Part 1 · Pages 198-199
The Ka‘bah’s Height and Its First Brocade Covering
English rendering of the source section
Local English translation across printed pp.198–199, ending before the next indexed topic on al-Hums.
This local English rendering may condense the Arabic narration and editorial notes. It is not a complete published English edition. Consult the Arabic source for exact wording and context.
Read the corresponding Arabic sectionThe Ka‘bah was eighteen cubits high in the time of the Messenger of Allah. The sentence continues on printed page 199.
[1] Wathab means a leap or spring. [2] Rijz means punishment; another reading is zajr, a warning or restraint. [3] Tatala’ib means that the bird followed through in its swoop. [4] Recension A reads “those leveling it”; other copies have a corrupted form. [5] They used to carry stones unclothed, considering it part of energetic devotion. [6] Bawwa’na means “settled us” or “granted us a place.” [7] Musawwinā means the men leveling the building; other copies have a corrupted word.
It was first covered with Egyptian linen, then with striped Yemeni cloth. The first to cover it with brocade was al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf. Ibn al-Zubayr had covered it with brocade before al-Hajjaj, and Khalid ibn Ja‘far ibn Kilab is also said to have covered it with brocade before Islam. The next indexed section begins after this account.
[1] Qibati are fine white garments made in Egypt; qibtiyyah is their singular. [2] Burud are a kind of Yemeni cloth. [3] The editor notes that Ibn al-Zubayr covered the Ka‘bah with brocade before al-Hajjaj, and that Khalid ibn Ja‘far ibn Kilab did so before Islam. See al-Rawd al-Unuf.