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Did the Prophet ﷺ Spare the Image of Mary & Jesus in the Kaaba? — Al-Azraqi's Narrations Examined with 11 Authentic Hadiths

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Did the Prophet ﷺ Order the Image of Mary & Jesus to Remain in the Kaaba? — Hadith Analysis

Table of Contents

The Claim — Al-Azraqi’s Four Narrations

Al-Azraqi’s Narrations — All Four Are Weak Al-Azraqi mentioned in Akhbar Makkah in the chapter on what was mentioned about the Quraysh building the Kaaba in the pre-Islamic era that the Prophet ﷺ ordered the erasure of the pictures in the Kaaba except for the picture of Mary and Jesus, peace be upon them.

Al-Azraqi narrated this with four chains of transmission, all of which are weak, so do not be deceived by them or rely on any of them.

First Chain of Transmission

First Chain He said: My grandfather told me, he said: Muslim bin Khalid Al-Zanji told us, on the authority of Ibn Abi Nujayh, on the authority of his father, he said: “Men of Quraysh sat — in the Sacred Mosque —…” Then he mentioned a long story about the construction of the Kaaba, and he said at the end of it:

“And they placed on its pillars pictures of the prophets, pictures of trees, and pictures of angels. There was in it a picture of Abraham, the friend of the Most Merciful, an old man casting lots with arrows, and a picture of Jesus, son of Mary, and his mother, and pictures of the angels, peace be upon them all. When it was the day of the conquest of Mecca, the Messenger of God ﷺ entered the house and sent Al-Fadl bin Al-Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib, who brought Zamzam, then he ordered a cloth to be soaked in water and ordered those pictures to be erased, so they were erased. He said: And he placed his hands on the picture of Jesus, son of Mary, and his mother, peace be upon them, and said: ‘Erase all the pictures except what was under my hands,’ so he lifted his hands from Jesus, son of Mary, and his mother.”

Second Chain of Transmission

Second Chain He said: And my grandfather told me, he said: Dawud bin Abdul Rahman told us, he said: Some of them told me. Al-Hijbah narrated on the authority of Musafi’ ibn Shaibah ibn Uthman that the Prophet ﷺ said:

“O Shaibah, erase every image in it except what is under my hand.”

He said: So he raised his hand from Jesus, son of Mary, and his mother.

Third Chain of Transmission

Third Chain He said: My grandfather narrated to me on the authority of Sa’id ibn Salim, who said: Yazid ibn ‘Ayyadh ibn Ja’dubah narrated to us on the authority of Ibn Shihab that the Prophet ﷺ entered the Ka’bah on the day of the conquest and in it were images of angels and other things. He saw an image of Abraham and said:

“May God fight them! They made him an old man casting lots.”

Then he saw an image of Mary, so he placed his hand on it and said: “Erase every image in it except the image of Mary.”

Fourth Chain of Transmission

Fourth Chain He said: Muhammad bin Yahya informed me, on the authority of a trustworthy person, on the authority of Ibn Ishaq, on the authority of Hakim bin Abbad bin Hanif and other scholars, that the Quraysh had placed pictures in the Kaaba, including Jesus, son of Mary, and Mary, peace be upon them. Ibn Shihab said: Asma bint Shuqran, a woman from Ghassan, said that she performed Hajj with the Arab pilgrims, and when she saw the picture of Mary in the Kaaba, she said: “May my father and mother be sacrificed for you, you are an Arab woman.”

So the Messenger of God ﷺ ordered that those pictures be erased, except for the picture of Jesus and Mary.

Why These Reports Are Rejected

These Reports Are Rejected for Several Reasons

First Reason — Weakness of All Four Chains

Analysis of Each Chain

First Report — Disconnected and Weak Narrator It is disconnected because Abu Nujayh did not live during the time of ignorance or the time of the Prophet ﷺ. Rather, he lived during the last days of the Companions, may God be pleased with them. And the disconnected one does not prove anything.

