Mosque of the Jinn, Historic mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia

The Mosque of the Jinn stands in the Ghazzah district of Mecca, near Jannat al-Mu'alla. It is a modern structure of concrete block and reinforced steel covering about 500 square metres, with a rectangular prayer hall of some 270 square metres roofed by a hemispherical dome 7.55 metres across, and a women's prayer hall of about 130 square metres on the upper floor. Its minaret rises about 28 metres at the north-east corner.

The mosque dates to the early 3rd century AH (9th century CE), when it was known as Masjid al-Haras, the Mosque of the Guards, because Mecca's night patrol stopped there before returning to the city. In 1112 AH Ibrahim Bey rebuilt it at al-Ma'la after floods buried it; engineers digging the site uncovered the mihrab beneath the ground, cleared the trees and gardens that had grown over it, and raised a small mosque with a dome above the mihrab.

The name refers to an encounter between the Prophet and beings from Islamic tradition who embraced faith at this spot. Pilgrims from around the world visit today to pray here and connect with this spiritual moment.

The mosque lies about 1.4 km from the Great Mosque in the Ghazzah district, near Jannat al-Mu'alla. It has two entrances: the north facade leads into the prayer hall, the west one to the women's ablution area and guard's lodging. The minaret stands at the north-east corner, about 28 m tall.

The mosque is also called Masjid al-Haras, the Mosque of the Guards, because Mecca's night patrol walked as far as this spot and stopped here until the guards of the Banu Amir and al-Hajun passes assembled. The mihrab where the jinn are said to have accepted Islam was found buried under earth and silt.