Holiest sites in Sunni Islam
There are mainly three Holy sites in the Islāmic Sunni traditions. The Ka'bah is considered the Holiest site, followed by Masjidun Nabawi (The Prophet's Mosque) as the second, and the third holies is Masjidul Aqsā (The Farthest Mosque).
Al-Masjid al-Haram, Mecca
Al-Masjid al-Harām "The Sacred Mosque"), is a large mosque in the city of Mecca, and the largest in Islam. It surrounds the Kaaba, the place which all Muslims turn towards each day in prayer, considered by Muslims to be the holiest place on Earth. The mosque is also commonly known as the Haram, The Grand Mosque or Haram Sharif[citation needed].
The current structure covers an area of 356,800 square meters including the outdoor and indoor praying spaces and can accommodate up to 820,000 worshippers during the Hajj period. During the Hajj period, the mosque is unable to contain the multitude of pilgrims, who pray on the outlining streets. More than 2 million worshippers gather to pray during taraweeh and Eid prayers. [2] [3]
According to the teachings of Islam, God in the Qur'an used the word Mosque when referring to the sites established by Abraham and his progeny as houses of worship to God centuries before the revelation of the Qur'an. The first of these spots is Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and the second is Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Before Mecca and Jerusalem came under Muslim control between 630 CE and 638 CE, the site of the Kaaba, which was supposedly established by Abraham and Ishmael, was used by non-Muslim Arabs who worshipped multiple gods.
And when We assigned to Abraham the place of the House (Kaaba), saying: Do not associate with Me aught, and purify My House for those who make the circuit and stand to pray and bow and prostrate themselves.
And when Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations of the House (Kaaba): Our Lord! accept from us; surely Thou art the Hearing, the Knowing.
Masjid-an-Nabawi, Medina
Al-Masjid al-Nabawi (Arabic: المسجد النبوي, pronounced [ælˈmæsdʒidæˈnːæbæwiː]) or the Mosque of the Prophet, located in Medina, is the second holiest site in Islam.
The edifice was originally Muhammad's house; he settled there after his Hijrah (emigration) to Medina, and later built a mosque on the grounds. He himself shared in the heavy work of construction. The original mosque was an open-air building, with no gender separation. The mosque also served as a community center, a court, and a religious school. There was a raised platform for the people who taught the Qur'an. The basic plan of the building has been adopted in the building of other mosques throughout the world.
The original mosque was built by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Subsequent Islamic rulers greatly expanded and decorated the mosque. The most important feature of the site is the green dome over the center of the mosque, where the tomb of Muhammad is located. Constructed in 1817C.E. and painted green in 1839C.E., it is known as the Dome of the Prophet.[1] Early Muslim leaders Abu Bakr and Umar ibn al-Khattab are buried beside Muhammad.
Masjid Al-Aqsa, Jerusalem
Al-Aqsa Mosque (English: The Farthest mosque) is the general and oldest name for the compound of Islamic religious buildings in Jerusalem that includes al-Aqsa congregation mosque and the Dome of the Rock. It is almost universally considered the third holiest site in Islam. The term Al-Aqsa Mosque was coined in the Quran:
Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant (Muhammad) for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the farthest Mosque, whose precincts We did bless,- in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things).
Al-Aqsa Mosque is sacred because the first of the two Qiblas (Arabic: اولى القبلتين) was Jerusalem.[2][3] In Islamic tradition, Al-Aqsa is said to be the second Masjid (Arabic: ثاني المسجدين). The mosque is also the third of the two holy Sanctuaries (Arabic: ثالث الحرمين), under Islamic Law.[4]
Although there were no mosques in Jerusalem at the time the Qur'an was received, soon after Palestine was conquered by the Muslim under Umar a temporary mosque was built on the Temple Mount area. The current Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa mosque were first built by the famous caliph Abd al-Malik during the later Umayyad period.[5] This same area was called at later Islamic periods as the Noble Sanctuary.[6][7][8] It is believed by many to be the area from where Muhammad is said to have ascended to heaven,[9] although other theories claim it had been from a mosque in Medina, Jir'ana or Kufa.[10][11][12] Al-Aqsa's importance in Islam stems from a long history that extends far before the birth of Muhammad [citation needed] .
