No place on Earth is revered as central or sacred to most people as Makkah. By any measure, this valley in the Hijaz region of Arabia is one of the most revered places on Earth.
Thousands surround the sacred Kaaba at the center of Haram’s sanctuary 24 hours a day. Millions of homes are adorned with pictures of it and more than a thousand face it five times a day. The Kaaba is the center of Mecca. The Prophet (SAW) has taught us the best deeds are those that are consistently performed, even small ones. Click here to support MuslimMatters with a monthly donation of $ 2 per month. Set it down and collect blessings from Allah (swt) of khayr that you support without thinking about it. The cube-shaped structure is located in the heart of a well-known commercial center in human history; it is covered in darkness and its mysterious part.
Here are a few things most people may not know about the Kaaba:
It has been rebuilt several times
The Kaaba we see today is not the same as the Kaaba made by the Prophets Ibrahim ṣallallāhu ‘Alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and Ismail ṣallallāhu’ alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). From time to time, it has had to be rebuilt after natural and man-made disasters. Yes, we all know about the great rebuilding that took place during the lifetime of Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) before he became Prophet ṣallallāhu’ alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah). be over him). This is the time when the Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) avoided great bloodshed by his quick thinking about how to place the Black Stone using a cloth that could not be lifted by all nations. Since then, there has been a measure of one major reconstruction every few centuries. The last renovation took place in 1996 and was extremely fine-grained, which led to the replacement of many stones and the rebuilding of foundations and new roofs. This may be the last reconstruction for many centuries (inshaAllah) as modern techniques mean that the building is more secure and stable than before.
It used to have two doors… and a window
The original Kaaba used to have an entrance and another exit. For a long time, there was a window set on one side. The current Kaaba has only one door and no window.
Long ago there were many colors
We are so used to the Kaaba being covered with a black Kiswah trademark with a gold belt that we cannot imagine it to be any other color. However, this tradition seems to have originated during the Abbasid period (the color of the home was black), and before that the Kaaba was covered in many colors including green, red, and even white.
The keys are in the hands of one family
During the time of the Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), every aspect of the Hajj process was in the hands of various groups of Quraysh. Each of these will eventually lose its control over a particular goal except one. In the conquest of Makkah, the Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was given the keys to the Kaaba, and instead of keeping it to him; he sent them back to Osman ibn Talha ® of the Bani Shaiba family. They were the great traditional guardians of the Kaaba for centuries, and Prophet Allah alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) assured them of that role until the end of time with these words.
“Take it, O Bani Talha, until the Day of Resurrection, and it will not be taken from you unless it is an unjust, oppressive dictator.”
Whether the Caliph, the Sultan, or the King – powerful men all over the world have had to bow down to the words of Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and ask permission from this small Makkan family before entering the Kaaba.
It was usually open to everyone
Until recently, the Kaaba was open twice a week for anyone to enter and pray. However, due to the rapid increase in the number of travelers and other features, the Kaaba is now open only twice a year for dignitaries and special guests only.
Watch the video attached here to see the doors of the Kaaba open (in 50 seconds) – and the one-time breath of a million people as they cry out for this wonderful time.
You could swim near it
One of the problems with having a Kaaba at the bottom of the valley is that when it rains – the valleys often flood. This was not uncommon in Makkah and was the cause of many problems before the flood and sewage control days. For days the Kaaba would be submerged in water. Did that stop Muslims from performing Tawaf? Of course not. As the picture below shows – Muslims have just begun to swim around the Kaaba. Modern landscaping and flood prevention strategies mean that we may not be able to see what we see anymore. Or will we do that? Check out this latest video.
Inside is a plaque commemorating the rulers who prepared it
For years many have wondered what it looks like inside the Kaaba. Relying on second or third-hand accounts of those who were lucky enough to get in was not enough. Then another lucky man came in and took his camera phone and took it and Millions saw the moving pictures online.
There are two Kaaba!
Above the Kaaba heaven is the same. This Kaaba was mentioned in the Qur’an by the Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).
The Messenger of Allah alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said that he narrated the journey of Isra wal Miraj.
“Then I was shown Al-Bait-al-Ma’mur (i.e. the House of Allah). I asked Gabriel and he said, “This is Al Bait-ul-Ma’mur where 70,000 angels pray daily and when they leave they never return (but always a new group enters every day).”
The Black Stone is broken
Have you ever wondered how the Black Stone came to be in the silver box around it?
Some say it was broken by a stone fired by the Umayyad army who had besieged Makkah while under the control of Abdullah ibn Zubair ®.
However, the majority agree that it was severely damaged during the Middle Ages by the extremist Bahrainiist Ismailians called the Qarmatians who had proclaimed Hajj as an act of superstition. They decided to make their point by killing tens of thousands of hujjaj and discarding their bodies at the Zamzam well.
As if this deception was not enough, the devils took the Black Stone to East Arabia and then to Death in Iraq where they seized the ransom and were forced to return it by Abassid Caliph. When they returned it, it was torn to pieces and the only way to keep it together was to rub it into a silver coffin. Some historians report that there were still floating stone fragments.
It should not be a cube shape
Yes, ladies and gentlemen… The world’s most famous cube was originally designed as a rectangle. I will give you a moment to pick your jaws down.
Okay, where have we been? Oh yes, the Kaaba was not intended to be a cube. The actual size of the House includes a circular area known as Hijr Ismail. When the Kaaba was rebuilt just a few years before the Prophet ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) received his first revelation, the Quraysh agreed to use only revenue to complete the reconstruction. That meant no money for gambling, robbery, prostitution, interest, etc. At the last sign that the Jahili Quraish were immersed in evil deeds, there was not enough money not to be polluted in this very wealthy commercial city to rebuild the Kaaba to its original size and shape!
