ʿAmr ibn Luḥayy
عمرو بن لحيٍ
Khuza‘a’s chief who brought idols to the Hijaz, set Hubal inside the Ka‘ba and instituted the consecrated-livestock customs.
At a glance
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Place in the story
- Founder
Arabian polytheism (transmitted)
Roles are dated and sourced; the museum describes the act and attributes the judgement.
Overview
Amr ibn Luhayy, chief of Khuza'a: the first to bring idols to the Hijaz and to institute the bahira, sa'iba, wasila and ham traditions; Bukhari reports him among the most severely punished on the Day of Resurrection.
Life
The first to bring idols to the Hijaz was Amr ibn Luhayy, chief of Khuza'a; he saw the people of al-Balqa' in Syria venerating idols and asked what these were — they said: we ask them for rain and it rains, we seek their aid and we are aided — so he asked them for an idol, brought it to Mecca and ordered the people to worship it 1.
And he brought Hubal into the Ka'ba's midst until idols multiplied across the Peninsula, and he instituted for the Arabs the customs of bahira, sa'iba, wasila and ham 2.
In the hadith
Bukhari relates from Abu Hurayra that the Prophet said: I saw Amr ibn Amir — meaning ibn Luhayy — al-Khuza'i dragging his entrails in the Fire, and he was the first to turn loose the sa'iba camels 1.
For young visitors
Amr ibn Luhayy was the first to bring idols to Mecca; because of him idols were worshipped in Arabia until Islam came.
Connections
- Member of
- Khuza'a
- Made
- Hubal
- Influenced
- Consecrated Livestock
People and things also explored
Consecrated LivestockThe Expulsion of Jurhum from MeccaKhuza'a's appeal to MedinaThe Bakr–Khuza'a clash at al-WatirQusayy ibn Kilab Takes MeccaBanu Bakr ibn Abd ManatHubalAbu Ghubshan al-Khuzaʾi
Sources
- Sahih al-Bukhari
- al-Raheeq al-Makhtum — Safi al-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri
- Akhbar Makka — al-Azraqi
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “ʿAmr ibn Luḥayy”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/person/amr-ibn-luhayy/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-12.