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Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

:This article is about the Saudi Arabian city. For the Australian movie, see Jedda. Jedda Jedda Jeddah (also Jedda, Jiddah, or Juddah; جدّة Ǧiddah) is a city in western Saudi Arabia, on the Red Sea (). Founded as a fishing village over 2,500 years ago, it first achieved prominence in 647 A.D., when the Muslim caliph Uthman ibn Affan turned it into a port for pilgrims making a hajj to Mecca. The population of the city currently stands at over 3.4 million. =Etymology= There are two explanations for the etymology of the name 'Jeddah'. The name means "seashore", since Jeddah is located along the coast and is Saudi Arabia's most important port. The more common account has it that the name is derived from jaddah, the Arabic word for "grandmother". According to Arabic belief, the tomb of Eve, considered the grandmother of all humanity, is located in Jeddah. The supposed tomb was sealed with concrete by the religious authorities in 1975, as a result of Muslim pilgrims breaking Islamic tradition by praying to Eve. =Locations= The city has several popular beaches, including Durat Alarous, Alremal, Shums, Bait Albahar and Alnakil. Muslim Jeddah is renowned for its shopping malls, such as Jeddah mall, Tahlya mall, Lou mall, and Heraa mall. Muslim Muslim Muslim Jeddah is served by King Abdulaziz International Airport. More than 2 million people pass through this airport in the Al Hajj season. Culturally, Jeddah is far more liberal/tolerant of non-Saudis than Riyadh, due to the history of the Hejaz region. Hejaz Hejaz Hejaz Hejaz Hejaz Hejaz Hejaz Hejaz Hejaz =Foreign Policy= The British Foreign Office still insists on using the older spelling of Jedda, contrary to all other English-speaking usage - including other branches of the British government. =City of Art= Since the late 1960's there has been a focused effort on bringing modern art and sculpture to Jeddah's public areas. As a result, few cities in the world today contain as many modern open air sculptures and works of art as Jeddah. Sculptures in Jeddah include works by a variety of artists, ranging from obscure to international stars such as Jean Arp, Alexander Calder, Henry Moore, Joan Miro and Victor Vasarely.

References


- Shaker, Ammar H. : Local Culture: 7 Languages Sources Doc. Email: the_general775@mail.ru - 2005 , (9 Picture taken by own camera)
- Farsi, Hani M.S. ( Mohamed Said): Jeddah: city of art: the sculptures and monuments. London: Stacey International, 1991. ISBN 0905743660 Category:Coastal cities Category:Cities in Saudi Arabia

Jedda

:This article is about the Australian movie. For the Saudi Arabian city, see Jeddah. Jedda (1955) was the last movie made by Charles Chauvel, and the first to star two Aboriginal actors, (Robert Tudawali and Ngarla Kunoth), in the leading roles. Originally the movie was filmed on location in the Northern Territory in Australia. The last roll of negative was destroyed in a plane crash on its way for developing in England and the scenes were re-shot at Kanangra Falls in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney.

Plot

The Jedda of the title is a half-white/half aboriginal girl raised by a white family on a cattle ranch. When she runs of with an aboriginal man, a posse is sent after them to hunt them down. During the chase, it becomes clear that Jedda has gone willingly with the man but that does not prevent the pursuit which comes to an inevitably tragic end.

External links


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- [http://www.screensound.gov.au/Screensound/Screenso.nsf/0/79126A64BF99027DCA256EAE00237DAC?OpenDocument screen sound Australia] Category:1955 films Category:Australian films

Red Sea

:(Red Sea is also the name of a state in Sudan) Sudan The Red Sea (Arabic البحر الأحمر Baḥr al-Aḥmar, al-Baḥru l-’Aḥmar; Hebrew ים סוף Yam Suf; Tigrigna ቀይሕ ባሕሪ QeyH baHri) is a gulf or basin of the Indian Ocean between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb sound and the Gulf of Aden. In the north is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba and the Gulf of Suez (leading to the Suez Canal). The sea is roughly 1900 km long and at its widest is over 300 km. The sea floor has a maximum depth of 2,500 m in the central median trench and an average depth of 500 m, but it also has extensive shallow shelves, noted for their marine life and corals. The sea has a surface area of roughly 438,000 or 450,000 km². The sea is the habitat of over 1000 invertebrate species and 200 soft and hard corals. The sea occupies a part of the Great Rift Valley. The Red Sea is the world's most northern tropical sea.

Name

The sea was called the "Arabian Gulf" in most European sources up to the 20th century. This was derived from older Greek sources. Herodotus, Straban and Ptolemy all call the waterway "Arabicus Sinus", while reserving the term "Sea of Erythrias" (Red Sea) for the waters around the southern Arabian Peninsula, now known as Indian Ocean. The name of the sea does not indicate the colour of the water. It may signify the seasonal blooms of the red-coloured cyanobacteria Trichodesmium erythraeum near the water surface. Some suggest that it refers to the mineral-rich red mountains nearby which are called "הרי אדום" (harei edom). Edom, meaning "ruddy complexion", is also an alternative Hebrew name for the red-faced biblical character Esau (brother of Jacob), and the nation descended from him, the Edomites, which in turn provides yet another possible origin for Red Sea. There is also speculation that the name Red Sea came from a mistranslation of what should have been the Reed Sea in the Biblical story of the Exodus. The Sea of Reeds (in Hebrew Yâm-Sûph) is often mistranslated as the "Red Sea". One hypothesis is the name comes from the Himarites, a local group whose own name means "red." Another theory favored by some modern scholars is the name "red" is referring to the direction "south," the same way the Black Sea's name may refer to "north." The basis of this theory is that some Asiatic languages used color words to refer to points on the compass.

Physical properties

Black Sea Surface water temperatures remain relatively constant at 21-25°C and temperature and visibility remain good to around 200 m, but the sea is known for its strong winds and tricky local currents. The sea was created by the division of Africa from the Arabian peninsula, a movement which began around 30 million years ago. The sea is still widening and there are small volcanic features in the deeper parts, it is considered that the sea will become an ocean in time (as proposed in the model of Tuzo Wilson). Sometimes during the Tertiary period the Bab el Mandeb was closed and the Red Sea was an empty hot dry salt-floored sink.

Tourism

The sea is known for its spectacular dive sites such as Ras Mohammed, Elphinstone, The Brothers and Rocky Island in Egypt, and less known sites in Sudan such as Sanganeb, Abington, Angarosh and Shaab Rumi (see photo above). The Red Sea was "discovered" as a diving destination by Hans Hass in the 1950s, and by Jacques-Yves Cousteau later.

Bordering countries

Bordering countries are:
- Northern shore:
  - Egypt
  - Israel
  - Jordan
- Western shore:
  - Sudan
  - Egypt
- Eastern shore:
  - Saudi Arabia
  - Yemen
- Southern shore:
  - Djibouti
  - Eritrea
  - Somalia

Towns and cities

Towns and cities on the Red Sea coast include: Assab, Massawa, Hala'ib, Port Sudan, Port Safaga, Hurghada, El Suweis, Sharm el Sheikh, Eilat, Aqaba, Dahab, Jeddah, Al Hudaydah, Marsa Alam.

See also


- Passage of Red Sea
- Periplus of the Erythraean Sea Category:Geography of Egypt Category:Geography of Israel Category:Great Rift Valley Category:Indian Ocean Category:Seas Category:Geography of Africa ja:紅海 ko:홍해 th:ทะเลแดง

647

Events A stone tower named Cheomseongdae is constructed in Silla around this time. Category:647 ko:647년

Caliph

:This article is on the highest religious and/or temporal title, aspiring universal authority, in Islam; :for lower, notably gubernatorial, uses of the Arabic title khalifa, see that article Caliph is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. It is an Anglicized/Latinized version of the Arabic word خليفة or Khalīfah () which means "successor", that is, successor to the prophet Muhammad. Some academics prefer to transliterate the term as Khalîf. The caliph has often been referred to as Ameer al-Mumineen (أمير المؤمنين), or "Prince of the Faithful," where "Prince" is used in the context of "commander." After the first four caliphs (Abu Bakr, Umar ibn al-Khattab, Uthman ibn Affan, and Ali ibn Abi Talib) the title was claimed by the Umayyads, the Abbasids, and the Ottomans, as well as by other, competing lineages in Spain, Northern Africa, and Egypt. Most historical Muslim rulers simply titled themselves sultans or emirs, and gave token obedience to a caliph who often had very little real authority. The title has been defunct since the abolition of the Ottoman Sultanate in 1924.

