The Hijrah of the Prophet ﷺ: Historical Account, Key Stages and Spiritual Lessons

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The year is 622 CE. A moonless night in Mecca. Two men quietly leave a house surrounded by assassins, cross a hostile desert on foot, hide for three days in a mountainside cave while hundreds of horsemen search for them, then travel nearly 400 kilometres by camel before reaching a city that has been waiting for them for months. This journey — known as the Hijrah (الهِجْرَة), the migration — lasted only a few weeks. Yet it changed the course of human history. Years later, Caliph ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab رضي الله عنه would choose this event as the starting point of the Islamic calendar — not the Prophet’s ﷺ birth or the first revelation, but this journey that marked the birth of a community, a state and a civilisation. To better understand the Prophet’s ﷺ entire life and deepen your knowledge of the Sirah, explore all our resources on the Prophet’s ﷺ Sirah on the Horizons Islamiques platform.

This article retraces the complete account of the Prophet’s Hijrah: its causes, preparations, key stages and the spiritual lessons every Muslim can draw from it today — all based on authentic Islamic sources: Sahih Al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim and the major works of Sirah, such as As-Sirah An-Nabawiyyah by Ibn Hisham and Al-Bidayah wa An-Nihayah by Ibn Kathir.

1. Mecca before the Hijrah: thirteen years of persecution

To understand the Hijrah, we must first understand why the migration to Medina became necessary. Prophet Muhammad ﷺ received the first revelation around 610 CE, when he was forty years old. The early years of his mission in Mecca were marked by growing opposition from the Quraysh — guardians of the Ka’bah and leaders of Meccan trade — who saw Islam’s message as a direct threat to their political, economic and religious power.

The persecution of the first Muslims took many forms, often brutal. Enslaved converts — such as Bilal ibn Rabah, Sumayyah bint Khayyat and her husband Yassir — suffered extreme physical torture. Sumayyah bint Khayyat became Islam’s first martyr, killed by Abu Jahl. Free Companions had their property confiscated, their businesses sabotaged and their honour publicly attacked. The Prophet ﷺ himself was initially protected by his uncle Abu Talib, head of the Hashimite clan, but this protection did not end the attempts to silence him.

The Year of Sorrow and the search for a new base

In the tenth year of the prophetic mission (619 CE), the Prophet ﷺ lost two of his greatest supporters within a few weeks: Khadijah رضي الله عنها, his wife and the first believer, then Abu Talib, his uncle and clan protector. This year is known in the Sirah as ‘Am Al-Huzn — the Year of Sorrow. Without his clan’s protection, the Prophet ﷺ was now vulnerable to direct violence from the Quraysh.

He then tried to find an alternative base outside Mecca. He travelled to the nearby town of Ta’if to present his message, but was violently rejected and driven away by the crowd. The journey to Ta’if is one of the most painful episodes in the Sirah: wounded and exhausted, the Prophet ﷺ is described in Sirah sources as calling upon Allah in words that expressed the depth of his ordeal, while placing his complete trust in Him.

It was in this context of extreme vulnerability that opportunities in Medina began to emerge — not by chance, but through divine providence preparing the next stage of this story.

2. The pledges of Al-‘Aqabah: the door to Medina opens

The city of Yathrib — which would become known as Medina after the Hijrah — was inhabited by several Arab tribes, chiefly Al-Aws and Al-Khazraj, who were constantly in conflict, as well as several Jewish tribes. This conflict created a need for arbitration that these tribes hoped to find in the Prophet ﷺ.

The First Pledge of Al-‘Aqabah (the twelfth year of the mission)

During the annual pilgrimage season in Mecca, twelve men from Yathrib — mainly from the Al-Khazraj tribe — met the Prophet ﷺ at Al-‘Aqabah, on the outskirts of Mecca. They embraced Islam and made a basic pledge: not to associate anything with Allah, not to steal, not to commit fornication, not to kill their children, not to slander and not to disobey the Prophet ﷺ in what was right. The Prophet ﷺ sent Mus’ab ibn ‘Umayr with them to teach them Islam. This was the First Pledge of Al-‘Aqabah.

