Thread by @NafeesRehmanDr

The most sacred memorabilia of the Islamic world, the Cloak of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), is put on display every Ramadan for public viewing in the Topkapi Palace, Istanbul.

But did you know that in Kandahar Afghanistan, there is also a Cloak of the Prophet (PBUH)?

Thread.

The following is the photo of the Cloak of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) in the Topkapi Palace. But the Cloak (خرقه شریف) in Kandahar has never been shown to the public except in times of crisis. We discuss the few times when it was shown to the public later in the thread.

The cloak is said to be the only physical token from the spiritual journey Mi’raj of the Prophet (PBHU) to the skies. The Prophet later gifted this cloak to Owais Qarni (R.A) of Yemen. Few centuries later, the Ottomon Sultan took it to Istanbul.

But according to the popular traditions, the same is said about the cloak in Kandahar that it is the same cloak that Prophet (PBUH) gifted to Owais Qarni (R.A). There hasn't been any study to verify or to establish the historicity of the cloaks.

Acc. to Safia Haleem, the cloak in Istanbul might not be that of Owais Qarni (R.A) but might be the one that Prophet (PBUH) gifted to the poet Ka'b ibn Zuhayr (R.A). The Prophet himself wrapped his own cloak around the poet after he said the poetry in the prophet's praise.

How did the cloak at Kandahar come to Kandahar?

According to traditions, Amir Timur brought the cloak ,along with the other relics, to Samarkand from Baghdad in fourteenth century. And it stayed there during his reign. After his death, it was taken to Bukhara and then to Balkh.

In 1860, Mír Yár Beg of Badakhshan then got control of the cloak and he placed it in the principal city of Jauz Gun. Owing to the holy relic of the Prophet, the city's name was changed to Faizabad roughly translated to "abode of the divine blessings".
google.com/maps/place/Fay…

In 1768, Ahmed Shah Abdali brought the sacred cloak to Kandahar after annexing Badakhshan and striking a peace treaty with the Amir of Bukhara.

afghanistan-analysts.org/under-the-cloa…

This short history in Pashto written on the wall of the mosque of the Khirqa Sharif, Kandahar.

One interesting part of the story is that Ahmad Shah Abdali promised the custodian of the cloak at Faizabad that the cloak would never trespass the stone in the courtyard. He then loaded the stone onto one camel and the cloak onto another which was to always follow the first.

That is how the cloak traveled to Kandahar via Kabul without ever trespassing the stone. The stone is still there in the Khirqa Sharif Complex at Kandahar.

Ahmed Shah Abdali wished to construct a two story building when on the top floor the most valued cloak would be placed and on the ground floor would be his grave. However, Ahmed Shah Durrani died in the meantime. And his son Timur Shah Durrani,

on the suggestion of the custodian of cloak, constructed a separate building right in front of the mausoleum of Ahmed Shah Durrani.

And this has been the abode of the sacred cloak since 1768, almost two and a half centuries.

satellites.pro/Kandahar_map.A…

Not much is known why is this cloak in Kandahar not on public display, it is only allowed to be seen by the present ruler of Afghanistan.

King Amanullah Khan had it publicly displayed in 1929 in his efforts to draw support for himself against Habibullah Kalakani Bacha-e-Saqao.

"Shortly after, around 1935, it was taken out again by royal order with the hope of bringing an end to the cholera epidemic that had been vexing Kandahar. The Cloak was displayed in an old mosque in the city [...] Reportedly, the ceremony was successful."

afghanistan-analysts.org/under-the-cloa…

Then it was around in 1988-90, that the Kabul regime of Dr. Najibullah alleged that the building housing the Khirqa Sharif was damaged in the atrack of Mujahideen and that they had disrespected it.

Clip from Kabul TV on the subject.

Dr. Najibullah soon afterwards visited Kandahar and gifted about 2 million Afghanis to repair and restore the Khirqa Sharif complex.

Remember it was the time when Dr. Najibullah wanted to counter the narrative of the Mujahideen that he and his govt was anti-Islamic.

Reposting the above clip in full. It was trimmed down.

The next time the sacred cloak was publicly displayed was in 1996 by Mullah Omer. Here is a very rare footage of that event and of Mullah Omer.

It is taken from a BBC documentary, the link to it will be posted in the next tweet.

Link:

The Khirqa Sharif Complex and Shrine was again damaged in the US bombing of the city. Can't exactly say when but the according to this AP Video, the restorative work, following the damage, was carried out in 2015.

Video credits: Hasibullah Asmati

Safia Haleem's take on the subject, in Pashto language.

safiahaleem.com/?p=4672