Hajar-Al-Aswad---The Black Stone: History Significance:

[Yonis]

Some Muslims are more willing to believe that the Stone itself has some supernatural powers. They believe that this stone fell from the sky during the time of Adam and Eve, and that it has the power to cleanse worshippers of their sins by absorbing them into itself. They say that the Black Stone was once a pure and dazzling white and it has turned black because of the sins it has absorbed over the years.

 

It is remarkable, however, that even though the temple contained 360 idols worshipped before Muhammad's Prophet-hood, the black stone was never kissed or made an idol of worship. In fact, the Ka'ba was never worshipped by the idolaters prior to Muhammad's Prophet-hood. The building contained idols of worship but the building itself was never an object of worship.

 

It is said that when Abraham completed the building of the Kaaba, with the help of his son, Ishmael, God commanded him to do the tawaf. He was not able to keep a correct count of the rounds he made. He felt that other worshipers would be similarly confused. He prayed God to give him a sign to be used for counting rounds. The Angel Gabriel brought him the Black Stone.

 

 

When one starts tawaf, and at the completion of every round, one should kiss the Black Stone or touch it with one's hands, if that is possible, or signal to it from a distance, if the place is too crowded. As one does so, one should repeat this declaration: "There is no deity save God; God is supreme." The significance of this particular action is best expressed by Omar ibn Al-Khattab, the second greatest figure among the companions of Prophet Muhammad and his second successor as ruler of the Islamic state, and a distinguished scholar. He addressed the Black Stone in these words:"I know that you are a stone which can cause no harm or benefit. Had it not been for the fact that I saw God's messenger (peace be upon him) kissing you, I would not have kissed you."

 

 

“There are various reports from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) concerning the origin or the Black Stone, but most of them are of doubtful origins. In Islam, we should not base our belief on sources which we cannot verify one hundred percent. The only fact that we can certainly establish is that it was put there by Prophet Ibrahim and Isma’eel (peace be upon them both) by the order of Almighty Allah, and the purpose of it was to indicate the beginning of tawaf (circumabulation of the Ka`bah).Scholars have classified some of the Hadith reports concerning the Black Stone as Sahih (authentic) and as such they relate some importance to the Black Stone. Here are some of the hadiths reported as regards the Black Stone:

 

Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) also narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When the Black Stone came down from Paradise, it was whiter than milk, but the sins of the sons of Adam made it black.†(At-Tirmidhi, Sunan)

 

Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) further related that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “By Allah, Allah will bring it forth on the Day of Judgment, and it will have two eyes with which it will see and a tongue with which it will speak, and it will testify in favor of those who touched it in sincerity.†(At-Tirmidhi, Sunan)