Did the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) see his Lord (Mighty and Majestic), and was the Night Journey and Ascension in a dream or in a waking state?
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The questioner : The questioner asks, saying: Did the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) see his Lord (Mighty and Majestic), and was the Night Journey and Ascension in a dream or in a waking state?
The Shaykh : As for the Night Journey and Ascension, it occurred in a waking state for him (peace and blessings be upon him). There is no doubt or issue regarding this. Although there are some weak opinions that state it was a dream or between sleep and waking, the correct position, in which we have no doubt whatsoever, is that it occurred in a waking state.
There are many, and very many, things that indicate this certainty. Among them is that this strange and unusual story, if it had been a dream and not a waking event, would not have contained a miracle that caused some of the weak believers to doubt their religion and led the polytheists to mock the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). All of this confirms that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) rose in the morning and informed the people of the great signs of his Lord that he had seen, he told them that it had occurred in a waking state. From this came the miraculous nature of the event, which was a karamah (a miracle granted to a righteous person) in one aspect, and a trial for the weak in faith and the polytheists in another.
As for the second part of the question, which is whether the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saw his Lord, this is a matter of scholarly disagreement since the earliest generations. The stronger position is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not see his Lord with his physical eye, but rather with his insight and his heart. What confirms this is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was explicitly asked, "Did you see your Lord?" and he said: This is a denial that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saw his Lord. He affirmed this denial by stating that there is a light that prevents a person from seeing his Lord. This also came in another hadith that and were it not for this veil or as he (peace be upon him) said. Both the first hadith and this other one are recorded in " Sahih al-Imam Muslim ". The stronger position is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not see his Lord, and this is the apparent meaning of the statement of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He): [Ash-Shuraa 42:51] With this verse, Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) refuted those who say that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) saw his Lord with his eyes. It is reported in " the two Sahihs " from the narration of Misraq (may Allah have mercy on him) that he came to Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) and said to her: يا أم المؤمنين هل رأى محمد ربه ، قالت : لقد قف شعري مما قلت ، قال : يا أم المؤمنين ارحميني ولا تعجلي علي أليس يقول الله تبارك وتعالى في كتابه ولقد رآه نزلة أخرى عند سدرة المنتهى ، قالت رضي الله عنها : أنا أعلم الناس بذلك لقد سألت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم فقال : رأيت جبريل في صورته التي خلق فيها مرتين وله ستمائة جناح O Mother of the Believers, did Muhammad see his Lord? She said: My hair stood on end from what you said. He said: O Mother of the Believers, have mercy on me and do not rush me. Does not Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) say in His Book: "And he certainly saw Him in the last descent, at the Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary"? She (may Allah be pleased with her) said: I am the most knowledgeable of people about that. I asked the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and he said: I saw Jibril in the form in which he was created, twice, and he had six hundred wings. , [An-Najm 53:13] She said: "I saw Jibril in the form in which he was created, twice, and he had six hundred wings, and he filled the horizon with his greatness." Thus, the pronoun in the verse about which Misraq asked Aisha refers to Jibril, not to Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He). Therefore, Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) continued her speech to affirm her answer and to inform the questioner and others of some of the knowledge she had received from her husband and Prophet, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), saying: ثلاث من حدثكموهن فقد أعظم على الله الفرية من حدثكم أن محمدا صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم رأى ربه فقد أعظم على الله الفرية ثم قالت محتجة على ما قالت : وَما كانَ لِبَشَرٍ أَنْ يُكَلِّمَهُ اللَّهُ إِلاَّ وَحْياً أَوْ مِنْ وَراءِ حِجابٍ أَوْ يُرْسِلَ رَسُولاً وقالت : لا تدركه الأبصار وهو يدرك الأبصار ثم قالت : ومن حدثكن أن محمدا صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم كان يعلم الغيب فقد أعظم على الله الفرية ثم تلت قوله تعالى قل لا يعلم من في السماوات والأرض الغيبب إلا الله ثم قالت : ومن حدثكم أن محمدا صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم كتم شيئا أمر بتبليغه فقد أعظم على الله الفرية ثم تلت قوله تبارك وتعالى يا أيها الرسول بلغ ما أنزل من ربك وإن لم تفعل فما بلغت رسالته والله يعصمك من الناس Three things: whoever tells you about them has committed a great lie against Allah. Whoever tells you that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) saw his Lord has committed a great lie against Allah. Then she argued for what she said by reciting: "It is not for a human being that Allah should speak to him except by revelation, or from behind a veil, or by sending a messenger." And she said: "Sight cannot comprehend Him, but He comprehends all sight." Then she said: Whoever tells you that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) knew the unseen has committed a great lie against Allah. Then she recited the statement of Allah: "Say: None in the heavens and earth knows the unseen except Allah." Then she said: Whoever tells you that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) concealed anything he was commanded to convey has committed a great lie against Allah. Then she recited the statement of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He): "O Messenger, convey what has been revealed to you from your Lord. And if you do not, then you have not conveyed His message. And Allah will protect you from the people.".
The questioner : Regarding the hadith of the Night Journey and Ascension, you mentioned that he saw his Lord with his heart. What does it mean to see his Lord with his heart?
The Shaykh : With his insight, meaning not with his physical eye. This is a spiritual vision, which you might call a scientific one that cannot be represented or depicted.
The Shaykh : As for the Night Journey and Ascension, it occurred in a waking state for him (peace and blessings be upon him). There is no doubt or issue regarding this. Although there are some weak opinions that state it was a dream or between sleep and waking, the correct position, in which we have no doubt whatsoever, is that it occurred in a waking state.
There are many, and very many, things that indicate this certainty. Among them is that this strange and unusual story, if it had been a dream and not a waking event, would not have contained a miracle that caused some of the weak believers to doubt their religion and led the polytheists to mock the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). All of this confirms that when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) rose in the morning and informed the people of the great signs of his Lord that he had seen, he told them that it had occurred in a waking state. From this came the miraculous nature of the event, which was a karamah (a miracle granted to a righteous person) in one aspect, and a trial for the weak in faith and the polytheists in another.
As for the second part of the question, which is whether the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saw his Lord, this is a matter of scholarly disagreement since the earliest generations. The stronger position is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not see his Lord with his physical eye, but rather with his insight and his heart. What confirms this is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was explicitly asked, "Did you see your Lord?" and he said:
Light, how can I see it?
نور أنى أراهHis veil is light.
حجابه النورThe radiance of His face (Blessed and Exalted is He) would have consumed everything in which He had looked.
لأحرقت سبحات وجهه تبارك وتعالى كل شيء نظر فيهAnd it is not for any human being that Allah should speak to him except by revelation or from behind a partition or that He sends a messenger
وَما كانَ لِبَشَرٍ أَنْ يُكَلِّمَهُ اللَّهُ إِلاَّ وَحْياً أَوْ مِنْ وَراءِ حِجابٍ أَوْ يُرْسِلَ رَسُولاًAnd he certainly saw him in another descent
ولقد رآه نزلة أخرىThe questioner : Regarding the hadith of the Night Journey and Ascension, you mentioned that he saw his Lord with his heart. What does it mean to see his Lord with his heart?
The Shaykh : With his insight, meaning not with his physical eye. This is a spiritual vision, which you might call a scientific one that cannot be represented or depicted.