Makkah -e-Mo-azzamah

the sacred city of Makkah-e-Mo-azzamah is the Chief city of Hijaaz (now under Saudi Empire) Whare lies the holy house of Allah, known as kaabah, or Baitul-lah. It is the center of the Muslim world and the focus of holiness and guidance for the whole of the world as described in Quranic surat Aal-e-Imran Verse No 96 and 97. It is the greatest place of pilgrimage, visited by more than a million Muslim pilgrims from all corners of the world in the month of Haj and Ramadhan. Besides thousands of pilgrims also visit daily to perform Umrah. It has various other names such as Baladul Amin, Al-Qaryah, Ummul-Quraa, ma-‘add, and al-wadi, etc. in Quran.

Makkah -e-Mo-azzamah is also the birthplace of Hazrath Rasool-e-Kareem At Makkah one pious act is equivalent to one lakh pious acts.

For example, one Rakaat of Namaz ( Salaat ) here is equivalent to one lakh Rakaat, similarly one day’s fasting hear is equivalent to one lakh days fasting, and so on.

Kaabah

Kaaba, the sacred House of Allah is stated to be built first by the angels, then by Hazrath Adam Sheeth, Ibrahim, and later on it was rebuilt and repaired by the Amaalquan, the jurham, Qusai ibn-e-kilaab. The Quraish and Abdullah Ibn-e-Zubair the existing building of Kaabah of today was Rebuilt by Hajjaaj bin yusuf saquafi in year (3) Hijri its repeated construction and repairs were due to wars and natural disasters.

From year (2) Hijri our beloved Rasool-e-Akram started Performing Namaaz facing towards kaabah declaring it as Quibla Perpetually.

Kaaba is a cubic shape of structure located in the center of Masjid-e-Haraam within an open arena called mataaf.

Kaabah has four corners called Rukn-e-Aswad, Rukn-e-Iraaqi, Rukn-e-Shaami and Rukn-e-Yamani. The building of Kaabah consists of Hajar-e Aswad, fixed at Rukn-e-Aswad, and by its side the door of Kaabah and a golden pipe in the roof called Meezab-e-Rahmath for the outlet of the roof water. Adjacent to the cubic ground of kaabah northwards, there is an arch-like semi-circle area called Hateem or Hajar-e-Ismail. The building of Masjid-e-Haraam around Kaabah has so many entrances including vast.

door by name Babul Fatah, Babul Umrah, Babul–Malik Abdul Aziz, and Babul-Malik Fahad each dore with two Minars (Towers ) and one Minar With Babus -Safaa thus a total of nine Minars. Haram extension work is in progress and one bigger door is likely to be added.

Hajar-e Aswad

The stone. Black in color, enclosed in a silver frame of elliptical shape, which is fixed in the wall of kaabah, and by kissing it or doing Istilaam, the Tawaf commences and also terminates there only.

This auspicious stone is one of the heavenly rubies. Huzur-e- Akram disclosed that Hajar-e- Aswad was milk white when it was brought over to earth: but subsequently after absorbing the blackness of Men’s sing, it turned to be black. Also, on doomsday, it will have two eyes that will see and a tongue that will speak, and it will give evidence about the person who has kissed it sincerely.

NB: In the beginning, Hajar-e-Aswad was a solid stone but now it is in eight pieces of different sizes fixed together.

Maquam-e-Ibrahim

This is also a stone brought from heaven, standing on which Hazrath Ibrahim has constructed Kaabah‘s building During construction this stone had an elasticity and was used to lift as high as Ibrahim wished. Ultimately it shrank to its original height with the footprints of Ibrahim automatically engraved in the stone. Even today those foot- impressions of Ibrahim may be seen clearly as his miracle.

At present it is preserved in a hexagonal transparent crystal case kept at 14 meters from Rukn-e-Shami. After completing each Tawaaf, one has to perform two Rakaat Wajibut-Tawaaf near it. Quran has mentioned about Maquma-e-Ibrahim in two places i.e. Surat-e-Baquara Verse no.125 and Surat-e-Aal-Imran verse no 97.

Zam-zam

It is a spring that flew over a spot known in Mataaf as a fountain when infant Ismail rubbed his heels restlessly due to thirst. At present the spring of Zam-zam is enclosed underground for making Tawaad easier. But zam – zam water is stored in a building nearby and supplied through pipes and tankers wherever needed. Its great virtue and excellence are that twice on the occasions of the chest splitting of Rasool-e-Kareem his heart was washed and cleaned by zam-zam water. Also, once at the time of the victory of Makkah, Rasool-e-Akram took out one bucket-full of zam-zam water, took a sip in his mouth, spitted it in the bucket, and finally returned it in the spring. As a result, the miraculous capacity of zam-zam- is so much that the lakhs of pilgrims drink it, and carry it in barrels to their native places, even then it has neither exhausted nor dried up but continues to flow even today as previously.

