Dhat Irq

Dhāt 'Irq
ذات عرق
A highway which leads to Dhat Irq
Dhat Irq is located in Saudi Arabia
Dhat Irq
Shown 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.[1][2] The miqat of Dhat Irq, however, is usually visited by the pilgrims who come from Iraq and Khorasan.[3] The place is also where caravans and tour groups on the destination for pilgrimage stop to rest and meet.[4] 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.[5]

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.[6][7] 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.[8]

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.[5][9][10] 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'.[11] 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.[12]

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.[3] As of 2019, a mosque has been constructed at the site as well as pilgrim hostels and commercial centres, including shops and retail stores.[5]

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. ^ a b "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. ^ a b c "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.