Reconstruction of the Ka'bah by the Quraysh

The Ka’bah is the first place of worship of

in the world, constructed in Makkah ¹ by Adam amongst humans. ² Whoever enters in it, becomes secure ³ and is not punished or tortured until he/she leaves it. ⁴ It is the most sacred site in and is the Qibla (the direction of prayer) of the Muslims. ⁵ After Prophet Adam , the Ka’bah was rebuilt by Prophet Abraham , Ishmael , ⁶ Prophet Muhammad and by other individuals over the course of time.

Reason for Reconstructing the Ka’bah

When Prophet Muhammad was thirty-five years old, the tribe of Quraysh decided to rebuild the Ka'bah. ⁷ Two reasons are mentioned for the re-construction. Ibn Saad states that flood water entered from a cliff commanding Makkah, from its higher part till it swept the Ka’bah. So, the water cracked the structure and the people feared that it would fall down, and the golden ornaments and the gazelle, on which pearls and jewels were embedded, would be stolen. ⁸ Another reason which is mentioned by Ibn Ishaq is that, since the Ka’bah was without a roof, the people planned to roof it. They wanted to raise its walls and roof it as some people had stolen part of the treasure of the Ka'bah, which used to be in a well located in the middle of the Ka’bah. ⁹

Reconstruction Plan

The Quraysh already had all the wood which was needed for the construction of the roof. They had procured it from the ship of a Byzantium merchant, which had been wrecked and driven ashore at Jeddah. They had also hired a skilled Coptic carpenter who was in Makkah at that time. ¹⁰

The plan was to demolish the Ka’bah to its foundations and rebuild it, but they were afraid to do so, as it was a very sacred place to them, hence, the people were hesitant in damaging it. Their fear was further increased when a large snake appeared and settled near the wall of the Ka’bah. If anyone approached the wall, it would rear its head and hiss with gaping jaws, and the people were terrified of it. One day, when the snake was basking in the sun, God sent an eagle against it, which seized it and flew away with it. Considering it as a good omen, the people of Quraysh said among themselves: Now we may indeed hope that God is pleased with our intent. We have a craftsman whose heart is with us, we have wood and God has rid us of the serpent. ¹¹ Hence, they decided to proceed. When they decided to knock the walls down and rebuild it, Abu Wahab said:

  O people of Quraysh, do not let in to this building, but lawful gains. No income from Riba or other unjust practices. ¹²

The Reconstruction

Then, the tribes of Makkah divided the work amongst themselves. The section near the door was assigned to Banu Abd Manaf and Zuhra. The space between the black stone and the southern corner to Banu Makhzum and the Qurayshite tribes which were attached to them. The back of the Ka'bah was assigned to Banu Jumah and Sahm, the two sons of 'Amr ibn Husays ibn Ka’b ibn Lu'ayy. The side of the hijr to Banu Abd Dar ibn Qusayy and to Banu Asad ibn Al-'Uzza ibn Qusayy, and to Ibn Addi ibn Ka'b ibn Lu'ayy. Still, the people were afraid to demolish the Ka’bah, and were hesitant in touching it. Thus, Al-Walid ibn Al-Mughira said: I will begin the demolition. So, he took a pick-axe, went up to it while saying: 'O God, do not be afraid, O God, we intend only what is the best.' Then he demolished the part at the two corners. That night, the people watched and said: We will look out, if he is hurt, we won't destroy any more of it and will restore it as it was, but, if nothing happens to him, then God is pleased with what we are doing and we will demolish it. In the morning, Al-Walid returned to work and the people worked with him, until they got down to the foundation of Abraham (Ibrahim) . At the foundation, they came across green stones, which looked like camel's humps, joined to one another. ¹³ Over there, in a corner, they found some Syriac scrolls which they could not read. So, they brought a Jewish Scholar who read it out for them. The following was written in that scroll: 'I am

the Lord of Bakka, I created it on the day that I created heaven and earth and formed the sun and moon, and I surrounded it with seven pious angels. It will stand while its two mountains stand, a blessing to its people with milk and water. ¹⁴ At the station of Abraham , there was another inscription which stated that sustenance in the sacred territory of Makkah comes from three sides. ¹⁵ These historical articles which were recovered from the excavation proved that Prophet Abraham constructed the Ka’bah.

