is described in the Quran as a downward phenomenon.

2-	The phenomena of night and day are terrestrial phenomena. They occur by God’s will on earth due to the spinning of the earth around its axis.

3-	There is thus justification in stating that wherever “His servant” was raised, far beyond the seven universes, the term “night” did not apply.

But since both verses speak of “night” and since the phenomenon of night is a terrestrial one then we must conclude that “His servant” started the ascend from earth “during the night”, and similarly that Muhammad must have received the Quran on earth in the “Night of Destiny”. It is not feasible to say that Muhammad received the Quran at the highest point in the heavens “in a night” simply because at that location the spinning of our earth around its axis is totally insignificant.  At that highest point in the heavens the phenomenon of ‘night’ does not exist. If the verse states that Muhammad received the Quran “in a night” then it must mean that he received it on earth.

The deliberate choice of words by the Almighty, “during the night” as opposed to “in a night” confirms the terminals of both journeys.

The words “during the night” indicate the time of the commencement (from earth) of the upward trip. Similarly the words “in a night” indicate the time as well as the destination (earth) of the downward trip.

Second

To demonstrate this second evidence it would be helpful to cite the following example:
Suppose you are selling some product and you tell one of your buyers:

‘I will bring the goods to you’
The words ‘to you’ implies that the buyer does not have to travel, and that the goods will be delivered to his location.  Now let us look at 39:2 one more time. 
“We brought down to you this book ………”

The words “to you” seems to indicate that Muhammad did not have to travel to receive the Quran, but that it was, as the verse says brought down to him. In other words he did not have to leave earth. Obviously reaching the highest point in the heavens requires quite a bit of travelling.

Third

The third evidence that indicates a terrestrial presence upon receiving the Quran is found in the Quranic words “upon your heart” in 2:97.

God could have said ‘upon your soul’ instead, why was the word “heart” the choice?
 The word “heart”, being a physical organ, denotes a physical presence, as opposed to ‘soul’ which would denote a spiritual presence.  If we can be justified in ascribing the physical presence to that of one who is on earth, as opposed to the spiritual presence which occurs on a terrestrial as well as on a celestial  plane, then the physical “heart” would again  imply a terrestrial presence at the time of receiving the Quran.

Fourth

Verse 17:1 states that ‘His servant’ was elevated to the ‘farthest place’.  This is confirmed with the words ‘the highest horizon’ in 53:7, and the words ‘the ultimate point’ in 53:14.
The precise wording of these phrases implies that this point ‘farthest’, ‘highest’ and ‘ultimate’ is the point above which no being can exist except Almighty God (otherwise it would not be the highest or farthest place).

On the other hand verse 2:97 informs us that it was Gabriel who ‘brought down’ the Quran to Muhammad in accordance with the will of God.

Now to state that Muhammad received the Quran at the ‘highest point’ through a descending Gabriel (brought down), as per 2:97, would necessarily imply that Gabriel was originally at a point above the ‘highest point’ from whence he descended to deliver the Quran to Muhammad. This is not a feasible situation as mentioned since only God exists beyond such a point. Thus to accommodate the idea of a descending Gabriel rules out the possibility of Muhammad receiving the Quran at the ‘highest point’. This again points to the fact that Muhammad received the Quran here on earth.

SECOND CLAIM

The Muslim scholars have always maintained that the “Masjid Al-AqSsa” is the mosque in Jerusalem!  This claim is false and that is because of the following:

1-	The word “AqSsa” literally means farthest or most distant.  Needless to say, the mosque in Jerusalem is not the most distant place from Mecca! On a global dimension alone, Jerusalem is relatively near to Mecca, let alone on a universal dimension, and larger still a seven universal  dimension!

2-	There is another very significant clue in the words :

“….. whose surroundings We have blessed”

These words describe the “Masjid Al-AqSsa” and not the “Masjid Al-Haram”. The ‘Masjid’ that is specifically singled out to receive God’s blessings “Masjid Al-AqSsa” must be the more favored of the two. This valuable piece of information rules out the possibility of the “Masjid Al-AqSsa” being the mosque in Jerusalem. How can it be that God would give preferential treatment to a mosque in Jerusalem over His own ‘Masjid’ in Mecca?  After all, it is the mosque in Mecca that is called ‘sacred’ by God, as in 2:144.
However, and if the “Masjid Al-Aqsa” is the farthest place of prostration, at the highest point in the heavens, and where the angels constantly prostrate and glorify God, then it would quite rightly merit a higher status, and thus more preference to any place on earth.

