Answer

Submitted by Comprendre le Coran (Germany), Jul 30, 2020 at 02:04

There are 2 types of inscriptions on the Dome of the Rock : the religious who built it, and the caliph Abd Al-Malik, who imposed them. The religious wrote their understanding of this moment (they changed years later !) to the Christians of Jerusalem, and the words of the caliph, who imposed them. These last ones are the forerunners of islam, not the religious. Luxenberg says reality and stupidities.Islam is a creation of the Abbassids, yes, but beguinning with Al Mamun in 813. The prophete is a creation of 819, used in court by haddith in 820 in Bagdad.

May God bless you ! ...

'Abd al-Malik cared less if people can read or understand what is included in these inscriptions after all even almost all Arabs were illiterate and could not read these inscriptions : No ! At this time, these sentences were very clear : I am the dictator, as God elected me. As God elected me, I am a prophete, so I have been choosen by God to write and change the existing Coran.

Agree and Mecca and Medina did not exist as cultic sites until al-Khayzuran the mother of al-Khalifa al-Ma'muun visited al-Hijaz and established the house of Muhammad (compare with the wife of Constantine who visited Jerusalem and found the cross). I suspect that the Abbassids selected Mecca and Medina it was because they are far away from the very well educated and critical Syriac writers.

Not exactly. Mecca did exist since 699, but finally discovered by the caliph around 865. The pilgrinage became in Mecca at this time. Medina because choosen before the discover of Mecca. The caliph wrote to pray in the direction of the House (2:144 to 150), and the some religious prayed direction of Medina, known as a Jewish place and center of resistance against the caliphs. They thought the House was in this region and made a saint place.

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".