The Kaaba, pre-Islamic monument, rededicated by Muhammad in 631-32 C.E., multiple renovations, granite masonry, covered with silk curtain and calligraphy in gold and silver-wrapped thread (Mecca, Saudi Arabia) Image credit: The Kaaba in the Masjid el Haram, 2010 Tab59, CC BY-SA 2.0. Pilgrimage to a holy site is a core principle of almost all faiths. The Kaaba, meaning cube in Arabic, is a square building elegantly draped in a silk and cotton veil. Located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, it is the holiest shrine in Islam. In Islam, Muslims pray five times a day and after 624 CE, these prayers were directed towards Mecca and the Kaaba rather than Jerusalem; this direction—or qibla in Arabic—is marked in all mosques and enables the faithful to know in which direction they should pray. The Qur‘an established the direction of prayer. All Muslims aspire to undertake the hajj, or the annual pilgrimage, to the Kaaba once in their lives if they are able. Prayer five times a day and the hajj are two of the five pillars of Islam, the most fundamental principles of the faith.

The Great Mosque of Mecca, commonly known as the al-Masjid al-Ḥarām, is a mosque that surrounds the Kaaba in the city of Mecca, in the Hejazi region of Saudi Arabia.

Safa and Marwa are two small hills now located in the Great Mosque of Mecca, in the Hejazi region of Saudi Arabia. Muslims travel back and forth between them seven times, during the ritual pilgrimages of Ḥajj and ʿUmrah.

The Hajar al-Aswad (The Black Stone), which is set in the eastern corner of the Ka’bah. Tawaf begins and ends facing this sacred stone. Throughout the ages, countless people including many of the Prophets (upon them be peace), the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) himself, the Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them), pious personalities and millions of Muslims who have performed Hajj and Umrah have placed their blessed lips on it.

The Maqame Ebrahim refers to the stone on which Ebrahim (upon him be peace) stood on while he was building the Ka’bah. As Ismail (upon him be peace) passed stones to Ebrahim (upon him be peace), and as Ebrahim (upon him be peace) continued laying them in place the Maqame Ebrahim miraculously continued rising higher and higher as the walls rose. Allah (ﷻ) caused the trace of his footprints to remain on the stone as a reminder to the believers among his descendants.

Mina, seven kilometers east of the Masjid al-Haram is where Hajj pilgrims sleep overnight on the 8th, 11th, 12th (and some even on the 13th) of Dhul Hijjah. It contains the Jamarat, the three stone pillars which are pelted by pilgrims as part of the rituals of Hajj.

The masjid above is Masjid Nimrah and is located on the plain of Arafat. When the Prophet (ﷺ) was at Arafat on his farewell Hajj on the ninth day of Dhul Hijjah 10 AH (632 CE) he camped here. After midday, he delivered his famous sermon (reproduced below) at Waadi Urana nearby while seated on his camel, after which he led the salah. More than 100,000 Sahabah accompanied him on this Hajj.

Also known as Jabal-Ar-Rahmah or the Mount of Mercy, Mount Arafat is a hill in the valley of Arafat outside Makkah where Prophet (pbuh) gave his last sermon after completing Hajj. It is mandatory for pilgrims to leave Mina and reach Mount Arafat on 9th Dhu’al Hijjah and spend the day praying, doing Dhik’r and asking for forgiveness from Allah (SWT). Standing in Arafat is an essential part of Hajj and it is considered invalid if a pilgrim fails to reach here.

Muzdalifah ( مُزْدَلِفَة‎) is an open, level area near Mecca in the Hejazi region of Saudi Arabia that is associated with the Ḥajj ("Pilgrimage"). It lies just southeast of Mina, on the route between Mina and Arafat. The stay at Muzdalifah is preceded by a day at Arafat, consisting of glorifying Allāh repeating the Dua, repentance to Allah, and asking Him for forgiveness. At Arafat, Ẓuhr and ʿAṣr prayers are performed in a combined and abbreviated form during the time of Zuhr. After sunset on the ninth day of the Islamic month of Dhūl-Ḥijjah, Muslim pilgrims travel to Muzdalifah, sometimes arriving at night because of over-crowding. After arriving at Muzdalifah, pilgrims pray the Maghrib and ʿIshāʾ prayers jointly, where as the Isha prayer is shortened to 2 rakats.

Mount Thawr (or Jabal Thawr) is the mountain that contains the cave in which the Prophet (ﷺ) and Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) sought refuge for three days and nights from the Quraysh, as they left Makkah and emigrated to Madinah. After Jabal Thawar our Last Attraction will be Canal Sakeena.

Jabal-ur-Rehman (Mountain of Mercy) on the plain of Arafat. Standing at Arafat is the fundamental requirement of Hajj and pilgrims come here on the 9th Dhul Hijjah (second day of Hajj). The common meaning of the word Arafat is ‘to know’. After being taken out of Jannah and placed on Earth, it was here that Adam (upon him be peace) and Hawa (upon her be peace) met up. Standing on Arafat is an essential part of the Hajj; whoever misses the standing on Arafat has missed Hajj, because the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Hajj is Arafat.” [al-Hakim]

Mount Hira (Jabal Hira), which lies about two miles from the Ka’bah. Near the top is a small cave, a little less than 4 meters in length and a little more than one and a half meters in width. It was here that the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) received the first revelations of the Holy Quran during the month of Ramadhan in 610 CE. The mountain is also known as Jabal Noor (the Mountain of Light).

Masjid Jinn, also known as Masjid Haras, is built on the place where the Prophet (ﷺ) drew a line for Abdullah bin Mas’ood (may Allah be pleased with him) who had accompanied him after he had been commanded to recite the Qur’an to the Jinn. After Masjid Jinn our guide will go towards Masjid-e- Shajar, Masjid-e-Qamar, Jannat-al-Moulla.

The Jamarat are three stone pillars which are pelted as a compulsory ritual of Hajj in emulation of the Prophet Ebrahim (upon him be peace). They represent the three locations where Ebrahim (upon him be peace) pelted the Shaitan (Satan) with stones when he tried to dissuade him from sacrificing his son Ismail (upon him be peace). The pillars are called ‘Jamarat-al-Ula’, ‘Jamarat-al-Wusta’ and ‘Jamarat-al-Aqaba’.

Masjid e Taneem is a mosque in the Al-Hil area about 5 miles away from the Holy Kaaba, in Taneem, which is near Mecca and acts as Miqat (a station for putting on pilgrims' garments) for people living in Mecca. This mosque is also known as Masjid -e- Ayesha since Prophet Mohammed 's wife Ayesha had put her Ihram (restriction on Pilgrimage) from this place once. If someone is living in Mecca and wants to perform Umra (pilgrimage to Mecca) then he should go to this place, enter into the state of Ihram (in part by putting on pilgrim's garments) and then return to Mecca so that the condition of traveling for the pilgrims is also fulfilled.