except the mosque in which the Ka‘bah stands; no other mosque in Mecca is called the Mosque of the Ka‘bah. The mosques in al-Shubaykah, al-Zahir, al-Shi‘b, and elsewhere are not called the Mosque of the Ka‘bah. This is an explicit, or nearly explicit, textual proof on the matter.
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The Prophet—may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him—said: “Do not undertake a journey except to three mosques: the Sacred Mosque, this mosque of mine, and al-Aqsa Mosque.” (1) It is well known that people do not undertake journeys to the mosques in al-‘Aziziyyah, al-Shubaykah, al-Zahir, and elsewhere; rather, they undertake journeys to the mosque in which the Ka‘bah stands. It is therefore distinguished by this virtue, and precisely because of this distinction, journeying to it is wise, so that one may attain this reward.
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Allah the Exalted says: “Glory be to Him who took His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to al-Aqsa Mosque.” [al-Isra’ 17:1] The Prophet—may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him—was taken on the Night Journey from the Hijr—with a kasrah on the letter ha’—which is part of the Ka‘bah.
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Allah the Exalted says: “O you who believe, indeed the polytheists are impure; so let them not come near the Sacred Mosque after this year of theirs.” [al-Tawbah 9:28] Here, the Sacred Mosque means the Mosque of the Ka‘bah, not the entire sacred precinct, because Allah says, “Let them not come near,” and He does not say, “Let them not enter.” It is well known that if a polytheist came and stood at the boundary of the sacred precinct, with no more than a hair’s breadth between him and it, he would not