Rebuilding the Kabba:

When Mohamed became 35 years old, the people of Qurish decided to rebuild the Kabba which needed repair.  They also wanted to raise its height and put a root to it.  They had little wood in Makah at that time; however a ship wreck was washed out by the sea in Jeddah area, which provided the wood necessary.  They also happen to have a Christian carpenter to do the carpentry work.

Inside the Kabba, there used to be a well they throw the offerings to the Kabba in.  In this well lived a snake which threatened any one who approaches her.  It used to go out and climb on the walls of the Kabba and stay there for warmth.  One day a big bird picked her of the wall of the Kabba where it used to stretch for warmth, then the people of Makah felt that Allah the Highest is pleased with what they wanted to do.

They started to pull the walls of the Kabba first, and a man called Ais Ibn Omran started.  He took the first stone of the wall of the Kabba, which jumped off his hands back to its place, and then he cried: “O people of Qurish; do not spend on the building (of Kabba) except what is good and pure.  Do not use the money earned by prostitution, usury or money earned through injustice and unfairness to any one”.  (It is also reported that these words were said by Al-Waleed Ibn El-Mogirah)

This shows that the Arabs before Islam considered prostitution, usury and unfair earnings to be not good or pure money.

The Kabba was divided into section and every family or tribe was given a section to pull down, and then rebuild.  People were very afraid of pulling the Kabba down, and no one wanted to start, and then Al-Waleed Ibn El-Mogirah started –He was the father of Khalid Ibn El-Waleed- and went on working all day, and no one else did.  People waited overnight to see if something will happen to Al-Waleed, when they saw him going out to work next day, they started working.

They pulled the building down to the foundations laid by Ibrahim peace upon him, where they found green stones the shape of a camel hump.  A man inserted his tool between two stones to separate them, but when they moved the whole of Makah shock.  Then they decided not to remove the old foundations of Ibrahim peace upon him.

The tribes and families went on collecting stones for building, and every tribe or family gathered the stones for building the part they had to build.  They went one building until they finished building the Kabba, and had to put the black stone back in its place.  There was a dispute, for they disagreed as to who should have the honour of putting the black stone back in place.  They reached the point of fighting and for 4 or 5 days they were in suspense and ready to fight each other for that honour.

A man by the name of Aba Omaha Ibn El-Mogirah and he was the oldest of them, suggested that they all accept the judgement of the first man to come, and the next thing there was Mohamed Ibn Abd Allah coming.  They were satisfied and pleased that he rules in this dispute.

When he was asked to rule in the dispute, he asked for a sheet of cloth, on which he placed the black stone.  Then he asked a man from each tribe or family to hold the sheet and carry the sheet with the black stone who where it should be placed.  Then Mohamed took it and placed it in its place in the wall of the Kabba.  This way fighting and blood shed in Makah was prevented.

The Jews in the Arab Peninsula:

Some Jews lived in the Arab Peninsula, who concentrated in Yathrib and Khyber.  The Christians concentrated in Najran in Yemen. 

Three Jewish tribes lived in Yathrib (Medina), they were called; Bano Qurizah, Bano El-Nazer, and Bano Kinoka.  And there were two Arab tribes; Al-Awse and Al-Khazrag who were idle worshipers.  Whenever there was a conflict between the Arabs and Jews in Yathrib, the Jews used to mention that they are expecting a prophet to rise then whom they will follow and fight the idle worshipers with him.  The Jews of Yathrib mentioned this many times, so that the idle worshipping Arabs knew about it very well.

It has been narrated that a Jewish man called Ibn Al-Heban went to live in Yathrib some years before Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him.  He was a decent character and righteous man, so much so that when it did not rain, they used to ask him to pray for rain and it rains.  He did that several times.

When he was dying, he told some of the Jews youth who were with him that he left the land of sham (Syria & Lebanon) and the comfortable life there because he knew of a prophet about to rise in this region; he hoped to see and follow.  He also said that this prophet will fight those who oppose him and take prisoners.  However, when Allah the Highest sent Mohamed prayer and peace upon him, they did not follow him.  When the Muslims fought and besieged the tribe of Bano Qurizah in their fortress, they remembered what they heard from Ibn Al-Heban, and they believed and became Muslims.

Salman the Persian:

Salman was a Persian man from a place called Asbahan.  His father was a wealthy man, and he loved Salman very much, and they were Magus (worship fire).  Salman used to worship fire and keenly attends to the fire so that it never goes out.  Salman did not leave the house often until one day his father asked him to go to their farm for some business.

