The Story of the Construction of Masjid Nabawi, There Used to be Graves of Polytheists

Dream - Masjid Nabawi is one of the mosques that holds Islamic history. Yes, this is because the mosque was built by Prophet Muhammad. Masjid Nabawi itself is located in Madinah, Saudi Arabia and is currently the tomb of Prophet Muhammad and the Islamic caliphs.

The mosque was built by Prophet Muhammad since he set foot in Madinah. At that time, the camel he was riding stopped at that place. It was the place to dry dates owned by two orphaned children, Sahl and Suhail bin 'Amr, which were eventually bought by Prophet Muhammad.

In a narration, it is told that Masjid Nabawi was built on land that was formerly a grave of polytheists. The Prophet saw said:

"Insha Allah, this place (is) for a house." (HR. Bukhari)

To find out the complete story of the establishment of Masjid Nabawi, here is a summary as compiled by Dream from various sources.

The Prophet Buys Land with Graves of Polytheists

When Prophet Muhammad arrived in Madinah and at that time the camel he was riding stopped, it was known that the place was the land owned by two orphaned children, which was used to dry dates. The children were Sahl and Suhail bin 'Amr.

The Prophet called the two children intending to negotiate the price of the land to build a mosque on it. However, the two children wanted to give the land to him.

"We actually want to give it to you, O Messenger of Allah."

However, the Prophet still bought the land. And then Masjid Nabawi was built on it. In a hadith, it is narrated that when the Prophet was about to command the construction of the mosque, he sent messengers to Bani Najjar. When they arrived, he said:

"O Bani Najjar, value your garden for me!"

Then they replied:

"By Allah, no! You will not ask for its value except from Allah Azza wa Jalla."

Meanwhile, in another narration, it is told that the place had graves of polytheists, a slightly elevated area, and there were date palm trees. Then the Prophet commanded that the graves be dug and the bones be removed, the slightly elevated area be leveled, and the date palm trees be cut down.

The Construction of Masjid Nabawi

During the construction of the mosque, Prophet Muhammad also participated in helping. Like carrying raw bricks. He recited a poem:

"What is brought here is not a burden from Khaibar. It is more eternal, more beneficial, and more sacred in the sight of our Lord."

In the process of building the mosque, the Prophet prioritized skilled individuals. It is also explained in a narration, the Prophet said to a companion who was involved in building the mosque:

"Bring al-Yamami closer to the land, because his touch is the best among you, and his mixture is the strongest."

Then in another narration, al-Yamami said:

"I mixed the soil, and it seemed that my mixture amazed him (the Prophet), and he said: 'Let al-Yamami al-Hanafi deal with the soil, for he is the most skilled among you in soil matters.'" (HR. Imam Ahmad)

Initially, the mosque had a size of about 50 by 50 meters with a roof height of about 3.5 meters. On the wall side, all four sides of the mosque were made of bricks and soil. Meanwhile, the roof of the mosque was made of date palm leaves, and part of the roof was left open with supporting pillars made of date palm trunks.

The construction of Masjid Nabawi took twelve days. Then it continued with the construction of rooms for the Prophet's wives. The first two houses built for the Prophet's wives were owned by Saudah bin Zum'ah and Aisha. The two houses were adjacent to the mosque. They were made of soil and date palm fibers or arranged stones, and the roofs were made of date palm fibers.

Furthermore, houses were also built for his other wives. After all the construction was completed, the Prophet moved from Abu Ayyub's house to his new house.

It should also be known that for nine years, the mosque did not have lighting at night. However, when it was time for Isha prayer, lighting was provided by burning straw.

In the first year of hijrah, there was a shariah to recite the call to prayer. In a narration, Abdullah bin Zaid dreamed about the call to prayer and told the Prophet about it. Then the Prophet ordered Bilal bin Rabbah to recite the call to prayer.

Renovation of the Mosque

For a long time, Masjid Nabawi did not undergo any changes. But when Umar bin Khattab became caliph, the mosque was renovated. The wooden pillars, which were originally made of date palm trees, were replaced with wood.

Then, during the caliphate of Uthman bin Affan, renovation was also carried out. The walls were built with engraved stones, as well as the pillars. The roof was replaced with a decorative type of wood.

Initially, Masjid Nabawi did not have a pulpit. So, the Prophet delivered his sermons leaning on a date palm trunk. And when a pulpit was finally made, there was a story behind the date palm trunk. The date palm trunk, which was replaced with a pulpit, cried. The Prophet knew about the crying and hugged it until the trunk became silent.

When entering the modern era, a massive expansion of Masjid Nabawi was carried out by King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz. The entire mosque area became 165,000 m². The number of minarets, which was originally only 4, was increased to 10. Four of them have a height of 72 meters and the other 6 are 92 meters tall. Then the number of doors was also increased to 95. Until now, Masjid Nabawi has become more magnificent and can accommodate around 535,000 people.