Also in its chain of transmission is Muslim bin Khalid Al-Zanji:

  • Ibn Ma’in: authenticated him.
  • Abu Dawud: weakened him.
  • Abu Hatim: “An imam in jurisprudence, you know and disapprove, but he is not that strong. His hadith is written down but not used as evidence.”
  • Al-Nasa’i: “He is not strong.”

This is what increases the weakness of the report.

Second Report — Weaker Than the First It is weaker than the one before it for two reasons:
  1. It is mursal, and mursal is not evidence.
  2. There is a man in its chain of transmission who was not named, and such a person does not prove anything.

Al-Bukhari mentioned it in Al-Tarikh Al-Kabir without mentioning the false addition, and he said in the biography of Musafi’ bin Abdullah, on the authority of Shaibah bin Uthman: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “O Shaibah, erase every picture in the house.”

Third Report — Weaker Than the Second It is weaker than the one before it for two reasons:
  1. It is mursal.
  2. It contains Yazid bin ‘Iyad bin Ju’duba — with a damma on the jim and a silent dal between them.

Al-Dhahabi said in Al-Mizan: Al-Bukhari and others said: “It is munkar.”

  • Yahya: “He is not trustworthy.”
  • Ali: “He is weak.”
  • Malik: accused him of lying.
  • Al-Nasa’i and others: “He is abandoned.”
  • Al-Daraqutni: “He is weak.”
  • Abbas narrated from Yahya: “He is not trustworthy, weak.”
  • Yazid bin Al-Haytham narrated from Ibn Ma’in: “He used to lie.”
  • Ahmad bin Abi Maryam narrated from Ibn Ma’in: “He is nothing, his hadith should not be written down.”
Fourth Report — Very Weak It is very weak for two reasons:
  1. It is disconnected.
  2. It contains a man who was not named, and something like this cannot be proven.

Eleven Aspects Refuting the Claim

Aspect 1 — The Authentic Hadith of Jabir Orders ALL Images Erased

Sound According to the Conditions of the Two Sheikhs Imam Ahmad said: Ruh told us — he is Ibn Ubadah al-Qabsi — Ibn Jurayj told us: Abu al-Zubayr told me that he heard Jabir ibn Abdullah say:

“The Prophet ﷺ ordered Umar ibn al-Khattab on the day of the conquest, while he was in al-Batha’, to go to the Kaaba and erase every picture in it, and he did not enter the house until every picture in it was erased.”

Its chain of transmission is sound according to the conditions of the two sheikhs.

Sound According to the Conditions of Muslim Imam Ahmad also said: Abdullah ibn al-Harith told us on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, Abu al-Yazid told me that he heard Jabir ibn Abdullah claim that the Prophet ﷺ “forbade pictures in the house, and forbade the man who does that,” and that the Prophet ﷺ “ordered Umar ibn al-Khattab, may God be pleased with him, during the conquest, while he was in al-Batha’, to go to the Kaaba and erase every picture in it, and he did not enter the house until every picture in it was erased.”

Its chain of transmission is sound according to the conditions of Muslim.

It was also narrated by Abu Dawud in his Sunan and by Al-Bayhaqi, and its chain of transmission is good.

This Hadith Refutes the Four Narrations This hadith refutes what was mentioned in the four narrations, because the Prophet ﷺ ordered the images in the Kaaba to be erased and did not exclude any of them. This is the most eloquent refutation of those who claimed that he ﷺ placed his hands on the images of Mary and Jesus and ordered them to remain and erase everything else.

Aspect 2 — Omar Was Ordered to Erase Every Image Without Exception

Specific Refutation of the Abu Nujayh Narration The Prophet ﷺ ordered Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, while he was in Al-Batha’, to go to the Kaaba and erase every image in it. This refutes what was mentioned in the hadith of Abu Nujayh, that he ﷺ sent Al-Fadl ibn Al-Abbas and he brought Zamzam water.

