Editing Isra' and Mi'raj (section)

== Sources ==
Except for a few verses in the Quran that are thought to refer to Isra and Miraj, the other narratives consist of stories added to [[Sīrah|the biography]] and hadith collections. In addition, unlike the references to miracles made to other prophets in the Quran, the verses that deny any miracles of Muhammad outside the Quran attract the attention of some researchers.<ref>the Quran stresses that [[Miracles of Muhammad|Muhammad made no miracle]] other than the divinely claimed miracle of the Quran itself.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10477845.2025.2452714?src=exp-la#d1e136</ref>

Two hadiths considered the most reliable rely on [[Anas ibn Malik]] and [[ibn ʿAbbas]]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Colby|first1=Frederick S.|title=Narrating Muhammad's Night Journey: Teaching the Development of the Ibn 'Abbas Ascension Discourse|date=2008|publisher=State University of New York Press|location=Albany|isbn=978-0-7914-7518-8}}</ref><ref>https://brill.com/previewpdf/book/edcoll/9789004194274/Bej.9789004183803.i-504_023.xml</ref> persons who were recorded as children at the time.

===The Quran===
[[Al-Isra'|The 17th chapter of the Quran]] takes its name from a word used in the first verse, which is presented as the first stage of the journey, expressed as Isra. However, the Surah was known as the Surah "banu Israel" "Children of Israel" during the time of the companions and the successors,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Soorat al-Isra’ is also called Soorat Bani Isra’eel - Islam Question & Answer |url=https://islamqa.info/en/answers/163112/soorat-al-isra-is-also-called-soorat-bani-israeel |access-date=2024-05-28 |website=islamqa.info |language=en}}</ref><ref> http://www.englishtafsir.com/Quran/17/index.html</ref> and other views state that the relevant verse, together with the verses that follow it, tells about the [[The Exodus|Exodus]] of the [[Israelites|Children of Israel]] from Egypt (..his servant means Moses, in this case).<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UxqqZTB4d4</ref> According to a different interpretation of the verse through Muhammad, the Al-aqsa used in the verse is not associated with Jerusalem, but with Cirana, which is located near Mecca.<ref>https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/378422</ref>

{{blockquote|Glory be to the One Who took His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque whose surroundings We have blessed, so that We may show him some of Our signs. Indeed, He alone is the All-Hearing, All-Seeing.|{{qref|17|1|c=y}}}}

An expression that is connected with the ascention part of the story<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Colby |first=Frederick S.|date=2002|title=The Subtleties of the Ascension: al-Sulamī on the Mi'rāj of the Prophet Muhammad|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1596216 |journal=Studia Islamica |issue=94 |pages=167–183 |doi=10.2307/1596216 |jstor=1596216 |issn=0585-5292|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>Lange, C. (2015). Paradise and hell in Islamic traditions. Cambridge University Press.p. 112</ref> is the subject-free poetic expressions in the {{transliteration|ar|surah [[an-Najm]]}}.

{{blockquote|And he certainly saw that ˹angel descend˺ a second time{{pb}}at the [[Sidrat al-Muntaha|"Sidr"]] of the most extreme limit ˹in the seventh heaven˺—{{pb}}near which is the Garden of ˹Eternal˺ Residence—{{pb}}while the "sidr" was overwhelmed with ˹heavenly˺ splendours!{{pb}}The ˹Prophet's˺ sight never wandered, nor did it overreach.{{pb}}He certainly saw some of his Lord's greatest signs.|{{qref|53|13-18|c=y}}}}
[[File:cedararz.jpg|right|thumb|One of the stations of Muhammad's ascent after [[Al-Aqsa]] in the "[[seven heavens]]"; [[Sidrat al-Muntaha]]; The legendary tree in havens,<ref>https://sunnah.com/bukhari:3207</ref> whose branches extend to the last limits of creation;<ref>https://brill.com/previewpdf/book/edcoll/9789004194274/Bej.9789004183803.i-504_023.xml</ref> the sacred [[Cedrus|cedar]] known as "Allah's Arez" in Lebanon<ref>{{cite web |last1=Farooqi |first1=M.I.H. |title=Cedar or Lote-Tree in the Light of al-Quran–A Scientific Study |url=https://www.irfi.org/articles4/articles_5001_6000/cedar_or_lotetree_in_the_light.html |website=IRFI |access-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> or, in simple translation, the [[Ziziphus spina-christi|lote]] tree.]]

