Maliki’s call for making Karbala the new Muslim Qibla stirs controversy

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s statements that the Shiite holy city of Karbala must be the Qibla - the direction to which Muslims pray - has stirred controversy among Islamic scholars.

“Karbala must be the Qibla of the Islamic world because Imam Hussein [the Prophet Mohammad’s second grandson, and an important figure in Shia Islam] is buried there,” Maliki said this week, Iraqi media reported on Friday.

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Saudi religious scholars described his statements as incitement to strife and a call to divide Muslims.

“This issue is already agreed upon by all Muslim scholars, both Sunni and Shiite. They all agree that the Qibla is the Ka’bah [the shrine in Mecca towards which Muslims pray],” said Nasser al-Honeini, professor of religion and general supervisor at the Center of Contemporary Thought in Saudi Arabia.

Honeini added that Maliki’s statements distort Islam because the faith does not say that Muslims should pray in the direction of tombs.

Khaled al-Mosleh, professo of jJurisprudence at the University Qassim in Saudi Arabia, described Maliki’s statements as “nonsense” and incompatible with Islamic sharia law.

“The fact that such statements were made by someone as important as the Iraqi prime minister is a catastrophe considering he’s an educated person. If he made such statements, what should we expect from uneducated men?” Mosleh told Al Arabiya News.

Maliki, a Shiite Muslim with close ties to Iran, is often accused of promoting a sectarian agenda in Iraq.

When Maliki visited the United States in October several U.S. Senators sent a letter to President Barack Obama in which they accused Maliki of favouring Shiites over Sunnis in his country.

“By too often pursuing a sectarian and authoritarian agenda, Prime Minister Maliki and his allies are disenfranchising Sunni Iraqis, marginalizing Kurdish Iraqis, and alienating the many Shia Iraqis who have a democratic, inclusive and pluralistic vision for their country,” the senators wrote.

Maliki’s failures were pushing many Sunnis “into the arms of al-Qaeda in Iraq and fueling the rise of violence, which in turn is radicalizing Shia Iraqi communities and leading many Shia militant groups to remobilize,” the senators said.

They warned the situation threatened to pitch Iraq into an all-out civil war. 

Saudi king calls for unity in the Muslim world

Al Arabiya: Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdelaziz said on Wednesday that Muslims should put their differences aside and open a dialogue between the difference sects of Islam.

“Our goals are for the interests of Muslims and because of the fear of division among Muslims. Dialogue between Islamic sects is the best way to unite and understand each other. Our differences should not affect the unity of the Islamic Ummah,” read a statement from King Abdullah, which was read out by Crown Prince Salman at the annual reception held in Mina to welcome the heads of international hajj missions.

SEE ALSO: Live Makkah: Watch live Stream

In the statement, the Saudi king also said that Muslims must put aside all the differences and rivalries by establishing a center of dialogue between Islamic sects in the holy city of Madina, a plan which was adopted by the Conference of Islamic Solidarity in Makkah during the month of Ramadan earlier this year.

He also said in his address that the kingdom will not allow any offence or interference in its internal or foreign affairs.

“From the land of the Prophet’s message, we are telling the world that we are a nation that will never compromise its religious and moral values and we will never allow anyone to offend the sovereignty of our nation or interfere in its internal or foreign affairs,” the king’s statement read. Continue Reading ...

Hajj from Makkah: Watch live Stream

JEDDAH: Hajj officially begins on Sunday as more than 1.3 million Muslims camp out overnight in the Mina tent city before moving to Arafat the next day.

Its an estimated that about 30 lakh people will perform hajj in this year. The overnight stay in Mina, also referred to as the day of Tarwiyah, is not compulsory to complete hajj.

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For Muslims, hajj is the fifth and final pillar of Islam. It takes place in the month of Dhul Hijjah which is the 12th month of the Islamic lunar calendar. The pilgrimage journey lasts for five days.

 


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Walk of life: Pakistani man travels 6,387 km on foot to perform hajj

Al Arabiya - Mustapha Ajbaili: While most Muslims fly, drive or sail from across the world to perform the hajj in Makkah, a Pakistani man made the trip in a far more traditional manner; travelling on foot from Pakistan to Islam’s holiest city in Saudi Arabia.

Kharlzada Kasrat Rai, 37, began his trip from Karachi on June 7, travelling 6,387 kilometers (3,968 miles) through Iran, Iraq and Jordan on foot. (Photo courtesy: Facebook)

He arrived in Makkah on Oct. 1 to a hero’s welcome.

Kasrat Rai was received by Saudi government officials and a representative of the holy Ka’aba’s imam in addition to members of Makkah’s Pakistani community and supporters from various Muslim countries.

The two-time holder of the World Record for Peace Walks told Al Arabiya News that the aim behind his almost three-month journey was to deliver a “message of peace” to the world and to “condemn terrorism at all levels.

“I want peace in the world, equality, and a union of the Muslim Ummah like the European Union,” he said. In 2007, he walked 1,999 kilometers (1,242 miles) between Khyber and Karachi in Pakistan, a journey he completed in 85 days.

In 2009, he walked 327 kilometers (203 miles) from Lahore to Islamabad in 14 days and another 222 kilometers (138 miles) from Islamabad to the Pakistani village of Chakuthi in nine days.

