13-Things You Didn’t Know About The Kaaba

13-Things You Didn’t Know About The Kaaba

1.      There is no place on Earth as venerated, as central or as holy to as many people as Makkah. By any objective standard, this valley in the Hijaz region of Arabia is the most celebrated place on Earth.

2.      The cube shaped building is at the heart of the most well-known real estate in the history of mankind; it is shrouded in black and its fair share of mystery. Here are just a few things that most people may not know about the Kaaba:

3.      It has been reconstructed several times The Kaaba that we see today is not exactly the same Kaaba that was constructed by Prophets Ibrahim and Ismail (A).From time to time, it has needed rebuilding after natural and man-made disasters. The last renovation took place in 1996 and was extremely thorough, leading to the replacement of many of the stones and re-strengthening the foundations and a new roof. This is likely to be the last reconstruction for many centuries (inshāAllāh) as modern techniques mean that the building is more secure and stable than ever before.

4.      It used to have two doors … and a window the original Kaaba used to have a door for entrance and another for exit. For a considerable period of time it also had a window situated to one side. The current Kaaba only has one door and no window.

5.      It used to be multi-coloured The black Kiswah with gold banding seems to have started at the time of the Abbasids (whose household colour was black) and before this the Kaaba was covered in multiple colours including green, red and even white.

6.      The keys are in the hands of one family On the conquest of Makkah, the Prophet pbuh was given the keys to the Kaaba and instead of keeping it in his own possession; here turned them back to the Osman ibn Talha of the Bani Shaiba family. They had been the traditional key keepers of the Kaaba for centuries. The Prophet Confirmed them in that role till the end of time by these words “Take it, O Bani Talha, eternally up to the Day of Resurrection, and it will not be taken from you unless by an unjust, oppressive tyrant.”

7.      It used to be open to everyone Until recently, the Kaaba was opened twice a week for anyone to enter and pray. However, due to rapid expansion in the number of pilgrims and other factors, the Kaaba is now opened only twice a year for dignitaries and exclusive guests only.

8.      You used to be able to swim around it One of the problems with having the Kaaba situated at the bottom of a valley is that when it rains – valleys tend to flood. This was not an uncommon occurrence in Makkah and the cause of a lot of trouble before the days of flood control systems and sewage.

9.      The inside contains plaques commemorating the rule rswho renovated it The interior of the Kaaba is now lined with marble and a green cloth covering the upper walls. Fixed into the walls are plaques each commemorating the refurbishment or rebuilding of the House of Allāh by the ruler of the day.

10.   There are two kaabas! Directly above the Kaaba in heaven is an exact replica. This Kaaba was mentioned in the Qurʾān and by the Prophet pbuh. Messenger of Allāh said narrating about the journey of Isra wal Miraaj “Then I was shown Al-Bait-al-Mamur (i.e. Allāhs House). I asked Gabriel about it and he said, This is Al Bait- ul-Mamur where 70,000 angels perform prayers daily and when they leave they never return to it (but always a fresh batch comes into it

11.   The Black Stone is broken Ever wondered how the Black Stone came to be in the silver casing that surrounds it? Most agree that it was most damaged in the middle ages by an extreme heretical Ismaili group from Bahrain called the Qarmatians who decided to make their point by killingtens of thousands of hujjaj and dumping their bodies in the well of Zamzam and took the Black Stone to the East of Arabia and then Kufa in Iraq where they held it ransom until they were forced to return it by the Abassid Caliph. When they returned it, it was in pieces and the only way to keep them together was by encasing them in a silver casing.

12.   It’s not supposed to be a cube shape The Kaaba was never meant to be a cube. The original dimensions of The House included the semi-circular area known as the Hijr Ismail. When the Kaaba was rebuilt just a few years before the Prophet received his first revelation, the Quraish agreed to only use income from pure sources to complete the rebuild and because there was not enough untainted money in this very wealthy trading city to rebuild the Kaaba to its original size and shape ,they settled for a smaller version of the Kaaba and put a mud brick wall (called “Hijr Ismail” although it has no connection to the Prophet Ismail (A) himself) to indicate the original dimensions. Towards the end of his life, the Prophet pbuh intended to rebuild the Kaaba on its original foundations but passed away before he could fulfill his wish. Apart from a brief interlude of a few years during the reign of Caliph Abdullah ibn Zubair, the Kaaba has remained the same shape that the Prophet saw it in.

13.   The history of the Kaaba is not just an interesting story from our past. The Kaaba is a real and present symbol that connects all Muslims together wherever they may be. It also connects us to our glorious and not-so-glorious past so that we may derive lessons and feel that we are a part of an eternal mission. Jazak Allah Khair