ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Biography of Imam `alĪ Ibn AbĪ-tĀlib Construction of the Mosque and Sealing of the Doors The Prophet (a.s), until after six months after his arrival in al-Madinah, stayed at the home of Abū-Ayyūb al-Ansari. During this period neither there was any specific place for congregational prayers nor a permanent place of residence for him. He felt is necessary to construct the mosque along with a house for the family.

There was a vacant piece of land near the house of Abū-Ayyūb al-Ansari where some animals used to be penned. The Prophet (a.s) liked this land for building the mosque. The land belonged to the people of Banū-al-Najjar from which family `Abd al-Muttalib’s mother came. The Prophet (a.s) wanted to buy away the land but the owners refused to accept any money for it and said that instead of material value they would prefer to get Reward from Allah.

The Prophet (a.s) did not like to take the land without cost because it belonged to two orphans whose names were Sahl and Suhayl and were under the guardianship of Asad ibn Zurarah. The Prophet (a.s) bought the land through Asad, got it leveled and started the construction of the mosque on it, which was ready in the shape of a four walled enclosure in a few days. Then, putting on wooden pillars and thatch, one part of the enclosure was covered to provide shade from the sun.

On one side of the mosque, rooms were built for the ladies, which were increased later on as the need arose. In the middle of these rooms the house of `Ali (a.s) was constructed. The Muhajirūn coming from Makkah too started building their quarters on the other periphery of the mosque. They had doors opening towards the mosque and they used to enter the precincts through these doors.

The Prophet (a.s) thought that this arrangement was not proper for the sanctity of the mosque and ordered that the doors opening into the mosque be sealed and the houses to have doors at the back. He wanted them to enter the mosque only through the main door. He permitted only the door of `Ali’s house to open towards the mosque. Al-Tirmidhi writes: “The Prophet (a.s) ordered that except the door of `Ali’s house all other doors to be sealed.”[1] Some persons did not like this arrangement.

Certain brows frowned, some mouths opened and the gossip mill started working. The Prophet (a.s) heard about the feelings of the companions.