Verily, the first House of Worship appointed for mankind was at Bakkah (Makkah) full of blessing and a guidance for mankind and Jinn. (Qur'an, 3:96) Makkah is the holy city for all Muslims on earth, and it is greatly loved by Allah. It is where Prophet Ibrahim and Prophet Ismael laid the foundation of the Ka'ba. Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) was born in Makkah, and he called people to Islam. It was from there that Islam gradually spread all over the world. The Ka'aba and the Haram in Makkah have gripped the hearts of Muslims with extreme love. Millions of Muslims visit Makkah for Umrah and Hajj every year. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) conquered Makkah, faced the Ka'aba and said: “You are holy and sacrosanct and how great is your sanctity and yours is the finest smell and the reverence of a faithful is greatest.” (Dur-Al-Manthur) Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him)narrated, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, “The prayer in my Mosque (is equal to) one thousand prayers except in the Holy Mosque (Makkah); the prayer there is equal in reward to one hundred thousand prayers. (Muslim) Ibn Omar (may Allah be pleased with him) heard the Prophet (peace be upon him) saying: “Whoever circumambulates the Ka'aba seven times (i.e. one Tawaf) Allah writes a virtue for him on each step he takes, effaces an evil (from his deeds) and raises a grade for him in the Heaven and he is given reward of liberating a slave.” (Al-Hakim, Al-Baihaqi) In another narration Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “Whoever performs 50 Tawaf, he comes out of his sins and becomes as if he was born the day his mother gave birth to him.” (Tirmidhi) Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “Anyone who gets Ramadan in Makkah, fasts and stands in supererogatory prayers, Allah does write for him one hundred thousand months of Ramadan other than the month he was in there. And the virtues of liberating a slave one in a day and one in a night and virtues of giving to lambs (in charity) seeking pleasure of Allah and a virtue for him every day and a virtue for him every night.” (Ibn Majah) __
