Quba Mosque

The Quba Mosque, in the outlying environs of Medina in Saudi Arabia, is the oldest mosque in the world that dates to the lifetime of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, considering that the Great Mosques of Mecca and Jerusalem, which are believed to be even older, are associated with earlier Islamic Prophets. According to legend, its first stones were positioned by Muhammad as soon as he arrived on his emigration from the city of Mecca to Medina and the mosque was completed by his companions. Muhammad spent 14 days in this mosque during the Hijra praying qasr while waiting for Ali to arrive in Medina after the latter stayed behind in Mecca to carry out a couple of tasks entrusted to him by the Prophet.According to Islamic tradition, performing wudu in one's home then offering two rakaʿāt of nafl prayers in the Quba Mosque is equal to performing one Umrah.Muhammad used to go there, riding or on foot, every Saturday and offer a two rakaʿāt prayer. He advised others to do the same, saying, "Whoever makes ablutions at home and then goes and prays in the Mosque of Quba, he will have a reward like that of an 'Umrah." This hadith is reported by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Al-Nasa'i, Ibn Majah and Hakim al-Nishaburi.