Muslim World Tour Episode 1 : Makkah (La Mecque)

I don't know how many times I dreamt going to Makkah, it's the dream of every Muslim,
We turn our face 5 times a day towards Makkah,
it's a holy city, the capital city of Islam, and the worship of the one and only God,
Even in space, Muslims turn to Makkah to pray,
One direction for all believers,
Wait, wait... let's go back a little
Before visiting the city, I need to tell you a bit more about me,
I left everything and I decided to go on a World tour of the Muslims and the mosques,
Alone, only with my camera, to meet my brothers and sisters in Islam,
"Guide us to the Right Path" (Surah 1, verse 6)
For this first episode of the Muslim World Tour, I decided to start at the beginning, where everything started.
I will visit more than 50 countries during my trip, and for each of them I will publish an episode on MuslimWorldTour.com
Today, I am in Makkah, in Arabia.
I am starting my journey here in Makkah and will finish it in Madinah after 2 years,
during which I will meet thousands of Muslims,
InshaAllah
It was the most beloved place to him,
Muhammad (peace be upon him) to whom the Quran was revealed, the last of a long line of prophets,
including Abraham, Moses and Jesus
Muhammad (pbuh) was born in Makkah, grew up and spent more than 50 years there,
This man is, for the Muslims, a proof that God exists
While studying his life, his teachings, we realise that his Master, his Teacher was always at his side (in knowledge and assistance),
Muhammad (pbuh), the illiterate orphan around these hills of Makkah, achieved the impossible :
to reform the Arabs of the peninsula, a patchwork of tribes always quarrelling
a noble people, but stubborn and ungovernable,
whoever lives with the Arabs today, especially those in the Arabian peninsula and the Gulf, will understand the miracle of Muhammad (pbuh)
He taught this people during 23 years
A people that was mixed, Bedouins living in tribes, Black Ethiopians,
Persians, Byzantine Greeks and Jews of Madinah,
Merchants, richs, poor or slaves,
it is his teachings, preserved by his companions, that made the empires of his time collapse,
conquered the hearts and in less than 100 years after the Prophet's death,
were at the doors of Spain and China.
23 years of revelation, 23 years of education,
23 years of work started in Makkah, that founded the greatest empire of all times,
the islamic spiritual empire, which spread day after day since 14 centuries now,
Today, Islam is soon to be the most practiced religion in the world, and everything started with this man,
It is alone that he (Muhammad) started it.
The son of Arabian desert, carrying the word of the Eternal,
without any business plan, MBA or PhD.
It all started with this illiterate man that was meditating in a cave,
this is a miracle and God was close (in knowledge and help)
This God who raised Muhammad (pbuh) and gave him noble and good manners
Alphonse de Lamartine, french political man and poet, said about Muhammad (pbuh) :
If greatness of purpose, smallness of means, and astounding results are the three criteria of human genius,
who would dare to compare any great man in modern history with Muhammad ?
Philosopher, orator, apostle, legislator, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational dogmas, of a cult without images;
the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and of one spiritual empire, that is Muhammad.
In regards to all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may ask, is there any greatest man than he?”
Was this man an impostor? We don't think so.
Throughout the episodes, that will immerse us in the lives of Muslims around the world,
I will try to recount the life of Muhammad (pbuh)
Makkah, Madinah. Where the Prophet was born, and where he died respectively.
When we want to go to Makkah, we first arrive in Jeddah, the city along the red sea,
There is no airport in Makkah, Jeddah is the entry point.
Omar, a friend and old colleague of mine welcomed me the night I arrived,
We had a chat over a cup of coffee with his friends, I wanted to know more about youth, women, lifestyle in Arabia,
after a few phone calls, Omar and his friend arranged for me people to interview in Jeddah and Makkah
Omar was my guide in the region, and I slept at his place,
(There is no god but God, Muhammad is His messenger)
The day after, Omar introduces me to his son, and his father, who serves us a quick breakfast in the street,
Thanks to Omar, I was able to meet a woman who has been living in Arabia for many years, Dr Haifaa Younis
- The doctor's wife is no longer bleeding, thank God - Okay
- If she calls you during the following days I have to see her - Okay
"We placed him as a sperm-drop in a firm lodging,
and We made the clot into a lump [of flesh], and We made [from] the lump, bones, and We covered the bones with flesh;
then We developed him into another creation. So blessed is Allah, the best of creators." (Quran 23:13)
Muslims believe that the Quran is the true word of Almighty God, revealed to Muhammad (pbuh)
It is written down in a book, but also memorised by millions of Muslims.
