Important Cities Of Islam

Mecca - The Holiest City In Islam

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 kilometers east of Jiddah, 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 fulfillment of one of the Five Pillars of Islam.

The Religious Significance Of Mecca

The importance of Mecca for Muslims is inestimable. All Muslims, wherever they are on Earth, pray five times a day in the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca (located at 21° 25' 24" N and 39° 49' 24" E in DMS notation). The direction of prayer is known as the qibla.

In addition, a pilgrimage to Mecca is required of every Muslim who can afford it as one of the Five Pillars of the faith. Every year about three million gather for the major pilgrimage, or Hajj, during the Muslim month of Dhu'l-Hijja, and many more perform the minor pilgrimage, or Umrah, at various times throughout the year.

Few non-Muslims have ever seen the rites and rituals of the Hajj, as non-Muslims are strictly prohibited from entering Mecca and Medina. Roadblocks are stationed along roads leading to the city. The most famous incident of a non-Muslim visiting Mecca was the visit by the British explorer Sir Richard Burton in 1853. Burton disguised himself as an Afghani Muslim to visit and write Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al Madinah and Mecca.

The focal point of Mecca is the Kaaba, the "House of God" believed by Muslims to have been built by Abraham and his son Ishmael, and which is covered in a gold-embroidered black fabric. Pilgrims circle the Kaaba seven times and may also try to touch or kiss its cornerstone, the Black Stone. Pilgrims may drink from the well of Zamzam. Its water of Zamzam is believed to have special properties. Few pilgrims return from the Hajj without a large plastic bottle of Zamzam water.

During the Hajj pilgrims travel to Mina, a small village, where the Devil, symbolised by stone columns, is ritually stoned. They then proceed to the hill Arafat (sometimes called a mountain, but with a height of only 70 m), a site for prayers, where Muhammad is believed to have delivered his final sermon.

The Masjid al Haram (Sacred Mosque) is for Muslims the holiest mosque on Earth. Both the mosque and the city itself are strictly off limits to non-Muslims.

Medina - City Of The Prophet(Peace be upon him)

The second holiest site in Islam is Medina (or Medinah), the "City of the Prophet," is in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia. It was to Medina city that Muhammad fled when he was initially driven out of Mecca, and the place where he attracted his first followers. Medina currently has a population of about 600,000 people and is the home of "The Prophet's Mosque."

The long form of the Arabic name for Medina (Madinat Rasul Allah) means "City of the 

Prophet of Allah", while theshort form (al-Madina) just means "the City". Muslims always add salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam ("peace be upon him") after mentioning the Prophet Muhammad, so the full form of the name is commonly given as "Madinat Rasul Allah salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam."

Medina is the second holy city of Islam, after Mecca. Its importance as a religious site derives from the presencethere of the Masjid al Nabawi, the Mosque of the Prophet, which was built on the site of Muhammad's home and is where he is buried. The first mosque of Islam is also located in Medinah and is known as Masjid al-Quba, the Quba Mosque.

In 622, Medina became the seat of Muhammad's growing movement after the Hijra. In 622 Muhammad was invited to come and live in Yathrib (the old name of Medina) and act as a sort of governor. Medina in those times was a divided city. Different clans and religions were eternally quarrelling and bickering and Muhammad brought unity to the city. All parties agreed to a pact drawn up by Muhammad and his followers. He invited all people in the city to follow the new religion of Islam. However, he had trouble convincing the Jewish population (which was actually quite large) that Islam was the true version of Judaism.

In the ten years following the Hijra, Medina formed the base from which Muhammad attacked and was attacked and it was from here that he marched on Makkah, becoming its ruler without battle. Even when Islamic rule was established Medina remained for some years the most important city of Islam and the de facto capital of the Caliphate.

Under the first four Caliphs, known as the Righteous Caliphs, the Islamic empire expanded rapidly and came to include centres of learning such as Jerusalem, Ctesiphon, and Damascus. After the death of Ali, the fourth caliph, Mu'awiyya transferred the capital to Damascus and the importance of Medina dwindled and became of a religious more than a political nature.

In 1924 the city, which had been in Ottoman hands for centuries, fell to Ibn Saud, whose empire later became Saudi Arabia.

