2. Madinah

On the day the Messenger of Allah ﷺ entered Madinah, everything therein became illuminated. Then on the day he passed away, everything therein became dark. (Tirmidhī)

Madinah is no ordinary place. It is a city filled with serenity, tranquillity and peace. Its air is gentle and fresh; soothing for the soul. Its entrances are guarded by angels, making it a sanctuary for everyone who enters it: neither plague nor Dajjāl can enter it. It is the sieve through which evil is filtered. It is the lighthouse of īmān.

Madinah is the city where the Prophet ﷺ walked its streets, consoled its trees and prayed on its blessed soil. It is the city that soothed him after the storms of Makkah. It is the safe haven he had longed for. When he ﷺ returned from the battle of Tabuk, he said:

“I am hastening to Madinah. So whoever among you wishes to hasten with me, let him do so.” And when Madinah came into view, he ﷺ said: “This is Ṭābah [wholesome and pure]” (Bukharī).

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?”

Madinah is the city where Muslim took refuge, and where the early chapters of Islamic history were written. Its soil is soaked with the tears and blood of the Companions of the Prophet (radiy Allāhu ʿanhum). Madinah is the city home to the blessed masjid where every prayer is worth a thousand prayers. It is the city from which the light of guidance and power of Islam began to spread across the world.

Madinah is a city whose inhabitants are truly blessed. They are the descendants of the Anṣār: a people like no other. The Anṣār embraced the Prophet ﷺ when others turned him away; they welcomed him and his followers with open hearts and homes; they sacrificed their lives and wealth for the sake of Allah and His Messenger. They were a people whose generosity continues to shine to this day.

Madinah is the city where our beloved Prophet ﷺ rests. He was the one who guided humanity from the depths of darkness to light, from the worship of creation to the worship of the Creator, from the constrictions of this world to its vast expanses. He was the one who sacrificed his life for his ummah, enduring endless hardship and pain so that we could receive the noble message. He is the one who will intercede for us on the Day of Judgment, when no other Prophet or Messenger will stand in intercession for their people, and every soul will be consumed with worry for itself. On that day, when everyone will be lost in their own fears, the Prophet ﷺ will raise his head and, on behalf of his ummah, he will cry out, “My ummah, my ummah!”

The heart of every believer yearns to stand before him, to whisper salām at his grave; to feel close, if only for a moment, to the one who brought us out of darkness and into light. Every believer longs to live near him, die near him, and to rise with him.

Madinah is the city of light: the city of the Prophet ﷺ.