Mecca
| This article forms part of the seriesIslam |
| Vocabulary of Islam |
| Five Pillars |
| Profession of faith |
| Prayer – Alms |
| Fasting |
| Pilgrimage to Mecca |
| Holy Cities |
| Mecca – Medina |
| Jerusalem |
| Najaf – Karbala – Kufa |
| Events |
| Hijra – Islamic calendar – Eid ul-Fitr |
| Eid ul-Adha – Aashura – Arba'in |
| Buildings |
| Mosque – Minaret |
| Mihrab – Kaaba |
| Islamic architecture |
| Functional Religious Roles |
| Muezzin – Imam – Mullah |
| Ayatollah – Mufti |
| Interpretive Texts & Practices |
| Qur'an – Hadith – Sunnah |
| Fiqh – Fatwa – Sharia |
| Sects |
| Sunni: Hanafi – Hanbali Maliki – Shafi'i |
| Shi'a: Ithna Asharia Ismailiyah – Zaiddiyah |
| Others: Mu'tazili – Kharijite |
| Movements |
| Sufism |
| Wahhabism – Salafism |
| Non-Mainstream Sects/Movements |
| Ahmadiyyah – Nation of Islam |
| Related Faiths |
| Druze – Bahá'í Faith |
Mecca or Makkah (in full: Makkah al-Mukkaramah; Arabic مكة المكرمة) is a city in the Hijaz region of western Saudi Arabia. It is revered as the holiest site of the Islamic religion, and a pilgrimage to it is required of all Muslims who can afford the trip. The term Mecca has come to be commonly used metaphorically to mean any all-important site for any particular group of people.
In the 1980s the government of Saudi Arabia changed the official transliteration of the city's name from Mecca, as it had been known to Westerners for centuries, to Makkah. See below for the reasons.
History
Mecca was already an important trading city for the Arabian tribes by the time Muhammad was born there in about 570. He soon lost both father and mother, and was raised by his grandfather and, later, by his uncle, Abu Talib. At the age of 25, he married a rich widow, Khadijah. When he was forty years old, in the year 610, Muslims believe, he was visited by the angel Gabriel while meditating in a cave on Mount Hira outside of Mecca and told, "Recite! In the name of your Lord who created, created man from a clot. Recite, and your Lord is most honorable, who taught how to write with the pen, taught man what he did not know," which now forms the beginning of Sura 96 of the Qur'an, or Koran.
Muhammad preached the religious doctrines of one God (see also monotheism) and the threat of the Day of Judgment. (Muslims worship a single God, whom they call Allah, which is simply the Arabic word for God). Muhammad did not have much success at first. His tribe, the Quraysh, which was in charge of the Kaaba (a shrine to the varying gods worshipped By Arabs), persecuted and harassed him continuously. He and his followers emigrated to the city of Yathrib, later called Medina (al-Madinah in Arabic, alternatively transliterated as Madinah), in 622. This event, known as the hijra (or hegira in Latin), marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar (1 AH, anno hegirae, or "in the year of the hijra").
Muhammad and his followers clashed off and on with the Quraysh, steadily gaining in numbers and power. Finally Muhammad entered Mecca,without a battle in 630, and cleared the Kaaba of its idols. After this Islam spread rapidly throughout Arabia and areas beyond. The Black Stone at Kabba remains, however, as this was by tradition believed to be the last stone to be installed by Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) when building Kabbah. When the kabbah was repaired after a flood, it was installed using a system designed by Muhammad to resolve disputes between the tribes. His method of installation, which allowed each of the leaders of the Tribes an equal privilege during the installation, granted him the title of 'The Wise'. Many non-Muslims believe that this stone is to be prayed to, but that is not true. This can be seen in one of the traditions (Sunnah/Hadees) which states that Umar, one of the closest companions of Muhammad has stated :-
- "Umar came near the Black Stone and kissed it and said "No doubt, I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit anyone nor harm anyone. Had I not seen Allah's Apostle kissing you I would not have kissed you." Narrated by 'Abis bin Rabia.
The Black Stone is not to be worshipped or regarded as anything but a marker and as sentiment to the link between the people now with Muhammad.
The importance of Mecca
For Muslims, a pilgrimage to Mecca is required 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, which may be performed at any time of year. Few non-Muslims have ever seen the rites and rituals of the Hajj (non-Muslims are strictly prohibited from entering Mecca and Medina).
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, believed to have been shown to Hagar (the wife of Abraham) by an angel while she was frantically searching for water for her son Ishmael, between the hills of Safah and Marwah. The 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 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.
The Masjid al Haram (or Sacred Mosque), is for Muslims the holiest mosque on Earth. Both the mosque and the city itself are strictly off limits to non-Muslims.
Is Mecca the city of the Valley of Baca?
Some have identified Mecca with an ancient city called Bakkah, identified with the Biblical "valley of Baca" in Psalm 84, but this identification is controversial. However, the Qur'an does identify Bakkah as the location of the first mosque, which can be taken to imply that Mecca and Bakkah are the same location. One school of thought has it that Bakkah is just an alternative pronunciation of Mecca.
The spelling of the name
For most anglophones, Mecca has long been the accepted spelling for the holy city. The word is a transliteration of the original Arabic, and has become part of the English language. Mecca now refers to more than just the geographical location, and is used to describe any center of activity sought by a group of people with a common interest. Las Vegas, for example, is considered the Mecca of gambling. Many Muslims find these out-of-context uses offensive.
In an effort to distinguish between the metaphorical and official references to the holy site, the Saudi Arabian government began promoting a new transliteration, Makkah al-Mukkaramah, in the 1980s. Many English-speaking Muslims now consider this the preferred spelling, and closer to the original Arabic. While this new usage has been officially adopted by U.S. Department of State (http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3584.htm), its spread is still incipient among anglophones at large.
Incidents in Mecca
The Hajj brings together huge numbers of pilgrims. With such a vast number of people in one place at one time, failures of crowd control and other problems can lead to disaster. Some of the recent tragedies have included:
- In November 1979, a group of ca. 200 militant Muslims occupied Mecca's Grand Mosque. They were driven out by Saudi troops after heavy and bloody fighting.
- On July 31, 1987, Iranian pilgrims riot, causing the deaths of over 400 people.
- On July 9, 1989, two bombs explode, killing one pilgrim and wounding another 16. Saudi authorities behead 16 Kuwaiti Shiite Muslims for bombings after originally blaming Iranian terrorists.
- On July 2, 1990, a stampede inside a pedestrian tunnel leading to Mecca leads to the deaths of 1402 pilgrims.
- In 1994, another stampede kills 270 pilgrims.
- On February 1, 2004, 244 Muslim pilgrims are killed and another 244 are injured in a stampede during the stoning of the devil ritual.
Perceived failure to prevent these events, or to react appropriately to them, has led to strong criticism of the Saudi Arabian authorities by Muslims.
See also
External links
- Pictures of Mecca (http://haqaonline.lightuponlight.com/pg/index.php?cat=2)
- Mention of the Kaaba's coordinates (http://www.irbs.com/lists/navigation/0008/0039.html)
- Mecca Information (http://www.asinah.net/saudiarabiamecca.html)
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