Origins of the caliphate

Most academic scholars do not believe that Muhammad had explicitly established how the Muslim community was to be governed after his death. Two questions faced these early Muslims: who was to succeed Muhammad, and what sort of authority he was to exercise.

Succession to Muhammad

Fred Donner, in his book The Early Islamic Conquests(1981), argues that the standard Arabian practice at the time was for the prominent men of a kinship group, or tribe, to gather after a leader's death and choose a leader from amongst themselves. There was no specified procedure for this shura, or consultation. Candidates were usually from the same lineage as the deceased leader, but they were not necessarily his sons. Capable men who would lead well were preferred over an ineffectual direct heir. Muhammad, if he considered the matter of succession at all, would possibly have thought that the standard procedure would apply. This is also the argument advanced by Sunni Muslims, who believe that Muhammad's lieutenant Abu Bakr was chosen by the community and that this was the proper procedure. They further argue that a caliph is ideally chosen by election or community consensus, even though the caliphate soon became a hereditary office, or the prize of the strongest general. Sunnis accept that the caliph should be chosen from Muhammad's tribe, the Quraysh. Shi'a Muslims disagree. They believe that Muhammad had given many indications that he considered Ali ibn Abi Talib, his cousin and son-in-law, as his chosen successor. They say that Abu Bakr seized power by force and trickery. All caliphs other than Ali were usurpers. Ali and his descendents are believed to have been the only proper Muslim leaders, or imams. This matter is covered in much greater detail in the article Succession to Muhammad, and in the article on Shi'a Islam. A third branch of Islam, the Ibadi, believes that the caliphate rightly belongs to the greatest spiritual leader among Muslims, regardless of his lineage. They are currently an extremely small sect, found mainly in Oman.

The authority of the caliph

Who should succeed Muhammad was not the only issue that faced the early Muslims; they also had to clarify the extent of the leader's powers. Muhammad, during his lifetime, was not only the Muslim leader, but the Muslim prophet and the Muslim judge. All law and spiritual practice proceeded from Muhammad. Was his successor to have the same status? None of the early caliphs claimed to receive divine revelations, as did Muhammad; none of them claimed to be nabi, a prophet. Muhammad's revelations were soon codified and written down as the Qur'an, which was accepted as a supreme authority, limiting what a caliph could legitimately command. However, there is some evidence that the early caliphs did believe that they had authority to rule in matters not specified in the Qur'an. They believed themselves to be the spiritual and temporal leaders of Islam, and insisted that implicit obedience to the caliph in all things was the hallmark of the good Muslim. The modern scholars Patricia Crone and Martin Hinds, in their book God's Caliph, outline the evidence for an early, expansive view of the caliph's importance and authority. They argue that this view of the caliphate was eventually nullified (in Sunni Islam, at least) by the rising power of the ulema, or Islamic scholars, clerics, and religious specialists. The ulema insisted on their right to determine what was legal and orthodox. The proper Muslim leader, in the ulema's opinion, was the leader who enforced the rulings of the ulema, rather than making rulings of his own. Conflict between caliph and ulema was a recurring theme in early Islamic history, and ended in the victory of the ulema. The caliph was henceforth limited to temporal rule. He would be considered a righteous caliph if he were guided by the ulema. Crone and Hinds argue that Shi'a Muslims, with their expansive view of the powers of the imamate, have preserved some of the beliefs of early Islam. Crone and Hinds' thesis is not accepted by all scholars. Most Sunni Muslims now believe that the caliph has always been a merely temporal ruler, and that the ulema has always been responsible for adjudicating orthodoxy and Islamic law (shari'a). The first four caliphs are called the Rashidun, the Rightly Guided Caliphs, because they are believe to have followed the Qur'an and the way or sunnah of Muhammad in all things. This formulation itself presumes the Sunni ulema's view of history.

The history of the caliphate

Abu Bakr nominated Umar as his successor on his deathbed, and the Muslim community submitted to his choice. Uthman was elected by a council of electors, but was soon perceived by many Muslims to be ruling as a "king" rather than an elected leader. Uthman was killed by rebellious soldiers. Ali then took control, but was not universally accepted as caliph. He faced numerous rebellions and was assassinated after a tumultuous rule of only five years. This period is known as the Fitna, or the first Islamic civil war. One of Ali's challengers was Muawiyah, a relative of Uthman. After Ali's death, Muawiyah managed to overcome all other claimants to the caliphate. He is remembered by history as Muawiyah I, the founder of the Umayyad dynasty. Under Muawiyah, the caliphate became a hereditary office. Under the Umayyads, the Muslim empire grew rapidly. To the west, Muslim rule expanded across North Africa and into Spain. To the east, it expanded through Iran and ultimately to India. However, the Umayyad dynasty was not universally supported within Islam itself. Some Muslims supported prominent early Muslims like al-Zubayr; others felt that only members of Muhammad's clan, the Banu Hisham, or his own lineage, the descendants of Ali, should rule. There were numerous rebellions against the Umayyads, as well as splits within the Umayyad ranks (notably, the rivalry between Yaman and Qays). Eventually, supporters of the Banu Hisham and Alid claims united to bring down the Umayyads in 750. However, the Shi'at Ali, the party of Ali, were again disappointed when the Abbasid dynasty took power, as the Abbasids were descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib and not from Ali. Following this disappointment, the Shi'at Ali finally split from the majority Sunni Muslims and formed what are today the several Shi'a denominations. The Abassids would provide an unbroken line of caliphs for over three centuries, consolidating Islamic rule and cultivating great intellectual and cultural developments in the Middle East. But by 940 the power of the caliphate under the Abassids was waning as non-Arabs, particularly the Turkish (and later the Mamluks in Egypt in the latter half of the 13th century), gained influence, and sultans and emirs became increasingly independent. However, the caliphate endured as both a symbolic position and a unifying entity for the Islamic world. During the period of the Abassid dynasty, Abassid claims to the caliphate did not go unchallenged. The Shi'a Said ibn Husayn of the Fatimid dynasty, which claimed descendancy of Muhammad through his daughter, claimed the title of Caliph in 909, creating a separate line of caliphs in North Africa. Initially covering Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya, the Fatimid caliphs extended their rule for the next 150 years, taking Egypt and Palestine, before the Abbassid dynasty was able to turn the tide, limiting the Fatimids to rule to Egypt. The Fatimid dynasty finally ended in 1171. The Ummayad dynasty, which had survived and come to rule over the Muslim provinces of the Spain, reclaimed the title of Caliph in 929, lasting until it was overthrown in 1031. 1258 saw the conquest of Baghdad and the execution of Abassid caliph by Mongol forces under Hulagu Khan. Although members of the Abassid dynasty proclaimed a new Caliphate within three years, based in Cairo, various other Muslim rulers had also begun to claim the title of caliph and the Muslim empire became fractured. Eventually the caliphate of the Ottomans established primacy. Thus, by the eve of the First World War, the Ottoman caliphate represented the largest and most powerful independent Islamic political entity. The rulers of the Ottoman state, however, only rarely used title of khalifa for political purposes. It is known that Mehmed II and his grandson Selim used it to justify their conquest of Islamic countries. At a later date, one of the last Sultans of the Ottoman Empire, Sultan Abdulhamid II, used it as a tool against the European colonisation and occupation of countries with large Muslim populations.

