As you travel to Madinah, let your imagination go back in time to more than 1400 years ago. The Prophet ﷺ had endured some of the most difficult years of his life: thirteen years of endless ridicule from his own tribe, the harsh torture of his Companions and a gruelling boycott. Shortly after, he suffered the heart-wrenching loss of his closest confidant and most devoted supporter: his wife Khadījah (raḍiy Allāhu ʿanhā).
Then came the command for hijrah. The blessed Companion was chosen: his best friend, Abū Bakr (raḍiy Allāhu ʿanhu). Though the journey was for two, it was a family affair; his daughter Asmā’, son ʿAbdullah, and servant ʿĀmir (radiy Allāhu ʿanhum) all put their lives on the line for this noble mission.
Yet this was a painful parting. Standing at the edge of Makkah, with a heavy heart, the Prophet ﷺ remarked: “You are the most beloved of all lands to me, and had it not been for your people forcing me to leave, I would never have left.”
The hijrah was a dangerous journey as they crossed difficult terrain while being relentlessly pursued by the Quraysh. The enemy closed in, standing right at the mouth of Cave Thawr. One downward glance, and they would have been discovered. It was at this moment that the most comforting words in history were uttered: “O Abū Bakr, what do you think of two, with Allah as their third?”
It was a journey marked by miracles. A spider spun its web across the cave’s entrance, shielding the noble Messenger ﷺ and his Companion from their pursuers. The horse of the expert tracker, Surāqah, sunk into the ground and stumbled over three times: something that had never happened before. Umm Maʿbad’s barren goat, against all odds, gave enough milk to quench the traveller’s thirst, and still had more for its owner and her husband. Umm Maʿbad’s vivid, awe-struck description of the Prophet ﷺ would go on to become one of the most detailed accounts of his appearance.
The moment of arrival in Madinah had finally come. And what a moment it was! “ اَللّٰهُ أَكْبَرُ! Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah has! arrived!” The joyous shouts of Madinan children filled the air. Men rushed ahead to pay their respects to him. Women hurried to the rooftops, eager to catch a glimpse of him ﷺ.
