Moreover, the Prophet—may Allah bless him and his family and grant them peace—did not pray in any mosque in Mecca other than the Sacred Mosque, nor did he visit any places for worship except the ritual sites: Minā, Muzdalifah, and ‘Arafah. For this reason, the leading scholars held that it is not recommended to seek out any mosque in Mecca for prayer other than the Sacred Mosque, nor to single out any place for visitation other than the ritual sites visited by the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace. If this applies to the sites associated with them, what then of graves, when the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—cursed those who took them as places of worship and declared that they would be the worst of creation before Allah on the Day of Resurrection?

Islam teaches that no place should be deliberately sought out for prayer unless it is a mosque. Thus, the pilgrimage sites other than the Sacred Mosque are visited for the pilgrimage rites, not for prayer. Accordingly, ‘Arafah is not a place designated for prayer. Rather, the Prophet—may Allah bless him and his family and grant them peace—prayed the noon and afternoon prayers on the Day of ‘Arafah at ‘Uranah. He delivered a sermon there, then prayed, and afterwards went to ‘Arafāt, where he stood. Likewise, Allah is remembered and supplicated at ‘Arafāt, on Quzah at Muzdalifah, at al-Safā and al-Marwah, between the stoning pillars, and during the stoning; these places are not deliberately sought out for prayer.

Apart from mosques and the pilgrimage sites, no place is to be deliberately sought out for prayer, remembrance of Allah, or supplication. Rather, a Muslim prays wherever he happens to be when prayer falls due, except where prayer is forbidden, and remembers Allah and supplicates Him wherever it is convenient, without intending to single out a particular place for that purpose. If he sets aside a place for this, such as a shrine, he is forbidden to do so, just as prayer in a cemetery is forbidden, except for what a person does when greeting the deceased, by way of