Tafsir of Surah Aal Imran - Verse 96

The Ka`bah is the First House of Worship

Allah said,

إِنَّ أَوَّلَ بَيْتٍ وُضِعَ لِلنَّاسِ

(Verily, the first House appointed for mankind) for all people, for their acts of worship and religious rituals. They go around the House in Tawaf, pray in its vicinity and remain in its area in I`tikaf.

لَلَّذِى بِبَكَّةَ

(was that at Bakkah,) meaning, the Ka`bah that was built by Ibrahim Al-Khalil, whose religion the Jews and Christians claim they follow. However, they do not perform Hajj to the house that Ibrahim built by Allah's command, and to which he invited the people to perform Hajj. Allah said next, i

مُبَارَكاً

(full of blessing), sanctified,

وَهُدًى لِّلْعَـلَمِينَ

(and a guidance for Al-`Alamin.)

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Dharr said; "I said, `O Allah's Messenger! Which Masjid was the first to be built on the surface of the earth' He said, `Al-Masjid Al-Haram (in Makkah).' I said, `Which was built next' He replied `Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem).' I said, `What was the period of time between building the two' He said, `Forty years.' He added,

«ثُمَّ حَيْثُ أَدْرَكْتَ الصَّلَاةَ فَصَلِّ، فَكُلُّهَا مَسْجِد»

(Wherever (you may be, and) the prayer becomes due, perform the prayer there, for the whole earth was made a Masjid.)" Al-Bukhari and Muslim also collected this Hadith.

The Names of Makkah, Such As `Bakkah

Allah said,

لَلَّذِى بِبَكَّةَ

(was that at Bakkah), where Bakkah is one of the names of Makkah. Bakkah means, `it brings Buka' (crying, weeping) to the tyrants and arrogant, meaning they cry and become humble in its vicinity. It was also said that Makkah was called Bakkah because people do Buka next to it, meaning they gather around it. There are many names for Makkah, such as Bakkah, Al-Bayt Al-`Atiq (the Ancient House), Al-Bayt Al-Haram (the Sacred House), Al-Balad Al-Amin (the City of Safety) and Al-Ma'mun (Security). Makkah's names include Umm Rahm (Mother of Mercy), Umm Al-Qura (Mother of the Towns), Salah, as well as others.

The Station of Ibrahim

Allah's statement,

فِيهِ ءَايَـتٌ بَيِّـنَـتٌ

(In it are manifest signs) 3:97, means, clear signs that Ibrahim built the Ka`bah and that Allah has honored and blessed it. Allah then said,

مَّقَامِ إِبْرَهِيمَ

(the Maqam (station) of Ibrahim) When the building the Ka`bah was raised, Ibrahim stood on; the Maqam so that he could raise the walls higher, while his son Isma`il was handing the stones to him. We should mention that the Maqam used to be situated right next to the House. Later, and during his reign, `Umar bin Al-Khattab moved the Maqam farther to the east, so that those who go around the House in Tawaf are able to perform it easily, without disturbing those who pray next to the Maqam after finishing their Tawaf. Allah commanded us to pray next to the Maqam;

وَاتَّخِذُواْ مِن مَّقَامِ إِبْرَهِيمَ مُصَلًّى

(And take you (people) the Maqam (station) of Ibrahim as a place of prayer) 2:125.

We mentioned the Hadiths about this subject before, and all the thanks are due to Allah. Al-`Awfi said that, Ibn `Abbas commented on Allah's statement,

فِيهِ ءَايَـتٌ بَيِّـنَـتٌ مَّقَامُ إِبْرَهِيمَ

(In it are manifest signs, the Maqam of Ibrahim;)

"Such as the Maqam and Al-Mash`ar Al-Haram." Mujahid said, "The impression of Ibrahim's feet remains on the Maqam as a clear sign." It was reported that `Umar bin `Abdul-`Aziz, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, As-Suddi, Muqatil bin Hayyan and others said similarly.

