Ka'ba:-
In Arabic, it means a Cube/Stele/Beth-el. The historical records show no evidence whatsoever that it was at any time but a House of Idolatory and never associated with monotheism till the advent of Muhammad.
It is astounding that in the Quran, the name of MECCA is never mentioned while in the Bible the name of JERUSALEM is mentioned 667 times.
As is shown, based upon the traditions, it was a very primitively structured shrine built by the Pagan Arabs as a simple cube like structure which sheltered a black 12 inch diameter meteorite in the eastern corner of its wall.
According to Ibn Ishaq (p 84) "…it was made of loose stones above a man's height, and they wanted to raise it and roof it because men had stolen part of the treasure of the Ka'ba which used to be in a well in the middle of it…"…."
Now a ship belonging to a Greek merchant had been cast ashore at Jedda and became a total wreck. They took its timbers and got them ready to roof the Ka'ba. It happened that in Mecca there was a Copt [Egyptian Christian] who was a carpenter, so everything they needed was ready to hand"
There is a further uncorroborated - as usual - Muhammadan tradition, that when the Quraysh decided to re build the Ka'ba, it was Muhammad who placed the Black Stone into its corner (Ibn Ishaq p 86).
This is CONTRADICTED by the Qurawayoun Manuscript (in Fez, Morocco; folio: 33a), that according to Muhammad's poet laureate, Hassan b. Thabit, that he personally saw Abdul Muttalib put the stone in the corner of the Ka'ba and not Muhammad.
This stone can be kissed during the perambulation (the circulation of the faithful around the Ka'ba). It was one of pagan Arabia's holiest shrines with 360 idols around it and an object of pilgrimage.
Being a site of pilgrimage, brought to Mecca trade and wealth in the same way that all such sites of pilgrimage do - and as it continues to do so up to this time in Saudi Arabia.
The façade contains the door, which starts at seven feet off the ground, and faces the NE. To enter the Ka'ba, a ladder must be used. Also built into the eastern corner, is another stone called "Lucky" which can only be touched, not kissed. The pagan Arabs were primarily stone worshippers as attested to in Sahih al Bukhari Hadith 5:661.
It is a fact that little is known about the history of the Ka'ba apart from the myths and the totally unsubstantiated Muhammadan traditions which are full of contradictions that maintain the following:
that the Ka'ba was originally built by Adam -not found in the Quran- to a celestial prototype - a concept which is plagiarised from the tradition of the Jews regarding a celestial Jerusalem;
that after the Deluge, it was rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael (2:125/7) as a place of worship which is allegedly further affirmed in 22:26.
2: 127 And remember Abraham and Isma'il raised the foundations of the House (with this prayer): "Our Lord! accept (this service) from us for thou art the All-Hearing the All-Knowing.128 "Our Lord! make of us Muslims bowing to Thy (Will) and of our progeny a people Muslim bowing to Thy (Will) and show us our places for the celebration of (due) rites; and turn unto us (in mercy); for Thou art the Oft-Returning Most-Merciful.
22: 26 Behold! We gave the site to Abraham of the (Sacred) House (saying): "Associate not any thing (in worship) with Me; and sanctify My House for those who compass it round or stand up or bow or prostrate themselves (therein in prayer).
The Quran - the presumed word of Allah - contradicts all the Ahadith stories by denying Adam any involvement whatsoever with the Ka'ba as it asserts that only Abraham & Ishmael were the builders of its foundation as the first House of Worship dedicated to the One and Only Allah. (2:126-7)
The building was constructed of stone on what Muhammad made his followers
- who were totally ignorant of the Bible and had no idea of Adam and other Biblical characters - believe was the original site of a sanctuary established by Adam.
Allah allegedly commanded Abraham to summon all mankind to visit this place, and when pilgrims go there today they shout "Labbayka !" meaning "At Thy service, O Lord", in response to Abraham's summons as plagiarised from the Bible and pagan Arabian traditions.
While engaged in rebuilding, Ishmael received the BLACK STONE from the Angel Gabriel. This of course makes absolutely no sense, since Ishmael would have needed to build the foundations of the Ka'ba to protect something special, the Black Stone for example, and certainly not if it were empty.
Why else did he need to build foundations to a flimsy structure not worthy of any (god)? The Black Stone had to be there in the first place as a fetish and object of veneration.
Since Abraham and Ishmael were monotheists, and Abraham already, according to Muhammadan traditions, destroyed the idols of his father, why would he and Ishmael build a shrine for another idol such as a meteorite?
If the Arab tradition already knew of Abraham, why then did they lapse into idolatry for at least twenty- five centuries that followed, until the Quran?
How was it possible that not a single pagan Arab was called Ibrahim or Ismail, if they were the 'fathers' of the Arabs?
After all, after Muhammad, his name is carried by an enormous number of his followers.
If the traditions are true, why then, do repeated Quranic verses insist, in clear terms, that they - the Arabs - were actually totally ignorant of previous revelations? S2:151, 11:49; 12:3; 16:43 etc.. They were and are in fact, much more degenerate and guilty of disobeying Allah, as allegedly were the People of the Book, whom they continually and relentlessly denigrate and criticise.
Centuries before Muhammad, most of the rituals of 'ISLAM' were already practiced by the pagan Arabs, such as:
Pilgrimage, circumambulating the Ka'ba, calling the names of their idols, kissing the Black Stone, prostrating, running between the two hills, venerating ZamZam, fasting, wearing white clothing, etc. etc.
In reality, Muhammad simply incorporated all the pagan traditions and fetishes of the Ka'ba and 'Islamised' them to give his cult legitimacy, a sense of identity and an image of uniqueness so that he made it easier and less stressful for his brother Arabs to move from idolatory and paganism to his brand of Monotheism by continuing the practices of their pagan fathers.
In short, all Muhammad did, was merely to obliterate the pagan representations of the idols without abolishing the pagan practices.
Muhammad's quarrel with the Quraysh was not because they did not believe in Allah - which they obviously did - but because they associated other gods and goddesses beside him.
The same Muhammad, who went into paroxysms of rage and disgust that filled up the Quran, at the idol worshipping of his tribe the Quraysh, did not hesitate for one moment to incorporate every facet of their traditions and fetishes into his new cult without shame or the blinking of an eyelid.
To gain favour with the pagan Arab tribes, he actually joined them wholeheartedly but for the single and very simple amendment to the whole of their religion; that was, to believe in ONE ALLAH, instead of Allah AND 360 other idols.
It is extremely relevant to relate - the following disbelief into one of the most important rituals of 'Islam' - the story that Umar ibn al Khattab reluctantly but very intelligently remarked about the kissing of the Black Stone as related in
Bukhari Hadith 2:667
" I know that you are a stone, that neither helps nor hurts, and if the messenger of Allah had not kissed you, I would not kiss you"; he then kissed it.
It is very revealing, that although Umar knew that the gesture was empty and false, he nonetheless copied Muhammad in kissing the stone. Just like Umar, billions of Muhammadans had followed - and continue to follow - their 'spiritual' leaders in this SHAMEFUL practice of venerating what was and continues to be a pagan ritual.
What is important to point out is that most of the same Muhammadans, who incessantly assail and assault the 'paganism' of the Christians, do not even know that the entirety of their 'traditions and fetishes' are based upon the paganasim of the ancestors of the
Hence every Muhammadan who makes the Hajj, who runs between the hills, who kisses the Black Stone, etc, is performing pagan rituals, founded on pagan superstitions and sanctioned by Muhammad himself.
Some of the most intriguing and illuminating tit bits about the Ka'ba and Mecca are mentioned in:
Ibn Ishaq p 85:
"…while rebuilding the Ka'ba, the Quraysh found in the corner a writing in Syriac. They could not understand it until a Jew read it for them.
It was as follows: " I am Allah the Lord of Bakka, I created it on the day that I created heaven and earth and formed the sun and moon…."
*** This report is interesting on several levels because:
1 It does NOT mention the name of Mecca but the name Bakka which also appears in the Quran-
3: 96 The first House (of worship) appointed for men was that at Bakka full of blessing and of guidance for all kinds of beings:
2 It required the knowledge of a Jew in MECCA to translate the writing making it clear that there were both Jews & Christians in Mecca also.
