Islamization of Jerusalem

The Islamization of Jerusalem refers to the transformation of the city that followed the Islamic Conquest of Jerusalem by Umar ibn Al-Khattāb in 638 CE. The remodulation was grounded on a foundational narrative in early Islamic texts that emphasized the city's cosmological significance within God's creation. It has been argued that the central role Jerusalem assumed in Islamic belief began with Muhammad's instruction to his followers to observe the qibla by facing the direction of Jerusalem during their daily prostrations in prayer. After 16 months, the direction of prayer was changed to Mecca in present-day Saudi Arabia. View of Jerusalem with the Haram al-Sharif in the foreground. Jerusalem importance rose in Islam in 682 CE, when Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr rebelled against the Islamic rulers in Damascus, conquered Mecca and prevented pilgrims from reaching Mecca. Although Jerusalem is not mentioned by its name in Quran , it is mentioned in later Islamic literature and in Hadiths , as the place of Muhammad ascension to heavenly sanctuary. According to early Arab historian and the biographer of Muhammad, Al-Waqidi , the 'further mosque' (al-Aqsa) are one of two located in the village ofin al-Gi'irranah between Mecca and Ta'if.

Religious transformation of Jerusalem to adopt Islamic influences since the 7th century View of Jerusalem with Al-Aqsa in the foreground. The Islamization of Jerusalem refers to the process through which Jerusalem and its Old City acquired an Islamic character and, eventually, a significant Muslim presence. The foundation for Jerusalem's Islamization was laid by the Muslim conquest of the Levant , and began shortly after the city was besieged and captured in 638 CE by the Rashidun Caliphate under Umar ibn al-Khattab , the second Rashidun caliph . The second wave of Islamization occurred after the fall of the Kingdom of Jerusalem , a Christian state that was established after the First Crusade , at the Battle of Hattin in 1187. The eventual fall of the Crusader states by 1291 led to a period of almost-uninterrupted Muslim rule that lasted for seven centuries, and a dominant Islamic culture was consolidated in the region during the Ayyubid , Mamluk and early Ottoman periods. Beginning in the late Ottoman era, Jerusalem’s demographics turned increasingly multicultural, and regained a Jewish -majority character during the late-19th and early-20th centuries that had not been seen since the Roman period , which largely ended the Jewish presence in the region . The remodulation was grounded on a foundational narrative in early Islamic texts, themselves drawing on Persian , Jewish and Christian traditions that emphasized the city's cosmological significance within God's creation. At the time of the Muslim conquest of the city, the victors encountered many traditions concerning the Temple Mount : Muslim beliefs regarding David (the miḥrāb Dāwūd in the Quran 38:20–21) and Solomon ; shared beliefs that from there, on Mount Moriah (the “mountain” that the Temple Mount sits upon), Adam had been born and died; shared beliefs that Mount Moriah was also where Abraham almost sacrificed one of his sons ; and they absorbed the Christian belief that Zechariah , the father of John the Baptist (in the Quran: ' prophet of the Jewish scholars '), raised on the site a mihrab to Mary , the mother of Jesus . These and other such traditions affected the outlay of Islamic buildings. It has also been argued that the central role that Jerusalem assumed in Islamic belief began with Muhammad 's instruction to his followers to observe the qibla by facing the direction of Jerusalem during their daily prostrations in prayer. After 13 years (or 16 months, depending on the source), due to both divine guidance and practical matters (souring of relationship with the Jews and/or Muhammad’s frustration with the city and its people ) the direction of prayer was changed to Mecca in present-day Saudi Arabia . The Umayyad construction of the Dome of the Rock was interpreted by later hostile Abbasid historians as an attempt to redirect the Hajj from Mecca to Jerusalem. Although the city of Jerusalem is not mentioned by any of its names in the Quran, it is mentioned in later Islamic literature and in the hadith as the place of Muhammad's Isra and Miʽraj . The Quranic reference to masjid al-aqṣā originally referred to one of two sanctuaries at al-Juʽranah near Mecca, with the other being masjid al-adnā , The Umayyad Caliphate reportedly exploited these traditions connecting Muhammad’s Isra and Miʽraj specifically to Jerusalem and, in the face of some concerted opposition—particularly from Shia Muslims —their claim prevailed. A particularly rich repertoire of Arab myths and memories, as well as architecture, thus preceded the appearance of the first Islamic monument. Its identity with the site of Solomon's Temple is beyond dispute. Tolerance and coercion in Islam: interfaith relations in the Muslim tradition. Jerusalem: Idea and Reality . "The Abbasid historian al Ya'qubi (d. 874) accused Abd al-Malik of attempting to divert the pilgrimage from Mecca to Jerusalem, thus characterizing the Umayyad Dome of the Rock as a rival to the Kaaba." Historic Cities of the Islamic World edited by Clifford Edmund Bosworth P: 226 Grabar, Oleg (1959). Bevan has shown that among early traditionists there are many who do not accept the identification of the masjid al-aqsd, and among them are to be found such great names as al-Bukhari and Tabarl. Both Ibn Ishaq an al-Ya'qubi precede their accounts with expressions which indicate that these are stories which are not necessarily accepted as dogma. It was suggested by J. Horovitz that in the early period of Islam there is little justification for assuming that the Koranic expression in any way referred to Jerusalem. But while Horovitz thought that it referred to a place in heaven, A. Guillaume's careful analysis of the earliest texts (al-Waqidi and al-Azraqi, both in the later second century A.H.) has convincingly shown that the Koranic reference to the masjid al-aqsa applies specifically to al-Ji'ranah, near Mekkah, where there were two sanctuaries (masjid al-adnai and masjid al-aqsa), and where Muhammad so-journed in dha al-qa'dah of the eighth year after the Hijrah. Another perception is that of the Ja’fari Shiites, who interpret that al-Aqsa is a mosque in heaven. This interpretation reflects the Shiite anti-Umayyad emotions in an attempt to play down the sacredness of Umayyad Jerusalem and to minimize the sanctity of Jerusalem by detaching the qur’anic al-Masjid al-aqsa from the Temple Mount, thus asserting that the Prophet never came to that city, but rather ascended to the heavenly al-Aqsa mosque without ever stopping in bayt al-Maqdis [Jerusalem]. Apart from depriving Jerusalem of its major attraction for pilgrims, the Shiite traditions offer alternative pilgrimage attractions such as the Shiite holy city of Kufa, as well as Mecca. However, the tradition about Muhammad’s Night Journey to Jerusalem were never suppressed. They were exploited by the Umayyads and continued to be quoted in the tafsir (Qur’an interpretation) collections. The interpretation dating from the Umayyad and Crusader eras, according to which al-Aqsa is in Jerusalem, is the one that prevailed.’’

