Al-Rayah Mosque (Medina)

Al-Rāyah Mosque

General Information
Other Names	Dhubab Mosque, Qarin Mosque
Place	in the north of Medina on top of Mount Dhubab
Usage	Mosque
Religious Aspect
Religious Affiliation	Islam
Beliefs	Prayer of the Prophet (s) in the area of ​​this mosque
Rituals	performing congregational prayers
History
Time of Construction	during the time of the prophet
Events	Demolition of houses around the mosque at the end of 2023 AD
Reconstructions	The last renovation in 2022
Historical Features	The place of the Prophet (s) tent and praying while digging a trench during the Battle of Ahzab
Current State
Status	Available
Capacity	100 people
Parts	Mihrab and Musalla
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Al-Rāyah Mosque (Arabic: مسجد الرایه) (Means: Flag Mosque), also known as Al-Dhubāb Mosque and Qarin Mosque, is a mosque located in the north of Medina on top of Mount Dhubab.

During the Battle of Ahzab, a tent was erected for the Prophet (s) on top of Mount Dhubab where he prayed. Later, Muslims built the Al-Rayah Mosque to commemorate this place.

Location

Dhubab Mosque is located to the northwest of the Masjid al-nabi And it is situated on top of the small Mount Dhubab, on the right side of Uthman b. Affan Street. This mountain is to the east of Mount Sala' and near Thaniyat al-Wada'.

Current Status

The entrance of Al-Rayah Mosque is located on the (south), the side which faces the Qibla. The mosque has a simple appearance and does not have a minaret or prominent verses or inscriptions inside or outside of it. By the end of 2022, the mosque underwent reconstruction, transforming its look from white to a light stone color, and by the end of 2023, the neighboring houses were demolished.

History

During the Battle of the Ahzab(5 AH/627) and while digging the trench around Medina, a tent was erected for the Prophet (s) at this location to rest and oversee the trench digging activities. The Prophet (s) also prayed there.

Names

The reason for naming this mosque Al-Rayah Mosque is that the flag of the Prophet's companion, Muslim b. Uqbah, was raised at this location during the Battle of Harrah (63 AH/683). It is also possible that this name is due to the placement of the Islamic flag on this mountain during the Battle of the Ahzab. It has also been said that Dhu'bab was the name of a man whom Marwan b. Hakam hanged on top of this mosque. Another name for it is "Qarin Mosque".

Building History

According to evidence, the Al-Rayah Mosque was first built during the time of Umar ibn Abdul Aziz's governance over Medina.(12) al-Samhūdī, Wafāʾ al-Wafā bi Akhbār Dār al-Muṣṭafá , vol. 3, p. 202. The mosque building had been destroyed during a period before the 9th century AH, and around 845 AH/1441-2, it was reconstructed by Amir Janbak al-Nayruzi. Additionally, some Arab historians have seen and described this mosque at various times. Abdul Qadous Ansari (d: 1403 AH/1982-3) observed this mosque at the end of the fourteenth century AH and noted its dimensions, stating that the length and width of the building were 4 meters and its height was 6 meters. He believed that the stone structure of the mosque resembled its construction in the ninth century. Shanqiti (d: 1393 AH/1973-4) also described this mosque as being built in 1405 with old-style light stones. According to him, the mosque only had a main chamber and a courtyard without a door. Elias Abdul Ghani, in his work "Masajid al-Athariyyah," described the interior and exterior of the building as having been plastered in 1418 AH. He mentioned the presence of a covered prayer hall (musalla) which enlarged the mosque space, accommodating the five daily prayers. Contemporary researcher Ka'aki, in his book published in 2011, states that the mosque remains in the same condition as described by Ansari. However, Ka'aki also mentions the renovation of the mosque during the era of the Al Saud dynasty.

Gallery

Images of the mosque, in 2021 (the time when this white appearance of the mosque came into existence is not specified)

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  The exterior environment of the mosque with white walls and white color scheme
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  Image of the interior environment of the mosque + the mihrab area
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  The public section of the mosque's prayer hall that has been attached to the main section
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  The exterior view of the mosque along with the surrounding houses and the public passage
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  The main and old section of the mosque with dimensions approximately 4 meters in length and width + a view of the ceiling

Images of the mosque after the 2022 renovation

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  Entrance of the mosque
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  The return of the appearance of the mosque's walls and arches to their former and ancient look
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  Public space of the mosque
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  Presence of worshipers in the mosque
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  A view of the mihrab and the main old section of the mosque

Images from 2024, after the demolition of the houses around the mosque

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  Images from a distance of the mosque area during the municipality operations in Medina
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  The back wall of the mosque in the midst of the municipality operations
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  View of the mosque after the demolition of the surrounding houses
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  A distant view of the mosque after the renovation operations where only the mosque building remains
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  The current image of the mosque after leveling the surrounding lands

Old pictures of the mosque building

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References

• ʿAbdu-l Ghanī, Muḥammad ʾIlyās. Al-Masājid al-Atharīyya fī al- madīna al-munawwara. Medina: [n.p], 2000.
• Anṣārī, ʿAbdu-l quddūs al-. Āthār al-madīna al-munawwara. Medina: Maktabat al-Salafīyya, 1973.
• ʿAyyāshī, ʿAbd Allāh b. Muḥammad. Al-Riḥla al-ʿAyyāshiyya. Abu Dhabi: Dār al-Suwaydī, 2006.
• Kaʿakī, ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz al-. Al-Majmūʿah al-Muṣawwarah li-Āshar al-Maʿālim al-Madīnah al-Munawwarah. Medina: 1999
• Kaʿakī, ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz b. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān. Ma ʿālim al-madina al-munawwara bayn al-ʿMārat wa al-Tārīkh. Beirut: Dār wa maktabat al-hilāl, 2011.
• Khiyārī, Sayyraid Aḥmad Yāsīn. Tārīkh maʿālimal-madīna al-munawwara qadīman wa ḥadīthan. Riyadh: al-Amāna alʿāmma li-liḥtifāl miʾat ʿām ʿalā tʾsīs al-mamlika al- ʿarabiyya al-suʿūdiyya, 1419 AH/1999.
• Numīrī, Ibn Shabbah. Tārīkh al-madīna al-munawwara. Edited by Fahīm Muḥammad Shaltūt. Tehran: Mashʿar, 1380 sh.
• Samhūdī, ʿAlī b. ʿAbd Allāh. Wafāʾ al-wafā bi akhbār dar al-Muṣṭafā. Edited by Muḥammad Muḥyi al-Dīn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd. Beirut: 1984.
• Shanqīṭī, Ghālī Muḥammad Amīn al-. Al-Durr al-Thamīn fī Maʿālim Dār al-Rasūl al-Amīn. Jeddah: Dār al-Qiblah, 1992.