Masjid al-Haram
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Al-Masjid al-Ḥarām (المسجد الحرام IPA: [ælˈmæs.ʤi.dæl.ħɑˈrɑm] "The Sacred Mosque"), is a large mosque in the city of Mecca, and the largest in Islam, and the largest religious building on Earth. It surrounds the Kaaba, the place which all Muslims turn towards each day in prayer and consider to be the holiest place on Earth. The mosque is also commonly known as the Haram or Haram Sharif.[1]
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.
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[edit] History
According to Islamic theology, the mosque was first built by the angels before the creation of mankind, when God ordained a place of worship on Earth to reflect the house in heaven called al-Baytu l-Maˤmur (Arabic: البيت المعمور), which translates to 'The Worship Place of Angels'. Al-Baytu l-Maˤmur is directly above the Kaaba in heaven. The first Kaaba was built by angels and Adam was the first human to re-build it. From time to time the mosque was destroyed and rebuilt anew. According to popular belief it was last built by Ibrahim (Abraham), with the help of his son Ismael. They were ordered by Allah to build the mosque, and the Kaaba. The Black Stone is situated on the fourth corner of the Kaaba, and is believed to have fallen from heaven and turned black due to man's misdeeds.
| “ | 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. | „ |
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| “ | And when Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations of the House (Kaaba): Our Lord! accept from us; surely Thou art the Hearing, the Knowing. | „ |
Muslim belief places the story of Ishmael and his mother's search for water in the general vicinity of the mosque. In the story, Hagar runs between the hills of Safa and Marwah looking for water for her son, until God eventually reveals to her the Zamzam Well, from where water continues to flow non-stop to this day. The episode of Hagar's search for water is emulated by Muslims as they run between the two hills whenever they visit Mecca.
After the Hijra, upon Muhammed's victorious return to Mecca, the people of Mecca themselves removed all the idols in and around the Kaaba and cleansed it. This began the Islamic rule over the Kaaba, and the building of a mosque around it.
[edit] Modern
The current structure is the result of a big extension beginning in 1982, under the sponsorship of the late King Fahd.
[edit] Grand Mosque Seizure
A terrorist attack on the mosque took place on November 20, 1979 — the first day of the Islamic year 1400 (the first of Muharram)— 200 heavily armed and provisioned Islamic fundamentalists, consisting of peninsular Arabs and a few Egyptians enrolled in Islamic studies at the Islamic University of Medina, took over and besieged Al-Masjid al-Haram in Mecca. The seizure by the dissidents (men and women) was led by Juhaiman ibn Muhammad ibn Saif al Utaibi. This event shook the Muslim world as the holiest of Islamic sites saw violence and killing, when hundreds of pilgrims present for the annual hajj were taken hostage, and in the aftermath, large numbers of both Saudi forces and of the militants were killed in the ensuing battles for control of the site.
[edit] February 2007 Intrusion
On 1 February, 2007, Saudi police arrested a man because he appeared to be acting strangely. He was carrying a revolver and a sub-machine gun under his clothes, and was wearing what appeared to be a suicide belt but which later proved to be fake. The man's nationality was not clear but a Saudi official confirmed the arrest on the same day.
[edit] Religious significance
[edit] Qibla
The qibla—the direction that Muslims turn to in their prayers (salah)—is toward the Kaaba. This is to symbolize unity in worshipping one God. At one point the direction of the qibla was toward Bayt al-Maqdis, Jerusalem (and it is therefore called the First of the Two Qiblas), however, this only lasted for seventeen months, after which the qibla became oriented towards the Kaaba in Mecca. According to accounts from Muhammad's companions, the change happened very suddenly during the noon prayer in Medina. Muhammad was leading the prayer when he received a revelation from Allah instructing him to take the Kaaba as the qibla (literally, "turn your face towards the Masjid al Haram"). According to the historical accounts, Muhammad, who had been facing Jerusalem, upon receiving this revelation, immediately turned around to face Mecca, and those praying behind him also did so.
[edit] Pilgrimage
The Haram is the focal point of the hajj and umrah pilgrimages that occur in the month of Dhu al-Hijjah in the Islamic calendar and at any time of the year, respectively. The Hajj pilgrimage is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, required of all able-bodied Muslims who can afford the trip. In recent times, about 3 million Muslims perform the hajj every year.