How the Caliphate Came to an End

See the article Demise of the Ottoman Caliphate. On March 3, 1924, the first President of the Turkish Republic, Kemal Atatürk, constitutionally abolished the institution of the Caliphate. Its powers were transfered to the Turkish Grand National Assembly (parliament) of the newly formed Turkish nation-state and the title has since been inactive. Scattered attempts to revive the Caliphate elsewhere in the Muslim World were made in the years immediately following its abandonment by Turkey, but none were successful. Hussein bin Ali, a former Ottoman governor of the Hejaz who had conspired with the British during World War I and revolted against Istanbul, declared himself Caliph at Mecca two days after Turkey relinquished the title. But no one took his claim seriously, and he was soon ousted and driven out of Arabia by the Saudis, a rival clan that had no interest in the Caliphate. The last Ottoman Sultan Mehmed VI made a similar attempt to re-establish himself as Caliph in the Hejaz after leaving Turkey, but he was also unsuccessful. In the 1920s the Khilafat Movement, a movement to restore the Turkish Caliphate, spread throughout the British colonial territories in Asia. It was particularly strong in India, where it was a rallying point for Muslim communities. A summit was convened in Cairo in 1926 to discuss the revival of the Caliphate, but most Muslim countries did not participate and no action was taken to implement the summit’s resolutions. Though the title Ameer al-Mumineen was adopted by the King of Morocco and Mullah Mohammed Omar, former head of the now-defunct Taliban regime of Afghanistan, neither claimed any legal standing or authority over Muslims outside the borders of their respective countries. The closest thing to a Caliphate in existence today is the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), an international organization founded in 1969 consisting of the governments of most Muslim-majority countries. But the OIC has limited influence; many Muslims are not aware that the organization exists, and its resolutions are often ignored even by member nations.

Reasons for the Caliphate's Continuing Dormancy

Once the subject of intense conflict and rivalry amongst Muslim rulers, the caliphate has lain dormant and largely unclaimed for much of the past 81 years. The reasons for this are varied and complex. During the first half of the European Middle Ages, Muslim kingdoms were global superpowers home to some of the world's preeminent centers of culture, trade, and learning. The fall of the Abbasid Empire in 1258 marked the end of this prolific period of the Muslim World's intellectual history, and subsequent centuries failed to produce Muslim scholarly achievement and technological or intellectual progress of the significance that had characterized earlier Muslim civilizations. Though the void in Muslim geopolitical and military strength was briefly filled by the emergence of the Ottoman Empire (the last symbol of Islamic power), the ongoing intellectual stagnation contributed to a steady decline of the Ottoman Empire's strength and influence, and the Muslim World found itself unable to respond to a booming European resurgance fueled by the Rennaisance, the Reformation, and the Industrial Revolution. By the end of World War I, most Muslim lands had fallen under foreign occupation. Under varying degrees of European control and influence, the Muslim World was subsequently reshaped along secular nationalist lines and heavily influenced by Western or socialist political philosophies. The role of mosques and the religious establishment was substantially reduced in most Muslim countries, leading to the emergence of political and military elites that viewed Islam as a personal matter and not a basis for political unity or a viable foundation for a modern state. Furthermore, the division of the Muslim World into distinct nation-states caused cultural differences to become more pronounced. These effects, coupled with prevalence of old grudges and rivalries between Muslim regimes (particularly in the Arab world), have prevented large-scale interstate cooperation amongst Muslim states from taking place. Though Islam is still a dominant influence in most Muslim societies and many Muslims remain in favor of a caliphate, tight restrictions on political activity in many Muslim countries coupled with the tremendous practical obstacles to uniting over fifty disparate nation-states under a single institution have prevented efforts to revive the caliphate from garnering much active support, even amongst devout Muslims. Popular apolitical Islamic movements such as the Tablighi Jamaat identify a lack of spirituality and decline in religious observance as the root cause of the Muslim World's problems, and claim that the caliphate cannot be successfully revived until these deficiencies are addressed. No attempts at rebuilding a power structure based on Islam were successful anywhere in the Muslim World until the Iranian Revolution in 1979, which was based on Shia principles and did not deal with the issue of a global caliphate. Various Sunni Islamist movements have gained momentum in recent years, calling for a restoration of the caliphate. However many such movements have as yet been unable to agree on a roadmap or a coherent model of Islamic governance, and dialog on this issue amongst Muslim intellectuals has been characterized by uncertainty and confusion amidst a broad range of viewpoints on what a modern Islamic state should look like. Mainstream Islamic institutions in Muslim countries today have generally not made the restoration of the caliphate a top priority and have instead focused on other issues. Most regimes have actually been hostile to such a call. One transnational group, the Hizb_ut-Tahrir, has tried to recruit the world's Muslims to a renewed caliphate. They have published a draft constitution at [http://www.hizb-ut-tahrir.org].

Famous caliphs


- Abu Bakr - First rightly guided caliph of the Sunnis. Subdued rebel tribes in the Ridda Wars.
- Umar ibn al-Khattab - Second rightly guided caliph. During his reign, the Islamic empire expanded to include Egypt, Jerusalem, and Persia.
- Uthman ibn Affan - Third rightly guided caliph. The Qur'an was compiled under his direction. Killed by rebels.
- Ali ibn Abi Talib - Fourth and last rightly guided caliph, and considered the first imam by Shi'a Muslims. His reign was fraught with internal conflict.
- Muawiya I - First Umayyad caliph. Muawiya instituted dynastic rule by appointing his son Yazid as his successor, a trend that would continue through all subsequent caliphates.
- Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz - Umayyad caliph considered by some (mainly Sunnis) to be a fifth rightly guided caliph.
- Haroon al-Rasheed - Abbasid caliph during whose reign Baghdad became the world's preeminent center of trade, learning, and culture. Haroon is the subject of many stories in the famous work 1001 Arabian Nights.
- Suleiman the Magnificent - Early Ottoman Sultan during whose reign the Ottoman Empire reached its zenith.

Dynasties

The more important dynasties include:
- The Umayyad dynasty in Damascus (661-750), followed by:
- The Abbasid dynasty in Baghdad (750-1258), and later in Cairo (under Mameluke control) (1260-1517)
- The Shi'ite Fatimid dynasty in North Africa and Egypt (909-1171). Not universally accepted and not currently included in the following list.
- The Rahmanids, a surviving branch of the Damascus Umayyads, established 'in exile' as Emirs of Córdoba, Spain, declared themselves Caliphs (known as the Caliphs of Cordoba; not universally accepted; 929-1031)
- The Almohad dynasty in North Africa and Spain (not universally accepted; 1145-1269). Traced their descent not from Muhammad, but from a puritanic reformer in Morocco who claimed to be the Mahdi (a puritanic reformer in Morocco, bringing down the 'decadent' Almoravid emirate) whose son established a sultanate and claimed to be a caliph.
- The Ottomans (1453-1924; main title Padishah, also known as Great Sultan etc., used the title Caliph only sporadically between the 16th and late 19th century Note on the overlap of Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates: After the massacre of the Umayyad clan by the Abbassids, one lone prince escaped and fled to North Africa, which remained loyal to the Umayyads. This was Abd-ar-rahman I. From there, he proceeded to Spain, where he overthrew and united the provinces conquered by previous Umayyad Caliphs (in 712 and 712). From 756 to 929, this Umayyad domain in Spain was an independent emirate, until Abd-ar-rahman III reclaimed the title of Caliph for his dynasty. The Umayyad Emirs of Spain are not listed in the summary below because they did not claim the caliphate until 929. For a full listing of all the Umayyad rulers in Spain see the Umayyad article.

Claims to the caliphate

Many local rulers throughout Islamic history have claimed to be caliphs. Most claims were ignored outside their limited domains. In many cases, these claims were made by rebels against established authorities and died when the rebellion was crushed. Notable claimants include:
- al-Zubayr -- held the Hijaz against the Ummayads
- Caliph of the Sudan -- a Songhai king of the Sahel

Lists of Caliphal dynasties and seats

Years according to the Christian era (all AD)

The Rashidun ("Righteously Guided")

Accepted by Sunni Muslims as the first four rulers; Shi'a Muslims believe that the first three rulers were usurpers.
- Abu Bakr - 632 - 634
- Umar ibn al-Khattab - 634 - 644
- Uthman ibn Affan - 644 - 656
- Ali ibn Abi Talib - 656 - 661

The Umayyads of Damascus


- Muawiyah I - 661 - 680
- Yazid I - 680 - 683
- Muawiya II - 683 - 684
- Marwan I - 684 - 685
- Abd al-Malik - 685 - 705
- al-Walid I - 705 - 715
- Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik - 715 - 717
- Umar II - 717 - 720
- Yazid II - 720 - 724
- Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik - 724 - 743
- Al-Walid II - 743 - 744
- Yazid III - 744
- Ibrahim ibn al-Walid - 744
- Marwan II - 744 - 750

