It is good for a Muslim to know a minimum about the history of the Sacred House, the Ka’ba. And this can be counted as a precept of glorifying the sacred injunctions of Allah.

Allah says: « And whoever exalts the sacred injunctions of Allah, is indeed inspired by the piety of the hearts. (From these beasts) you get benefits until an appointed time; then its place of slaughter is by the Ancient House. » (Qur’an 22 /31-32)

Some verses of the Qur’an reveal the construction of the Ka’ba by the Prophet Ibrahim and his son Ismail Alaihim Assalam. Ibrahim, after spending part of his life in Iraq, migrated to the blessed land of Sham (at that time Syria and Palestine). While there, he was commanded by Allah to take his wife Hadjar and his son Ismail to a certain place where he would later rebuild the House of Allah.

Allah says: « And when We pointed out to Abraham the place of the House (The Ka’ba) (saying to him): ‘Do not associate anything with Me; and purify My House for those who go around it, for those who stand in it, and for those who bow down and prostrate themselves in it. (Quran 22 /26)

The Angel Djibril then led them to a barren plain, a plain that would later become the city of Makka. Since the time had not yet come to build the Ka’ba, Ibrahim was ordered to leave his wife and son there and return to the Sham. When he left, Hadjar asked him the reason for his action, but he did not answer. When she questioned him again, she finally understood that it was Allah who had ordered him to do so and to leave them in that desert place. She was reassured that Allah would not abandon them. So Ibrahim went away, and when he was out of their sight, he turned back to them and made the following invocations, which are recorded in the Qur’an:

« And (remember) when Abraham said: ‘O my Lord, make this city a safe place, and preserve me and my children from the worship of idols. O my Lord, they (idols) have led many astray. Whoever follows me is one of me. And whoever disobeys me, it is You, the Forgiver, the Most Merciful! O our Lord! I have settled some of my descendants in a valley without agriculture, near Your Sacred House (the Ka’ba), O our Lord, that they may perform prayer. So make the hearts of some of the people incline towards them. And feed them with fruit. Perhaps they will be grateful. (Qur’an 14/37)

A few years later, when Ismail was a young man, his father came to visit him in Makkah and told him that he had been ordered by Allah to build a house to be dedicated to His worship. He asked him to help him with this very important task. The angel Djibril had already indicated to Ibrahim the original location of the Ka’ba where only a small hill remained. They uncovered the remaining foundations of the House and began work from there.

The Qur’an informs us: « And when Abraham and Ismail were laying the foundations of the House, they said: ‘O our Lord! Accept this from us! For Thou art the Hearer, the All-Knowing. » (Qur’an 2 /127).

And so the Ka’ba was built again.

But other accounts give us to understand that the Ka’ba existed before Ibrahim. However, in his time, only the foundations remained, covered by the earth. The question then arises as to when the Ka’ba was first built. There are no clear and authentic traditions on this subject.

The Ka’ba was the first thing to emerge from the water

There are a number of historical accounts that say that at the very beginning of the creation of this world, the place where the Ka’ba is located was the first thing to emerge from the water, which then covered the whole earth, in the form of a white foam that gradually solidified. Later, the other lands emerged from this small portion.

The Ka’ba was built by the angels and then Adam

According to other traditions, it appears that it was the angels who first built the Ka’ba, in the image of « Bait Al Maamur » (the visited or full house) which is in the seventh heaven, and around which the angels made the Tawaf. This house built by the angels remained abandoned and it was Adam who, much later, received the order to renovate it. It remained untouched until the time of Noah, and then at the time of the Flood, it was raised to heaven. The place where it was located was lost and it was Ibrahim who had the honor, after the exact location was shown to him, to build the House again.

Source : Islamweb.net