Who Raised the Foundations of the Ka'aba in Makkah?
من الذي رفع قواعد الكعبة في مكة؟
Ibrahim and his son Ismail, peace be upon them, raised the foundations of the Ka'aba. "And remember when Abraham raised the foundation of the House with Ishmael, both praying, 'Our Lord! Accept this from us. You are indeed the All-Hearing, All-Knowing'" (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:127).
إبراهيم وابنه إسماعيل عليهما السلام رفعا قواعد الكعبة، قال الله تعالى: وَإِذْ يَرْفَعُ إِبْرَاهِيمُ الْقَوَاعِدَ مِنَ الْبَيْتِ وَإِسْمَاعِيلُ رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا إِنَّكَ أَنتَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ (سورة البقرة: 127).
1. Building in the Same Valley Where Zamzam Had Sprung Up | البناء في وادي زمزم
By the time Ibrahim and Ismail raised the Ka'aba's foundations, Ismail was no longer the infant left in an empty valley. He had grown up around the well of Zamzam, covered in Which Prophet Had the Zamzam Water Gush at His Feet?, which had drawn other settlers to the valley over the years. Father and son built the Ka'aba together in the very place that had once been empty.
ولما رفع إبراهيم وإسماعيل قواعد الكعبة لم يكن إسماعيل ذلك الرضيع الذي تُرك في وادٍ خالٍ، بل كان قد شبّ حول بئر زمزم، كما بيّنا في جواب: من النبي الذي تفجّر ماء زمزم عند قدميه؟، وقد اجتذبت زمزم الناس إلى الوادي على مرّ السنين. فبنى الأب وابنه الكعبة معًا في المكان الذي كان خاليًا من قبل.
2. A Prayer of Humility, Not Certainty | رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا
Despite building the very House of Allah under direct instruction, Ibrahim and Ismail did not assume their effort was automatically accepted. Their prayer, "Our Lord, accept this from us," is held up by scholars as a model of sincerity, that even the greatest acts of worship should be offered with humility and hope rather than certainty of one's own righteousness.
ومع أنهما بنيا بيت الله بأمره، لم يجزما بأن عملهما مقبول، بل قالا: (رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّا ۖ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ) (البقرة 2: 127)، فجعل العلماء دعاءهما مثالًا للإخلاص؛ إذ ينبغي أن تُؤدّى أعظم العبادات بتواضع ورجاء، لا بالجزم بصلاح النفس.
3. The House That Remains the Center of Prayer Today | البيت الذي ما زال قبلة المسلمين
The Ka'aba that Ibrahim and Ismail raised remains the Qibla toward which Muslims around the world face in prayer, and the center of the Hajj pilgrimage that re-enacts moments from this same family's history, including Hajar's search between Safa and Marwa. Few acts of construction in human history carry the same continuous religious significance. On the day Makkah was conquered, the Prophet ﷺ came out of the Ka'aba reciting a verse that many commentators say was revealed concerning its key, as explained in the verse revealed inside the Ka'aba. The command to face the Ka'aba from every land is explained in what the Qibla of the Muslims is.
ولا تزال الكعبة التي رفع قواعدها إبراهيم وإسماعيل قبلةَ المسلمين في صلاتهم في كل أرض، ومقصد الحجاج الذين يُحيون في مناسكهم مواقف من تاريخ هذه الأسرة، ومنها سعي هاجر بين الصفا والمروة. وقلّما عرف التاريخ بناءً بقي له هذا الأثر الديني المتصل. ويوم فتح مكة خرج النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم من الكعبة وهو يتلو آية قال كثير من المفسرين إنها نزلت في شأن مفتاحها، كما بيّنا في جواب الآية التي نزلت في جوف الكعبة، وبيّنا الأمر باستقبال الكعبة من كل أرض في جواب قبلة المسلمين.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
Who built the Ka'aba's foundations?
Prophet Ibrahim and his son Prophet Ismail, as recorded in Surah Al-Baqarah 2:127.
What did Ibrahim and Ismail pray while building the Ka'aba?
They asked Allah to accept their work from them, a prayer of humility rather than certainty.
Is the Ka'aba built in the same valley as the Zamzam well?
Yes. The Ka'aba and Zamzam are in the same valley where Ibrahim left Hajar and the infant Ismail.