The Abbasids of Baghdad

The main branch, in Baghdad

(Not accepted by the Muslim dominions in the Iberian peninsula and parts of North Africa)
- Abu'l Abbas As-Saffah - 750 - 754
- Al-Mansur - 754 - 775
- Al-Mahdi - 775 - 785
- Al-Hadi- 785 - 786
- Harun al-Rashid - 786 - 809
- Al-Amin - 809 - 813
- Al-Ma'mun - 813 - 833
- Al-Mu'tasim - 833 - 842
- Al-Wathiq - 842 - 847
- Al-Mutawakkil - 847 - 861
- Al-Muntasir - 861 - 862
- Al-Musta'in - 862 - 866
- Al-Mu'tazz - 866 - 869
- Al-Muhtadi - 869 - 870
- Al-Mu'tamid - 870 - 892
- Al-Mu'tadid - 892 - 902
- Al-Muktafi - 902 - 908

- Al-Muqtadir - 908 - 932
- Al-Qahir - 932 - 934
- Ar-Radi - 934 - 940
- Al-Muttaqi - 940 - 944
- Al-Mustakfi - 944 - 946
- Al-Muti - 946 - 974
- At-Ta'i - 974 - 991
- Al-Qadir - 991 - 1031

The Umayyads (Rahmanid branch) of Cordoba

(Not universally accepted)
- Abd-ar-rahman III, as caliph, 929-961
- Al-Hakam II, 961-976
- Hisham II, 976-1008
- Mohammed II, 1008-1009
- Suleiman, 1009-1010
- Hisham II, restored, 1010-1012
- Suleiman, restored, 1012-1017
- Abd-ar-Rahman IV, 1021-1022
- Abd-ar-Rahman V, 1022-1023
- Muhammad III, 1023-1024
- Hisham III, 1027-1031

- Al-Qa'im - 1031 - 1075
- Al-Muqtadi - 1075 - 1094
- Al-Mustazhir - 1094 - 1118
- Al-Mustarshid - 1118 - 1135
- Ar-Rashid - 1135 - 1136
- Al-Muqtafi - 1136 - 1160

The Almohads of Spain and Morroco

(Not widely accepted)
- Abd al-Mu'min 1145-1163
- Abu Ya'qub Yusuf I 1163-1184
- Abu Yusuf Ya'qub al-Mansur 1184-1199
- Muhammad an-Nasir 1199-1213
- Abu Ya'qub Yusuf II 1213-1224
- Abd al-Wahid I 1224
- Abdallah 1224-1227
- Yahya 1227-1235
- Idris I 1227-1232
- Abdul-Wahid II 1232-1242
- Ali 1242-1248
- Umar 1248-1266
- Idris II 1266-1269

- Al-Mustanjid - 1160 - 1170
- Al-Mustadi - 1170 - 1180
- An-Nasir - 1180 - 1225
- Az-Zahir - 1225 - 1226
- Al-Mustansir - 1226 - 1242
- Al-Musta'sim - 1242 - 1258

The Abbasid branch of Cairo


- Al-Mustansir - 1259-1261
- Al-Hakim I - 1262 - 1302
- Al-Mustakfi I - 1302 - 1340
- Al-Wathiq I - 1340 - 1341
- Al-Hakim II - 1341 - 1352
- Al-Mu'tadid I - 1352 - 1362
- Al-Mutawakkil I - 1362 - 1383
- Al-Wathiq II - 1383 - 1386
- Al-Mu'tasim - 1386 - 1389
- Al-Mutawakkil I (restored) - 1389 - 1406
- Al-Musta'in - 1406 - 1414
- Al-Mu'tadid II - 1414 - 1441
- Al-Mustakfi II - 1441 - 1451

- Al-Qa'im - 1451 - 1455
- Al-Mustanjid - 1455 - 1479
- Al-Mutawakkil II - 1479 - 1497
- Al-Mustamsik - 1497 - 1508
- Al-Mutawakkil III - 1508 - 1517

The Ottoman Padishahs

Originally the secular, conquering dynasty was just entitled Sultan, soon it started accumulating titles assumed from subjected peoples
- Mehmed (Muhammed) II (the Conqueror of Constantinopel, afterwards Istanbul) - 1451 - 1481 (actively used numerous titles such as of Caliph and Caesar )
- Beyazid II - 1481 - 1512
- Selim I - 1512 - 1520 (actively used title of Caliph )
- Suleiman the Magnificent - 1520 - 1566
- Selim II - 1566 - 1574
- Murad III - 1574 - 1595
- Mehmed(Muhammed) III - 1595 - 1603
- Ahmed I - 1603 - 1617
- Mustafa I (First Reign) - 1617 - 1618
- Osman II - 1618 - 1622
- Mustafa I (Second Reign) - 1622 - 1623
- Murad IV - 1623 - 1640
- Ibrahim I - 1640 - 1648
- Mehmed (Muhammed) IV - 1648 - 1687
- Suleiman II - 1687 - 1691
- Ahmed II - 1691 - 1695
- Mustafa II - 1695 - 1703
- Ahmed III - 1703 - 1730
- Mahmud I - 1730 - 1754
- Osman III - 1754 - 1757
- Mustafa III - 1757 - 1774
- Abd-ul-Hamid I - 1774 - 1789
- Selim III - 1789 - 1807
- Mustafa IV - 1807 - 1808
- Mahmud II - 1808 - 1839
- Abd-ul-Mejid I - 1839 - 1861
- Abd-ul-Aziz - 1861 - 1876
- Murad V - 1876
- Abd-ul-Hamid II - 1876 - 1909 (actively used title of Caliph) Note: From 1908 onwards constitutional monarch without executive powers, with parliament consisting of chosen representatives.
- Mehmed(Muhammed) V - 1909 - 1918 (constitutional monarch/Caliph without executive powers, parliament consisting of chosen representatives)
- Mehmed (Muhammed)VI - 1918 - 1922 (constitutional monarch/Caliph without executive powers, parliament consisting of chosen representatives)

The secular Republic of Turkey


- Abdul Mejid II - 1922 - 1924; only as Caliph (Head of state: Gazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha)
- Grand National Assembly of Turkey (Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi) 1924-1937 Although the title of Caliph is currently unused, it could conceivably be used again if the Turkish parliament were to decide to reactivate it.

The Sharifan house in (now Saudi) Arabia

A last attempt at restoring the caliphal office and style with ecumenical recognition was made by al-Husayn ibn `Ali al-Hashimi, King of al-Hijaz, who assumed both 11 Mar 1924 and held them until his passing the kingship to his son `Ali ibn al-Husayn al-Hashimi, who did not adopt the khalifal office and style.

See also


- History of Islam
- Succession to Muhammad

Sources and References


- Crone, Patricia & Hinds, Martin -- God's Caliph, Cambridge University Press, 1986
- Donner, Fred -- The Early Islamic Conquests, Princeton University Press, 1981
- [http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Religious_Organizations.html#Caliphate WorldStatesmen] here Religious Organisations (click Muslim Caliphate) - see also present countries per caliphal seat
- [http://www.storyofpakistan.com/articletext.asp?artid=A033 History of the Indian Khilafat Movement]
- [http://www.caliphate.co.uk/ A vision of a 21st Century Khilafah]
- [http://www-personal.umich.edu/~luqman/ List of articles on the nature of a new Khilafah]
- [http://www.khilafah.or.id/ Page dedicated to having a Khilafah in Indonesia]
- [http://howcaliphatewillwork.blogspot.com/ Caliphate Blog]
- [http://www.witness-pioneer.org/vil/Articles/politics/political_framework_of_islam.htm The Political Framework of Islam & Khilafah by Prof. Kurshid Ahmad]
- [http://www.witness-pioneer.org/vil/Articles/politics/understanding_politics_in_islam.htm Prof Yusuf al-Qaradawi on The politics of Islam]
- [http://www.witness-pioneer.org/vil/Articles/politics/espo.html Political Islam: Beyond the Green Menace, by John Esposito, Journal of Current History] Category:Caliphate Category:Heads of state Category:Monarchy Category:Noble titles Category:Religious leaders Category:Titles Category:Arabic words ja:カリフ

