the oneness of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and to ensure that all devotion is for Allah: none is worshipped but Him, none is relied upon but Him, none is invoked but Him, and none is held in reverent fear but Him. Prayer and fasting are offered only for Him, vows are made only to Him, oaths are sworn only by Him, and pilgrimage is made only to His House.

The obligatory pilgrimage is only to the greatest and oldest of His houses: the Sacred Mosque. Recommended travel is only to two mosques, because each was built by a prophet. The Prophet’s Mosque in Medina was founded upon piety by the Seal of the Messengers, while the mosque of Jerusalem was already a mosque before Solomon. In the two Sahīh collections, Abū Dharr, may Allah be pleased with him, reported:

“I asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, which mosque was established first?’

“He replied, ‘The Sacred Mosque.’

“I asked, ‘Then which?’ He replied, ‘Al-Aqsā Mosque.’

“I asked, ‘How much time was there between them?’

“He replied, ‘Forty years. Then, wherever you are when prayer becomes due, pray, for that place is a place of prayer for you.’”

In al-Bukhārī’s wording:

“For therein lies virtue.”

This was the practice of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: he would pray wherever he was when prayer became due. Al-Aqsā Mosque thus existed from the time of Abraham, peace be upon him, but Solomon, peace be upon him, rebuilt it on a magnificent scale.

Each of the three mosques was built by a noble prophet so that he and the people could pray there. Since the prophets—peace be upon them—deliberately sought to pray in these two mosques, travelling to them for prayer and worship was prescribed in emulation of the prophets—peace be upon them—and in following their example. Just as Abraham, the intimate friend of Allah—peace be upon him—