Muhammad's Night Journey: Myth or History?

The Miraculous Midnight Flight

One of Islam's most celebrated miracles is the Isra and Mi'raj, Muhammad's alleged night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and then to heaven on a winged creature called Buraq. Muslims view this as proof of Muhammad's prophethood, but examining the historical evidence and internal contradictions reveals serious problems with this claim.

The story involves Muhammad traveling over 700 miles from Mecca to Jerusalem in a single night, ascending through seven heavens, meeting previous prophets, speaking with Allah, and returning before dawn. This fantastical account raises questions about whether this was meant to be understood literally or merely as a dream.

The Quranic Account

The Quran mentions the night journey only briefly:

"Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing." — Quran 17:1

Notice that this verse says nothing about ascending to heaven, meeting prophets, or riding a winged horse. It only mentions a journey from Mecca to "the farthest mosque" (al-Masjid al-Aqsa). The elaborate details come entirely from hadith and later Islamic tradition, not from the Quran itself.

The Historical Problem

The verse references "al-Masjid al-Aqsa" (the farthest mosque), which Muslims identify with the location in Jerusalem where the Dome of the Rock now stands. However, there are significant historical problems with this identification:

1. No mosque existed in Jerusalem during Muhammad's lifetime: Muhammad died in 632 CE. The Dome of the Rock wasn't built until 691 CE, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque wasn't completed until 705 CE.
2. Jerusalem was under Byzantine Christian control: During Muhammad's life, Jerusalem was controlled by Christians who would not have allowed a mosque to be built there.
3. The city was never mentioned by name: The Quran never explicitly mentions Jerusalem, which is odd if Muhammad physically traveled there and it was so significant to Islamic theology.

The Elaborate Hadith Version

The hadith add fantastical details not found in the Quran. According to Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, Muhammad claimed:

• He rode a white winged creature called Buraq (described as larger than a donkey but smaller than a mule)
• He met prophets including Adam, Jesus, Moses, and Abraham in the heavens
• He saw hell and paradise
• He spoke directly with Allah, who initially commanded 50 daily prayers, which Moses convinced Muhammad to negotiate down to 5
• He returned to Mecca before his bed was cold

The story of negotiating prayer numbers is particularly problematic. It suggests Allah didn't know what was reasonable for humans, needed correction from Moses (a previous prophet), and that Muhammad haggled with God like a merchant in a bazaar.

Was It a Dream or Physical Journey?

Even early Muslims disagreed about whether this was a physical journey or merely a dream. Some of Muhammad's contemporaries, including his wife Aisha, stated it was a vision, not a bodily journey:

"The apostle's body remained where it was but God removed his spirit by night." — Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah

However, later Islamic orthodoxy insists it was physical to maintain the miraculous nature of the event. This disagreement among early Muslims suggests uncertainty about what Muhammad actually claimed.

The Quraysh's Response

According to Islamic sources, when Muhammad first told the Quraysh about his night journey, they mocked him. Some Muslims who had believed in Muhammad reportedly apostatized, finding the claim too incredible to accept. The story was so unbelievable that even Muhammad's own wife Aisha and some companions had to reinterpret it as a spiritual vision rather than physical reality.

Problems with the Account

1. No physical evidence: Despite claiming to have traveled to Jerusalem, there's no evidence Muhammad ever visited the city during his lifetime.
2. Contradictory details: Different hadith give contradictory details about what Muhammad saw and who he met.
3. Scientific impossibility: Even if one accepts miracles, the story involves traveling through seven physical heavens, a cosmology we now know is incorrect.
4. Borrowed mythology: Similar ascension stories exist in Persian Zoroastrian texts (the Arda Viraf) and Jewish mystical traditions, suggesting Muhammad borrowed from existing cultural myths.

Biblical Contrast: Verifiable Appearances

When Jesus appeared to His disciples after the resurrection, He provided physical evidence and multiple witnesses:

"See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." — Luke 24:39

Jesus' resurrection was witnessed by over 500 people (1 Corinthians 15:6) and verified by skeptics like Thomas who demanded physical proof (John 20:24-29). Unlike Muhammad's private, unverifiable night journey, Jesus' resurrection had multiple eyewitnesses who could testify to what they saw and touched.

When biblical prophets received visions of heaven (like Isaiah 6 or Ezekiel 1), they clearly identified them as visions, not physical journeys. The Bible doesn't require belief in scientifically impossible physical journeys through multiple heaven levels.

Questions to Consider

1. If this journey was so important, why does the Quran only mention it in one brief verse without any details?
2. How could Muhammad travel to "the farthest mosque" when no mosque existed in Jerusalem during his lifetime?
3. Why do early Islamic sources disagree about whether this was physical or spiritual?
4. If it was physical, why is there no evidence Muhammad ever visited Jerusalem?
5. Does Allah really need a prophet to negotiate prayer requirements like a business transaction?
6. Why should we accept an unverifiable claim made by one person with no witnesses?

Conclusion

The night journey story is one of the most problematic claims in Islamic tradition. A mosque that didn't exist, a journey with no witnesses, contradictory accounts about whether it was physical or spiritual, and elaborate details added long after the fact all point to a legend that grew over time rather than a historical event.

While Muslims are required to believe in this miraculous journey, the evidence suggests it was either a dream that was later embellished or a story borrowed from earlier religious traditions. Unlike the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which was publicly witnessed and historically documented, Muhammad's night journey remains an unverifiable claim that even early Muslims questioned.

For those investigating Islam's truth claims, the night journey story demonstrates how Islamic tradition often elevates unfounded claims to the level of required belief, demanding faith without evidence.

Related articles: The Satanic Verses Incident, The Compilation of the Quran