>>I thought it was because orf Al Akhsa (sp?) (dome of the rock mosque).. where Muhammed sprang into heaven on his white charger....
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>It is often called the third-holiest site in Islam for that reason, but the Ascent is only mentioned once in the Quran and that reference to Jerusalem is somewhat vague. (Surah 17.1) The detailed stories ( with Buruq the white charger etc ) are in the Hadith - the post Quran traditions and so sort of fall into that area where in Christianity we find tales of St. Anne, Mother of Mary.
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>I've been inside the Al-Aqsa mosque by the way. Actually a different mosque than the Dome of the Rock ( the post-card picture which is even more beautiful than its pictures ) but they are right there together and I think the whole temple mount is often referred to as Al-Aqsa.
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>Like Aya Sofia in Istanbul both building have had a flexible history ( these two having be co-opted by the Crusaders at one time ) but the Dome of the Rock is one of the oldest mosques in the world.


I was inside there in 1982 also. Beautiful...