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Masjid al-Aqsa

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Masjid al-Aqṣā, or al-Aqṣā Mosque (Arabic: المسجد الأقصی), is a mosque in Jerusalem al-Quds and was the first Qibla of Muslims. According to hadiths, it was the place where the Prophet Muhammad (s)'s Mi'raj or Ascension began. It is mentioned in the Qur'an, Sura al-Isra', in the story of Mi'raj. Masjid al-Aqsa is respected by Muslims, Jews, and Christians. In hadiths, it is characterized as a virtuous mosque along with Masjid al-Haram and Masjid al-Nabi, such that saying one prayer therein equals the saying of one thousand prayers in other mosques.

Masjid al-Aqsa
General Information
Founder'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan
Established66/685-6 - 73/692-3
TypeMosque
LocationJerusalem al-Quds
Coordinates31°46′40.8″N 35°14′9.6″E / 31.778000°N 35.236000°E / 31.778000; 35.236000
Other namesBayt al-Maqdis Mosque
Related eventsThe burning of the mosque in 1969
Specifications
StatusActive
Architecture
StyleIslamic
RenovationIn different periods

Jews believe that remnants of Solomon's Temple lie beneath Masjid al-Aqsa. According to some Christians, one condition for the reappearance of the Christ is the destruction of Masjid al-Aqsa and the construction of Solomon’s third temple. Some Jews today seek to destroy Masjid al-Aqsa and revive Solomon's Temple instead. Thus, Israeli forces prevent Muslims from entering the mosque.

The building known today as Masjid al-Aqsa was constructed in the 1st century by 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan and reconstructed and repaired in different periods.

Location and Naming

"Majid al-Aqsa" literally means the farthest mosque. It refers to a mosque in Jerusalem in Palestine, located on the southeastern part of the city,[1] five hundred meters from the Dome of the Rock (Masjid al-Sakhra). It is called "Majid al-Aqsa" because it was very far from Mecca and Masjid al-Haram, where the Prophet (s) and Muslims lived at the time.[2]

According to some researchers, "Masjid al-Aqsa" as occurs in the Qur'an refers to a vast area including Masjid al-Sakhra (where the Prophet's Ascension began), entrances, etc.[3] Thus, some Shiite exegetes interpret "Masjid al-Aqsa" in the first verse of Sura al-Isra' in the Qur'an as referring to Bayt al-Maqdis[4] as constructed by prophets David (a) and Solomon (a).[5] Masjid al-Aqsa is referred to in some hadiths as "Masjid Bayt al-Maqdis."[6]

Others claim that a construction called "Masjid al-Aqsa" today did not exist at the time of the Prophet's Ascension, and thus, the word "masjid" in the Qur'an should be taken in its general meaning of a place of worship.[7]

Today, the roofed building was built during 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan is in the Holy Shrine area, known as the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Within the same vicinity, structures such as the Dome of the Rock, the Umar Mosque,[8], the Buraq Wall[9], and other notable sites are collectively referred to as the Al-Aqsa Mosque.[10]

Virtues

Masjid al-Aqsa is highly respected by Muslims, Christians, and Jews. For Jews, Solomon's Temple lies beneath the al-Aqsa Mosque.[11] Muslims believe that it was the place where the Prophet Muhammad (s) began his Ascension.[12] Moreover, it was their Qibla before the redirection of Qibla in 2/624.[13] Thus, some Iranian Shi'as in Qajar and Pahlavi periods visited religious places of Jerusalem al-Quds, including al-Aqsa Mosque, during their Hajj pilgrimages.[14]

In some hadiths, Masjid al-Aqsa is regarded as one of the four most virtuous mosques along with Masjid al-Haram, Masjid al-Nabi, and the Mosque of Kufa.[15] The Mosque of Kufa is not mentioned in other hadiths; thus, Masjid al-Aqsa is regarded as one of the three virtuous mosques.[16] To say one prayer in these mosques is equal to saying one thousand prayers in other mosques.[17]

In some Shia hadiths, the Mosque of Kufa is considered superior to Masjid al-Aqsa.[18]

History

Allegedly, the Prophet David (a) constructed a temple in the present location of the Masjid al-Aqsa complex, which was later completed by Prophet Solomon (a). It is referred to as Solomon's Temple, Temple of Jerusalem, Temple of Elia, and the Dome of Elia. According to Gustave Le Bon, a historian of the 19th and 20th centuries, before the conquest of Jerusalem by Muslims, there was a Church in the Masjid al-Aqsa complex in the name of lady Mary (a).[19]

According to documents remaining from the first century, the present building of Masjid al-Aqsa was constructed in the Umayyad period in the first/seventh century.[20] According to Ibn Kathir, an 8th/14th-century historian, the construction began in 66/685-6 at the command of 'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan (reign: 65/684-5 -86/705), and ended in 73/692-3.[21] The construction was also attributed to Walid b. 'Abd al-Malik (reign: 86/705 -96/714-5).[22]

According to Ibn Kathir, 'Abd al-Malik constructed Masjid al-Aqsa and its surrounding buildings to deter people of the Levant from going to the Hajj pilgrimage and encourage them to circumambulate around al-Aqsa Mosque,[23] because 'Abd Allah b. Zubayr seized the opportunity of Hajj to propagandize against 'Abd al-Malik and gain pilgrims' pledges of allegiance for himself.[24] And on days of 'Arafa and Mina, he reminded people of the Prophet's cursing of al-Hakam b. 'As, the grandfather of 'Abd al-Malik and his household, to attract the support of the people of the Levant for his own rule.[25]

Features of the Building

The building of al-Aqsa Mosque is rectangular, with a length of eighty meters and a width of fifty-five meters.[26] It is founded upon fifty-three marble pillars and forty-nine foundations.[27] The mosque has a huge entrance with a dome over its middle part.[28] Nasir Khusrow (394/1003-4 -d. 468/1075-6), a 5th-century tourist who visited Jerusalem in 438/1046-7,[29] describes Masjid al-Aqsa in his travel book, talking about servants in the mosque.[30]

Reconstructions and Repairs

The building of al-Aqsa Mosque was repaired and reconstructed in different periods by different dynasties, including 'Abbasids, Fatimids, Ayyubids, and Ottomans.