To memorize the whole Quran by heart is a great honour for a Muslim,
so I wanted to meet someone who memorized it entirely, and who teaches it: Sheikh Adel
The miracle of every prophet disapeared with the death of that prophet,
except for the miracle of the last Prophet, the Quran, which is the permanent and everlasting miracle.
The miracle that challenged the Arabs.
God Almighty revealed the Quran (recitation) in clear Arabic language. He says :
"Say: The holy Spirit (Gabriel) hath revealed it from thy Lord with truth,
that it may confirm the faith of those who believe, and as guidance and good tidings for the Muslims,
And We know well that they say: Only a man (a Christian) teaches him
but the tongue of the man they refer to is foreign (non-Arab), while this (the Qur'an) is a clear Arabic tongue." (Quran 16:103)
God revealed the Quran in classical Arabic, in this way He honored this language.
He revealed it in arabic, as a challenge to the Arabs who were proud of the beauty of their language,
proud of their poetry, eloquence and literature.
The Arabs at that time, use to gather in circles, clubs and also around the Kaaba,
and exchange their poems, talking about themselves, their tribes, their families in front of other people.
Abdurawf is a student of Sheikh Adel and his assistant, he took us playing football with the students,
This group of youths are students of the Quran and Islamic sciences (Shariah),
Even though they are successful in their studies, and at the same time follow the ethics of the Quran,
they don't forget to play sports and have fun,
Every Wednesday they gather and play football,
Most of the students read by heart more than 1/10 of the Quran every day,
in order to finish reciting every week the whole book.
- How many of them know the Quran by heart? - MashaAllah a great number, maybe 70 % of them
Later, I came to know that Sheikh Adel was a descendant of a companion of the Prophet (pbuh),
one of the companions who had the most beautiful voice and recitation of his time.
The Prophet (pbuh) used to walk at night in the streets of Madinah,
one night he passed by the house of Abu Musa al Ash'ari, who was reciting the Quran at night while everybody was sleeping,
the Prophet (pbuh) heard his recitation, and the day after, he told him :
"O Abu Musa, if only you had seen me yesterday listening to you, I thought you had been given one of the flutes of Prophet David"
Do you know what Abu Musa replied ?
He said : "If I knew that you were listening to me,
I would have sweetened my voice even more for you !"
This is how the companions used to behave, striving in every act that the Prophet liked,
may peace and blessings be upon him and his family.
It's an honor to come back to the traditions of this highly regarded companion,
and I pray God Almighty that He counts us among the people of sincerity.
Because the Prophet (pbuh) said "He who is made slow by his actions will not be speeded by his genealogy."
I am just a few minutes from Makkah, thanks to God Almighty, the most High, May he be glorified.
God honored me and I studied islamic sciences inside the Sacred House,
sitting like this and my hand on my knees listening to my teachers,
Everytime, I used to go out and make tawaf (ritual procession) around the Kaaba,
I was favored to see many times the washing of the Kaaba,
I thank Allah for this blessing and ask Him not to deprive me from it
I never freed myself from the sorrows and problems of this world,
more than when I went to Sacred House and bowed down to God.
Unhappiness is lifted away in that place.
Once when the Prophet (pbuh) visited the Sacred House, and kissed the black stone in the eastern corner,
his eyes began to weep, and his companion Umar ibn Al Khatab asked :
"O Messenger of Allah, you kiss a stone, and you cry ?"
The Prophet (pbuh) answered: "Yes, here tears flow, O Umar"
"If not here, where would they flow?"
Omar takes me to Makkah, 30 minutes away from Jeddah by car,
The mountains of Makkah appears on the horizon
It is between the two cities that a frontier separates the Sacred Land from the rest of the world.
Non-Muslims are not allowed to enter due to its sacredness.
The scenery reminds me of all the stories that I read about the companions of the Prophet (pbuh)
In the next episode, I will take you to the suburbs of Makkah, to visit the places where Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) lived.
And we will perform together Umrah: the minor pilgrimage.
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