It is surely a dream coming true… and it was beyond words… beyond expectation… and two places are already missed…
My first stop was in Madina. There lays the Nabawi Mosque, the first mosque built in Islam. In that Mosque lays the grave of the Prophet Mohammed peace be upon him along side his two faithful companions and the first two caliphs in the Islamic rule, Abu-Bakr Assdiq and Omar ibn Alkhattab.
When I first saw the Mosque from the bus I felt thrilled to see the green dome which signifies the house and grave of the Prophet PBUH. And when I approached the mosque I was very happy. There was this musky smell and a calming cool blanket that wrapped you as you entered inside. People from all over the world were gathered in tranquil murmurs passing their prayers and blessing on their most beloved Prophet PBUH. I almost felt his presence… reflecting how on these places and spaces he must’ve walked once… and the essence and foundation of the Islamic Ummah was established there… the Mosque certainly has a strong impact on any soul entering with the consciousness of the importance of that mosque and who lays alive in memory underneath the green dome…
As for Mecca… it is a totally different story… there lays the house of God built by another loved great Prophet… Prophet Ibrahim [Abraham] peace be upon him… there lays the Kaaba…
Kaaba forms the center of the Muslim world since it is the place where they all head when they stand to perform their daily prayers. The idea of a person going there and then going around it in 7 complete circles is amazing. In each step you make you are in the direction of someone else’s prayer line between his house in whatever spot of land he’s in and the Kaaba… you feel connected with Muslims all over the world because as you rotate around the Kaa’ba you are rotating around all the directions and lines connecting the kaaba with every Muslim standing in prayer in any place on earth… it is amazing… you feel connected with the world around and yet with the invisible line connecting this Kaaba with God the Great…
When you perform Omra [minor pilgrimage] you go through the different phases of preparing yourself… then the [talbiah] which is invoking God saying [Here I am at Your service, O Lord, here I am. Here I am at Your service. You have no partners. Yours alone is all praise and all bounty, and Yours alone is sovereignty. You have no partners.] with one voice, men and women… it is such an empowering feeling of unity… and then you enter the house of God and you go around the Kaaba… 7 times. After that you go walking back and forth between two hills named Safa and Marwa where the wife of Ibrahim and the Mother of Isamil [Ishmael] was walking searching for water for her infant… again the idea of walking 7 times between two hills remembering Allah… praying for Him… asking for whatever you want or need… it is just amazing… you hear people with many different tongues each praying in their own languages each with their own worries and troubles… all walking… in the same direction and praying for The One… The Great…
After that to finalize the rituals you go and cut your hair… if you are a man you have to cut more than if you are a woman… it is the celebration of obedience… and the celebration of completing a great act of worship that connected you with yourself… your religion… and your God…
Looking at the Kaaba in itself is considered an act of worship… you cannot possibly understand that unless you go there and you start looking at it… and reflecting upon your whole existence… in every possible way… it is just amazing… the presence of the place and the divine connection that you are aware of… since you are not worshipping the black box… but the God who commanded you to go there and do what He asked you to do… that same God who commanded Ibrahim to take his wife and his new son to that empty land and leave them there in His protection… the God who commanded Ibrahim later on to build this house with his son… the God who accepted the prayer of Ibrahim when he wished that this land will be holy and safe and that people will come worshipping God there… the God that many years later brought Mohammed to life there… and then commanded him to leave… the God that asked all Muslims to turn to the Kaa’ba in their prayers wherever they are… the God that hears all… and accepts all who worship Him and only Him with no other partners…
The whole trip was great… and I can’t share more or express more the way I felt there… because I feel it is so intimate and special…
I would highly recommend every person to go and visit these places… being aware of the importance of both places in the living spirit of Islam…
May Allah accept the worships and prayers of every pure heart that seeks His Light and His Peace…
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