Religious transformation of Jerusalem to adopt Islamic influences since the 7th century View of Jerusalem with Al-Aqsa in the foreground. The Islamization of Jerusalem refers to the process through which Jerusalem and its Old City acquired an Islamic character and, eventually, a significant Muslim presence. The foundation for Jerusalem's Islamization was laid by the Muslim conquest of the Levant , and began shortly after the city was besieged and captured in 638 CE by the Rashidun Caliphate under Umar ibn al-Khattab , the second Rashidun caliph . The second wave of Islamization occurred after the fall of the Kingdom of Jerusalem , a Christian state that was established after the First Crusade , at the Battle of Hattin in 1187. The eventual fall of the Crusader states by 1291 led to a period of almost-uninterrupted Muslim rule that lasted for seven centuries, and a dominant Islamic culture was consolidated in the region during the Ayyubid , Mamluk and early Ottoman periods. Beginning in the late Ottoman era, Jerusalem’s demographics turned increasingly multicultural, and regained a Jewish -majority character during the late-19th and early-20th centuries that had not been seen since the Roman period , which largely ended the Jewish presence in the region . The remodulation was grounded on a foundational narrative in early Islamic texts, themselves drawing on Persian , Jewish and Christian traditions that emphasized the city's cosmological significance within God's creation. At the time of the Muslim conquest of the city, the victors encountered many traditions concerning the Temple Mount : Muslim beliefs regarding David (the miḥrāb Dāwūd in the Quran 38:20–21) and Solomon ; shared beliefs that from there, on Mount Moriah (the “mountain” that the Temple Mount sits upon), Adam had been born and died; shared beliefs that Mount Moriah was also where Abraham almost sacrificed one of his sons ; and they absorbed the Christian belief that Zechariah , the father of John the Baptist (in the Quran: ' prophet of the Jewish scholars '), raised on the site a mihrab to Mary , the mother of Jesus . These and other such traditions affected the outlay of Islamic buildings. It has also been argued that the central role that Jerusalem assumed in Islamic belief began with Muhammad 's instruction to his followers to observe the qibla by facing the direction of Jerusalem during their daily prostrations in prayer. After 13 years (or 16 months, depending on the source), due to both divine guidance and practical matters (souring of relationship with the Jews and/or Muhammad’s frustration with the city and its people ) the direction of prayer was changed to Mecca in present-day Saudi Arabia . The Umayyad construction of the Dome of the Rock was interpreted by later hostile Abbasid historians as an attempt to redirect the Hajj from Mecca to Jerusalem. A particularly rich repertoire of Arab myths and memories, as well as architecture, thus preceded the appearance of the first Islamic monument. Its identity with the site of Solomon's Temple is beyond dispute. Tolerance and coercion in Islam: interfaith relations in the Muslim tradition. Jerusalem: Idea and Reality .