Zamzam: Difference between revisions

'''Zamzam''' (Arabic {{ia|زَمزَم}}) refers to the most renowned water well located within the [[al-Masjid al-Haram]] in [[Mecca]], situated approximately 21 meters from the sacred Black Stone ([[al-Hajar al-Aswad]]). According to historical accounts, the Zamzam spring emerged miraculously by divine will to provide water for [[Isma'il]] (a) and his mother, [[Hagar]]. The origin of the city of [[Mecca]] and the reconstruction of the [[Ka'ba]] are believed to be closely linked to the miraculous emergence of the Zamzam spring.

Zamzam water holds profound religious significance for the people of [[Mecca]] and the broader Muslim community. The [[Prophet Muhammad (s)]] often drank from the well, regarding it as the best water on earth.

[[Imam Sajjad]] (a) instructed a person to make a covenant with God at the Zamzam well to seek guidance away from sins and disobedience.<ref>Suyūtī, al-Durru al-Manthūr, vol. 3, p. 223; Fākihī, Akhbār Makkah, vol. 2, p. 46.</ref>According to Aisha, the Prophet Muhammad (s) would carry Zamzam water mixed with musk and other substances. He used this water either to offer to the sick for drinking or to pour over them for healing.<ref>Shifā' al-Gharām, vol. 1, p. 415; Sunanu al-Tirmidhī, vol. 3, p. 295.</ref>

Zamzam Throughout History

== Construction and Renovations ==

The initial construction of marble linings for the Zamzam well's walls and floor was initiated by Abbasid Caliph [[Al-Mansur]] (reigned 136-158 AH) and completed by his successor, Al-Mahdi (reigned 158-169 AH). Following this, the well remained exposed until the reign of [[Al-Mu'tasim]] (reigned 218-227 AH), with only a small dome covering its opening. In 220 AH, Umar ibn Faraj al-Rukhji, a writer and secretary under Al-Mu'tasim, undertook significant renovations. He installed a teak wood roof over the Zamzam well, suspended chains, and affixed lamps to them, which were lit during the pilgrimage season at night.<ref>Azraqī, Akhbār Makkah, vol. 2, S61.</ref>

In 1020 AH, [[Sultan Ahmed Khan]] ordered the installation of an iron grille situated one meter above the water level in the Zamzam well. This precaution was introduced due to incidents where individuals, driven by misguided acts of self-sacrifice, had thrown themselves into the well and perished. The grille remained in place until 1318 AH. Additionally, in 1201 AH, under the orders of Sultan [[Abdul Hamid Khan]], an inscription was placed on the northern side of the grille, which read: "''' Zamzam water is a cure for every illness / ماء زمزم شفاء من کل داء''' " and "''' The sign between us and the hypocrites is that they do not quench their thirst with Zamzam water.''' / '''آیة ما بیننا و بین المنافقین انهم لایتضلعون من ماء زمزم''' "  

In 1383 AH, during the Saudi era, the structure covering the Zamzam well was dismantled, and a new underground facility was constructed. This included creating an entrance to the basement, allowing pilgrims direct access to the well water. However, in 1424 AH, this entrance was sealed, and the water was redirected through a network of pipes around the courtyard of the [[Masjid al-Haram]]. This modification provided faucets for pilgrims to drink from and expanded the circumambulating area.<ref>Bi-iru Zamzam, Taṭwīr wa Tashghīl al-Idārah al-‘Āmmāh li Taqnīyat al-Ma'lumāt bi al-Ri-āsah al-‘Āmmāh li Shu-ūni al-Masjid al-Ḥarām wa al-Masjid al-Nabawī.</ref>

