Cities of Saudi Arabia: Medina

Medina ("town"), or Madina, or El Madina Al-Munavara ("enlightened" or "Shining city", 490 km northeast of Mecca and 950 km west of Er-Riyadh) – the second holy city of Islam and the first that followed the Tests of the Prophet.

Ancient oasis of Yasrib, where in 622 g. N. NS. Mohammad moved from Mecca – Madinat An-Nabi (the city of the Prophet), here he founded the first mosque, acquired the first followers, lived the rest of his life, it was buried here and it was from here to spread Islam. The city lies at an altitude of 597 meters above sea level, so the climate here is quite peculiar – hot in summer, moderate in autumn and cold in winter, and the dominant plant of this huge fertile valley is palm that, as it is believed to be cultivated in the VI Millennium to our era. These edges.

The city center and his main shrine – the huge complex of Masjid An-Nabi Mosque (the Mosque of the Prophet), built on the site of a similar structure, erected by Muhammad himself right at the walls of his house (later the house became part of the mosque). It is here that the place is sacred for each Muslim – the grave of the prophet (he died in a medina in 632 g. N. NS.), as well as the graves of Fatima (Muhammad’s daughter), Abu Bakra (first caliph and father of one of the prophet’s wives) and Umar Ibn Hattaba (second caliph). Nearby is the first mosque in the city – Masjid Cuba (VII in.), and in everything in the medina about a hundred of these cult facilities, made in a wide variety of architectural styles. Like Mecca, the entrance to the media territory is allowed only to Muslims, although local "Haram" (area closed for non-Musulman) is noticeably less, so in the end, all suburbs of the city are available for visiting, which allows you to see local shrines, although from afar, everyone.