whereas with voluntary prayers, any prayer prescribed to be performed in the mosque is included in this superiority, such as the night prayer of Ramadan and the greeting of the mosque. But whatever is better performed at home is better performed there, such as the regular sunnah prayers and the like.

If someone were to ask: Are other righteous deeds likewise multiplied by this amount?

The answer is that specifying a particular numerical multiplication for deeds is a matter determined by revealed evidence; it requires specific proof, and analogy has no place in it. If sound evidence establishes that other deeds are multiplied, then it is accepted. Yet there is no doubt that a virtuous place and time affect the multiplication of reward, as the scholars—may Allah have mercy on them—have stated: good deeds are multiplied in virtuous times and places. However, assigning a specific degree of multiplication requires particular evidence.

If someone were to ask: Are sins multiplied in virtuous places and virtuous times?

The answer is: as regards quantity, they are not multiplied, due to the saying of Allah Most High:

“Whoever comes with a good deed will have ten times the like thereof; but whoever comes with an evil deed will be recompensed only with the like thereof, and they will not be wronged.” [al-An'am 6:160]

This is a Meccan verse, since it is from Surah al-An'am, all of which was revealed in Mecca. However, a sin may be multiplied in Mecca in terms of its gravity, as Allah Most High says:

“And whoever intends therein any deviation by wrongdoing, We shall make him taste a painful punishment.” [al-Hajj 22:25]

Issue: Is the virtue of prayer restricted to the specific built area of the three mosques, or does everything surrounding them share the same ruling?

The answer is: As for al-Aqsa Mosque, it has no sacred precinct by scholarly consensus, because