Masjid al-Haram — The Grand Mosque of Mecca

Masjid al-Haram — the Grand Mosque of Mecca — is the holiest site in Islam and the destination of every Hajj and Umrah pilgrim. At its centre stands the Ka'ba, the cubic structure first built by Sayyidna Ibrahim (AS) and his son Ismail (AS) as the first house of worship (*baytullah* — house of Allah) on earth. Every salah performed by Muslims worldwide is oriented toward the Ka'ba. Within the Haram complex: the Ka'ba itself (with the Black Stone, Hajar al-Aswad, in its corner); Maqam Ibrahim (the stone bearing the footprints of Ibrahim AS); the hills of Safa and Marwa (inside the Mas'a gallery for the sa'y); and the Zamzam Well, whose water has flowed since the time of Hajar (AS). For Bohra pilgrims performing Hajj or Umrah, the Masjid al-Haram is the site of tawaf (circumambulation), sa'y (walking between Safa and Marwa), and some of the most profound moments of spiritual life. Adjacent to the Haram, in the Jannatul Mualla cemetery, rest members of the Prophet's family including Sayyida Khadija al-Kubra (AS) — the Prophet's beloved first wife and the first to accept Islam — and Sayyida Fatima bint Asad (AS), mother of Imam Ali.