Abraham the Great Prophet 7

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The Building of the Kaaba

In the ancient time of Abraham, there were many temples in the world for worshiping gods and offering sacrifices, but no place to show reverence to God almighty. The first house built for this purpose was the Kaaba in Macca. Its shape is like a square, not leaning to any side—a symbolic way to say that the owner of this house (almighty God) is not biased towards any nation or any person. When the Quran talks about the Kaaba it uses the word lil nas for human beings. The Kaaba’s purpose is to guide all the nations and to create a safe haven for humanity; it is a sanctuary where there is peace for anyone who enters into it. Moreover, adherence to this center will keep anyone safe from every type of danger. For the first time in the history of the world, a house with this underlying idea was built by Abraham and his son Ismail. God told him that Muslims comprise an international nation which is raised for the well-being of humanity. He said that it would be their duty to keep watch for the peace and security of human beings, and to work for the uplifting of the downtrodden and oppressed.

The Quran gives a graphic picture of father and son busy in building the Kaaba. Abraham, after laying the foundation of the Kaaba, was building its walls, and Ismail was helping him. While their hands were busy with work, they were praying to the sustainer of the entire universe to accept their work and make them Muslims (those who obey Allah’s laws and surrender to them.) They were saying, “Teach us the method to achieve this grand aim of serving humanity; in our coming generations raise people who obey your laws. We seek your help because your help is always ready for those who cherish it. Give our coming generations a prophet who will teach them your laws, and the reason for establishing them, and help them to form good character.”  

Abraham pointed out that the correct way of solving the problems of nations is by discussion and arguments under the guidance of revelation. For this purpose the Hajj was announced. The Hajj is the Annual All World Muslim Conference to solve their problems. The word Hajj comes from the root ha-j-j which means reason and discussion, and the Kaaba is the place where Muslims are to convene their meetings every year. In the case of emergency, they could convene emergency meetings known as Umra.  The time of the Hajj also can be used for solving difficult law cases. In a way, for the first time, under the guidance of God, the international court of justice was formed by Abraham.

   God made a covenant with Abraham and Ismail to keep his house (the Kaaba) free from all misleading ideas. The Muslims must follow the path that Abraham adopted. God ordered Abraham and Ismail to keep this place clean from destructive ideas of any kind. This place should be an international center for the representatives who are going to be responsible for the safety and well-being of all humanity.

In the book of world history a new page was added, where the problems of the nations were to be solved by reason under the guidance of revelation. In order to successfully carry on this procedure, Abraham settled his elder son in the non-arable land. This was the great sacrifice for which Ismail was chosen. He spent all his life away from luxury, propagating and working for these ideals.

Abraham the Great Prophet 6

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Abraham’s Guest

Abraham had settled in Palestine after his immigration. He was old, and without any children. He had left behind everything that could be a hindrance in his path. Now the blessings of God started pouring upon him. One day he saw some strangers in the land. There were no hotels in those times. Travelers were left at the mercy of the residents’ willingness to show hospitality to them. Abraham was a very kind and hospitable person. He greeted the travelers by saying, “Peace be upon you.”  They replied in the same way, “Peace be upon you.” He brought them home and roasted a calf for them to eat. The visitors showed no desire to eat. Abraham became suspicious about the intentions of his visitors; one of them said, “Do not worry. We are messengers of God, sent for Lot’s people, but we have good news for you. You are going to have children.” His wife, who was standing behind the door, laughed, because there was no imminent danger from them, and said, “Good news! Is it possible to have children when I am an old barren woman and my husband is reaching advanced age with white hair? It is going to be a very strange thing.” “Are you surprised about the decisions of God?” said one of the guests. “There is nothing to be surprised at; God is pouring his blessings upon you, family of Abraham, and His decisions are the best because He is wise and sublime.”

According to the Quran, Abraham had only one wife, and he had his two sons, Ismail and Isaac, by her. Ismail was the first born; according to the custom prevailing in their society, he was the head of the family. Ismail was a very obedient boy, who never lost his self-control under any circumstances.

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The Sacrifice of Ismail

Abraham was living in a place which was surrounded by many nations. These nations had their own customs and traditions; one was to sacrifice their children on the altar of their gods. Since the children were weak and helpless, completely dependent on their ruthless parents, and could not protest against them, their sacrifice was an easy option to gain the favor of the gods. In order to give it legitimacy, the people considered this heinous act to be the height of virtue.

Abraham was living among these nations and watching their absurd behavior. One night, he dreamt that he was sacrificing his son. For a man like Abraham, who had left all his relations and country, and had broken all the bounds of affection, this was a great opportunity to test himself. Surprisingly, the first person he consulted was his beloved son Ismail. “My son, I have seen in my dream that I was sacrificing you. What is your opinion about it?”

“My father, what you are told to do, do it. You will find me patient,” was the answer.

After this decision, when they both surrendered to what they thought was the will of God; the father flung Ismail on the ground on his face and raised the knife to sacrifice him. A voice came: “Abraham, you have acted upon your dream, and are willing to sacrifice your son. But it was a dream and not an order from Allah. Even so, it was a supreme act and its memory will always live in the world. God saved Ismail from this sacrifice for a greater sacrifice and that was to live in a desert city to build the Kaaba and propagate the ideals of Abraham.