Al-Aqsa is a mosque of great importance for all Muslims. This is the third shrine of the Islamic world. The first two are the Al-Haram Temple in Mecca and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina. Why is Al-Aqsa so famous? This is what we will find out in the course of our article. About who built the temple, about its complex history and current purpose, read below.
Name confusion
Let's dot the "and" right away. Some unscrupulous guides point tourists to the huge golden dome of the mosque, called Kubbat al-Sakhra, and say that this is the third most important shrine of Islam. The fact is that the two temples stand side by side and are part of the same architectural complex. But a beautiful building with a golden top, whose name translates as "dome of the rock", and the Al-Aqsa Mosque are still not the same thing. They are completely separate buildings. The third shrine in Islam is modest in size. Yes, and its dome is unpretentious. This mosque has only one minaret. Although the temple is quite spacious. It can receive five thousand worshipers at the same time. The name Al-Aqsa translates as "remote mosque". It is located in Jerusalem, on the Temple Mount. The city itself is a shrine toChristians, Jews and Muslims. To avoid disputes and religious strife, all mosques and Islamic memorial sites are under the supervision and care of Jordan. By the way, this was enshrined in the 1994 agreement.
What is the exceptional sanctity of Al-Aqsa Temple
The mosque was built on the site where the Prophet Muhammad was miraculously transferred from Mecca. This night journey, which took place in 619, is called Isra by Muslims. At the same time, on the Temple Mount, prophets appeared to Muhammad, who were sent by God before him to the people. These are Musa (Moses), Ibrahim (Abraham) and Isa (Christ). They all prayed together. Then the angels symbolically cut open the prophet's chest and washed his heart with righteousness. After that, Muhammad was able to ascend. He climbed the stairs among the angels, penetrated the seven heavenly spheres and appeared before God. Allah revealed and explained to him the rules of prayer. The ascension of the prophet to heaven is called Miraj. This explains the extraordinary status of the Al-Aqsa temple. The mosque has long been a qibla - a landmark towards which Muslims turned their faces during prayer. But the Kaaba is considered more sacred. Therefore, now the qibla is the Al-Haram temple in Mecca.
History of the mosque
Originally, it was a small prayer house, which was built in 636 by order of Caliph Umar bin al-Khattab. Therefore, there are two other names at the temple of Al-Aqsa. "Mosque of Distance" and Umar. However, the original building is not up to us.came. Other caliphs expanded and completed the mosque. Abdulla-Malik ibn-Mervan and his son Walid founded a large temple on the site of the prayer house. The Abbasid dynasty rebuilt the mosque after every devastating earthquake. The last significant natural disaster occurred in 1033. The earthquake destroyed most of the mosque. But already in 1035, Caliph Ali az-Zihir erected a building that we still see. Subsequent rulers completed the interior and exterior of the mosque and its adjacent territory. In particular, the facade, minaret and dome are later.
Solomon stables
Umar Mosque has a spacious basement. It has a strange name - Solomon's stables. To understand the meaning of this concept, you need to know what the Temple Mount is. Al-Aqsa Mosque stands on the site where Solomon's Temple used to be. In the seventieth year of our era, this structure was destroyed by the Romans. But the name behind the mountain remained. It is still called the Temple. But how could stables be located in a holy place? And this is a later story. When the crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099, part of the mosque was turned into a Christian church. In other rooms, the commandantry (headquarters of the head of the order) of the Templars was located. The monk-knights kept equipment and weapons in the mosque. There were also stalls for war horses. Sultan Salladin (more correctly, it should be called Salah ad-Din) expelled the crusaders from the Holy Land and returned the title of mosque to Al-Aqsa. Later, the memory of the Temple of Solomon and the stables of the Templars mixed up, which led to such a strangethe name of the basement of the Muslim shrine.
Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem
The modern temple consists of seven spacious galleries. One of them is central. Three more galleries adjoin it from the east and west. The mosque is crowned with one dome. From the outside it is covered with lead slabs, and from the inside it is lined with mosaics. The interior of the mosque is decorated with a large number of columns made of stone and marble, connected by arches. Seven gates lead to the temple from the north side. Each door opens a passage to one gallery. The walls of the building in the lower half are covered with snow-white marble, and in the upper half - with beautiful mosaics. Temple utensils are often made of gold.
Tourist information
Mosque in Israel Al-Aqsa with the Dome of the Rock (Kubbat as-Sahra Temple) is one architectural complex called Haram al-Sharif. This place itself - the Temple Mount - is a shrine not only for Muslims, but also for Jews. After all, here stood the Ark of the Covenant. And from this place, according to Jewish beliefs, the creation of the world began. Therefore, the entire Temple Mount is sacred. The entrance to it is carried out only through one gate - the Maghreb. There are also strict pass times. In winter, from half past seven in the morning until half past two in the afternoon (break from half past ten to half past one). In the summer, they are allowed on the Temple Mount from eight to eleven and from 13:15 to three o'clock. On Islamic holidays and on Fridays, mosques are reserved exclusively for Muslims. A visit to the shrine of Isra and Miraj is paid. For thirty shekelsyou can buy a complex ticket, which also includes a visit to the museum of Islamic culture. Before entering the mosque, you need to take off your shoes. The clothes of visitors should be decent and modest. People of the opposite sex, even if they are spouses, are not allowed to touch each other inside the temple.
