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Pillar of Guarding

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Pillar of Guarding (Arabic: أسطوانة الحرس) meaning the "Pillar of Guarding", is one of the pillars of al-Masjid al-Nabawi located near the chamber of the Prophet (s). Imam Ali (a) used to stand by it at night to guard Prophet Muhammad (s) against potential harm. Due to this protective role, this pillar is also famous as the "Pillar of Imam Ali (a)". In the final years of the Prophet's (s) life, guards were assigned for him due to increased potential threats.

This pillar is also known as the Musalla (prayer place) of Ali b. Abi Talib (a), as Imam (a) used to worship and perform prayer at this location. Because of its association with Imam 'Ali (a), the Sadat of Medina would gather by this pillar during certain periods to perform prayer. In subsequent expansions of al-Masjid al-Nabawi, this pillar was placed adjacent to the shrine of the Prophet of Islam.

Introduction

Pillar of Guarding or Ustawana al-Haras (also known as Ustawana al-Muhras and the Pillar of Imam (a)),[1] is one of the historical pillars of al-Masjid al-Nabawi which was located adjacent to the house of the Prophet (s).[2]

The word "Haras" is derived from the root "hirasa" meaning guarding and protecting.[3] This naming is due to the protective role of this location during the time of the Prophet (s). In the late Prophetic era, by the Prophet's (s) decision, guards were appointed to protect his life.[4] These guards would stand by this pillar to keep watch after the Prophet (s) returned to his personal house.[5] Imam 'Ali (a) specifically performed the duty of guarding the Prophet (s) at this location.[6]

This pillar is located north of Pillar al-Sarir[7] and is directly attached to the lattice (darih) of the Prophet's (s) shrine.[8] This attachment has resulted in pilgrims being unable to pray directly adjacent to this pillar.[9] The name of this pillar is inscribed on it.[10]

Ustawanat al-Haras next to Ustawanat al-Wufud and attached to the Prophet's shrine

In some Sunni sources, it is stated that after the revelation of the al-Tabligh Verse which says: "...and Allah will protect you from the people...",[11] the responsibility of protecting the Prophet (s) was completely entrusted to God and the need for human guards was eliminated.[12]

Some Shi'a researchers believe that this interpretation of the al-Tabligh Verse was proposed with the aim of separating this verse from the Event of Ghadir. According to these researchers, these efforts were made to deny the connection of the al-Tabligh Verse to the subject of the Prophet's (s) succession and to emphasize only its protective aspect.[13]

Association with Imam (a)

The al-Haras Pillar, which is also known as the Pillar of Ali b. Abi Talib (a),[14] is considered one of the important historical sites in al-Masjid al-Nabawi. Imam Ali (a) would guard at night with a sword beside this pillar which was adjacent to the Prophet's house.[15][16] According to some narrations, other individuals also held the responsibility of protecting the Prophet (s) at this location.[17]

This pillar was the location where Imam Ali (a) performed prayer[18] and for this reason, it has become famous as "al-Musalla of b. Abi Talib".[19] The association of this pillar with Imam (a) caused the Sadat of Medina to gather beside it for performing prayer in various periods.[20]

Pillars of al-Masjid al-Nabawi

During the time of the Prophet (s), al-Masjid al-Nabawi had pillars made of palm trunks, some of which were located within the area of the Noble Rawda.[21] Each of these pillars has a unique historical background.[22] In successive renovations of al-Masjid al-Nabawi, the wooden pillars were replaced with stone pillars.[23] The location of the new pillars was determined to be exactly the same as the historical pillars.[24] During the 1984 renovation, the pillars were clad in white marble and given a distinctive design that set them apart from the rest of the mosque’s pillars.[25]

