The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) - Volume I — Page 105
III - Makkah, the Ka ‘ bah & the Quraish 105 establish his claim of entitlement. When the Khuzā‘ah began to realize this, they were outraged and prepared for battle. On the other hand, Qusaiyy also gathered his own people and both these tribes fought in a vehement battle. Eventually both tribes were reconciled on the foundation that an arbitrator be appointed, whose verdict shall be accepted by both parties. Thus, a man named ‘ Amr bin ‘Auf was appointed as an arbitrator, whose judgement was that in actuality, the custodianship of the Ka‘bah rightfully belongs to Qusaiyy and that the Khuzā‘ah shall not receive bloodmoney for any of its slain men but compensation for Qusaiyy’s slain men shall be paid by the Khuzā’ah. In this manner, after a prolonged period in time the custodianship of the Ka‘bah was once again returned to the Banū Ismā‘īl. 1 Since the custodianship of the Ka‘bah was also a means of worldly grandeur and power, the custodian tribe was looked upon with special honour and veneration in all of Arabia. It is for this reason that the Quraish became very dignified and honoured. Repeated Re-construction of the Ka‘bah The phenomenon of deterioration is naturally attached to every worldly object. Therefore, after its construction by Abraham as the Ka‘bah fell many times and was thus rebuilt many times as well. Sometimes its structure would be damaged by the floods that would occasionally strike the valley of Makkah. In this case, its custodians would demolish the Ka‘bah and reconstruct it anew. In certain cases this was also required due to fires or other natural disasters. Therefore, every nation who was entrusted its custodianship was required to reconstruct the Ka‘bah as needed. The Banū Jurhum, Khuzā‘ah and the Quraish, all in their respective eras reconstructed the Ka‘bah. Once, Qusaiyy also rebuilt the Ka‘bah, after which the Quraish also reconstructed it in the time of the Holy Prophet sa with certain modifications. They increased its level of elevation and also added a roof with 6 internal pillars along with a skylight on the roof. They also elevated its door as well. However, due to a scarcity of materials, they were unable to erect the Ka‘bah upon its original foundations, as laid by Abraham as. As a matter of fact, they left an empty space of about 3. 5 yards to one side. This empty space is known as the Ḥaṭīm or Ḥijr and the Holy Prophet sa declared it as part of the Ka‘bah. Hence, during the Ṭawāf , it is 1 * As-Sīratun-Nabawiyyah, By Abū Muḥammad ‘Abdul-Malik bin Hishām, pp. 97-100, Tazawwuju Qusaiyy bin Kilāb Ḥubbā bint Ḥalīl, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (2001) * Tārīkhuṭ-Ṭabarī, By Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Al-Jarīr Ṭabarī, Dhikru Nasbi Rasūlillāhi sa. . . , Volume 2, p. 192, Dārul-Fikr, Beirut, Lebanon, Second Edition (2002)