Pilgrim

A pilgrim is one who undertakes a religious pilgrimage, literally 'far afield'. This is traditionally a visit to a place of some religious significance; often a considerable distance is traveled. Examples include a Muslim visiting Mecca, or a Christian or Jew visiting Jerusalem. No religion has laid greater stress on the duty of a pilgrimage than Islam in the Hajj. A full account is at the entry Hajj. Some of the oldest destinations for pilgrimages are in India. On the sacred river Ganges lies Benares, the holy city of Brahminism. Buddhism offers four sites of pilgrimage: the Buddha's birthplace at Kapilavastu, the site where he first preached at Gaya, where the highest insight dawned on him at Benares, and where he achieved Nirvana at Kusinagara. In the kingdoms of Israel and Judah the visitation of certain ancient cult-centers was repressed in the 7th century BC, when the worship was restricted to Jahweh at the temple in Jersusalem. In Syria, the shrine of Astarte at the headwater spring of the river Adonis survived until it was destroyed by order of Emperor Constantine in the 4th century AD. In mainland Greece, a stream of individuals made their way to Delphi or the oracle of Zeus at Dodona, and once every four years, at the period of the Olympic games, the temple of Zeus at Olympia formed the goal of swarms of pilgrims from every part of the Hellenic world. When Alexander the Great reached Egypt, he put his whole vast enterprise on hold, while he made his way with a small band deep into the Libyan desert, to consult the oracle of Ammun. During the imperium of his Ptolemaic heirs, the shrine of Isis at Philae received many votive inscriptions from Greeks on behalf of their kindred far away at home. In the Middle Ages, even as early as the 4th century AD, Christian pilgrimage was regarded as a sacred obligation and a trial of one's faith, since travel was dangerous, expensive and time-consuming. A returning pilgrim was called a palmer, as they would wear two crossed palm leaves to show they had made the pilgrimage. The anonymous "Pilgrim of Bordeaux" has left an itinerary of a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 333. Empress Helena's discovery of the True Cross outside Jerusalem was the result of a pilgrimage. The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus attracted pilgrims, who left their graffiti in the catacomb. In the West, Saint Martin of Tours and Martial of Limoges inspired building projects and an industry catering to pilgrims' requirements, including, in Martial's case, elaborately faked pious documentation (see Adhemar of Chabannes). The shrine of Santiago de Compostela in Spain lay at the end of a long connected string of pilgrims' sites, as did the city of Rome. Popular destinations for pilgrimage in England included Bury St. Edmunds and Thomas Beckett's shrine at Canterbury, the destination of Chaucer's 14th century pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales. In the north, many pilgrims headed to the shrine of Saint Cuthbert of Lindisfarne. Pilgrims contributed an important element to long-distance trade before the modern era, and brought prosperity to successful pilgrimage sites, an economic phenomenon unequalled until the tourist trade of the 20th century. Encouraging pilgrims was a motivation for assembling (and sometimes fabricating) relics and for writing hagiographies of local saints, filled with inspiring accounts of miracle cures. Lourdes and other modern pilgrimage sites keep this spirit alive. Over the centuries the terms 'pilgrim' and 'pilgrimage' have come to have a somewhat devalued meaning, and are nowadays often applied in a secular context. For example, fans of Elvis Presley may choose to visit his home, Graceland, in Memphis, Tennessee. Similarly one may refer to a cultural center such as Venice as a "tourists' Mecca". The Pilgrims were a group of English 'Separatists', religious dissidents who exiled themselves first in the Netherlands, then sailed for Massachusetts, in the hope of setting up a colony where they could enjoy religious freedom. In this context, the term 'pilgrim' (first used of them in 1799) means only that they travelled a long way in order to practise their religion. Compare: Hajj Category:Pilgrimages Category:People known in connection with religion or philosophy

Hajj

The Hajj or Haj (Arabic: حَجّ Ḥaǧǧ) is the Pilgrimage to Mecca (or, "Makkah") and is the fifth of the "Five Pillars of Islam" in Sunni Islam and one of the ten Branches of Religion in Shi'a Islam. Every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so is obliged to make the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime. The government of Saudi Arabia issues special visas to foreigners for the purpose of the pilgrimage, which takes place during the Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah. Entrance to the city itself is forbidden to non-Muslims, and the entire city is considered a holy site to Islam.

Preparations

Many people go to Mecca in groups with their friends or family, or friends from the local mosque, in order to save money. Some airlines have special package holidays for Muslims going to Mecca. A woman is encourged to go to Mecca in the company of a male relative (father, husband, or brother), but the Saudi government permits an unaccompanied woman to go provided that she travels in a group with other women and has written permission to do so from a male relative. While in Mecca for the Hajj, male pilgrims are required to dress only in an ihram, a garment consisting of two sheets of white unhemmed cloth, the top draped over the torso and the bottom secured by a belt; plus a pair of sandals. The ihram is intended to show the equality of all pilgrims in the eyes of Allah, as there is no difference between a prince and a pauper when everyone is dressed equally. The ihram also symbolizes purity and absolution of sins. Many female pilgrims traditionally wear a simple white or black dress with a headcovering. While the pilgram is wearing the ihram, he may not shave, cut his nails, or wear jewelery. An invocation known as the talbiyah should be chanted as the pilgrim is donning the garment.

Performing the Hajj

Umrah

Upon arrival in Mecca, the pilgrim ('Hajji') performs a series of ritual acts symbolic of the life of the prophet Abraham (Ibrahim) and his wife Hagar (Hajarah), and of solidarity with Muslims worldwide. These acts of faith are:
- Perform a tawaf, which consists of circling the Kaaba four times at a hurried pace, followed by three times, more closely, at a leisurely pace, in a counter-clockwise direction.
- Rapidly walk seven times back and forth between the hills of Safa and Marwah. This is a re-enactment of Hagar's frantic search for water, before the Zamzam Well was revealed to her by Allah. These rituals complete the umrah, sometimes called the "lesser hajj". Although not a part of the ritual, most pilgrims drink water from the Well of Zamzam when the umrah is completed. At this point, the pilgrim can change from the ihram to regular clothes, that is known as Mut'ah of Hajj.

Optional journey to Medina

Though it is not required as part of the Hajj, after the Umrah, pilgrims often travel to visit the city of Medina and the Mosque of the Prophet. Muhammad's tomb is enclosed by the mosque, as are the tombs of Abu Bakr and 'Umar.

Completing the Hajj

After spending a night or more in Medina (Although this is not part of the Hajj ritual), the Hajj continues. The pilgrim dons the ihram once again and performs the final three acts of faith. This is known as the Al Hajjul Akbar, or "greater hajj." The duties of the greater hajj are:
- Journey to the hill of Arafat and spend an afternoon there. The journey usually takes three to five days for the full round trip. At the plain of Arafat, the pilgrim stays from afternoon until sundown. No specific rituals or prayers are required during the stay at Arafat, though many pilgrims spend the time praying, talking to Allah, and thinking about the course of their lives.
- Upon returning from Arafat, pilgrims travel to the city of Mina just outside of Mecca, and participate in the stoning of the devil. This requires collecting a number of pebbles from the ground on the plain of Muzdalifah (various Hajj accounts list the number of pebbles as between 49 and 70), and throwing the pebbles at the three pillars at Mina, which represent the devil. All three pillars represent the devil: the first and largest is where he tempted Abraham against sacrificing Ishmael, the second is where he tempted Abraham's wife Hagar to induce her to stop him, and the third is where he tempted Ishmael to avoid being sacrificed. He was rebuked each time, and the throwing of the stones symbolizes those rebukes.
- Perform a second tawaf around the Kaaba. This completes the requirements of the Hajj. After stoning the devil, many male pilgrims will then shave their head; women may cut off a lock of their hair. This is a symbol of rebirth, signifying that their sins have been cleansed by completion of the Hajj. The "lesser hajj" can be performed at any time of the year, but the "greater hajj" must take place during the month of Dhu al-Hijjah and is one of the five pillars of Sunni Islam. Most pilgrims will perform the "greater hajj" because of the difficulty and expense of traveling to the city of Mecca. For many pilgrims (especially ones who had difficulty travelling due to health or finances), the journey to Mecca is a once in a lifetime event.

