KAʿBAH. The Kaʿbah (cube), located in Mecca, is the shrine at the center of the Muslim world. Referred to as the "House of God," (bayt Allāh), it is the central point (qiblah) on earth toward which all Muslims face...

Millions at Masjid al Haram in Mecca. The Kaaba (Arabic: الكعبة al-Kaʿbah; IPA: ['kɑʕbɑ]) , also known as al-Kaʿbatu l-Mušarrafah (الكعبة المشرًّفة "The Noble Kaʿbah), al-Baytu...

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Some rocks lead more interesting lives than others. There are a few special rocks that destiny called upon to play a role in history. These rocks have been sat upon by kings, fought over, stolen, and worshipped. Three such rocks...

Explorer and author Harry St John Bridger Philby was born in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in 1885. Educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, he joined the Indian civil service shortly after his graduation and was posted to Iraq as part of the Indian Expeditionary...

Muslims circled the Kaaba, Islam's holiest site, for a final time Tuesday, bringing to a close what may have been the largest hajj pilgrimage ever.There were none of the deadly stampedes that have marred past pilgrimages.Hundreds of thousands of the faithful returned to Mecca from...

After five days of exhaustion and hardships, Muslim pilgrims were saddened to see the annual hajj come to a close Friday, ending what for many is a spiritual high point of their lives."Bidding farewell is hard," said Afaf al-Nuweihi, her voice choking with emotion. "I...