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In 2011, he repeated the trip between Khyber and Karachi but walked a further distance. He broke his previous record by walking 2,287 kilometers (1,421 miles) in 72 days.

Kasrat Rai told Al Arabiya News that although he faced unexpected “problems” during his latest journey to Makkah, which he described as “risky,” he still felt secure and was able to arrive in the city safe and sound. He said that the people he encountered along the way were “friendly” and gave him support., adding that in Makkah he was provided with accommodation.

Kasrat Rai explained that he was preparing to begin the journey to Mina, roughly eight kilometers (five miles) away from Makkah, as per the rituals of hajj, which officially starts on Sunday. Saudi Arabia announced that more than 1.3 million people will be performing this year’s hajj, with more than half of them coming from outside Saudi Arabia.

For Muslims, hajj is the fifth and final pillar of Islam. It takes place in the month of Dhul Hijjah which is the 12th month of the Islamic lunar calendar. The pilgrimage is obligatory for all Muslims once in their lifetime. However, it is only compulsory for those who have the physical and financial means to perform the pilgrimage.

During the religious event, those Muslims who make the journey are required to spend five days in the desert surrounding the city of Makkah in modern-day Saudi Arabia. They travel between specified points to perform rites laid down in Islam’s holy book, the Quran.

These rites commemorate the life of Prophet Ibrahim, or Abraham who built Islam’s most revered structure, the Ka’aba, with his son Ismail.

Number of pilgrims increases 75 times in 70 years

The number of foreign pilgrims has increased more than 75 times over the past 70 years, according to Abdulhamid Abal Arry, general director of King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah.

He said the number of pilgrims increased from 23,863 in 1941 to 1.8 million in 2010.

He said that 1.67 million pilgrims had arrived by air this season. Around 8.3 million pilgrims came through King Abdulaziz International Airport for Haj and Umrah in 2012 alone. 

“The number of Muslims wishing to perform Haj around the world has been on the rise since 1927. Since then, the Kingdom has witnessed huge developments,” he said.

“The government has ordered entities to conduct studies on establishing comprehensive services for pilgrims in order to accommodate the burgeoning numbers,” he added.

He said that King Abdulaziz International Airport is the main entry point for the Two Holy Mosques. “The airport, which is also the western gateway for Saudi Arabia, plays a distinctive role in serving the guests of God, with at least 60 percent of pilgrims using the terminal, making it one of the busiest in the Kingdom.”

King Abdulaziz International Airport has witnessed an increasing number of passengers since it was opened in 1982. In 2012, the airport served 27.2 million passengers compared to 7.79 million in 1983, a year after its inauguration. 

King Abdulaziz International Airport receives more than 41 percent of the total number of the Kingdom's incoming passengers.

Abal Arry added that current air traffic is double the airport's capacity and that it was no longer capable of keeping up with the continual increase. The airport hasn’t undergone radical development since vital facilities and technical systems became outdated.

The first half of this year saw an increase of 6.5 percent in the number of passengers from 2012. There were 3.9 million domestic passengers, 6.7 million passengers on international flights and 3,894,779 Umrah passengers who traveled to King Abdulaziz International Airport. Continue Reading ...

How many times Prophet Muhammad (saww) performed Hajj and Umrah?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and who-ever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saww) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

It has been recorded that the Messenger of Allah (saws) performed a total of four Umrahs and one Hajj pilgrimage.

Umrah 1: 6th Hijri, after the Treaty of Hudaibiya. Although he was not allowed to visit the Kaaba by the polytheists of Makkah to perform Umrah, it is still counted as an Umrah. He came out of the Ehram, shaved his head, and sacrificed his ‘hadi’ (animal) and went back to Medina. The deal made with the polytheists, that he would return to Medina, and come back the next year for his Umrah.
Umrah 2: 7th Hijri, as per the Treaty of Hudaibiyah.
Umrah 3. 8th Hijri, after returning from the Battle of Hunain.
Umrah 4: 10th Hijri, along with the Hajj.

Why did he (SAWW) perform the Hajj only once:

Until 8th Hijrah, Makkah was under the rule and control of his enemies, the Quraish; thus obviously he was not allowed to perform the Hajj. After the Muslims conquered Makkah in 8th Hijrah, the muslims had control over Makkah and thus the Kaabah. In the 9th year after Hijrah, Abu Bakr was made the ‘Ameer ul Hajj’ by Prophet Mohamed (saws), and later Ali ibn Abi Taalib (r.a.) was sent from Makkah to recite the newly revealed Surah Taubah, in which Allah declared that no ‘mushriks’ (polytheists) were hereby allowed to visit the Sacred House of Allah.

The next year 10th year after Hijrah, the Prophet (saws) himself performed the pilgrimage of Hajj, and this became famous as the ‘Hajja tun Wida’.

And Allah Alone Knows Best, and He is the Only Source of Strength. May Allah guide you and us all to the Siraat al-Mustaqeem.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Watch Live Taraweeh Prayers from Makkah

Google has announced that it will show prayers live from Makkah during Ramadan on its video-sharing service, YouTube.

The internet giant confirmed on Monday that it had been working in close partnership with the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information.



“This is the first LiveStream event coming from MENA, specifically Saudi Arabia, and we hope that it will give the opportunity not only to two billion Muslims but to the entire world to observe one milion Muslims praying each day from the holiest point in Makkah, the Kaaba, for the first time in history,” said a Google statement.