Q. What is the significance of the Black Stone at the Kaaba? Why do people kiss it? Is it true that it descended from heaven?
Feroz Khan
A. The Black Stone is an easily distinguished stone, placed a little below shoulder level at one corner of the Kaaba. The act of worship which is particularly associated with the Kaaba, and never stops except when congregational prayer is held, is tawaf, which means walking round the Kaaba seven times in an anti-clockwise direction. Tawaf is one of the duties of Islamic pilgrimage and Umrah (mini-pilgrimage). It is also a recommended act of worship at all times. Moreover, it is the way to offer greeting to the Kaaba.
It is said that when Abraham completed the building of the Kaaba, with the help of his son, Ishmael, God commanded him to do the tawaf. He was not able to keep a correct count of the rounds he made. He felt that other worshippers would be similarly confused. He prayed God to give him a sign to be used for counting rounds. The Angel Gabriel brought him the Black Stone.
When one starts tawaf, and at the completion of each round, one should kiss the Black Stone or touch it with one’s hand, if it is possible, or signal to it from a distance, if the place is too crowded. As one does so, one should repeat this declaration: “There is no deity save God, God is supreme.” The significance of this particular action is best expressed by Umar ibn Al-Khattab, the second greatest figure among the companions of Prophet Muhammad and his second successor as ruler of the Islamic state, and a distinguished scholar. He addressed the Black Stone in these words: “I know that you are a stone which can cause no harm or benefit. Had it not been for the fact that I saw God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) kissing you, I would not have kissed you.”
A Problematic Property
Q. My father gave my mother a house in place of her dowry. He passed away more than 15 years ago. My mother lives in that house with her three married sons. She has seven daughters all married. She is thinking of selling the house and giving its price to her children. How should this be shared between them? Specifically, what share should a daughter receive in comparison with a son?
M. Vazeer
A. Your mother can stay in her house as it is her own property. No one has any claim against her. Since this was given to her by her husband as her dowry, she has full title to it and no one has any claim against it. She can live in it for the rest of her life, or she can rent it and use the rent as she pleases. When she dies, it is part of her estate which should be shared out between her children on the basis of one share for a daughter and two for a son.
If your mother wants to go ahead with her intention, selling the house and giving its price to her children, she should give her sons and daughters equal shares. Some people think that gifts to children should be on the same lines as their shares of inheritance. This is not so. During a parent’s lifetime, all children are entitled to equal treatment. When one of the Prophet’s companions asked him to witness a gift he has given to his son, the Prophet asked him whether he gave similar gifts to all his children. He did not differentiate between sons and daughters. The man said that he did not. The Prophet told him to find someone else to witness the gift, and told him that he does not witness injustice. He called such gifts to one child, without giving similar gifts to other children “injustice”. Needless to say, all injustice is forbidden in Islam.
During Engagement
Q. When a couple are formally engaged to be married, with the agreement of both families, are they allowed to meet and talk, or to speak on the telephone?
I.M.
A. What we are talking about here is a formal engagement, with both parties agreed and in the full knowledge and consent of the woman’s family. No formal marriage contract has been done yet. It is all an agreement with good intention. Both parties are keen to complete the relation by marriage. They will certainly need to get to know each other better. This can only be done through meetings, visits and discussions. From the Islamic point of view, this is perfectly reasonable. Islam allows the development of this relation in this way, within its own moral standards. What Islam does not allow is that the couple should be alone in an enclosed environment where they are in complete privacy. This is not allowed between man and woman, who are unrelated to each other, in any situation. Since an engagement is not a formal relation, the prohibition on such meetings applies. Therefore, when an engaged couple want to meet or go out, they should be accompanied by a reliable and trustworthy relative of the wife. Thus, her fiancé can visit her at home, but they sit where they are not in isolation. One of her parents or siblings should be present. If they talk on the telephone, there is nothing wrong with that. However, they should observe Islamic standards of propriety. As you see, it is all within what is reasonable.