Abbasid caliphs, Mansur al-Dawaniqi[31] (reign: 136/753-4 -158/774-5) and Mahdi al-'Abbasi (126/743-4 -169/785-6), repaired and reconstructed the building after an earthquake damaged it.[32] Moreover, as an inscription implies, a dome was built for al-Aqsa Mosque in 426/1034-5 by a Fatimid caliph, al-Zahir li-'Izaz Din Allah.[33] And in 458/1065-6, the northern iwan of the mosque was reconstructed at the command of al-Mustansir li-Din Allah.[34]

In 1099, Crusaders conquered Jerusalem, built a church in one part of the mosque, and transformed the other into a resting place for the cavalry and a storage for their provisions.[35] In 589/1193-4, Salah al-Din Ayyubi reclaimed Jerusalem from crusaders, reconstructed the mosque, tiled its dome, and placed a wooden minbar in it.[36] Mamluks and Ottomans also reconstructed the mosque.[37]

Judaization of the Mosque

 
Setting fire to al-Aqsa Mosque, On August 21, 1969

The Jews believe that remnants of Solomon's Temple lie beneath al-Aqsa Mosque. Thus, some of them try to demolish the mosque and revive Solomon's temple.[38] Some Christians allegedly believe that a precondition for the reappearance of the Christ is the demolition of Masjid al-Aqsa and the construction of Solomon's third temple.[39] Thus, Israeli forces prevent Muslims from entering the mosque.[40] Masjid al-Aqsa is deemed a symbol for the Islamic identity in Jerusalem as against Israeli Regime.[41]

On August 21, 1969, a Jew called Denis Michael Rohan set fire to al-Aqsa Mosque, which damaged parts of the mosque and led to the collapse of its roof. The old minbar in the mosque which dated back to 583/1187-8 was burned in fire.[42] In the official calendar of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the anniversary of al-Aqsa Mosque conflagration on August 21 (Mordad 31) is known as the World Day of Mosque.[43]

See Also

Notes

  1. ↑ Ḥamīdī, Tārīkh-i urshalīm, p. 183.
  2. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 12, p. 7; Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 612.
  3. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 7.
  4. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 612.
  5. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 13, p. 6.
  6. ↑ Tafsīr al-Imām al-Ḥasan al-ʿAskarī (a), p. 661.
  7. ↑ Ḥamīdī, Tārīkh-i urshalīm, p. 183-184.
  8. ↑ When the second caliph conquered Jerusalem in 15, he commanded the construction of a mosque in the sacred area, which is known as 'Umar Mosque.
  9. ↑ A wall along with the Western Wall of the Masjid al-Aqsa complex believed by Muslims to be where the Prophet fastened Buraq (his heavenly vehicle), which is why it came to be known as Buraq Wall It is referred to by Jews as Kotel or Wailing Wall, which they consider one of the last remnants of Solomon's Temple.
  10. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 10.
  11. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 88.
  12. ↑ Qur'an: 17:1.
  13. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 1, p. 231.
  14. ↑ Jaʿfarīyān, Panjāh safarnāma-yi ḥajj-i qajārī, p. 230.
  15. ↑ Ṣadūq, Man lā yaḥḍuruh al-faqīh, vol. 1, p. 29.
  16. ↑ Bukhārī, Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, vol. 1, p. 398.
  17. ↑ Tafsīr al-Imām al-Ḥasan al-ʿAskarī (a), p. 661.
  18. ↑ ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, vol. 2, p. 279; Nūrī, Mustadrak al-wasāʾil, vol. 3, p. 409.
  19. ↑ Ḥamīdī, Tārīkh-i urshalīm, p. 183.
  20. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 10.
  21. ↑ Ibn Kathīr al-Dimashqī, al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 8, p. 280.
  22. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 10.
  23. ↑ Ibn Kathīr al-Dimashqī, al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 8, p. 280.
  24. ↑ Yaʿqūbī, Tārīkh al-Yaʿqūbī, vol. 2, p. 261.
  25. ↑ Ibn Kathīr al-Dimashqī, al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 8, p. 280.
  26. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 10.
  27. ↑ Ḥamīdī, Tārīkh-i urshalīm, p. 183.
  28. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 10.
  29. ↑ Nāṣir Khusruw, Safarnāma, p. 26.
  30. ↑ Nāṣir Khusruw, Safarnāma, p. 32.
  31. ↑ Ḥamīdī, Tārīkh-i urshalīm, p. 183.
  32. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 11.
  33. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 11.
  34. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 11.
  35. ↑ Ḥamīdī, Tārīkh-i urshalīm, p. 183.
  36. ↑ Ḥamīdī, Tārīkh-i urshalīm, p. 183.
  37. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 13-15.
  38. ↑ Tawfīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 88.
  39. ↑ vjc.ir (Persian)
  40. ↑ [https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2016/08/16/480271/Israel-Third-Temple-Aqsa-Dome-of-Rock-Temple-Mount PressTV Website (Persian)
  41. ↑ IranPress (Persian)
  42. ↑ Mūsā Ghūsha, Tārikh-i majmuʿa-yi masjid al-aqṣā, p. 16.
  43. ↑ www.iribnews.ir (Persian)

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