Jerusalem

The third most sacred city in Islam is Jerusalem, which was the original qibla (direction of prayer) before it was changed to Mecca. Jerusalem is revered because, in Muslim tradition, Muhammad miraculously traveled to Jerusalem by night and ascended from there into heaven. The two most important Muslim sites in Jerusalem are the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The most notable Muslim site in Jerusalem is the Dome of the Rock (Qubbat as-Sakhrah), which, like the Ka'ba, is built over a sacred stone. This stone is holy to Jews as well, who believe it to be the site at which Abraham prepared to sacrifice Isaac (Muslims place this event in Mecca

.

A prominent figure on the Jerusalem skyline, the shining Dome of the Rock was built from 685 to 691 CE as a shrine for pilgrims.Its base is octagonal in shape and its outer walls are 60 feet high.

The wooden dome that rests upon columns within the building is approximately 60 feet in diameter. Both the outer walls and the dome have many windows. Much of the mosaic, faience (tin-glazed earthenware), and marble that gives it its sparkle was added centuries after it was built.

In the Middle Ages, Christians and Muslims both believed the dome to be the biblical Temple of Solomon. The Knights Templars made their headquarters there during the Crusades, and later patterned their churches after its design. 

The Al-Aqsa Mosque (Arabic Masjid Al-Aqsa, "farthest mosque") is part of the complex of religious buildings in Jerusalem known as either the Majed Mount or Al-Haram ash-Sharif (the Noble Sanctuary) to Muslims and theTemple Mount to Jews.

Al Aqsa Mosque, Jerusalem

Muslim tradition states that Muhammad ascended to heaven from the Mount in 621, making the mosque the third most holy shrine in Islam (see Isra and Miraj.)

After the Dome of the Rock (690) the first wooden Al-Aqsa Mosque was constructed by the Umayyads, completed in 710. The structure has been rebuilt at least five times; it was entirely destroyed at least once by earthquakes. The last major rebuild was in 1035.

The Al-Aqsa Mosque is the largest mosque in Jerusalem; about 5,000 people can worship in and around the mosque. It shows a mixture of styles including Crusader work from when the Crusaders held Jerusalem, during which the mosque was used as a palace and called the Temple of Solomon, in the belief that the mosque was built on the site of the original temple. Al-Aqsa has been at times the target of attacks by Jewish extremists, but most attempts were averted by Israel's security services.

Since part of the mosque's extended surrounding wall is the Western Wall venerated by Jews, this relatively tiny spot in Jerusalem can become the source of friction. There have been times when enraged Muslims worshiping at the mosque have hurled rocks downward at the Jews praying below at the Western Wall. A group of Jews known as the Temple Mount Faithful actually have plans to rebuild the ancient Jewish Temple in that area.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades is named after the mosque, probably in memory of Ariel Sharon's controversial visit to the Temple Mount at the beginning of the Second Intifada (also known as the al-Aqsa Intifada).

Karbala - Holy City Of Shi'a Islam

Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about 100 km southwest of Baghdad at 32.61°N, 44.08°E. The capital of Al Karbala Province, the city of Karbala had an estimated population in 2003 of 572,300 people. Shi'a Muslims consider Karbala to be one of the holiest places in the world, second only to Mecca and Najaf.

Karbala Today

Karbala is one of Iraq's wealthiest cities, profiting both from religious visitors and its agricultural produce, especially dates. It is split into two districts, "Old Karbala", the religious centre, and "New Karbala", the residential district containing Islamic schools and government buildings.

Shrine of Husain, Karbala

At the centre of the old city is the Mashad al-Husain, the tomb of Husayn bin Ali, the grandson of the ProphetMuhammad by his daughter Fatima and Ali ibn Abi Talib.

Husain's tomb is a place of pilgrimage for many Shi'a Muslims, especially on Ashura. Many elderly pilgrims travel there to await death, as they believe the tomb to be one of the gates to paradise.

Another focal point of the Shi'a pilgrimage to Karbala is al-Makhayam, traditionally believed to be the location of Husain's camp, where the martyrdom of Husain and his followers is publicly commemorated. The city's association with Shi'a Islam have made it a centre of religious instruction as well as worship; it has more than 100 mosques and 23 religious schools, of which possibly the most famous is that of Ibn Fahid, constructed some 440 years ago.

