Hala Sultan Tekke

Hala Sultan Tekke is the most important place of pilgrimage of Muslims in Cyprus and one of the most important tourist attractions in the Larnaca province, about 6 kilometers from the homonymous city.

Built on the west bank of Aliki of Larnaka and very close to Larnaca International Airport, Hala Sultan Tekke is one of the most sacred Islamic mausoleums in the world that receives thousands of pilgrims and visitors annually. For some, it is the fourth hierarchically most important monument in the Muslim world after the Kaava of Mecca, the temple of Muhammad in Medina and the mosque of Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem. Anyone who wants to go to paradise must visit Hala Sultan Tekke, according to the Islamic tradition.

With a towering minaret and a massive dome next to it, amid imposing palm trees, cypresses and pine trees, the mosque was built in 1787, but its got its current form in 1816 by the then Turkish governor of Cyprus, Sheid Emin. At the expense of the Cypriot government and the restoration of 2001-2005 sponsored by the American Organization UNOPS through the United Nations (United States ID UNOPS), the mosque is currently in excellent condition.

Hala Sultan Tekke (or Hala Sultan Teke) is a large building complex. Walking towards the paved floor after the gate, the stone main entrance to the mosque was once the monastery of Muslim monks, while to the right are the rooms hosting the wives of the sheikhs of the mosque and to the left are their own rooms.

Crossing the garden, in the background, there are taps for washing the hands, face and legs of the faithful before they take off their shoes and enter the mosque.

Inside the mosque, just opposite from the entrance, is the michramb, the carved niche on the wall, and to its right is the mimbar where the imam goes during prayers, a wooden staircase in green, the symbol of paradise, leading to a pedestal with a pointed roof. On the right hand corner there is a wooden table with a round base where they leave the Koran, as according to the religion the holy book should never touch the floor.

Outside the courtyard, there is the great marble tomb of Hatiyie, wife of King Hussein of Hetzaz, while left and right there are other graves with wooden green covers, belonging to other personalities.

The reference point of Hala Sultan Tekke, the reason and cause behind its construction, is the grave of Umm Haram with the three boulders. Umm Haram was a relative of Prophet Muhammad, and according to the legend, she died in 649 BC, falling from her horse, the moment she landed on the island, accompanying her husband, Ubada Ibn al-Samit, during the first Arab raid of Cyprus. At the point where the tomb is located, is the point where she broke her neck falling from the animal and this is where she was buried. Her grave is covered with green velvet fabric and is surrounded by three stones. According to tradition, one stone is suspended in the air above the other two. The legend of the stones says that on her journey from Jerusalem to Ramla, Umm Haram was hosted at the home of a Christian monk, where she saw three huge stones she wanted to buy. The monk, believing that the three stones were impossible to move, gave them to her. Umm Haram departed for her journey, saying she would get them on her return. Eventually the miraculous stones were found in her grave on the night of the burial, one at her head, the other at her feet, and the third suspended over the other two.

Hala Sultan Tekke was built at the time of her death, but the exact date is not known, as at the beginning there was only the tomb, which was turned into a mosque in the 18th century. Apart from foreign visitors and pilgrims, there are also many Turkish Cypriots from the occupied areas of Cyprus who come en masse to Hala Sultan Tekke, mainly during the religious feasts of the Muslims, such as Ramadan and Bayrami.

Archaeological excavations revealed that the area around Aliki and the mosque has been inhabited since the Neolithic era, while stone anchors and the ruins of a Late Bronze Age harbor town were also discovered there.

For those who love hiking, there is a path circling the lake, starting from the east bank and ending at the Hala Sultan Tekke. There is also an organized excursion area for those who want to have a picnic.

Hala Sultan Tekke
Free entrance
Winter hours (16/9 – 15/4) Monday-Sunday: 8.30 – 17.00
Summer hours (16/4 – 15/9) Monday-Sunday: 8.30 – 19.30
Entrance: For wheelchair users, access to the premises (not marked), but not inside the mosque.
Special sanitary area: not marked.