Spiritual aspects of the Hajj

The pilgrimage structures the entire life of the sincere Muslim. A believer is required to make the pilgrimage at least once in his or her life time. A devout Muslim's whole life is directed towards this spiritual goal; all of life becomes a pilgrimage. The pilgrim, the haji, is honoured in his or her community. For some, this is an incentive to perform the Hajj. In some communities, a person that has done the hajj can be nicknamed "haajji" or "haajjaah" - which can be translated as "honorable pilgrim". Some Islamic teachers would say that this is a wrong incentive, as the Hajj should be an expression of devotion to God, not a means to gain social standing. The talbiyah prayer reflects this sentiment. The believer should be self-aware and examine his or her intentions in performing the pilgrimage. This should lead to constant striving for self-improvement. The Hajj rituals have a deep psychological significance for Muslims. The pilgrimage is usually a very profound experience for those who participate in it. When life is lived according to the precepts of the religion and the mind is in a suitable condition, the pilgrimage can spiritually transform the individual. In spite of the physical hardships for some, pilgrims who complete the Hajj consider it one of the greatest spiritual experiences of their lives. Many Muslims regard the Hajj as one of the great achievements of civilization, because it brings together people from one-fifth of the population of the entire world and focuses them upon a single goal: completing the Hajj.

Incidents during the Hajj

There are an estimated 1.3 billion Muslims living today. Modern jet travel also makes Mecca and the Hajj more accessible to pilgrims from all over the world. As a consequence, the Hajj has become increasingly crowded. During the month of the Hajj, the city of Mecca must cope with as many as four million pilgrims. City officials are consequently required to control large crowds and provide food, shelter, and sanitation for millions. Unfortunately, they have not always been able to prevent disasters. Some of the worst incidents include:

Failures in crowd control

Sometimes the surging crowds, trekking from one station of the pilgrimage to the next, stampede. Panic spreads, pilgrims jostle to avoid being trampled, and hundreds of deaths can result.
- On February 1, 2004 251 Muslim pilgrims were killed and another 244 injured in a stampede during the stoning of the jamaraat (pillars) ritual.
- On April 9, 1998, at least 118 pilgrims were trampled to death.
- On May 23, 1994 a stampede killed at least 270 pilgrims at the stoning of the jamaraat (pillars) ritual.
- On July 2, 1990 a stampede inside a pedestrian tunnel leading to the holy sites led to the deaths of 1,426 pilgrims.

Fires


- On April 15, 1997 343 pilgrims were killed and 1,500 injured in a tent fire.

Protests and violence


- On July 9, 1989 two bombs exploded, killing one pilgrim and wounding a further sixteen. Saudi authorities beheaded sixteen Kuwaiti Shiite Muslims for the bombings after originally blaming Iranian terrorists.
- On July 31, 1987 Iranian pilgrims rioted, causing the deaths of over 400 people.
- On November 20, 1979 a group of approximately 200 militant Muslims occupied Mecca's Grand Mosque. They were driven out by French commandos (allowed into the city under these special circumstances despite their being non-Muslims) after bloody fighting that left 250 people dead and 600 wounded.

Disease

Mingling of visitors from so many countries, can lead to the spread of epidemics. This was more of a problem in the past.

Official response

Critics say that the Saudi Arabian government should have done more to prevent such tragedies. The Saudi government insists that any such mass gatherings are inherently dangerous and difficult to handle, and that they have taken a number of steps to prevent problems. One of the biggest steps, one which is also controversial, is a new system of registrations, passports, and travel visas to control the flow of pilgrims. This system is designed to encourage and accommodate first-time visitors to Mecca, while imposing restrictions upon those who embark upon the trip multiple times. Pilgrims who have the means and desire to perform the Hajj several times have protested what they see as discrimination, but the Hajj Commission has stated that they see no alternative if further tragedies are to be prevented. Sources: [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3450333.stm] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/1204816.stm] [http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-11664.html] [http://www.nmhschool.org/tthornton/mehistorydatabase/war_in_lebanon.htm] [http://www.saudi-us-relations.org/newsletter2004/saudi-relations-interest-01-10.html]

Non-Muslims in Mecca

The second caliph, Umar, is believed by many Muslims to have expelled non-Muslims from Arabia. Non-Muslims were not to visit nor to live in the holy land. There is much evidence against this claim, at least so far as it relates to the early centuries of the Islamic empire, but it is well documented that by the 18th and 19th centuries, non-Muslims were emphatically unwelcome in most parts of Arabia. There were small colonies of merchants in various port and trading cities, as well as communities of Yemeni Jews, but ordinary travelers journeyed at risk of their lives. This was not so much imposed by the authorities as enforced by rioting crowds. The prohibition was most strictly enforced with regard to the Hijaz, and the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. As one might expect, the existence of "forbidden cities" and the mystery of the Hajj aroused intense curiosity in European travellers. A number of them pretended to be Muslims and entered the city of Mecca and then the Kaaba to experience the Hajj for themselves. The most famous account of a foreigner's journey to Mecca is A Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Mecca and Al-Madina, written by Sir Richard Francis Burton. Burton traveled as a Qadiri Sufi from Afghanistan; his name, as he signed it in Arabic below his frontispiece portrait for "The Jew, The Gypsy and al-Islam," was al-Hajj 'Abdullah. The prohibition on non-Muslims visiting Mecca still exists, and is enforced by Saudi Arabian law. However, the penalty is no longer death by rioting crowd. There is less curiosity these days, since photographs of Mecca, the Grand Mosque, and the Kaaba are easily available. However, some may still want to experience the events of the Hajj first-hand.

See also


- List of Islamic terms in Arabic

External links


- [http://www.al-islam.org/hajj/shariati/ Hajj]
- [http://www.soundvision.com/info/hajj/diary.asp A Hajj Diary]
- [http://www.world-federation.org/MAB/Articles/Health_+Hajj_Ziarat_2003.htm Protect Your Health during Hajj and Ziarat]
- [http://www.asinah.org/travel-guides/saudiarabiahajj.html The Hajj - Al Hajj - Haji]
- [http://www.islamfrominside.com/Pages/Articles/AroundtheKabba.html Description of and reflection on the tawaf around the Kaaba] Category:Islam Category:Five Pillars of Islam Category:Mecca Category:Pilgrimages ms:Haji th:ฮัจญ์

Mecca

:This article is about the holy city in Saudi Arabia. For other uses, see Mecca (disambiguation) Mecca or Makkah (in full: Makkah al-Mukarramah; ) is the capital city of Saudi Arabia's Makkah province, in the historic Hijaz region. It is located at , 73 kilometers inland from Jeddah, in the narrow sandy Valley of Abraham, 277 meters (909 feet) above sea level. 80 km from the Red Sea. It has a population of approximately one million. The city is revered as the holiest site of Islam, and a pilgrimage to it is required of all Muslims who can afford to go. Muslims regard the al-Masjid al-Haram (or 'The Sacred Mosque') as the holiest place on Earth. Both the mosque and the city itself are strictly off-limits to non-Muslims. The term 'Mecca' has come into common usage metaphorically to mean any all-important site for any particular group of people. In the 1980s the government of Saudi Arabia changed the official English transliteration of the city's name from 'Mecca', as it had been commonly spelled by westerners, to 'Makkah'. See below for the reasons.

The importance of Mecca

For Muslims, a pilgrimage to Mecca is required as one of the Five Pillars of the faith. In recent years, about two to three million have gathered for the major pilgrimage or Hajj, during the Muslim month of Dhu al-Hijjah, and many more perform the minor pilgrimage or Umrah, which may be performed at any time of year. Few non-Muslims have ever seen the rites and rituals of the Hajj as non-Muslims are strictly prohibited from entering Mecca and Medina. The focal point of Mecca is the Ka'bah, the "House of God" believed by Muslims to have been built by Abraham and his son Ishmael, and is covered in a gold-embroidered black fabric. The Pilgrims circle the Ka'bah seven times and may also try to touch or kiss its cornerstone, the Black Stone. Pilgrims then drink from the well of Zamzam. The water of Zamzam is believed to have special properties and is alleged to have health benefits. Few pilgrims return from the Hajj without a large plastic bottle of the Zamzam water. During the Hajj the pilgrims travel to Mina, a small village, where Iblis (the Devil), symbolised by stone columns, is ritually stoned. They then proceed to the Hill of Arafat (sometimes called the Mountain, but it is only 70 meters high), a site for prayers, where Muhammad is believed to have delivered his final Sermon. Hill of Arafat The importance of Mecca for Muslims is inestimable. All Muslims, wherever they are on the earth, are required to pray five times a day in the direction of the Ka'bah in Mecca (located at ). The direction of prayer is known as the qiblah. Muslims regard the al-Masjid al-Haram (or 'The Sacred Mosque') as the holiest place on Earth. Both the mosque and the city itself are strictly off-limits to non-Muslims.