Aspect 3 — Al-Zarqani on Al-Waqidi — The Prophet Denounced the Image of Mary

Al-Zarqani on Al-Mawaahib — From Al-Waqidi in the Hadith of Jabir Omar had left the image of Abraham, and when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ entered, he saw it and said:

“O Omar, did I not command you not to leave any image in it? May Allah fight them, they made him an old man who casts lots with arrows.”

Then he saw the image of Mary and said:

“Erase the images in it, may Allah fight a people who depict what they do not create.”

Three Signs of His Severity in Denouncing the Images Three things indicate his severity in denunciation:
  1. His denunciation of Omar — may Allah be pleased with him — who was confused about leaving some images and did not erase them.
  2. His order to erase the images without exception.
  3. His supplication against the image-makers.
The Meaning of “May Allah Fight Them” There are opinions regarding the meaning of his saying: “May Allah fight them.”
  • First: May Allah curse them — said by Ibn Abbas and chosen by Al-Bukhari.
  • Second: May Allah kill them — said by Ibn Jurayj.
  • Third: It is not in the real sense of fighting, but rather in the sense of astonishment — narrated by Al-Baghawi in his interpretation.
  • Fourth (Al-Raghib al-Asfahani): “The correct view is that this is the reciprocal action, and the meaning is that he has become ready to fight Allah, for whoever fights Allah will be killed, and whoever overcomes Him will be defeated.”

Aspect 4 — The Prophet Was the Most Zealous in Preventing Transgression

It Is Impossible He Would Approve of Evil While Able to Change It Drawing pictures and making them is one of the greatest evils, and changing evil is obligatory according to one’s ability, as the Prophet ﷺ said:

“Whoever among you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand. If he is unable to do so, then with his tongue. If he is unable to do so, then with his heart, and that is the weakest of faith.” — Narrated by Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawud al-Tayalisi, Muslim, and the people of Sunan from the hadith of Abu Sa’id al-Khudri. Al-Tirmidhi said: “This is a good and authentic hadith.”

In the narration of Al-Nasa’i: “Whoever sees an evil and changes it with his hand has been absolved. Whoever is unable to change it with his hand, then changes it with his tongue, then changes it. Whoever is unable to change it with his tongue, then changes it with his heart, then changes it. That is the weakest of faith.”

The Prophet ﷺ was the most zealous of people in the prevention of transgressions of the sacred and the most vehement in denouncing and changing evils. It is impossible for someone to see evil while he is able to change it and not change it, let alone order it to remain. Whoever thinks that the Prophet ﷺ ordered any of the pictures in the Kaaba to remain and forbade them to be erased has suspected the worst of him.

Aspect 5 — The Prophet Forbade Making Pictures Entirely

Hadith of Jabir — Al-Musnad and Jami’ Al-Tirmidhi “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ forbade pictures in the house and forbade a man from doing that.”

Al-Tirmidhi said: “A good and authentic hadith.”

Hadith of Mu’awiyah — Imam Ahmad and Al-Bukhari with Good Chains The Messenger of Allah ﷺ “forbade making pictures.”
The Logical Conclusion The Prophet ﷺ would not forbid making pictures and then approve of some of them and order them to remain. This is the most false of falsehoods.

Aspect 6 — He Tore the Curtain in Aisha’s House Over Pictures

Narrated by Imam Ahmad, Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah Aisha, may God be pleased with her, said: “The Messenger of God ﷺ entered upon me and I had covered a mistake of mine with a curtain on which there were pictures. When he saw it, he tore it and his face changed color and he said: ‘O Aisha, the people who will be most severely punished by God on the Day of Resurrection are those who imitate God’s creation.’”

This is the wording of Muslim.

In a narration by Muslim, she said: “The Prophet ﷺ came to me while I was covering myself with a blanket with pictures on it. He moved it away and I made two pillows for it.”

The Logical Implication If the Prophet ﷺ tore the curtain in Aisha’s house because of pictures, how can one think that he would approve of pictures in the House of Allah and order them to remain?

