A stone from Paradise with which the ritual circumambulation begins and ends. Angel Gabriel, peace be upon him, descended upon Abraham ﷺ as he was building the foundations of the ancient house. The purest part of the Kaaba and a witness on the Day of Resurrection for those who touched it. The Messenger of God ﷺsaid about the stone, "By Allah, Allah will raise it on the Day of Resurrection. He will have two eyes with which he sees and a tongue with which he speaks. He will bear witness to who touched him in truth"[1]. Prophet Mohammad ﷺ said about the virtue of wiping, "Wiping the Black Stone and the Yemeni Corner erases sins"[2].
He said that the Black Stone was white. The Black Stone was white and became black due to human mistakes. It was reported from the Prophet ﷺ that he said, "The Black Stone came from Paradise and is whiter than milk and has become black due to the sins of the children of Adam"[3].
Five years before the Prophet ﷺ was called, Quraish decided to rebuild the Kaaba. When the walls showed up at the location where the black stone was to be placed in its ancestral place, the men began to argue over who should have the honor of placing the black stone in its place.
For five days the work rested and the dispute dragged on between the different tribes of Quraish. A wise old man had the following suggestion: "Assign the one who comes next through the gate of the mosque to judge who should have the honor of putting the stone!". He meant the gate that led to the square in front of the Kaaba. The suggestion calmed the disputants and everyone agreed and waited. Someone shouted, "It is Al-Amin, the trustworthy one, Muhammad! With his judgment we agree". Muhammad spread a cloth on the ground and placed the black stone right in the middle. Then he said, "One member of each clan takes a corner of the cloth, then all of them lift the stone at the same time." Then Muhammad took it and pushed it into place[4]. Now they were all involved and a fight had been avoided. Muhammad was thirty-five years old at that time.
[1] Sahih Al-Tirmidhi - no. or page 961
[2] Al-Jami Al-Saghir (As-Suyuti) - No. or page 2432.
[3] Sahih Al-Tirmidhi - No. or page 877
[4] Sirat Ibn Hisham - 1/138
