Kabba and the city hosting it, Mecca, are the holiest structure and land for Muslims. There are several reasons for this:
• Mecca, the city embracing Kabba, was the first piece of land to emerge from water when the entire surface of the Earth was covered with water, according to Islamic traditions.
• Kabba, is believed to have been first constructed by Adam, the first human, as a symbol or reminder of Allah’s presence on Earth.
• Later, Abraham and Ishmael are thought to have traveled to this land to reconstruct this sacred structure. Moses and his family are also said to have faced some miraculous adventures when they passed through this land.
Because of this important religious background, Muslims, regardless of where they live on the planet, are required to perform their daily obligatory prayers while facing Kabba.
Muslims are also required to perform pilgrimage to Mecca if they can financially afford it. The pilgrimage involves several rituals most primary of which is rotating around Kabba seven times while chanting a religious mantra. During the pilgrimage Muslims should observe purity and cleanness and should wear a modest piece of cloth that resembles a shroud as a means of expressing their humility before Allah as well as the spirit equality and purity of faith.
The Kabba and Hajj are taught to have been degenerated by the pagan ways of the pre-Islamic Arabs before Prophet Muhammad restored the original monotheist identity of the structure and the rituals surrounding it.