fahim mohammed
Well-known member
My grandchildren are in Makkah today with their parents. Hamza called me from there. He was excited. Jaddo, it is awesome, he said. What is awesome Hamza?, I asked.
Everything, said Hamza. The Holy Mosque was not very crowded during the middle of the night, he said in long sentences. His voice broken only when he would stop to take a deep breadth. I got to touch the Kabaa, I got to the door of the Kaaba, continued the child. As if he had received a perfect gift. He might not realize it, but he surely had.
The door to the Kaaba. Long time ago, there lived a man by the name of Uthman ibn Talha. He was a very influential man. And wielded power. The power that comes from holding the Key to the doors of the Kaaba. Entrance to the Kaaba was solely at his discretion. People would be pushed and kicked away from It's doors.
Many suffered injuries and even death as a result of the show of force by Uthman and his people.
It so happened that there lived another man in the same town of Makkah. One day, this man went to visit the Kaaba. On wanting to enter the Kaaba, the door keeper,
Uthman, refused him entry.
This man, on being refused entry to the Kaaba, told Uthman that one day he ( Uthman ) would see the other person in a position where he could give the keys to the Kaaba to whomsoever he pleased. To which Uthman is reported to have said that that would certainly mean the end of the Tribe of Quraish and its power. Uthman, in his anger, forgot that the person he was addressing was also a member of the Quraish tribe.
But Uthman was rich, powerful with very powerful friends.
Many years had passed, when one day fear gripped Makkah and its inhabitants. There was an army and they had defeated the combined forces of Makkah in battle. They entered Makkah. They entered the Kaaba. They were led by the very same person whom Uthman had denied entry to the Kaaba years back.
" Surely, Allah commands you to render back things held in trust to their rightful
owners; and that if you judge between mankind, that you judge justly ". The Holy Koran.
The leader of the conquering forces, took the Keys to the Kaaba and entrusted them to the sons of Abu Talha. He said, " Uthman, Allah Almighty is trusting you with His House. Take His Trust. Uthman, take your keys ".
The tradition continues to this day.
The name of the man whom Uthman had denied entry to the Kaaba was Mohammed ( PBUH ).
Keys break. New ones were made. The image below is of one of the earliest copies of the Keys to the Kaaba.
I wonder if Hamza knows of this story. I shall tell him when he returns from Makkah. It is important he knows.
p.s. Edited to mention that the image is not mine but from a book by Hilmi Aydin. It is being used here
as an illustration for non-commercial, editorial and educational purposes only. The interested traveler can see the
real item at the magnificent Topkapi Palace Museum in Istanbul, Turkey.
Ayesha has a video made inside the museum of this and other items on display.
Everything, said Hamza. The Holy Mosque was not very crowded during the middle of the night, he said in long sentences. His voice broken only when he would stop to take a deep breadth. I got to touch the Kabaa, I got to the door of the Kaaba, continued the child. As if he had received a perfect gift. He might not realize it, but he surely had.
The door to the Kaaba. Long time ago, there lived a man by the name of Uthman ibn Talha. He was a very influential man. And wielded power. The power that comes from holding the Key to the doors of the Kaaba. Entrance to the Kaaba was solely at his discretion. People would be pushed and kicked away from It's doors.
Many suffered injuries and even death as a result of the show of force by Uthman and his people.
It so happened that there lived another man in the same town of Makkah. One day, this man went to visit the Kaaba. On wanting to enter the Kaaba, the door keeper,
Uthman, refused him entry.
This man, on being refused entry to the Kaaba, told Uthman that one day he ( Uthman ) would see the other person in a position where he could give the keys to the Kaaba to whomsoever he pleased. To which Uthman is reported to have said that that would certainly mean the end of the Tribe of Quraish and its power. Uthman, in his anger, forgot that the person he was addressing was also a member of the Quraish tribe.
But Uthman was rich, powerful with very powerful friends.
Many years had passed, when one day fear gripped Makkah and its inhabitants. There was an army and they had defeated the combined forces of Makkah in battle. They entered Makkah. They entered the Kaaba. They were led by the very same person whom Uthman had denied entry to the Kaaba years back.
" Surely, Allah commands you to render back things held in trust to their rightful
owners; and that if you judge between mankind, that you judge justly ". The Holy Koran.
The leader of the conquering forces, took the Keys to the Kaaba and entrusted them to the sons of Abu Talha. He said, " Uthman, Allah Almighty is trusting you with His House. Take His Trust. Uthman, take your keys ".
The tradition continues to this day.
The name of the man whom Uthman had denied entry to the Kaaba was Mohammed ( PBUH ).
Keys break. New ones were made. The image below is of one of the earliest copies of the Keys to the Kaaba.
I wonder if Hamza knows of this story. I shall tell him when he returns from Makkah. It is important he knows.
p.s. Edited to mention that the image is not mine but from a book by Hilmi Aydin. It is being used here
as an illustration for non-commercial, editorial and educational purposes only. The interested traveler can see the
real item at the magnificent Topkapi Palace Museum in Istanbul, Turkey.
Ayesha has a video made inside the museum of this and other items on display.