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The Kaaba or Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, is the most sacred holy place of Islam and a Qibla of the Muslims, contains al-Bayt ul-Ma'mur spiritually above the Kaaba, contains the Maqam Ibrahim, Hateem, and the Al-Hajar-ul-Aswad which belonged in Jannah to Adam and Eve (Adam and Hawa).
- Overview
- 1. Mecca, Saudi Arabia
- 2. Medina, Saudi Arabia
- 3. Great Mosque of Kairouan, Kairouan, Tunisia
- 4. Harem al-Sharif, Jerusalem, Israel
- 5. Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, Syria
Mecca is the religion’s most iconic destination. But these exquisite mosques and shrines found from Tunisia to Syria also honor its sacred history.
The skyline of Jerusalem’s Old City is dominated by the gold-topped Dome of the Rock, built where it is believed Muhammad ascended to heaven.
Of course, Mecca tops the list. This most holy city was the birthplace of Muhammad, around A.D. 570, but it was sacred even before he came along. Adam and Abraham, potent figures from the Abrahamic traditions, have strong links to the city. Abraham’s life, in particular, was a series of trials of his faith in God, and these inspire some of the ceremonies that Muslims perform during the hajj (pilgrimage), such as sacrificing an animal and sharing the meat with the poor.
The city’s centerpiece is an ancient granite cube, the Kaaba, standing within the Holy Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) and covered by the kiswa, a black cloth woven with verses from the Quran. Muslims across the globe bow in prayer toward the Kaaba five times daily, a ritual set by Muhammad in 624.
As the burial place of Muhammad and the city where the Prophet and his followers fled from attacks in Mecca, Medina—about 200 miles north of Mecca—is the second holiest site in Islam. Millions of Muslims visit each year to pray at the Prophet’s Mosque (Masjid an-Nabawi). Although neither a part of the hajj nor a duty for Muslims, this act is said to be worth more than a thousand prayers at any other mosque.
Most of the current mosque, a two-tiered structure with 27 domes and an open-air courtyard, dates from the 19th and 20th centuries. Muhammad, who built the original and died in 632, lies buried under the green central dome, along with the first two caliphs, Abu Bakr and Umar. Much expanded, the mosque can now hold more than a million worshippers, with more expansion plans under way. In addition, the mosque incorporates modern technology, such as retractable Teflon umbrellas, to counter the blasting summer heat.
The Great Mosque has stood at the heart of Arab-Muslim worship for more than a thousand years. A popular saying is that if you cannot go to Mecca, seven pilgrimages to Kairouan might save your soul.
Started in A.D. 670, only 38 years after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, it was rebuilt and enlarged over the next century. The present structure is part of an expansive complex in this holy city and dates from the reign of the Arab-Muslim Aghlabid dynasty, which ruled in the Ifriqiyah region (present-day Tunisia and eastern Algeria) during the ninth century. With its buttressed walls and three-tiered minaret—the world’s oldest surviving minaret, festooned with battlements and arrow slits—the mosque was both fortress and spiritual center. Imams preached, men studied, and in time of siege, the populace took refuge here.
Jews and Muslims both hold sacred the flat, elevated plaza atop Mount Moriah in the heart of Old Jerusalem. Consider the holiest site in Judaism, the Temple Mount is the the site of the demolished First and Second Temples that in biblical times served as a central place of worship for Israelites and Jews; only the Western Wall survives the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in 70 B.C.
After the Muslim conquest of Jerusalem in A.D. 638, the ruling caliph built the shrine of the Dome of the Rock on the Mount Moriah site, which is known to Muslims as Harem al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary). It’s a beautiful structure, adorned with faience, marble, and mosaics, and its glittering gold-leaf roof forms the city’s most striking landmark to this day. At its heart is an outcrop of jagged rock where Muslims believe Muhammad ascended to heaven.
Al-Walīd I, the caliph who built the Umayyad Mosque circa A.D. 715, famously proclaimed: “People of Damascus, four things give you a marked superiority over the rest of the world: your climate, your water, your fruits, and your baths. To these I add a fifth: this mosque.”
The mosque, also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus, stands on the site of a succession of places of worship, including a Roman temple and a Christian church. It centers on a great central courtyard surrounded by an arcade of arches, with the prayer hall covering the southern side. Within the prayer hall, an ornate domed shrine of deep green glass is believed to contain the head of St. John the Baptist, a Jewish prophet who baptized Jesus and is known to Muslims as the prophet Yahya. This part of the mosque is sacred to both Christians and Muslims. Also contained within the mosque is a shrine believed to contain the head of Hussein ibn Ali, Muhammad’s grandson whose martyrdom is frequently compared to those of John the Baptist and Jesus.
It’s also known to be the site of sacrifices by biblical figures such as Adam, Abraham and Noah. Many who follow the faith continue to pray in its direction.
Kaaba, shrine located near the center of the Great Mosque in Mecca and considered by Muslims everywhere to be the most sacred spot on Earth. Muslims orient themselves toward this small shrine during the five daily prayers, bury their dead facing its meridian, and cherish the ambition of visiting it on pilgrimage.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Jul 8, 2019 · The Kaaba, which means “cube” in Arabic, is a large black stone structure in the middle of the Grand Mosque, which is the most sacred place of worship in Islamic tradition.
Aug 1, 2011 · Within this passage, the two places are clearly set in the polar relationship they would continue to have in Islamic consciousness: both sanctuaries are described as places of worship (or literally of “prostration”), that is, as “masjid” (mosque), but while one represents Muhammad’s sacred homeland, the other represents, perhaps, the ...
The hajj and the ‘umrah, both performed in Mecca and its surroundings, are mentioned in the Qur’an and are considered primary and mandatory pilgrimage practices. However, the pious visitation (ziyarah) to sites considered holy or sacred also holds a relevant place in the regional history of the Islamic world.