THIRD CLAIM

The Quran does not name “His servant” who was summoned to heaven, yet Islamic scholars have always assumed that it was Muhammad, and have reinforced their assumption with numerous ‘hadeeth’ the  most commonly propounded of which is a thinly disguised Jewish fabrication known as ‘hadeeth al-m'iraaj’.

The mere fact that the only link we have between the event of ‘Israa’ and the name of Muhammad is a number of fabricated ‘hadith’, makes the connection very dubious, and thus places an added obligation on us to research the matter further.

In actual fact the Quran offers various indications that the person summoned was not Muhammad, these are some of them:

1-  We notice that every time the Quran associates a specific  miracle to a messenger, the name of that messenger is mentioned. When the miracle of the parting of the sea was mentioned the name of Moses was mentioned (2:50-51). When the fragmented birds on hill tops were remolded into whole living birds the name of Abraham was mentioned (2:260).  When the conversation between man and bird took place the name of Solomon was mentioned (27:20-28). Other miracles are also ascribed to David (21:79), Jesus (19:30, 3:49) and others. In the case of the miraculous event of the ‘Israa’, the identity of the messenger who witnessed it was not disclosed. We may quite rightly wonder as to why did God break the rule in this case? If Muhammad was the subject of that glorious miracle why did not God inform us of that? Why did God choose the undefined words “His servant” instead?

2-  Additional evidence to that interpretation lies in the Quran’s emphasis that the only miracle ascribed to Muhammad was the Quran (see 29:51).  Muhammad did not witness any personal miracles.  This again indicates that the miraculous ascension of ‘Israa’ is not related to Muhammad.

3-  Further evidence is found in another glorious Quranic verse where the choice of words by Almighty God is truly remarkable. Before we look into this verse it is necessary to refer first to another Quranic verse:

“Those who disbelieved, even if they possessed everything on earth, even twice as much, and offered it as ransom to spare them the retribution on the day of Resurrection, it would not be accepted from them.” (5:36).

The wording of this verse employs the situation of possessing “everything on earth” as an unattainable situation.  In other words no one will possess everything on earth.  
Now let us look at the verse that is related to our research. In 6:19 God commands Muhammad to testify that the Quran has been inspired to him, then in verse 25 God warns Muhammad of the disbelievers who will listen to him but their hearts are wicked, then in verses 33 and 34 God shows of His infinite mercy when He says to Muhammad that he should not be too saddened by what the disbelievers say, then in verse 35 God says to Muhammad:

“………….even if you climbed a ladder into the sky, and produced a miracle for them (they still would not believe)” (6:35)

Since the Quran confirms that Muhammad was not given any miracles (apart from the Quran), then the words “and produced a miracle” are used as an unattainable situation.  It follows that the words “even if you climbed a ladder into the sky” are also used as an unattainable situation. Just like the logic of (5:36) where the situation of possessing “everything on earth” is used as an unattainable situation, in this verse the fact that Muhammad would ever climb into the sky, during his life on earth, and produce a miracle is used as an unattainable situation.

Here we must pose and think, God could have used any unattainable situation to demonstrate that Muhammad will produce no miracles. But the very important question is why did God deliberately use the words that stresses that Muhammad will not climb into the sky?  Could it be because Almighty God is stressing to us that the ascension to the sky of the ‘Israa’ is not associated with Muhammad?

4-  This meaning (that Muhammad will not climb into the sky) is indeed reconfirmed in the following verse:

“……….. or unless you climb into the sky.  Even if you do climb, we will not believe….”
In reply to these words by the disbelievers God commands Muhammad to say:
“Glory be to my Lord.  Am I any more than a human messenger?” (17:93)

The words “any more than” are indeed self explanatory. They assert that what the disbelievers demand of Muhammad (to climb into the sky) is not something that is going to happen.

This clear Quranic verse as a matter of fact provides us with the knowledge that Muhammad was commanded by God to specifically DENY that he would ascend unto heaven, as the disbelievers asked of him.

So brothers ABM & Raushan please think deeply on these points.

Samsher.[/quote]

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