of gathering and resurrection on the Day when all shall meet; it is the dwelling place of the prophets and the destination of the saints, and from the very first day it was founded upon taqwā (god-consciousness).
I say: It is related that the one who first laid its foundations (1) was Jacob (peace be upon him), forty years after the Friend of the Most Merciful, Abraham (peace be upon him), built the Sacred Mosque, as is recorded in the two Ṣaḥīḥs (2). Later, Solomon son of David—peace be upon them both (3)—renewed its building, as is confirmed (4) by the ḥadīth found in the Musnad, the Sunan, the Ṣaḥīḥ of Ibn Khuzaymah, Ibn Ḥibbān, al-Ḥākim, and others. [Solomon (peace be upon him)] (5) asked Allah, upon completing it (6), for three things: that his judgment accord with Allah’s judgment, that he be granted a dominion unmatched by anyone after him, and that no one come (7) to this mosque, moved by nothing (8) but the desire to pray therein, without departing from his sins as free of them as on the day his mother bore him (9).
The preacher then completed both sermons and offered supplication (10) for the Abbasid caliph al-Nāṣir (11), and thereafter (12) for the Sultan, al-Malik al-Nāṣir Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn—may Allah Most High have mercy on them both. After the prayer Shaykh Zayn al-Dīn Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn Najā al-Miṣrī (13), with the sultan’s permission, sat upon the chair of exhortation and admonished the people; it was a well-attended occasion and a praiseworthy moment. So to Allah
(1) The edition reads: “Inna awwala man assasa…”
(2) As in the two Ṣaḥīḥ collections: narrated by al-Bukhārī in his Ṣaḥīḥ in the chapters on the Prophets (nos. 3366, 3425) and by Muslim (no. 520) in the Book of Mosques and Places of Prayer, from Abu Dharr al-Ghifārī, who said: “I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, which mosque was first established on earth?’ He said, ‘The Masjid al-Ḥaram.’ I said, ‘Then which?’ He said, ‘The Masjid al-Aqṣā.’ I said, ‘How many years between them?’ He said, ‘Forty years. And wherever the prayer overtakes you, pray there, for that is a mosque.’” (Hasan)
(3) The edition reads: “ʿalayhi.”
(4) Editions A and B read: “bihi.”
(5) Reported by edition T alone.
(6) The edition reads: “faraghahu.”
(7) Absent in edition T.
(8) He means one who goes out to the mosque intending nothing worldly except prayer. The root nahz literally means “to push.” See al-Nihāya fī Gharīb al-Ḥadīth wa al-Athar (5:136).
(9) Narrated by Aḥmad in al-Musnad (2:176, no. 6644); al-Nisā’ī in al-Mujtabā (2:34, no. 693); Ibn Mājah (no. 1408); Ibn Khuzaymah (no. 334); Ibn Ḥibbān (no. 1633); and al-Ḥākim in al-Mustadrak (1:30–31), from ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ (ra) on the authority of the Prophet (pbuh): “When Sulaymān ibn Dāwūd (ra) completed constructing Bayt al-Maqdis, he asked Allāh three things: to grant him wisdom matching his judgment, a kingdom unmatched by any after him, and that no one would come to this mosque with any purpose except prayer without leaving except as free of sin as the day his mother bore him.” The Prophet (pbuh) said, “He was given two, and I hope he was given the third.” It is a ṣaḥīḥ hadith. (Hasan)
(10) The edition reads: “Then he mentioned the completion of the two sermons and then he prayed.”
(11) Reported by edition T alone.
(12) The edition reads: “Then he prayed.”
(13) The edition reads: “Abū al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī Najjā,” who is Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Najjā. His biography will appear under the events of 599 AH in this volume.