Facts to know about the Grand Mosque of Makkah

The Grand Mosque of Makkah is also referred to as the ‘Sacred Mosque’ or ‘Masjid-al-Haram’. It is present in the holy city of Makkah, Saudia Arabia, and houses a lot of sacred things of Islam. The entire boundary of Masjid-al-Haram encircles the Holy Kaabah. The Zamzam well, Maqam-e-Ibrahim (station of Ibrahim), Hajar-al-Aswad (the black stone), and the hills of Safah and Marwah are also present within the premises of the grand mosque. That’s why it holds great religious importance for Muslims, millions of which arrive every year through their Islamic Travel Offers Cheap Hajj and Umrah Packages for the holy rituals of hajj and umrah pilgrimage.

Here are some of the important facts to know about the Grand Mosque of Makkah.

Holiest of the three Mosques.

There are three holy mosques of Islam located across the world; Masjid-al-Haram, Masjid-al-Nabawi (SAWW) and Masjid-al-Aqsa. Out of the three holy mosques of Islam, Masjid-al-Haram is deemed as the holiest because of various spiritual, historical, and religious reasons. It’s the most sacred mosque to ever exist on earth and is present in Makkah city; also called the ‘House of Allah Almighty’.

Throughout the year, millions of faithful followers gather in Masjid-al-Haram for supplication and offering prayers. As a matter of fact, the tawaf around the Holy Kaabah never ever stops! Wearing the specified Ihram clothes, pilgrims arrive in the city from all the corners of the world and flow through the mosque’s multitude of gates to fulfill the religious obligations of hajj and umrah.

Another surprising fact to know about Masjid-al-Haram is that it never closes i.e., at all hours of the day and night, disciples can be seen walking counter-clockwise around the Holy Kaaba offering prayers, making Dua, and supplicating to Allah Almighty.

World’s Largest Mosque.

In addition to being the holiest mosque in the world, Masjid-al-Haram is also the world’s largest mosque. With approximately 356,000 square meters of area, 9 minarets, and a vast praying area – Masjid-al-Haram reserves the capacity for accommodating 4 million worshippers at a time. Surprisingly, expansion projects are in progress to increase this capacity further as well.

However, historically speaking Masjid-al-Haram had not been like this always because the mosque had been expanded, renovated, and even rebuilt many times. Currently, some expansion plans are still underway in order to accommodate the ever-increasing number of pilgrims and you might see the construction happening when you visit the Haramain.

Only Qibla for Muslims.

Masjid-al-Haram, specifically speaking, the Holy Kaabah is the only Qibla of Islam in the world. Muslims, regardless of where they exist in the world, offer their prayers while facing in its direction. Previously, Masjid-al-Aqsa remained the first Qibla of Islam but then Hazrat Muhammad (SAWW) was instructed by Allah Almighty to shift Qibla's direction from Masjid-al-Aqsa in Jerusalem to Holy Kaabah in Makkah.

These are some of the important things to know about the grand mosque of Makkah.