A Question on “unseemly words”
----- Original
Message -----
From: Farzin
Aghdasi Sent: Sunday, September 15, 2002 11:37 PM Dear All, Munirih and Nancy
had asked about the following question: Bahá'u'lláh refrained from mentioning the unseemly words uttered by the
Jews that made Muhammad alter the law of the Qiblih from Jerusalem to Mecca.
What could the words have been? Answer: The account of the
Prophet changing the Qiblih from Jerusalem to Kaaba is given in Qur'an, surah
of Baqarah (the cow) 2:144. The classical commentators of the Qur'an have
reported on the provocation uttered by the Jews. The Baha'i scholar
Ishraq-khavari has quoted from one such commentator called Abu'l-fotuh-i-Razi.
(This reference can be found on page 1227 of the 4 volume encyclopedic study
Qamus-i-Iqan). It is reported that a group of Jews would ridicule the
Prophet saying that if He is finding a fault with our religion, how come
He turns to our Qiblih? If He has a separate religion then He should
have a separate Qiblih. As a result of these ridicules and harassments
Muhammad wished to have the house of Kaaba as His Qiblih which was His
father's point of adoration from pre-Islamic times. For this reason He turned
His face towards the heavens. The Qur'anic verse is "We see the
turning of thy face (for guidance) to the heavens: now Shall We turn thee to a
Qibla that shall please thee. Turn then Thy face in the direction of the sacred
Mosque: Wherever ye are, turn your faces in that direction. The people of the
Book know well that is the truth from their Lord. Nor is Allah unmindful of
what they do." Farzin
The relevant verse was then revealed to Muhammad by God via archangel Gabriel
during the course of a prayer.
Warmest Baha'i Love