Muhammad

Muhammad, the final prophet of Islam, was born in Mecca in 571 CE. When he was forty years old, he received the first revelation in a cave called Hira in Jabal al-Nour (Mountain of Light), approximately 2 miles from Mecca. In the year 622 CE, after an attempt on his life, he moved to Yathrib (now Madinah), which also became a holy city. Later, Muhammad led the Muslims and conquered Mecca from the pagans.

Non-Muslims and Mecca

Non-Muslims are not permitted to enter Mecca. Road blocks are stationed along roads leading to the city. The most celebrated case of a non-Muslim visiting Mecca was that of the British explorer Sir Richard Burton in 1853. Burton disguised himself as an Afghan Muslim to visit and write his Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al Madinah and Meccah.

Is Mecca the city of the Valley of Bakkah?

:See main article: Bakkah Some have identified Mecca as the ancient city Bakkah, the Biblical "valley of Baca" in Psalm 84, but this association is controversial. It is known that the name Bakkah was changed to Mecca at some time, which is the location identified in the Qur'an. Some Muslims also believe it is the same location as mentioned in the Old Testament, but this is contestable.

The spelling of the name

For most English-speakers, Mecca has long been the accepted spelling for the holy city. The word is a transliteration of the original Arabic, and has become part of the English language. In an effort to distinguish between the metaphorical and official references to the holy site, the Saudi Arabian government in the 1980s began promoting a new transliteration, 'Makkah al-Mukarramah', which is even closer to the original Arabic. This new usage has been adopted in many places and by certain organization, such as on the [http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3584.htm U.S. Department of State] website, but it is not part of the active vocabulary of English-speakers at large.

See also


- Islamic architecture
- List of famous mosques
- List of holy cities
- Medina
- Mecca (disambiguation)

External links


-
- [http://haqaonline.lightuponlight.com/pg/index.php?cat=2 Pictures of Mecca]
- [http://www.irbs.com/lists/navigation/0008/0039.html Mention of the Kaaba's coordinates]
- [http://www.asinah.org/travel-guides/saudiarabiamecca.html Mecca Information]
- [http://peace-city.tripod.com/Glory_of_Makkah.html Is it the Glory of Mecca or Zion in Isaiah, Chapter 60?]
- [http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/b/burton/richard/b97p/chapter27.html Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al Madinah and Meccah, by Richard Burton] (opinionated)
- [http://www.3dkabah.com A 3D model of the Kaaba and Haraam. With Pictures and Videos] Category:Holy cities Category:Mecca Category:Pilgrimages Category:Arabic words ko:메카 ms:Makkah al-Mukarramah ja:マッカ simple:Mecca th:มักกะหฺ

Adam and Eve

:For other uses of Adam or Eve, see Adam (disambiguation) and Eve (disambiguation). For the orchid species commonly called Adam and Eve, see Aplectrum hyemale. According to the Book of Genesis in Judaism's Torah, the Christian Bible and Islam's Qur'an, Adam was the first man created by God. At Genesis 1:27 Adam's female mate is said to have been created with Adam, and at Genesis 2:21-22 Adam's wife is named as Eve (or Chava-חוה) and was created from his rib. Hence, Eve has, in modern times, been thought of as the first woman, according to these texts, though classical traditions recorded in the Midrash make her the second.. The Qur'an tells the story of Adam and Eve mainly in 2:30-39, 7:11-25, 15:26-44, 17:61-65, 20:115-124, 38:71-85., and the Book of Genesis tells the story at chapters 2-3.

Interpretation of names

Adam—אָדָם in Standard Hebrew, ʾĀḏām in Tiberian Hebrew, آدم (ʾĀdam) in Arabic, አዳም ('Adam) in Geez (Ethiopic), and Adamus in Latin — translates literally as red earth. In the ancient cultures of the fertile crescent, people were thought to have been created from the earth itself, and so the term red earth was used to refer to mankind generally. Indeed Adam, in the Kazakh language means human, and Adamshylyk is mankind, and in most other turkic languages Adam also means man or human. However, in the Sibylline Oracles, the name Adam is explained as a notaricon composed of the initials of the four directions; anatole (east), dusis (west), arktos (north), and mesembria (south). The Jews had their own acrostic interpretation of the name Adam. In the 2nd century CE, Rabbi Yohanan used the Greek technique of notarichon to explain the name אָדָם as the initials of the words afer, dam, and marah, being dust, blood, and gall. Eve—חַוָּה (Ḥavva) in Standard Hebrew, Ḥawwāh in Tiberian Hebrew, حواء (Ḥawwāʾ) in Arabic, ሕይዋን (Hiywan) in Geez, and Eva/Eua or Geva in Latin — means simply living one, i.e. Life. Hence these names are literal descriptions of the purported mother of humanity, and of a purported founder of mankind.

The life of Adam (and Eve)

Adam's creation

Life Life] Adam is said, in the torah, to have been created from the dust of the earth, and in the Talmud (Tractate Sanhedrin 38b) is, more specifically, described as having initially been a golem (a bit like a zombie slave) kneaded together from mud. The important early Islamic commentator Tabari adds a number of details, based on claimed hadith as well as Jewish traditions (so-called isra'iliyyat). Tabari records that when it came time to create Adam, God sent Gabriel, then Michael, to fetch clay from the earth; but the earth complained, saying I take refuge in God from you, if you have come to diminish or deform me, so the angels returned empty-handed. Tabari goes on to state that God responded by sending the Angel of Death, who took clay from all regions, hence providing an explanation for the variety of appearances of the different races of mankind. In the torah, God is initially described, at Genesis 1:26, as breathing the breath of life into the nostrils of the first man, and while this is usually interpreted in Judao-Christian circles as having been fairly immediate, according to Tabari's account, Adam remained a dry body for 40 days, then gradually came to life from the head downwards, sneezing when he had finished coming to life, saying All praise be to God, the Lord of all beings. Having been created, Adam, the first man, is described as having been given dominion over all the lower creatures, which he proceeds to name. As one of the people to whom God is said to have spoken to directly, Adam is seen as a prophet in Islam.

The fall of Satan

At this point, Adam takes a prominent role in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic, traditions concerning the fall of Satan, which is not recorded in the torah, though is present in the historically important Book of Enoch. In these, when God announces his intention of creating Adam, some of the angels express dismay, asking why he would create a being that would do evil. Teaching Adam the names reassures the angels as to Adam's abilities, though commentators dispute which particular names were involved; various theories say they were the names of all things animate and inanimate, the names of the angels, or the names of his own descendants. When God orders the angels to bow to Adam one of those present, Satan (Iblis in Islam, regarded as a jinn rather than an angel), refuses due to his pride, and is summarily banished from the heavens. Liberal movements within Islam have viewed God's commanding the angels to bow before Adam as an exaltation of humanity, and as a means of supporting human rights. More extended versions of the fall of Satan exist in which he leads a divine war, which, while in works such as the Book of Enoch is recorded as being in heaven after Satan turns away from God, by works such as that of Tabari, and the Shia commentator al-Qummi, is explained as being heaven sent against the jinn, who had angered God by sin and fighting. In such versions where Satan leads the battle on God's behalf, rather than his own, it is the pride and conceit resulting from his victory which results in his expulsion, since pride is here seen as a sin. Islamic traditions further record that, in vengeful anger, Iblis promises God that he will lead as many humans astray as he can, to which God replies that it is the choice of humans - those who desire to will follow Satan, while those who desire to will follow God.

