ZAM-ZAM Water, research by Tariq Hussain.

>>We came here again to perform the Omrah, and I am reminded of the

>>wonders of Zum-zum. Let me go back to how it all started.

>>

>>In 1971, an Egyptian doctor wrote to the European Press, a letter

>>saying that Zum-zum water was not fit for drinking purposes.

>>

>>I immediately thought that this was just a form of prejudice

>>against the Muslims and that since his statement was based on

>>the assumption that since the Ka'aba was a shallow place (below

>>sea level) and located in the center of the city of Makkah, the

>>wastewater of the city collecting through the drains fell into well

>>holding the water.

>>

>>Fortunately, the news came to King Faisal's ears who got extremely

>>angry and decided to disprove the Egyptian doctor's provocative

>>statement.

>>

>>He immediately ordered the Ministry of Agriculture and Water

>>Resources to investigate and send samples of Zum-zum water to

>>European laboratories for testing the water.

>>

>>The ministry then instructed the Jeddah Power and Desalination

>>Plant to carry out this task.

>>

>>It was here that I was employed as a desalting engineer

>>(chemical engineer)to produce drinking water from sea water).

>>

>>I was chosen to carry out this assignment. At this stage, I

>>remember that I had no idea what the well holding the water looked

>>like. I went to Makkah and reported to the authorities at the

>>Ka'aba explaining my purpose of visit.

>>

>>They deputed a man to give me whatever help was required. When we

>>reached the well, it was hard for me to believe that a pool of

>>water, more like a small pond, about 18 by 14 feet, was the

>>well that supplied millions of gallons of water every year to

>>hajjis ever since it came into existence at the time of Hazrat

>>Ibrahim A.S., many, many centuries ago.

>>

>>I started my investigations and took the dimensions of the well. I

>>asked the man to show me the depth of the well. First he

>>took a shower and descended into the water. Then he straightened

>>his body. I saw that the water level came up to just above his

>>shoulders.

>>

>>His height was around five feet, eight inches. He then started

>>moving from one corner to the other in the well (standing all the

>>while since he was not allowed to dip his head into the water) in

>>search of any inlet or pipeline inside the well to see from where

>>the water came in. However, the man reported that he could not find

>>any inlet or pipeline inside the well.

>>

>>I thought of another idea. The water could be withdrawn rapidly

>>with the help of a big transfer pump which was installed at the

>>well for the Zum-zum water storage tanks. In this way, the water

>>level would drop enabling us to locate the point of entry of the

>>water.

>>

>>Surprisingly, nothing was observed during the pumping period, but I

>>knew that this was the only method by which you could find the

>>entrance of the water to the well. So I decided to repeat the

>>process. But this time I instructed the man to stand still at one

>>place and carefully observe any unusual thing happening inside the

>>well. After a while, he suddenly raised his hands and shouted,

>>"Alhamdollillah! I have found it. The sand is dancing beneath my

>>feet as the water oozes out of the bed of the well."

>>

>>Then he moved around the well during the pumping period and noticed

>>the same phenomenon everywhere in the well. Actually the flow of

>>water into the well through the bed was equal at every point, thus

>>keeping the level of the water steady. After I finished my

>>observations I took the samples of the water for European

>>laboratories to test.

>>

>>Before I left the Ka'aba, I asked the authorities about the other

>>wells around Makkah.I was told that these wells were mostly dry.

>>When I reached my office in Jeddah I reported my findings to my

>>boss who listened with great interest but made a very

>>irrational comment that the Zum-zum well could be internally

>>connected to the Red Sea . How was it possible when Makkah is

>>about 75 kilometers away from the sea and the wells located before

>>the city usually remains dry? The results of the water samples

>>tested by the European laboratories and the one we analysed in our

>>own laboratory were found to be almost identical.

>>

>>The difference between Zum-zum water and other water (city water)

>>was in the quantity of calcium and magnesium salts. The content of

>>these was slightly higher in Zum-zum water. This may be why this

>>water refreshes tired hajjis, but more significantly, the water

>>contains fluorides that have an effective germicidal action.

>>Moreover, the remarks of the European laboratories showed that the

>>water was it for drinking.

>>

>>Hence the statement made by the Egyptian doctor was proved false.

>>

>>When this was reported to King Faisal he was extremely pleased and

>>ordered the contradiction of the report in the European Press. In a

>>way, it was a blessing that this study was undertaken to show the

>>chemical composition of the water. In fact, the more you explore,

>>the more wonders surface and you find yourself believing implicitly

>>in the miracles of this water that Allah bestowed as a gift on

>>the faithful coming from far and wide to the desert land for

>>pilgrimage.

>>

>>Let me sum up some of the features of Zam-zam water.

>>

>>This well has never dried up. On the contrary it has always

>>fulfilled the demand for water. It has always maintained the same

>>salt composition and taste ever since it came into existence. Its

>>potability has always been universally recognised as pilgrims from

>>all over the world visit Ka'aba every year for Hajj and umrah, but

>>has never complained about it. Instead, they have always enjoyed

>>the water that refreshes them. Water tastes different at different

>>places.

>>

>>Zam-zam water's appeal has always been universal.

>>

>>This water has never been chemically treated or chlorinated as is

>>the case with water pumped into the cities. Biological growth and

>>vegetation usually

>>Takes place in most wells. This makes the water unpalatable owing

>>to the growth of algae causing taste and odor problems.

>>

>>But in the case of the Zum-zum water well, there wasn't any

>>sign of biological growth. Centuries ago, Bibi Hajra A.S. searched

>>desperately for water in the hills of Sufwa and Murwa to give to

>>her newly born son Hazrat Ismail A.S. As she ran from one place

>>to another in search of water, her child rubbed his feet against

>>the sand. A pool of water surfaced, and by the grace of Allah,

>>shaped itself into a well which came to be called Zum-zum water