Sheikh Sulaiman Al-Rajhi Mosque (), better known as Al-Rajhi Grand Mosque (), is a

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Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

Friday mosque A congregational mosque or Friday mosque (, ''masjid jāmi‘'', or simply: , ''jāmi‘''; ), or sometimes great mosque or grand mosque (, ''jāmi‘ kabir''; ), is a mosque for hosting the Friday noon prayers known as ''jumu'ah''.See: * * * * ...

in the al-Jazirah neighborhood of

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

. Opened in 2004, it incorporates elements of Andalusian Moorish Revival architecture and is one of the largest mosques in Riyadh besides being considered among the largest mosques in Saudi Arabia and the

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. It is named after the Saudi businessman and billionaire Sulaiman bin Abdulaziz Al-Rajhi, who primarily funded the mosque's construction.

Overview

The construction of the mosque was financed by Saudi businessman Sulaiman bin Abdulaziz Al-Rajhi. The mosque was set to replace an old mosque of the same name situated in the east of al-Safa neighborhood since 1985. The mosque is locally known for providing Islamic funerary services to the deceased, such as ritual baths and

prayers File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

, which was previously located in the al-Rabwah neighborhood. The mosque was inaugurated on 26 September 2004 by the-then governor of Riyadh,

Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (; born 31 December 1935) has been King of Saudi Arabia since 2015, and was Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia from 2015 to 2022. He is the 25th son of King Abdulaziz, the founder of Saudi Arabia. He assumed the thron ...

. Approximately two months after its inauguration, local street vendors had turned the mosque's eastern parking lot into an open-air marketplace, resulting in overcrowding and disorder. The local ''Al-Riyadh'' daily reported the issue and asked the city's municipal authorities to intervene in the matter. The mosque's library was opened in 2005, which initially contained approximately 3,000 books, which by 2013, increased to around 16,000 books and 47,000 volumes. The mosque hosted the funeral prayers of Saudi businessman and philanthropist Saleh bin Abdulaziz al-Rajhi, the founder of

Al Rajhi Bank Alrajhi Bank (), previously known as Alrajhi Banking and Investment Corporation, is a Saudi Arabian bank and the world's largest Islamic bank by capital based on 2015 data. The bank is a major investor in Saudi Arabia's business and is one of th ...

upon his death in 2011. In 2012, the mosque also hosted the funeral prayers of Mohamed bin Abdulaziz al-Rajhi, the brother to both Saleh and Sulaiman.

COVID-19 closure and reopening

In March 2020, the

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declared

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the comm ...

a global pandemic. Weeks later, King Salman bin Abdulaziz announced a three-week nationwide curfew, barring all types of gatherings across Saudi Arabia. Al Rajhi Mosque subsequently was closed to worshippers until June 2020, when the Saudi government eased restrictions and worshippers were allowed in limited numbers provided that they maintain

social distancing In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dise ...

. In 2021, the

Ministry of Islamic Affairs A Ministry of Islamic Affairs is a Ministry found in certain Islamic countries that is responsible for advising the government on religious matters, and particularly on efforts to conform government efforts to the requirements of Islam. Examples i ...

recognized Al Rajhi Mosque as one of the twelve mosques in Riyadh designated for Islamic funerary rituals in order to contain the spread of

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

in the country.

In popular culture

The mosque had a brief appearance in the 2023 Indian

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-language

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film ''Dunki'', incorrectly depicting it as part of the skyline of

Jeddah Jeddah ( ), alternatively transliterated as Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; , ), is a List of governorates of Saudi Arabia, governorate and the largest city in Mecca Province, Saudi Arabia, and the country's second largest city after Riyadh, located ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rajhi Grand Mosque 2004 establishments in Saudi Arabia 21st-century mosques in Saudi Arabia Grand mosques Moorish Revival architecture Mosque buildings with domes in Saudi Arabia Mosque buildings with minarets in Saudi Arabia Mosques completed in 2004 Mosques in Riyadh Sunni mosques in Saudi Arabia

Overview

COVID-19 closure and reopening

In popular culture

See also

References