Al-Haram, the Sacred Area, is a Safe Area

Allah said,

وَمَن دَخَلَهُ كَانَ ءَامِناً

(whosoever enters it, he attains security,) 3:97 meaning, the Haram of Makkah is a safe refuge for those in a state of fear. There in its vicinity, they will be safe, just as was the case during the time of Jahiliyyah. Al-Hasan Al-Basri said, "(During the time of Jahiliyyah) a man would commit murder, then wear a piece of wool around his neck and enter the Haram. And even when the son of the murdered person would meet him, he would not make a move against him, until he left the sanctuary." Allah said,

أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْاْ أَنَّا جَعَلْنَا حَرَماً ءامِناً وَيُتَخَطَّفُ النَّاسُ مِنْ حَوْلِهِمْ

(Have they not seen that We have made (Makkah) a secure sanctuary, while men are being snatched away from all around them) 29:67, and,

فَلْيَعْبُدُواْ رَبَّ هَـذَا الْبَيْتِ - الَّذِى أَطْعَمَهُم مِّن جُوعٍ وَءَامَنَهُم مِّنْ خوْفٍ

(So let them worship (Allah) the Lord of this House (the Ka`bah). (He) Who has fed them against hunger, and has made them safe from fear) 106:3-4.

It is not allowed for anyone to hunt in the Haram or to drive game out of its den to be hunted, or cut the trees in its vicinity, or pick its grass, as the Hadiths of the Prophet and the statements of the Companions testify. The Two Sahihs recorded (this being the wording of Muslim) that Ibn `Abbas said, "On the day of the conquest of Makkah, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«لَا هِجْرَةَ، وَلــكِنْ جِهَادٌ وَنِيَّـةٌ، وَإِذَا اسْتُنْفِرْتُمْ فَانْفِرُوا»

(There is no more Hijrah (migration to Makkah), only Jihad and good intention. If you were mobilized, then march forth.)

He also said on the day of the conquest of Makkah,

«إِنَّ هَذَا الْبَلَدَ حَرَّمَهُ اللهُ يَوْمَ خَلَقَ السَّمَواتِ وَالْأَرْضَ، فَهُوَ حَرَامٌ بِحُرْمَةِ اللهِ إِلى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ، وَإِنَّهُ لَمْ يَحِلَّ الْقِتَالُ فِيهِ لأَحَدٍ قَبْلِي، وَلَمْ يَحِلَّ لِي إِلَّا فِي سَاعَةٍ مِنْ نَهَارٍ، فَهُوَ حَرَامٌ بِحُرْمَةِ اللهِ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ، لَا يُعْضَدُ شَوْكُهُ، وُلَا يُنَفَّرُ صَيْدُهُ، وَلَا يَلْتَقِطُ لُقَطَتَهَا إِلَّا مَنْ عَرَّفَهَا، وَلَا يُخْتَلَى خَلَاهَا»

(Beware! Allah made this town (Makkah) a sanctuary when He created the heavens and earth, and it is sacred by Allah's decree until the Day of Resurrection. Fighting in Makkah was not permitted for anyone before me, and it was made legal for me for only a few hours or so on that day. No doubt it is at this moment a sanctuary by Allah's decree until the Day of Resurrection. It is not allowed to uproot its thorny shrubs, hunt its game, pick up its lost objects, except by announcing it, or to uproot its trees.)

Al-`Abbas said, `Except the lemon grass, O Allah's Messenger, as they use it in their houses and graves.' The Prophet said:

«إِلَّا الْإِذْخِر»

(Except lemongrass)."

The Two Sahihs also recorded that Abu Shurayh Al-`Adawi said that he said to `Amr bin Sa`id while he was sending the troops to Makkah (to fight `Abdullah bin Az-Zubayr), "O Commander! Allow me to tell you what Allah's Messenger ﷺ said on the day following the conquest of Makkah. My ears heard it and my heart memorized it thoroughly, and I saw the Prophet with my own eyes when he, after glorifying and praising Allah, said,

«إِنَّ مَكَّةَ حَرَّمَهَا اللهُ، وَلَمْ يُحَرِّمْهَا النَّاسُ، فَلَا يَحِلُّ لِامْرِى يُؤْمِنُ بِاللهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ أَنْ يَسْفِكَ بِهَا دَمًا، وَلَا يَعْضِدَ بِهَا شَجَرَةً، فَإِنْ أَحَدٌ تَرَخَّصَ بِقِتَالِ رَسُولِ اللهِصلى الله عليه وسلّم فِيهَا فَقُولُوا لَهُ: إِنَّ اللهَ أَذِنَ لِرَسُولِهِ وَلَمْ يَأْذَنْ لَكُمْ، وَإِنَّمَا أَذِنَ لِي فِيهَا سَاعَةً مِنْ نَهَارٍ، وَقَدْ عَادَتْ حُرْمَتُهَا الْيَوْمَ كَحُرْمَتِهَا بِالْأَمْسِ فَلْيُبَلِّغِ الشَّاهِدُ الْغَائِب»

(Allah, not the people, made Makkah a sanctuary. Therefore, anybody who has belief in Allah and the Last Day, should neither shed blood in it nor cut down its trees. If anybody argues that fighting in it is permissible on the basis that Allah's Messenger ﷺ fought in Makkah, say to him, `Allah allowed His Messenger and did not allow you.' Allah allowed me only for a few hours on that day (of the conquest), and today its sanctity is as valid as it was before. So, those who are present, should inform those who are absent of this fact.)."

