From Kitāb al-Miʿrāj to La Escala de Mahoma: Miʿrāj Narratives in Late Medieval Western Literature

Year 2025, Volume: 15 Issue: 2, 623 - 651, 03.10.2025

Enes Şanal

https://doi.org/10.26650/iuitd.2025.1676401

Abstract

The miʿrāj journey of the Islamic prophet Muḥammad from Masjid al-Harām to Masjid al-Aqsā is first mentioned in the Qur’ān and hadīth sources. Over time it became one of the most significant topics covered in Islamic historiography, especially in sīrah. Subsequently, a certain literature was formed in the Islamic world by the emergence of works known as miʿrājiyyah or miʿrājnāmah, which focuses on this miraculous journey. The Miʿrāj narrative, which gained popularity in the eastern Islamic world during the first centuries, later reached al-Andalus in the following period. This narrative, especially Kitāb al-Miʿrāj, became known among the Muslims in the region. Kitāb al-Miʿrāj, initially recognized in al-Andalus, was carried to Christian Spain through different channels. The work was first translated from Arabic into Castilian by the order of King Alfonso X of Castile-León (d. 1284) in the mid-13th century, and then into Latin and French, appealing to a wide readership in the Christian world. This article analyzes the process by which the al-miʿrāj narrative of the Prophet Muḥammad’s miraculous nocturnal journey was transferred to Christian Spain via al-Andalus and the translation of the Kitāb al-Miʿrāj into Western languages and its subsequent reflections in late medieval Western literature in the light of Castilian, Latin, and Arabic sources of the period. Within the scope of the study, the first Christian sources mentioning the miʿrāj event will be identified, and it will be revealed how this event was treated in the works of Christian scholars living in the Iberian Peninsula and other parts of Europe in the process after the translation of Kitāb al-Miʿrāj at the Castilian court.

Keywords

Prophet Muḥammad , Miʿrāj , Miʿrājnāmah , La Escala de Mahoma , Alfonso X

Kitâbü’l-Mi‘râc’dan La Escala de Mahoma’ya: Geç Orta Çağ Batı Literatüründe Mi‘rac Anlatıları

Abstract

İslam peygamberi Hz. Muhammed’in Mescid-i Harâm’dan Mescid-i Aksâ’ya gerçekleştirdiği mi‘rac yolculuğu, ilk olarak Kur’ân-ı Kerîm ve hadis kaynaklarında yer almış, daha sonraları ise başta siyer olmak üzere İslam tarih yazıcılığında işlenen konulardan biri hâline gelmiştir. Zamanla bu mucizevi yolculuğu konu edinen mi‘râciyye ya da mi‘racnâme adıyla bilinen eserler ortaya çıkarak İslam dünyasında belirli bir literatür oluşmuştur. İlk asırlarda doğu İslam dünyasında popüler hâle gelen mi‘rac anlatısı, takip eden süreçte Endülüs’e ulaşmış ve özellikle Kitâbü’l-Mi‘râc adlı eser aracılığıyla bölgedeki Müslümanlar arasında tanınmaya başladı. Zamanla Endülüs’te yaşayıp İslam bilim ve kültürüne ilgi duyan Hristiyan âlimler de anlatıya ilgi duymakla kalmayıp telif ettikleri bazı eserlerde bu olaya atıfta bulundular. İlk olarak Endülüs’te tanınan Kitâbü’l-Mi‘râc adlı eser ise farklı kanallar aracılığıyla Hristiyan İspanya topraklarına taşındı. Eser, 13. asrın ortalarında Kastilya-León Kralı X. Alfonso’nun (ö. 1284) emriyle ilk olarak Arapçadan Kastilyacaya, daha sonra ise Latinceye ve eski Fransızcaya tercüme edilerek Hristiyan dünyasında geniş bir okuyucu kitlesine hitap etti. Bu makale, Hz. Muhammed’in mucizevi gece yolculuğunu konu edinen mi‘rac anlatısının Endülüs üzerinden Hristiyan İspanya’ya taşınma ve Kitâbü’lMi‘râc’ın Batı dillerine tercüme edilme sürecini ve takiben Geç Orta Çağ Batı literatüründeki yansımalarını devrin Kastilyaca, Latince ve Arapça kaynakları ışığında incelemektedir. Çalışma kapsamında mi‘rac olayından bahseden ilk Hristiyan kaynakları tespit edilecek ve Kitâbü’l-Mi‘râc’ın Kastilya sarayında tercüme edilmesinden sonraki süreçte İber Yarımadası’nda ve Avrupa’nın diğer bölgelerinde yaşayan Hristiyan âlimlerin eserlerinde bu olayın nasıl işlendiği ortaya koyulacaktır.

Keywords

Hz. Muhammed , Mi‘rac , Mi‘racnâme , La Escala de Mahoma , X. Alfonso

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