The Second Pledge of Al-‘Aqabah (the thirteenth year of the mission)

The following year, seventy-two men and two women from Yathrib returned to Al-‘Aqabah. This time, the pledge involved a greater commitment: they promised not only to follow Islam, but also to defend the Prophet ﷺ as they would defend their own wives and children. Ibn Hisham reports in As-Sirah An-Nabawiyyah that one of Yathrib’s leaders, Al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Ubadah Al-Ansari, told the Prophet ﷺ: ‘By Allah, if you wish, tomorrow we will attack the people of Mina with our swords.’ The Prophet ﷺ refused, saying that the time had not yet come — but this pledge marked a decisive turning point: he now had a base.

Allah confirms this commitment in the Quran when describing the Ansar (the Helpers of Medina):

3. The Companions’ migration: the first to leave

After the Second Pledge of Al-‘Aqabah, the Prophet ﷺ gave his Companions permission to migrate to Medina in small groups. The first migrants left in complete secrecy because the Quraysh tried to intercept departures and forcibly bring back those who left.

Among the first migrants was ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab رضي الله عنه — but he left openly. Ibn Hisham reports in As-Sirah An-Nabawiyyah that he appeared before the leaders of the Quraysh and publicly announced his intention to leave, challenging them to stop him. No one dared to do so. Such was ‘Umar’s character.

Other Companions experienced heartbreaking departures. Abu Salamah, forced to leave without his wife Umm Salamah رضي الله عنها, was separated from her for a year by Meccan clans who held back women and children. Suhayl ibn ‘Amr intercepted his own daughter. These accounts of forced separation illustrate the immense price the first Muslims paid for their faith.

While his Companions left, the Prophet ﷺ remained in Mecca by divine command, awaiting Allah’s permission to migrate himself. As he left, he would later address Mecca with these words:

“By Allah, you are Allah’s best land and the land most beloved to Allah. Had I not been driven out of you, I would never have left.”

— Narrated by At-Tirmidhi (no. 3925) — Authenticated by Al-Albani, from Ibn ‘Abbas رضي الله عنهما

4. The assassination plot: the night of departure

The Quraysh soon understood that Islam was gaining a strong base in Medina and that losing the Prophet ﷺ would mean the end of their influence. They met at Dar An-Nadwah — the council house — to decide the Prophet’s ﷺ fate. Ibn Hisham reports in As-Sirah An-Nabawiyyah that several proposals were made: exile or lifelong imprisonment. But Abu Jahl’s idea was adopted: choose a young man from each Quraysh tribe to strike the Prophet ﷺ simultaneously, so that responsibility would be shared among all the clans and no blood retaliation would be possible.

Allah revealed this plot to the Prophet ﷺ and commanded him to leave. The Prophet ﷺ then made a decision of striking moral depth: he entrusted ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib رضي الله عنه with lying in his bed, wrapped in his green cloak, so that the assassins watching would believe he was still asleep. Ibn Hisham confirms this event in As-Sirah An-Nabawiyyah. ‘Ali knew he was taking a real risk — and accepted without hesitation.

The Prophet ﷺ also entrusted ‘Ali with remaining in Mecca to return the deposits and possessions that people — including enemies — had left in his care. This often-overlooked detail is revealing: even on the eve of fleeing for his life, the Prophet ﷺ ensured that he fulfilled his obligations before leaving. The Meccans knew him by the nameAl-Amin — the Trustworthy — and he honoured that title until his final night there.

The Prophet ﷺ then left his surrounded house. Ibn Hisham reports that he recited the opening verses of Surah Ya-Sin as he passed the men watching him and scattered dust on their heads. They did not see him. Allah had placed a veil over their eyes.

He went directly to Abu Bakr As-Siddiq رضي الله عنه — his closest Companion — who had secretly been preparing provisions, mounts and a guide for the journey for weeks. Abu Bakr’s meticulous preparation is itself a lesson: trusting Allah does not remove the need for thorough human preparation.

