The Arabian Sea Summary and Analysis

Ibn Battuta stays in Mecca for some time. Dunn explains that the exact length of time is in doubt. Ibn Battuta writes that he stays there for the next three years, but Dunn says it is difficult to reconcile this with the timing of other events in the Rihla, and speculates that he may only have lived in Mecca for one year.

Ibn Battuta does not write much about his residence in Mecca, and Dunn attempts to recreate what his time there would have been like based on what is know about the learned culture of that time. Outside of the pilgrimage season, Mecca is a fairly quiet city, and the large courtyard surrounding the Ka'ba is used for holding lectures. The lecturer sits inside the covered area around the outside of the courtyard facing the Ka'ba...