[edit] Architecture
[edit] Kaaba
Literally, Kaaba in Arabic means square house. The word Kaaba may also be derivative of a word meaning a cube.
Some of these other names include:
- Al-Bait ul Ateeq which, according to one interpretation, means the earliest and ancient. According to another interpretation, it means independent and liberating.
- Al-Bayt ul Haram which may be translated as 'the honorable house'.
The whole building is constructed out of the layers of gray blue stone from the hills surrounding Mecca. The four corners roughly face the four points of the compass. In the eastern corner is the Rukn-al-Aswad (the Black Stone), at the northern corner lies the Rukn-al-Iraqi ('The Iraqi corner', at the west lies Rukn-al-Shami ('The Syrian corner') and at the south Rukn-al-Yamani ('The Yemeni corner'). The four walls are covered with a curtain (Kiswa). The kiswa is usually of black brocade with the Shahada outlined in the weave of the fabric. About two-thirds of the way up runs a gold embroidered band covered with Qur'anic text.
[edit] Courtyard
This is around the Kaaba and worshippers use this space to perform tawaf and salah.
[edit] Mosque
Initially, the mosque was much smaller than it is today but, over time, it has been gradually expanded. Under the Ottomans it grew to roughly the size of the current courtyard. Great expansion work has taken place under the Saudi government along with modernization of architecture. The mosque was transformed into a place of epic proportions, being able to house one million worshippers during the Hajj.It has also been outfitted with modern conveniences such as air conditioners and escalators, of which can transport 100,000 people per hour. The outside of the current mosque has a splendid marble facade, and it has three stories, each of which can hold thousands of worshippers.
[edit] Imams and muezzin
Imams at Haram Sharif are:
- His Eminence Sheikh Dr.Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais (Arabic:عبد الرحمن السديس)
- His Eminence Sheikh Dr.Saud Al-Shuraim (Arabic:سعود الشريم)
- His Eminence Sheikh Salih Al-Talib (Arabic:صالح الطالب)
- His Eminence Sheikh Muhammed Al-Subayyil (Arabic:محمد السبيل)
- His Eminence Sheikh Osama Khayyat (Arabic:أسامة خياط)
- His Eminence Sheikh Dr. Salih bin Humaid (Arabic:صالح بن حميد)[citation needed]
- His Eminence Sheikh Salah Al Budair (Arabic:صلاح البدير) (from 2005 during Ramadhan for taraweeh prayers)
- His Eminence Sheikh Abdullah Awad Al Johany (Arabic:عبدالله الجهني) (from 2005 during Ramadhan for taraweeh prayers)
Muezzins at the Haram Sharif include:
- Sheikh Mohammad Farouk (Arabic:محمد فاروق), Muezzin of Masjid al-Haram and Masjid Namirah, on the day of Arafah.
- Sheikh Mohammed Shaker Muezzin (Arabic:محمد مؤذن).
- Sheikh Ahmed Raiyes (Arabic:أحمد ريس)
- Sheikh Ali Ahmed Mullah (Arabic:على أحمد ملا)
- Sheikh Majid Ibrahim Abbas (Arabic:ماجد ابراهيم عباس)
Former Imams include:
- The Late Sheikh Ali Bin Jabir (Arabic:على بن جابر)
- The Late Sheikh Umar Al-Subayyil (Arabic:عمر السبيل) (son of Muhummad Al-Subayyil)
- His Eminence Sheikh Ali Al-Huthaify (Arabic:على الحذيفي) (Presently Imam of Medina) (For taraweeh)
- His Eminence Sheikh Abdulbari Al-Thubaity (Arabic:عبد الباري الثبيتي) (Presently Imam of Medina) (For taraweeh)
[edit] See also
- Masjid al Nabawi
- H-R-M
- Islamic architecture
- List of famous mosques
- List of buildings
- Mecca
- Medina
- Grand Mosque Seizure - the 1979 seizure of and attack on the Masjid al-Haram
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- 3D Kabah has some computer generated images and clickable panoramic views of parts of the Masjid al-Haram.
- Google Maps Masjid al Haram on Google Maps
- QiblaLocator.com can find the direction of the ka'bah from anywhere in the world.
- Great Mosque of al-Haram
