﴿1﴾ “In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. Glory be to Him who took His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque, whose surroundings We have blessed, so that We might show him some of Our signs. Indeed, He alone is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”

Allah declares His sacred Self far above every imperfection and extols it, for to Him belong mighty deeds and immense favors. Among these is that He “took His servant by night”—His Messenger Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace—“from the Sacred Mosque,” the noblest of all mosques, “to the Farthest Mosque,” which is among the mosques possessing special merit and is the abode of the prophets.

He was taken in a single night across an exceedingly great distance and returned that same night. Allah showed him signs through which he increased in guidance, insight, steadfastness, and discernment. This was part of Allah’s care and graciousness toward him: He facilitated the path of ease for him in all his affairs and bestowed upon him blessings by which he surpassed all those who came before and after him.

The apparent meaning of the verse is that the Night Journey occurred at the beginning of the night and began from the Sacred Mosque itself. However, it is established in an authentic hadith that he was taken by night from the house of Umm Hāni’. On this basis, the merit attached to the Sacred Mosque extends throughout the entire Sacred Precinct: acts of worship performed anywhere within it are multiplied just as they are inside the mosque itself. The apparent meaning also indicates that the Night Journey involved both his body and his soul; otherwise, it would not have constituted such a momentous sign and magnificent distinction.

Numerous authentic hadiths have been transmitted from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, concerning the Night Journey. They recount the details of what he saw: he was taken by night to Jerusalem and then raised from there through the heavens until he reached beyond the highest heavens. He saw Paradise and Hell, as well as the prophets in their respective stations. Fifty prayers were prescribed for him, and he continued returning to his Lord on the advice of Moses, to whom Allah spoke directly, until they became five in practice but fifty in reward and recompense. That night, he and his community attained honors whose true magnitude is known only to Allah, glorious and exalted is He.

Allah describes him here—and when speaking of the Quran’s revelation and in the context of the challenge—with the designation of servanthood, because he attained these exalted stations through his perfect fulfillment of servitude to his Lord.

His words, “whose surroundings We have blessed,” mean: with abundant trees, rivers, and enduring fertility.

Among its blessings is that Allah favored it above all other mosques except the Sacred Mosque and the Mosque of Medina; that people are encouraged to journey to it for worship and prayer; and that Allah designated it as the abode of many of His prophets and chosen servants.