Darun Nadwah

This photo, which is north-west of the Ka’bah,

shows the approximate place where the Darun

Nadwah (Assembly House) was located. The

house functioned as a house of parliament for

the Quraysh and it was from here that they

plotted to kill the Prophet (peace and blessings

of Allah be on him). Note that this area is

located in the new expansion project of the

Haram.

Qusay bin Kilaab built the Darun Nadwah

approximately 150 years before the birth of the

Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on

him). The house was used for public meetings;

discussions were held to settle important

matters like war and peace, caravans

assembled before going out, and marriages

and other ceremonies were conducted. It was

also from here that battalions received their

flags before marching in battle.

The leaders of the Quraysh gathered in Darun

Nadwah to scheme against Islam and the

Muslims. When Islam was gathering strength

in Makkah and the Quraysh feared their power

would become undermined they held a special

council to discuss how they could get rid of

the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be

on him).

Iblees (Satan) was also present in this meeting

disguised as Sheik Jaleel of Najd. Some of the

leaders of the Quraysh were of the opinion that

they should banish the Prophet (peace and

blessings of Allah be on him) from their

territory, while others felt they should imprison

him till death. Finally, Abu Jahl put forth his

idea that they should each select a strong

youth from their tribe, arm them with swords

and strike the Prophet (peace and blessings of

Allah be on him) in one go. By assassinating

the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be

on him) in this manner,all of the clans would

have a share of his blood and the Prophet

(peace and blessings of Allah be on him)’s

protectors, Banu Abdu Munaf could not take on

all of the Quraysh at one time. Sheik Jaleel

(Iblees) commended the plan and the Quraysh

set their trap.

However, Jibraeel (upon him be peace) came

to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah

be on him) and told him of the plot to

assassinate him. That night, the Prophet

(peace and blessings of Allah be on him) asked

Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) to sleep in

his bed after assuring him that no harm would

come to him and he himself managed to slip

away unnoticed. It was only at dawn that the

Quraysh realised that it was Ali (may Allah be

pleased with him) that was sleeping on the bed

and that they had been tricked. Regarding this

incident Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He)

makes mention in Surah al-Anfal: “Remember

how the unbelievers plotted against you to

imprison you, to kill you, or to exile you from

Makkah. They plot and plan, but Allah plans

too, and the best of planners is Allah.” [8:30]

Darun Nadwah came into Muslim control after

the conquest of Makkah. Due to the close

proximity to the Masjid Haram, many Muslim

leaders and Khulafa stayed there when they

performed Hajj and Umrah, among them being

Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) on one

occasion.

The Abbasi Khalifah, Mu’tadhid Billah included

the Darun Nadwah in the Masjid Haram in the

year 284 AH (897 CE)

References: The History of Makkah Mukarramah

– Dr Muhammad Ilyas Abdul Ghani, When the

Moon Split – Shaikh Safiur-Rahman Mubarakpuri,

Al-Islam.org