3 Since both the Quran and the Hadith mention ONLY the name Bakka as the holy place created by Allah, then where does the name Mecca come from?
4 Where else besides Muhammadan reports is Mecca mentioned? ***
Ibn Ishaq p 86:
" Forty years before Muhammad, a stone was found in the Ka'ba containing the following inscription:
" He that soweth good shall reap joy; he that soweth evil shall reap sorrow; can you do evil and be rewarded with good? Nay, as grapes cannot be gathered from thorns"
This quotation is actually from Mathew 7:16.
These gems show beyond a shadow of a doubt, the pervasive and important influence of the religions the Jews and Christians of Arabia not only on the pagan Arabs but especially on Muhammad and his perceived mission.
Most important of all is the fact, that in the Hadiths and other 'muslim' records there is mention of many more Ka'bas in Arabia besides the one in Mecca.
Bukhari Hadith 4:310; 5:160,641,642,643; 8:345 etc. as well as in Muslim Sahih 6052 these Ka'bas are mentioned and named.
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 1.39 Narrated byAl Bara (bin Azib)
When the Prophet came to Medina, he stayed first with his grandfathers or maternal uncles from Ansar. He offered his prayers facing Baitul-Maqdis (Jerusalem) for sixteen or seventeen months, but he wished that he could pray facing the Ka'ba (at Mecca). The first prayer which he offered facing the Ka'ba was the 'Asr prayer in the company of some people. Then one of those who had offered that prayer with him came out and passed by some people in a mosque who were bowing during their prayers (facing Jerusalem). He said addressing them, "By Allah, I testify that I have prayed with Allah's Apostle facing Mecca (Ka'ba).' Hearing that, those people changed their direction towards the Ka'ba immediately. Jews and the people of the scriptures used to be pleased to see the Prophet facing Jerusalem in prayers but when he changed his direction towards the Ka'ba, during the prayers, they disapproved of it.
Al-Bara' added, "Before we changed our direction towards the Ka'ba (Mecca) in prayers, some Muslims had died or had been killed and we did not know what to say about them (regarding their prayers.) Allah then revealed: And Allah would never make your faith (prayers) to be lost (i.e. the prayers of those Muslims were valid).' " (2.143).
*** Since neither Gabriel nor Allah had 'revealed' to Muhammad the Qibla towards 'Jerusalem' in the first place, then the Hadith's claim that Muhammad 'wished that he could pray facing the Ka'ba (at Mecca)', is, to put it mildly, utterly false and hypocritical.
It was Muhammad who unilaterally chose the Qibla towards Jerusalem in the first place, because he had at that time, absolutely no doubt about its superior sanctity over the Ka'ba, especially since his reverence to the Biblical stories and the traditions of the Israelites in the Quran are reflected in numerous verses and chapters of the Meccan period.
Moreover, his intention when he arrived to Madina, was to placate and get the FULL support of the Judaized Arab tribes therein towards the establishment of his new cult.
He only decided to change the Qibla towards Mecca after he realized that the 'Jews' were not accepting him as a 'prophet' nor were they going to change their religion for his cultic beliefs; hence, as usual, the perfectly timed and
made to order 'revelation' was descended to him to change the Qibla, by Allah's sanctfication***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 1.390 Narrated byMujahid
Someone came to Ibn 'Umar and said, "Here is Allah's Apostle entering the Ka'ba." Ibn 'Umar said, "I went there but the Prophet had come out of the Ka'ba and I found Bilal standing between its two doors. I asked Bilal, 'Did the Prophet pray in the Ka'ba?' Bilal replied, 'Yes, he prayed two Rakat between the two pillars which are to your left on entering the Ka'ba. Then Allah's Apostle came out and offered a two-Rak'at prayer facing the Ka'ba.' "
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 1.392 Narrated byBara bin Azib
Allah's Apostle prayed facing Baitul-Maqdis for sixteen or seventeen months but he loved to face the Ka'ba (at Mecca) so Allah revealed: "Verily, We have seen the turning of your face to the heaven!" (2.144) So the Prophet faced the Ka'ba and the fools amongst the people namely "the Jews" said, "What has turned them from their Qibla (Baitul-Maqdis) which they formerly observed"" (Allah revealed): "Say: 'To Allah belongs the East and the West. He guides whom he will to a straight path'." (2.142) A man prayed with the Prophet (facing the Ka'ba) and went out. He saw some of the Ansar praying the 'Asr prayer with their faces towards Baitul-Maqdis, he said, "I bear witness that I prayed with Allah's Apostle facing the Ka'ba." So all the people turned their faces towards the Ka'ba.
*** see comments on BH 1.39***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 1.484 Narrated byNafi
'Abdullah bin 'Umar said, "Allah's Apostle entered the Ka'ba along with Usama bin Zaid, Bilal and 'Uthman bin Talha Al-Hajabi and closed the door and stayed there for some time. I asked Bilal when he came out, 'What did the Prophet do?' He replied, 'He offered prayer with one pillar to his left and one to his right and three behind.' In those days the Ka'ba was supported by six pillars." Malik said: "There were two pillars on his (the Prophet's) right side."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.652 Narrated byJabir bin Abdullah
When the Ka'ba was built, the Prophet and Abbas went to bring stones (for its construction). Al Abbas said to the Prophet, "Take off your waist sheet and put it on your neck." (When the Prophet took it off) he fell on the ground with his eyes open towards the sky and said, "Give me my waist sheet." And he covered himself with it.
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.653 Narrated byAisha
(the wife of the Prophet) that Allah's Apostle said to her, "Do you know that when your people (Quraish) rebuilt the Ka'ba, they decreased it from its original foundation laid by Abraham?" I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Why don't you rebuild it on its original foundation laid by Abraham?" He replied, "Were it not for the fact that your people are close to the pre-Islamic period of ignorance (i.e. they have recently become Muslims) I would have done so." The sub-narrator, 'Abdullah (bin 'Umar ) stated: 'Aisha 'must have heard this from Allah's Apostle for in my opinion Allah's Apostle had not placed his hand over the two corners of the Ka'ba opposite Al-Hijr only because the Ka'ba was not rebuilt on its original foundations laid by Abraham.
*** Two items should be pointed out to the reader:
Why did Muhammad say "your people (Quraish)" as if they were not HIS people in the first place?
Was he trying to imply that he was different from his own tribe?
He, after all, used to visit and pray there in exactly the same manner as the other pagans, long before his 'revelations'.
What has changed now?
Since there are no verses in the Quran to show otherwise, on what basis did Muhammad allege that the foundations of the Ka'ba of his days were NOT the ORIGINAL as laid down by Abraham.
Considering the fact that Abraham was NEVER near the Ka'ba or Mecca, based upon the original Biblical stories, how then did Muhammad KNOW where the original founadtion of the Ka'ba was ?.
After all, no where in the Quran are there any verses mentioning anything about the alleged ORIGINAL foundation of the Ka'ba.
As usual, Muhammad was uttering his thoughts and imaginings and was NOT telling any FACTS or TRUTHS. He was actually, as usual, purposefully DECEIVING and LYING to his followers ***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.654 Narrated byAisha
I asked the Prophet whether the round wall (near Ka'ba) was part of the Ka'ba. The Prophet replied in the affirmative. I further said, "What is wrong with them, why have they not included it in the building of the Ka'ba?" He said, "Don't you see that your people (Quraish) ran short of money (so they could not include it inside the building of Ka'ba)?" I asked, "What about its gate? Why is it so high?" He replied, "Your people did this so as to admit into it whomever they liked and prevent whomever they liked. Were your people not close to the pre-Islamic Pperiod of ignorance (i.e. they have recently embraced Islam) and were I not afraid that they would dislike it, surely I would have included the (area of the) wall inside the building of the Ka'ba and I would have lowered its gate to the level of the ground."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.655 Narrated byAisha
Allah's Apostle said to me, "Were your people not close to the pre-Islamic period of ignorance, I would have demolished the Ka'ba and would have rebuilt it on its original foundations laid by Abraham (for Quraish had curtailed its building), and I would have built a back door (too)."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.656 Narrated byYazid bin Ruman from Urwa
'Aisha said that the Prophet said to her, "O Aisha! Were your nation not close to the pre-Islamic period of Ignorance, I would have had the Ka'ba demolished and would have included in it the portion which had been left, and would have made it at a level with the ground and would have made two doors for it, one towards the east and the other towards the west, and then by doing this it would have been built on the foundations laid by Abraham." That was what urged Ibn-Az-Zubair to demolish the Ka'ba. Jazz said, "I saw Ibn-Az-Zubair when he demolished and rebuilt the Ka'ba and included in it a portion of Al-Hijr (the unroofed portion of Ka'ba which is at present in the form of a compound towards the northwest of the Ka'ba). I saw the original foundations of Abraham which were of stones resembling the humps of camels." So Jarir asked Yazid, "Where was the place of those stones?" Jazz said, "I will just now show it to you." So Jarir accompanied Yazid and entered Al-Hijr, and Jazz pointed to a place and said, "Here it is." Jarir said, "It appeared to me about six cubits from Al-Hijr or so."
