Luton Muslim Journal Safar 1438 | November 2016
The Rihla of Ibn Jubair between 1183 and 1185
Luton Muslim Journal Safar 1438 | November 2016
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The Rihla of Ibn Jubair between 1183 and 1185
The Rihla of Ibn Jubair between 1183 and 1185 By Dr Mamnun Khan
Ibn Jubair , whose full name is Abu al-Husayn Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Jubair al-Kinani , was born in 1145 in Valencia , in Muslim Spain , into a noble family . His father , Abd al-Salam , who was from Kinanah near Makkah , was a civil servant who had been sent by the Caliph of Damascus to put down the uprising that eventually led to the establishment of the Almohad dynasty in Granada . Ibn Jubair studied in the town of Jativa in the province of Valencia , where his father worked as a civil servant . He later became secretary to the Almohad governor of Granada .
In 1182 , Ibn Jubair was forced by the Governor , under threat , to drink seven cups of wine . But no sooner had he done so , it is said that the Governor “ was seized with sudden pity and in remorse ” and had filled seven cups of gold dinars which he gave to Ibn Jubair . To expiate his godless act , although forced upon him , Ibn Jubair decided to perform the Hajj to Makkah . And so , on 3 February 1183 , accompanied by Abu Ja ’ far Ahmad ibn Hasan – a physician of Granada , Ibn Jubair began his “ Rihla ” ( which means journey / travels ) to Makkah .
He left Spain from the port of Ceuta , boarding a ship bound for Alexandria ( al-Iskandariyah ) in Egypt , via Majorca , Sardinia and Crete . He reached Alexandria on 27 th March , from where he travelled south to the port of Aydhab , from where he crossed the Red Sea and eventually on the 22 nd of August he reached the city of Makkah . Ibn Jubair stayed in Makkah for seven months to perform Hajj until 15 th March 1184 , when he departed for Madina on what would be his journey back to Granada . As part of his ziyarah of the Prophet he wrote that : “ He stood beside it [ the Rawdah ] in salutation and kissed the earth on its sides ” and prayed in it .
He left Madina after a few days and travelled north , eventually crossing the Euphrates river and into Kufah . He then travelled northwards in Iraq , passing by Baghdad , Tikrit , Mosul , before travelling into what is now Syria . He then travelled south through Syria via Aleppo , Damascus and other coastal towns of the Mediterranean Sea , before setting off on ship from Acre back to Southern Spain . Eventually , in April 1185 , Ibn Jubair returned to Granada , more than two years after he had left it ; and praised Allah abundantly .
This was Ibn Jubair ’ s first of three travels . The second trip lasted from 1189 to 1191 ; the third , begun in 1217 , was ended by his death in Egypt , at the age of 72 . It was his first travel that he is most known for , and which he documented as a book of travel diary . In it , Ibn Jubair provides a highly detailed and graphic description of the places he visited . The book contains first hand observation of geographical details as well as cultural , religious and political matters . Below are some very interesting selections of what he observed between 1183 and 1185 .
� Alexandria had colleges and hostels for students erected by the Sultan Ṣalaḥ ad-Din Ayyubi . Where , students find lodging and tutors to teach them the subjects they desire , and also allowances to cover their needs . The Sultan also grants them baths , hospitals , and the appointment of doctors who can even come to visit them at their place of stay , and who would be answerable for their cure . The Sultan also paid for the distribution of two thousand loaves of bread to the poor on a regular basis .
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Alexandria had between eight and twelve thousand mosques ; often four or five of them in the same street .
By 1183 , Ibn Jubair notes that Cairo ( Misr ) had been largely restored following the fire damage at the time of the breakup of the Fatimid dynasty in 1169 .
The outside of the Ka ’ ba was covered in green silk ( not black as it is today ) with cotton warps , and the upper part had a band of red silk on which was written in Arabic “ Verily , the first House founded for mankind was that at Bakkah [ another name for Makkah ]” ( Quran , 3:96 ).
The Ka ’ ba had five windows of richly stained Iraqi glass .
The door of the Ka ’ ba was opened every Monday and Friday except in the month of Rajab , when it was opened every day . The people who opened it were known as the Shayba – the hereditary custodians of the Ka ’ ba that dates back to the time of the Prophet .
The Haram had four Sunni imams at the time ( Hanafi , Maliki , Shafi ’, Hanbali ) as well as a fifth imam from the Zaydi school . Each imam led their own congregation at slightly different times and place in the Haram . But at the evening prayers ( Maghrib and ‘ Isha ), all four imams prayed at the same time because of the shortness of time . Ibn Jubair observes how sometimes this led to what he calls “ oversight