5. The cave of Thawr: three days under Allah’s protection

The Prophet ﷺ and Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه headed south of Mecca — in the opposite direction from Medina — to evade their pursuers. They climbed Jabal Thawr, a steep mountain about four kilometres south of Mecca, and took refuge in a cave at its summit. They stayed there for three days and three nights.

The Quraysh launched a large-scale search. They offered a reward of one hundred camels — a considerable fortune — to whoever brought back the Prophet ﷺ dead or alive. Horsemen searched the surrounding area. One day, they came right up to the cave.

At that moment, Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه, seeing the pursuers’ feet at the entrance, whispered his concern to the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ replied with these enduring words, authentically recorded in Sahih Al-Bukhari:

Abu Bakr said: ‘I told the Prophet ﷺ while we were in the cave: If one of them looked beneath his feet, he would see us. Then the Prophet ﷺ said: O Abu Bakr! What do you think of two people whose third is Allah?’

— Narrated by Al-Bukhari (no. 3653) and Muslim (no. 2381), from Abu Bakr As-Siddiq رضي الله عنه

What this hadith means in practice: The Prophet’s ﷺ serenity at this moment of extreme danger was not recklessness — it was certainty. He knew with absolute conviction that divine protection was real. It was not that he failed to see the danger: he saw it clearly. But he knew that danger could do nothing against Allah’s will. Allah confirms this in the verse of Surah At-Tawbah (9:40) that recounts this very episode.

An important note about the spider’s web: It is widely believed in popular Islamic culture that a spider’s web miraculously woven across the cave entrance misled the pursuers. However, this account is based on weak hadiths — Shaykh Al-Albani explicitly confirmed this in Silsilat Al-Ahadith Ad-Da’ifah (no. 1189), saying: ‘Know that there is no authentic hadith about the spider of the cave.’ We therefore present it as an unauthenticated tradition rather than an established fact.

6. The road to Medina: the journey across the desert

After three nights in the cave of Thawr, once the Quraysh search had moved away, the Prophet ﷺ and Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه resumed their journey. Abu Bakr had hired a guide from the Khuza’ah tribe, named ‘Abdullah ibn Urayqit, to lead them along little-used paths, away from the usual routes watched by the Quraysh.

The encounter with Suraqah ibn Malik

On the road, a Quraysh horseman, Suraqah ibn Malik ibn Jush’um, spotted them and began pursuing them, drawn by the reward of one hundred camels. He approached several times — but whenever his horse came dangerously close, the animal’s legs sank knee-deep into the sandy ground. Realising that a supernatural force was holding him back, Suraqah turned away and asked the Prophet ﷺ to grant him protection.

What followed is one of the most striking episodes in the entire Sirah. The Prophet ﷺ — a fugitive, wanted, with a price on his head — looked at Suraqah and said, according to Ibn Hisham in As-Sirah An-Nabawiyyah : “O Suraqah, how will you be when you wear the bracelets of Chosroes?” The bracelets of Chosroes — the emperor of Persia, one of the world’s two superpowers at the time. Astonished, Suraqah asked: ‘Chosroes, son of Hormuz?’ ‘Yes,’ replied the Prophet ﷺ. Twenty years later, during the caliphate of ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab رضي الله عنه, after the conquest of Persia, this prophecy was literally fulfilled: Chosroes’ bracelets were brought to ‘Umar, who had Suraqah wear them.

Suraqah embraced Islam and left after the Prophet ﷺ had written him a letter of protection with his own hand. A man who had come to kill him departed with his pledge of honour.

Stops along the road

The journey lasted approximately eight to nine days. Sirah sources mention several stops, the most notable being at the home of Umm Ma’bad Al-Khuza’iyyah — a woman camping along the route with her flock. She did not recognise the Prophet ﷺ but offered him hospitality. The flock was exhausted and there was no milk. The Prophet ﷺ passed his hand over a thin ewe and called upon Allah — milk flowed abundantly. Umm Ma’bad later gave her husband a physical description of the Prophet ﷺ, one of the most detailed and poetic in all Sirah literature, recorded by Al-Hakim in Al-Mustadrak and Ibn Kathir in Al-Bidayah wa An-Nihayah.

