Why do we say that the true Kaaba is not in Hijaz?
The Kaaba is considered by Muslims to be the House of God in which prayer is performed five times a day towards its direction. The ones who laid its foundation were two great prophets, a father and his son, Abraham and Ishmael (pbut). However, many generations later, the Kaaba would be littered with 360 different idols.
Although most people pray towards the Kaaba located in the city of Mecca, in present-day Saudi Arabia, Imam Ahmad Al-Hassan (fhip) had declared:
“The Kaaba that you know is not the Kaaba that is called the Sacred House of God”
– Sayings of Imam Ahmad Al-Hassan (PBUH), p.58, hadith 167
He would later reveal that the true and original location of this sacred building was in present-day Jordan, in the city of Petra.
Petra was filled with idols on the land and mountains, but in Hijaz there is no proof of the existence for the various idols that were present during the advent of Islam.
Mecca was known as the Mother of Cities. According to the Muslims, it used to be a great trading center which had visitors from many tribes and nations, a land with a massive influx of people annually. However, the land of Hijaz today has no archeological sites to back up such claims that Muslim historians hold about this city, not a single trace.
According to narrations, from both Sunni and Shia books, the Kaaba was demolished more than once and was even burnt down. In one instance, which took place 65 years after Hijrah, Abdullah ibn Al-Zubayr demolished the original Kaaba and rebuilt it. In reality, the Kaaba was relocated to another place.
Sources include:
– Tareekh Al-Tabary, Ibn Jareer Al-Tabary, 2nd ed., v.5, p.582 (Online book: v.4, p.451)
– Al-Bidaya Wal Nihaya, Ibn Katheer, 1992 ed., v.8, p.250 (Online book: p.275)
– Sahih Muslim, Book 15: The Book of Pilgrimage, Chapter 69: Demolishing the Kaaba and rebuilding it
– Jawahir Al-Tareekh, Ali Al-Korani, 1st ed., v.3, p.425 (Online book: p.426)
One of these narrations state:
Muhammad ibn Umar Al-Waqidi mentioned that Ibrahim ibn Musa narrated from Ikrimah ibn Khalid who said: “Ibn Al-Zubayr demolished the House (Kaaba) until he leveled it to the ground, dug out its foundation and placed the stone (Black stone) inside it, and the people were circling from behind the foundation and praying towards its position, and he made the Black Cornerstone in an ark [tabut] in a strip of silk…”
– Tareekh Al-Tabary, Ibn Jareer Al-Tabary, 2nd ed., v.5, p.582 (Online book: v.4, p.451)
“He causes to grow for you thereby the crops, olives, palm trees, grapevines, and of all the fruits. Indeed in that is a sign for a people who give thought.”
– Holy Quran, An-Nahl verse 11
Many Muslims believe this chapter of the Quran was revealed in Mecca. However, you will not find the aforementioned fruits, other than palm trees, in what is now believed to be the city of Mecca.
Some mosques located in Spain, North Africa, Syria and Iraq do not face the Kaaba in Mecca.
Currently, there are 11 mosques that are still standing and were created between the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad (pbuhahf) until 125 years after the migration to Medina. Other mosques that were built a century after the death of Prophet Muhammad (pbuhahf), and which are still standing, all point towards Petra.
Moreover, there are mosques that were built between the years 115-252 AH that do not point toward Hijaz.
It was only a century later that most mosques started to face the direction of what is now known as Mecca.
Petra was known for its high-traffic trading routes, while Mecca has no trace of such a supposed annual occurrence, despite popular claims found today concerning it.
Petra, on the other hand, has fields and soils that can be cultivated. Within this city, you will find fruits and fruit-trees mentioned in the Quran, which have been discovered by archeologists in this ancient forgotten city, as opposed to the barren city in modern-day Hijaz.
Petra has plenty of rainfall and there is evidence of five aqueducts with an overall length of 55,000 metres and an irrigation system, thus water was easily available and plenty. However, Mecca only receives around 4 inches of rain annually. How could such a city provide its inhabitants and traders, from across the world, food and drink in such a scarce and dry land as Mecca?
There is a lot of evidence to back up this truth. We have to realise that now is the time to open our eyes and see how far away we are from the true religion.
The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light is a 501c3 non-profit organization. This is the Call of Imam Al-Mahdi, the saviour of mankind, to all the people of the world.
Imam Al-Mahdi has appeared, with his successors Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan, and Abdullah Hashem Aba Al-Sadiq (From Them is Peace).
Imam Al-Mahdi is calling the people to the true Supremacy of God.