*** The reader should be aware of Muhammad's use of "your people & your nation" as if he were an OUTSIDER or somehow SUPERIOR to his own Quraysh tribe. As usual, he BLAMES others and never include himself ***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.664 Narrated byAbu Wail
(One day) I sat along with Shaiba on the chair inside the Ka'ba. He (Shaiba) said, "No doubt, Umar sat at this place and said, 'I intended not to leave any yellow (i.e. gold) or white (i.e. silver) (inside the Ka'ba) undistributed.' I said (to 'Umar), 'But your two companions (i.e. the Prophet and Abu Bakr) did not do so.' 'Umar said, They are the two persons whom I always follow.' "
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.663 Narrated byAbu Said Al Khudri
The Prophet said "The people will continue performing the Hajj and 'Umra to the Ka'ba even after the appearance of Gog and Magog."
Narrated Shu'ba extra:
The Hour (Day of Judgment) will not be established till the Hajj (to the Ka'ba) is abandoned.
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.680 Narrated byAz Zubair bin Arabi
A man asked Ibn 'Umar about the touching of the Black Stone. Ibn 'Umar said, "I saw Allah's Apostle touching and kissing it." The questioner said, "But if there were a throng (much rush) round the Ka'ba and the people overpowered me, (what would I do?)" He replied angrily, "Stay in Yemen (as that man was from Yemen). I saw Allah's Apostle touching and kissing it."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.693 Narrated byIbn Umar
The Prophet reached Mecca, circumambulated the Kaba seven times and then offered a two Rakat prayer behind Maqam Ibrahim. Then he went towards the Safa. Allah has said, "Verily, in Allah's Apostle you have a good example."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.726 Narrated byUrwa
During the pre-Islamic period of ignorance, the people used to perform Tawaf of the Ka'ba naked except the Hums; and the Hums were Quraish and their offspring. The Hums used to give clothes to the men who would perform the Tawaf wearing them; and women (of the Hums) used to give clothes to the women who would perform the Tawaf wearing them. Those to whom the Hums did not give clothes would perform Tawaf round the Ka'ba naked.
Most of the people used to go away (disperse) directly from 'Arafat but they (Hums) used to depart after staying at Al-Muzdalifa. 'Urwa added, "My father narrated that 'Aisha had said, 'The following verses were revealed about the Hums: 'Then depart from the place whence all the people depart' (2.199). 'Urwa added, "They (the Hums) used to stay at Al-Muzdalifa and used to depart from there (to Mina) and so they were sent to 'Arafat (by Allah's order)."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 2.820 Narrated byNafi
Ibn 'Umar used to spend the night at Dhi-Tuwa in between the two Thaniyas and then he would enter Mecca through the Thaniya which is at the higher region of Mecca, and whenever he came to Mecca for Hajj or 'Umra, he never made his she-camel kneel down except near the gate of the Masjid (Sacred Mosque) and then he would enter (it) and go to the Black (stone) Corner and start from there circumambulating the Ka'ba seven times: hastening in the first three rounds (Ramal) and walking in the last four. On finishing, he would offer two Rakat prayer and set out to perform Tawaf between Safa and Marwa before returning to his dwelling place. On returning (to Medina) from Hajj or 'Umra, he used to make his camel kneel down at Al-Batha which is at Dhul-Hulaifa, the place where the Prophet used to make his camel kneel down.
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 3.18 Narrated byHisham Ibn Urwa from his father who said
While I was a youngster, I asked 'Aisha the wife of the Prophet, "What about the meaning of the Statement of Allah; 'Verily! (the mountains) As-Safa and Al Marwa, are among the symbols of Allah. So, it is not harmful if those who perform Hajj or 'Umra of the House (Ka'ba at Mecca) to perform the going (Tawaf) between them,' (2.158)? I understand (from that) that there is no harm if somebody does not perform the Tawaf between them." 'Aisha replied, "No, for if it were as you are saying, then the recitation would have been like this: 'It is not harmful not to perform Tawaf between them.'
This verse was revealed in connection with the Ansar who used to assume the Ihram for the idol Manat which was put beside a place called Qudaid and those people thought it not right to perform the Tawaf of As-Safa and Al-Marwa.
When Islam came, they asked Allah's Apostle about that, and Allah revealed:
'Verily! (the mountains) As-Safa and Al-Marwa Are among the symbols of Allah. So, it is not harmful of those who perform Hajj or 'Umra of the House (Ka'ba at Mecca) to perform the going (Tawaf) between them,' (2.158)." Sufyan and Abu Muawiya added from Hisham (from 'Aisha): "The Hajj or 'Umra of the person who does not perform the going (Tawaf) between As-Safa and Al-Marwa is incomplete in Allah's sight.
*** The Hadiths point out REPEATEDLY that hundreds of verses of the Quran, were very conveniently and INVARIABLY 'revealed' to explain away, to sanctify or to justify, any and all of Muhammad's personal thoughts, deeds and utterances, AFTER these events had already taken place ***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 3.46 Narrated byAbu Huraira
The Prophet said, "Whoever performs Hajj to this Ka'ba and does not approach his wife for sexual relations nor commit sins (while performing Hajj), he will come out as sinless as a newborn child, (just delivered by his mother)."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 3.72 Narrated byAnas bin Malik
Allah's Apostle entered Mecca in the year of its conquest wearing an Arabian helmet on his head and when the Prophet took it off, a person came and said, "Ibn Khatal is holding the covering of the Ka'ba (taking refuge in the Ka'ba)."
*** Muhammad, true to form, ordered the murder of a man who was holding the curtain of the Ka'ba, which, under the traditions of the Arabs, was his inviolate sanctuary.
After having had him murdered, Allah conveniently 'revealed' and descended a verse to Muhammad, justifying and sanctfying this act of murder and desecration ***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 3.658 Narrated byAbdullah bin Masud
The Prophet entered Mecca and (at that time) there were three hundred and sixty idols around the Ka'ba. He started stabbing the idols with a stick he had in his hand and reciting: "Truth (Islam) has come and Falsehood (disbelief) has vanished."
*** Muhammad was of course copying - as repeat performance - the Jewish tradition regarding Abraham's destruction of the idols of his father ***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 4.220 Narrated byAbu Huraira
Allah's Apostle said, "I have been sent with the shortest expressions bearing the widest meanings, and I have been made victorious with terror (cast in the hearts of the enemy), and while I was sleeping, the keys of the treasures of the world were brought to me and put in my hand." Abu Huraira added: Allah's Apostle has left the world and now you, people, are bringing out those treasures (i.e. the Prophet did not benefit by them).
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 4.262 Narrated byJarir
Allah's Apostle said to me, "Will you relieve me from Dhul-Khalasa? Dhul-Khalasa was a house (of an idol) belonging to the tribe of Khath'am called Al-Ka'ba Al-Yama-niya. So, I proceeded with one hundred and fifty cavalry men from the tribe of Ahmas, who were excellent knights. It happened that I could not sit firm on horses, so the Prophet stroked me over my chest till I saw his finger-marks over my chest, he said, 'O Allah! Make him firm and make him a guiding and rightly guided man.' " Jarir proceeded towards that house, and dismantled and burnt it. Then he sent a messenger to Allah's Apostle informing him of that. Jarir's messenger said, "By Him Who has sent you with the Truth, I did not come to you till I had left it like an emancipated or gabby camel (i.e. completely marred and spoilt)." Jarir added, "The Prophet asked for Allah's Blessings for the horses and the men of Ahmas five times."
