The Night Journey & Ascension (Al-Isra' wal-Mi'raj)
الإسراء والمعراج
Summary
The Prophet (peace be upon him) was taken by night from Masjid al-Haram in Makkah to Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem (al-Isra'), and then ascended through the heavens (al-Mi'raj), where he met previous prophets and received the command for the five daily prayers.
Details
Jibril came to the Prophet with al-Buraq, a riding creature. At al-Aqsa, the Prophet led all the previous prophets in prayer. He then ascended through the seven heavens: meeting Adam in the first, Isa and Yahya in the second, Yusuf in the third, Idris in the fourth, Harun in the fifth, Musa in the sixth, and Ibrahim in the seventh. He was taken to Sidrat al-Muntaha (the Lote Tree of the utmost boundary) and into the divine presence where the five daily prayers were prescribed — originally fifty, reduced to five through Musa's advice. Abu Bakr earned the title 'as-Siddiq' for immediately believing the account.