Here are 10 things that most people didnt know about the Kaaba: 10. It used to be multi-coloured The Kaaba has been so used to being covered in the trademark black Kiswah with gold banding that it seems that it could not be in any other colour. However, this tradition seems to have started at the time of the Abasids (whose household colour was black) and before this the Kaaba was covered in multiple different colours which included green, red and even white. 9. It used to have two doors…and a window The Kaaba originally had a door for entrance and another for exit. It also had a window situated to one side. Now the current Kaaba has only one door and no more windows. 8. The Kaaba used to be open to everyone Anyone could enter and pray twice a week in the Kaaba until recently. Nowadays the Kaaba is open only twice a year for dignitaries and exclusive guests only. 7. You used to be able to swim around it One of the problems with having the Kaaba at the bottom of the 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 the days of flood control systems and sewage. The Kaaba use to be half submerged in water for days on end, but that did not stop the Muslims performing the Tawaf 6. There are two Kaabas Directly above the Kaaba in heaven is an exact replica. This Kaaba was mentioned in the Quran and by the Prophet Muhammad. The Messenger of Allah said narating about the journey of ‘Isra wal Miraaj “Then I was shown Al-Bait-al-Ma’mur (i.e Allah’s house). I asked Gabriel about it and he said, This is Al Bait-ul-Ma’mur where 70,000 angels perform prayers daily and when they leave they never return to it (but always a fresh batch comes into it daily).” 5. The keys are in the hand of one family On the conquest of Makkah, the Prophet Muhammad 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. 4. The inside contains plaques commemorating the rulers who renovated it The interior of the Kaaba is 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. 3. 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 Ismailigroup from Bahrain called the Qarmatians who decided to make their point by killing tens 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. Some historians narrate that there are still some missing pieces of the stone floating around. 2. The Kaaba has been reconstructed several times The Kaaba that we see today is not exactly the same Kaaba that wasconstructed by Prophets Ibrahim and Ismail. 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 as modern techniques mean that the building is more secure and stable than ever before. 1. Its not supposed to be a cube shape The Kaaba was never meant to be a cube; it started out as a rectangle. 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 to indicate the original dimensions. Towards the end of his life, the Prophet Muhammad 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 Muhammad saw it in. On this day ‘Stoning of the Devil’ or stoning of the jamarāt is part of the annual Islamic Hajj pilgrimage to the holy city of Makkah. Muslim pilgrims fling pebbles at three walls, called jamarāt, in the city of Mina just east of Makkah. It is one of a series of ritual acts that must be performed in the Hajj. The stoning is performed on the day of Eid al- Adha, and two or three days after. After the stoning is completed on the day of Eid, every pilgrim must cut or shave their hair. Finally, before leaving Makkah, pilgrims perform a farewell tawaf called the Tawaf al- Wida. Wida means to bid farewell. The first batch of Malaysian Hajj pilgrims is expected to return home around the 2nd of November 2013. Let us all pray for all our Malaysians Hajj pilgrims a safe journey back home.
Posted on: Tue, 15 Oct 2013 04:53:49 +0000
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