D. The Black Stone of Kaaba It is said that the black stone was passed on to the earth from heaven and was placed at the mount of Abu-Qabees (adjacent to Kaaba), until it was brought to the prophet Abraham, who fixed it in the eastern corner of Kaaba, i.e., Rukne- Aswad. It is also said to be the right hand of Allah with which He shakes the hands of His people. It is indeed the symbolic hand of Allah as the Kaaba is the symbolic house of Allah. Tirmidhi has recorded a narration of Ibne-Abbas that the Messenger of Allah said, “The black stone descended from Paradise much whiter than milk, but was turned black by the sins committed by the mankind.” Bokhari and Tirmidhi recorded on the authority of Amir-Ibne-Rabia, who said, “I saw Omer-bin-Khattab kissing the black stone and I heard him saying, ‘I know well that you are simply a stone and have no power to confer a benefit or to do harm. Had I not seen the Messenger of Allah kissing you, I would not have kissed you.’” It may be deduced that the act of kissing the black stone establishes a spiritual and a physical interaction with the loved ones of Allah including the Prophet Muhammad, his grandfathers Abraham and Ishmael, peace be upon them all, by way of putting one’s own lips on the stone where the loved ones of Allah had also put their blessed lips. However, the spiritual interaction cannot be formulated unless the relationship indicated above is visualized as such in the state of extreme love and affection. E. Yamani Corner of Kaaba Since the south corner of Kaaba faces toward Yemen, it is called Yamani corner. But it is also said that the word “Yamani” is said to be derived from the word “Yameen” (one that is on the right side and referred to good fortune in verse 27 of 56). This part is only touched by hands and not kissed as per tradition of the Prophet of Allah. This is because it is said that this part of Kaaba was rebuilt on its first foundations of the house, raised by the prophet Abraham. F. The Muqam (Station) of Abraham There is a piece of a stone on which the prophet Abraham stood during the construction of Kaaba. That piece of stone was pressed by the prophetic spiritual power of Abraham leaving thereon his deep foot impressions. Since that miracle had Allah’s sanction, Allah said it to be His sign. The said stone is lying fixed in front of Kaaba, where each pilgrim offers two unit of Salat in memory of Abraham in compliance with the Divine Order, ordained vide verse 125 of chapter 2, Al-Baqara, commanding to take the station of Abraham as the place of prayer. Further to it, verse 97 of chapter 3, Al-e-Imran, says, “In it (Kaaba) are manifest signs, e.g., the Muqam (station) of Ibraheem, whosoever enters it, he attains security.” Bokhari has recorded a narration of Ibne-Omer that “the Prophet of Allah reached Makkah, circumambulated Kaaba seven times and then offered two unit prayers in front of the station of Abraham Mateo. Then he went toward Saffa.” Indeed Allah has said, “Verily, in Allah’s Prophet you have good examples.” G. Saee (Going Back and Forth) between Saffa and Marwa Allah’s words regarding Saffa and Mara, revealed in verse 158, chapter 2, Al-Baqara: “Verily, Saffa and Marwa (the two hillocks opposite Kaaba) are the signs of Allah. So it is not a sin on him who performs Hajj or Umra of the House (Kaaba) to perform Tawaf between them. And whoever does any good voluntarily, and then Verily, Allah is All-Recognizer, All-Knower.” Imam Ahmad reported that Urwa said that he asked the mother Ayesha regarding the words “so it is not sin,” which appeared in the above verse. The mother then explained to him regarding this verdict of Allah that these wordings do relate a tradition of Ansar during the period of Jahiliya (ignorance). In that she said, “Before Islam the Ansar used to assume Ehlal (Ihram, the dress used during Hajj and Umra), to perform Hajj for their idol Manat, whom they used to worship. Those who assumed Ehlal for Manat, used to hesitate to perform Tawaf between Saffa and Marwa (as if it was also not prohibited). So they, when became Muslims, asked the Messenger of Allah, regarding it. Then the above verse 158 of 2 was revealed; and the Messenger of Allah made it Sunnah to perform Tawaf between these two mounts of Saffa and Marwa.” H. Origin of Tawaf between Saffa and Marwa Imam Ibne-Kathir has narrated a saying of the Prophet through Ibne-Abbas that the origin of tawaf comes from the tawaf of Lady Hajar (the wife of Prophet Abraham and the mother of Prophet Ishmael), when she wandered about by going to and from the mounts of Saffa and Marwa in search of water, after Abraham left them alone in Makkah, a deserted place then. When the lady feared that her son would die, she stood up and begged Allah for His help and kept going back and forth in that blessed area between Saffa and Marwa. She was praising and asking for Allah’s help in her most humble, fearful, frightened, and meek position. Allah heard His slave’s call and answered her prayers and relieved her from loneliness, ended her dilemma, and got her the water of the well of Zamzam, which is “a tasty and nutritional food and a remedy for the illness.” Therefore, whosoever has the opportunity to perform tawaf between these two mounts must adopt the way of submission of Lady Hajar, which Allah liked much and made it obligatory on all the nations to come. One should adopt the same attitude of humbleness and meekness in adopting the Sunnah of Lady Hajar. One should also follow the manners duly performed during the tawaf of Kaaba and pray for forgiveness, eternal pleasure, kindness, and mercy of Allah, the most loving and the most kind. I. Commandment for Hajj and Umra Allah commanded in verse 97, chapter 3, Al-e-Imran, “And hajj to the House (Kaaba) is a duty that mankind owes to Allah, for those who are able to undertake the Journey; and whoever disbelieves, then Allah stands not in need of (such) mankind and jinn.” Further to this verse, another verse 196 of chapter 2, ordains and say, “And perform properly Hajj and Umra for Allah.” Ibne-Abbas said in this regard, “Hajj is Arafat,” while “Umra is tawaf (of Kaaba).” According to the divine command, Hajj has been obligated on every believer at least once in his lifetime, provided the individual is capable to reach Makkah, i.e., he can legally arrange his travel and meet his expenses, leaving behind enough for his family to meet their expenses. He is also obliged to provide the same facility and facilitate his kin dependent on him to perform Hajj, subject to his resources. Hajj was made obligatory during the time of the prophets Abraham and Ishmael with a view to pay visit to the house of Allah to submit themselves before Him and to glorify Him and witness His signs. The main ritual was to make tawaf to the house of Allah and sacrifice the animals in His name. But during the period of ignorance, when the people started worshipping idols, the tradition of Hajj was also corrupted. The Prophet of Allah had also performed Hajj before and after the pronouncement of his prophethood, along with the ignorant people, till he was in Makkah. But after he migrated to Medina, he could only perform one Umra (lesser pilgrimage) after the conclusion of the Hudaibya treaty. The Muslims were able to perform Hajj as per their tradition on AH 9, but in the company of the disbelievers who did it in their own tradition. This is why the Prophet of Allah performed no Hajj that year in the company of the disbelievers. So during the same period, Allah ordained prohibition for the nonbelievers to perform Hajj anymore, and the Hajj was mandated for the believers at least once in their life. In this regard, the Prophet said that “the Hajj is once, so whoever does it more, then it is not essential” (Abu Dawood and Ahmad). It is very important to mention that at the same time, Ibne-Hibban in his Sahih and Al-Behqi have recorded a Hadith Qudsi, wherein the Prophet of Allah said that Allah said, “Verily a servant, whom I gave a healthy body and I expended for him his livelihood, and five years passed upon him that he does not come to Me (for Hajj) then he is deprived.” The following statements of the Prophet of Allah communicate to us the reward and importance of Hajj: i. “There is no reward for Hajj-al-Mabroor (the Hajj accepted by Allah), other than Paradise” (Bokhari and Muslim). ii. “Jihad of the elderly, the weak and the women is Al-Hajj-Al-Mabroor” (Nisai). iii. “Al-Umra to Al-Umra is a purification for whatever was between them (of sins), and there is no reward for Hajj Al-Mabroor other than paradise” (Bokhari). iv. “Whosoever is not detained by an apparent need or a confining illness or the prevention of an oppressor and he does not perform Hajj, then if he wills let him die as a Jew or a Christian” (Ahmad and Behqi).
Posted on: Sun, 13 Jul 2014 18:08:12 +0000
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