What is the shrine that you can find in Makkah?

Answer 1

Hello brother.

Its called KABA.Its not a shrine but a simple structure.The foundation of KABA was put by none other then the first man on earth ADAM (peace be upon him).During the days of Propeht Ibrahim (peace be upon him), it was built in this structure.The present structure is raised in height by the subsequent rulers of Makkah mukarramah.

There are mainly 02 significant things to know about KABA

1) Its the centre point towards which all Muslims turn to and face it for offering the 05 times prayers. All masjids (the common prayer halls for Muslims everywhere) are constructed facing the KABA. This direction is generally called "Qibla".

There is a big masjid built around KABA and its called "masjid haram shareef".As this is the starting point (of forming the prayer lines) the masjid is constructed in circular manner so that Muslims stand in round circles around KABA for offering prayers (salath,namaz).

2) The other significant thing to know about KABA is the sacrifice of Hazrat Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and his son Hazrat Ismail (peace be upon him) .You can Google and read the complete story of sacrifice.We Muslims remember this sacrifice to this day by celebrating "Eid al Zuha", a major festival of Islam.For your information, Hazrat Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and his son Hazrat Ismail (peace be upon him) are accepted by Christians and Jews also as the messenger of ALLAH.

As this KABA was the same place where this sacrifice took place and subsequently the water of "zam-zam" (stop-stop) started to flow from earth and thus laying the foundations of livelihood and human settlements.So today, millions of Muslims around the world visit here and perform HAJJ (a ritual which is one of the 05 pillars of Islam, though compulsory for only those Muslims who can afford it.)

every year on 10th of Zul-Hajj, the last month of hijri calendar.

The date today is 25th November 2009 (08 Zul Hajj 1430) and tomorrow happens to be Arafat, the day before Eid-al-zuha.I want to put up an article regarding this holiday.

I ask for pardon to ALLAH if I make any mistake in above writing.

Assalamualikum.

MSS.Sharjah.UAE

The meaning of Eid Al Adha

By Dr. Akram Bou-Ghannam

Holidays become meaningless when their original purpose and meaning are

forgotten. In such instances, the holiday becomes merely an occasion for festivity and

indulgence. So, Why we celebrate this holy day of Eid Al Adha?

The story Eid Al Adha has a biblical origin, and it is the story of the testing of

Ibrahim's (peace be upon him) faith by God. Both the Quran and the Torah record the high drama narratives of

the story. The Quran records Ibrahim saying: "Son, God came to me in a vision and

commanded me to offer you as a sacrifice. What do you think we should do?" Ismail

replied: "I trust God and will abide by His will. Do what he commanded you to do."

At the last split second, God interrupts the sacrificial process. God intervenes saying:

"O Ibrahim, thou has already fulfilled the vision." Ibrahim passes the test, and a ram was

substituted for sacrifice in place of the son. Thus, father & son became role models for

true Muslims; those who place God's will before their own. Ibrahim, after waiting for so

long for an heir promised by God, is now required to sacrifice him. Ismail, on the other

hand, was asked to make the supreme sacrifice; his own life.

So what is the moral and significance of the story? The moral of the story is that

GOD DOES NOT DEMAND HUMAN SACRIFICE, BUT TRUST AND OBEDIENCE AS A BASIS

FOR FELLOWSHIP WITH HIM. The story was about a trial of the will and the faith of the

father and the son. Ibrahim was tested on the priorities of his faith, love, and trust. Ismail (peace be upon him)

was tested for obedience. SELF-SACRIFICE is the significance of the story sufficient to

celebrate Eid Al Adha. Ismail offered to stand true to his promise if his self-sacrifice was

really required.

What does Eid Al Adha mean to us - the Muwahhidun? Like Ibrahim & Ismail, we

their descendants, are to be tested for our worthiness also. We qualify by traveling a

threefold path to Peace, Faith, and Unity. Our pilgrimage is strewn with temptations,

obstacles, and distractions. Our free will is tested and we must SACRIFICE to reach our

objective of UNITY WITH GOD.

In our lives we should be striving for Unity with God, and sacrificing to achieve our

goal in Tawhid. First, one must avoid Self-Indulgence. This lesson is learned by the

luminary al-Aql is ever with us. Can some one tell us what this lesson is?

Our achievement through our mental faculty must be tempered with piety (humility),

lest our attainment make us arrogant and cause us to be cut off from the blessing and

union with the One.

Second we must sacrifice worldly pleasures. We should not let worldly pleasures

distract us from the deeper meanings and noble pursuits in our daily lives, and especially

on this noble occasion and revered religious holy day.

So, what is the meaning of Pilgrimage in Tawhid. In Muslim traditions Eid Al Adha

is a very important component of the pilgrimage to the House of God. One third of the

sacrifice (contributions, charity) on the Eid to be given to the poor, 1/3 as a donation, and

1/3 retained for kinsfolk (relatives). Tawhid considers pilgrimage not simply a physical

trip to Mecca, but a pilgrimage to the "House of Knowledge" or Tawhid. Thus our life

itself becomes a continuous pilgrimage on the path of Tawhid leading ultimately to the

union with the One.

In summary, we learned what the real meaning of sacrifice is. We learned that life

itself is a test. The journey to the "House of Knowledge" will demand a great deal of

sacrifice for the common good in this world, and for the eternal unity with God. So, Eid

Al Adha is the day of:

1) Self-judgment, whereby we reinforce our faith, and assess and judge our actions and

behavior

2) Recognition, Appreciation, and Remembrance

3) Celebrating God's existence and the revelation of His Instructions

4) Reconfirming Tawhid and the Oneness of God