I was recently invited to attend a lecture by Dr. Samir Baraqah, an expert on Islamic antiquities and archeological sites, at Dr. Abdulmohsin Farraj Al-Qahtani Weekly Cultural Forum in the presence of prominent journalist, professors, and literature figures. The lecture titled “Archeological Sites in Makkah” focused on the places that were associated with Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, before and after the Revelation of the Holy Qur'an and until the time he immigrated to the City of Al-Madinah. The places include his birthplace, the house of his wife Khadijah where he moved after marrying her when he was 25 years old, Abi Qubais Mountain, Khandamah Mountain, the House of Al-Arqam Ibn Abi Al-Arqam, Al-Morsalat Mountain, Al-Akhsha'bayn Mountain, the place where Bani Hashim Tribe people were placed under siege, Al-Jin Mosque, Al-Aqabah Allegiance Site, Al-Hudaibiyah Treaty Site, Al-Kheef Mosque, Nimrah Mosque where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) made the first statement about human rights, Al-Manhar Mosque, Al-Kawthar Mosque, Hunain Battle Site, Al-Ijabah Mosque, Al-Taneem Mosque, and the boundaries surrounding the Haram (Sanctity) Area. The lecturer stressed that it is our obligation to preserve the above sites. The lecture reminded me of the journey I made with Abdulaziz Saisho, a Japanese Muslim journalist whom I met in Japan during my diplomatic career there. Two months after arriving in Jeddah, Saisho wanted to visit the Grand Mosque and called me to ask me to go with him climb Al-Noor Mountain and see Hera Cave, where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to sit and meditate for long hours before the Holy Qur'an was revealed to him by Jibreel (peace be upon him). Jibreel asked him to read but he said “I cannot read” then Jibreel said “Recite in the name of your Lord who created — Created man from a clinging substance. Recite, and your Lord is the most Generous — Who taught by the pen — Taught man that which he knew not.” I agreed to go with my friend to return the favor to him, for in Japan he took me with him on the climb of the famous Fuji Mountain, which can only be climbed during the month of the year when the snow melts at the top. There is an interesting story associated with this mountain, which I may write about in the near future. Although I did not know the way to Al-Noor Mountain well, let alone the paths leading to Hera Cave, I did not really care. I could ask people to show me. We put on the Ihram clothing (white seamless garments worn by Muslim when performing Umrah) in Jeddah and headed to Makkah. After completing the Umrah rituals, we found someone who could take us to the mountain. It was night. We searched for a nearby hotel where we could spend the night but did not find any. We decided to stay at a cheap coffee shop that allowed customers to rent a small bed and spend the night there. These shops were similar to motels. My friend did not object to spending the night this way. He reminded me of the cabin where we spent the night when we were climbing the Fuji Mountain. The cabin was full of climbers and its floors were covered with straw mats. It was a very cold night, so cold that even our blankets were not enough to keep us warm. Anyways, we were so tired that we fell asleep for few hours. Then we woke up, performed Al-Fajr prayer, and climbed to the top of the mountain. My friend was keen to take a picture of the sun when it was rising. Back to Al-Noor Mountain journey, we rented two beds. We had a quick breakfast in the morning and started off. The road to the mountain was clear and easy while the paths zigzagged. They were made this way on purpose to spare the climbers any difficulty caused by vertical climbing. In less than an hour, we reached the top and entered Hera Cave. My friend took a lot of photos inside and outside the cave and photos of Makkah from the top of the mountain. On our way up, we met Pakistani climbers and some of them had their families with them. After spending an hour on the top, we climbed down and went back to Jeddah where my friend spent some nights there then off to Riyadh. He was working on writing a book about the Kingdom. He did write it and publish it and give me a copy of it in Japanese language. Unfortunately, I could not read or write Japanese but I could speak it a little bit. I did not understand anything from the book except regaling at the photos of the cheap motel we spent the night before climbing Al-Noor Mountain, which is considered one of the archeological sites of Makkah. — Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs. He can be reached at [email protected]