Aspect 7 — The Prophet Cursed Picture-Makers

Hadith of Abu Juhayfah — Imam Ahmad and Abu Dawud al-Tayalisi The Prophet ﷺ “cursed the picture-makers.”
Hadith of Aisha — Agreed Upon “The most severely punished people before Allah on the Day of Resurrection will be those who imitate Allah’s creation.”
Hadith of Ibn Abbas — Narrated by Muslim “Every picture-maker will be in the Fire, and for every picture he made he will be given a soul that will torment him in Hell.”
The Logical Conclusion If the seeker of knowledge contemplates what has been proven from the Prophet ﷺ about cursing the image-makers, and what has also been proven about the severe warning against them, he will not doubt the falsehood of what came in the four reports that Al-Azraqi mentioned, because the Prophet ﷺ does not contradict his words with his actions, and he does not approve of the evil that is from the most unjust of injustices and from the major sins.

Aspect 8 — Angels Do Not Enter a House with Pictures

Hadith of Ibn Abbas — Imam Ahmad, Al-Bukhari and Al-Nasa’i Ibn Abbas said: “The Prophet ﷺ entered the house and found in it a picture of Abraham and a picture of Mary. He ﷺ said: ‘As for them, they have heard that the angels do not enter a house in which there is a picture. This is Abraham who is pictured, so why should he ask for an oath?’”
What This Hadith Clearly Indicates This hadith clearly indicates that the Prophet ﷺ disapproved of the picture of Abraham and Mary when he saw them in the Kaaba. This refutes the statement of those who claim that the Prophet ﷺ placed his hands on the picture of Mary and Jesus and ordered that it be kept.

If the angels do not enter a house in which there is a picture, how can it be thought that the Prophet ﷺ would leave the picture of Mary and Jesus in the House of God — which is the most honorable and most sacred of houses — and order that it be kept and everything else be erased? This is the worst of assumptions and the most false of falsehoods.

Aspect 9 — Hadith of Usamah Ibn Zayd — He Erased All Images

Abu Dawud Al-Tayalisi — Musnad — Good Chain of Transmission Usamah bin Zaid said: “I entered upon the Messenger of God ﷺ in the Kaaba and he saw pictures. He said: So he called for a bucket of water, so I brought it to him and he made it. He erases and says: ‘May Allah curse a people who depict what they do not create.’”
What This Hadith Clearly Shows This hadith clearly shows his ﷺ denial of what he saw of images in the Kaaba and that he did not exclude any of them. This is a response to those who claimed that he ﷺ placed his hands on the images of Mary and Jesus and ordered that they be kept and that everything else be erased.

Aspect 10 — He Left Ali’s House Because of a Curtain with Pictures

Ibn Majah — Saheeh Chain — On the Authority of Ali “I made food and invited the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and he came and saw images in the house so he went back.”
Al-Nasa’i — On the Authority of Ali “I made food and invited the Prophet ﷺ and he came and entered and saw a curtain with images on it so he went out and said: ‘The angels do not enter a house in which there are images.’”
The Logical Implication If the Prophet ﷺ left the house of Ali and Fatima and refused to eat their food because of the curtain that had pictures on it, how could he be expected to accept the pictures of Mary and Jesus in the Kaaba? There is no doubt that this is a lie attributed to the Prophet ﷺ.

Aspect 11 — Ali’s Command from the Prophet to Obliterate All Images

Imam Ahmad, Muslim, and the People of Sunnah — On the Authority of Abu Hayaj al-Asadi Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said to me:

“Shall I not send you on what the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent me on? ‘Do not leave any image without obliterating it, nor any raised grave without leveling it.’”

This is the wording of one of the narrations of Muslim.

What This Authentic Hadith Indicates This authentic hadith indicates that images must be obliterated wherever they are found and in whatever they are. It contains the most eloquent response to those who claim that the Prophet ﷺ placed his hands on the image of Mary and Jesus and ordered that they be kept and that everything else be erased.

