Buraq

In Islam, the Prophet Muhammad's night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem prior to his famous trip to heaven is called Isra'. As alluded to in the Qur'an (17:1), a journey was made by a servant of God, in a single night, from the “sacred place of worship” (al-masjid al-haram) to the “further place of worship” (al-masjid al-aqsa). Muhammad, whose only miracle, according to his own words, was the bringing of the Qur'an, is credited with innumerable miracles and associated with a variety of miraculous occurrences: his finger split the moon, the cooked poisoned meat warned him not to touch it, the palm trunk sighed, the gazelle spoke for him; he cast no shadow; from his perspiration the rose was created, etc. His ascension to heaven (mi'raj) is still celebrated: he rode the winged horse Buraq in the company of the angel Gabriel through the seven spheres, meeting the other prophets there, until he reached the divine presence, alone, even without the angel of inspiration.

Muhammad-mysticism proper was developed in the late 9th century; he is shown as the one who precedes creation, his light is pre-eternal, and he is the reason for and goal of creation. He becomes the perfect man, uniting the divine and the human sphere as dawn is between night and day. His birth was surrounded by miracles, and his birthday (12. Rabi' I) became a popular holiday on which numerous poems were written to praise his achievements. The hope for him who has been sent as “mercy for the worlds” and will intercede for his community on Doomsday is extremely strong, especially among the masses, where these legends have completely overshadowed his historical figure.

A gorgeous painting of Muhammad riding Buraq to meet Allah in the heaven

Traditionally, there was general agreement that the servant of God was Muhammad and that the “sacred place of worship” was Mecca. Early commentators, however, interpreted the “further place of worship” as heaven, and the entire verse was considered a reference to the Prophet's ascension into heaven (Mi'raj), an ascension which also originated in Mecca. In the period of the Umayyad caliphate (661–750), the “further place of worship” was read as Jerusalem. The two versions were eventually reconciled by regarding the Isra' simply as the night journey and relocating the point of Muhammad's ascension from Mecca to Jerusalem to avoid confusion. Some commentators also suggested that the Isra' was a vision sent to Muhammad in his sleep and not an actual journey at all; but orthodox sentiment has emphatically preserved the physical, thus miraculous, nature of the trip.

Buraq
The Isra' story, greatly elaborated by tradition, relates that Muhammad made the journey astride Buraq, a mythical winged creature, in the company of the archangel Gabriel. Muhammad meets Abraham, Moses, and Jesus in Jerusalem; he then officiates as leader (imam) of the ritual prayer (salat) for all the prophets assembled and establishes his primacy among God's messengers.

In Islamic tradition, a creature said to have transported the Prophet Muhammad to heaven. Described as “a white animal, half-mule, half-donkey, with wings on its sides . . . ,” Buraq was originally introduced into the story of Muhammad's night journey (isra') from Mecca to Jerusalem and back, thus explaining how the journey between the cities could have been completed in a single night. In some traditions he became a steed with the head of a woman and the tail of a peacock. As the tale of the night journey (isra') became connected with that of Muhammad's ascension to heaven (mi'raj), Buraq replaced the ladder as Muhammad's means of access into heaven. From at least the 14th century, the Buraq myth, visualized on the basis of ancient depictions of griffins, sphinxes, and centaurs, became a favourite subject of Persian miniature painting.

Buraq with a pretty feminine face; Bait-ul Muqaddas is shown down below

Muhammad is prepared for his meeting with God by the archangels Jibril and Mikal one evening while he is asleep in the Ka'bah, the sacred shrine of Mecca. They open up his body and purify his heart by removing all traces of error, doubt, idolatry, and paganism and by filling it with wisdom and belief. In the original version of the mi'raj, the prophet is then transported by Jibril directly to the lowest heaven. But early in Muslim history the story of the ascension came to be associated with the story of Muhammad's night journey (isra') from the “sacred place of worship” (Mecca) to the “further place of worship” (Jerusalem). The two separate incidents were gradually combined so that chronologically the purification of Muhammad in his sleep begins the sequence; he is then transported in a single night from Mecca to Jerusalem by the winged mythical creature Buraq, and from Jerusalem he ascends to heaven, possibly by ladder (mi'raj), accompanied by Jibril.

Muhammad and Jibril enter the first heaven and proceed through all seven levels until they reach the throne of God. Along the way they meet the prophets Adam, Yahya (John), 'Isa (Jesus), Yusuf (Joseph), Idris, Harun (Aaron), Musa (Moses), and Ibrahim (Abraham) and visit hell and paradise. Musa alone of all the inhabitants of heaven speaks at any length to the visitors; he says that Muhammad is more highly regarded by God than himself and that Muhammad's following outnumbers his own. Once Muhammad appears before God—there is some question as to whether he actually saw him—he is told to recite the salat (ritual prayer) 50 times each day. Musa, however, advises Muhammad to plead for a reduction of the number as being too difficult for believers, and the obligation is eventually reduced to five prayers each day.

Muhammad riding Buraq on his way to meet Allah; he is surrounded by winged angels

Muhammad's mi'raj has been a constant source of speculation among Muslims. Some state that the ascension was merely a dream; others speculate that only Muhammad's soul entered heaven, while his body remained on earth. Parallels have been drawn between the mi'raj and the manner in which a dead man's soul will progress to judgment at God's throne; and the Sufis (Muslim mystics) claim it describes the soul's leap into mystic knowledge. Popularly the ascension is celebrated with readings of the legend on the 27th day of Rajab, called Laylat al-Mi'raj (“Night of the Ascension”).

(Source : Geocities)