ALMISKEENAH

 

Construction. Destruction.

This Radiant City, The Humble, is alive with activity! The changes taking place at a phenomenal pace.

Blue indicates areas currently being demolished, with the

light blue showing where hotel construction in various stages is under way. Yellow: almost all of this area has been in the process of demolition during the past few years. A row of buildings immediately opposite Jannatul Baqi is still operating for the moment. The current Maternity Hospital is one of these, situated at the end of this row furthest from Haram. It is to be vacated in another month or so as a huge new hospital is almost complete, situated in one of the suburbs south of Haram.

The purple indicates a new pedestrian underpass, Insha’Allah providing a safe crossing of this extremely busy road.

The green line represents a new tunnel which has only recently opened. Roadwork continues all around this area at the moment.

 

Between Masjid Bilal and Haram.

 

Carpet market just before Hajj 2005

 

Carpet market a week ago.

 

 

View from an overpass overlooking Haram, with a narrow band of the top of Mount Uhud in the distance.

 

Taken to the left of the above.

Allah knows best. But I cannot help but feel a sense of suffocation as I look how much the Haram is being hemmed in by the construction within the CBD area.

Allah’s Apostle SallAllahu alaihi wasallam said in various narrations, The Hour will not be established till the people compete with one another in constructing high buildings, or when the shepherds of black camels start boasting and competing with others in the construction of higher buildings, or when lofty minarets will rise from mosques, or when mosques will be decorated with beautiful writings and designs.

 
Opposite the Date Market.

The competition is clearly seen when looking at the amazing architectural designs of the buildings mushrooming around the City. Owners have employed top architects in trying to design "unique" features within the confines of the limited spaces available, while maintaining the maximum number of people to be potentially accommodated throughout the year.

I wonder how much money could have been saved if buildings were a simple construction, fulfilling the simple requirements of the pilgrims, rather than trying to emulate fashionable cities around the world. And how cheaper it would be for pilgrims to be housed in more austere accommodation. Allowing the heart to focus on the reason why people come to the Haramain in the first place. May Allah Ta’ala guide and save us all, and assist us to maintain the purest of connections to Him when we come to the Two Holy Cities for His Ibadah. Ameen.

Narrated Qais bin Abi Hazim: We went to pay a visit to Khabbab who was sick and he had been cauterized at seven places in his body. He said, "Our companions who died during the lifetime of the Prophet SallAllahu alaihi wasallam left this world without having their rewards reduced through enjoying the pleasures of this life, but we have got so much wealth that we find no way to spend it except on the construction of buildings. Had the Prophet SallAllahu alaihi wasallam not forbidden us to wish for death, I would have wished for it." We visited him for the second time while he was building a wall. He said: "A Muslim is rewarded in the Hereafter for whatever he spends except for something that he spends on building."  (Sahih Bhukhari Book 70 Hadith 576)

I wander 400km to the south, to the blessed city of Makkah, where Allah Ta’ala made this area sacred thousands and thousands of years before He appointed Rasulullah SallAllahu alaihi wasallam as His last and final Messenger. I will frequently refer to Makkah, it being inextricably linked to the Abode of our Beloved SallAllahu alaihi wasallam.

The destruction and construction is of a far more overwhelming scale than here in Madinah. It is narrated by Abdullah bin Umar Radhiallahu anhu that the Prophet SallAllahu alaihi wasallam said: "When the belly of Makkah will be cleft open and through it will be dug out river-like passages (tunnels) and the buildings of the Holy City of Makkah will rise higher than it’s mountains, when you observe thes signs, then understand that the time of Fitnah is near at hand." Subhanallah, how it was as if Prophet SallAllahu alaihi wasallam was actually seeing with his own eyes today’s Makkahtul-Mukarramah.

Makkah rarely sleeps from the sound of giant earth moving equipment "devouring" mountains (Jabal Umar being attacked this very minute, 24 hours a day every day except for a few hours rest on Juma’h) Likewise, work on the ZamZam Towers, is constant. This "Islamic Empire State" menacingly hovers over the Sacred Haram, dwarfing the Ka’aba. 8,000 workers are employed in 3 round the clock shifts. The Tower will be 485 m (or 1,600 ft) high, thus making it the tallest in the Kingdom and one of the ten tallest in the world. The mind boggles when reading of the number of suites, restaurants, convention centres, shops etc it will have.

 

View of Ka’aba from Zamzam Tower (artists impression)

Maybe the way of coping with these changes is to use the destruction/construction theme as a metaphor. To work at internalizing in the heart the destruction of all that is not Allah Ta’ala, the negating LAA, of Laa ilaha, No, there is no god, and then "construct" the illallah, EXCEPT ALLAH.  Overseeing our "construction" on an even grander scale than what we see happening in The Two Holy Cities. Allahu Akbar

As Allah The Almighty said to Musa Alaihi Sallam, that if the seven heavens and the seven earths were placed in one pan of the Balance, and the words Laa ilha IllAllah were in the other, the latter will outweigh the former.

Suddenly how miniscule all these tall buildings become! Subhanallah.

All good is from Allah Ta’ala whereas mistakes are from this humble speck. May Allah Bless all readers.