His saying: "Exalted is He who took His servant by night" means: Muhammad, peace be upon him, "from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque," meaning: Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem). "In order to show him of Our signs" means: what God showed him on the night He took him by night.
Muhammad said: The meaning of "asra bihi" (took him by night) is: He caused him to travel; and "sura" (night travel) only occurs at night, and regarding it there are two linguistic forms: sara and asra.
Yahya: [on the authority of Hammad], from Abu Harun al-'Abdi, from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, that the Messenger of God (peace be upon him) said: "While I was by the House (the Ka'bah), I was approached, and my chest was split open, and my heart was extracted and washed with the water of Zamzam, then it was returned to its place. Then I was brought a white beast called al-Buraq, larger than a donkey and smaller than a mule, with ears that twitch, its stride landing at the furthest point of its sight. I was mounted upon it, and it traveled with me toward Bayt al-Maqdis, and suddenly a caller was calling from the right."
قَوْلُهُ: ﴿سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي أَسْرَى بِعَبْدِهِ﴾ يَعْنِي: مُحَمَّدًا عليه السلام ﴿لَيْلا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ إِلَى الْمَسْجِد الْأَقْصَى﴾ يَعْنِي: بَيْتَ الْمَقْدِسِ. ﴿لِنُرِيَهُ مِنْ آيَاتنَا﴾ يَعْنِي: مَا أَرَاهُ اللَّهُ لَيْلَةَ أَسْرَى بِهِ.
قَالَ مُحَمَّدٌ: مَعْنَى (أسرِي بِهِ) أَيْ: سَيَّرَهُ؛ وَلَا يَكُونُ السُّرَى إِلَّا لَيْلًا، وَفِيهِ لُغَتَانِ: سَرَى وَأَسْرَى.
يَحْيَى: [عَنْ حَمَّادٍ] عَنِ أَبِي هَارُونَ الْعَبْدِيِّ، عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيِّ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ: " بَيْنَمَا أَنَا عِنْدَ الْبَيْتِ؛ إِذْ أُتِيتُ فَشُقَّ النَّحْرُ فَاسْتُخْرِجَ الْقَلْبُ، فَغُسِلَ بِمَاءِ زَمْزَمَ، ثُمَّ أُعِيدَ مَكَانَهُ، ثُمَّ أُتِيتُ بِدَابَّةٍ أَبْيَضَ، يُقَالُ لَهُ: الْبُرَاقُ؛ فَوْقَ الْحِمَارِ وَدُونَ الْبَغْلِ مُضْطَرِبُ الْأُذُنَيْنِ، يَقَعُ خَطْوُهُ عِنْدَ مُنْتَهَى طَرَفِهِ، فَحُمِلْتُ عَلَيْهِ، فَسَارَ بِي نَحْوَ بَيْتِ الْمَقْدِسِ فَإِذَا مُنَادٍ يُنَادِي عَنْ يَمِينِ
