There are no Muslims — and I say this without hyperbole — who would ever consider committing a violent act inside the Haram of the holy city of Madinah.
Madinah is sacred. So, imagine the horror Muslims around the world felt when a suicide bomber detonated his device several meters from the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) tomb at the Prophet’s Mosque.
Four security men were killed and five injured. The bomber apparently gained access to the Security Headquarters adjacent to the mosque by telling officers that he wanted to break fast with them at iftar.
Many non-Muslims understandably do not appreciate what it means to live in Madinah and why it’s spiritually important to residents and visitors.
The Qur’an is clear about the sacredness of Madinah, mentioning the city many times and devoting much longer surahs to Madinah than those on Makkah.
Sahih Bukhari narrated: The Prophet said, “Madinah is a sanctuary from that place to that. Its trees should not be cut and no heresy should be innovated nor any sin should be committed in it, and whoever innovates in it an heresy or commits sins (bad deeds), then he will incur the curse of Allah, the angels, and all the people.”
The Syrian scholar Muhammad Al-Yaqoubi tweeted after the bombings that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “anyone who harms the people of Madinah, Allah will make him melt in fire like iron or like salt in water.” (Bukhari)
Madinah is a big city with more than 1 million residents, and it has its big-city problems like any other. But there are few cities in the world that are sanctuaries in which boundaries are established. Inside the boundaries, the Haram, is essentially a kill-free zone. Animals are not slaughtered within the boundaries, but on the edge of the city. Only Muslims are permitted within the boundaries. Any sin committed by a resident or visitor is viewed harshly by his neighbors.
Why does this matter in the face of the bloody attack by Daesh next to the Prophet’s Mosque?
Islamic organizations and their leaders often get a bad rap in the West for saying that terrorism has no religion, terrorists are not Muslims and that terrorist acts resulting in the deaths of innocents are not Islamic. Western pundits challenge Muslims’ this argument with such phoney authority.
But practicing Muslims, those everyday people who go about their business, never see their names in the newspaper and simply work to feed their families and worship Allah, know better.
Muslims fear Allah and they understand intellectually and deep in their soul that they must answer to Allah for the deeds they committed on earth before they are permitted to enter heaven. No true Muslim would consider committing a sin as vile as murder. The consequences in front of Allah are too great.
What is worse than committing indiscriminate murder? Committing indiscriminate murder in Madinah where every true Muslim follows the teachings of the Prophet (peace be upon him). This alone is evidence and should serve notice to Islam’s critics that terrorism has no religion and the individual, who blew himself up within walking distance of the Prophet’s tomb, is no Muslim.
We often say that the Ummah is in crisis. But it’s not just the Muslim community, but also secular countries like Turkey and non-Muslim countries in the West. All are victimized by the reach and influence of Daesh from Orlando and San Bernardino to Brussels, Paris and Istanbul. Rather than emphasize our differences, as politicians are wont to do, there should be no borders between countries and no territorial disputes between counterterrorism agencies to snuff out this murderous army. After Daesh and its ideology are eliminated, then we can play the blame game.
There should be consequences for the countries, either through adventurism and regime-change policies, or just plain neglect and lethargy (which is tacit approval of Daesh’s tactics), that are responsible for the birth of Daesh. But let’s save that for later until the international community finishes them off. Meanwhile, Muslims are banding together in defiance of killers. Following iftar after the bombing on Monday, my family in Madinah told me that there were more worshippers than usual praying at the Prophet’s Mosque. It was a united demonstration that Muslims would not be cowed by an individual with so much hate for Islam. And if another bombing followed, there would be no better way to die as a Muslim than in Madinah inside the Prophet’s Mosque.
In a tweet following the Madinah bombing, the Indian singer Adnan Sami wrote, “Terrorism has no religion. A Muslim would not bomb one of Islam’s holiest places. This act proves it beyond reasonable doubt! Period! #Medina.”
So true.
Madinah is sacred. So, imagine the horror Muslims around the world felt when a suicide bomber detonated his device several meters from the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) tomb at the Prophet’s Mosque.
Four security men were killed and five injured. The bomber apparently gained access to the Security Headquarters adjacent to the mosque by telling officers that he wanted to break fast with them at iftar.
Many non-Muslims understandably do not appreciate what it means to live in Madinah and why it’s spiritually important to residents and visitors.
The Qur’an is clear about the sacredness of Madinah, mentioning the city many times and devoting much longer surahs to Madinah than those on Makkah.
Sahih Bukhari narrated: The Prophet said, “Madinah is a sanctuary from that place to that. Its trees should not be cut and no heresy should be innovated nor any sin should be committed in it, and whoever innovates in it an heresy or commits sins (bad deeds), then he will incur the curse of Allah, the angels, and all the people.”
The Syrian scholar Muhammad Al-Yaqoubi tweeted after the bombings that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “anyone who harms the people of Madinah, Allah will make him melt in fire like iron or like salt in water.” (Bukhari)
Madinah is a big city with more than 1 million residents, and it has its big-city problems like any other. But there are few cities in the world that are sanctuaries in which boundaries are established. Inside the boundaries, the Haram, is essentially a kill-free zone. Animals are not slaughtered within the boundaries, but on the edge of the city. Only Muslims are permitted within the boundaries. Any sin committed by a resident or visitor is viewed harshly by his neighbors.
Why does this matter in the face of the bloody attack by Daesh next to the Prophet’s Mosque?
Islamic organizations and their leaders often get a bad rap in the West for saying that terrorism has no religion, terrorists are not Muslims and that terrorist acts resulting in the deaths of innocents are not Islamic. Western pundits challenge Muslims’ this argument with such phoney authority.
But practicing Muslims, those everyday people who go about their business, never see their names in the newspaper and simply work to feed their families and worship Allah, know better.
Muslims fear Allah and they understand intellectually and deep in their soul that they must answer to Allah for the deeds they committed on earth before they are permitted to enter heaven. No true Muslim would consider committing a sin as vile as murder. The consequences in front of Allah are too great.
What is worse than committing indiscriminate murder? Committing indiscriminate murder in Madinah where every true Muslim follows the teachings of the Prophet (peace be upon him). This alone is evidence and should serve notice to Islam’s critics that terrorism has no religion and the individual, who blew himself up within walking distance of the Prophet’s tomb, is no Muslim.
We often say that the Ummah is in crisis. But it’s not just the Muslim community, but also secular countries like Turkey and non-Muslim countries in the West. All are victimized by the reach and influence of Daesh from Orlando and San Bernardino to Brussels, Paris and Istanbul. Rather than emphasize our differences, as politicians are wont to do, there should be no borders between countries and no territorial disputes between counterterrorism agencies to snuff out this murderous army. After Daesh and its ideology are eliminated, then we can play the blame game.
There should be consequences for the countries, either through adventurism and regime-change policies, or just plain neglect and lethargy (which is tacit approval of Daesh’s tactics), that are responsible for the birth of Daesh. But let’s save that for later until the international community finishes them off. Meanwhile, Muslims are banding together in defiance of killers. Following iftar after the bombing on Monday, my family in Madinah told me that there were more worshippers than usual praying at the Prophet’s Mosque. It was a united demonstration that Muslims would not be cowed by an individual with so much hate for Islam. And if another bombing followed, there would be no better way to die as a Muslim than in Madinah inside the Prophet’s Mosque.
In a tweet following the Madinah bombing, the Indian singer Adnan Sami wrote, “Terrorism has no religion. A Muslim would not bomb one of Islam’s holiest places. This act proves it beyond reasonable doubt! Period! #Medina.”
So true.
