Birthplace of the Holy Prophet (s): Difference between revisions

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Reports from the sixth century onwards indicate that a decorated marble stone was erected as a commemoration of the Prophet's birthplace in a section of the mosque. In the reconstruction of 1009 AH/ 1600-1, a grand dome and minaret were built for this mosque.

The Mosque of the Birthplace of the Prophet was considered one of the sacred places in Mecca, and every year on the night of the Prophet's birth, the people of Mecca would gather there.

Mullah Ibrahim Kaziruni, who was fortunate enough to visit this house in the year 1315 AH/1897-8, writes: "On Friday, the fourteenth, we went to visit the site known as the birthplace of the Proph(s), which is located in [[Suq al-Layl]]. We entered through the door and descended approximately fourteen steps. We entered a room designated as a mosque. After that, we went into another room where there is a shrine. The caretaker opened the door of the shrine. Inside the shrine, there is a cavity. In the middle of it was a green stone which was the place of birth of the Seal of the Prophets.<ref>Kāzirūnī,  ''Safarnāma- yi Mulla Ibrāhīm Kāzirūnī, Mīrāth Islāmī Iran'', p. 366.</ref>

Mohammad Labib Bitouni, who traveled to Mecca in the year 1327 AH/1909/10, depicted the above plan of the structure of the Prophet's birthplace in his travelogue and described it as follows: "Upon entering it, you first enter an open space measuring 12 meters in length and 6 meters in width, with a door on the right wall. After passing through it, you enter a space where a dome is placed. In the middle of this space, and under the dome, there is a niche made of wood leaning towards the west wall, within which a concave marble stone can be seen, slightly recessed in the middle. This location indicates the birthplace of the Prophet."<ref>Batanūnī,  ''Safarnāma- yi Ḥijāz'', p. 146.</ref>

==Reconstructions==

The building of the Prophet's birthplace received attention from emirs and sultans and underwent several reconstructions. The list of these reconstructions is as follows:

==Destruction of buildings and the construction of a library==

In the Al Saud government, the structure of the Prophet's birthplace, like many other ancient buildings in [[Mecca]], was demolished on the pretext that people excessively sought blessings from it.<ref>Bilādī, ''Maʿālim makka al-tārīkhīyya wa al-atharīyya'', p. 294.</ref> It was demolished in the year 1343/1924-5.

Later, considering that there was no tomb to be visited at this location, some tried to obtain permission for its reconstruction. In 1370 AH/1950-1, a permit was issued for the construction of a library in this place.

==Notes==

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*Ṭabarī, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī al-. Tārīkh-i Makka, Ittiḥāf fudhal al-zaman bi tārīkh wālīh banī al-ḥasan.  Edited by Muḥsin Muḥammad Ḥasan Salīm.  Cairo: Dār al-Kitāb al-Jāmiʿī,  1413 AH.

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