Kaaba

The Kaaba, also spelled Ka'bah or Kabah, is a cuboid-shaped building located within the Al-Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is the most sacred site in Islam and the focal point of the Islamic pilgrimage, the Hajj, as well as the daily prayers of Muslims worldwide. The Kaaba is believed to have been built by the Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) and his son Ismail (Ishmael) as a house of monotheistic worship. In Arabic, the word Kaaba means "cube" and is derived from the word kubth, which means "to bend" or "to bow". In Hebrew, the Kaaba is known as ha-Ka'aba (הַכַּעֲבָה) or ha-Mikdash ha-Yatim (הַמִּקְדָּשׁ הַיָּתִים), translating to "the lonely sanctuary". Other relevant translations include Ka'be in Turkish, Kaaba in Persian, and Ka'bah in Urdu. The Kaaba is covered with a black and gold-embroidered cloth known as the kiswah, which is replaced annually. The building itself is relatively simple, with no windows or interior furnishings, and its interior contains the Black Stone (al-Hajar al-Aswad), a revered relic believed to have been given to Ibrahim by the angel Gabriel.