Al-Hujeireh mosque sits quietly, nestled among its neighbours, seeking little attention. Walk through its outer doors and you find yourself in an outdoor enclosure, with plain white limestone walls and floors. A carpet is laid out to accommodate a single row of worshippers in the instance the door to the small building ahead is locked. A broom made of date palm leaves stands in one corner. This outdoor area makes up almost three quarters of the whole mosque; the indoor section is only two rows deep, accepting a humble set of forty worshippers to make up the minimum requirement for a Friday congregation, though it is not held here anyway. This is after all a town of four hundred mosques.
I am in Tareem, the city of Abu Bakr, and this small, unassuming mosque was long ago frequented by the most well known of all Tareemis, Imam al Haddad.
The City of Abu Bakr
Lying in the centre of Hadramaut, in the eastern part of modern day Yemen (formerly South Yemen), Tareem is a city with a population of about 200,000. By and large physically unaffected by the war, eastern Yemen equates to about half the size of the country, though with only a quarter of its population. In certain contexts, Hadhramis also see themselves as a separate entity, especially in terms of history and identity.
As a historical city of learning and knowledge, Tareem has become a destination for ‘Islamic tourism’ and is sometimes referred to as ‘As-Sidd’iiq’s City‘ – the City of (Abu Bakr) as-Siddiq. During his Caliphate (may God be pleased with him) a number of tribes and towns in Hadramaut (as well as elsewhere in the Arabian Peninsula) refused to pay the obligatory alms of Zakat, some even leaving Islam completely. Tareem was the exception to this, leading Abu Bakr to make a special supplication for the city, for three specific things: first, that it be preserved until the end of time; second, that water be available in abundance for this desert land; and finally, that scholars come forth from it like shoots after the rain.
The city is home to the highest concentration of the descendants of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ per capita. They descend specifically from the lineage of Ahmad al-Muhajir, son of Muhammad an-Naqib, son of Ali al-Uraydhi, son of Ja’afar as-Saadiq, son of Muhammad al-Baaqir, son of Ali Zain al-Aabidiin, son of al-Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Ahmad al-Muhajir’s specific branch of the al-Husseini lineage are referred to as the ‘Ba’Alawi’, the Family of Alawi.
If you take a look at the YR500 (Yemeni Rial) note today, it features a mosque that has the tallest clay minaret in the world. It belongs to al-Mihdhar, the large extended version of the original tiny Masjid al-Mihdhar of Shaykh Omar al-Mihdhar al-Ba’Alawi (d. 1429), the son of the founding father of the al-Saqqaaf (al-Sagoff) family, Shaykh Abdul Rahman al-Saqqaaf.
Al-Hujeireh Mosque
Across the lane from the north western corner of the al-Mihdar mosque, sits al-Hujeireh, often overlooked by foreigners who typically frequent the better known al-Mihdar. Al-Hujeireh is one of seven mosques associated with most famous of the Ba’Alawis, Imam Abdullah Alawi al-Haddad (d. 1719) author of The Book of Assistance and curator of the famous litanies, al-Wird al-Latif and Ratib al-Haddad.
Imam al-Haddad used to visit this small mosque as a child. Today, there is a regular congregation and despite its small size, Tareemi mosque custom is maintained here; worshippers sit in a loose circle and recite Quran one person at a time, continuing anti-clockwise, correcting each other for any errors made. This takes place twice daily between Maghrib and Isha and prior to the adhaan of Fajr with a total of one seventh of the Qur’an being recited, thus ensuring a khatam (completion) once a week.
I once stopped by for Maghrib prayers; the man leading the session was overseeing the recitation by cross checking with his copy of the Qur’an which looked like a pile of hand written papers, flipping each page one by one over the top like a mini clipboard. Within half a second (or less) of someone making a mistake, he would interject with the correct version. Shabbily dressed, very senior in age, but yes he was that sharp.