The Report of Ata’ Ibn Abi Rabah — What He Actually Saw

Al-Azraqi — On the Authority of Ibn Jurayj and Ata’ ibn Abi Rabah Sulayman ibn Musa al-Shami asked Ata’ ibn Abi Rabah while Ibn Jurayj was listening:

“Did you find a statue of Mary and Jesus in the house?”

He said: “Yes, I found a statue of Mary decorated in her lap, and her son Jesus was sitting decorated. And there were six columns in the house, and the statue of Jesus and Mary was in the column next to the door.”

Ibn Jurayj said: “So I said to Ata’ when did he die? He said: ‘In the fire during the era of Ibn al-Zubayr.’ I said: ‘Did it happen during the era of the Prophet ﷺ?’ He said: ‘I do not know, but I think it was during the era of the Prophet ﷺ.’”

Sulayman said to him: “Have you seen the statues and pictures that were in the house that were obliterated?” He said: “I do not know, except that I found two of those pictures that were obliterated and I see them obliterated.”

Al-Azraqi — On the Authority of Amr ibn Dinar “I was in the middle of the Kaaba before the statue of Jesus, son of Mary, and his mother was demolished.”

Possible Explanations for Why the Images Remained

The Established Facts First It has been proven that the Prophet ﷺ ordered Umar ibn al-Khattab to erase every image in the Kaaba without exception. It has also been proven from the hadith of Ibn Abbas and Usamah ibn Zayd — mentioned at length above — that the Prophet ﷺ himself erased what he saw of images and explicitly denounced them.
Possible Explanation 1 — Engraved on the Pillar It is possible that the image of Mary and Jesus was engraved on the pillar of the Kaaba so that washing with water would not remove them, and for this reason it remained until the Kaaba burned down during the reign of Ibn al-Zubayr.
Possible Explanation 2 — Permanent Dye It is possible that it was painted with a permanent dye that would not be removed by water, or that some of the dye was removed when it was washed with water during the time of the Prophet ﷺ and some of it remained from which the image could be seen. Ata’ also saw two of the images that were in the Kaaba and that they had been obliterated — perhaps the image of Mary and Jesus was like that.
Possible Explanation 3 — Hidden by an Obstacle It is possible that something was stuck on them that prevented them from being seen, so they were hidden from the Prophet ﷺ and the Rightly-Guided Caliphs and other Companions, and Ata’ and Amr ibn Dinar saw them after what prevented them from being seen had been removed.
Possible Explanation 4 — Created After the Prophet’s Time It is possible that some Christians created it after the time of the Prophet ﷺ and after the time of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs, especially during the time of the strife that took place during the time of Yazid ibn Muawiyah. Some Christians may have claimed to be Muslims in a way that allowed them to enter Mecca and the Kaaba, so they depicted images of Mary and Jesus to mislead the Muslims and make them believe that the Prophet ﷺ approved of their images.
Possible Explanation 5 — Created by New Muslims with Christian Backgrounds It is possible that this was done by some Christians who converted to Islam after the time of the Prophet ﷺ and the time of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs, may God be pleased with them, and God knows best.

Final Conclusion

The Final Word — By Hamoud bin Abdullah Al-Tuwaijri The fact that the images of Mary and Jesus remained in the Kaaba after the time of the Prophet ﷺ does not indicate that the Prophet ﷺ approved of that, because he ﷺ does not approve of evil or accept it. Allah the Most High said about him:

“Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find written in what they have of the Torah and the Gospel. He enjoins upon them what is right and forbids them from what is wrong.” — Al-A’raf 7:157

What is meant here is that it is not permissible to think that the Prophet ﷺ approved of any images or ordered them to remain. Whoever thinks that has thought of the Prophet ﷺ in a way that is not befitting of him.

Allah knows best. May Allah’s prayers and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and his companions.

— Hamoud bin Abdullah Al-Tuwaijri | 4/15/1398 AH