Frequented House | Labaik Allahuma Labaik
Inspired by Baitul Mamur & the Heavens
Labaik Allahuma Labaik “I am at Your service, O Allah, I am at Your service..."
This is a print of an Islamic painting by Saleha
Calligraphy: Labaik Allahuma Labaik “I am at Your service, O Allah, I am at Your service..."
The Story
Just as we humans perform tawaaf around the Holy Kaaba (House of Allah) on earth, Angels perform Tawaaf around the Kaaba directly above... in the 7th Heaven.
Prophet Muhammad PBUH said in the hadith of the Miraj (Night Journey) after he visited the seventh Heaven: "Then I was shown Bait-ul -Mamur (the Frequented House). I asked Angel Jibreel about it, and he said,
This is Al Bait-ul-Ma'mur where 70,000 angels perform prayers daily, and when they leave, they never return to it (but always a fresh batch comes into it daily till the day of judgment)". [Sahih Bukhari]
The populated calligraphy represents the massive number of angel populations. The rings symbolize the vastness of His creation. The entire universe that we know of only represents the first Heaven. The first Heaven is like a ring in a desert in the context of the second Heaven. Now imagine Allah SWT throne... it spans beyond the seventh Heaven.
We have to recognize the reality of where we exist. That occurs through dhikr. Spiritually, it's called Fanna. It means to extinguish oneself from the sea of the reality of creation. The more we sit and do dhikr, the more we disconnect with ourselves and step back into His universe.