Muhammad: The HijraAccording to Islamic traditions, the "mosque" (place of prayer) in Medina
was initially only Muhammad's residence, which had two huts (for Safiya
and `A'isha) and a wall enclosing a court of earth. The huts ar^186 e reported
to have been constructed like those of Moses, and the "qibla^187 " side of the
mosque is said to have faced Jerusalem (similar to synagogues), to which^188
Qur'an 10:87 seems to refer. Sira traditions present the location of the
mosque in Medina as having been determined by Muhammad's camel,
which property is then reported to have been bought from two young
orphans.^189
Qur'an 34Qur'an 34Qur'an 34Qur'an 34 begins with praises to God, and the vv. 3f contain some of the
remarks of unbelievers. Apparently, the Jewish approval of the Qur'anic
message is referred to in v. 6. The narratives about David and S^190 olomon
(vv. 10f) generally follow previous Qur'anic accounts, with the exception of
the incident regarding Solomon's death (v. 13), where the str^191 ange word
for "scepter" is used, which probably came from Hebrew. The v^192 v. 14f tell
about two gardens and a flood in Saba', and the vv. 21f reproduc^193 e some
discussions with polytheists, in which v. 43 implies that Muhammad had
contact with "studying" Jews (cf. 68:37). The v. 46 reiterates^194
Muhammad's claim not to be seeking a wage for his services. T^195 he
ambiguous passage in vv. 50f probably refers to the Judgment, and may
have been at least partially based on the Biblical Lk. 16:19f. Qur'an 34:30 is
remotely similar to I Cor. 8:10-13, and 34:46, whose content is repeated in
many other Qur'anic passages, is similar to Mt. 10:8 and the Talmudic Avot
1,3.^196
Sura 35Sura 35Sura 35Sura 35 also opens with praises to God and a description of angel wings,
which is reminiscent of Is. 6:2. The vv. 3f are a call to repentan^197 ce, the
vv. 7f describe the situation of unbelievers at the Judgment, and v. 9 speaks
of predestination. The vv. 10f present the witness of God in Creation, and
the vv. 16f tell of His power. In the vv. 21f Muhammad is said to be sent as
a warner, and that all peoples had a warner. The vv. 25f show God to be the
Provider, and the vv. 26f states that those who read (recite) God's Book,
pray and give alms will be rewarded. The vv. 28f maintain that the revela-