Green Dome | |
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Al-Qubbah Al-Khaḍrāʾ (ٱَلْقُبَّة ٱلْخَضْرَاء) | |
Religion | |
Affiliation | Islam |
Region | Al-Madinah Province |
Rite | Ziyarat |
Leadership | President of the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques: Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais |
Location | |
Location | Al-Masjid an-Nabawi, Medina, Hejaz, Saudi Arabia |
Administration | The Agency of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques |
Geographic coordinates | 24°28′03.22″N039°36′41.18″E / 24.4675611°N 39.6114389°E |
Architecture | |
Type | Tomb |
Founder | Mamluk Sultan Al Mansur Qalawun [1] |
Date established | 678 A.H. / 1279 C.E. [2] [1] |
Completed | 678 A.H. / 1279 C.E. [2] [1] |
Materials | Wood, [3] brick [4] |
The Green Dome (Arabic : ٱَلْقُبَّة ٱلْخَضْرَاء, romanized: al-Qubbah al-Khaḍrāʾ, Hejazi Arabic pronunciation: [al.ɡʊb.baal.xadˤ.ra] ) is a green-coloured dome built above the tombs of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the early Rashidun Caliphs Abu Bakr (r. 632–634) and Omar (r. 634–644), which used to be the Noble Chamber of Aisha. The dome is located in the southeast corner of Al-Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina, present-day Saudi Arabia. [5] Millions visit it every year, since it is a tradition to visit the mosque after or before the pilgrimage to Mecca.
The structure dates back to 1279 C.E., when an unpainted wooden cupola was built over the tomb. It was later rebuilt and painted using different colours (blue and silver) twice in the late 15th century and once in 1817. The dome was first painted green in 1837, and hence became known as the "Green Dome". [2]
Built in 1279 C.E. or 678 A.H., during the reign of Mamluk Sultan Al Mansur Qalawun, [1] the original structure was made out of wood and was colourless, [3] painted white and blue in later restorations. After a serious fire struck the Mosque in 1481, the mosque and dome had been burnt and a restoration project was initiated by Sultan Qaitbay who had most of the wooden base replaced by a brick structure in order to prevent the collapse of the dome in the future, and used plates of lead to cover the new wooden dome. The building, including the Tomb of the Prophet, was extensively renewed through Qaitbay's patronage. [4] The current dome was added in 1818 by the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II. [5] The dome was first painted green in 1837. [2]
When Saud bin Abdul-Aziz took Medina in 1805, his followers, the Wahhabis, demolished nearly every tomb dome in Medina based on their belief that the veneration of graves and places claimed to possess supernatural powers is an offense against the oneness of God ( tawhid ) and supposedly associates partners with Him ( shirk ). [6] The tomb was stripped of its gold and jewel ornaments, but the dome was preserved either because of an unsuccessful attempt to demolish its hardened structure, or because some time ago Ibn Abd al-Wahhab wrote that he did not wish to see the dome destroyed despite his aversion to people praying at the tomb. [7] Similar events took place in 1925 when the Saudi militias retook—and this time managed to keep—the city. [8] [9] [10] Most of the famous Muslim scholars of the Wahhabi Sect support the decision made by Saudi authorities not to allow veneration of the tomb as it was built much later after the death of Muhammad and considered it as an "innovation" ( bid'ah sayyi’ah). [11]
Muhammad's grave lies within the confines of what used to be his and his wife Aisha's house, during the Hijra. During his lifetime, it adjoined the mosque. The first and second Rashidun Caliphs, Abu Bakr and Umar are buried next to Muhammad. Umar was given a spot next to Abu Bakr by Aisha, originally intended for her. The mosque was expanded during the reign of Umayyad Caliph al-Walid I to include their tombs. [2] The graves themselves cannot be seen, as a gold mesh and black curtains cordon off the area. [12]
The graves and what remains of Aisha's house are enclosed by a 5-sided wall, without doors or windows, built by the caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz. The irregular pentagon shape was chosen deliberately, to make it look different from the rectangular Kaaba, and to discourage people from performing tawaf around it. The enclosure has been inaccessible since Mamluk Sultan Qaitbay's reconstruction of 1481. Only the outer southern wall, draped in green cloth, can be seen through the grills built several centuries later.[ citation needed ]
Abd Allah ibn Abi Quhafa, known by his kunyaAbu Bakr, was the first Rashidun caliph ruling from 632 until his death in 634. As a senior companion of Muhammad and, through his daughter Aisha, also his father-in-law, Abu Bakr is referred to with the honorific title al-Siddiq by Sunni Muslims.
