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Dhat Irq

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One of several Mawaqit for Muslims on pilgrimage to Mecca for umrah or hajj
Dhāt 'Irq
ذات عرق
A highway which leads to Dhat Irq
Dhat Irq is located in Saudi ArabiaDhat IrqShown within Saudi Arabia
General information
Town or cityMecca
CountrySaudi Arabia
Coordinates21°55′48″N 40°25′32″E / 21.9299640°N 40.4254970°E / 21.9299640; 40.4254970

Dhāt 'Irq (Arabic: ذات عرق) is a miqat and archaeological site located at Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Etymology

According to the traveller Yaqut al-Hamawi, the name Dhāt 'Irq is derived from a similarly-named mountain located in the Hijaz.

Function

Dhat Irq is a miqat, a place where the pilgrims going on the Hajj enter the state of ihram and subsequently wear the prescribed clothing for the event. The miqat of Dhat Irq, however, is usually visited by the pilgrims who come from Iraq and Khorasan. The place is also where caravans and tour groups on the destination for pilgrimage stop to rest and meet. There is a large mosque at Dhat Irq for pilgrims to pray at, as well as additional facilities like hostels, toilets and a shopping centre. The site has also been classified as an archaeological site.

History

Classical antiquity

Main article: Battle of Dhat Irq

In 599 BCE, the Neo-Babylonian ruler, Nebuchadnezzar II, invaded the Arabian Peninsula and fought against the pagan Arab tribes in the region. The forces of Nebuchadnezzar II and Adnan, the ruler of Mecca at the time, clashed at Dhat Irq where a battle ensued. The subsequent victory was indecisive. According to the Islamic traditions, the biblical prophet Jeremiah was involved in keeping the young Ma'ad ibn Adnan safe from harm.

Late Antiquitiy

In November 624 CE, the Sahabi and military commander Zayd ibn Haritha was sent on an expedition to Dhat Irq by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. However, the prophet himself did not participate in the expedition, as was the custom for a sariyya.

Early Middle Ages

Dhat Irq held importance to the Shi'ites after their leader Husayn ibn Ali had stayed there for a while to rest on his journey to the city of Kufa from his hometown. Husayn had a conversation with a local from Banu Asad about the situation in Kufa and discussed the exegesis of the seventeenth chapter of the Qur'an, which is Al-Isra'. The scholar Tahir al-Samawi reports that Husayn had a meeting with the sons of Abdullah ibn Ja'far and some Umayyad government officials in Dhat Irq.

Modern history

A foundation stone for a project to modernize Dhat Irq was laid in 2010 under the orders of Khalid bin Faisal Al Saud, the governor of Mecca. As of 2019, a mosque has been constructed at the site as well as pilgrim hostels and commercial centres, including shops and retail stores.

See also

  • Miqat for a list of other mawaqit in Saudi Arabia

References

  1. Hughes, Thomas Patrick (1994). Dictionary of Islam. Chicago, IL, the US: Kazi Publications Inc. USA. ISBN 0-935782-70-2.
  2. "Meeqath | Hajj & Umrah Planner". Hajjumrahplanner.com. 22 November 2016. Retrieved 2017-04-10.
  3. ^ "The Miqat in the middle of a barren desert". Makkah Newspaper. 18 December 2015.
  4. Subaie (8 December 2021). "Dhat Irq, a historic meeting place for Hajj caravans". Al Riyadh.
  5. ^ "Dhat Irq archaeological site". Saudipedia.
  6. Ibn al-Athir (1231). al-Kāmil fi al-Tārīkh [The Complete History] (in Arabic).
  7. Ibn Jarir at-Tabari (915). Tārīkh al-Rusul wa al-Mulūk [The History of the Prophets and Kings].
  8. Ibn Kathir (1500s). Al-Bidāya wa l-Nihāya [The Beginning and the End] (in Arabic). Vol. 2. ISBN 978-9953520841.
  9. Safiur Rahman Mubarakpuri (1976). Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum [The Sealed Nectar]. Darussalam Publishers. ISBN 978-1-59144-070-3.
  10. al-Baladhuri (1996), Jumal min Ansab al-Ashraf, Dar Al-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon.
  11. Ibn A'tham al-Kufi (1968). Kitab al-Futuh al-Buldan. Maṭbaʻat Majlis Dāʼirat al-Maʻārif al-ʻUthmānīyah.
  12. Tahir al-Samawi (2022). Ibsar al-Ayn fi Insar al-Husayn. Pranava Books.
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