===Hadith===
{{Muhammad|miracles}}
====Ibn ʿAbbas Primitive Version====
[[File:Muhammad encountering the angel of fire and ice.jpg|thumb|upright|Muhammad encounters the angel composed of fire and ice during his [[Isra and Mi'raj|Night journey]]. Miniature from a copy of al-Sarai's {{transliteration|ar|Nahj al-Faradis}} from [[The David Collection]]]]
[[Ibn Abbas]]'s Primitive Versions describe everything Muhammad encountered during his journey through heaven. This includes seeing other angels and the seas of light, darkness, and fire. Muhammad, as companion of Gabriel, met four important angels as he travelled through heaven. These angels were the Rooster angel (whose call influences all earthly roosters), the Half Fire Half Snow angel (an example of God's power to bring fire and ice together in harmony), the [[Azrael|Angel of Death]], and the [[Malik|Guardian of Hellfire]]. These four angels are introduced at the beginning of Ibn Abbas's narrative and focus on the angels rather than the prophets. There are ranks of angels in heaven, and he even meets some deeply connected angels called [[cherubim]].<ref>Colby, Frederick S. Narrating Muḥammad's night journey: tracing the development of the Ibn ʿAbbās ascension discourse. State University of New York Press, 2008. p. 36</ref> These angels instill fear in Muhammad, but he sees them later as God's creation and not harmful. 

Other important details that Ibn Abbas adds to the narrative are the [[Heavenly host]], the final verses of [[Al-Baqara|the Cow Chapter]], and the blessing of the Prophets.<ref name="State University of New York Press">{{cite book|last1=Colby|first1=Frederick S|title=Narrating Muhammad's Night Journey: Tracing the Development of the Ibn 'Abbas Ascension Discourse|date=2008|publisher=State University of New York Press|isbn=978-0-7914-7518-8}}</ref>

====Others====
Various hadiths add much more details; the {{transliteration|ar|Israʾ}}, which was not present in the previous hadiths of the miraj, is now part of Muhammad's journey from [[Mecca]] to "the farthest place of worship", although the city is not explicitly stated. The journey begins while Muhammad is in the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, when the Archangel Gabriel arrives and brings the prophets' heavenly mount, [[Buraq]]. 

Buraq carried Muhammad to the "farthest place of worship." Muhammad dismounted, tied Buraq up, and prayed, where he was tested by Gabriel at God's command. [[Anas ibn Malik]] narrated that Muhammad said: "Gabriel brought me a vessel of wine, a vessel of water, and a vessel of milk, and I chose the milk. Gabriel said: 'You have chosen the fitra (natural instinct).'" During the second part of the journey, on the "ladder" of Miraj, Gabriel took him to the heavens, where he circled the [[seven heavens]] and spoke with the previous prophets: [[Abraham in Islam|Abraham]], [[Moses in Islam|Moses]], [[John the Baptist in Islam|John the Baptist]], and [[Jesus in Islam|Jesus]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2025}}

In other versions by Ibn Abbas, a transmitter seems to have added to Ibn Abbas' authentic narrative the descent of Muhammad and the meeting with the prophets. These are the stories of the meeting with the prophets and the meeting with Moses, which led to the reduction of the daily prayers, which are not included in Ibn Abbas' primitive version. Whether Ibn Abbas included this in his original narrative or whether it was added by a later transmitter is a matter of debate.<ref name="State University of New York Press"/>

====Of mutating hadith====
Another question is whether the Isra and Mi'raj originally occurred together. According to [[Britannica]], in the "earliest interpretations of the Mi'raj", while Muhammad was in the Kaaba in Mecca, Muhammad's body was cut, cleansed and purified by the angel Jibreel, after which Jibreel carried him "directly to the lower heaven". However, at some point "in early Islamic history", this story of purification and ascent to heaven became associated with the story of Muhammad's night journey (Isra) from the "sacred house of worship" to the "other house of worship". Eventually, Muhammad was "carried from Mecca to Jerusalem in a single night by the legendary winged beast Buraq. From Jerusalem, where the Dome of the Rock is now located, he was escorted to heaven by Jibreel and ascended, presumably by a ladder or staircase (Mi'raj)."."<ref name="Britannica-Miʿrāj">{{cite web |last1=Zeidan. |first1=Adam |title=Miʿrāj |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Miraj-Islam |website=Britannica |access-date=15 October 2023}}</ref>