Masjidul Aqsa: its virtues

Allah has blessed Masjidul Aqsa in various ways. As we go over some of the blessed virtues of the land of Al-Aqsa, our love, support and urge to visit that bless land should increase.  

 

The main reason why Masjidul Aqsa is blessed is because Allah has blessed it Himself.  

Allah says: 

 

سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَسْرَىٰ بِعَبْدِهِۦ لَيْلًۭا مِّنَ ٱلْمَسْجِدِ ٱلْحَرَامِ إِلَى ٱلْمَسْجِدِ ٱلْأَقْصَا ٱلَّذِى بَـٰرَكْنَا حَوْلَهُۥ لِنُرِيَهُۥ مِنْ ءَايَـٰتِنَآ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلْبَصِيرُ 

 

"Glory to (Allah) who took his servant for a journey by night from Masjid Al-Haram to Masjid Al-Aqsa whose surroundings we have blessed to show him some of our signs. Indeed, He is the All-hearing, All-seeing". [17:1] 

 

By saying “whose surroundings we have blessed”, Allah has blessed the surroundings of Masjid Al-Aqsa and the land surrounding the Masjid Al-Aqsa.  

 

Another reason for the blessing is because Palestine is the land of prophets. Imagine if I said, there is a land where Prophets Adam and Nuh lived. Wouldn’t we want to go there? Imagine if I said, there is a land where the great prophets, like Ibrahim, Musa and Isa were present, wouldn’t we want to visit that place? Imagine if I said, there is a land where our Prophet Muhammad led 140,000 prophets in salah, wouldn’t we want to pray there? Imagine if I said, there is a land which Jibraeel and other angels visited, wouldn’t we want to visit that place? Of course, the answer should be a resounding yes! It is the land of prophets, angels and great people who defend it. Almost every prophet, including those who were born here or were born elsewhere, lived in the Holy Land or had a special connection to it. We need to build a similar special connection with Masjidul Aqsa. The connection starts when we  seek knowledge about the special status of Masjidul Aqsa, then make active efforts to do everything that we legally can to defend it. Whether it is in the form of du’a or raising awareness of what is happening there, and even saving up to buy a plane ticket to go there for tourism.  

 

May Allah free Palestine from oppression and give us the tawfeeq to defend it.

Another reason why Masjidul Aqsa is blessed is because Prophet Sulaiman made a special du’a for complete forgiveness for those who pray in that Masjid. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,  

"When Prophet Sulaiman finished building Bayt Al-Maqdis, he asked Allah for three things: a judgment that was in harmony with His judgment, a dominion that no one after him would have, and that no one should come to this mosque intending to pray there without emerging free of sin as the day his mother bore him" (Sunan Ibn Majah).  

So by the permission of Allah, praying even two rakah in Masjidul Aqsa will help us earn total forgiveness. 

 

Lastly, Masjidul Aqsa will be the land of resurrection. According to a Hadith, people will be gathered and resurrected here on the Day of Judgment. The Prophet ﷺ said, 

“I said to the messenger of Allah: “O Messenger of Allah, tell us about Baitil-Maqdis.” He said: “It is the land of the resurrection and the gathering …  [Sunan Ibn Majah] 

Subhanallah, the past and the future is connected to this blessed land. This should encourage us to do whatever it takes to be connected to the land. This should persuade us to watch more videos on the virtues of Masjidul Aqsa. We should make du’a for the blessed land to be free from oppressors. Even if we must boycott big or small brands in order to prevent oppressors from damaging Masjidul Aqsa then so be it. We will boycott so then we can earn a mountain of good deeds on the Day of Judgment. For this blessed land, we should use our social media to defend it. Our mentality should be that we are ready to take a stand against any form of oppression that affects Masjidul Aqsa and those who defend it.  

May Allah increase our knowledge and love of Palestine and give us the ability to go there one day. May He take away the difficulties of the people of Palestine and set them free.  May Allah give the Ummah victory and make us amongst those who contribute towards the victory. Ameen.