The pillars of the Kaaba The pillars of the Kaaba refer to the pillars inside the Kaaba that were first installed by the Quraysh in the year 35 of the Year of the Elephant. During the reconstruction of the Kaaba in the year 64 AH, Abdullah bin Zubair reduced their number to three, and their number and placement have remained the same to this day.
The color of the pillars is dark brown, and there is a rod between the pillars from which some of the Kaaba's hangings are suspended. "History" The first columns of the Kaaba were erected by the Quraysh in the year 35 Aam al-Fil (the Year of the Elephant). They included six columns in two rows of three, extending from north to south (the width of the Kaaba).(1) Ṣabrī Pāshā, Mawsūʿa mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn wa Jazīrat al-ʿArab , vol. 2, p. 819. , Ṣaffarī-Furūshānī, Makkah fī Bistar al-Tārīkh, p. 106. Before that, since the time of Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), the Kaaba was without a roof and did not need columns.(2) Ṣabrī Pāshā, Mawsūʿa mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn wa Jazīrat al-ʿArab , vol. 1, p. 332. , Azraqī, Akhbār Makka, vol. 1, p. 66. During the war between the armies of Yazid and Ibn al-Zubayr, the Kaaba was set on fire and destroyed. Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr rebuilt the Kaaba in the year 64 AH. He placed three wooden columns, the number and positions of which have remained the same to this day.(3) Batanūnī, Al-Riḥla al-Ḥijāziyya, p. 106. , Ṣabrī Pāshā, Mawsūʿa mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn wa Jazīrat al-ʿArab, vol. 1, p. 264. The Place of the Prophet’s (PBUH) Prayer
In some historical narrations, it is mentioned that after the conquest of Mecca, the Prophet (peace be upon him) entered the Kaaba and prayed. The location of his prayer was such that two columns were on his right, one column on his left, and three columns behind him.(4) Ṣabrī Pāshā, Mawsūʿa mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn wa Jazīrat al-ʿArab , vol. 2, p. 819. Today, upon entering the Kaaba, directly opposite the door, there is a mihrab that is identified as the place where the Prophet (peace be upon him) prayed.(5) Batanūnī, Al-Riḥla al-Ḥijāziyya, p. 106. Size and Features The three columns built inside the Kaaba during the reconstruction by Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr (64 AH) have remained in the same number and positions. However, the columns were replaced in later renovations of the Kaaba's interior. Today, the columns are intricately carved and decorated.(6) Batanūnī, Al-Riḥla al-Ḥijāziyya, p. 106. , , Ṣabrī Pāshā, Mawsūʿa mirʾāt al-ḥaramayn wa Jazīrat al-ʿArab , vol. 1, p. 264. These three columns are arranged in a single row from north to south (the width of the Kaaba), with a distance of four steps between each one. The first column is three steps away from the Yemeni-Eastern wall, and the third column is opposite the Iraqi-Shami wall.(7) Ibn Jubayr,Riḥla Ibn Jubayr, p. 54. , Ibn Baṭūṭa, Muḥammad b.Al-Raḥla Ibn Baṭūṭa. vol. 1, p. 372. The color of the columns is dark brown. Each column has a diameter of 44 centimeters and a circumference of approximately 150 centimeters. These columns are made of wood, square-shaped, and intricately carved.(8) Kurdī, Makkah wa Madīna: Taṣwīrī min Taqaddum wa Nawsāzī ,p. 121. Additionally, there is a rod among the three columns from which some of the Kaaba’s gifts are hung. Above each column, there is a beam whose ends are embedded in the northern and southern walls of the Kaaba.(9) ) Kurdī, Makkah wa Madīna: Taṣwīrī min Taqaddum wa Nawsāzī ,p. 121. The three columns extend only up to the lower ceiling and do not reach the upper ceiling. In the space between the lower and upper ceilings, narrower and additional wooden columns are placed to support the upper ceiling. Some of these columns are supported indirectly by the three main columns. At the base of each of the three columns, which bear most of the roof's weight, there is a ring to reinforce and strengthen them.(10) ) Kurdī, Makkah wa Madīna: Taṣwīrī min Taqaddum wa Nawsāzī ,p. 121. Gallery The three wooden columns inside the Kaaba. A part of one of the Kaaba columns dating back to the reconstruction by Ibn al-Zubayr in the year 65 AH.(11)* One of the old columns inside the Kaaba from the reconstruction by Ibn al-Zubayr, which was replaced in the 1990s.(12)* The rods connected to the columns, from which lanterns are suspended. The location of the Kaaba columns in relation to other parts and fixtures of the Kaaba. references . Ṣaffarī-Furūshānī, Niʿmat-Allāh. *Makkah fī Bistar al-Tārīkh*. Qom: Markaz Jahānī-ʿUlūm-IslHere’s the transliterated and translated citation: . Ṣabrī Pāshā, Ayyūb. *Muʾassuat Mirʾāt al-Ḥaramayn al-Sharīfayn wa Jazīrat al-ʿArab*. Cairo: Dār al-Āfāq al-ʿArabiyya, 1424 AH / 2004 CE.āmī, 1st edition, 1386 SH. . Azraqī, Muḥammad b. ʿAbd Allāh al-. Akhbār Makka. Qom: Maktaba al-Sharīf al-Raḍī, [n.d] . Batanūnī, Muḥammad Labīb *Al-Riḥla al-Ḥijāziyya*. Cairo: Nāshir: Mūʾallif, 1329 AH. . Ibn Jubayr, Muḥammad b. Aḥmad. Riḥla Ibn Jubayr. Beirut: Dār al-Maktaba al-Hilāl, 1986. . Ibn Baṭūṭa, Muḥammad b. ʿAbd Allāh. Al-Raḥla Ibn Baṭūṭa. Edited by ʿAbd al-Hādī Tāzī. Rabat: Ākādimīyya al-Mamlikat al-Maghribīyya, 1417 AH. . Kurdī, ʿUbayd-Allāh Muḥammad-Amīn. *Makkah wa Madīna: Taṣwīrī min Taqaddum wa Nawsāzī*. Translated by Ḥusayn Ṣābirī. Tehran: Nashr Mashʿar, 1380 SH.