According to Saudi sources, Zamzam water is transported through a four-kilometer pipeline and stored in a 5,000-cubic-meter reservoir. The water undergoes purification and sterilization processes before being bottled in five-liter containers. Additionally, Zamzam water is dispensed through drinking fountains within the Masjid al-Haram and is also transported to the Prophet's Mosque in Medina for the benefit of pilgrims.<ref>Riḥlat Mā'u Zamzam min al-Bi-iri ilā an Yarwī Dhama-u al-Mu'minīna”, Khabar Guzārī Akhbārnā.</ref>

== Zamzam in Travelogues ==

Travelogues from different centuries provide detailed descriptions of Zamzam, noting its distance from the Ka'ba, the dimensions of its mouth, and its proximity to the Black Stone (Hajar al-Aswad).<ref>33. Rahāward Safar (Ghazīdat Safarnāmah Nāṣir Khosrow), p. 122; Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ibn Jubayr, Safarnāmah Ibn Jubayr, p. 126; Ibn Baṭṭūṭah, Safarnāmah, vol. 1, p. 189.</ref>These accounts often highlight its function as a site where pilgrims perform ablution,<ref>Ibn Baṭṭūṭah, Safarnāmeh, J1, p. 189.</ref> the presence of surrounding pools, and the construction of a canopy near the well for the convenience of muezzins. Refer to: Hajj in Islamic Thought, (Haj Dar Andīshe Islamī) p. 180-185.

# Akhbār Makkah fī Qadīm al-Dahri wa Ḥadīthihi, Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq Fākihī (died: 275 AH), edited by ʿ'Abd al-Malik ibn ʿ'Abd Allāh ibn Duhaiṣh, Beirut, Dār Khidhr, 1414 AH.

# Akhbār Makkah wa Mā Jā' fīhā min al-Āthār, Muḥammad ibn ʿ'Abd Allāh Azraqī edited by Malhas, Rushdi Saleh, Beirut, Dar al-Andalus, 1416 AH.

# “Bir Zamzam”, Taṭwīr wa Tashghīl al-Idārah al-ʿĀmmā li Taqnīyat al-Ma'lumāt bi al-Ri'āsah al-ʿĀmmā li Shu'ūn al-Masjid al-Ḥarām wa al-Masjid al-Nabawī, accessed on 9th Tir 1401 SH.

# Al-Tafsīr al-Ṣāfī, Mullā Muḥsin Fayḍ Kāshānī, Qum, Mū'assase al-Hādī, 1416 AH / 1374 SH.

# Al-Durr al-Manthur fi al-Tafsir bi al-Ma'thur, by Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, Qom, Aytollah Marashi Najafi Library, 1404 AH.  

# “Riḥlat Mā' Zamzam mina al-Bīr ilā an Yarwī Zam' al-Mu'minīn”, "The Journey of Zamzam Water from the Well to Quenching the Thirst of Pilgrims", News Agency Akhbarna, published on April 13, 2022, with access on June 27, 2024.

# “Riḥlat al-Mā-i al-Mubārak”, "Journey of the Blessed Water", Al-Fawz Kuwaiti Newspaper website, April 4, 2022 CE, accessed July 1, 2022 CE. (10 Tir 1401 SH).

# “Riḥlat al-Mā' al-Mubārak”, "The Journey of the Blessed Water", developed and managed by the General Administration for Information Technology at the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques, published on April 12, 2022, with access on June 30, 2022.

# Rahāward Safar “The Journey's Legacy” (Selections from the Travelogue of Nasir Khusraw)" by Nasir Khusraw Qubadiani, edited and annotated by Seyyed Mohammad Dabir-Siyaghi, Tehran, Sokhan, 1995 CE (1374 SH).

# Zamzam" by Sayyed Ali Khayrkhah Alavi, in Encyclopedia of Hajj and the Two Holy Mosques, Volume 8.

# Zamzam (2)" by Mohammad Rahbar, published in Meqat Hajj Journal, Volume 8, Issue 29, November 1999 (1378 SH).  

# Safarnāmah Ibn Jubayr, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ibn Jubair, Parvīz Atābakī, Irān, Mash-had, Mū'assasat Chāp wa Intishārāt Āstān Quds Raḍhawī, 1370 SH.

