Here is some Facts You Need To Know About Al-Aqsa Mosque. Al-Aqsa Mosque is one of the mosques of the Islamic Ummah which is rich in history. Since then the mosque which has this advantage has always been in the media spotlight because of the various conflicts that occur in it. Al-Aqsa Mosque is a place for Muslims which is full of history and past events.
One of the great events of the Muslim Ummah is the Isra and Mi’raj of the Prophet Muhammad. At the Isra Mi’raj, the Prophet departed from the Grand Mosque (Makkah) to Palestine (Al-Aqsa Mosque). It was in this mosque that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) then departed with the buraq to the highest heavens until Sidratul Muntaha to take orders for prayer.
However, not only that, there is a lot of other history related to the al-aqsa mosque. Here let’s take a look at some facts about the al-Aqsa mosque that you may not have known.
8 Facts About Palestine’s Al-Aqsa Mosque
1. It isn’t just one mosque
Al-Aqsa Mosque is not just one mosque, there are many mosques within the Al-Aqsa Mosque site. Maybe we think that the al-aqsa mosque is a building located in the southern part of the mosque. In fact, referring to the zamzam.com site, it is the Qibali mosque, referred to as the Qibali mosque because it is very close to the Qibla. So, the whole complex is the al-Aqsa mosque which is full of blessings. Al-Aqsa Mosque is also known as Al-Haram ash-Sharif.
2. Al-Aqsa Mosque is mentioned in the Quran
Masjidl Haram (Makkah) and Masji al-Aqsa are two mosques mentioned in the Qur’an even though they are mentioned side by side when Allah explains about the journey of the Prophet Muhammad SAW (Isra) and the Prophet Muhammad SAW’s journey from al-Aqsa to Sidratul vomiting ( Mi’raj).
In the Holy Quran, Allah says:
‘Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing’. [The Noble Qur’an, 17:1]
3. The original Dome of the Rock looked very different
The Dome of the Rock was built by the Umayyad ruler Abdul Malik bin Marwan. At first the physical form was not like this, which was originally made of wood with a cover of brass, tin and ceramics. While the dome that we now know and see in the photos is a building that was built almost 1000 years later during the Ottoman Empire, Solomon the Magnificent. On the dome has been added a layer of gold and typical Ottoman tiles to the building.
4. The al-Aqsa complex is also a burial place
Indeed, there is no accurate record of who was buried in the al-Aqsa compound and how many people were buried there. But it is a resting place for many prophets and companions of the Prophet SAW.
Among the companions of the prophet who was buried in the al-Aqsa mosque complex was Ubadah ibn Samir (ra), he was the first judge at the mosque, he was buried in Bab ar-Rahmah Cemetery. This is the third grave that is very prominent in the Islamic world, after the two very famous tombs in Mecca and Medina. Now this cemetery has been renovated with the help of the Muslims.
5. It once held a legendary minbar
Masjid al-Aqsa has a special pulpit, where this is the minbar
Imad ad-Din Zengi, he was a member of the Turkish Zengid dynasty. He made a special minbar for use at the al-Aqsa mosque.
This legendary Minbar has its own beauty and uniqueness. It is made without using nails, and does not use any glue. But then Imad Ad-Din Zengi died and did not get to see victory. However, his protégé, Salahuddin al-Ayyubi, fulfilled his teacher’s wishes. After liberating Jerusalem a second time, he installed the minbar.
6. Once used as a dump
When the Romans expelled the Jews from the city, some Romans used the al-Aqsa mosque area as a place for garbage disposal. When Umar ra. opened the city of Islam, he cleaned up the garbage with his bare hands and ended the centuries-old exile of the Jews. He gave the right to the people of Jerusalem to live once again in Jerusalem.
7. Al Ghazali lived and wrote his greatest book there
One of the famous scientists in the Islamic world Imam al-Ghazali spent his life at the al-Aqsa mosque, where he wrote his greatest work at the mosque, this work is famous until now, namely a book of Sufism named Ihyaa Ulum Al-Din (The Revival of Religious Sciences).
There is a room in the al-Aqsa mosque which is said to be the room where he spent his time writing his greatest works.
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8. It has been burnt down
In 1969, the al-Qibali mosque was burned and then rebuilt. This incident is a lesson for us which is very important for us to build and maintain an Islamic site even this is the holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina.
That’s a glimpse of the astonishing fact of the al-Aqsa mosque, an important mosque in the Islamic world and even the mosque that has the highest honor after the Al-Haram Mosque in Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina.
9. Al-Aqsa Mosque is on Temple Mount
Some people feel confused with the al-Aqsa mosque and the temple maunt, both are two different things. The mosque is said to be on the Temple Mount, as bigseventravel.com says. Muslims call it “Haram al-Sharif” (“Noble Sanctuary”). The Temple Mount has been considered a sacred site for thousands of years in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
10. Al-Aqsa Mosque dates from the 7th-century
One of the facts about the al-Aqsa mosque that you should know is that this is an old mosque full of historical value from the 7th century. Sayyidina Umar. ra founded a mosque on the Temple Mount in the early 7th century, this was several years after the Prophet Muhammad died. Over the next few years and decades many expanded the mosque including the ottoman, the Supreme Muslim Council, and Jordan.
11. Al-Masjid al-ʾAqṣā means ‘the farthest mosque’
Another fact about the al-aqsa mosque is that the meaning of the word “al-aqsa” is farthest away. So, the al-aqsa mosque is the ‘furthest mosque’. This is mentioned because of the night journey of the prophet Muhammad SAW. Muslims believe that on the night of Isra’, Buraq brought Prophet Muhammad SAW from the haram mosque of Mecca to the temple mount in Palestine, and then from this Palestine Prophet Muhammad SAW made the farthest journey at night, namely the journey to Sidratuk Muntaha (the last layer of the sky to receive the prayer order).
Al-Aqsa Mosque was formerly the mecca of the Muslim ummah, and then Allah ordered his messenger (Prophet Muhammad SAW) to reverse the direction of the Qibla to the Kaabah in Mecca. So now the qibla of Muslims is the Kaabah in Makkah Mukarramah.
12. Al-Aqsa Mosque is of early Islamic style
This is the early history of Islam which has become a valuable history until now. The next fact of the al-Aqsa mosque that you must know is its shape, where the shape of the al-Aqsa mosque is a form of Islamic architecture in the early days. This dome is concrete covered with tin, and in front of the mihrab, the interior of the dome is painted with 14th century decorations.
Workers built the facade of the mosque in 1065 m on the orders of the Fatimid caliph al-Mustansir Billah. The facade of the mosque consists of 14 stone arches and inside the al-Aqsa mosque there are 121 stained glass windows, 33 white marble columns and 12 stone columns.