Apple’s “Mecca” begins to be unveiled

You can count on me being there!

you’ll definitely need to grab some shots of the cube from the inside and out as soon as it opens.

Obviously…

Mecca ? So you’re saying that Apple fanatics will walk around it and keep saying hymns ? Or you’re basically making fun of a religious building ?

i’m not making poking fun at anyone. number one, the title is the original from the image found on flickr. number two, the word mecca was used to represent a pilgrimage in which apple fanatics from around the world will most likely make an effort to visit the 5th avenue store.

I just find it offensive because nobody uses that term. Mecca is a city in saudi arabia and was always known as a city, it doesn’t mean anything in english. If you mean “Kaaba” which looks pretty much like the this Apple store, then you i’m going to say this again… It’s offensive, and i see no reason to name it as the city, not even the building !

Don’t get religious on us. It is called Mecca or Macca. Ask any Mac community member or writer and they will say that the SoHo, san francisco or Ginza apple tore as well as the Apple HQ in Cupertino and The Macworld Conference and Expo in San Francisco is considered the “macca” or “mecca”

This will definetly be the new Mac Mecca of 2006

wow, how did a picture of a building turn into this?

Again, Mecca or Macca is the city, The Ka’ba is what it most likely seems, and why not getting religious on you while you seem a fruithead who consider Apple or Mac a cult ?!

Ouch. Now Mac enthusiasts are “fruitheads”? Wait. I guess that is an applicable title considering “Apple” computers.

keep it cool. as a muslim it is important to keep a clear mind. think through what you are saying. that’s all I’m going to comment on.

Kareem:

Pull your head out of your arse. Im so sick to death of the new-found hyper-sensitivity among muslims who have found it so easy to exploit “white-mans” guilt. If you have never heard of something that is large and popular and attracts droves of devout followers referred to as “Like Mecca” then you are igorant. The building pictured above has more than a passing resemblence to the Kabba, which is the center of Mecca. The analogy is further enhanced by the analogy of Mac users and their devout following of all things Apple, to Muslims and their devout following of all things Islamic. Your outrage is based on your ignorance of english idioms.

Kareem et al. I am a muslim and i just received an email from a friend tlking abou tht eApple “Mecca” store. Please llok at Apple’s website

http://www.apple.com/retail/fifthavenue/week/20060625.html .

No reference to it as Apple Mecca or anything but rather Apple store. I also lookedup the meaning of Mecca (a place that is an important center for a particular activity or that is visited by a great many people). Maybe Apple at first meant saying the Mecca of all MAC lovers, but then realized that this would create some sensitivity, therefore decided to change the name. I really don’t see any harm. I think as Mecca (ka’aba) is our central place and that every muslim must visit, this store must be visited by every MAC or Apple fan. I would never think that Apple would ever have the thought of Jeopardizing its position in the world or even its reputation by insulting or even making false innuendos about anything that is of significant importance to people or even religons. Apple wants business not problems.

Zaven: THanks for your reply. But try to relax too. Kareem only presented a point of view, he didn’t insult or put down anyone. Its important to have differenes but its also important to discuss such differences in the highest manners possible.

Kind regards,
Amjad

Im Totally Agree with ya AMJAD

i am not that involved in english language ..so even if the word mecca might mean in english the place visited by many people ..and which was taken from the use of word mecca in arabic language as the holy place visited by all muslims..and then to be applied on whatever place where people might gather even if it is a bar or whatever …anyway that is not the problem now..the real problem is that it reallly imitates the k’aba …the holiest place for all muslims….same shape and color .don’t u think all that it is a kind of strange coincidence ..then you would say muslims are hypersensitve …i guess it is more than just by chance…i wonder why all that war aginst muslims?
let me tell u a story ..one day b4 isalm a man got envious of mecca ..people used to go there for visting the holy place and then for commerce..so mecca was always the richest city…he decided to build another k’aba in his city but he made it of gold..and he decided to go destroy mecca..he took a large army and a lot of elephants and went there to destroy the k’aba..close to mecca they found a shred of sheeps so they stole it…it was for the preserver of k’aba ..so he went to the leader and asked him his shred back..the leader was astonished…”u want ur shred back and u don’t care what we will do for ur k’aba”..he said”the shred is mine but the k’aba has its god who will protect it”…on his way clsoe to k’aba the whole army was destroyed by a group of birds holding small stones in their peaks..the stones fall on the army like bullets and killed them all..maybe my story sounds fantasy…but we have it in our qura’an and see how history repeats itself..we have got it all in our qura’an.

sameh: I beg to differ. Last I checked, the all glass transparent structure of the store did not look anything like the k\’aba. Shape, sure (but there are a lot of examples of cubed structures). Color, no.