Abu Shurayh was asked, "What did `Amr reply" He said that `Amr said, "O Abu Shurayh! I know better than you in this respect; Makkah does not give protection to a sinner, a murderer or a thief."

Jabir bin `Abdullah said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ saying,

«لَا يَحِلُّ لِأَحَدِكُمْ أَنْ يَحْمِلَ بِمَكَّةَ السِّلَاح»

(None of you is allowed to carry a weapon in Makkah.) Muslim recorded this Hadith.

`Abdullah bin `Adi bin Al-Hamra' Az-Zuhri said that he heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say while standing at Al-Hazwarah in the marketplace of Makkah,

«وَاللهِ إِنَّكِ لَخَيْرُ أَرْضِ اللهِ، وَأَحَبُّ أَرْضِ اللهِ إِلَى اللهِ، وَلَوْلَا أَنِّي أُخْرِجْتُ مِنْكِ مَا خَرَجْت»

(By Allah! You are the best of Allah's land and the most beloved land to Allah. Had it not been for the fact that I was driven out of you, I would not have left you.)

Imam Ahmad collected this Hadith and this is his wording. At-Tirmidhi, An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah also collected it. At-Tirmidhi said, "Hasan Sahih."

The Necessity of Performing Hajj

Allah said,

وَللَّهِ عَلَى النَّاسِ حِجُّ الْبَيْتِ مَنِ اسْتَطَـعَ إِلَيْهِ سَبِيلاً

(And Hajj to the House is a duty that mankind owes to Allah, for those who are able to undertake the journey) 3:97.

This Ayah established the obligation of performing Hajj. There are many Hadiths that mention it as one of the pillars and fundamentals of Islam, and this is agreed upon by the Muslims. According to texts and the consensus of the scholars, it is only obligatory for the adult Muslim to perform it once during his lifetime. Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ once gave a speech in which he said,

«أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ قَدْ فُرِضَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْحَجُّ فَحُجُّوا»

(O people! Hajj has been enjoined on you, therefore, perform Hajj.)

A man asked, "Is it every year, O Allah's Messenger" The Prophet remained silent until the man repeated the question three times and he then said,

«لَوْ قُلْتُ: نَعَمْ لَوَجَبَتْ وَلَمَا اسْتَطَعْتُم»

(Had I said yes, it would have become an obligation and you would not have been able to fulfill it.) He said next,

«ذَرُونِي مَا تَرَكْتُكُمْ فَإِنَّمَا هَلَكَ مَنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكُمْ بِكَثْرَةِ سُؤَالِهِمْ وَاخْتِلَافِهِمْ عَلى أَنْبِيَائِهِمْ، وَإِذَا أَمَرْتُكُمْ بِشَيْءٍ فَأْتُوا مِنْهُ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ، وَإِذَا نَهَيْتُكُمْ عَنْ شَيْءٍ فَدَعُوه»

(Leave me as I leave you, those before you were destroyed because of their many questions and disputing with their Prophets. If I command you with something, perform it as much as you can. If I forbid something for you, then refrain from it.) Muslim recorded similarly.

Meaning of `Afford' in the Ayah

There are several categories of "the ability to under take the journey". There is the physical ability of the person himself and the ability that is related to other things as mentioned in the books of jurisprudence. Abu `Isa At-Tirmidhi recorded that Ibn `Umar said, "A man stood up and asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ `O Messenger of Allah! Who is the pilgrim' He said, `He who has untidy hair and clothes.' Another man asked, `Which Hajj is better, O Messenger of Allah' He said, `The noisy (with supplication to Allah) and bloody (with sacrifice).' Another man asked, `What is the ability to undertake the journey, O Messenger of Allah' He said, `Having provision and a means of transportation."' This is the narration that Ibn Majah collected. Al-Hakim narrated that Anas said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked about Allah's statement,

مَنِ اسْتَطَـعَ إِلَيْهِ سَبِيلاً

(for those who are able to undertake the journey;) 3:97 "What does `able to undertake the journey' mean" The Prophet answered, "Having sufficient provision and a means of transportation." Al-Hakim stated that this Hadith's chain of narration is authentic, following the guidelines of Muslim in his Sahih, but the Two Sahihs did not collect it. Ahmad recorded that Ibn `Abbas said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«مَنْ أَرَادَ الْحَجَّ فَلْيَتَعَجَّل»

(Whoever intends to perform Hajj, let him rush to perform it.) Abu Dawud also collected this Hadith.

