Encounters during the Mi’raj: The Narrations on Being Born upon Fithrah

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

During the night of the Mi’raj, the Prophet (s.a.w.), accompanied by Jibril (a.s.), travelled until the Prophet (s.a.w.) felt the greatest thirst that he had ever felt, whereupon Jibril (a.s.) brought him a vessel of wine and a vessel of milk.  He chose the latter.  Jibril (a.s.) said, “You have chosen fithrah, and if you had drunken the wine, your ummah would have strayed from the right way and none but a few of them would have followed you.” 

The Prophet (s.a.w.) said, “Every child is born upon fithrah; then his parents convert him to Judaism, or Christianity, or Zoroastrianism.  It is the same with the animal, which delivers a perfect baby animal.  Do you find it missing anything?”  Imam Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Isma’il al-Bukhari, (r.a.) narrated it.  Imam ‘Asakir ad-Din Abu al-Husayn Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj (r.a.) omitted the mention of the animal. 

Imam Abu ‘Isa Muhammad ibn ‘Isa as-Sulami at-Tirmidzi’s (r.a.) narration also omitted it, but added: “O Messenger of Allah, what if the child dies before that?”  He replied to the questioner, “Allah knows best what they would have done.” 

The hadits master, Imam Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Murtadha al-Husayni az-Zabidi (r.a.) said, in his commentary on Imam Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Ghazali’s (r.a.) Ihya’ ‘Ulum ad-Din, entitled Ithaf as-Sadat al-Muttaqin bi Sharh Ihya’ ‘Ulum ad-Din, “The Gift of the God-Fearing Masters, Commentary on Reviving the Sciences of the Religion,” “Born with a natural disposition: the definite case indicates that it is commonly known, and it consists in Allah’s (s.w.t.) Disposition with which He Endows all people, that is, the innate character with which He Creates them and which predisposes them to accept religion and to differentiate between the wrong and the right.” 

Another narration stated that there were three vessels and the third contained water.  Jibril (a.s.) said, “If you had drunk the water, your ummah would have perished by drowning.” 

Another narration stated that one of the vessels presented to him contained honey instead of water, and that he then saw the wide-eyed maidens of Paradise to the left of the Rock.  He greeted them, and they returned his greeting.  Then he asked them something, and they replied with an answer that cools the eyes.