7. Arrival at Quba and entry into Medina

The Prophet ﷺ first arrived at Quba, a place a few kilometres south of Medina, on Monday, 8 Rabi’ Al-Awwal, in year 1 AH (approximately 23 September 622 CE according to historians, although the exact date is debated in the sources). There he waited for ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib رضي الله عنه, who made his own journey from Mecca on foot, and other Companions who had not yet migrated.

The foundation of the mosque of Quba

During his stay at Quba — which, according to Ibn Hisham, lasted between four and twenty days depending on the account — the Prophet ﷺ founded Islam’s first mosque: Masjid Quba. Allah mentions it in the Quran:

The Prophet ﷺ said about prayer in this mosque:

“A prayer in the mosque of Quba is equivalent to an ‘Umrah.”

— Narrated by At-Tirmidhi (no. 324) and Ibn Majah (no. 1411) — Authenticated by Al-Albani, from Sahl ibn Hunayf رضي الله عنه

The triumphant entry into Medina

On Friday, the Prophet ﷺ left Quba for Medina. The welcome was unforgettable. Ibn Kathir reports in Al-Bidayah wa An-Nihayah that the people of Medina had been on their rooftops since dawn, waiting for his arrival. When he appeared, cries of joy rose everywhere. Ansar women sang from their terraces — Sirah scholars report the famous welcome song:

The Prophet ﷺ left the reins of his she-camel loose, saying that she was guided by Allah. She stopped on land belonging to two orphans of the Banu An-Najjar tribe. The Prophet ﷺ bought this land to build his mosque — Al-Masjid An-Nabawi — and his own home. That day, the city of Yathrib ceased to be called Yathrib. It became Madinat An-Nabi — the City of the Prophet. Medina.

8. After the Hijrah: what it changed forever

The Hijrah was not simply a geographical relocation. It marked a fundamental turning point in Islamic history — a transformation on several levels.

9. Lessons from the Hijrah for Muslims today

The Hijrah is more than a historical account — it is a model of conduct that believers can apply to their own lives. Here are the major lessons Islamic scholars have drawn from it.

Trusting Allah does not remove the need for preparation

The Prophet ﷺ had absolute certainty in divine protection — yet he prepared the journey with remarkable care: a guide familiar with secondary routes, provisions for several days, reliable mounts and a support network (Asma’, ‘Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr and ‘Amir ibn Fuhayrah). Islamic tawakkul — trust in Allah — never means passivity or improvisation. It means doing everything within your power, then relying on Allah for the rest.

Inner certainty in the face of external fear

‘Do not grieve, for Allah is with us.’ These words spoken in the cave of Thawr symbolise an entire philosophy of life. Fear is human — Abu Bakr رضي الله عنه, the best of the Companions, felt afraid. What distinguished the Prophet ﷺ was not the absence of danger, but his profound certainty that danger could do nothing against Allah’s will. This certainty is what Islam calls yaqin — absolute conviction.

Honouring commitments even in adversity

The Prophet ﷺ left ‘Ali in Mecca to return the entrusted possessions before departing — even while his life was in immediate danger. This detail teaches that integrity does not depend on circumstances. We do not abandon our responsibilities simply because a situation is difficult. The trust people place in you is an amanah — a sacred responsibility — that must be honoured to the very end.

Every trial precedes an opening

Thirteen years of persecution in Mecca preceded the Hijrah. The darkest night — the night of the assassination plot — preceded the dawn of departure. The cave of Thawr — the most isolated and vulnerable place — preceded Medina’s triumphant welcome. This pattern recurs throughout the Sirah and reflects a Quranic reality:

10. Summary table of the stages of the Hijrah

❓ Frequently asked questions

Sources and references