The History of Makkah The foundation of Islam is important for everyone to understand whether one is religious or not. Mecca or Makkah, is the historical and geographical epicenter of Islam. All practicing Muslims, everywhere in the world, prostrate themselves toward the Kaaba in Mecca five times a day. Every Muslim is obliged to travel to Mecca, and perform the Islamic ritual of the Hajjat least once in their lifetime, because it is the “fifth pillar” of Islam. Islamic tradition teaches that the Kaaba, around which Islam revolves, is located in the center of the world and was the first temple on earth. Islamic tradition further holds that it was built by Adam (Adem) and later rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael (Ibrahim, Ismail). Mecca is famous worldwide for its religiosity. Mecca’s History is full of wonderful incidents. Being the most holy site of the Islamic people the city of Mecca is steeped in exciting history. The city in the ancient era was a major trade hub. There was also a shrine which was worshipped by the people of the city. The building of the Masjid Al Haram was constructed by Abraham who stands upright bearing the evidence of the various events which took place in the city. The Quran says that the city of Mecca was attacked by the Ethiopians in the year when Muhammad was born. History of Mecca says that before the emergence of Muhammad the city was under the rule of Banu Querish. Muhammed was banished by him for his libertarian religious preaching. But soon after the great prophet returned to this city and devoted the Kaaba or the cubicle mansion to the Muslims, who were his followers.( Francis,1994) The most sacred place in Islam is the Ka’ba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The Ka’ba is a mosque (built by Abraham according to Muslim tradition) built around a black stone. The Prophet Muhammad designated Mecca as the holy city of Islam and the direction (qibla) in which all Muslims should offer their prayers. The Ka’ba is believed to be the first place that was created on earth and the place at which heavenly bliss and power touches the earth directly. Mecca is located in the Hijaz region of western Saudi Arabia. The city lies inland 73 kilometres east of Jeddah, in the narrow, sandy Valley of Abraham. The Holy City is 277 meters (909 feet) above sea level. Each year, thousands of Muslims from around the world join in a pilgrimage to Mecca (the hajj), in fulfilment of one of the Five Pillars of Islam. Slowly with the rise of Islamic reign in the world Mecca was started to be considered as the most sacramental site of the Muslims. People began to flock in the city in huge number and gradually Mecca was filled with pilgrims from across the world.Surprisingly though Mecca was one of the crucial cities of the Islamic empire , it was never a capital of any of the major Islamic ruler. The city is totally devoid of any political history as it was always steeped in dedication and erudition. Mecca before Islam The town of Mecca, in a rocky valley with no agricultural resources, develops in the centuries immediately preceding Islam into a place of considerable prosperity. There are two good reasons. It is a trading post on the caravan route from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean. And it has become Arabia’s most important place of pilgrimage. By at least the 4th century AD large numbers of pilgrims arrive in Mecca to perform a ritual act of walking seven times round a small square building known as the Ka’ba(Arabic for ‘cube’). The building is full of idols, which are the objects of worship. It also includes a sacred black stone, possibly in origin a meteorite. (Hamidullah) Mecca and Muhammad A child, Muhammad, is born in a merchant family in Mecca. His clan is prosperous and influential, but his father dies before he is born and his mother dies when the boy is only six. Entrusted to a Bedouin nurse, Muhammad spends much of his childhood among nomads, accompanying the caravans on Arabia’s main trade route through Mecca. It is on Mount Hira, according to tradition, that the archangel Gabriel appears to Muhammad. Muhammad describes later how he seemed to be grasped by the throat by a luminous being, who commanded him to repeat the words of God.From about 613 Muhammad preaches in Mecca the message which he has received. When Muhammad reveals his message from God, he meets increasing hostility from the traders of Mecca. He is preaching one God. They are making their living from a profusion of idols. Eventually, in 622, there is a plot to assassinate him. He escapes with his followers to the town of Medina, about 300 kilometers to the north. (Edward, 1913) The Kaaba The Kaaba in Mecca, in Saudi Arabia, and is the most sacred site in Islam. The building predates Islam, and, according to Islamic tradition, the first building at the site was built by Ibrahim. The building has a mosque built around it, the Masjid al-Haram. All Muslims around the world face the Kaaba during prayers, no matter where they are. One of the Five Pillars of Islam requires every Muslim to perform the Hajj pilgrimage at least once in his or her lifetime if they are able to do so. Multiple parts of the Hajj require pilgrims to walk seven times around the Kaaba in a counter-clockwise direction (as viewed from above). This circumambulation, the Tawaf, is also performed by pilgrims during the Umrah (lesser pilgrimage). However, the most dramatic times are during the Hajj, when about three million (officially) pilgrims simultaneously gather to circle the building on the same day. The Kaaba is a large masonry structure roughly the shape of a cube. It is made of granite from the hills near Mecca, and stands upon a 25 cm (10 in) marble base, which projects outwards about 35 cm (14 in). It is approximately 13.1 m (43 ft) high, with sides measuring 11.03 m (36.2 ft) by 12.86 m (42.2 ft). The four corners of the Kaaba roughly point toward the four doors of the school and cardinal directions of the compass. In the eastern corner of the Kaaba is the Ruknu l-Aswad “the Black Corner”" or al-Hajaru l-Aswad “the Black Stone“. At the northern corner is the Ruknu l-Iraqi “the Iraqi corner”. The western corner is the Ruknu sh-Shami “the Levantine corner” and the southern is Ruknu l-Yamani “the Yemeni corner”.(Peters, 1995) The Kaaba is covered by a black silk and gold curtain known as the kiswah, which is replaced annually. About two-thirds of the way up runs a band of gold-embroidered calligraphy with Qur’anic text, including the Islamic declaration of faith, the Shahada.. The Muslims and Mecca Relations with Mecca deteriorate to the point of pitched battles between the two sides, with Muhammad leading his troops in the field. But in the end it is his diplomacy which wins the day. He persuades the Meccans to allow his followers back into the city, in 629, to make a pilgrimage to the Ka’ba and the Black Stone. On this first Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, Muhammad’s followers impress the local citizens both by their show of strength and by their self-control, departing peacefully after the agreed three days. But the following year the Meccans break a truce, provoking the Muslims to march on the city. They take Mecca almost without resistance. The inhabitants accept Islam. And Muhammad sweeps the idols out of the Ka’ba, leaving only the sacred Black Stone. An important element in Mecca’s peaceful acceptance of the change has been Muhammad’s promise that pilgrimage to the Ka’bawill remain a central feature of the new religion. So Mecca becomes, as it has remained ever since, the holy city of Islam. And Muslim tradition locates in Mecca many of the events described first in the biblical book of Genesis The preaching of Muhammad and the founding of Islam turn Mecca from a local place of pilgrimage to one of world-wide significance – though only Muslims are allowed to enter the city. Where pagan pilgrims once walked seven times round aKa’ba filled with idols, Muslims now walk seven times round the same Ka’ba – but empty now, and sacred to the one God). The Ka’ba is not only the central shrine of Islam, and the focus of every pilgrimage to Mecca. It has also been, since Muhammad’s time, the place towards which all Muslims turn when praying
Posted on: Wed, 31 Jul 2013 16:51:20 +0000
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