THE TEMPLE OF THE KA'BAH AND THE BLACK STONE
The Ka'bah is not the tomb of the Prophet, nor an object to be worshipped, as many Europeans imagine. It is a temple called "Beit Allah al Haram" (the Holy House of Allah), and its origin can be traced to the most distant days of antiquity.
According to the Arab tradition, it was built by Adam, the father of the human race. Destroyed by the Flood, it was rebuilt on the same foundations, by the Prophet Abraham, with the help of his son, Ishmael, the ancestor of the Arabs. Since then, often repaired, but retaining the same lines and proportions, the Ka'bah became the goal of Arab pilgrims flocking to adore Allah, the Only One, and perform seven ritual circuits instituted by their forefathers under the title of "Tawaf."
Little by little, the worship of Allah, the Only One, having degenerated in the memory of the pilgrims who added the practice of idolatry, Mohammad was sent to destroy the three hundred and sixty images they adored.
In the east angle of the monument is incrusted the famous black stone "Hajaru'l-Aswad", framed in a silver circle.
This stone, which came down from Paradise, was brought by the angel Jibra'il (Gabriel) to Abraham and his son, during the rebuilding of the Temple, and they placed it where it is still to be seen this day, in order to serve pilgrims as a starting-point for their ritual circuits. Primitively as white as milk, its present characteristic ebony tint is due to the pollution of the sins of the pilgrims who came to touch and kiss it, while imploring the Merciful to pardon them.
Close to the Ka'bah is the well of Zamzam. Its miraculous water gushed forth from the earth to save Ishmael from the tortures of thirst when lost in the desert with his mother, Hajar (Hagar). Neglected by the Arab tribes, in the dark Days of Ignorance, it became choked up by sand and was dug anew by Abdul Muttalib, a few years before the birth of Mohammad. The water, ever since, is revered by pilgrims who use it for drinking purposes and for their ablutions, thereby sanctifying themselves by the remembrance of their ancestors.
The two functions of "Siqayah," (Management of Water Supply), and of "Hajaba," (Superintendence of the Ka'bah) were posts greatly sought after on account of their prerogatives. At the epoch at which our story begins, they were both united in the hands of Abdul Muttalib bin Hashem, of the Quraish tribe, the grandfather of the future Prophet.
THE MARRIAGE OF ABDULLAH, FATHER OF THE PROPHET
One day, Abdul Muttalib, custodian of the Ka'bah, set forth from the Sanctuary, his favourite son, Abdullah, holding his hand.