All praises belong to Allah, the Lord of the whole universe. May His choicest blessings continue to shower on the gentle soul of our leader and commander, Prophet Muhammed (SAW); members of his household, his noble companions and all sincere adherents till the last hour.Allah (SWT) says, By the soul and the manner in which it was fashioned; We showed the soul that which destroys it and that which purifies it; verily, he is successful who purifies this soul; And he is cursed to perdition who leaves his soul stained. Q92: 7-10.The Minbar in Islam is an important institution which was established by the Holy Prophet himself. This took placed after the construction of his holy mosque in Medinah. The Minbar refers to a place specially built for purpose of giving sermon inside a mosque.Definitely, it is not a place where the Imam stands to lead the congregation in the five daily salat (prayers) as perceived by most people. Also, it is not comparable to the Christian pulpit in the church or temple, neither is it a podium where musicians and theatre artists stand for their musical displays. The Holy Prophet (SAW) used to address the noble companions standing by the side of a palm trunk in his mosque before the real Minbar was constructed for him to stand on.It was even reported in an authentic hadith that whenever a heart-touching sermon was delivered by Prophet Muhammed (SAW), this palm trunk serving as Minbar wept (a miracle of the Prophet). Imagine a tree weeping out of the fear of Allah, the Almighty! When the Minbar was constructed for Prophet Muhammed (SAW), it was placed at the right side of the particular point where he used to stand leading others in prayers. This blessed Minbar consisted of three stairs. It was reported that Prophet Muhammed (SAW) used to sit on the topmost stair placing his feet on the middle stair while giving sermon.The minbar can also be taken to mean any place where sermon or Islamic lecture is being delivered at any point in time.Traditionally, Muslims congregate every Friday in the community mosque for the obligatory Jumah service. The Jumah service is not only a prayer session but an avenue where the statistical strength of the Muslims can be determined; Muslims are sermonised (reminded of their duties to Allah and their obligation to their fellow human beings, including building a peaceful society). The service is also to include exchanging of pleasantries, giving sadaqat (alm) and other righteous deeds.The minbar has an important function of guiding Muslims to what they should do at every point in time, reminding them of the past and directing them to what the future should look like. Human soul gets rotten on hourly basis as a result of what he sees, hears and perceives. The Prophet (SAW) said: The heart gets rust exactly like the rusting of an iron. They asked him, with what do we polish the heart He replied: seeking forgiveness and remembering death.This can be made possible when the minbar serves its orginal purpose of addressing the matters arising in our society; presenting thought-provoking khutbah (sermon) and guiding the congregation.May Allah (SWT) continue to guide our leaders to the right path that the Muslims may know and do the right things.
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