Thread: Why is Mecca considered more sacred than Medina?

makkah is an ancient city one of the oldest in the world. Before Muhammed was born makkah was a big centre, it was where Ibraheem (peace be upon him) built the kabah. and where the revelation first came to Muhammed peace and blessings be upon him. Al Masjid ul Haram in makkah is also the first masjid to be built on earth.
The Quran mentions much about the sacredness of Makkah and masjid ul haram. here are a few, trans of:

Verily, the first House (of worship) appointed for mankind was that at Bakkah (makkah), full of blessing, and a guidance for Al-'Alamin (mankind and jinn).
3:96



And when We made the House a pilgrimage for men and a (place of) security, and: Appoint for yourselves a place of prayer on the standing-place of Ibrahim. And We enjoined Ibrahim and Ismail saying: Purify My House for those who visit (it) and those who abide (in it) for devotion and those who bow down (and) those who prostrate themselves
2:125

Verily! As-Safa and Al-Marwah (two mountains in makkah) are of the Symbols of Allah. So it is not a sin on him who performs Hajj or 'Umrah (pilgrimage) of the House (the Ka'bah at makkah) to perform the going (Tawaf) between them (As-Safa and Al-Marwah). And whoever does good voluntarily, then verily, Allah is All-Recogniser, All-Knower
2:158
(these mountains are in the masjid ul Haram today if you are wondering about them. they are where Ismaeel peace be upon hims mother ran in search for water until they were blessed with what is today called zam zam water)

makkah is also known as the mother of cities and some hadiths narrated on it:

the Prophet peace and blessing be upon him:The best and the most beloved city on the face of this earth to Allah is Makkah. Bukhari

when Muhammed peace and blessing be upon him was leaving makkah he halted and face towards the kabah and said:
By Allah! You are the most beloved portion of Allah's earth to me, and verily you are the most beloved portion of the earth to Allah too. Verily you are the best, spot on the face of the earth. And the most beloved to Allah. If your people did not expel me, I would not have departed from you.

also good deeds are multiplied by one hundred thousand only in makkah (as stated in hadiths bukhari/muslim and others)


having said that madinah is also a very sacred place at it is madina Muhammed peace and blessing be upon him migrated to and passed away and is buried (in the masjid known as The prophets masjid)
both madinah and makkah are known as sacred sanctuaries and has many many many virtues to it which i will later list when i get time hopefully.

Hi guys, not sure if my type is welcome around these parts, but I thought I should ask

you are more than welcome to ask, i cant speak for everyone but i dont think any muslim member has a problem with non-muslims asking questions such as yours but when they are asked in a rude manner/insulting/or spam copy/pastes of islam says this and that, then theres problems.
but as for asking questions like this, ask away

JazzakAllah khair amani

Also the Prophet spent 53 of his 63 years of life in Makkah. And 13 out of his 23 years of Prophethood in Makkah. The Prophet only lived in Madeenah about 10 years.

Why is the Al Asqa Mosque considered the third holiest sacred site in Sunni Islam?

Would you recommend that fellow Muslims visit Jerusalem in addition to Mecca and Medina on a pilgrimage?

the pilgrimage is only actually in makkah-madinah is not necessary, the rituals happen in makkah. having said that madinah is a beautiful and unmissable place to visit to those who have travelled there.
there is a hadith that states the Prophet peace be upon him said:
Do not travel (specifically) to any masjid except three:
al-Masjid al-Haraam,
Masjid al-Aqsa
and this mosque of mine. (madinah)
Bukhari

so visiting it is a great thing and prayers offered there are equivalent to 250 prayers elsewhere (except in the other two masjids which i mentioned in the previous post).
it was the second masjid built by Solomon peace be upon him and was actually the first place of direction to pray for muslims before it was changed when the muslims were living in madinah towards makkah.
In the night journey The Prophet peace and blessings be upon him also went to Al Aqsa- reference from the Quran:
Glorified be He (Allah) [above all that (evil) they associate with Him] Who took His slave for a journey by night from Al-Masjid-al-Haram to Al-Masjid-al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem), the neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, in order that We might show him (Muhammad صلى الله عليه و سلم) of Our signs/proofs.Verily, He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer .
17:1

Have you ever visited the Al Asqa Mosque?

no unfortunately i would love to and know many people who have...and despite the troubles in palestine it would be a great honour to visit there.

