BAZ’s Third Position: Bayt al-Maqdis and al-Masjid al-Aqsa Are Only One Place in the World

Series: The Incident of Quraysh Questioning the Prophet About Baitul Maqdis

In my first view, I explained that Bayt al-Maqdis mentioned in the hadith is al-Masjid al-Aqsa mentioned in the Quran.

In my second view, I explained that Bayt al-Maqdis is located within the precinct of al-Masjid al-Aqsa, not that al-Masjid al-Aqsa is located within Bayt al-Maqdis.

Therefore, this third view is more concise, but it is extremely important.

From BAZ’s perspective, Bayt al-Maqdis and al-Masjid al-Aqsa constitute only one place in the world. There is no second or third location.

They are not two distinct sacred centres. It is not possible for one to be located within the central cluster while the other is located within the Mashriq cluster.

What I Mean When I Say There Is Only One in the World

When I say that Bayt al-Maqdis and al-Masjid al-Aqsa constitute only one place in the world, this is what I mean.

If someone says that al-Masjid al-Aqsa is located in Palestine, then Bayt al-Maqdis must also be located in Palestine.

If someone says that Bayt al-Maqdis is located in Palestine, then al-Masjid al-Aqsa must also be located in Palestine.

If BAZ assesses that the actual place is more accurately located in Kedah, then both terms must be understood together as referring to Kedah. One cannot be placed somewhere else.

In other words, one name cannot be placed in Palestine while the other is placed in Kedah. That is not possible.

Al-Masjid al-Aqsa cannot be treated as one location while Bayt al-Maqdis is treated as another. That is also not possible.

A Quranic verse cannot be read as pointing to one place while the hadith is read as pointing to another. That is not possible because both are mentioned in relation to the same event of al-Isra’.

If anyone says that such a separation can be made, that is the view I firmly reject and oppose.

The Quran refers to that precinct as al-Masjid al-Aqsa.

The hadith, meanwhile, refers to the sacred centre within that precinct as Bayt al-Maqdis.

The two cannot be separated and turned into two different places.

The Mistake I Want to Avoid

A major mistake in this study occurs when someone begins separating all the relevant terms.

They say that al-Masjid al-Aqsa is one place.

Bayt al-Maqdis is somewhere else.

Bāraknā ḥawlahu is somewhere else.

Bāraknā fīhā is somewhere else.

Al-Arḍ al-Muqaddasah is somewhere else.

Ṭuwā is somewhere else.

Mount Ṭūr is then placed in yet another location.

What I am describing genuinely occurs in reality. People everywhere propose locations and claim that these different terms refer to different places.

Eventually, all these terms become fragmented and are placed in numerous locations that have no connection with one another.

My study takes a different approach.

I bring all these terms together and direct them towards the same place. I also have no personal interest in that place that could cause me to be biased towards it.

The articles in this series have not yet discussed all these terms technically. Nevertheless, I have already discussed all of them, except for the mountain, in my writings concerning the stories of the prophets.

Why Is This Position Important?

This position is important because, before discussing the location, we must first understand what we are actually searching for.

Are we searching only for al-Masjid al-Aqsa?

Are we searching only for Bayt al-Maqdis?

Or are we searching for a single sacred precinct that the Quran calls al-Masjid al-Aqsa, while the hadith refers to the sacred centre within that precinct as Bayt al-Maqdis?

From BAZ’s perspective, the answer is the third.

We are searching for one and the same precinct that encompasses all these elements, not several separate locations.

Conclusion

This third view is not intended to prove the actual location. That is a separate discussion.

This view is intended only to establish the structure of these terms so that their relationship becomes clear.

Bayt al-Maqdis and al-Masjid al-Aqsa must be understood as referring to the same place and sacred precinct.

Once this foundation has been established, only then can we ask the next question:

Where is that place actually located?

Is it in Palestine or in the Bujang Valley?

That will be assessed in a separate discussion.

For this third view, BAZ’s position is clear:

Bayt al-Maqdis and al-Masjid al-Aqsa cannot be separated. Both refer to only one place in the world.