6 Facts you didn’t know about the Rukn-al-Yamani of the Holy Kaaba

The Holy Kaaba is the holiest site for all Muslims around the world. However, there are still many things that even Muslims do not know about the Holy Kaaba. We have covered a detailed article about this issue earlier with the name of 13 Sights of Holy Kaaba you should know about.

The corner of the Holy Kaaba that points towards Yemen is called the Rukan-al-Yamani (or the Yemeni Side). Pilgrims visiting the Holy Kaaba can often be seen close to this particular corner of the Holy Kaaba however not everybody knows all there is to know about the Rukan-al-Yamani.  Here are a few facts about the Rukan-al-Yamani you may not know;[irp]

1-The Rukan-al-Yamani is located on the opposite side of the Hajar Al Aswad i.e. the black stone that is located in the eastern corner of the Holy Kaaba.

2-Due to the fact that this corner is currently standing on the very same foundation that the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) had built, a narration by Abdullah bin Abbas (peace be upon him) has stated that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) had made Istilaam on it. The Istilaam of the Rukan-al-Yamani is referred to as the touching of the corner, whether it is done by kissing or by hand.

Due to the fact that the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to Istilaam by touching the Rukan-al-Yamani by hand, the practice is considered to be Sunnah. There is no harm if any pilgrim or worshipper is not able to reach and touch the Rukan-al-Yamani due to the massive crowds inside.

3-It had been the practice of the Holy Prophet Mohammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that whenever He would pass between the points of the Rukan-al-Yamani and the Hajr-e-Aswad, he would recite the following dua “O Allah grant us all that which is good in this world, all that which is good in the Akhirah and save us from the punishment of the fire of Jahannam” (hell). Quran 2:201

4-A special type of concrete, molten metal as well as long stainless steel nails are used in preventing the lower portion of the Rukan-al-Yamani from disintegrating. This process has to be repeated in order to maintain the current state of the Rukan-al-Yamani.

5-This specific area of the Holy Kaaba is considered to be a living miracle due to the fact that over several centuries, several rulers have tried several times to seal and/or hide this rupture however they had no success.

6-The Ruk-al-Yamani of the holy Kaaba is also called the Yemeni Corner and Rukn-al-Janubi.