Mecca is the name of a city in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Mecca is the holiest city in Islam due to the location of the Kaaba, the Qibla of Muslims. This city is the birthplace of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the place of his mission. In this article we introduce you places to visit in Mecca.
During the pilgrimage to Mecca, pilgrims hike for about an hour to visit the Hara cave. When they reach the cave, they see a beautiful and attractive view of the city of Mecca in front of them. The view overlooking the city, along with the spiritual background of this place, has made Hara Cave the most popular place for pilgrims after the Kaaba. Mecca pilgrims consider sunset or sunrise to be the best time to visit Hara cave.
Places to visit in Mecca: Kaaba
The House of Kaaba or the House of God is a building in the middle of the Grand Mosque in the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The Kaaba is the holiest place in Islam. The name Kaaba refers to the cube shape of this structure. In the Quran, the holy book of Muslims, it is mentioned that the building of the Kaaba was rebuilt by the hands of Prophet Abraham and his son Ismail. God’s house was built before Abraham and its first builder is Adam.
A mosque called Masjid al-Haram has been built on the side of the Kaaba.
Places inside the Haram Mosque and the Kaaba
Pillars of the Kaaba: Each of the four corners of the Kaaba is called a pillar, and the Kaaba is built on four pillars, which are:
- black corner
- Iraqi column
- Shami corner
- Yemeni pillar
Yemeni pillar: It is located before the black pillar.
read also: 7 Wonderful Places to Visit in Medina You Should See
Places to visit in Mecca: Black stone:
One of the places to visit in Mecca is a black heavenly stone that was installed by the Prophet of Islam before the door of the Kaaba in the black column and it is the starting point of the Hajj going-about (tawaf).
Kaaba door:
During the time of Prophet Abrahim, two gates without doors, at the same level as the ground, were opened for the Kaaba.
During the Prophet’s youth, when the Kaaba was rebuilt, for the first time, a wooden door was installed by Quraysh tribe for the Kaaba, in the current place that is above the ground.
The last door of the Kaaba, which is made of teak wood and pure silver and decorated with gold and jewels, was replaced during the Saudi era.
Valley of Abi Talib
One of the places to visit in Mecca is Valley of Abi Talib also know as She’b Abi talib. It is important because its historical background.
Valley of Abi Talib is a valley between the two mountains of Abu Qabis and Khandama in Mecca, where the Prophet of Islam and his followers were under economic siege by their opponents for three years from the first of Muharram in the seventh year before the Hijra, and they went through very difficult conditions.
Places to visit in Mecca: Mount Safa and Marwa
Mount Safa and Marwa are two hills on the eastern side of the Sacred Mosque. The distance between these two mountains is called Masai (place for Sa’y, place for running and effort, and it is the place to perform one of the rituals of Hajj and Umrah called Sai or Sa’y. Sa’y meaning running and effort and searching for something. According to historical reports, Mount Safa and Marwa is the place where Hagar used to search for water for Ismail.
Mount Safa was the starting point of the public invitation of the Prophet of Islam (PBUH). Also, on the day of the conquest of Mecca, the Prophet went over it and gave the good news of the conquest of the Muslims to the people. The names of these two mountains are mentioned once in the Quran, and in the Islamic traditions about the reason for naming them, commemorating them as one of the Islamic rituals. It is considered to have great reward of to do the ritual between these two hills.
Thour mountain and cave
Mount Thour is a mountain bigger than Mount Hara, which is located in the southeast of Masjid al-Haram and further away from Mecca. When the pagans of Mecca wanted to kill the Prophet of God (PBUH), he left the city and went to the cave of Thour. He went and hid in it for three days. By God’s miracle, the spiders wove webs on the cave entrance to dissuade the pagans who were chasing the Prophet from entering it. They concluded when there is a spider web on entry of cave, it is impossible that someone is hid in it and they left the cave. Thus, prophet is rescued by miracle of God.
Arafat
It is a desert with a length of 12 kilometers by six and a half kilometers, at a distance of 21 kilometers north of Mecca, on the road to Taif, in the northern direction of this plain, there is a mountain called Jabal al-Rahma or Jabal Arafat, Arafat desert has been planted with trees in these years. Every Hajj must stand in this desert from noon on the 9th day of Dhul Hijjah month until the religious sunset of that day.
Mena
It is a valley with a width of approximately seven hundred meters and a length of two and a half kilometers. Pilgrims must stay there from sunrise on the 10th day until noon on the 12th day, except for the hours when they are allowed to leave. and they have mentioned a label for each one
Hajar Ismail (Ismail’s stone):
It is a semi-circle that includes from the Iraqi corner to the Shami corner. Hagar and Ishmael and about seventy prophets are buried in this place.
Places to visit in Mecca: Gold gutter:
It is located on top of stone of Ismail and on the roof of the Kaaba.
Ibrahim’s position:
It is a stone with a length and width of 40 centimeters, on which the foot of Abraham can be seen, and it is located in front of the door of the Kaaba.
After the obligatory Tawaf (going-around), the pilgrims should perform two rak’ahs (bowing) of the Tawaf prayer behind Ibrahim’s position.
Women going-around prayer or Tawaf Nissa prayer is also recited behind Maqam Ibrahim.
Hateem: The area between the black stone and Zamzam spring, and position of Ibrahim and a part of stone of Ismail is called Hateem. About a hundred prophets including Adam, Noah, Salih, Isaac, Joseph and Shoaib (Jethro) are buried in this place, and the curse of the oppressed on the oppressors is done here.
Zamzam Well: It is located in the underground near Maqam Ibrahim and 18 meters from the Kaaba, and its water is delivered to the pilgrims by a pump through a pipeline.
Previously, pilgrims could enter the Zamzam well from the stairs inside the courtyard of the Grand Mosque, but now this place is closed to pilgrims.
Muslim people consider drinking water of zamzam as sacred with healing effect.
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