*** This is one of several other verses in the Hadiths that point out the fact that there were, in pagan Arabia, numerous OTHER Ka'bas beside the one in Mecca***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 4.570 Narrated byIbn Abbas
The Prophet entered the Ka'ba and found in it the pictures of (Prophet) Abraham and Mary. On that he said' "What is the matter with them ( i.e. Quraish)? They have already heard that angels do not enter a house in which there are pictures; yet this is the picture of Abraham. And why is he depicted as practicing divination by arrows?"
*** These 'traditions' could NOT possibly have been true, and Bukhari should NOT have included them as SAHIH because Muhammad had been visiting the Ka'ba on HUNDREDS of occasions AFTER his 'revelations' and NOT ONCE were these alleged pictures mentioned, NOR did they INHIBIT him from entering the Ka'ba.
Such 'traditions' are blatantly and obviously FALSE and should have been trashed with the hundreds of thousands of others of the same genre***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 4.571 Narrated byIbn Abbas
When the Prophet saw pictures in the Ka'ba, he did not enter it till he ordered them to be erased. When he saw (the pictures of Abraham and Ishmael carrying the arrows of divination, he said, "May Allah curse them (i.e. the Quraish)! By Allah, neither Abraham nor Ishmael practiced divination by arrows."
*** This is a very interesting story since it does not reflect any reality. It is a historical fact that Muhammad visited the Ka'ba on numerous occasions long before and after he declared his prophethood.
Why then did he not see or remark upon these alleged pictures before in his Quran?
In fact, why did he not refuse to enter the Ka'ba at the time?
This is after all, the same Muhammad who forbade any human or animal representations whatsoever in emualtion of the Torah prohibitions.
Like 99% of the traditions after his death, they were concocted by his followers to fit in with their different sects and agendas and have little veracity in them as Bukhari, Muslim and others found out during their collections of the Ahadith***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 4.585 Narrated byAbu Dhar
I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Which mosque was first built on the surface of the earth?" He said, "Al-Masjid-ul-Haram (in Mecca)."
I said, "Which was built next?"
He replied "The mosque of Al-Aqsa ( in Jerusalem)."
I said, "What was the period of construction between the two?"
He said, "Forty years." He added, "Wherever (you may be, and) the prayer time becomes due, perform the prayer there, for the best thing is to do so (i.e. to offer the prayers in time)."
*** Which of the following is wrong: The Bible or the Hadiths?
The actual difference in time is about 850 years and NOT 40 years.
If the Hadith is again wrong on this extremely important instance, then how can it be relied upon on so many others?***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 4.636 Narrated byAbu Dhaar
I said, "O Allah's Apostle! Which mosque was built first?"
He replied, "Al-Masjid-ul-Haram."
I asked, "Which (was built) next?"
He replied, "Al-Masjid-ul-Aqs-a (i.e. Jerusalem)."
I asked, "What was the period in between them?"
He replied, "Forty (years)." He then added, "Wherever the time for the prayer comes upon you, perform the prayer, for all the earth is a place of worshipping for you."
***This Hadith affirms that the Ka'ba was actually built long after Abraham and Ishmael had died.
Abraham lived about 2000 BC and the Temple was built by Solomon in about 958-951 BC. This implies that the Ka'ba was built approximately 998-991 BC.
If Muhammad is correct, then the Quran is wrong. But if the Quran is correct in stating that Abraham and Ishmael built the Ka'ba, then the Hadith and Muhammad are wrong.
Yet, if this particular Hadith is wrong at such an extremely important point of history and theology, then this throws into question the authenticity of the Hadith collections, especially al-Bukhari's collection which is considered to be the most reliable and authentic collection.
Yet, to reject the Hadith is to destroy the historical significance of Islam since the details of Muhammadan Islam such as Muhammad's prophetic calling, his life and wives, the 'revelations', the wars, etc are matters that are only found in Islamic traditions; the Hadith***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 4.703 Narrated byAbu Huraira
I heard Allah's Apostle saying, "Pride and arrogance are characteristics of the rural bedouins while calmness is found among the owners of sheep. Belief is Yemenite, and wisdom is also Yemenite (i.e. the Yemenites are well-known for their true belief and wisdom)."
Abu 'Abdullah (Al-Bukhari) said, "Yemen was called so because it is situated to the right of the Ka'ba, and Sham was called so because it is situated to the left of the Ka'ba."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 5.160 Narrated byJarir bin Abdullah
Allah's Apostle has never refused to admit me since I embraced Islam, and whenever he saw me, he would smile. (In another narration)
Jarir bin 'Abdullah narrated: There was a house called Dhul-Khalasa in the pre-Islamic Period and it was also called Al-Ka'ba Al-Yamaniya or Al-Ka'ba Ash-Shamiya. Allah's Apostle said to me, "Will you relieve me from Dhul-Khalasa?" So I left for it with 150 cavalrymen from the tribe of Ahmas and then we destroyed it and killed whoever we found there. Then we came to the Prophet and informed him about it. He invoked good upon us and upon the tribe of Ahmas.There were other famous Ka'bas also in Najran (Arabia) and in Sindad (between Kufa & Basra).
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 5.170 Narrated byJabir bin Abdullah
When the Ka'ba was rebuilt, the Prophet and 'Abbas went to carry stones.
'Abbas said to the Prophet "(Take off and) put your waist sheet over your neck so that the stones may not hurt you."
(But as soon as he took off his waist sheet) he fell unconscious on the ground with both his eyes towards the sky. When he came to his senses, he said, "My waist sheet! My waist sheet!" Then he tied his waist sheet (round his waist).
*** So it was not Muhammad who was giving the advice as alleged ***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 5.171 Narrated byAmr bin Dinar and Ubaidullah bin Abi Yazid
In the lifetime of the Prophet there was no wall around the Ka'ba and the people used to pray around the Ka'ba till 'Umar became the Caliph and he built the wall around it. 'Ubaidullah further said, "Its wall was low, so Ibn Az-Zubair built it."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 5.187 Narrated byAbu As Safar
I heard Ibn 'Abbas saying, "O people! Listen to what I say to you, and let me hear whatever you say, and don't go (without understanding), and start saying, 'Ibn 'Abbas said so-and-so, Ibn 'Abbas said so-and-so, Ibn 'Abbas said so-and-so.' He who wants to perform the Tawaf around the Ka'ba should go behind Al-Hijr (i.e. a portion of the Ka'ba left out unroofed) and do not call it Al-Hatim, for in the pre-Islamic period of ignorance if any man took an oath, he used to throw his whip, shoes or bow in it.
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 5.584 Narrated byIbn Abbas
When Allah's Apostle arrived in Mecca, he refused to enter the Ka'ba while there were idols in it. So he ordered that they be taken out. The pictures of the (Prophets) Abraham and Ishmael, holding arrows of divination in their hands, were carried out. The Prophet said, "May Allah ruin them (i.e. the infidels) for they knew very well that they (i.e. Abraham and Ishmael) never drew lots by these (divination arrows)." Then the Prophet entered the Ka'ba and said. "Allahu Akbar" in all its directions and came out and did not offer any prayer therein.
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 5.641 Narrated byJarir
In the Pre-Islamic Period of Ignorance there was a house called Dhu-l-Khalasa or Al-Ka'ba Al-Yamaniya or Al-Ka'ba Ash-Shamiya. The Prophet said to me, "Won't you relieve me from Dhu-l-Khalasa?" So I set out with one-hundred-and-fifty riders, and we dismantled it and killed whoever was present there. Then I came to the Prophet and informed him, and he invoked good upon us and Al-Ahmas (tribe).
