Will the real Al Aqsa please stand up!
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Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him) (in Arabic he is called 全ulaiman'), built
a mosque, a long, long time ago, on Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem.
He dedicated it to the worship of Allah s.w.t. the One True God. Like his
father, Prophet David (peace be upon him) (in Arabic he is called 'Dawood'), he
was a prophet and a messenger, calling all humanity to the worship of
Allah s.w.t. and to establish piety on the earth.
Now, all these years later there is some confusion about the site of this
mosque. In the eastern part of Jerusalem is the Old city, a
quadrangular area built on two hills. Within the wall there are four
quarters. The Muslim quarter, on the east, contains the Haram ash-Sharif, within
which are the 船ome of the Rock' and the 閃osque of al Aqsa'. Both places
are sacred sites for Muslims. However it is around the Mosque of Al Aqsa
that the confusion lies.
Whenever mention is made in the local or international media pertaining to Al
Aqsa, a picture of the 船ome of the rock' will appear. These two mosques
lie within a rather close proximity to each other but they bear little
resemblance. All over the world, we can find pictures of the 船ome of
the rock' under the heading 羨l Aqsa' , to the point that people aren't really
sure anymore, which is which.
The difference however, is clear and simple. The 船ome of the rock'
bears the sacred rock that Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) stood on when he
went on the ascension to the heavens, while Al Aqsa mosque lies on the site of
the original mosque of Prophet Solomon (Sulaiman) (peace be upon him).
Islam reveres both Jewish and Christian traditions, as these two religions
belong to its traditions.
Actually Al Aqsa Mosque was the original qibla (The direction of prayers), which
was later changed during the time of Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) to the
Ka'ba at Mecca.
The reason for the deliberate dispersion of false information is also clear and
simple. By focusing attention on the 船ome of the rock' under the label
of Al Aqsa, people all over the world will not know when the real Al Aqsa mosque
finally disappears.
(Own comments: The 船ome of the Rock' is yellowish/golden whereas
The 'Al Aqsa' masjid is dark blue/grey in colour, also u can see the pics of
both the masjids in the photo area)