Medina

Medina also has a Haram, where its boundaries are the two mountains of ‘Aa`ir and ‘Ayr, and the two places Waqim and Layla, and even though it is not obligatory to do Ihram there, but it is impermissible to cut a tree.

It is of confirmed recommendation to visit the grave of the Prophet (s.a.w), rather it is of religious necessity, and it is also recommended to visit Fatimah al-Zahra` (a.s) in Medina. There is no consensus as to where her holy grave is, so the best thing to do is to visit the three sites

It is recommended to visit the four Imams (a.s) in al- Baqi’.

It is recommended to fast three days in Medina: Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Some important sites in Medina

The cemetery of the martyrs of the battle of Uhud This cemetery is north of al-Masjid al-Nabawi, about four kilometres away. It has seventy of the companions of the Prophet (s.a.w) buried there who were martyred in the battle of Uhud, and at the top of them is the Prophet’s (s.a.w) uncle Hamzah ibn Abdul-Muttalib, the master of martyrs, and also Mas’ab ibn ‘Umair, Abdullah ibn Jahsh, Handhalah ibn Abi ‘Amir, and the rest of the companions. The Messenger of Allah (s.a.w) would visit their graves every once in a while, as has been narrated by both Islamic sects, mentioned in the narrations of Ahmad and Abu Dawud.

Qaba Mosque

This is the first mosque built with foundations of piety, and it was the first mosque built in Islam. This mosque is in the south west of Medina, and is approximately three and a half kilometres from al-Masdid al-Nabawi.

Al-Qiblatain Mosque

At first when the Prophet (s.a.w) was sent as a messenger, the qiblah for the Muslims was Bayt al- Maqdas in Palastine, where the Jews faced towards for their worshipping, and this sacred place stayed the qiblah for Muslims for thirteen years.

Then at noon time on a Tuesday on the fifteenth of Sha’baan in the fist year of Hijrah, the qiblah changed from Bayt al- Maqdas to the holy Ka’bah. So the place where the changing of the qiblah was done is a mosque attributed to Bani Hiraam who were from Bani Salamah, and from this incident this mosque was called the two qiblah (qiblatain) mosque because the companions prayer one prayer to two qiblahs. This masjid falls south west of Rawmah well, close to al-‘Aqiq valley, and is about five kilometres north west of al-Masjid al-Nabawi.

Al-Fadhikh Mosque

It is said that this is the mosque where the Prophet (s.a.w) brought back the sun for the Commander of the Faithful Imam Ali (a.s). This mosque is four kilometres from al-Masjid al-Nabawi.

The seven mosques (al-Masajid al-Sab’ah)

These are small mosques, and in reality they are really six, but they have become known as the seven mosques, as some add al-Qiblatain mosque to it to make it seven. These mosques were built during the time of the digging of the trenches for the battle of Khandaq, the most important of them are:

Al-Fath, or al-Ahzaab Mosque

This is where the Prophet (s.a.w) prayed during the battle, and he asked God Almighty for victory.

The mosque of Ali ben Abi Talib (a.s)

This mosque is west of the mosque of Fatimah al- Zahra` (a.s). It was built during the time of the building of al-Fath mosque. It is narrated that Imam Ali (a.s) killed the greatest of warriors ‘Amr ibn Wud al-‘Amiri, who was able to cross the trench in the battle of Ahzaab, and God Almighty gave victory to the Muslims after this.