An Egyptian Doctor after his chemical research has declared that zam-zam water contains various useful salt and minerals such as Magnesium sulfate sodium sulphate, and sodium chloride. Calcium Carbonate, Potassium Nitrate Sulphur, etc. make it unique and matchless in curing various diseases.

 Safa and Marwah

As mentioned in the holy Quran, prophet Ibrahim obeying the divine instruction of Allah carried away his second wife Bibi Hajirah along with their infant son Ismail and left them at a remote place in the open desert with no trace of the human population there and returned home after providing for them some date in a basket to eat and some water to drink in a leathern bottle. The dates and water Were sufficient only for a few days, after which the infant son with an empty stomach started crying for a third. The mother Bibi Hajira was running restlessly rather madly in search of water for her infant child. She made seven trips between two hillocks by name Safa and Marwah by mounting over their peaks to look for water but could not trace it. Suddenly she found a fountain at the spot where Ismail was rubbing his heels due to thirst. It was a diving reward to Bibi Hajira for her devotion to Allah with utmost patience and obedience to his command. In Surat-ul-Baquara verse no 158 of the Quran, Allah has declared these two mounts of Safa and Marwah as monumental emblems of Allah, where the holy city of Makkah was populated. Now every pilgrim coming for Umrah and Haj has to make seven trips between the two mounts just copying the actions of pious Bibi Hajirah, till the doomsday, the distance between Safa and Marwah is 394.5 meters.

Minaa

An open vast ground 8 Km from Haram-e- Sharif where prophet Ibrahim offered Haram-e-Sharif where prophet Ibrahim offered to sacrifice his beloved son Ismail vide divine instruction of Allah. His offer was accepted by Allah with a sacrifice of a goat in his place brought from heaven and Ismail survived alive. Following the same sunnah of Ibrahim millions of Muslim pilgrims offer animal sacrifice every year at Mina on the 10th Zilhijjah; also, crores of Muslims offer their animal sacrifice all over the world on the occasion of the Eidul-Azhaa festival annually. An auspicious mosque by the name Masjid-e-kha-yef is located in Mina only where our beloved Rasool e- Akram passed some days also in the past, (70) prophets have Performed their Namaaz and are buried in this mosque only. Even now during the auspicious days of Haj, numberless pilgrims stay for most of the time at Mina only in the tents erected there and perform most of the Haj rites here only.

Jamraath

There are three Stonic spots in Minaa are only where Shaytaan repeatedly tried to misguide and persuade Prophet Ibrahim to disobey the divine command of Allah while going to offer his son Ismail for sacrifice. But Ibrahim was adamant to obey Allah only by pelting stones at the Shaytaan at three spots. Following the sunnah of Ibrahim, every Haj Pilgrim pelts seven pebbles at each of the three spots simply copying the action of Ibrahim those three spots are called Jamraath or three shaytaans.

The Jamraath, which comes first while going from Haram-e-Shareef to Minaa is called Big Shaytaan, then comes middle Shaytaan and finally last one is called small Shaytaan. Big Shaytaan is stoned in all three days of 10th 11th and 12th Zilhijjah whereas middle and small Shaytaan are stoned only two days on 11th and 12th Zilhajjah.

Arfaat 

It is an open vast desert 22 kms from Haram-e-Shareef and 9 km from Minaa,

Demarcated over an area of nearly 20 sq. km, where staying at least for a while is a must for haj pilgrims on 9th Zilhijjah. Without which Haj Pilgrims on 9th Zilhijjah without which Haj is null and void. An Auspicious Mosque by the name Masjid-e-Namirah is located in Arafaat only where Imaam performs Zuhr and Asr Nammaaz jointly at Zuhr timing on 9th Zilhijiah.

While coming out from Heaven to the earth Hazrath Adam was separated from his wife named Saraandeep near India and his wife landed at Jeddah. After passing three centuries period Adam meet his wife and recognized her at Arafaat only.

An auspicious mount named Jabal-e-Rahmat is located in Arafaat only from where our beloved Rasoolullah had delivered a historic sermon of his Hajjatul-Wadaa ( last send-off Haj) amidst one lakh twenty-four thousand of his Sahabah ( Companions) on this occasion. Allah gave his prophet the good news of

(al-youma akmaltu lakum deenakum wa atmamtu alaikum niyamati wa razeetu lakumul-islama deenan)

Translation:

This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed my favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.

Muzdhalifah

Muzdhalifah is an open deserted ground occupying an area of 5 km, at a distance of about 3 km from Minaa towards the east within the boundary of Haram.

At its outskirt, a mountain by the name, “Madh-ar-e-Haraam” is located around which Huzoor Rasool-e-Akram had stayed and passed night time. The reference to this mountain is given in Quranic Suratul-Baquara Verse No.198. Hear Haj pilgrims stay the night between 9th and 10th Zilhijjah and perform here Maghrib and Isha Namaaz Jointly at the timing of Isha and pass the night in prayers. Pebbles to be pelted to Shaytaans over the next days are collected by Haj Pilgrims hear only.