The Detailed Defter of Liwa’ of Noble Jerusalem

A critical and annotative study of the Ottoman Text with Arabic translation
Muhammad Adnan al-Bakhit
Noufan Raja al-Sawariyyah

The Quran encapsulate the spiritual bond between the sacred mosque in Makkah and the noble mosque in Jerusalem, in the eloquent verse that says:

“Glory be to Him (Allah) who enabled His servant (Prophet Mohammed) to travel by night, from the sacred mosque (in Makkah) to the far-away mosque (in Jerusalem) around which we conferred our blessings in order to shown him (Prophet Mohammed) our signs; for He (Allah) is all-hearing all-seeing”.

It is towards the mosque in Jerusalem, the far-away mosque, that Muslims were instructed to turn, initially for a few years, in their prayers and worship; it was their first qilba. It is the third most revered mosque in the world of Islam. On his arrival there, Prophet Muhammad led all previous Prophets in prayer, and since that moment the nation of Islam was to lead and inherit the land and the responsibly of preceding prophetic missions. It was, subsequently, to lead the whole community of mankind spiritually, morally and ethically, as the nation, ummah, deservedly called “the best nation brought out for mankind”.

Thus we note how the three sacred mosques, of Makkah, Madinah and Jerusalem, coalesce in the personality of Prophet Mohammed through divine revelation. From there they proceeded to become the three main pillars for the civilisation of Islam from which it was to takeoff throughout the globe.

A few years ago, the al-Furqan Islamic Heritage Foundation, published the Makkah and Madinah encyclopaedia (expected to . This work by Dr Adnan al-Bakhit, is another monumental effort in editing the public Ottoman states’ papers and documents, known as the Liwa’ of Noble Jerusalem. He was ably assisted by an academic team who worked in Istanbul and Ankara studying the papers and book and documents of the Law (Shariah) Courts in Jerusalem.

Having reviewed the books, translated them and analysed them thoroughly, they added a detailed study based of manuscripts, printed references and what was written about the Liwa’ al-Quds at the beginning of the Ottoman period. This will appear in subsequent volumes, to enable researchers and readers to have first-hand access to this material in its original form.

This will clear away much of what has been recently written, that is false and full of vilification. Our role is to present the material in its original form, leaving judgement to scholars and researchers. What Dr Muhammad Adnan al-Bakhit and his team have achieved is a historic work that will remain for posterity, and for which we are eternally grateful.