Maqame Ibrahim refers to the stone on which Ibrahim stood (peace be upon him) when he built the Kaaba. When Ismail (peace be upon him) passed the stones to Ibrahim (peace be upon him), and Ibrahim (peace be upon him) continued to lay them in place, Maqame Ibrahim miraculously continued to rise higher and higher when the walls rose. Allah caused made his footprints traces remain on the stone as a reminder to believers among his descendants.
From Said bin Jubair (may Allah be pleased with him) it was reported that the Prophet (saw) said: “The stone is the Ibrahim station. Allah made it soft and made it by mercy. Ibrahim will stand on him, and Ishmael will give him stones. ” [Mutir al-Garam]
Ibrahim and Ismail (may peace be with them) usually mentioned the following verse of the Quran when they built the holy Kaaba: “Our Lord! Take (this service) from us: for you are the Hearing, the All-Knowing. “[Quran -2: 127]
Ibrahim (peace be upon him) built a Kaaba from rocks from five mountains; Hira, Labnaan, Toor, Thubayr, and Jabalul Khair. Tour Seena (Mount Sinai) is actually located in the eastern desert of Egypt.
When Ibrahim (peace be upon him) completed the construction of the Ka’ba, Allah commanded him : “And to proclaim hajj (pilgrimage) to humanity. They will come to you on foot and on every thin camel, they will come from all the deep and distant (wide) mountain roads (to make a hajj). ” [22:27]
Ibn Kathir says in his commentary that this verse means: “Proclaim (Ibrahim) hajj to people, urging them to make a pilgrimage to this House, which We have commanded you to build.” It was mentioned that he said: “O Lord, how can I declare it to people when my voice does not reach them?” He said: “Call and we will give it to you”. Therefore, he stood at his Makam (station) – or according to some stories about Al-Saf or on Mount Abu-Qubays, and said: “O people, your Lord has taken the House, so come to him on a pilgrimage.” And it was said that the mountains had descended so that his voice could reach all parts of the earth, and those who were still in the womb or in the loins of the people, also heard, and all that they heard him, the cities, the nomads’ camps and the trees and all who decreed Allah must perform the hajj before the Day of Resurrection. answered (saying) “Labba’yk Allahumma labba’yk (here I am, O Allah, here I am)”.
This is a summary of what was told by Ibn Abbas, Mujahid, Ikrimah, Said ibn Jubayr and others (may Allah be pleased with them).
Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) reports that Allah fulfilled three of his desires. One of these was his offer to the Prophet (saw), so that Maqame Ibrahim would become the place for salah (prayer).
Allah revealed the following verse in the Qur’an in Sura al-Baqara: “Accept Maqam Ibrahim as a place of salah (the place for which you perform two raha salah after Tawaf)” [Quran – 2: 125]
READ MORE: Fifth Pillar Of Islam: Hajj (Pilgrimage To Macca)
At the time of Ibrahim (peace be upon him), the Maqam was attached to Kaaba. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), seeing that if you left him where he was, it would make the space too tight for Tawaf or for prayers if it was moved to the place where it is now located to make it easier for people . Among the Sahabahs there was unanimity regarding this action of Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), because he was the one who suggested that this be accepted as a place of prayer.
Juhm bin Hudhaifa (may Allah be pleased with him), Sahabi, who was present when the Quraysh restored the Kaaba, and when Abdullah bin Zubair (may Allah be pleased with him) restored it, says that the blessed footprints of the Prophet (saw) very closely coincide with that of Ibrahim footprints(Peace be upon him). The Prophet (saw) also mentioned: “Of all the children of Ibrahim (peace be with him), it was I who most resembled him.” [Bukhari]
Although the Arabs worshiped stones during the period of ignorance, no one ever worshiped Hajjar al-Aswad or Maqame Ibrahim, although the Arabs worshiped them. It seems that Allah clearly intended to protect Maqame Ibrahim from Shirk and all kinds of worship.
READ MORE: History Of Prophet Ibrahim —Early life
Note that the meaning of Maqame Ibrahim is that it is a place for the performance of the salah, and not for touching or kissing. When there are many people performing tawaf, it is better to do salam at some distance from Maqameh Ibrahim to avoid unnecessary inconvenience for others.
Sources: The History of Makkah – Dr Muhammad Ilyas Abdul Ghani , Holy Makkah – Shaikh Safiur-Rahman Mubarakpuri