Kaaba

== = =*Facts*= The Kaaba is located inside the Grand Mosque in Mecca. The Kaaba is in a cubic shape and is an ancient, simple structure made of granite. Kaaba is covered with a kiswah, a black silk cloth which is embroidered in gold with verses from the Quran.

=**Summary**= According to the Quran, the Kaaba was built by the prophet Abraham and his son Ishmael as a house of monotheistic worship. The Kaaba is considered the center of the Muslim world and serves as a focal point among the Muslims. The Kaaba was the first house of worship built for Muslims and is the holiest place in Islam. When Muslims do their daily prayers, they turn towards the Kaaba in Mecca.

There are many different beliefs about the Kaaba. Some Muslims view the Kaaba as nothing more than stone, while others believe that the Kaaba came down from the sky, bringing with it purity that could cleanse the faithful of their sins. It was said that the stone was at first a beautiful white, but then turned black after absorbing sins for a long period of time. Some people also believe that the stone structure is merely a point of reference in counting the ritual circling of the Kaaba during the Hajj.

=**How We Found The Sites**=

__**INFORMATION**__

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To find this cite I went to [|www.google.com] and typed in “Kaaba” in the search box. I clicked on the fifth link. This website told me a lot of information about the Kaaba. The Kaaba is located in Mecca, in the center of the town. The Kaaba is a small, square building built out of stones. It is 60 feet long, 60 feet wide and 60 feet high. The Kaaba is referred to as “The House of Allah.” It is said to have been built by Prophet Adam. Allah wanted the house to be built in the shape of the House in Heaven. The House in Heaven is called Baitul Ma’amoor.=====

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To find this cite I went to [|www.micdslibrary.com] and clicked on “databases.” Then I scrolled down to “History/Social Studies,” and clicked the dropdown menu and selected “ABCCLIO Ancient World History.” When I reached the website I typed in “Kaaba” in the right hand corner search box. Then I clicked on the first website option titled, “Kaaba.” From the page, I learned that the Kaaba is the holy shrine in Mecca. It contains the Al-hajar Al-aswad, or the “black sacred stone thought to be a meteorite.” This stone was given to Adam after he was banned from Eden. The stone was meant to help him be forgiven of his sins. The Kaaba is the place that Muslims go to on their //hajj//, or journey to Mecca. It is the holiest place in the world to Muslims. =====

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To find this cite I went to [|www.google.com] and typed in “Islamic Kaaba” in the search box. This link was the second one down the page. I clicked on it and I found out some interesting things about the Kaaba. For example, “kaaba” means “the cube” in Arabic. The Kaaba is a 15 meter high, and 10-12 meters wide building that was built and rebuilt to support the monotheistic worship. It is located in Mecca’s Grand Mosque. The Kaaba is made out of material called granite. A black meteorite (The Black Stone) is in a silver frame in the corner. Also, the Kaaba is covered in something called //kiswah.// Kiswah is a black silk cloth with verses from the Qur’an embroidered in gold. It is re-done and replaced with a new kiswah one every year. The Kaaba housed many pagan Arabs tribal gods until Muhammad came in 630 and destroyed all their statues, to rededicate the Kaaba to Allah, as a house of monotheistic worship.=====

__**IMAGES:**__ Google. “Mecca- Kaaba.” June 2008. arturovasquez.files.wordpress.com. November 9, 2009. []

I found this image by going to google.com and typing in “Kaaba.”

Google. “Kaaba.” N/A. farm4.static.flickr.com. November 9, 2009. []

I found this image by going to google.com and typing in "Kaaba."

Google. "Mekka." N/A. media.isnet.org. November 10, 2009. http://media.isnet.org/off/Islam/Etc/Mekka.GIF

I found this by going to Google and going to the images section. Then I typed in "people praying at the Kaaba."