The cleansing of the Kaaba and destruction of idols
تطهير الكعبة وتكسير الأصنام
January 630 CE · Ramadan 8 AH
Upon entering the sacred precinct, the Prophet circumambulated the Kaaba on his mount, toppled three hundred and sixty lead-fastened idols with his staff while reciting Qur'an 17:81, opened the sanctuary with Uthman ibn Talha's key, effaced the wall frescoes inside while reciting Qur'an 3:67, and had Bilal deliver the adhan from atop the roof.
At a glance
- Era
- The Prophetic Era
- Region
- Arabia
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
In time
In space
Map: Natural Earth, public domain · places and route from the graph
Sacred space and pilgrimageCreed
Summary
The Prophet circled the Ka'ba seven times on his mount, touching the Corner with his staff, and pointed with a stick in his hand at the three hundred and sixty idols bound with lead around the House; they fell one after another as he recited "say: truth has come and falsehood has passed away — falsehood is ever bound to pass", then he entered the Ka'ba and effaced the images and statues inside it 1.
The cleansing of the House
The Prophet took the key from Uthman ibn Talha, opened the House and entered with Bilal, Usama ibn Zayd and Uthman ibn Talha 2. He saw inside images, among them a picture of Abraham casting lots with arrows, and ordered them all effaced while reciting: "Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but a hanif, a muslim" 3. He found in it a dove made of sticks and broke it with his noble hand and cast it down 2.
Then he prayed two prostrations inside the House between the two pillars, and ordered Bilal ibn Rabah to climb onto the roof of the Ka'ba and give the call to the noon prayer — the first call raised above the Sacred House 4.
The conversion of Fadala ibn Umayr
During the circumambulation Fadala ibn Umayr al-Laythi resolved to kill the Prophet and drew near him; the Prophet said: "Fadala?" He said: yes. He said: "what were you saying to yourself?" He said: nothing — I was remembering God. The Prophet smiled and laid his hand on his chest and his heart grew calm; Fadala said: by God, he did not lift his hand from my chest before nothing of God's creation was dearer to me than he 5.
For young visitors
The Prophet entered the Ka'ba and removed its idols and images so the House returned to being a place of worship of God alone, without statues. Bilal climbed onto the Ka'ba's roof and raised the call to prayer in his beautiful voice for all Mecca to hear.
Connections
- Had participant
- Fadala ibn Umayr al-LaythiMuhammadBilal ibn Rabah
- Occurred at
- Mecca
- Part of
- The Conquest of Mecca (Fath Makka)
- Revealed in
- Qur'an 17:81
People and things also explored
The Conquest of Mecca (Fath Makka)Bilal ibn RabahMuhammadMeccaThe killing of Ibn al-Anwa' and the sermon on Mecca's sanctityThe three years of the secret callThe Battle of HunaynThe proscribed persons on the day of the Conquest
Sources
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/54, 59
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/54
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/55
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/55-56
- al-Sira al-Nabawiyya — Ibn Hisham, al-Saqqa edition (1355/1936), 4/59-60
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “The cleansing of the Kaaba and destruction of idols”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/fath-mecca-cleansing-kaaba/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-12.