In the Presence of the Beloved: Two Treatises

Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Qastallani
Abd-Allah Siraj al-Din
Amjad Mahmood (Translation and Annotation)
Hardback, 98 pages
9781739234942

Two Treatises on the Merits and Etiquettes of Visiting the Prophet

In the Presence of the Beloved is a translation of two authoritative treatises on the act of ziyarah, namely, visiting the Prophet Muhammadﷺ. Both texts meticulously examine the legal status, manifold virtues and etiquettes of this blessed visit. They also address issues, some of which have become controversial in contemporary Islamic discourse, such as the permissibility of tawassul (supplicating Allah through the Prophetﷺ, the practice of tabarruk (seeking blessings from his relics), the distinctive merits of the Rawdah and Medina and the significance of visiting other revered historical sites within the Prophet's city.

Imam Ahmad al-Qastallani (d. 923/1517) was a prominent Egyptian Shafii scholar, a distinguished jurist, a qari (master reciter of the Qur'an) and a renowned transmitter of Hadith. He travelled extensively and was a prolific author; his works continue to benefit the ummah today.

Shaykh Abd-Allah Sirãj al-Din (d. 1422/ 2002) was a leading scholarly authority in Syria, a prominent exegete, a Hadith scholar who had committed over eighty thousand Hadiths to memory and an author of over twenty works on a wide range of subjects, such as Islamic ethics, spirituality, Quranic exegesis, tenets of faith and the Prophetic characteristics.

Contents

Treatise One: Visiting the Prophet's Noble Tomb and His Majestic Mosque
Treatise Two: Visiting the Chosen One