On the same lane as this mosque, two years ago the elderly Sayyid Aydarus Bin-Semait was, sadly, shot dead in his home. The incident came as a shock since Tareem is generally considered a very peaceful and safe town, where police are almost never seen. But perhaps more significantly, throughout the vast valley of sporadic villages and settlements, the Ba’Alawis are known to be non-threatening and apolitical. Their main concern has always been calling people to God and His Messenger, allowing a level of trust to be established; they became accepted as peace mediators and brokers in desert conflicts- so much so in fact, that they’re not even ‘allowed’ to carry the traditional blunt ceremonious jambiya (Yemeni knife), which is hung from the waist on a belt- making a huge symbolic statement in a desert culture where such knives are common place.
I was good friends with Habib Aydarus’ closest grandson (he and I held regular dance sessions (yes, really)). This English teacher, haafidh (memoriser) of the Qur’an would meet me mid-morning on weekends and we’d be the odd household blasting multiple rounds of traditional Hadhrami music usually heard at night time wedding parties). Through our friendship, I spent time with Habib Aydarus at his home and at al-Hujeireh mosque. He was known for two things; the first was hat making. He would stitch the alfiah, a traditional Hadhrami hat (like the one you see on him) worn mostly today by Ba’Alawi grooms at their weddings. Secondly, he would read litanies upon people who were unwell as a means for cure. Thus his home was like a clinic; people from near and afar would queue on the stairs.
Habib Aydarus acted as the imam of al-Hujeireh mosque during Ramadhan specifically. His sons and grandsons would also be present and occasionally substitute for him when age caught up. After tarawih prayers, worshippers would stay to recite the supplications and poems that are a custom of Ramadhan in Tareem.
On the 27th Ramadhan, al-Hujeireh hosts its khatam of the Qur’an. Like any other mosque in Tarim, it’s an all night affair. During this night the descendants of Imam al-Haddad lead the evening assisted by members of the BaHarmi family, the descendants of the BaHarmi who kept close company of Imam al-Haddad and became among his resident reciters. Tradition is kept then, even with the reciters.
As there are numerous other gatherings in Tareem on this special night, scholars and lay people alike visit this small mosque at some point to pray two rakats (cycles), partake in the ceremony for some time, and take their leave shortly after. Aside from this, the small mosque sees little activity nowadays, though that was not the case during the time of Imam al-Haddad, approximately 350 years ago.
Imam al-Haddad
Like Imam Malik bin Anas (of the Maliki Fiqh) before him, Imam al-Haddad was one of those rare individuals whose teachers later became his students. Despite this, it was some time before he finally accepted requests to teach. Having frequented al-Hujeireh mosque with his friends as a child to perform voluntary prayers, it was here where he taught one of his first classes.
His reputation preceded him, and when word spread that he was teaching, an individual skeptical about his abilities, decided to attend the lesson, ready to be unimpressed.
Upon arrival, he saw that there were three prayer mats placed under the spot on which Imam al-Haddad sat while teaching, while all others in the room sat on directly on the floor. At first it vexed him, and yet by the time the class ended, so impressed was he by the young, blind man named Abdullah al-Haddad, he found himself saying, “There ought to be ten mats under this great scholar!“
It is also said that this mosque was where Imam al-Haddad received spiritual ‘openings’; Mostafa al-Badawi mentioned in his book Sufi Sage of Arabia about the life of the great Imam, that he was granted a vision of the Ascension, or the Night of Power (Isra’ and Mi’raaj) here, though God knows best what he saw.
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Tareem is a place rich in tradition, rooted in the sacred sciences of law, faith and beauty – Islam, Imaan and Ihsan. The grounding it grants an individual is perhaps why Tareemis are known to travel widely, and yet retain their essence and make an impact. In a world that changes around them rapidly, they have learned how to orientate themselves; and so it is that when ignorant, disoriented travellers such as myself, arrive at their doors, they know both how to welcome and forgive. Spend some time in even the tiny unassuming neighbourhood mosques like al-Hujeireh, and you will be served a taste of this.
The prayer of Abu Bakr seems indeed to have been answered.