History of Karbala

The city is extremely ancient – its name is variously said to be derived from Assyrian, Babylonian or Persian roots and it was in use as a Christian graveyard prior to the Islamic conquest.

Karbala's prominence in Shi'a Islam is the result of the Battle of Karbala, fought on the site of the modern city on the 10th of Muharram in 61 A.H. (October 10, 680). Both Husain and his brother Abbas were buried by the local Bani Asad tribe at what later became known as the Mashad al-Husain. The city grew up around the tombs, though the date of construction of the first sanctuary is not known.

The Mashad al-Husain, Karbala

The city and tombs were greatly expanded by successive Muslim rulers, but suffered repeated destruction from attacking armies. The original shrine was destroyed by the Abbasid Caliph al-Mutawakkil in 235 A.H. (850) but was rebuilt in its present form around 369 A.H. (979), only to be partly destroyed by fire in 1086 and rebuilt yet again. Like Najaf, the city suffered from severe water shortages which were only resolved in the early 18th century by building a dam at the head of the Husayniyya canal. In 1737 the city replaced Isfahan in Iran as the main centre of Shi'ascholarship. It suffered severe damage in 1801 when an invading Wahhabi army sacked the city. Following the Wahhabi invasion, the city's sheikhs established a self-governing republic which was ended by a reimposition of Ottoman rule in 1843. This prompted many students and scholars to move to Najaf, which became the main Shi'a religious centre.

Karbala's development was strongly influenced by the Persians, who were the dominant community for many years (making up 75% of the city's population by the early 20th century). The Kammuna family, relatives of the Shah of Iran, were custodians of the shrines for many years and effectively ran the city until it fell under the control of the British Empire in 1915. The Persian influence was deliberately reduced under British rule, with a series of nationality laws (such as a prohibition on foreigners occupying government posts) being introduced to squeeze out the Persian community. By 1957, they accounted for only 12% of the city's population. They were subsequently assimilated into the Iraqi population, accepting Iraqi nationality.

The association of the city with Shi'a religious traditions led to it being treated with suspicion by Iraq's Sunni rulers. Under Saddam Hussein's rule, Shi'a religious observances in the city were greatly restricted and many non-Iraqi Shi'as were not permitted to travel there at all. In 1991, the city was badly damaged and many killed when a rebellion by local Shi'as was put down with great brutality by Saddam's regime. The 2004 pilgrimage was the largest for decades, with over a million people attending. It was marred by bomb attacks on March 2, 2004 (10 Muharram 1425 A.H.), now known as the Ashoura Massacre, which killed and wounded hundreds despite tight security in the city.

Najaf - Holy City Of Shi'a Islam

Najaf is a city in Iraq, about 160 km south of Baghdad, located at 31.99°N 44.33°E. The capital of Najaf province, the city of Najaf had an estimated population in 2003 of 585,600 people. Najaf is one of the holiest cities in Shi'a Islam and is the center of Shi'a political power in Iraq.

Najaf's Religious Significance

Najaf is renowned as the site of the tomb of Ali ibn Abi Talib (also known as Imam Ali), who the Shi'a consider to be their founder and first Imam (some believe he is buried at Mazar-e Sharif in Afghanistan). The city is now a great center of pilgrimage from throughout the Islamic world. Only Mecca and Medina receive more Muslim pilgrims.

The Meshed Ali (Tomb of Ali) is housed in a grand structure with a gilded dome and many precious objects in the walls. Nearby is the Wadi-us-Salaam (Valley of Peace), claimed to be the largest cemetery in the Muslim world

The Meshed Ali, an important shrine in Najaf

(and possibly the largest in the entire world), containing the tombs of several other prophets. Many of the devout from other landsaspire to be buried here, to be raise from the dead with Imam Ali on Judgement Day.

Over the centuries, numerous hospices, schools, libraries and Sufi convents were built around the shrine to make the city the centre of Shi'a learning and theology. Many of these were badly damaged during the rule of Saddam Hussein, with a highway being driven through the middle of the Wadi-us-Salaam.

