Maqam of Prophet Dawud (upon him be peace)

This is believed to be the tomb of the Prophet

Dawud (upon him be peace) who was the father

of the Prophet Sulaiman (upon him be peace).

Some historians believe that this is not his tomb

but a ‘maqam’, to mark the place where he once

stayed.

Dawud (upon him be peace) is mentioned by

name 16 times in the Holy Quran.

Dawud (upon him be peace) ruled the Children

of Israel [Banu Israil] for forty years, seven

years in Hebron (al-Khalil) and thirty-three in

Jerusalem, which became known as the City of

Dawud.

According to Jewish and Christian belief (ref:

Who’s Who in the Bible by Peter Calvocoressi),

Dawud (upon him be peace) [David] committed

adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the

Hittite. Bathsheba became pregnant and David

sent for Uriah, who was with the Israelite army

at the siege of Rabbah, so that he might lie

with his wife and so conceal the identity of the

child’s father. Uriah refused to do so while his

companions were in the field of battle and

David sent him back to Joab, the commander,

with a message instructing him to abandon

Uriah on the battlefield, “that he may be struck

down, and die.“ In Islam, Dawud (upon him be

peace) is regarded as one of the great

Prophets, to whom the Zabur (Psalms) were

revealed by Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).

The Islamic tradition includes many elements

from the Jewish/Christian history of David,

such as his battle with the giant Goliath, but

completely rejects the Biblical portrayal of

him as an adulterer and murderer.

Dawud (upon him be peace) was the first

person skilled in making armour from iron.

Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) mentions in

Surah Saba in the Holy Quran: “And certainly

We gave Dawud bounty from Us (and said), ‘O

mountains! Repeat Our praises with him, and

the birds you too’. And we softened for him

iron, (saying) ‘Make wide coats of mail, and

measure well the links and do righteous deeds.

Surely I am Seer of what you do.” [34:10-11]

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be

on him) said, “The most loved Salat (prayer) in

the sight of Allah is the Salat of Dawud and

the most loved of Saum (fasting) in the sight

of Allah is the Saum of Dawud. He used to

sleep for the first half of the night and offer

prayer for one-third of it and sleep (again) for

one-sixth of it. And he used to observe fast on

alternate days. And when he encountered an

enemy he never fled.” [Bukhari]

Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) had given

him a very sweet voice such as not had been

given to anyone before. When he used to recite

the Zabur (Psalms) human beings, jinn, birds

and animals stood devotedly listening to him.

References: Atlas of the Quran – Dr. Shauqi Abu

Khalili, Al-Quds – Mohammed Abdul Hameed Al-

Khateeb, Stories of the Prophets – Ibn Kathir

Note that this entry has been shown for

information purposes only. On no account should

anybody pray towards a grave or seek

supplication through them as this is tantamount

to committing shirk, associating partners with

Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).