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 5.683 Narrated byAbdullah bin Umar
The Prophet arrived (at Mecca) in the year of the Conquest (of Mecca) while Usama was riding behind him on (his she-camel)'. Al-Qaswa,' Bilal and 'Uthman bin Talha were accompanying him. When he made his she-camel kneel down near the Ka'ba, he said to 'Uthman, "Get us the key (of the Ka'ba). He brought the key to him and opened the gate (of the Ka'ba), for him. The Prophet, Usama, Bilal and 'Uthman (bin Talha) entered the Ka'ba and then closed the gate behind them (from inside). The Prophet stayed there for a long period and then came out. The people rushed to get in, but I went in before them and found Bilal standing behind the gate, and I said to him, "Where did the Prophet pray?" He said, "He prayed between those two front pillars." The Ka'ba was built on six pillars, arranged in two rows, and he prayed between the two pillars of the front row leaving the gate of the Ka'ba at his back and facing (in prayer) the wall which faces one when one enters the Ka'ba. Between him and that wall (was the distance of about three cubits). But I forgot to ask Bilal about the number of Rakat the Prophet had prayed. There was a red piece of marble at the place where he (i.e. the Prophet) had offered the prayer.
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 6.178 Narrated byHumaid bin Abdur Rahman
Abu Huraira said, "During that Hajj (in which Abu Bakr was the chief of the pilgrims) Abu Bakr sent me along with announcers on the Day of Nahr ( 10th of Dhul-Hijja) in Mina to announce: 'No pagans shall perform, Hajj after this year, and none shall perform the Tawaf around the Ka'ba in a naked state.' " Humaid bin 'Abdur Rahman added: Then Allah's Apostle sent Ali bin Abi Talib (after Abu Bakr) and ordered him to recite aloud in public Surat Bara'a. Abu Huraira added, "So 'Ali, along with us, recited Bara'a (loudly) before the people at Mina on the Day of Nahr and announced; "No pagan shall perform Hajj after this year and none shall perform the Tawaf around the Ka'ba in a naked state."
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 7.407 Narrated byAbdullah
Narrated 'Abdullah: Allah's Apostle said that he met Zaid bin 'Amr Nufail at a place near Baldah and this had happened before Allah's Apostle received the Divine Inspiration. Allah's Apostle presented a dish of meat (that had been offered to him by the pagans) to Zaid bin 'Amr, but Zaid refused to eat of it and then said (to the pagans), "I do not eat of what you slaughter on your stone altars (Ansabs) nor do I eat except that on which Allah's Name has been mentioned on slaughtering."
*** One should ignore the items within the (parenthesis) because they are not part of the original Arabic text but were added deliberately by the interpreter to portray a more hygenic and none pagan background for Muhammad. Nonetheless, it shows that Muhammad used to eat what the pagan Arabs of his Quraysh tribe ate ***
Sahih Al-Bukhari HadithHadith 9.380 Narrated byAbu Wail I sat with Shaiba in this Mosque (Al-Masjid-Al-Haram), and he said, (Umar once sat beside me here as you are now sitting, and said, 'I feel like distributing all the gold and silver that are in it (i.e., the Ka'ba) among the Muslims'. I said, 'You cannot do that.' 'Umar said, 'Why?' I said, 'Your two (previous) companions (the Prophet and Abu Bakr) did not do it. 'Umar said, 'They are the two persons whom one must follow.{ (See Hadith No. 664, Vol. 2) (Al-Milal wa al-Nihil, Muhammad ibn 'Abdalkarim al-Sharastani, Muslim, vol. 2 chapter on the opinions of the pre-Islamic Arabs as cited by al-Fadi, p. 122)
"The Arabs during the pre-Islamic period used to practice certain things that were included in the Islamic Sharia.
They, for example, did not marry both a mother and her daughter.
They considered marrying two sisters simultaneously to be a most heinous crime.
They also censured anyone who married his stepmother, and called him dhaizan.
They made the major [hajj] and the minor [umra] pilgrimage to the Ka'ba, performed the circumambulation around the Ka'ba [tawaf], ran seven times between Mounts Safa and Marwa [sa'y], threw rocks and washed themselves after intercourse.
They also gargled, sniffed water up into their noses, clipped their fingernails, plucked their hair from their armpits, shaved their pubic hair and performed the rite of circumcision.
Likewise, they cut off the right hand of a thief."
As usual in the Quran and Hadiths, LOGIC, VERACITY, REALITY, HISTORY, TIME, SPACE, FACTS & FIGURES are CONTORTED and TWISTED to fit the most INAUTHENTIC and PERVERTED SCRIPTURES that have ever been INSINUATED and forced upon the HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS.
Historical Background of the Ka'ba-
The Ka'ba is a cubical structure located at the center of Masjid al-Haram in Mecca. The Baqara verse, revealed to Muhammad, established the Ka'ba as the direction (qibla) towards which Muhammadans must address their five daily prayers, and as the destination of annual pilgrimage, or hajj, required once in the lifetime of every Muhammadan Muslim.
Each year, worshippers gather in the courtyard of Masjid al-Haram and encircle the Ka'ba seven times (tawaf), during which they kiss and touch the Black Stone (al-Hajar al-Aswad), a Muhammadan object of veneration embedded in the eastern corner of the Ka'ba.
As it stands today, the cubical structure is fifteen meters tall and measures ten and a half meters by twelve meters on the exterior. It is oriented such that its four corners align roughly with north, south, east and west.
In the wars of succession to Muhammad, in 681CE, the Ummayad Caliph Yazid bin Mu'awyia sent his general al Hassan ibn Numair al Sakuni (Tabari; Ya'qubi) first to loot and despoil the Medina and the Mosque of the Prophet and later in 683 by the same general to lay siege to Mecca.
His catapults rained stones upon the Haram (Holy Mosque) of Mecca where ibn al Zubair had taken refuge. In the course of the siege, the Ka'ba caught fire and was burned to the ground. The intensity of the heat was so great that the Blackstone was fractured into three parts that were reassembled with silver by Ibn Zubayr.
Ibn Zubayr ordered the rebuilding of the Ka'ba in stone, in accordance with its alleged original dimensions believed to be set by Abraham, and paved the open space around it. The shrine at this time had two doors and a wooden staircase for roof access. In 692, after taking over Mecca, Umayyad Caliph Abdul Malik demolished the Ka'ba and rebuilt it based on the Qurayshi version.
The holiest shrines in 'Islam' were destroyed and violated by 'Muslim' forces under the command of 'Muslim' leaders.
Not even the pagan Arabs were ever willing to do so in all the centuries that they had it under their control. By any standard of logic or morality, it was a despicable and totally inexcusable act.
The besieging armies left the unfinished job for political reasons in November 27, 683. In 692, the caliph Abd al Malik, sent his iron fisted general al Hajjaj ibn Yusuf al Thaqafi to besiege Mecca once more, for six months, until he was able send ibn al Zubayr's head to Damascus.
Karmathians or Carmathians (kärma'theunz) , were a Muhammadan sect of the 9th and 10th centuries, similar to the Assassin sect. They were part of a movement for social reform that spread widely throughout Muhammadan Islam from the 9th to the 12th cent. They were organized according to initiation and illumination, like other similar sects of the period. Although heretical, their doctrine had a great influence on Muhammadan philosophy and remnants of it are today found in the religion of the Druze.
The chief importance of the Karmathians came with their establishment of an independent communist community in lower Mesopotamia before 900. They were the source of rebellions in Khorasan and Syria, and after 900 they conquered all of Yemen. In spite of the efforts of the Abbasid caliph at Baghdad, the Karmathians continued their career until (c.930) when they created a sensation that rocked Muhammadan Islam by carrying away the BLACK STONE from the Ka'ba at Mecca.
Ten years later the Karmathians returned the stone. They were in constant touch with the founders of Fatimid rule in Egypt, alternately at war or peace with them. They ceased to be a political power after 1000.
When it came down to brass knuckles, the 'Muslims' did not hesitate to break every rule and prohibition in their Quran. They, who presume to sit in judgement of other religions, are in no way better or superior either morally or religiously to any other.
The Muhammadans erroneously claim that Allah has protected the Quran from corruption, yet their Allah was not able to protect his Sacred House from destruction.
The Abbasid Caliphs contributed to the design of the Ka'ba by covering it with the kiswa, a black cloth brought from Tanis in Egypt. The kiswa comprised of eight curtains (a pair on each side of the cube) embroidered with gold calligraphy expressing the Muslim shahada, or oath,
"There is no God but Allah and Muhammed is the Prophet of Allah."