Derek:i don’t believe there are many black cubed buildings of that size in the world..and i am speaking of the building i am seeing in the pic here…maybe in reality..it is not as it seems in the pic then it won’t desreve all that debate..but if we are all talking and judging the builidng in the pic here then it doesn’t need much thinking to know it is imitating the ka’aba justr as i believe it is not done by chance..
notice: i just wonder why we are commenting now on something that is still unveiled..maybe it would have passed unnoticed if it is really not inshape or in anything like ka’ba and if the word macca was always used in english in that way…who is trying to create the problem and attracts muslims attention….then like among all human beings there are some who would deal with such things in a hypersenstive and maybe an aggressive way..then people would say muslims are barbarians…is it all about that?

Hi All…..

I’ve been recieving emails for a long time now abt the
new Apple Mac Store to be opened in NY….only today i
decided to investigate abt this matter…

i found a forum website talking abt it too and at the
end of that forum a muslim guy replied that the term
“mecca” in english means “a place that is an important
center for a particular activity or that is visited by
a great many people” they obviously didn’t mean
“Mecca” the city coz it’s not even mentioned like that
on the apple official website… and it’s not even the
name of that store….

anyway here’s the forum website:
http://www.uneasysilence.com/archive/2006/04/5946/

and here’s the apple website anouncind the opening of
the new store:
http://www.apple.com/retail/fifthavenue/week/20060625.html

and here’s the ditionary definition of the term
“mecca”:
mec·ca (mk) KEY

NOUN:

A place that is regarded as the center of an activity
or interest.
A goal to which adherents of a religious faith or
practice fervently aspire.
A place visited by many people: a mecca for tourists.

on the website:
http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/mecca;_ylt=AiVd9ixZwSOCkBJ4VEM6NgSsgMMF

So Pleeeeeeeeease check anything before you send it
coz we dun wanna look ridiculous infront of the world!

and if you find that these information is wrong please
let me know…….(with attaching the source of your
information)

My source is Microsoft Office 2003 Professional, with Proofing tools 2003.

Mr. Sayed, I have found your message above, absolutely nonsense, in which you were ONLY copying and pasting my words and links to confirm them. I am certainly not awaiting your confirmation on this because I had already checked thoroughly before even thinking about posting a reply. Its just too funny how you turned this around to be an English language problem while failing to address the real issue instead. Speaking of the English meaning of Mecca, my source above had matched all the three points you copied off the Yahoo website, at least addressing the same idea. But of course I thought I had to reply so just to show everyone, including the “world� you talked about, that your reply was absolutely nonsense.

Sameh: Thanking you always for your great reply and real points of view. You are certainly correct, History is repeating it self, and its all in our Al-Quran Al-kareem. The black color was just a protection layer for the glass until the store is opened officially. Please look at this link to see how the actual store looks like after opening. And I also agree with you about the name of Macca. It should be always addressed as in Arabic, Macca Al-Mukarramah. Remember the incident sometime ago, in which some sick minds insulted Prophet Mohammad (Peace be upon him), I am sure Apple wouldn’t put it self (or its reputation) in the same bad position as those sick minds did. The whole world experienced just a taste of what could happen if they come near the idea of insulting our Religion and beliefs. The US was the first to condemn such drawings against our Prophet (Peace be upon him).

Derek: Kindly update the picture and title above, since Apple is not referring to it as you specified (or others) above. Please show the actual store after inauguration. Many thanks.

http://www.apple.com/retail/fifthavenue/gallery/

Wishing you best I remain.

Kind regards,
Amjad

let them call it (THE HOLY APPLE MECCA) for all i care , it’s not like we muslims are going to mistake it for the REAL THING. let them have their FUN , but let’s not be distracted by their rather amaturish tactics , we should be worrying about a million other important issues and not about some insensitive prank that originated in some (brain-storm session) in an apple building ! seeing this reaction from fellow muslims here and in other websites and blogs makes me wonder if this whole idea was a conspiracy to drive us away from our real issues (of course i am kidding here) … at a time when lebanon is being reduced to rubble under the nose of the international community and all for the sake of two captured israeli soldiers, iraq is virtually gone , and it is (bombing as usual) in palestine , at such time how can we stop even for a second to entertaing this issue and pick on a COMPUTER COMPANY ? , as a muslim , it sure beats the heck out of me !

I’m a Muslim and I just wanted to say to all Muslims here “Guys don’t worry… it’s not what you think it isâ€Â? and do your researches first before you get all angry and make the world think we all are terrorists, and don’t worry about our religion… There is a God there is protecting it.

We were particularly impressed with the San Francisco Chronicle Culture Blog’s observation that the “Mecca’s” above-ground entrance “bears an uncanny resemblance to the big black Ka’bah (AKA: The House O’ Abraham) to whence all Islamic pilgrims take their grueling mandatory hajj.”

-=it’s a pice of ana article which was in some site=-
u muhamed was talkin’ about a researches , is that enough ??