KaabaThe Kaaba (Arabic: الكعبة, romanized: al-Kaʿba, lit.'the Cube'), also spelled Kaʽba, Kaʽbah or Kabah, sometimes referred to as al-Kaʽba al-Musharrafa (Arabic: الكعبة المشرفة, lit.'the Honored Ka'ba'), is a stone building at the center of Islam's most important mosque and holiest site, the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
MeccaHoliest city in Islam and capital of Mecca Province, Saudi ArabiaCity in Mecca Province, Saudi ArabiaMecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia and is the capital of Mecca Province. Mecca is considered the birthplace of Islam and the Islamic prophetMuhammad, as well as being the holiest city in Islam. It is located 70 km (43 mi) inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea in a narrow valley 277 m (909 ft) above sea level.
DusharaDushara (Nabataean Arabic: 𐢅𐢈𐢝𐢛𐢀, romanized: dwšrʾ; Safaitic: 𐪕𐪆𐪇, romanized: dśr), also transliterated as Dusares or Dhu Shara, is a pre-Islamic Arabiangod worshipped by the Nabataeans at Petra and Hegra (of which city he was the patron). Safaitic inscriptions imply he was the son of the goddess Al-Lat, and that he assembled in the heavens with other deities. He is called "Dushara from Petra" in one inscription.
Canaanite religionThe religion and mythic beliefs of the people in the land of Canaan in the southern Levant during approximately the first three millennia BCE were polytheistic and in some cases monolatristic. They were influenced by neighboring cultures, particularly ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian religious practices. The pantheon was headed by the god El and his consort Asherah, with other significant deities including Baal, Anat, Astarte, Dagon, and Rešep.
AramaicSemitic languageFor other uses, see Aramaic (other).Syriac alphabetAramaic is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written and spoken in different varieties for over 3,000 years.
Pre-Islamic ArabiaThe era of pre-Islamic Arabia encompasses human history in parts of the Arabian Peninsula and the Southern Levant before the spread of Islam beginning in 610 CE. During the prehistoric period, humans first migrated and settled into the peninsula. In the early first millennium BC, writing and recorded history are introduced into the Peninsula, along with the rise of the first kingdoms in the south.
BelomancyBelomancy, also bolomancy, is the ancient art of divination by use of arrows. The word is built upon Ancient Greek: βέλος, romanized: belos, lit.'arrow, dart', and μαντεία, manteia, 'divination'. Belomancy was anciently practiced at least by Babylonians, Greeks, Arabs and Scythians. PracticeArrows were typically marked with occult symbols, with feathers for every known method.
QurayshThe Quraysh (Arabic: قُرَيْشٍ) are an Arab tribe who controlled Mecca before the rise of Islam. Their members were divided into ten main clans, most notably the Banu Hashim, into which Islamic prophet Muhammad was born. By the 7th century, they had become wealthy merchants, dominating trade between the Indian Ocean, East Africa, and the Mediterranean.
BaalBaal (), or Ba'al (), was a title and honorific meaning "owner" or "lord" in the Northwest Semitic languages spoken in the Levant during antiquity. From its use among people, it came to be applied to gods. Scholars previously associated the theonym with solar cults and with a variety of unrelated patron deities, but inscriptions have shown that the name Baal was particularly associated with the storm and fertility god Hadad and his local manifestations.
Religion in pre-Islamic ArabiaIn pre-Islamic Arabia, the dominant religious practice was that of Arab polytheism, which was based on the veneration of various deities and spirits, such as the god Hubal and the goddesses al-Lāt, al-‘Uzzā, and Manāt. Worship was centred on local shrines and temples, like the Kaaba in Mecca and the Temple of Awwam in Yemen. Deities were venerated and invoked through pilgrimages, divination, and ritual sacrifice, among other traditions.
DivinationAttempt to gain insight into a question or situation through magic or the supernaturalA man in Rhumsiki, Cameroon, attempts to tell the future by interpreting the changes in position of various objects as caused by a freshwater crab through the practice of nggàm.Divination is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of a magic ritual or practice.
DeityA deity is a supernatural being considered to have authority over some aspect of the universe and/or life, with many also being considered as sacred and worthy of worship. It is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or to control some part of the universe or life, for which such a deity is often worshipped". The Oxford Dictionary of English explains deity as anything revered as divine.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.