Many great Shia scholars, both ancient and modern (such as Allameh Tabatabaei, Ayatollah Khomeini, and Ayatollah Sistani), have studied in Najaf. Najaf, Iraq and Qom, Iran, are considered the centers of the Shia schools of faith.

History of Najaf

The Najaf area was situated near the Sassanid city of Suristan and at the time of the Sassanids was a part of the Middle Bih-Kavad province of Persia. The city itself was reputedly founded in 791 (178 A.H.) by the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid. Under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, Najaf experienced severe difficulties as the result of repeated raids by Arab desert tribes and acute water shortages caused by the lack of a reliable water supply. The number of inhabited houses in the city had plummeted from 3,000 to just 30 by the start of the 16th century. The city was besieged by the Wahhabis in the late 18th century. The water shortages were finally resolved in 1803 with the construction of the Hindiyya canal, following which the city's population rapidly doubled from 30,000 to 60,000. Even so, Najaf lost its religious primacy to the Iranian city of Qom in the 19th century and was not to regain it until the late 20th century.

The Ottomans were expelled in an uprising in 1915, following which the city fell under the rule of the British Empire. The sheikhs of Najaf rebelled in 1918, killing the British governor of the city and cutting off grain supplies to the Anaza, a tribe allied with the British. In retaliation the British besieged the city and cut off its water supply. The rebellion was put down and the rule of the sheikhs was forcibly ended.

Najaf under Saddam Hussein

Because of the common religious affinities between Iraq's Shi'a majority and the Iranians, Najaf was regarded with suspicion by the Sunni-dominated regime of Saddam Hussein, which severely restricted Shi'a religious activities. A mass revolt broke out at the end of the Gulf War in 1991, which was put down by the Iraqi military with considerable brutality and damage to the city. Much of the damage was repaired fairly quickly but great resentment against Saddam's regime lingered for a long time afterwards.

In February 1999, Najaf's most senior cleric, Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr, was murdered along with his two sons - the third killing of clerics in the city in less than a year. Although the Iraqi government claimed to have caught and executed the supposed killers, all Sh'ia, one of whom was actually in prison at the time, many opposition figures and ordinary Shi'as blamed the killings on Saddam's regime, which was said to be systematically attempting to suppress independent voices in the Shi'a community. Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani succeeded al-Sadr as the city's most senior cleric, but one of his surviving sons, Moqtada al-Sadr, has assumed a prominent political role despite his relative paucity of formal theological credentials.

Najaf after Saddam

During the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Najaf was a key target of the invading United States forces. The city was encircled during heavy fighting on March 26, 2003 but the Americans declined to storm it, apparently fearing the political consequences of damage to Najaf's shrines. In the event, it surrendered peacefully about ten days later around the time of the fall of Baghdad.

The clerical authorities of the Shiite enclave of Saddam City in Baghdad, which claimed autonomy in April 2003 after the fall of Baghdad, claimed to be taking their orders from senior Shiite clerics in Najaf.

On August 29, 2003 a car bomb exploded during prayers outside the Imam Ali Mosque, just as weekly prayers were ending. More than 80 people were killed, including the influential cleric Ayatollah Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, the Shiite leader of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI). Dozens of others were injured. Nobody claimed responsibility for the attack - Saddam himself, in hiding at the time, denied any involvement in a taped message. It was widely reported in the U.S. media that al-Qaida terrorists were possibly to blame but the murder was later blamed by the U.S. on followers of the radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who was allegedly engaged in a power struggle with the al-Hakim faction at the time.

During April-May 2004, fighting broke out in Najaf between U.S. forces and the al-Mahdi Army of al-Sadr, which launched a coordinated uprising across central and southern Iraq in an apparent attempt to seize control of the country ahead of the June 30, 2004 handover of power to a new Iraqi government. The situation aroused grave concerns among the Shi'a community of Iraq and Iran, as firefights took place within yards of the main shrines, which suffered superficial damage in the process.

In August 2004, fighting broke out again between American troops and al-Sadr supporters. The battle, which was mostly centered around Wadi al-Salam cemetery, lasted three weeks and ended when senior Iraqi cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani negotiated an end to the fighting. Hundreds of Mahdi Army guerrillas were killed and considerable damage was infliected on the old town and cemetery. The main shrines again suffered only superficial damage.Reference:

Refrence:

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