Bilal b. Rabah Mosque: Difference between revisions

'''Bilal bin Rabāḥ Mosque''', attributed to [[Bilal]], was located on top of [[Mount Abu Qubays]] in [[Mecca]]. It has been demolished as part of new development plans and the construction of government palaces by Saudi Arabia on Mount Abu Qubays.

This mosque is mentioned in earlier sources from the second and third centuries, where it was called the Ibrahim Mosque. In these sources, two prominent theories about the name Ibrahim are mentioned: one refers to the [[prophet Ibrahim]], and the other to Ibrahim Abu Qubaysi. Contemporary sources report its renown as the Bilal Mosque. Some attribute this naming to Bilal's call to prayer at this site. Additionally, some sources consider this mosque on [[Mount Abu Qubays]] as the place where the Prophet performed the miracle of splitting the moon.

The Bilal Mosque was located on top of Mount Abu Qubays and covered an area of about one hundred square meters.<ref>Jaʿfariyān,''Āthār-i islāmi-yi Makka wa Madīna'', vol. 1, p. 151.</ref>

This mosque existed until the 14th century AH.<ref>Kurdī, ''Al-Tārīkh al-qawīm li Makka wa bayt Allāh al-karīm'', vol. 5, p. 84.</ref>

However, it was demolished as part of new development plans and the construction of palaces for guests of the Saudi government on top of Mount Abu Qubays. Currently, there is no trace of it left, and only images of it remain.<ref>Jaʿfariyān,''Āthār-i islāmi-yi Makka wa Madīna'', vol. 1, p. 151.</ref>

The old name of the Bilal Mosque was the Ibrahim Mosque, and ancient sources referred to it by this name. According to the writings of Azraqi (d. 250 AH/864-5) and Fakhri (d. 272 AH/885-6), two historians of Mecca in the 3rd century AH, it was commonly believed among the people of Mecca that [[Prophet Ibrahim]] called people to pilgrimage from the top of this mountain.<ref>Azraqī, ''Akhbār Makka'', vol. 2, p. 201; Fākihī,''Akhbār Makka fī qadīm al-dahr wa ḥaīthih'', vol. 4, p. 16-17.</ref>

However, some people of Mecca attributed the name of this mosque to a person named Ibrahim Qubaysi rather than Prophet Ibrahim.<ref>Azraqī, ''Akhbār Makka'', vol. 2, p. 201; Fākihī,''Akhbār Makka fī qadīm al-dahr wa ḥaīthih'', vol. 4, p. 16-17.</ref>  

They also reported the existence of a mosque on top of [[Mount Abu Qubays]] without mentioning a specific name. However, contemporary sources have mentioned this mosque by the name of Bilal Mosque.<ref>Jaʿfariyān,''Āthār-i islāmi-yi Makka wa Madīna'',  p. 125. , Ibn Baṭṭūṭah ''Riḥlat Ibn Baṭṭūṭah'', vol. 1, p. 383. ,Nawwāb, ''Al-Riḥalāt al-Maghribiyya wa al-Andalusiyya'', p. 456. , Munzawī. ''Ḥajnāma 2''. p. 62.</ref>

Furthermore, some have said that after the [[conquest of Mecca]], Bilal called the Adhan (call to prayer) from Mount Abu Qubays, and later, in memory of Bilal, a mosque was built atop this mountain.<ref>Jaʿfariyān,''Āthār-i islāmi-yi Makka wa Madīna'',  p. 125.</ref>

Reports of the Prophet's prayer on top of Mount Abu Qubays<ref>Fākihī,''Akhbār Makka fī qadīm al-dahr wa ḥaīthih'', vol. 4, p. 16.</ref>

In their travel accounts, Ibn Jubayr and Ibn Battuta regarded this mosque as the place where [[Prophet Muhammad (s)|the Prophet (s)]] performed the miracle of the splitting of the moon.<ref>Ibn Jubayr,''Riḥla Ibn Jubayr'', p. 76. ,  Ibn Baṭṭūṭah ''Riḥlat Ibn Baṭṭūṭah'', vol. 1, p. 383.</ref>

In his travelogue in 725 AH/1324-5, Ibn Battuta mentions the customs and traditions of the people of Mecca on the nights of the 27th of [[Ramadan]] and the first night of [[Shawwal]]. He says that on these nights, the people of Mecca light lamps and lanterns in [[al-Masjid al-Haram|Masjid al-Haram]] and its surroundings, as well as in the Bilal Mosque on Mount Abu Qubays.<ref>Ibn Baṭṭūṭah ''Riḥlat Ibn Baṭṭūṭah'', vol. 1, p. 404.</ref>  

Azraqi is the oldest source that mentions this mosque in the 3rd century AH.<ref>Azraqī, ''Akhbār Makka'', vol. 2, p. 202.</ref>  

Based on this, some historians have speculated that the construction of the mosque dates back to the first century AH.<ref>Kurdī, ''Al-Tārīkh al-qawīm li Makka wa bayt Allāh al-karīm'', vol. 5, p. 83.</ref>

Additionally, Ibn Battuta in the 8th century mentioned the reconstruction of the mosque ordered by Mamluk Sultan Dhaher.<ref>Ibn Baṭṭūṭah ''Riḥlat Ibn Baṭṭūṭah'', vol. 1, p. 383.</ref>

There are also reports of the renovation of this mosque in the 13th century AH by an Indian man.<ref>Muḥammad b. Aḥmad, ''Taḥṣīl al-marām'', vol. 1, p. 502.</ref>  

Some Iranian Shia who had visited Mecca before the demolition of the Bilal Mosque have reported on it in their travel accounts.<ref>Jaʿfarīān, " Panjāh Safarnāmah-i Ḥajj-i Qājārī", p. 766.</ref>  

Mirza Davood Hosseini, who went on [[Hajj]] in 1322 AH/1904-5, stated that atop Mount Abu Qubays, where the Prophet called people to monotheism, a mihrab (prayer niche) and a minaret had been built.<ref>Jaʿfarīān," Panjāh Safarnāmah-i Ḥajj-i Qājārī", vol. 7, p. 545.</ref>

Hajj Ayyaz Khan Qashqai, during his pilgrimage in 1341 AH / 1922-3, reported the existence of a shrine with two minarets on this mountain, but he did not mention its name.<ref>Jaʿfarīān, " Panjāh Safarnāmah-i Ḥajj-i Qājārī", vol. 8, p. 419.</ref>

A report on the Bilal Mosque is also mentioned in the book "Tarikh al-Qawim." The report in this book, first published in 1385 AH / 1966 AD, indicates that the mosque existed until that time and was surrounded by numerous houses.<ref>Kurdī, ''Al-Tārīkh al-qawīm li Makka wa bayt Allāh al-karīm'', vol. 5, p. 84.</ref>  

The Bilal Mosque has now been demolished.<ref>Jaʿfariyān,''Āthār-i islāmi-yi Makka wa Madīna'', vol. 1, p. 151.</ref>