Al-Masjid al-Haram: Difference between revisions

'''Al-Masjid al-Ḥarām''' (Arabic: {{ia|المسجد الحرام}}) is the best-known and the most sacred [[mosque]] in the Islamic world, located in [[Mecca]] in [[Arabia]] in which the [[Ka'ba]], the [[qibla]] of [[Muslims]], is located. In addition to the Ka'ba, there are other sacred buildings, objects, and places inside al-Masjid al-Haram, such as the [[Black Stone]] (al-Hajar al-Aswad), [[al-Multazam]], [[al-Mustajar]], [[al-Hatim]], and [[Hijr Isma'il]] all of which are of a high religious and spiritual place for Muslims. In [[fiqh|Islamic jurisprudence]], al-Masjid al-Haram is subject to some special laws in addition to the general laws of [[shari'a]] applied to mosques. In [[Islam]], it is [[wajib|obligatory]] for every Muslim to travel to Mecca (for [[hajj]]) at least once in his or her lifetime if he or she is capable of doing so ([[istita'a]]). There are some rituals of hajj that should be done inside al-Masjid al-Haram.

[[File:Masjid al-Haram.jpg|300px|thumbnail|right|Aerial view of al-Masjid al-Haram in the heart of [[Mecca]], with the [[Ka'ba]] visible in the center of the courtyard.]]