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Hejaz is the region in the Arabian Peninsula where Mecca and Medina are located. It is where the Islamic prophet Muhammad was born and raised. [13]The two holy cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina, are traditionally known as the Ḥaramayn, which is the dual form of ḥaram, thus meaning "The Two Sanctuaries". [14]
According to Islamic tradition, Islam as a religion precedes Muhammad, [12] [13] [14] representing previous prophets such as Abraham. [15] According to Islamic scholars, Abraham is seen as having built the Kaaba in Mecca, and consequently its sanctuary, which according to the Muslim view is seen as the first mosque [16] that ever existed.
Mecca has been referred to by many names. As with many Arabic words, its etymology is obscure. [24] Widely believed to be a synonym for Makkah, it is said to be more specifically the early name for the valley located therein, while Muslim scholars generally use it to refer to the sacred area of the city that immediately surrounds and includes the Ka'bah.
Muslims do not worship the Kaaba, a cube-shaped structure that they consider the metaphorical house of God; it’s the focal point toward which devout Muslims face during their daily prayers from ...
More than 2 million people are expected to take part in this year's hajj, which means "pilgrimage."
A camel caravan traveling to Mecca for the annual pilgrimage, c. 1910. The pilgrimage to Mecca is attested in some pre-Islamic Arabic poetry.Compared to Islamic-era poetry where the Hajj appears ubiquitously, only a small number of references are found to it in pre-Islamic poetry, indicating that its Arabian centrality was a development of Islamic times. [5]
They came in the dark of night, in the thousands, to clamber up the rocky hill called Mount Arafat. The mound southeast of Mecca is little known outside Islam. For non-Muslims, the circling of the ...
During that time, Mecca was occupied by Arab Pagans who used to worship idols inside Mecca. [2] [3] Unlike the Hajj, which has set dates, the Umrah, often known as the "lesser pilgrimage," is an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that can be done at any time of the year. Many Muslims perform Umrah as a sign of devotion and spiritual cleansing, even ...