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| Ab-E-Zamzam Well |
Ab-E-Zamzam
The well of Zamzam Water is located inside Masjid al-Haram in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest mosque in the world and is situated around the Kaaba, the holiest place in Islam. The water coming out of the well is considered sacred by Muslims all over the world and they believe it has healing properties called 'ab-e-shifa' meaning healing in this water.
Almost all Muslims who come for Hajj and Umrah take water from this well and return to their homes. You will hardly find a person who does not bring Zamzam water with him after performing Hajj or Umrah.
In addition, it is traditional for people to distribute Zamzam water to friends and family members. All this is done with the belief that by drinking it one can ward off any disease. Because of the endless supply of Zamzam water, it is also believed that water is a miracle in itself.
Importance of Ab-e-Zamzam for Muslims
Muslims believe that this well was built by God thousands of years ago to quench the thirst of Hazrat Ibrahim's wife Bibi Hajra and his son Hazrat Ismail. This event is recorded in the Qur'an and is expanded in detail in various books of Islamic history.
Scholar Imam Bukhari Abu Abdullah bin Ismail compiled the famous book of hadiths called Sahih al-Bukhari in 860 AD. Sahih al-Bukhari has six volumes. Imam Bukhari has described the history of this well in Sahih Bukhari.
It is narrated that Hazrat Ibrahim took his wife and son near the Kaaba in Makkah by the order of Allah. At that time Makkah was a complete desert and the city was not inhabited, and water was not available here.
According to the tradition of Sahih Bukhari, Hazrat Ibrahim gave him some dates and water and left him between the hills of Safa and Marwah. This book describes the conversation between Hazrat Ibrahim and his wife.
Bibi Hajra asked her husband where are you leaving us?
Leaving us in such a field where there is no helper and no provision. But Hazrat Ibrahim did not look at them.
However, Bibi Hajra asked, has Allah given you this order? When Hazrat Ibrahim answered yes, Bibi Hagar returned.
Finally, within a few days, their food and water ran out and Hazrat Ismail started crying due to thirst. His mother Hajra began to run around in search of water and at the same time began to pray to God for help.
In search of water, he circled seven times between the hills of Safa and Marwah.
It is recorded in the hadith of Sahih Bukhari that the angel Gabriel appeared to you on Mount Marwa. When he struck his heel on the ground, water began to flow from there like a fountain.
Another Persian thinker and Islamic scholar, Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari, mentioned this incident in the first volume of his authorship, Tarikh al-Tabari.
Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari writes that when Bibi Hajira reached Hazrat Ismail, he was beating his feet on the ground due to thirst. When the angel Gabriel asked Bibi Hajjra for her identity, she identified herself as the mother of Prophet Ibrahim's child.
Angel Gabriel asked, "Whose trust did they leave you?" Bibi Hajrah replied: "They left us by trusting in Allah." Then the angel Gabriel said, "Then they left you to Him who is sufficient." After that, when Hazrat Ismail hit the ground, Zamzam water started flowing from there.
Imam Ibn Jarir al-Tabari narrates that Bibi Hajra saw that water was coming out of the place where Hazrat Ismail was kicking, she collected it and gave water to her son.
Bibi Hajra again became afraid that the water might run out. Fearing him, they built a wall around him with sand and stones. It is said that when Prophet Ibrahim's wife and son were lying thirsty and helpless in the desert, this water saved their lives.
According to Sahih-al-Bukhari, Bibi Hajrah, fearing that the water would run out, called out 'Zam-Zam' (which is an Arabic word meaning “to stop the flow”) several times. Accordingly, this spring is still called by the name of Zam Zam.
It is said that after seeing this spring of Zamzam, a group of people from the tribe of Jarham settled there. This well became a resting place for caravans traveling through the surrounding desert.
Later, Hazrat Ibrahim returned to rebuild the Kaaba, which is called the house of Allah. It was first built by Hazrat Adam.
After the existence of this well, the barren desert of Mecca gradually became a commercial city.
Zamzam Studies and Research Center is also established under the Geological Survey of Saudi Arabia
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| Ab-E-Zamzam Water |
The historical connection between Ab-e-Zamzam and Hajj is very deep. For Muslims, the fifth pillar of Islam is Hajj. This duty is performed in the month of Dhu-al-Hijja, the twelfth month of the Islamic lunar calendar.
Every adult Muslim who can afford it and is physically and mentally able to do so, must make this journey at least once in his life and perform this duty of Hajj.
Umrah is a short pilgrimage, in which short and short religious rituals are performed and can be performed at any time of the year, i.e. in any month.
According to the Vice Chancellor of the Islamic Arabic University of Bangladesh, Muhammad Abdul Rasheed, after the reconstruction of the Kaaba, Hazrat Ibrahim invited people to perform Hajj by the order of Allah. The rites of Hajj include the circumambulation of the Kaaba and seven circumambulations between the hills of Safa and Marwa, known as Sa’i.
These rituals are linked to the story of Hazrat Hajra and the well of Zamzam water, as they mimic her experience.
Although drinking Zamzam water is not obligatory for performing Hajj, it is considered a Sunnah of the Prophet of Islam. Pilgrims drink water after circumambulating the Kaaba and before performing seven circumambulations between the mountains of Safa and Marwah.
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| Ab-e-Zamzam |
Although tourists are allowed and encouraged to take Zamzam water back with them, exporting it for commercial use is prohibited by Saudi authorities.
Saudi authorities have implemented strict quality control to make the water clean and safe for consumption.
The Geological Survey of Saudi Arabia operates the Zam Zam Studies and Research Center which manages well water quality. It is pumped from the well through underground pipes to the treatment plant.
It is cleaned in the plant and then stored. Tankers then transport millions of liters of Zamzam water daily to the Shah Abdul Aziz Sabeel Reservoir in Madinah, ensuring a constant supply to the Al-Haram Mosque and the Prophet's Mosque.
For more interesting article click the link: Islamic History
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