The Month of Safar: Interesting Facts to Know About It

Safar is the second month of the Islamic calendar, followed by the sacred month of Muharram. Like most Islamic months, Safar holds immense significance for Muslims worldwide.

Many well-grounded resources, including Wikipedia, denote Safar as an Arabic word, which translates into ‘Empty.’ This refers to the pre-Islamic era when houses were left empty during this month as people went out to gather food.

Same resources validify that the word Safar also translates into ‘whistling of the wind,’ referring to it as a windy time of the year. However, since we follow the Lunar calendar and the month shifts with a day gap of 11 each year, this Implication doesn’t apply anymore.

If you’re wondering about the significance of Safar with respect to the major events that took place during this month, you can check out the following list to get a clear picture. 

*Note: While the following are the most up to date findings, it must also be noted that there are no distinct Quranic verses or Hadiths proving their context in terms of the events taking place on exact dates.

Main Events of Safar:

• 1st Safar: Prisoners of the battle of Karbala entered Yazid’s Palace in Syria.
  
  

• 13th Safar: Martyrdom of Sukayna Bint Hussain (RA), also called by Bibi Sakina – the youngest daughter of Hussain Ibn Ali (RA).
  
  

• 27th Safar: Prophet Muhammad SAW migrated from Makkah to Medina. (Some references also debate this event taking place in Rabi' al-Awwal, but we don’t know for sure.)
  
  

• 28th Safar: Prophet Muhammad SAW fell ill.
  
  

• 28th Safar: Martyrdom of Hasan Ibn Ali (RA) – grandson of the Holy Prophet PBUH and elder son of Ali Ibn Abi Talib (RA).

Let’s now discuss the most significant event of Safar – that is, the happenings of 27th Safar, in great detail.

The 27th Safar Event:

Major resources state that it was the night of the 27th of Safar that a group of the Quraish stood outside the Holy Prophet SAW’s house intending to assassinate him. The purpose behind this assassination was to prevent him from leaving Makkah and spreading the light of Islam any further. 

However, the Prophet Muhammad SAW was not deterred. Instead, he told his cousin, Hazrat Ali (RA), to sleep in his bed while covering himself with the Prophet’s green garment. He reassured Hazrat Ali (RA) that he would not be killed or come to any harm.

After that, Allah’s Messenger walked out of his house, casting a handful of dust at his assassins. He moved through them all the while reciting, “And We have put before them a barrier and behind them a barrier and covered them, so they do not see.” [Surah Ya-Sin: 9]

Astoundingly, none of the assassins gathered outside the house saw the Prophet Muhammad SAW leaving. After making a successful escape, he went to Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA)’s house, and they left together hastily before Fajr. 

Knowing that the Quraish would surely expect them to take the route from the north of Makkah to Madinah, Prophet Muhammad SAW decided to alter their route and walk south towards Yemen instead. Reaching there, Allah’s Messenger and Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) hid in the cave of Thawr for 3 nights while the group of Quraish searched for them.

They left the cave once it was safe and began making their journey to Madinah in Rabi al-Awwal with a guide named Abdullah Ibn Uraiqit. While the man had not yet embraced Islam, Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) trusted in him. 

And so, Abdullah Ibn Uraiqit led them through the rarely used routes along the coastal line, successfully leading them towards the city, which was to become the new home of Islam.

We hope this article helped increase your Islamic knowledge.

May Allah shower His blessings upon us during the month of Safar and grant us infinite rewards. Ameen.