Kiswah

Kiswah

The kiswa, an ornately embroidered black cloth used to cover the holy Kaaba in Mecca, has a long and rich history among the Islamic people. Made from the highest quality silks and embroidered with gilt silver thread, it is a covering truly befitting Allah’s favorite shrine on earth.

It is said in the Qur’an that the Kaaba was built by Abraham and Ishmael thousands of years ago. It has been demolished and rebuilt several times since its creation, and the people of the Arabian Peninsula have always revered it as an exceptionally holy place even before the development of Islam in the 7th century. A kiswa was not used until the Tubbaʿ Asʿad Abu Karib al-Ḥimyari “provided the Kaaba with a kiswa and a door with a lock” (Brill Encyclopedia of Islam) in the 6th century, several generations before Muhammad. Although the kiswa may protect the Kaaba from the elements, its primary function is to glorify and honor the holiest spot in Islam.

Different kings and caliphs created kiswas in many different colors. Because the kiswa is replaced each year, thus, it is relatively easy to change these details. Muhammad used “fine Yemeni cloth” (Radio Islam) to create the holy covering, but the kiswa has also been white, green and even red before Nassir Abbasi started the tradition of the black kiswa in the 13th century. The rich embroidery covering the kiswa was introduced later, more than 700 years after the first kiswa was draped upon the hold Kaaba (Radio Islam).

The modern kiswa is made up of 18 pieces. Together they form the main covering, as well as a special panel that covers the door to the Kaaba.

There is an elaborately embroidered belt (45 meters in length) that goes around the top of the kiswa, in addition to several other shapes around the sides of the covering. The curtain covering the door to the Kaaba is the most elaborately embroidered, and contains both verses from the Qur’an and a dedication offering the kiswa to God from the ruler of Saudi Arabia (the responsibility making of the kiswa is given to the ruler of Mecca, in present-day Saudi Arabia). The kiswa is draped over the top of the Kaaba and sometimes remains out of reach of the pilgrims circling below.

The process of making of the kiswa is also a practice steeped in history and ceremony. It was traditionally made in Egypt, and brought over in a caravan before the replacement ceremony. In the early 20th century, a factory was built in Mecca that ended this long tradition. Originally it took 100 Indian weavers nearly the entire year to create the holy work of art, but this method was deemed too time-consuming and the factory was shut down until the 1960s when modern machinery was introduced to the process.

Once the new kiswa is complete, the old covering is removed, cut up, and distributed to “certain individuals, visiting foreign Muslim dignitaries and organizations” (Radio Islam). This tradition goes back to before the time of Muhammad. The new kiswa, costing about 4.5 million American dollars, is then put into place on the 10th day of Dhu-Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic lunar calendar.

The kiswa is considered the finest piece of Islamic art in the world. The care that is put into this holy “veil” (Brill Encyclopedia of Islam) is incredible, and is a true testament to the faith and dedication of the Muslims, and is a magnificent sight for all to see.

Ramadan in Mecca

Ramadhan in Mecca

• Ifthar In front on the Masjidil Haram 

• Salat Teraweeh

• I'tikaf
  

• Dua Khatam Al Quran

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History of Inside The Ka'bah

HISTORY OF INSIDE THE KA'BAH

Source : http://www.islamiclandmarks.com/

The diagram above shows a rare view of what the interior of the Ka’bah looks like. The construction made by Ebrahim (upon him be peace) contained no roof, it was the Quraysh who raised the walls of the Ka’bah and added a roof. Today, only a privileged few have had the opportunity to step inside the Ka’bah.

During the times of Jahiliyyah (Ignorance), a man and woman from the Yemenite tribe of Jurhum called Isaf and Na’ilah committed adultery inside the Ka’bah. Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) turned them into stones. When they were found the next day, they were carried outside and were set up at the Ka’bah as a warning. Over time these two stones were worshipped along with the other idols. One of the stones was placed right next to the Ka’bah; the other one was set up at the spring of Zamzam. Finally, the Quraysh ordered that the stone next to the Ka’bah to be carried to the other one at Zamzam. From then on, people slaughtered their sacrificial animals at that spot.

• When Islam began to spread, the Quraysh became more embittered and could not tolerate the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) any longer. The chiefs drew up a document which called for the social and economic boycott of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) and all those who supported him and his family. All of them signed this document on 1st Muharram of the seventh year of the Prophethood and the scroll was hung up inside the Ka’bah to give it full sanctity. For three long years the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) and his kinsmen were ostracized in a narrow valley in Makkah. Food was so scarce that they had to resort to eating leaves of trees and their children’s cries could be heard all over the valley. At last by the Grace of Allah, the scroll was eaten up by white ants save for the name of Allah and the boycott was uplifted.
• When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) arrived in Makkah on the day of victory, he made tawaf around the Ka’bah seven times and touched the Hajar al-Aswad with his staff. He then asked Uthman bin Talha to open the door of the Ka’bah. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) entered the Ka’bah accompanied by Usama bin Zaid, Bilal and Uthman bin Talha (may Allah be pleased with them). He closed the door, performed prayer and stayed for some time.
• Inside the Ka’bah were statues of Ebrahim (upon him be peace) and Ismail (upon him be peace), along with pictures of angels and a picture of Ebrahim (upon him be peace) with divining arrows in his hand. It has also been reported that there was an icon painting of the Virgin Mary and the child Christ which had been done by a Christian. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) ordered all of them to be destroyed.
• The two horns of the ram which Ebrahim (upon him be peace) slaughtered were hung inside the Holy Ka’bah. When Abdullah bin Zubair (may Allah be pleased with him) demolished the Ka’bah to rebuild it, he found the horns had disintegrated due to previous damage and age.
• The Quraysh had erected their chief idol, Hubal, within the centre of Ka’bah. It was made of red carnelian and shaped like a human with the right hand broken which the Quraysh had replaced with gold. In front of the idol were seven arrows of fate and when the pagan Arabs were undecided on a matter they would go to Hubal and throw the arrows in front of him and took ‘advice’ based on how the arrows appeared.

• Abdul Muttalib, the grandfather of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) had made a vow that if he ever had ten sons he would sacrifice one of them to God in front of the Ka’bah. When he subsequently fathered ten grown up sons up he announced his vow to them and had their names written on arrows of fate which were mixed and then one drawn out. Destiny fell upon Abdullah, his youngest and dearest son, who was to become the father of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him). Not wanting to sacrifice Abdullah, Abdul Muttalib consulted a soothsayer to see how he could be exonerated from his vow and in return for Abdullah’s life he gave away 100 camels. Hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) is called the descendant of the “two sacrificed ones” (Ismail (upon him be peace) and his own father, Abdullah). Similarly, he is referred to as the descendant of the “two elders held for ransom,” for Ismail (upon him be peace) was ransomed for a ram and his father for a hundred camels.
• The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) had Hubal destroyed after the conquest of Makkah.