The One who Denies the Necessity of Hajj Becomes a Disbeliever

Allah said,

وَمَن كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ الله غَنِىٌّ عَنِ الْعَـلَمِينَ

(...and whoever disbelieves, then Allah stands not in need of any of the `Alamin) 3:97.

Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid and several others commented on this Ayah, "Whoever denies the necessity of Hajj becomes disbeliever, and Allah is far Richer than to need him." Al-Hafiz Abu Bakr Al-Isma`ili recorded that `Umar bin Al-Khattab said, "Whoever can afford Hajj but did not perform it, there is no difference in his case if he dies while Jew or Christian." This has an authentic chain of narration leading to `Umar.

Commentary:

The above verse points out to the distinction and superiority of the House of Allah, the Ka'bah, as compared to the houses, and even mosques, of the whole world. There are several reasons for this status, which have been mentioned in this verse, namely:

1\. Among the true houses of worship in this world, the Ka'bah enjoys the distinction of being the first.

2\. It is full of blessings.

3\. It is a source of guidance for the entire world.

The gist of the words used in the verse is that the first House designated for people by Allah is none other than the one which is in Makkah al-Mukarramah. It means that the Ka'bah of Makkah al-Mukarramah is the first House of Worship in this world. One possible interpretation of this phrase may be that the first house of all the houses of the world was made for Divine worship exclusively, in which case, there would have been no place of worship or place of residence prior to it. Adam (علیہ السلام) was a prophet of Allah. Given his stature and the eminent position as Allah's vicegerent, it is likely that he, soon after his appearance on the earth, elected to first build the House of Allah even before building his own residence. It is for this reason that Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn ` Umar, Mujahid, Qatadah and others ؓ from among the Companions and their successors are of the opinion that the Ka` bah is the first house of the world. Then, it is also possible that houses where people lived may have already been made earlier but this may have been the first ever House made exclusively for worship. This very view has been reported from Sayyidna ` Ali ؓ

Al-Baihaqi, in his book, Dala'il al-Nubuwwah دلایٔل النبوہ ، has reported on the authority of Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn ` Amr ibn al'As that the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، said: 'After the arrival of Sayyidna Adam and Sayyidah Hawwa' (علیہا السلام) into the mortal world, Allah Almighty commanded them through angel Jibra'il (علیہ السلام) that they should build the House of Allah (the Ka'bah). After they had fulfilled the command, they were asked to go round it (in tawaf). They were told that they were the first among people and this house was the first House (of worship) appointed for people (Ibn Kathir).

As it appears in some reports, this structure of the Ka'bah built by Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) was there upto the time of Sayyidna Nuh (علیہ السلام) . It collapsed during the Flood and its traces were obliterated. Following that, it was re-built by Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) on the same foundations. When the structure collapsed again due to some accident, a group from the tribe of Jurhum raised it once again. When yet another collapse came, the Amalkites rebuilt it. When it collapsed close to the early period of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، the Quraysh built it all over again in which the Holy Prophet ﷺ himself participated and helped place the Black Stone with his blessed hands. But, the structure raised by the Quraysh was a little different from the original foundation laid down by Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) in as much as they had left out a section of the House of Allah which is known as حطیم Hatim. There were two doors in the original Abrahamic structure of the Ka'bah, one for entry and another on the back for exit. The Quraysh retained just the one door in the east (for entry and exit).

The third change they made was to raise the level of the entry door much higher than the ground level of the House of Allah so that everybody could not go in there easily; this was to restrict the entry only to those who were permitted by Quraysh. The Holy Prophet ﷺ Said to Sayyidah ` A'ishah ؓ : 'I wish I could demolish the present structure and raise it all over again exactly in accordance with the Abrahimic foundation. By doing this I shall be correcting the arbitrary deviation from the Abrahimic foundation made by the Quraysh, but this action is likely to create a misunderstanding among Muslims who are new and whose knowledge is not yet perfect, therefore, I shall leave it as it is for the time being.' The Holy Prophet ﷺ did not live for very long to implement his wishes in his lifetime.

But, Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn Zubayr ؓ the nephew of Sayyidah ` A'ishah ؓ had heard this saying of the Holy Prophet ﷺ . When he came to rule Makkah al-Mukarramah following the Khulafa al-Rashidin, he had the structure of the House of Allah demolished and had it rebuilt in accordance with the saying of the Holy Prophet ﷺ and the original foundation of Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) . He ruled Makkah al-Mu` azzamah for a brief period only. The tyrant of the Muslim community, Hajjaj ibn Yusuf invaded Makkah and Hadrat ` Abdullah ؓ was martyred. After assuming control of the government, and abhorrent as he was to the idea that this feat of ` Abdullah ibn Zubayr ؓ remains a source of fame for the martyred ruler, he started a smear campaign that ` Abdullah ibn Zubayr ؓ was wrong in what he did and that the Ka` bah should be kept the way it was left to posterity by the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Using this excuse, he once again demolished the structure of the House of Allah and had it built anew similar to the one made earlier by the Quraysh during the days of Jahiliyyah. Some Muslim rulers who succeeded Hajjaj ibn Yusuf intended, on the strength of the aforementioned hadith, to rebuild the House of Allah all over again in accordance with the hadith of the Holy Prophet ﷺ . But, the master-jurist of that period, Sayyidna Imam Malik ibn Anas (رح) gave a fatwa to the effect that re-demolishing and re-building the House of Allah at this stage will render the House of Allah a plaything in the hands of rulers who will follow. Every ruler who comes next will do exactly this to earn fame for himself. Therefore, it is appropriate that it be left the way it is. The entire ummah accepted it. This is the reason why the structure built by Hajjaj ibn Yusuf is what remains even to this day. There have been damages, dilapidations and the process of repairs has continued ever since.

These narrations, first of all, tell us that the Ka'bah is the first house of the world, or at least, the first house of worship. While the Holy Qur'an does mention that the House of Allah was built by Sayyidna Ibrahim and Ismail following His will and command, there are simultaneous indicators suggesting that these revered prophets did not go through the initial layout for its construction. Instead, they built it in accordance with previous foundations, because the real foundation of the Ka'bah was already there. From what is said in the Holy Qur'an, وَإِذْ يَرْ‌فَعُ إِبْرَ‌اهِيمُ الْقَوَاعِدَ مِنَ الْبَيْتِ وَإِسْمَاعِيلُ (and when Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) was raising up the foundations of the House along with Ismail (علیہ السلام) 2:127) we get an indication that the Qawa` id or the foundations of the House of Allah were already there. It appears in Surah al-Hajj: وَإِذْ بَوَّأْنَا لِإِبْرَ‌اهِيمَ مَكَانَ الْبَيْتِ (and when we settled for Ibrahim the site of the House - 22:26)

This too is suggestive of the fact that the site of the House of Allah had continued as pre-determined since earlier times. The first verse lends support to the view that its foundations were already there.

When Sayydina Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) was commanded to build the House of Allah, as in some reports, he was led by an angel on to the site of the Ka'bah and its previously existing foundations hidden under sand dunes.

In any case, the verse under reference does prove one of the merits of the Ka'bah, that is, it is the first ever house or place of worship. It has been reported in a hadith from the Sahihayn that Sayyidna Ab Dharr ؓ asked the Holy Prophet ﷺ 'Which is the first ever masjid in the world?' He ﷺ said, 'al-Masjid al-Haram.' He submitted again, 'Which masjid comes after that?' He ﷺ said, 'Masjid Bayt al-Maqdis.' He asked once again, 'What time span separates their building?' He ﷺ said, 'Forty years.'

In this hadith, it is in relation to the new edifice of the House of Allah that the intervening period between its construction and the initial construction of Bayt al-Maqdis has been determined. As a matter of fact, there are reports which prove that the initial construction of Bayt al-Maqdis was undertaken by Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) forty years after the construction of the Ka'bah. Then comes the construction of Bayt al-Maqdis by Sayyidna Sulayman (علیہ السلام) This too was not a new structure with new foundations, like the Ka'bah. Instead, Sayyidna Sulayman (علیہ السلام) rebuilt it on the original Abrahimic foundations. Thus, there remains no contradiction between reports.

