On the Pattern of God’s Throne

This article suggests that the idea of the Kaʿba as a piece of Paradise on earth was a significant lens through which early Muslims understood this holy site. It highlights evidence that associations between the Kaʿba and Paradise were made already in the early Islamic period, likely going back to the early 2nd/8th century. The dating suggests a particular religio-political environment within which such ideas about the Kaʿba circulated: debates about the emerging Islamic sacred geography, and particularly the dialogue between Mecca and Jerusalem

Emperor · Islam · Middle Ages · Paradise · Throne · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Islamic Studies and History · Medieval and Classical Philosophy