The places that are dearest to Allah are the mosques, and the places that are most hateful to Allah are the marketplaces

Arabic text

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رَضيَ اللهُ عنه أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، قَالَ: «أَحَبُّ الْبِلَادِ إِلَى اللهِ مَسَاجِدُهَا، وَأَبْغَضُ الْبِلَادِ إِلَى اللهِ أَسْوَاقُهَا».

Translation

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The places that are dearest to Allah are the mosques, and the places that are most hateful to Allah are the marketplaces."

Explanation

The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) informed that the most beloved places to Allah Almighty are the mosques, for they are houses of worship and acts of obedience and are built upon piety. And the most hated places to Allah are the marketplaces, because they are often filled with deception, fraud, usury, false oaths, broken promises, and heedlessness of the remembrance of Allah.

Benefits

• The sanctity and high status of the mosques, for they are houses in which the Name of Allah is frequently mentioned.
• An encouragement to adhere to mosques and to frequent them often in pursuit of Allah's love and pleasure, and to minimize visits to marketplaces except when necessary, to avoid falling into things that incur divine displeasure.
• An-Nawawi said: The mosques are places where Allah's mercy descends, while the marketplaces are their opposite.

Topics

• The Creed
• Jurisprudence and Juristic Principles
• Belief in Allah the Mighty and Majestic
• Oneness of Allah's Names and Attributes
• Jurisprudence of Acts of Worship
• Prayer
• The rulings of mosques