Muslim Views . December 201818

SALIM PARKERMASJIDUL Nimrah is open onlyon the day of Hajj every year, theninth day of Dhil-Hijjah. It is amosque that spans two areas ofgreat significance to Muslims butstaying in one part of the mosqueon the day of Arafah can invalidate that person’s Hajj.

Only one khutbah is given therea year, and that is the khutbah ofHajj on the day of Wuqoof.Adding to its uniqueness is the factthat the Dhuhr and Asr prayers onthat day are shortened from theusual four rakaah each to twoeach. The two waqts are also com-bined in the time of Dhuhr, withone adhaan and two iqamahs, onefor each of the respective waqts.

These procedures are followedas it was what our belovedProphet (SAW) did when he per-formed his one and only Hajj.What better example can we usewhen we settle our debt to ourCreator and perform our Hajj ascalled upon by Nabi Ibrahim (AS)to do, thousands of years ago?

Shaikh Muhammad ibnUthaymeen said: ‘It was narratedthat on the day of Arafah, theProphet (SAW) stayed in Nimrah(which is a place near Arafah)until the sun had passed its zenith(which is the beginning of the timefor Dhuhr) then he rode; then hestopped at the bottom of WadiUrana (which is a wadi or valleybetween Nimrah and Arafah),where he prayed Dhuhr and Asr,shortening them to two rakaaheach and joining them together atthe time of Dhuhr, with one ad-haan and two iqamahs.

‘Then he rode on until he cameto the place of standing and stoodthere. He said, ‘I am standing herebut all of Arafah is the place ofstanding.’ Then he remained

standing, facing the qiblah, raisinghis hands, remembering Allah andcalling upon Him, until the sunhad set completely then he wenton to Muzdalifah.’

Some jurists consider Nimrahand Uranah to be the same placewhile others consider them to bedistinct areas very close to eachother.

Some are of the opinion thatthe original site was outsideArafah. Shaikh Al-Islam IbnTaymiyyah said in Majmoo Al-Fa-taawa: ‘A tent was erected for him[Prophet (SAW)] at Nimrah andthat is where his rightly-guidedcaliphs would camp after his time.

‘There are markets, rest areas,places to eat and so forth. Whenthe sun passed its zenith, he andthose with him mounted and rodeto the prayer area at the base ofUranah, where the masjid wasbuilt, and that is neither a part ofthe Haram nor part of Arafah.’

The khutbah was delivered herewhile Nabi Muhammad (SAW)was seated on his camel. The com-bined prayers were also led fromhere. It is estimated that one hun-dred thousand pilgrims accompa-nied the Prophet (SAW).

In the second century of Islam,Masjid Nimrah was built at thisspot. It was called Masjid Ibrahim.As Wadi Uranah, where the ser-mon was delivered, is outside theboundaries of Arafah, that sectionof the masjid is also outside theboundaries.

When the mosque was ex-tended afterwards, it then becamedivided into two sections. Thefront section, which was the loca-tion of the original MasjidIbrahim, was outside Arafah withthe back section being within theboundaries.

After renovations, signboardswere erected inside the mosque toinform people about this matter.Hence, after performing theirDhuhr and Asr prayers in congre-gation, they could either move tothe back of the masjid or outsideto spend the rest of their time onArafah.

Should a person spend all histime from midday to sunset in thefront section of the masjid, hewould not have been on Arafahand his Hajj will therefore be in-valid as the presence on Arafah isan absolutely essential rite of Hajj.

The mosque has been expandedon numerous occasions.

The biggest expansion wasmade during the Saudi era andcost around 100 million US dol-lars.

The mosque has a capacity ofaround 350 000 people, has sixminarets, three domes and tenmain entrances that include 64doors.

It also has a broadcast roomfrom where the khutbah andprayers on the day of Arafah arebeamed to the world, via satellites.

Less than a quarter of the pil-

grims are able to get into themosque for the prayers.

It is not considered an essentialpart of Hajj to get into the mosquenor to ascend Jabal Rahmah.

It is worth remembering thatthe Farewell Khutbah of ourbeloved Prophet (SAW) was deliv-ered at Masjid Nimrah and thatsoon thereafter, the following rev-elation was sent down by our Cre-ator: ‘Today I have perfected yourreligion for you and completedMy favour upon you, and I havechosen Islam as your religion.’(Quran 5:3)

Masjidul Nimrah: only a part on Arafah

The yellow sign on the left of the photograph, opposite Masjidul Nimrah (on the right), bears the words, ‘Arafat ends here.’However, the masjid extends beyond the boundary of Arafah, which means that pilgrims who stay on that side of the masjidfrom the time of Wuqoof till Maghrib will invalidate their Hajj. Photo SALIM PARKER

There are signs all around the boundary of Arafah, alerting the hujaaj to theboundary to ensure that they are on Arafah from the time of Wuqoof to Maghrib.Since only a part of Masjidul Nimrah is on Arafah, there are also signs in themasjid to ensure that the hujaaj in the mosque are in the right part of the mosqueduring that sacred period. Photo SALIM PARKER

Masjidul Nimrah is only open on the day of Arafah and is large enough to accommodate 350 000 people, however, since onlya part of it is on Arafah, the hujaaj who are in the mosque have to ensure that they spend at least a part of the period fromWuqoof to Maghrib in that part of the mosque to fulfil that important part of the Hajj i.e. spending some time on Arafah.

Photo SALIM PARKER

Masjidul Nimrah has been expanded on numerous occasions. The mosque can now accommodate about 350 000 people, has six minarets, three domes and ten main entrances that include 64 doors. It also has a broadcast room from where the khutbah and prayers on the day of Arafah are beamed to the world.

Photo SALIM PARKER