Although most political references to the Al Aqsa Mosque date from the 12th century or later due to its occupation by the Crusades, others claim that the Mosque's position in Islam is firmly grounded in a number of hadith dating from the birth of Islam.[13]
In terms of the virtue of a religious site, and the value of prayers performed within it, Muslims believe that the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem is the third most virtuous mosque based on the Hadith narrated by the companion Abu al-Dardaa: "the Prophet of Allah Muhammad said a prayer in the Sacred Mosque (in Mecca) is worth 100,000 prayers; a prayer in my mosque (in Medina) is worth 1,000 prayers; and a prayer in al-Masjid al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem) is worth 500 prayers more than in any other mosque. See also .
Other mosques associated with Muhammad
The Quba Mosque (Quba' Masjid or Masjid Quba, Arabic: مسجد قباء) just outside Medina, Saudi Arabia, is the first Islamic mosque ever built. Its first stones were positioned by Muhammad on his emigration from the city of Mecca to Medina and the mosque was completed by his companions. Muhammad spent more than 20 nights in this mosque (after migrating) praying qasr (a short prayer) while waiting for Ali whose house was behind this mosque. Muhammad used to go there, riding or on foot, every Saturday and offer a two rak'ah prayer. He advised others to do the same, saying, "Whoever makes ablutions at home and then goes and prays in the Mosque of Quba, he will have a reward like that of an 'Umrah." This hadith is reported by Ahmad, Nasa'i, Ibn Majah, and Al-Hakim.
See also
Footnotes
- ^ Encyclopedia of the orient
- ^ Lindsay, James (2005). Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World. Greenwood Press. pp. 142–143. ISBN 0313322708.
- ^ Wendy Doninger, consulting ed., ed. (1999-09-01). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. p. 70. ISBN 0-877-79044-2.
{{cite book}}:|editor=has generic name (help), reviewed on Google books - ^ A Muslim Iconoclast (Ibn Taymiyyeh) on the "Merits" of Jerusalem and Palestine Charles D. Matthews Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 56, No. 1 (Mar., 1936), pp. 1-21
- ^ The Seattle Times: Two Peoples, One Land
- ^ Oleg Grabar, THE HARAM AL-SHARIF: AN ESSAY IN INTERPRETATION, BRIIFS vol. 2 no 2 (Autumn 2000) [1]
- ^ Palestinian Encyclopedia Volume 4, pp. 203
- ^ Palestinian Encyclopedia Volume 3, pp. 23
- ^ BBC News | MIDDLE EAST | Eyewitness: Inside al-Aqsa
- ^ MEMRI: Special Dispatch Series - No. 564
- ^ al-Waqidi, Kitab al-Maghazi 9th century (Oxford UP, 1966, vol. 3, p. 958-9). Jirana, which Muhammad visited in 630, is about ten miles from Mecca.
- ^ http://www.biu.ac.il/JS/rennert/history_8.html
- ^ Hashimi, Sohail H (2003-05-07). "Political Boundaries and Moral Communities: Islamic Perspectives". In Allen E. Buchannan, Margaret Moore, eds (ed.). States, Nations and Borders: the ethics of making boundaries. Cambridge University Press. pp. 192–193. ISBN 0-521-52575-6.
{{cite book}}:|editor=has generic name (help); Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link), reviewed on Google books
References
- Aghaie, Kamran Scot (2004). The Martyrs of Karbala: Shi'i Symbols and Rituals in Modern Iran. University of Washington Press. ISBN 0295984481
- Majlisi, Mohammad Baqer. Bihar al-Anwar V.97.(In Arabic)
- Shimoni, Yaacov & Levine, Evyatar (1974). Political Dictionary of the Middle East in the 20th Century. Quadrangle/New York Times Book Co.
- Zabeth, Hyder Reza (1999). Landmarks of Mashhad. Alhoda UK. ISBN 9644442210.