Eve's creation

At this point, in the torah, Yahweh is described as causing a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and removing part of his body, usually interpreted as a rib (though a more literal translation is non-specific). From this body part, Eve is subsequently created, as a companion to alleviate Adam's loneliness, and while Eve, is not mentioned by name in the Qur'an, she is nevertheless referred to as Adam's spouse, and Islamic tradition refers to her by an etymologically similar name - Hawwa. In fact, although her creation is not recounted in the Qur'an, Tabari recounts the biblical tale of her creation, stating that she was named because she was created from a living thing (her name means living). The torah gives an etymology for woman, or rather the Hebrew equivalent (ish-shah), stating that she should be called woman since she was taken out of man (ish in hebrew). The etymology is regarded as implausible by most semitic linguists.

Traditions regarding Adam and other wives

rib] In Genesis, there are two separate accounts of creation, one at Genesis 1-2:3 and another after Genesis 2:4. While creationists and many other religious people believe these to be written by the same author to represent two different perspectives, most biblical scholars support the documentary hypothesis, which claims each account derived from separate source texts that were later combined, with Eve's name and story being present only in the Yahwist text. Nevertheless, in ancient times, the presence of two distinct accounts was noted, and regarded with some curiosity. The first account says male and female [God] created them, which was viewed to imply simultaneous creation, whereas the second account states that God created Eve from Adam's rib because Adam was lonely. Consequently, to resolve the accounts, rabbis suggested that Eve and the woman of the first account were two separate individuals. Preserved in the Midrash, and the mediaeval Alphabet of Ben Sira, this tradition held that the first woman refused to take the submissive position to Adam in sex, and eventually fled from him, consequently leaving him lonely. This first woman was identified in the Midrash as Lilith, a figure elsewhere described as a night demon. In a context separate to Adam, at Isaiah 34:14 Lilith is explicitely mentioned by name, though often not appearing in translations - her name (liyliyth in the Masoretic text) is replaced by the phrase screech owl in the KJV. In the Talmud, Adam is said to have separated from Eve for 130 years, during which time his ejaculations gave rise to ghouls, and demons. Elsewhere in the Talmud, Lilith is identified as the mother of these creatures. The demons were said to prey on newborn males before they had been circumcised, and so a tradition arose in which a protective amulet was placed around the neck of newborns. Traditions in the Midrash concerning Lilith, and her sexual appetite, are believed ultimately to derive from Sumerian mythology concerning the demon ki-sikil-lil-la-ke, via an intermediate akkadian folk etymology interpreting the lil-la-ke portion of the name as a corruption of lîlîtu, literally meaning female night demon. The Alphabet of Ben Sira goes further and identifies a third wife, created after lilith deserted Adam, but before Eve. This unnamed wife was purportedly made in the same way as Adam, from the "dust of the earth", but the sight of her being created proved too much for Adam to take and he refused to go near her. It is also said that she was created from nothing at all, and that God created into being a skeleton, then organs, and then flesh. The midrash tells that Adam saw her as "full of blood and secretions," suggesting that he may have actually witnessed her creation and was horrified at seeing a body from the inside out. Ben Sira does not record this wife's fate. She was never named, and it assumed that she was allowed to leave the Garden a perpetual virgin, or was ultimately destroyed by God in favor of Eve, who was created when Adam was asleep and oblivous.

The fall of Man

folk etymology–1625).]] The main story concerning Adam is traditionally regarded as extremely important, religiously. This recounts how Adam and Eve are placed in the Garden of Eden, and allowed to cultivate, and enjoy, its fruit, as well as to live innocently. However, there was one tree they were explicitely forbidden from eating - the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil - a tree which is otherwise unidentified, but it has usually been interpreted as a fig tree or as an apple tree. The torah then records that a serpent, a creature described by the torah as at that point having four legs, approached Eve and persuaded her to eat the forbidden fruit, saying you won't die. In the torah, Eve persuades Adam, and so, having eaten the fruit, they both become disturbed by their nudity, making aprons of fig leaves to cover themselves. The torah goes on to state that God personally questions them about this, and on discovering they have disobeyed, expells them from Eden before they can access the tree of life, which grants immortality, and curses the serpent to lose its legs so that it has to crawl, and to have mutual hatred for mankind. In Later traditions, including those of Tabari, interpreted the serpent as a disguised Satan, though Gnostic accounts turned this on its head, and the serpent was seen as the hero, particularly to Ophites, who was trying to help the couple gain knowledge to defeat an evil Yahweh, whom the Gnostics saw as the demiurge. It should be noted here, that both Lilith and the Second Wife are free from any curse of the Tree of Knowledge, they left long before the event occured. The torah states that Adam and Eve were expelled to the East, and at the eastern entrance of the garden, God placed Cherubim, and a flaming sword, which turned every way. Eastern Orthodox tradition says that this sword was removed once Jesus was born, in order for it to be possible for humanity to return to Paradise. Al-Qummi records the opinion that Eden was not entirely earthly, and so, having been sent to earth, Adam and Eve first arrived at mountain peaks outside Mecca; Adam on Safa, and Eve on Marwa. In this Islamic tradition, Adam remained weeping for 40 days, until he repented, at which point God rewarded him by sending down the Kaaba, and teaching him the hajj. Other Islamic traditions hold that Adam was moved to Sri Lanka, as the next best thing to Eden, and, viewing Adam as having been a giant, human size having shrunking drastically before the great flood, Adam's Peak is said to contain his giant footprint.

East of Eden

Adam's Peak).]] Genesis does not tell for how long Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, but the Book of Jubilees states that they were removed from the garden on the new moon of the fourth month of the 8th year after creation (Jubilees 3:33); traditional Jewish sources assert that it was less than a day. Shortly after their expulsion, Eve brought forth her first-born child, and therafter their second; Cain and Abel respectively. The Qur'an also describes the two sons of Adam (named Qabil and Habil in Islamic tradition, but not mentioned by name in the Qur'an) that correspond to Cain and Abel. After Cain kills Abel, and is cursed to wander, Adam and Eve conceive a third child, named Seth, who, with Cain, gives rise to the two family lines of the Generations of Adam. Only three of Adam's children (Cain, Abel, and Seth) are explicitely named in Genesis, though it does state that there were other sons and daughters as well (Genesis 5:4). In Jubilees, two daughters are named - Azûrâ being the first, and Awân, who is born after Seth, Cain, Abel, nine other sons, and Azûrâ. Jubilees goes on to state that Cain later marries Awân and Seth marries Azûrâ, thus, despite the incest, accounting for their descendants. However, according to Genesis Rabba, and other later sources, either Cain had a twin sister, and Abel had two twin sisters, or Cain had a twin sister named Lebuda, and Abel a twin sister named Qelimath. In Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan, Cain's twin sister is named Luluwa, and Abel's twin sister is named Aklia. Other pseudepigrapha give further details of their life outside of Eden, in particular, the Life of Adam and Eve (also known as the Apocalypse of Moses) consisting entirely of a description of their life outside Eden. As the first man, Adam posed a significant figure to attribute prophecy and wisdom to. The Gnostics created an esoteric tract, the Apocalypse of Adam, purportedly containing the enlightenment Adam received. While the Gnostics used texts as teaching devices, rather than viewing them to be literal accounts genuinely written by early patriarchs, the converse was true of what became official Christianity. The Testament of Adam represents a mainstream attempt to produce a faked ancient prophecy, of events that had supposedly already occurred by the time it was published. According to the bible, Adam finally died at the age of 930 years, the traditional Jewish view being he and Eve are currently buried in the Cave of Machpelah, in Hebron.

Historicity

Historically, creationists of the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic traditions, from Nennius to William Whiston, held that Adam and Eve were historical figures. Many gave credence to the works of James Ussher, who viewed them to have lived approximately 6,000, basing their calculations on the Genealogies of Genesis and Table of Nations. With the advent of archaeological discoveries, the theory of evolution, and genetic science the traditional view came to be challenged, and the majority of scholars, as well as many large mainstream religious denominations, today reject the historicity of Adam and Eve. Nevertheless, creationist organizations such as Answers in Genesis and the Institute for Creation Research continue to view them as historical individuals.

Ancestry and evolutionary biology

A theory of a single male and female human ancestor is almost completely contradictory to most modern synthesis of the theory of evolution, which posits that humans evolved from ape-like creatures, gradually. Nevertheless, in modern genetic studies a female individual has been identified