The Meaning of His Saying: "And the earth was made for me a place of prostration and a source of purity."
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The Shaykh : The second one says: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1553Hasan (Darussalam) And who is the one who made it so?
The student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Is this making so a legal (shar'i) matter or a natural (cosmic) one? Yes, I will require the one who says it to specify one of the two meanings: legal or natural. What do you say?
The student: Legal
The Shaykh : Legal. And what do you say? Legal and natural, meaning combining both matters. Yes. It appears that the intended meaning here is the legal making, because although the earth is a place of prostration, some people may not prostrate on it. It is possible that it is both legal and natural, as the brother said. The important thing is that the making is both legal and natural. An example of legal making is the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-Ma'idah 5:103] And what is the meaning of "Allah did not make"? Is the making legal or natural? Did Allah not make the *bahirah* legally or naturally?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : The evidence that it is legal? Because the *bahirah* exists naturally; it existed among the polytheists in the age of ignorance. They designated the *bahirah*, the *sā'ibah*, the *wasīlah*, and the *hām*. So Allah said:[Al-Ma'idah 5:103] meaning He did not make it a legal designation. Good. And Allah the Exalted said: [An-Naba 78:10] Is this natural or legal? It is natural. This is natural, meaning Allah made the night over the earth like a garment. Good. Here he says: Sunan Ibn Majah 567Sahih (Darussalam) I say it is suitable for both the legal and the natural. The meaning of "place of prostration" is a place of prostration, and the intended meaning of prostration here is prayer, i.e., a place of prayer. Pay attention, my brother. The intended meaning of it being a "place of prostration" is not the specific built mosque intended for prayer. No, the intended meaning of "place of prostration" is that it is suitable for prostration in it, i.e., for prayer in it. Every patch of the earth ... is suitable for prayer in it.
the Earth has been made as a Masjid and purifier for me
وجعلت لي الأرض مسجدا وطهوراThe student: Allah
The Shaykh : Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Is this making so a legal (shar'i) matter or a natural (cosmic) one? Yes, I will require the one who says it to specify one of the two meanings: legal or natural. What do you say?
The student: Legal
The Shaykh : Legal. And what do you say? Legal and natural, meaning combining both matters. Yes. It appears that the intended meaning here is the legal making, because although the earth is a place of prostration, some people may not prostrate on it. It is possible that it is both legal and natural, as the brother said. The important thing is that the making is both legal and natural. An example of legal making is the saying of Allah the Exalted:
Allah has not appointed [such innovations as] bahirah or sa'ibah or wasilah or ham
ما جعل الله من بحيرة ولا سائبة ولا وصيلة ولا حامThe student: ...
The Shaykh : The evidence that it is legal? Because the *bahirah* exists naturally; it existed among the polytheists in the age of ignorance. They designated the *bahirah*, the *sā'ibah*, the *wasīlah*, and the *hām*. So Allah said: