Firsts of the Holy Ka'bah



• The first spot of Earth Allah created was the site of the Holy Ka'bah. It appeared on the water, forming a nucleus under which the earth was formed.



• The Holy Ka'bah was the first House of worship appointed for people on earth, and has been constructed by the Angels. It is the direction for worship of Allah, the Almighty, and it is characterized by right guidance and benediction. It is a symbol of human unity where all direct their hearts towards a united, single direction.



• The Holy Ka'bah was the first place, since the creation of the earth and heavens, in which Allah prohibited committing sins.



• It was the first house built with stone on earth.



• The first circumambulators of the Holy Ka'bah were the Angels who constructed it.



• The first pilgrims of the Sacred House were the Angels.



• The first house founded on earth by Adam (peace be upon him) was the Sacred House. He was the first human being who founded the house for people.



• Seth (peace be upon him) was the first person to renew the Sacred House.



• Quraish were the first to alter the building of the Holy Ka'bah area-wise. This took place five years before the mission of the Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him). Abdullah Ibn AI-Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them) restored it to its original area in 65 H., but Al-Hajjaj Ibn Yusuf AI-Thaqafi brought it back to its status during the Quraishi era.



• The first person to set up a door that could be locked in the Holy Ka'bah was Tubba' As'ad Al-Himiari. Anush Ibn Seth (peace be upon him) and Jurhum were believed to have also done the same.



• The first person to roof-over the Holy Ka'bah was Qusai Ibn Kilab. Then it was roofed over again by Quraish five years before the mission of the Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him).



• The first person to cover the Holy Ka'bah with a partial Kiswah was Ismail (peace be upon him).



• The first person to cover the Holy Ka'bah with full Kiswah was Tubba As'ad AI Himairi, who believed in the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace be upon him) four centuries prior to his mission.



• The first person who built houses around the Holy Ka'bah was Qusai Ibn Kilab, about one hundred and thirty years before Hijfah. People did not use to build houses in the vicinity of the Holy Ka'bah, but on the outskirts of Makkah AI-Mukarramah. Those who built their houses around the Holy Ka'bah were known as Quraish Al-Bawatin.



• The first person to erect idols inside and round the Holy Ka'bah was Amer Ibn Luhay Al-Khuzaie, who brought Hubal from Ardh Al-Jezira in AI-Sham, and put it over the pit (the coffer of the Holy Ka'bah). He was the first to call for the worship of idols in Makkah Al-Mukarramah.







• The first person to fix a waterspout (for rain drainage) at the top of the Holy Ka'bah was Abdullah Ibn Al-Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them). It has been replaced several times.



• The first person to construct a cube-shaped house, like the Holy Ka'bah, was Hameed Ibn Zuhair. Before that, houses were round, differing from that of the Holy Ka'bah.



• Abdul Muttalib Ibn Hashim, the grandfather of the Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) was the first to beautify the Holy Ka'bah. He put in it two golden gazelles, which he had found in the well of Zamzam. He also decorated the door of the Holy Ka'bah with the weapons he had found with the two gazelles.



• The first person to take off his shoes and slippers on entering the Holy Ka'bah, glorifying and respecting it, was Al-Waled Ibn AI-Mugheera. This happened after Quraish had finished building the Holy Ka'bah, and ever since this has become a customary practice when entering this sacred place.



• The first obligatory prayer performed at the Holy Ka'bah after the night of Miraj of Prophet Muhammad's ascension to the seven heavens, was the five obligatory prayers. Gabriel led the prayer accompanied by the Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him). The five prayers were performed opposite the middle of the eastern side of the Holy Ka'bah to the right of its door.



• The Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) was the first to wash the Holy Ka'bah on the day of victory, the conquest of Makkah, after its expulsion of idols and its purification.



• Bilal Ibn Rabah was the first to call the adhan for prayer over the Holy Ka'bah. This was also on the day of victory in Makkah. Some polytheists winked at each other, trying to humiliate Bilal because he was a former slave, but Allah, the Almighty, supported him by revealing the following Qur'anic verse: "O mankind! We created, you from a single (pair), of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you might know each other, (Not that you should despise each other). Verily, the most honoured of you, in the sight of Allah, is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things) " (49:13)



• The first person to pave the floor of the Holy Ka'bah and cover the walls with marble was AtWaleed Ibn Abdul Malik. The marble was white, green and red.



• The Abbasid Caliph, Abu Ja'far AI-Mansour, was the first to lay marble on Hijir Ismail (peace be upon him) in 140 H., and several replacements have followed since.

• Sultan Murad Khan was the first to completely renovate Hijir Ismail (peace be upon him). Sultan Abdul Majeed Khan reconstructed it in 1260 H.



• The first person to fire on the Holy Ka'bah with catapults was AI-Husayn Ibn Numair, who came with his army to tight against Ibn AI-Zubair, as commanded by Yazeed Ibn Muawiyah in 64 H.



• The first section of the Holy Ka bah, which collapsed as a result of torrential flooding in 1039 H., was the wall constructed by AI-Hajjaj Ibn Yusuf AI-Thaqafi.



• The first Imam or Wali to touch the Black Stone before and after prayer was Abdullah Ibn AI-Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them). Other rulers recommended that and followed suit.



• The first to touch the four corners of the Holy Ka'bah on circumambulation was Ibn Al-Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them). He justified his originally not touching the two Shami corners on the assumption that they had not been built on the foundations of Abraham (peace be upon him). This is because Quraish reduced the total area from the foundations of Abraham (peace be upon him) on the north of AI-Hijir.



• Khalid Ibn Abdullah Al-Qasri was the first to order Muslims to stand in rows circling the Holy Ka'bah while praying. This was in 75 H., during the reign of Caliph Abdul Malik Ibn Marwan. Before this, they used to pray just behind Abraham's Station.



• The first to erect an umbrella for the Holy Ka'bah was the Commander of the Faithful, Ja'far AIMutawakil Ala Allah. It was a curtain or an awning put on the tops of windows or doors to protect them from the sun. Sometimes it was a sort of ornament or decoration contributed by the wealthy. It was usually set on the top of the door of the Holy Ka'bah on the sixth of Dhul Hijjah and taken off on the eighth (the day of Tarwiya). Rulers used to boast about decoration. It was twenty-five centimetres multiplied by three metres, and was decorated with jewels and sapphires.



• The first postal stamps which carried the picture of the Holy Ka'bah were printed in 1384 H. They were issued in four, six and ten qarshe denominations.