The Ka` bah has always been an object of reverence and respect. This fact is pointed out in the expression وُضِعَ لِلنَّاسِ (set up for the people) in this verse under discussion hinted therein is that the respect and honour in which this House of worship is held will not be limited to a particular nation or group. Instead, the whole humanity will hold it in respect. Allah Almighty has placed a built-in aura of dignity and awe in its presence which draws in the hearts of people automatically.

Here, the word 'Bakkah' means 'Makkah al-Mu'azzamah'. It does not matter whether you say that the letter 'mim' has been substituted for 'ba since, in common Arab usage, 'mim' is substituted for 'ba', or simply say that 'Bakkah' is an alternate name for 'Makkah'.

The Blessings of the Ka'bah

The second merit of بیت اللہ Baytullah (the Ka'bah) stated here in this verse is that it is blessed. The word, 'mubarak' has been derived from 'barakah' which means 'to grow' and 'to sustain'. You can look at this growth factor from two angles. Something may grow in a way that it visibly increases in quantity, but the other possible way of growing is that it adds nothing noteworthy to its quantity, yet it turns out to be so useful in so many situations that it would have usually needed much more to do the same job. In that sense this too could be regarded as 'growth' or 'increase'.

The Ka'bah is full of blessings outwardly and inwardly. The outward blessings it has are quite obvious. Inspite of Makkah and its environs being a desert, dry and barren, all sorts of fruits and vegetables and items of need are available in all seasons and at all times. Not only that these are enough for the people of Makkah, it is much more than that. These suffice for all visitors from everywhere in the world. And everyone knows the volume of visitors, especially during the Hajj season, when hundreds and thousands of people from the farthest corners of the world assemble there whose count outnumbers the resi-dents of Makkah by at least four or five times. This huge multitude of people stays there, not for a few days, but for months together. Even, apart from the Hajj season, there is hardly a time of the year when thousands of people from outside do not come in and go out of here. It may be noted that, during the Hajj season particularly when hundreds and thousands of people from outside assemble there, it has never happened that articles of use could have gone out of the market and become unavailable. Even, animals of sacrifice which are slaughtered there by each and every person, at least on the average of one per per-son, and there are some who sacrifice more, are always available there. It is not that special arrangements are made to import these from other countries. In the words of the Holy Qur'n, يُجْبَىٰ إِلَيْهِ ثَمَرَ‌اتُ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ (Brought toward it are fruits of everything - 28:57), there is a clear indication of this phenomena.

This was a view of the outward blessings which, of course, are not the ultimate objective. The spiritual, the inward blessings are so numerous that it is impossible to count them. There are important ` ibadat, the acts of worship, which are special to the Ka'bah. The great reward and the spiritual blessings that come from them totally revolve around the بیت اللہ Baytullah, such as the Hajj and ` Umra. Then, there are some other ` ibadat the merit of which increases several degrees when done in al-Masjid al-Haram. The Holy Prophet ﷺ has said that a man offering salah at his home will get thawab for one salah; and if he does that in the masjid of his locality, he will get the reward for twenty five salahs; and one who does that in a Jami` جامعہ big congregational mosque) will get the reward for five hundred salahs; and should he offer his salah in al-Masjid al-Aqsa, he will get the reward for one thousand salahs; and in my Masjid, he gets the thawab for fifty thousand salahs, while in al-Masjid al-Haram, that of one hundred thousand salahs. (This narration has been reported by Ibn Majah and Tahawi and others).

As far as the merits of Hajj are concerned, Muslims generally know the Hadith which declares that a Muslim who performs his Hajj obligations correctly is so cleansed of his past sins as if he was born on that day, all pure and pristine. Obviously, all these are spiritual blessings of the بیت اللہ Baytullah. These very blessings have been identified bythe word ھدی towards the end of the verse: مُبَارَ‌كًا وَهُدًى لِّلْعَالَمِينَ (having blessings and guidance for all worlds).

According to the Jews’ self-made set of religious laws, eating the meat of the camel and the rabbit was illegal, while it was quite licit in Islam. So the Jews would ask, if Islam was a revealed religion, why it was that the lawful and the unlawful were different in Islam from what had been laid down in the former revealed religions. Similarly, they would ask how it was that a religion revealed by God could command the direction of prayer to be the Ka‘bah instead of al-Bayt al-Maqdis (Jerusalem), which had remained the direction for prayer in the teachings of all the prophets up till then. They in fact refused to believe that God could reveal a religion in which the Ka‘bah was held to be the direction for prayer.