Salman went to the farm, and on the way he passed by a Christian church, and he heard them praying, so he went in and stayed and liked their prayer.  Salman spend the rest of the day in the church until sunset and did not go to the farm.  When he went back home, he told his father about what he did in his day, and that he thought that Christianity is better than fire worshipping and that he wanted to be Christian.  His father was very angry with him, and decided to tie him and imprison him at home.

Salman managed to get a message to the Christian people, asking them to let him know whenever travelers come to them from Sham where Christianity spread then, and the time of their departure from Persia, so that he may escape and join them.  When a caravan came from Sham and was about to leave, Salman managed to untie his robes, escape and join them to Sham.

Salman asked in Sham about the most knowledgeable of the Christians, and they directed him to a Bishop, whom Salman went to serve in his church to pray with him and learn from him.  Unfortunately, this bishop was dishonest, collecting charity for the poor, but keeping most of for himself, until he gathered a fortune 7 earth ware containers full of gold and silver.  Salman told the other priests, who found the treasure, crucified the bishop and stoned him.

The bishop was replaced with a decent man who had a very simple life, spent his time praying.  Salman loved this bishop very much and stayed with him for a long time.  When the bishop was dying, Salman asked him to direct him to someone else to go to, and he told him about a man in Mousel (in Iraq).  After this bishop’s death and burial Salam went to the priest in Mousel.

Salman stayed with the priest in Mousel until he was dying, he asked him then to direct him to another priest and he directed him to a priest in a place called ‘Naseben”.  He went to the priest there, and he directed him before his death to a priest in “Amoryah”, and Salman went off to him.  There Salman worked and saved some money and he became the owner of some cows and sheep.  When the priest was dying and Salman asked him where to go next, the priest told him that it is the time for the appearance of a new prophet who will be from the Arab land.  He will be in a land with many palm trees, he will eat from a gift but not from charity, and will have the seal of prophecy between his should blades.  He advised him to go there and to follow the prophet when he sees him.

Salman stayed in Amoryah for a while, and when he found a caravan travelling to Arabia, he agreed with them to pay them his animals for taking him over to the Arab land.  However on the way, they took his as slave, and then sold him to a Jewish man in Arabia.  This Jewish man sold Salman to his cousin who was fro the tribe of Bano Qurizah in Yathrib, and he took him there.  When Salman saw Yathrib, he knew that this is the place, and he was very pleased.

Salman lived in Yathrib serving his master, and one day a cousin of his master came telling his master that the people from Aws and Khazrag are gathered in Qibaa around a man they claim to be a prophet.  When Salman heard this while he was on top of a palm tree, his body shivered.  He came down and said to his master’s cousin: “What do you say”, this angered his master who hit him hard.

Salman had some dates and food, he took to Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him while he was still at Qibaa and said: “I am told that you are a good man, and you have some companions who are strangers and in need.  This is something I had for charity, and I you are more deserving than others” and he gave him the food.  Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him said to his companions: “Eat”, but he did not eat.  Salman said to himself: “This is one (sign)”

Salman went and got more food, in the mean time Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him arrive at Medina.  He took the food to him and said: “I noticed that you do not eat from the charity, this is a present to honour you”.  Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him ate and asked his companions to eat from that food.

One day, Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him was at Baqee follow one of his companion’s funeral, then he sate down.  Salman went and kept looking at his back trying to see the seal of prophecy.  Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him noticed he let his cloak slip off his back a little so that Salman may see the seal.  When Salman saw it, he went on kissing Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him and crying.  Then Salman told Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him his full story.

Then after the battles of Badr and Ohud, Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him told Salman to ask his master how much he wants for Salman’s freedom?  Salman’s master demanded 300 palm trees and forty ounces of gold, which was exorbitant.  Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him said to his companions: “Help your brother out”.  They went on giving Salman as many young palm trees as they could, until he had 300.  Then Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him commanded Salman to dig the earth for the tree, and when he did, Allah’s messenger placed each of the three hundred young palms in the soil with his own hands, and they all lived.  This is the character Allah the Highest said about: “YOU ARE OF SUPREME CHARACTER”.

Salman gave the palm trees to his Jewish master, but the gold remains to be paid.  One day a man brought Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him a piece of gold like an egg, he said: “Where is the Persian man buying his freedom?”  When he came he said to him: “Take this and pay of what you owe”, Salman said: “And what is compared to what I awe Allah’s messenger”.  He said: “Take it, Allah will make it pay for you”.  Salman took it to his master, and when weighed, it was 40 ounces, and Salman gained his freedom.

Salman left the service of the Jewish man in Medina, and went to live with the Muslim.  He did not miss and took part in all the expeditions and battles with Allah’s messenger prayer and peace upon him.

Dr Ahmed Saafan