Explanation regarding Kaaba

The questions related to kaaba are one of the main questions that non muslims ask the muslims. It includes questions about our bowing in the direction of Kaaba, and also of the black stone. Here I am providing the simple answers to the question. Further details can be found on the net as well.

Kaaba is the Qibla i.e. the direction Muslims face during their prayers. It is important to note that though Muslims face the Kaaba during prayers, they do not worship the Kaaba. Muslims worship and bow to none but Allah.
It is mentioned in Surah Baqarah:“We see the turning of thy face (for guidance) to the heavens: now shall We turn thee to a Qiblah that shall please thee. Turn then thy face in the direction of the Sacred Mosque: wherever ye are, turn your faces in that direction.” [Al-Qur’an 2:144].But that does not mean that Allah is present only in one direction ie kaaba.

To Allah belong the east and the West: Whithersoever ye turn, there is the presence of Allah. For Allah is all-Pervading, all-Knowing. [Al-Qur’an 2:115].

Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to pray voluntary (nafl) prayers when riding on his camel, no matter what direction it was facing, when he came from Makkah to Madeenah.” Then Ibn ‘Umar recited this aayah (interpretation of the meaning): “And to Allaah belong the east and the west, so wherever you turn yourselves or your faces, there is the Face of Allaah (and He is High above, over His Throne)…” [al-Baqarah 2:115]

Ibn ‘Umar said: “It was concerning this that this aayah was revealed.” (Reported by al-Tirmidhi, 2883; he said, this is a saheeh hasan hadeeth)

.So, it is clear from the above references that Allah is not bounded by direction. Previously, the muslims used to face towards Jerusalem for prayers, but later it was changed to Kaaba. If the muslims worshipped the kaaba, why did they first face Jerusalem? The answer is that Muslims worship only Allah, and Qibla is just the ‘direction’.
If a christian prays (to whoever it be), and he faces, say, a wall, does that mean that he is actually praying to the wall? This question, certainly, is as stupid as saying that muslims worship the kaaba.

The Muslims were the first people to draw the map of the world. They drew the map with the south facing upwards and north downwards. The Kaaba was at the centre. Later, western cartographers drew the map upside down with the north facing upwards and south downwards. Yet, Alhamdullilah the Kaaba is at the centre of the world map.When the Muslims go to Masjid-e-Haram in Makkah, they perform tawaf or circumambulation round the Kaaba. This act symbolizes the belief and worship of One God, since, just as every circle has one centre, so also there is only one Allah (swt) worthy of worship.At the time of the Prophet, people even stood on the Kaaba and gave the ‘adhaan’ or the call to prayer. One may ask those who allege that Muslims worship the Kaaba; which idol worshipper stands on the idol he worships?

HAJR-E-ASWAD

Regarding the black stone, hajr-e-aswad, there is a hadith (tradition), attributed to the illustrious companion of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh), Umar (may Allah be pleased with him).
According to Sahih Bukhari, Volume 2, book of Hajj, chapter 56, H.No. 675. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit nor harm. Had I not seen the Prophet (pbuh) touching (and kissing) you, I would never have touched (and kissed) you”..

It is clear from the above hadith, that kissing the stone does not mean worshipping it. Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, claimed that the stone was sent down by Allah Almighty to Prophet Abraham and his son Ishmael, peace be upon both of them, to give the precise location of where the Kaaba was to be built by them. We believe that Prophets Abraham and Ishmael built the Kaaba. Western Scientists have confirmed that the black stone, which resides near the Kaaba in the Holy City of Mecca, is an outside METEORITE OBJECT!.

At hajj time you are actually unlikely to see the Black Stone: Masjid Al-Haram is just too crowded. There is a line on the floor of the Masjid to tell you where the line of the Black Stone is. Many hajis must perform Tawaaf NOT on the Kaaba floor but on the SECOND OR THIRD STORIES of the Majid Al-Haram!

On Levels #2 and #3 there are both marks on the floor and neon lights to show you where to start and stop tawaaf.

The scholars agree that waving in the direction of the Black Stone is sufficient recognition of its location as the start and stop of Tawaaf.

In actuality, waving in direction of the Black Stone is the best you will probably do at hajj time.

The Black Stone has had an interesting history during the Islamic period. In 930 AD a ruler of Bahrain – who belonged to a branch of Ismailism known as the Karmatians – sacked Makkah and carried the Black Stone away for some 70 years until it was ransomed.
In the process, the Black Stone was cracked. It is now held together by a silver band. The fact that Islam was able to function without the Black Stone for 70 years is one of the best illustrations that it is but a marker for Tawaaf – and NOT an object of worship..

WHAT IF KAABA IS DESTOYED?.Those who ask this question, is certainly not good in history. They suppose that if kaaba is destoyed, then muslims wont have any direction to pray! They again fail to realize that Kaaba is only a direction, not an object of worship like idols  Also, the kaaba has been subjected to reconstructions and repairs.ACCORDING TO WIKIPEDIA:

“The Kaaba has been repaired and reconstructed many times since Muhammad’s day. Abd-Allah ibn al-Zubayr, an early Muslim who ruled Mecca for many years between the death of Ali and the consolidation of Ummayad power, is said to have demolished the old Kaaba and rebuilt it to include the hatīm, a semi-circular wall now outside the Kaaba. He did so on the basis of a tradition (found in several hadith collections) that the hatīm was a remnant of the foundations of the Abrahamic Kaaba, and that Muhammad himself had wished to rebuild so as to include it.
This structure was destroyed (or partially destroyed) in 683, during the war between al-Zubayr and Umayyad forces commanded by Al-Hajjaj bin Yousef. Al-Hajjaj used stone-throwing catapults against the Meccans.
The Ummayads under Abdu l-Malik ibn Marwan finally reunited all the former Islamic possessions and ended the long civil war. In 693 he had the remnants of al-Zubayr’s Kaaba razed, and rebuilt on the foundations set by the Quraysh. The Kaaba returned to the cube shape it had taken during Muhammad’s lifetime.
During the Hajj of 930, the Qarmatians attacked Mecca, defiled the Zamzam Well with the bodies of pilgrims and stole the Black Stone, removing it to the oasis region of Eastern Arabia known as al-Aḥsāʾ, where it remained until the Abbasids ransomed it back in 952 CE.
Apart from repair work, the basic shape and structure of the Kaaba have not changed since then..

ISLAM BELEIVES IN FOSTERING UNITYSo from whencesoever Thou startest forth, turn Thy face in the direction of the sacred Mosque; and wheresoever ye are, Turn your face thither: that there be no ground of dispute against you among the people, except those of them that are bent on wickedness; so fear them not, but fear Me; and that I may complete My favours on you, and ye May (consent to) be guided;” [Quran 2:150] .For instance, if Muslims want to offer Salaah (Prayer), it is possible that some may wish to face north, while some may wish to face south. In order to unite Muslims in their worship of the One True God, Muslims, wherever they may be, are asked to face in only one direction i.e. towards the Kaaba. If some Muslims live towards the west of the Kaaba they face the east. Similarly if they live towards the east of the Kaaba they face the west, so that the unity of the Muslims is maintained.

Compiled from various sources including wikipedia, answering-christianity.com and Dr. Zakir Naik’s book

see also http://letmeturnthetables.blogspot.com/2008/08/is-kissing-of-black-stone-by-muslims.html