Walking in the Shade of the Prophet
They light up the darkness like the radiant light of stars from distant galaxies who have come to send salutations upon the full, bright, luminescent moon. Their faces, some like artwork by Monet, others like landscapes by Ansel Adams, tell the stories of their lives, carrying onlookers with them down the rivers of their experiences in their furrowed brows or the freshness of the spring like waters of their youthfulness that know no fear and unlimited potentialities, the hopes in their bright eyes or the regrets in the tears that fall from their visual orbs like a deluge after a drought that had left their souls cracked and vapid like old and moldy bread that has been left out too long. Some carry tasbih, some babies, in the hopes that their visit will bring blessings upon their offspring, some carry hope for a better future and some regret for lost yesterdays, some carry tears for their lost loved ones, some carry tears for the ummah and some carry tears for all of humanity, some carry nothing but their outstretched hands as they strain to deliver their supplications for you, your family, your loved ones, your companions, your followers and ummah to Allah, the Most Merciful, The Most Beneficent, The One Who himself sends salutations upon you along with his angels when He says in The Noblest of Books, The Quran The Most Wise and Healer of Men’s Souls,
Allah and His angels send blessings on the Prophet: O ye that believe! send ye blessings on him and salute him with all respect. (Al-Qur'an, Surah Al-Ahzab, Ayah 56).
They carry naught but their hearts, upon which are inscribed words revealed to you by The Master of Creation, Allah, who sits closer to man than his own jugular vein. They have come to see the resting place of the most perfect of men, the one whom Allah addresses as The Mercy to Mankind, the one who would himself go hungry so that others may eat, the one who never addressed anyone save with a smile and a kind word, the one who was the chief of hospitality and the foremost in generosity. They have come to you, Rasulullah, for fulfillment of the promise you made to them when you stated:
“Whoever will send one blessing upon me, God will send ten blessings upon him.” (Hadīth, recorded by Muslim)
They throng your masjid to seek the blessings of being in the shade of your legacy, that, like the masjid has grown from the simplest of open-air buildings covered by palm-fronds to an extravagant and elaborate capital of worship, adorned by calligraphic illustrations from the Qur'an, gold, stone, light and mobile rooftops.
They visit Suffah. They vie to pray in Riad ul Jannah, the hallowed ground whose soil belongs to the empire of heaven. They send salutations upon your companions and the early forebears in Jannat Al Baqi. They return to your home time and again, like birds who flock to a life giving spring, seeking rejuvenation of their spirits and souls. They rest their burdens and hopes in their love for the message that you brought from Allah, The Most High, The Most Great. They are needy. They come as beggars to your door. They know you are not one to turn away the wayfarer in need.