Rawda 1

Rawda – 1
The Heart of Rawda

Rawda...
It is neither just a garden nor merely the shadow of a building.
It is the earthly reflection of the mercy poured from the heart of the Messenger of Allah.
It is the most delicate place where eyes lifted to the heavens find themselves in prostration upon the earth.
A soil, a niche of prayer, a secret...

Every step taken in Rawda is a prayer,
a salawat, an echo of longing...

When you enter, tongues fall silent—
for speaking here requires knowing your place.
There, words echo behind a living Light;
and tears take the place of speech...

The heart of Rawda is the highest remembrance within silence.
There, stillness whispers: “O Messenger of Allah…”
Time melts away, space bows in prostration,
and hearts are wrapped in humility...

O traveler of the heart...
When you arrive at Rawda, lower your head—
but not only your head… your ego as well.

For it is the place where compassion embraces the orphaned,
and mercy gives life to the ummah.
That green dome under which our Master rests—
it is not a grave, but a mihrab of resurrection...

The one who bows there is not just the body.
It is the entire self that bends.
And when you rise from there,
you are no longer the same:

Softer...
More patient...
More silent, yet more attuned...

And at that very moment,
your heart begins to beat in the same rhythm as the heart of Rawda...

Özer Akpınar
Researcher – Historian