Following Mamluk rule of the Hijaz, which lasted from 1269 to 1517, Mecca came under the control of the Ottoman Sultans. In 1553, Sultan Süleyman I (1520-1566) renovated the roof of the Ka'ba and ordered the wooden ceiling painted with golden calligraphy and floral patterns. Damaged in a flood in 1611, the Ka'ba was rebuilt once again by Sultan Murad IV (1623-1640) in 1629. The new foundation was laid according to Abraham's plan, while the upper structure was built with large granite blocks resting on a twenty-five centimeters high marble base. Three columns were built to support the roof on the inside; they were covered with golden decorations. Silver and golden lamps were suspended from the ceiling. At this time, the silver door offered by Sultan Süleyman I was placed off-center on the northeast wall, two meters above ground level. The Ka'ba was then covered with two kiswas, a red cloth covered with a black one, that were annually replaced.
On the southwest side of the Ka'ba is a semi-circular wall about one and a quarter meters tall, which represents its border (al-hatim) as built by Abraham. The Black Stone is embedded in the eastern corner, one and a half meters above the ground. During the first Saudi extension to Masjid al-Haram in 1976, the interior of the Ka'ba was decorated with gold geometric motifs and inscribed with Quranic verses.
The following are numerous, fully refrenced 'TRADITIONS' about the subject at hand:
According to a tradition reported by Zaid ibn Haritha, who was also present at the event (Bukhari 7.407):
The Prophet slaughtered an ewe for one of the idols (nusub min al-ansab); then he roasted it and carried it with him. Then Zayd ibn Amr ibn Nufayl met us in the upper part of the valley; it was one of the hot days of Mecca. When we met we greeted each other with the greeting of the Age of barbarism, in'am sabahan. The Prophet said: "Why do I see you, O son of Amr, hated by your people?" He said, "This (happened) without my being the cause of their hatred; but I found them associating divinities with God and I was reluctant to do the same. I wanted (to worship God according to) the religion of Abraham..." The Prophet said, "Would you like some food?" He said, "Yes." Then the Prophet put before him the (meat of the ewe). He (that is, Zayd ibn Amr) said: "What did you sacrifice to, O Muhammad?"
"He said, "To one of the idols." Zayd then said: "I am not the one to eat anything slaughtered for a divinity other than Allah."
[Al-Kharqushi, Sharaf al-Mustafa, cited in F. E. Peters, Muhammad and the Religion of Islam [State University of New York Press (SUNY), Albany 1994], pp. 126-127]
Ibn al-Kalbi also confirms that Muhammad offered up an ewe to al-Uzza, "in accordance with the religion of the people." (Ibid., p. 127)
In fact, noted historian of the Arab peoples Philip K. Hitti accepts the veracity of al-Kalbi's report:
Al-'Uzza (the most mighty, Venus, the morning star) had her cult in Nakhlah east of Makkah. According to al-Kalbi, hers was the most venerated idol among the Quraysh, and Muhammad as a young man offered her a sacrifice.
[Hitti, History of the Arabs from the Earliest Times to the Present, revised tenth edition, new preface by Walid Khalidi [Palgrave Macmillan, 2002; ISBN: 0-333-63142-0 paperback, p. 99]
Alfred Guillaume gives a tradition recorded by the first Muslim biographer, Ibn Ishaq, who wrote:
I was told that the apostle of Allah said, as he was talking about Zayd son of 'Amr son of Nufayl, 'He was the first to upbraid me for idolatry and forbade me to worship idols. I had come from al-Ta'if along with Zayd son of Haritha when we passed Zayd son of 'Amr who was in the highland of Mecca. Quraysh had made a public example of him for abandoning his religion, so that he went out from their midst. I sat down with him. I had a bag containing meat which WE HAD SACRIFICED TO OUR IDOLS — Zayd b. Haritha was carrying it — and I offered it to Zayd b. 'Amir — I was but a lad at the time — and I said, "Eat some of this food, my uncle." He replied, "Surely it is part of those sacrifices of theirs which they offer to their idols?" When I said that it was, he said, "Nephew mine, if you were to ask the daughters of 'Abd al-Muttalib they would tell you that I never eat of these sacrifices, and I have no desire to do so." Then he upbraided me for idolatry and spoke disparagingly of those who worship idols and sacrifice to them, and said, "They are worthless: they can neither harm nor profit anyone," or words to that effect.' The apostle added, 'After that I never knowingly stroked one of their idols nor did I sacrifice to them until God honoured me with his apostleship.
[A. Guillaume, Islam (Penguin USA; ISBN: 0140203117), pp. 26-27]
In fact, Muhammad's indulgence in idolatrous practices continued right into his alleged prophetic calling. For instance, the first Muslim biographer Ibn Ishaq recorded the following incident that occurred after Muhammad’s supposed encounter with Gabriel:
"And when the apostle of Allah had finished his period of seclusion and returned (to Mecca), in the first place he performed the circumambulation of the Ka'ba, as was his wont. While he was doing it, Waraqa met him and said, ‘O son of my brother, tell me what thou hast seen and heard.'"
[Sirat Rasulullah, trans. Alfred Guillaume, The Life of Muhammad (Oxford University Press, Karachi), p. 107]
The reader must keep in mind that at this time in Muhammad's life, there was no revelation alleging that Abraham and Ishmael originally built the Ka'ba. That came later in his life. As far as Muhammad was concerned, the Kaba was nothing more than a pagan shrine erected in honour of pagan deities.
Some Muhammadans tried to read and write back into pre-Islamic history the belief that Abraham and Ishmael built the Ka'ba. But in so doing, they only managed to do further damage to Muhammad's prophetic claims.
For example, the oldest biographer of Muhammad's life, Ibn Ishaq, mentioned an event which supposedly took place before Muhammad's time where certain Jewish rabbis are said to have told a king that the Ka'ba was built by Abraham.
Yet, Ishaq, by mentioning this story, actually incriminates Muhammad:
... They [the rabbis] told that the sole object of the tribe was to destroy him and his army. ‘We know of no other temple in the land which Allah has chosen for Himself, said they, and if you do what they suggest you and all your men will perish.’ The king asked them what he should do when he got there, and they told him to do what the people of Mecca did: circumambulate the temple, to venerate and honour it, to shave his head, and to behave with all humility until he had left its precincts.
The king asked why they too should not do likewise. They replied that it was indeed the temple of their father Abraham, but the idols which the inhabitants had set up round it, and the blood which they shed there, presented an insuperable obstacle. They are unclean polytheists, said they - or words to that effect.
[A. Guillaume, The Life of Muhammad, pp. 8-9]
Despite the Jews allegedly claiming that Abraham had built the Ka'ba, they still refused to partake of performing a pilgrimage to it due to all the idols contained therein which defiled it.
And yet Muhammad, who is suppose to be Allah's final prophet, had no hesitation in running around a structure littered with abominable objects detested by the true Allah.
The Qur’an itself commanded Muslims to continue practicing the pagan rites as part of the religion:
Surah al-Baqarah 2:158 "Behold! Safa and Marwa are among the Symbols of Allah. So if those who visit the House in the Season or at other times, should compass them round, it is no sin in them. And if any one obeyeth his own impulse to good, — be sure that Allah is He Who recogniseth and knoweth"
The late Quranic translator, Yusuf Ali, stated:
"The virtue of patient perseverance in faith leads to the mention of two symbolic monuments of that virtue. These are two little hills of Safa and Marwa, now absorbed in the city of Mecca and close to the well of Zam-zam. Here, according to tradition, the lady Hajar, the mother of the infant Isma'il, prayed for water in the parched desert, and in her eager quest round these hills, she found her prayer answered and saw the Zam-zam spring. Unfortunately, the Pagan Arabs had placed a male and female idol here, and their gross superstitious rites caused offense to the early Muslims. They felt some hesitation in going round these places during the Pilgrimage. As a matter of fact they should have known that the Ka'ba (the House of Allah) had been itself defiled with idols, and was sanctified again by the purity of Muhammad's life and teaching. The lesson is that the most sacred things may be turned to the basest uses; that we are not therefore necessarily to ban a thing misused; that if our intentions and life are pure, Allah will recognize them even if the world cast stones at us because of some evil associations which they join with what we do, or with the people we associate with, or with the places which claim our reverence."