# Safarnāmah Ibn Baṭṭūṭah, Ibn Baṭṭūṭah, Tarjamah Dr. Muḥammad ʿAlī Muwaḥḥid, Mū'assasat Intishārāt Āgāh, Irān, Mash-had, 1370 SH.

# Silsilat Yanābīʿ al-Fiq'hiyya, ʿAlī-Asghar Marwārīd, Beirut, Dār al-Turāth, 1990 CE - 1993 CE.

# Sunan Ibn Mājah, Muḥammad ibn Zayd al-Rubʿī Ibn Mājah, edited by Muḥammad Fu'ād ʿ'Abd al-Bāqī, Beirut, Dār Iḥyā' al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, 1395 AH.

# Sunan al-Tirmidhī, Muḥammad ibn ʿĪsā al-Tirmidhī, edited by ʿ'Abd al-Wahhāb ʿ'Abd al-Laṭīf, Beirut, Dār al-Fikr, 1402 AH.

# Sunan al-Nasā'ī, Aḥmad ibn Shuʿaib Abū ʿAbdu al-Raḥmān al-Nasā'ī, edited by ʿ'Abd al-Ghaffār wa Sayyid Kasrawī, Beirut, Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya, 1411 AH.

# Al-Sīrah al-Nabawiyya, ʿ'Abd al-Malik ibn Hishām, Taḥqīq Muṣṭafā al-Suqā wa Ibrāhīm al-ʿAbīārī wa ʿ'Abd al-Ḥafīẓ Shalabī, Beirut, Dār al-Maʿrifa, bi-tā.

# Shifā' al-Gharām bi Akhbār al-Balad al-Ḥarām, al-Taqī al-Fāsī.

# “Ṣuwaru Bi-iri Zamzam”, Lāynz, Date of Visit: 9 Tir 1401 SH.

# Al-‘Urwatu al-Wuthqā, Sayyid Muḥammad Kādhim Ṭabāṭabā'ī Yazdī, Qum, Mū'assasat al-Nashr al-Islāmī, first edition, 1419 AH.

# Kanz al-‘Ummāl fī Sunan al-Aqwāl wa al-Af‘āl, Muttaqī al-Hindī, Beirut, al-Risāla, 1413 AH.

# Lisān al-‘Arab, Muḥammad ibn Mukram Ibn Manẓūr, Dār Ṣādir, Beirut, 1414 AH.

# Muruju' al-Dhahab, ʿAlī ibn Ḥussein al-Masʿūdī, edited by: Yūsuf As‘ad Dāghir, Qum, Mū'assese Dār al-Hijra, 1409 AH.

# Mustadrak al-Wasa'il, Ḥusayn Nūrī Ṭabarsī, Beirut, Mū'assasat Āl al-Bayt ʿalayhim al-Salām li Iḥyā' al-Turāth, 1408-1429 AH / 1987-2008 CE.

# Mu'jam al-Buldān, Yāqūt al-Ḥamawī, Beirut, Dār Iḥyā' al-Turāth al-ʿArabī.  

# “Wa uzīlat ‘ām 1346 AH”, Ṣafḥat ʿAbdullāh al-Rashīd fī Twitter, Tārīkh Bāzdīd: 9 Tir 1401 SH.

# Al-Mu'jam al-Kabīr, Sulaymān ibn Aḥmad al-Ṭabarānī, bi Khuṣūs Ḥamdi ʿ'Abd al-Majīd, Dār Iḥyā' al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, 1405 AH.

# Wasā'il al-Shī'ah by Muhammad bin Hasan al-Shaykh Hurr al-‘Āmilī, edited by Mohammad Reza Hosseini Jalali, Qom, Institute of Ālu al-Bayt (peace be upon them) for the Revival of Heritage, 1416 AH.