Acknowledging Allah, Not the Ka’bah

📖Sunan al-Nasā’ī 3773
Qutaylah reported: A Jewish man came to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and said, “Indeed, you are setting up rivals with Allah and associating partners with Him when you say, ‘What Allah wills and you will,’ and when you swear by the Ka’bah!” The Prophet, peace be upon him, then instructed that if someone intends to swear an oath, they should say, “By the Lord of the Ka’bah,” and for the phrase “What Allah wills and then what you will.

This hadith clarifies an important point: the Ka’bah itself is not divine nor an object of worship. Swearing by it is not inherently accepted; rather, the phrase “Lord of the Ka’bah” signifies Allah’s authority over it. It does not imply that Allah’s dominion is limited to the Ka’bah, nor does it make the Ka’bah a deity. The Ka’bah is a sacred symbol and a direction for worship, but all power, control, and sovereignty belong solely to Allah.

• if the Ka’bah itself had independent power, then it could rival Allah. The hadith emphasizes that the Ka’bah is merely a landmark through which Allah’s greatness is recognized, not a source of divine authority.

The Qur’an reinforces this concept:

📖Qur’an 6:162
Say, ‘Indeed, my prayer, my sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds.’

This verse shows that all acts of worship are directed to Allah alone, the Lord of all, not limited to any place or object, including the Ka’bah. The Ka’bah serves as a focal point for guidance and unity, but it is Allah alone who is the true Lord.

📖Qur’an 106:3
Let them worship the Lord of this House.

This verse emphasizes that the Ka’bah, while a sacred and significant structure in Islam, is not an object of worship itself. Instead, it is a symbol of Allah’s sovereignty and a focal point for the monotheistic worship of the One true God, So, when the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) instructed the phrase “By the Lord of the Ka’bah,” aligns with the Qur’anic perspective. It directs the oath to Allah, acknowledging His exclusive divinity and authority, rather than attributing any divine status to the Ka’bah itself.