[Ali, The Holy Qur'an: Translation and Commentary (Lahore, 1934 and 1937), p. 62, fn. 160]
Despite the fact that there is not a single shred of evidence to support that Hagar was in Mecca or that Zam-zam was the well that sprung forth miraculously by the angel, Ali admits that the hills of Safa and Marwa originally housed two pagan idols.
The Hadith relates that the Muslims were hesitant to run between these two hills due to their connection with Arab pagan practices:
I said to 'Aisha, the wife of the Prophet, and I was at that time a young boy, "How do you interpret the Statement of Allah: "Verily, Safa and Marwa (i.e. two mountains at Mecca) are among the Symbols of Allah." So it is not harmful of those who perform the Hajj to the House of Allah) or perform the Umra, to ambulate (Tawaf) between them. In my opinion it is not sinful for one not to ambulate (Tawaf) between them." 'Aisha said, "Your interpretation is wrong for as you say, the Verse should have been: "So it is not harmful of those who perform the Hajj or Umra to the House, not to ambulate (Tawaf) between them.' This Verse was revealed in connection with the Ansar who (during the Pre-Islamic Period) used to visit Manat (i.e. an idol) after assuming their Ihram, and it was situated near Qudaid (i.e. a place at Mecca), and they used to regard it sinful to ambulate between Safa and Marwa after embracing Islam. When Islam came, they asked Allah's Apostle about it, whereupon Allah revealed:—
"Verily, Safa and Marwa (i.e. two mountains at Mecca) are among the Symbols of Allah. So it is not harmful of those who perform the Hajj of the House (of Allah) or perform the Umra, to ambulate (Tawaf) between them." (Surah 2.158) (Sahih al-Bukhari 6:22)
Narrated 'Asim bin Sulaiman:
I asked Anas bin Malik about Safa and Marwa. Anas replied, "We used to consider (i.e. going around) them a custom of the Pre-Islamic period of Ignorance, so when Islam came, we gave up going around them. Then Allah revealed:—
Verily, Safa and Marwa (i.e. two mountains at Mecca) are among the Symbols of Allah. So it is not harmful of those who perform the Hajj of the House (of Allah) or perform the Umra to ambulate (Tawaf) between them." (Surah 2.158) (Sahih al-Bukhari 6:23)
Other practices that were adopted into Islam include:
Surah al-Baqarah 2:196 "And complete the Hajj or 'umra in the service of Allah. But if ye are prevented (From completing it), send an offering for sacrifice, such as ye may find, and do not shave your heads until the offering reaches the place of sacrifice. And if any of you is ill, or has an ailment in his scalp, (Necessitating shaving), (He should) in compensation either fast, or feed the poor, or offer sacrifice; and when ye are in peaceful conditions (again), if any one wishes to continue the 'umra on to the hajj, He must make an offering, such as he can afford, but if he cannot afford it, He should fast three days during the hajj and seven days on his return, Making ten days in all. This is for those whose household is not in (the precincts of) the Sacred Mosque. And fear Allah, and know that Allah Is strict in punishment"
Yusuf Ali comments:
When this was revealed, the city of Mecca was in the hands of the enemies of Islam, and the regulations about the fighting and the pilgrimage came together and interconnected. But the revelation provides, as always, for the particular occasion, and also for normal conditions. Mecca soon passed out of the hands of the enemies of Islam.
[Ali, Holy Quran, fn. 214, p. 78]
Surah al-Baqarah 2:200 "So when ye have accomplished your holy rites, celebrate the praises of Allah, as ye used to celebrate the praises of your fathers, — yea, with far more Heart and soul. There are men who say: "Our Lord! Give us (Thy bounties) in this world!" but they will have no portion in the Hereafter"
Again Yusuf Ali,
After Pilgrimage, in Pagan times, the pilgrims used to gather in assembles in which the praises of ancestors were sung. As the whole of the pilgrimage was spiritualized in Islam, so this aftermath of the Pilgrimage was also spiritualized. It was recommended from pilgrims to stay on three days after the pilgrimage, but they must use them in prayer and praise to Allah. [Ibid., fn. 223, p. 80]
Hence, Allah commanded Muslims to observe the pagan customs right alongside the Arab pagans and their 360 idols. Some of these practices included kissing the BLACK STONE:
Sahih al-Bukhari 2:667 Narrated 'Abis bin Rabia:
'Umar came near the Black Stone and kissed it and said "No doubt, I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit anyone nor harm anyone. Had I not seen Allah's Apostle kissing you I would not have kissed you."
Sahih al-Bukhari 2:673; see also 675, 676, 679, 680 Narrated Salim that his father said:
I saw Allah's Apostle arriving at Mecca; he kissed the Black Stone Corner first while doing Tawaf and did ramal in the first three rounds of the seven rounds (of Tawaf).
The reason behind Umar's reluctance in kissing the black object is that the pagan Arabs also performed this ritual. Muhammad kept this pagan practice, a practice that Umar reluctantly observed. Yet, since he saw his prophet kissing it he was obligated to follow suit.
One Muslim scholar, Sheikh Sha'rawi, says:
"The kissing of the meteorite is a firm practice in Islamic law because Muhammad did it. You must not ask about the wisdom behind that because this rite is (an expression) of worship in spite of the obscurity of its wisdom."
[Sha'rawi, Legal Opinions, pt. 3, p. 167 as cited in Behind the Veil, p. 287]
Muslim practices such as gathering on Friday and the four sacred months of Islam were also pre-Islamic customs:
Surah al-Tawbah 9:5 (Pickthall translation)
Then, when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters wherever ye find them, and take them (captive), and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush. But if they repent and establish worship and pay the poor-due, then leave their way free. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
Surah al-Tawbah 9:36-37 (Pickthall translation)
Lo! the number of the months with Allah is twelve months by Allah's ordinance in the day that He created the heavens and the earth. Four of them are sacred: that is the right religion. So wrong not yourselves in them. And wage war on all of the idolaters as they are waging war on all of you. And know that Allah is with those who keep their duty (unto Him). Postponement (of a sacred month) is only an excess of disbelief whereby those who disbelieve are misled; they allow it one year and forbid it (another) year, that they may make up the number of the months which Allah hath hallowed, so that they allow that which Allah hath forbidden. The evil of their deeds is made fair seeming unto them. Allah guideth not the disbelieving folk.
One author writes in relation to these passages:
In Bulugh al-'Arab fi Ahwal al-'Arab, we read, 'The four sacred months, Rajab, Dhu al-Qa'da, Dhu al-Hijja and Muharram, had been considered sacred during the pre-Islamic period [Jahiliya]. Raids, taking revenge, war, fighting and disputes were forbidden during them. If a man were to meet his enemy who killed his father or brother during these months, he would not quarrel with him… During the sacred months, [the people] were under restriction not to fight or make raids, and had to remove [their] spearheads as a sign that they would avoid fighting at all costs.' Obviously, Islam borrowed the hallowing of these months from Pre-Islamic Arabs and introduced nothing new into the world.