See Also

Notes

  1. ↑ Munqarī, Naṣr b. Muzāḥim al-. Wafāʾ al-wafā bī-akhbār dār al-Muṣṭafā. Qom, Maktabat Āyat Allāh al-Marʿashī al-Najafī, n.d., vol. 2, p. 45.
  2. ↑ Ṣabrī Bāshā, Ayūb. Mawsūʿat mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn al-sharīfayn wa jazīrat al-ʿArab. Translated by Mājida Maʿrūf, Ḥusayn Mujīb al-Maṣrī, and ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ʿAwaḍ. Cairo, Dār al-Āfāq al-ʿArabiyya, 2004, vol. 3, p. 236.
  3. ↑ Muhrī, Muḥammad Jawād. Aḥsan al-qaṣaṣ. Qom, Makth-i Andīsha, 1399 Sh, vol. 1, p. 468.
  4. ↑ Qarāʾatī, Muḥsin. Dars-hā-yī az Qurʾān. Tehran, Muʾassisat Farhangī-yi Dars-hā-yī az Qurʾān, n.d., p. 1814.
  5. ↑ Khiyārī, Aḥmad Yāsīn Aḥmad. Tārīkh maʿālim al-Madīna al-Munawwara qadīman wa ḥadīthan. Saudi Arabia, al-Amāna al-ʿĀmma li-l-Iḥtifāl bi-Murūr Miʾat ʿĀm ʿalā Taʾsīs al-Mamlaka, 1419 AH, vol. 1, p. 85.
  6. ↑ ʿĀmilī, Sayyid Jaʿfar Murtaḍā al-. al-Ṣaḥīḥ min sīrat al-Imām ʿAlī (a). n.p., Markaz al-Dirāsāt al-Islāmiyya, 2009, vol. 2, p. 310.
  7. ↑ “8 asāṭīn fī al-Rawḍat al-Sharīfa”, al-Waṭan.
  8. ↑ “8 asāṭīn fī al-Rawḍat al-Sharīfa”, al-Waṭan.
  9. ↑ Ḥasan Sharāb, Muḥammad Muḥammad. Farhang-i aʿlām-i jughrāfiyā-yī tārīkhī dar ḥadīth wa sīrat-i nabawī. Translated by Ḥamīd Riḍā Shaykhī. Edited by Muḥammad Riḍā Niʿmatī. Tehran, Mashʿar, 1383 Sh, vol. 1, p. 40.
  10. ↑ “8 asāṭīn fī al-Rawḍat al-Sharīfa”, al-Waṭan.
  11. ↑ Qurʾān 5:67.
  12. ↑ Jaʿfariyān, Rasūl. Āthār-i Islāmī-yi Makka wa Madīna. Tehran, Mashʿar, 1387 Sh, vol. 1, p. 223.
  13. ↑ Jamʿ-ī az Muḥaqqiqān. Āyāt al-Ghadīr. Qom, Markaz al-Muṣṭafā li-l-Dirāsāt al-Islāmiyya, 1377 Sh, vol. 1, pp. 187–189.
  14. ↑ Rabbānī Khalkhālī, ʿAlī. Umm al-Banīn (a) al-najm al-sāṭiʿ fī Madīnat al-Nabī al-Amīn. Edited by ʿAlī Ashraf. Qom, Dār al-Kitāb al-Islāmī, 2007, vol. 1, p. 212.
  15. ↑ Muhrī, Muḥammad Jawād. Aḥsan al-qaṣaṣ. Qom, Makth-i Andīsha, 1399 Sh, vol. 1, p. 469.
  16. ↑ Ṣabrī Bāshā, Ayūb. Mawsūʿat mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn al-sharīfayn wa jazīrat al-ʿArab. Translated by Mājida Maʿrūf, Ḥusayn Mujīb al-Maṣrī, and ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ʿAwaḍ. Cairo, Dār al-Āfāq al-ʿArabiyya, 2004, vol. 3, p. 236.
  17. ↑ Qarāʾatī, Muḥsin. Dars-hā-yī az Qurʾān. Tehran, Muʾassisat Farhangī-yi Dars-hā-yī az Qurʾān, n.d., vol. 1, p. 1814.
  18. ↑ Jaʿfariyān, Rasūl. Āthār-i Islāmī-yi Makka wa Madīna. Tehran, Mashʿar, 1387 Sh, vol. 1, p. 223.
  19. ↑ Ḥasan Sharāb, Muḥammad Muḥammad. Farhang-i aʿlām-i jughrāfiyā-yī tārīkhī dar ḥadīth wa sīrat-i nabawī. Translated by Ḥamīd Riḍā Shaykhī. Edited by Muḥammad Riḍā Niʿmatī. Tehran, Mashʿار, 1383 Sh, vol. 1, p. 40.
  20. ↑ Ṣabrī Bāshā, Ayūb. Mawsūʿat mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn al-sharīfayn wa jazīrat al-ʿArab. Translated by Mājida Maʿrūf, Ḥusayn Mujīb al-Maṣrī, and ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ʿAwaḍ. Cairo, Dār al-Āfāq al-ʿArabiyya, 2004, vol. 3, p. 236.
  21. ↑ “ Mā hiya 'al-asāṭīn' al-tatī irtabaṭat bi-tārīkh al-masjid al-nabawī”, al-Arabiyya.
  22. ↑ “ Mā hiya 'al-asāṭīn' al-tatī irtabaṭat bi-tārīkh al-masjid al-nabawī”, al-Arabiyya.
  23. ↑ “8 asāṭīn fī al-Rawḍat al-Sharīfa”, al-Waṭan.
  24. ↑ “ Mā hiya 'al-asāṭīn' al-tatī irtabaṭat bi-tārīkh al-masjid al-nabawī”, al-Arabiyya.
  25. ↑ “ Mā hiya 'al-asāṭīn' al-tatī irtabaṭat bi-tārīkh al-masjid al-nabawī”, al-Arabiyya.

