Jerusalem …nothing and everything

A scene in the movie Kingdom of Heaven stopped me. It was a dialogue shortly before the end of the film between the actor Ghassan Massoud (Saladin) and the actor Orlando Bloom (the film's protagonist, Balian, the leader of the Crusaders), when Balian asked Saladin: "What is Jerusalem worth?" He replied: "Nothing... and Everything."

A simple scene that did not exceed a minute, a moment of contemplation on the value of Jerusalem within us. Is Jerusalem like any other place, without importance—just a right usurped from Arabs that must be returned to them so they can regain their dignity and pride? Or is the value of Jerusalem great to Arabs—a religious and historical value?

Jerusalem is the holiest place after Mecca and Medina. For about a year, Al-Aqsa Mosque was the Qibla (direction of prayer) for Muslims until the Kaaba was opened and purified of idols and the Qibla was changed to it. It holds the Sacred Rock from which the Noble Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him) ascended to heaven.

Among the important places in Jerusalem for all Muslims are the Dome of the Rock Mosque, Al-Aqsa Mosque—which was renovated during the Umayyad era—and the Buraq Wall. The importance of Jerusalem is manifest in the story of Al-Israa wal Mi'raj (The Night Journey and Ascension), when the Noble Messenger Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was carried by night to Jerusalem, where he led all the messengers and prophets in prayer. He was then ascended to the Seventh Heaven to see God, pass through Paradise and Hell, and witness the horrors of Hell and the bliss of Paradise. It was during this event that the prayer was commanded, and Jerusalem was its Qibla:

(Glorified be He who took His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque whose surroundings We have blessed, that We might show him some of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing).

Jerusalem is "Everything." It has not ceased to wander in the love of Islam, steadfast and firmly rooted, no matter how much the 'serpents' multiply on its land. It is the beacon of the divine laws, the flower of the cities.