After demolishing it, they started to reconstruct it. They continued to build it in harmony until they reached the place to install the black stone (Hijre-e-Aswad). At that point a dispute arose. Every tribe wanted the honor of putting the black stone (which had come from heaven). Eventually, they argued, established alliances and even became ready for battle. Bani 'Abd Al-Dzr brought a bowl full of blood and the people made a pact to fight till death by placing their hands into that bowl of blood. Hence, they were known as the 'blood-lickers'. The tribes of Quraysh confronted each other for four or five nights, then, they came together and debated. Then, Umar ibn Makhzum, who at that time, was the oldest man in Quraysh, said: ‘O Tribe of Quraysh, resolve your dispute by agreeing that the first man who enters by the door of this mosque will decide the issue.' They agreed. ¹⁶

The first man to enter was Prophet Muhammad and when they saw him, they said: This is Al-Amin (The trustworthy), we are satisfied. This is Muhammad . When they told him about the problem, he said: 'Bring me a robe.' When it was brought to him, he took the black stone and placed it on the robe. Then he said, that the representative of each tribe should take hold of a small section of the cloth and lift the stone together. They did this until the stone reached the right spot, whereupon Prophet Muhammad himself positioned it. ¹⁷ Then, the construction continued until Quraysh ran short of the lawful resources which they had collected, so they eliminated an area six yards on the northern side of Al-Ka‘bah, which is called Al-Hijr or Al-Hateem. They raised its door two meters from the ground level, so that only those people could go in who were permitted. When the structure reached the height of fifteen yards, they erected the roof which rested on six columns. When the construction of Al-Ka‘bah had finished, it took a shape of a square which was around fifteen yards high. The side with the Black Stone and the one opposite, were ten meters long each. The Black Stone was 1.50 meter from the circumambulation ground level. The two other sides were twelve meters long each. A building structure of 0.25 meter high and 0.30 meter wide on the average surrounded Al-Ka‘bah. It was called Ash-Shadherwan, originally an integral part of the Sacred Sanctuary, but the Quraysh left it out. ¹⁸

Even after Prophet Muhammad’s era, the Ka’bah was destroyed and re-constructed many times in later ages. However, its current form resembles the design and size which was constructed by the Holy Prophet .

 

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• ¹ Holy Quran, Aale-Imran (The Family of Imran) 3: 96
• ² Abu Al-Waleed Muhammad ibn Abdullah Al-Azraqi (N.D.), Akhbar Makkah, Dar Al-Undulas, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 1, Pg. 36.
• ³ Holy Quran, Aale-Imran (The Family of Imran) 3: 97
• ⁴ Abu Bakr Al-Jassas Al-Razi (1405 A.H.), Ahkam Al-Quran, Dar Al-Ihya Al-Turath Al-Arabi, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 2, Pg. 304.
• ⁵ Holy Quran, Al-Baqarah (The Cow) 2: 144
• ⁶ Holy Quran, Al-Baqarah (The Cow) 2: 127
• ⁷ Martin Lings (1985), Muhammad ﷺ: His Life based on the Earliest Sources, Suhail Academy, Lahore, Pakistan, Pg. 41.
• ⁸ Muhammad ibn Saad Al-Basri (1990), Tabqat Al-Kubra, Dar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyah, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 1, Pg. 116.
• ⁹ Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar Al-Madani (2009), Al-Seerat Al-Nabawiyah le-ibn Ishaq, Dar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyah, Beirut, Lebanon, Pg. 150.
• ¹⁰ Abd Al-Malik ibn Hisham (2009), Al-Seerat Al-Nabawiyah le-ibn Hisham, Dar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyah, Beirut, Lebanon, Pg. 152-153.
• ¹¹ Ibid.
• ¹² Muhammad ibn Saad Al-Basri (1990), Tabqat Al-Kubra, Dar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyah, Beirut, Lebanon, Vol. 1, Pg. 116.
• ¹³ Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Yasar Al-Madani (2009), Al-Seerat Al-Nabawiyah le-ibn Ishaq, Dar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyah, Beirut, Lebanon, Pg. 152-153.
• ¹⁴ Ibid.
• ¹⁵ Abul Fida Ismael ibn Kathir Al-Damishqi (2011), Al-Bidayah wa Al-Nihayah (Translated by Rafiq Abdul Rehman), Darul Isha’at, Karachi, Pakistan, Vol. 1, Pg. 496
• ¹⁶ Abul Fida Ismael ibn Kathir Al-Damishqi (2011), Al-Seerah Al-Nabawiyah, Dar Al-Kutub Al-Ilmiyah, Beirut, Lebanon, Pg. 57.
• ¹⁷ Ibid.
• ¹⁸ Safi Al-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri (2010), Al-Raheeq Al-Makhtoom, Dar ibn Hazam, Beirut, Lebanon, Pg. 79-80.