Medina, officially Al-Madinah al-Munawwarah and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah, is the capital of Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia. It is one of the oldest and most important places in Islamic history. One of the most sacred cities in Islam, the population as of 2022 is 1,411,599, making it the fourth-most populous city in the country. Around 58.5% of the population are Saudi citizens and 41.5% are foreigners. Located at the core of the Medina Province in the western reaches of the country, the city is distributed over 589 km2 (227 sq mi), of which 293 km2 (113 sq mi) constitutes the city's urban area, while the rest is occupied by the Hejaz Mountains, empty valleys, agricultural spaces and older dormant volcanoes.
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A dargah is a shrine or tomb built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often a Sufi saint or dervish. Sufis often visit the shrine for ziyarat, a term associated with religious visitation and pilgrimages. Dargahs are often associated with Sufi eating and meeting rooms and hostels, called khanqah or hospices. They usually include a mosque, meeting rooms, Islamic religious schools (madrassas), residences for a teacher or caretaker, hospitals, and other buildings for community purposes.
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Ṭalḥa ibn ʿUbayd Allāh al-Taymī was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In Sunni Islam, he is mostly known for being among al-ʿashara al-mubashshara. He played an important role in the Battle of Uhud and the Battle of the Camel, in which he died. According to Sunnis, he was given the title "the Generous" by Muhammad.
Banū Taym was a clan of the Quraysh tribe of Mecca. The first caliph, Abu Bakr, hailed from the Banu Taym, as did another prominent companion of Muhammad, Talha ibn Ubaydallah.
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Zāyd bin Thābit bin al-Ḍaḥḥāk was the personal scribe of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, serving as the chief recorder of the Quranic text. He hailed from the ansar (helpers), later joined the ranks of the Muslim army at age 19. After Muhammad's passing in 632, he was ordered to collect the Quran into a single volume from various written and oral sources. He was a noted expert on the Quran and spent much time reciting it.
The Rashidun Caliphate was the first caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was ruled by the first four successive caliphs of Muhammad after his death in 632 CE. During its existence, the empire was the most powerful economic, cultural, and military force in West Asia and Northeast Africa.
The destruction of heritage sites associated with early Islam is an ongoing phenomenon that has occurred mainly in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, particularly around the two holiest cities of Islam, Mecca and Medina. The demolition has focused on mosques, burial sites, homes and historical locations associated with the Islamic prophet Muhammad, his companions, and many of the founding personalities of early Islamic history by the Saudi government. In Saudi Arabia, many of the demolitions have officially been part of the continued expansion of the Masjid al-Haram at Mecca and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina and their auxiliary service facilities in order to accommodate the ever-increasing number of Muslims performing the pilgrimage (hajj).
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The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Medina, Saudi Arabia.
Al-Baqi cemetery, the oldest and one of the two most important Islamic graveyards located in Medina, in current-day Saudi Arabia, was demolished in 1806 and, following reconstruction in the mid-19th century, was destroyed again in 1925 or 1926. An alliance of the House of Saud and the followers of the Wahhabi movement known as the Emirate of Diriyah carried out the first demolition. The Sultanate of Nejd, also ruled by the House of Saud and followers of Wahhabism, carried out the second. In both cases, the actors were motivated by the Wahhabi interpretation of Islam, which prohibits the building of monuments on graves.
Mosque of Al-Ghamamah is one of the oldest mosques in Medina, Saudi Arabia, located in the place believed to be where the Islamic prophet Muhammad performed an Eid prayer in the year 631. It is also narrated that Muhammad offered Salat ul-Istasqa when the city of Madina faced a shortage of rain. For a while, this mosque was closed for daily prayers because of its proximity to the Al-Masjid an-Nabawi. However quite recently it has been reopened for the worshipers for praying. Five times prayers are held in this mosque now with an internal sound system to avoid the clash of sounds from the Prophet's Mosque. The mosque is one of the historical relics of Medina.
The Seven Mosques is a complex of six small historic and often visited mosques in the city of Medina, Saudi Arabia. The complex consists of six mosques in spite of the name "Sab'ah" means "seven", as the Saudi Government demolished one.