Allah singled out Makkah and honored it over all parts of the world. One of the greatest signs is that it is His sanctuary.

What is the meaning of “Haram” (Sanctuary)?

• It is a place in which certain things, allowed elsewhere, are prohibited out of veneration and reverence for the One Who prohibited it. Allah the Exalted said: “And who observes the sanctity of the sites ordained by Allah, it will be good for him in the sight of his Lord.”
• Allah has chosen this land and made it sacred, forbidding in it what He permitted in other places, and singling it out with virtues and merits that are not found in any other place. Its sanctity and stature date back to the very first beginning of the entire universe.
• Allah has made this land into a Sanctity and assigned to it a very special rank on the day this universe was created. It will remain so until the end of time. The Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) said: “Allah has made this town a sanctuary from the day He created the heavens and the earth. So, it is a sanctuary by Allah’s decree till the Day of Resurrection.”

What does the Sanctity mean to me?

• You are now in a place that Allah singled out, honored and sacralized before He even created humans. He ordered Abrahim, peace be upon him, to raise the foundations and build the House (Ka’bah) before even a single soul lived in Makkah, and chose it to be the qiblah and guidance for the whole world. Allah the Exalted said: “The first House (of Prayer) established for mankind is the one at Bakkah (Makkah): a blessed place, a guidance for all worlds (of people and jinn)”.
• You are in a place where the reward for a good deed is multiplied, and where a sin is not like a sin in any other place.
• Allah commanded His noblest humans, Abrahim and Ismail, peace be upon them, and then Muhammad (blessings and peace be upon him), to purify, build and take care of the Ka’bah.

Makkah is the Qiblah of the Muslims

Honorable Makkah is the best place on earth and the most beloved place to Allah and His Messenger.

• Allah chose it for the rituals of Hajj and made visiting it an act of worship by which ranks are raised and bad deeds are erased. The Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) said: “By Allah, you are the best part of Allah’s earth and the part dearest to Him.”
• It is the place where the first House on earth for the worship of Allah alone was established. Allah the Exalted said: “The first House (of Prayer) established for mankind is the one at Bakkah (Makkah): a blessed place, a guidance for all worlds (of people and jinn).”
• Makkah attained that privilege and position in the first moments of creating the universe. The Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) said: “Allah made this town sacred on the day He created the heavens and the earth, so it is sacred by the sanctity conferred on it by Allah till the day of resurrection.”
• Muslims from all parts of the world turn toward it five times a day in worship to their Lord, to strengthen their unity and brotherhood. Allah the Exalted said: “We have seen you (O Muhammad), turning your face over and over again towards Heaven. Now, therefore, We turn you towards the qiblah that you like best: so turn your face towards the Sacred Mosque. Henceforth, wheresoever you may be, turn your face at prayer towards it.”
• For Muslims, Makkah is a qiblah, guidance, blessing and grace around which their lives revolve. It is necessary that we thank Allah for this great blessing. Allah the Exalted said: “Allah has appointed the Ka’bah, the Sacred House, as a means for support for mankind, and the Sacred Month, the offerings and the garlands. That is so that you may know that Allah knows whatsoever is in the heavens and the earth, and that Allah is Knower of all things.”

It is the sanctuary of Allah, Who honored it and singled it out with the greatest characteristics.