Sign of the Prophet Quake

[613 - 622 CE]

by Jefferson Williams

Map depicting the original junds (approximate boundaries), and the important towns and Arab tribes of Bilad al-Sham in the 640s - from Wikipedia

Introduction & Summary

As two early opponents of Muhammad embarked on a trip to Syria, they met a hermit. The hermit told of a prophet who would be sent to Arabia (?). The sign of the Prophets' arrival would be an earthquake in Syria which would bring "evil and disaster". Later in their trip, the travelers met a horseman who related that an earthquake struck Syria bringing "evil and disaster". This was apparently taken by the author(s) of this story as a sign that the Prophet being sent was Muhammad. Ambraseys (2009) dates the story to between 613 and 622 CE.

It should be mentioned that Syria at this time would have been Bilad al-Sham. Bilad al-Sham (analogous to Greater Syria) was a super province of the Rashudin, Umayyad, Abbassid, and Fatimid caliphates and included the southern Levant. Since the story indicates that the two travelers received their information while still in Arabia, the epicentral location is unknown. Hence, if this describes a real earthquake, the search for evidence should cover a wide area.

Textual Evidence

Text (with hotlink)	Original Language	Biographical Info	Religion	Date of Composition	Location Composed	Notes
as-Suyuti	Arabic	Biography	Sufi Muslim	15th c. CE	Cairo	In an apparently theologically motivated passage, two early opponents of Muhammad received news while traveling that there had been an earthquake in Syria - which was supposed to be a sign that a Prophet had been sent. The earthquake report is neither well dated not well located. It specifies the location as Syria - which is presumably Greater Syria (Bild al-Sham). According to Ambraseys (2009) the two early opponents would have made this trip between 613 and 622 CE.
Text (with hotlink)	Original Language	Biographical Info	Religion	Date of Composition	Location Composed	Notes

Al-Khasais-ul-Kubra (4-5) by As-Suyuti

كفاية الطالب اللبيب في خصائص الحبيب by عبد الرحمن بن كمال الدين أبي بكر بن محمد سابق الدين خضر الخضيري الأسيوطي

Aliases

**Author**
Aliases	Arabic
Al-Suyuti
As-Suyuti
Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti
Abu 'l-Fadl 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr ibn Muhammad Djalal al_Din al-Khudayri

**Title**
Aliases	Arabic
Kifayat al-Talib al-Labib fi Khasa'is al-Habib	كفاية الطالب اللبيب في خصائص الحبيب
al-Khasa'is al-Kubra	الخصائص الكبرى

Background and Biography

Maps

Map of Greater Syria with original junds from Wikipedia

Map depicting the original junds (approximate boundaries), and the important towns and Arab tribes of Bilad al-Sham in the 640s

Wikipedia

Synopsis

Ambraseys (2009) reports that As-Suyuti (1445-1505 CE) in his book Al-Khasais-ul-Kubra (4-5) wrote about the beginning of a trip to Syria by Abu Sufyan and Umayya bin al-Salt - two early opponents of Muhammad. During the trip, they heard that there had been an earthquake in Syria.

Excerpts

English from Ambraseys (2009)

from Ambraseys (2009)

‘Al-Bayhaqi [an eleventh-century traditionist] published the following translation in his work called The Proofs of Prophethood, on the authority of Marwan b. al-Hakam ( . . . ), that Abu Sufyan and Umayya b. al-Salt had set off for Syria;

we met a hermit, who told us that a Prophet would be sent, the sign of which is that Syria has been shaken by earthquakes 24 times [alternative readings: 80 or 200 times] since Jesus son of Mary, and one earthquake remains, which will cause evil and disaster in Syria. When we reached Thaniyya [Midran, between Medina and Tabuk], we saw a horseman. We asked him where he came from and he replied, ‘Syria’. We asked him if anything had happened, and he said, ‘Yes, Syria has been affected by an earthquake, which has caused evil and disaster.’.

(al-Suyuti Kashf 4–5).

Chronology

According to Ambraseys (2009), Abu Sufyan and Umayya bin al-Salt are thought to have made this journey some time between 613 and 622 CE.

Seismic Effects

Syria has been affected by an earthquake

Locations

Syria

Sources

Sources according to as-Suyuti

Notes and Further Reading

References

Archaeoseismic Evidence

see Sword in the Sky Quake - Archaeoseismic Evidence

Tsunamogenic Evidence

Paleoseismic Evidence

see Sword in the Sky Quake - Paleoseismic Evidence

Notes

Ambraseys (2009)

[AD 613–622 Syria]

A destructive earthquake is said to have occurred in Syria, causing ‘evil and disaster’. No other details are known.

Al-Suyuti (AD 1445–1505) copies this account from al-Bayhaqi. Abu Sufyan and Umayya bin al-Salt are thought to have made this journey some time between AD 613 and 622.

Note

‘Al-Bayhaqi [an eleventh-century traditionist] published the following translation in his work called The Proofs of Prophethood, on the authority of Marwan b. al-Hakam ( . . . ), that Abu Sufyan and Umayya b. al-Salt had set off for Syria; “we met a hermit, who told us that a Prophet would be sent, the sign of which is that Syria has been shaken by earthquakes 24 times [alternative readings: 80 or 200 times] since Jesus son of Mary, and one earthquake remains, which will cause evil and disaster in Syria. When we reached Thaniyya [Midran, between Medina and Tabuk], we saw a horseman. We asked him where he came from and he replied, ‘Syria’. We asked him if anything had happened, and he said, ‘Yes, Syria has been affected by an earthquake, which has caused evil and disaster.’.”’ (al-Suyuti Kashf 4–5).

References

Ambraseys, N. N. (2009). Earthquakes in the Mediterranean and Middle East: a multidisciplinary study of seismicity up to 1900.