Al-Masjid Al-Haram (Arabic: المسجد الحرام, The Sacred Mosque or The Grand Mosque) is in the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest mosque in the world and surrounds one of Islam's holiest places, the Kaaba. Muslims face in the direction of the Kaaba while performing Salat. One of the Five Pillars of Islam requires every Muslim to perform the Hajj pilgrimage at least once in his or her lifetime if able to do so, includes circumambulation of the Kaaba. Masjid al-Haram was built around the Kaaba. It is also the largest mosque in the world. It was first built under the leadership of the Caliph Omar Ibn al-Khattab (634-644) and has been modified continuously under several Muslim rulers. Omar, the first Caliph, ordered the demolition of some houses surrounding the Kaaba in order to accommodate the growing number of pilgrims and built a 1.5 meter high wall to delineate a large prayer area. During the reign of his successor Caliph Uthman Ibn ... It was originally a part of Kaaba but when Quresh rebuilt kaaba, and they ran out of funds to restore it to its shape. A prayer offered in Haatim is equivalent to a prayer offered inside Kaaba. According to Islamic tradition, the Kaaba was rebuilt several times throughout history, most famously by Ibrahim and his son Ismail, [5] when he returned to the valley of Mecca several years after leaving his wife Hajar and Ismail there upon Allah 's command.