JazzakAllah khair amani

Also during the night journey, the Prophets came together there and were lead in prayer by Prophet Muhammad.

Also that area, Palestine is a blessed area alot of Prophets have lived there.

I have not gone there myself, but it is the wish of every muslim to be able to pray there even once and walk on the same land that Jesus Zakkariya John etc walked on.

Is the Dome of the Rock given as high a status as the Al Asqa mosque? They're both located on the Temple Mount.

no. although when looking at many posters youd probably seen the dome of the rock as al aqsa, if i recall correctly the dome of the rock was actually built a bit after Muhammed peace and blessings be upon him had passed away.

Would you consider cities like Najaf holy at all?

no not at all. and muslims dont take shrines as holy places, although muhammed peace and blessings be upon him was buried in what is today his mosque, we do not go there to pray to him. and najaf has absolutely no significance,nor is it a place to visit/make pilgrimage to etc.

Is the Sacred Mosque in Mecca bigger than St Peter's Basilica in Rome? (Random I know, but I know how big the basilica is and I want to get an idea on how big the mosque is.)

from wikipedia
The current structure covers an area of 400,800 square metres (99.0 acres) including the outdoor and indoor praying spaces and can accommodate up to four million worshippers during the Hajj period, one of the largest annual gatherings of people in the world.
it is currently being expanded even more.

so yes, it is much much much bigger.

JazzakAllah Khair amani

In Islaam we are not allowed to take graves as places of worship since our worship is only meant to be for Allah the Most High. So any place that you see claiming to be islamic but has people attached to a grave etc then know that that is not from orthodox islaam at all.

Also what is it that makes a place holy in Islaam? Well basically whatever has been mentioned in the texts to be holy, either in the Qur'aan or the Hadith then it is holy. So if you hear for an example Najaf being holy then cross refrence it with the Qur'aan or the hadith, is it mentioned? If not then it is like any other place

One Salah in the Prophets Masjid equals 1000 prayers prayed anywhere else except Makkah and Al-Aqsa.

^Is prayin Salah in Masjid Al Aqsa more virtuous than prayin in Masjid An Nabwi (saw)??

Originally Posted by Crazy_Lady

^Is prayin Salah in Masjid Al Aqsa more virtuous than prayin in Masjid An Nabwi (saw)??

No its not because For example, Sahih Bukhari quotes Abu al-Dardaa as saying: "the Prophet of Allah Muhammad said a prayer in the Sacred Mosque (in Mecca) is worth 100,000 prayers; a prayer in my mosque (in Medina) is worth 10,000 prayers; and a prayer in al-Masjid al-Aqsa is worth 1,000 prayers," more than in an any other mosque.

Sister,

I found the following:

"The multiplication of reward for prayer in al-Masjid al-Haraam is proven in the report narrated by Ahmad and Ibn Majaah (1406) from Jaabir (may Allaah be pleased with him), that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “One prayer in my mosque is better than one thousand prayers elsewhere, except al-Masjid al-Haraam, and one prayer in al-Masjid al-Haraam is better than one hundred thousand prayers elsewhere.”

This hadeeth was classed as saheeh by al-Mundhiri and al-Busayri. Al-Albaani said: Its isnaad is saheeh according to the conditions of the two Shaykhs [al-Bukhaari and Muslim]. End quote from Irwa’ al-Ghaleel (4/146)."

From:http://islamqa.com/en/ref/124812/virtues%20of%20mosques

"It was reported that Abu Dharr (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: we were discussing, in the presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), which of them was more virtuous, the mosque of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) or Bayt al-Maqdis. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: One prayer in my mosque is better than four prayers there, but it is still a good place of prayer. Soon there will come a time when if a man has a spot of land as big as his horse’s rope from which he can see Bayt al-Maqdis, that will be better for him than the whole world. (Narrated and classed as saheeh by al-Haakim, 4/509. Al-Dhahabi and al-Albaani agreed with him, as stated in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, at the end of the discussion of hadeeth no. 2902).

One prayer in al-Masjid al-Nabawi is equivalent to one thousand prayers elsewhere, so one prayer in al-Masjid al-Aqsaa is equivalent to two hundred and fifty prayers elsewhere.

With regard to the famous hadeeth which says that prayer in al-Masjid al-Aqsaa is equivalent to five hundred prayers elsewhere, this is da’eef (weak). (See Tamaam al-Minnah by Shaykh al-Albaani – p. 292). "

From: islamqa.com

Allah knows best.