[Abdallah 'Abd al-Fadi, Is the Qur'an Infallible? (Light of Life, PO Box 13, A-9503 VILLACH, AUSTRIA), p. 127]
Interestingly, Muhammad abrogates the command forbidding fighting in the sacred months in order to allow his followers the right to wage war against the unbelievers:
Surah al-Baqarah 2:194 "The prohibited month for the prohibited month, — and so for all things prohibited, — there is the law of equality. If then any one transgresses the prohibition against you, Transgress ye likewise against him. But fear Allah, and know that Allah is with those who restrain themselves"
Surah al-Baqarah 2:217 (Pickthall) "They question thee (O Muhammad) with regard to warfare in the sacred month. Say: Warfare therein is a great (transgression), but to turn (men) from the way of Allah, and to disbelieve in Him and in the Inviolable Place of Worship, and to expel His people thence, is a greater with Allah; for persecution is worse than killing. And they will not cease from fighting against you till they have made you renegades from your religion, if they can. And whoso becometh a renegade and dieth in his disbelief: such are they whose works have fallen both in the world and the Hereafter. Such are rightful owners of the Fire: they will abide therein"
Yusuf Ali tries to justify Allah's decree to retaliate against the unbelievers in the sacred months:
Haram-prohibited, sacred. The month of the Pilgrimage (Zul-hajj) was a sacred month in which warfare was prohibited by Arab custom. The month preceding (Zul-qa'd) and the month following (Muharram) were included in the prohibition, and Muharram was specially called al-Haram. Possibly Muharram is meant in the first line (author - S. 2:194), and the other months and other prohibited things in "all things prohibited". In Rajab, also war was prohibited. If the pagan enemies of Islam broke that custom and made war in the prohibited months, the Muslims were free also to break that custom but only to the same extent as the others broke it. Similarly the territory of Mecca was sacred, in which war was prohibited. If the enemies of Islam broke that custom, the Muslims were free to do so to that extent. Any convention is useless if one party does not respect it. There must be a law of equality. Or perhaps the word reciprocity may express it better. [Ibid., fn. 209, p. 77]
The intolerance and persecution of the Pagan clique at Mecca caused untold hardships to the Holy messenger of Islam and his early disciples. They bore all with meekness and long-suffering patience until the holy one permitted them to take up arms in self defense. Then they were twitted in the breach of the custom about Prohibited Months, though they were driven to fight during the period against their own feeling of self defense. But their enemies not only forced them to engage in actual warfare, but interfered with their conscience, persecuted them and their families, openly insulted them and denied Allah, kept out the Muslim Arabs from the Sacred Mosque, and exiled them. Such violence and intolerance are deservedly called worse than slaughter. (Ibid., fn. 238, p. 85)
Yusuf Ali's reasons that it was okay for believers to sin and break an ordinance of Allah in order to avenge themselves. In other words, Allah is more concerned with the destruction of his enemies than he is with the observance of his commands. The simple fact is that two wrongs never make a right.
Surah al-Jumua 62:9-11 "O ye who believe! When the call is proclaimed to prayer on Friday (the Day of Assembly), hasten earnestly to the Remembrance of Allah, and leave off business (and traffic): That is best for you if ye but knew! And when the Prayer is finished, then may ye disperse through the land, and seek of the Bounty of Allah: and celebrate the Praises of Allah often (and without stint): that ye may prosper. But when they see some bargain or some amusement, they disperse headlong to it, and leave thee standing. Say: "The (blessing) from the Presence of Allahis better than any amusement or bargain! and Allahis the Best to provide (for all needs)."
Muhammadan commentator Al-Baidawi comments:
It was called the Day of Congregation because people [were] to gather on it for prayer. Arabs had called it al-'Aruba. Some claim that it was Ka'b Ibn Lu'ay who called it that name, for people used to gather around him on that day. The first Friday on which the Messenger of Allah gathered the people for prayer was in Medina after he had spent a week in Quba'. It was in the valley of the clan Salim Ibn 'Auf.
[Al-Fadi, Is the Qur'an Infallible?, p. 126]
Accordingly,
The author Bulugh al-'Arab fi Ahwal al-Arab said the same thing as the above but added that Ka'b Ibn Lu'ay used to preach to the people on that day (vol. 1, p. 250). Thus, the sanctity of Friday was a pre-Islamic tradition, laid out by Ka'b Ibn Lu'ay, not by the revelation of Allah." (Ibid.)
The fact is that even the Muhammadan prayers were not something unique, but something stemming from paganism.
Muhammadan writer Muhammad Shukri al-Alusi in his Bulugh al-'Arab fi Ahwal al-'Arab states that:
The Sabeans have five prayers similar to the five prayers of the Muslims. Others say they have seven prayers, five of which are comparable to the prayers of the Muslims with regard to time [that is, morning, noon, afternoon, evening and night; the sixth is at midnight and the seventh is at forenoon].
It is their practice to pray over the dead without kneeling down or even bending the knee. They also fast for one lunar month of thirty days; they start their fast at the last watch of the night and continue till the setting of the sun. Some of their sects fast during the month of Ramadan, face Ka'ba when they pray, venerate Mecca, and believe in making the pilgrimage to it. They consider dead bodies, blood and the flesh of pigs as unlawful. They also forbid marriage for the same reasons as do Muslims.
[Ibid., pp. 121-122]
Muhammad ibn 'Abdalkarim al-Sharastani in his Al-Milal wa al-Nihil, admits that most of the practices of 'Islam' were actually rites performed by the pagans:
"The Arabs during the pre-Islamic period used to practice certain things that were included in the Islamic Sharia. They, for example, did not marry both a mother and her daughter. They considered marrying two sisters simultaneously to be a most heinous crime. They also censured anyone who married his stepmother, and called him dhaizan. They made the major [hajj] and the minor [umra] pilgrimage to the Ka'ba, performed the circumambulation around the Ka'ba [tawaf], ran seven times between Mounts Safa and Marwa [sa'y], threw rocks and washed themselves after intercourse. They also gargled, sniffed water up into their noses, clipped their fingernails, plucked their hair from their armpits, shaved their pubic hair and performed the rite of circumcision. Likewise, they cut off the right hand of a thief.
[Ibid., vol. 2 chapter on the opinions of the pre-Islamic Arabs as cited by al-Fadi, p. 122]
To further complicate matters, the pagans, much like the Muhammadans, ran around the Ka'ba seven times. The number of circumambulation seemingly corresponded to the number of planets which the pagans venerated as deities. That number totaled seven.
Yusuf Ali, commenting on the paganism of Arabia, states:
But the moving 'stars', or planets, each with a motion and therefore will or influence of its own. As they knew and understood them, they were seven in number, viz.: (1) and (2) the moon and the sun, the two objects which most closely and indubitably influence the tides, the temperatures, and the life in our planet; (3) and (4) the two inner planets, Mercury and Venus, which are morning and evening stars, and never travel far from the sun; and (5), (6) and (7) Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, the outer planets whose elongations from the sun on the ecliptic can be as wide as possible. The number seven itself is a mystic number, as explained in n. 5526 to lxv. 12.
6. It will be noticed that the sun and the moon and the five planets got identified each with a living deity, god or goddess, with characteristics and qualities of its own.
[Ali, Holy Quran, Appendix XIII, p. 1621]
And where does Ali draw the inference that the number seven is a mystical number? Is it from the Holy Bible and the fact that God is said to have rested on the seventh day, thus hallowing it? [Cf. Genesis 2:2-3] Let us read note 5526 and find out:
"Seven Firmaments." The literal meaning refers to the seven orbits or firmaments that we see clearly marked in the motions of the heavenly bodies in the space around us... In poetical imagery there are the seven Planetary spheres, which form the lower heaven or heavens, with higher spheres culminating in the Empyrean or God's throne of Majesty... The mystical meaning refers to the various grades in the spiritual or heavenly kingdom, the number seven being itself a mystical symbol, comprising many and yet form an indivisible integer, the highest indivisible integer of one digit. [Ibid., p. 1567]
It is quite obvious that there are nine, not seven, planets or orbits in our galaxy and therefore this is an error in the Qur’an. The belief in seven orbits, two of which were the sun and moon, stemmed from the pagan belief prevalent in Muhammad's day as Ali himself admits in the citations above.
Abraham would never have placed a black idol for his descendants to kiss, especially in light of the fact that one of his descendants, Moses, received divine commands forbidding the honoring of any visible object:
Deuteronomy 4:10-19 "Remember the day you stood before the LORD your God at Horeb, when he said to me, "Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children." You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain while it blazed with fire to the very heavens, with black clouds and deep darkness. Then the LORD spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice. He declared to you his covenant, the Ten Commandments, which he commanded you to follow and then wrote them on two stone tablets. And the LORD directed me at that time to teach you the decrees and laws you are to follow in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You saw no form of any kind the day the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire. Therefore watch yourselves very carefully, so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman, or like any animal on earth or any bird that flies in the air, or like any creature that moves along the ground or any fish in the waters below. And when you look up to the sky and see the sun, the moon and the stars - all the heavenly array - do not be enticed into bowing down to them and worshipping things the LORD your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven"
***Hence, the true God of Abraham would never send a black stone for his followers to kiss.
In conclusion, based upon all the references shown above, all of which are by Muhammad's followers, we must say that Muhammad began and ended up with a pagan religion with the only difference being that he repackaged it in semi monotheistic wrappings ***
