Nur al-Din Mahmud Zengi was born in February of 1118, twenty years after the First Crusade, son of Imad ud-Din Zengi, the Turkish atabeg of Aleppo and Mosul for the Seljuks. He would become the second Zengid ruler of Syria before his protégé Saladin’s takeover as Ayyubid Sultan, defined by his staunch opposition to the crusader presence in the Muslim Levant. Though remembered for setting the stage of the more famous Saladin’s rule, a lesser known story about him lends some hints as to the quality of his spirit as a devoted believer in Allah and His beloved Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم.
It is narrated that one day, Zengi had a dream in which he saw the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم pointing at two blonde men saying “Mahmud, save me from these criminals!” The sight of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم on its own is the greatest blessing any Muslim can experience in the form of a dream –– but accompanied with the sight of his blessed face was a direct order from him. He’d awoken in a panic, unsure of what to think. Zengi prayed Tahajud and went back to bed, but saw the same exact dream again. Once it happened a third time, he knew he needed to act.
Nur al-Din summoned his minister, Jamaluddin al-Mawsili, telling him the story. They decided to prepare immediately for a trip to Madina. They made it to Madina from Egypt in just sixteen days. Once arriving, he went first thing to the mosque of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to see his grave undisturbed, with nothing seeming out of place. Still, he knew something was amiss.
To lure them out, Zengi decided to announce he would give alms to the citizens of Madina. Everyone seemed to show up, but he didn’t see the two men from the dream.
Upon further asking, he heard that there were two pious Moroccan travelers renting a room close to the Mosque of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, who seemed to be the only ones who didn’t leave their residence upon the announcement of the alms.
Zengi took his entourage and confronted them –– they were indeed the men he dreamed of. There was nothing in the room to incriminate them, but as he looked he found a carpet with nothing underneath. He lifted it, exposing a tunnel that was being dug in the direction of the grave of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم.
Upon discovery, the suspects confessed. Turns out, these two men were spies pretending to be Moroccans coming for the pilgrimage. They were heavily funded with the goal of stealing the body of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and gifting it to the Pope in Rome. Each night the men were digging, filling their satchels with soil and tipping it in the Baqi’ graveyard between digs. The men were arrested, charged, and executed for the plot.
Before Nur al-Din left Madina, he ordered that a ditch filled with lead be constructed around the grave of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم such that no one attempting such a plot would be successful in penetrating the tomb’s walls in the future. This barrier remains inaccessible to this day.
Though not known for the great victories of Saladin and suffering great inertia in trying to rid the Levant of the crusaders, Nur al-Din Zengi will forever be known as the man, among many throughout history, to be given the honor by Allah to protect the glory and dignity of His beloved صلى الله عليه وسلم in his lifetime. Such a blessing may not be for the masses, but it’s one every single one of us envies with great intensity.
(Story from: Nur al-Din Ali al-Samhudi, Wafa al-Wafa bi Akhbar Dar al-Mustafa, vol. 2)