References

  • ʿĀmilī, Sayyid Jaʿfar Murtaḍā al-. al-Ṣaḥīḥ min sīrat al-Imām ʿAlī (a). n.p., Markaz al-Dirāsāt al-Islāmiyya, 2009.
  • “ Mā hiya 'al-asāṭīn' al-tatī irtabaṭat bi-tārīkh al-masjid al-nabawī”. al-Arabiyya. Accessed: 22 Di 1403 AH.
  • “8 asāṭīn fī al-Rawḍat al-Sharīfa”. al-Waṭan. Accessed: 22 Di 1403 AH.
  • Ḥasan Sharāb, Muḥammad Muḥammad. Farhang-i aʿlām-i jughrāfiyā-yī tārīkhī dar ḥادīth wa sīrat-i nabawī. Translated by Ḥamīd Riḍā Shaykhī. Edited by Muḥammad Riḍā Niʿmatī. Tehran, Mashʿar, 1383 Sh.
  • Jaʿfariyān, Rasūl. Āthār-i Islāmī-yi Makka wa Madīna. Tehran, Mashʿar, 1387 Sh.
  • Jamʿ-ī az Muḥaqqiqān. Āyāt al-Ghadīr (Baḥth fī khuṭab ḥijjat al-wadāʿ wa tafsīr āyāt al-Ghadīr). Qom, Markaz al-Muṣṭafā li-l-Dirāsāt al-Islāmiyya, 1377 Sh.
  • Khiyārī, Aḥmad Yāsīn Aḥmad. Tārīkh maʿālim al-Madīna al-Munawwara qadīman wa ḥadīthan. Saudi Arabia, al-Amāna al-ʿĀmma li-l-Iḥtifāl bi-Murūr Miʾat ʿĀm ʿalā Taʾsīs al-Mamlaka, 1419 AH.
  • Muhrī, Muḥammad Jawād. Aḥsan al-qaṣaṣ. Qom, Makth-i Andīsha, 1399 Sh.
  • Munqarī, Naṣr b. Muzāḥim al-. Wafāʾ al-wafā bī-akhbār dār al-Muṣṭafā. Qom, Maktabat Āyat Allāh al-Marʿashī al-Najafī, n.d.
  • Qarāʾatī, Muḥsin. Dars-hā-yī az Qurʾān. Tehran, Muʾassisat Farhangī-yi Dars-hā-yī az Qurʾān, n.d.
  • Rabbānī Khalkhālī, ʿAlī. Umm al-Banīn (a) al-najm al-sāṭiʿ fī Madīnat al-Nabī al-Amīn. Edited by ʿAlī Ashraf. Qom, Dār al-Kitāb al-Islāmī, 2007.
  • Ṣabrī Bāshā, Ayūb. Mawsūʿat mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn al-sharīfayn wa jazīrat al-ʿArab. Translated by Mājida Maʿrūf, Ḥusayn Mujīb al-Maṣrī, and ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ʿAwaḍ. Cairo, Dār al-Āfāq al-ʿArabiyya, 2004.
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