Was Ali a.s Born in Ka’aba?

It is absolutely true that Hazrat Ali a.s was born inside Ka’aba. And,it was an amazing and
unique start to the life of an equally amazing and unique person. The one who supported his
master, the Prophet Muhammad (s), during his life and safeguarded the teachings of Islam during
the tumultuous period after the Prophet’s demise.

As for evidence, this statement from a very well-known Sunni muhaddith should suffice.

‫ وقد تواترت األخبار أن فاطمة بنت أسد ولدت أمير المؤمنين علي بن أبي طالب كرم هللا‬:483 :3 " ‫قال الحاكم في " المستدرك‬
‫وجهه في جوف الكعبة‬.

Al-Hakim [al-Naysaburi] in his al-Mustadrak, volume 3 page 483, says that the (historical)
narrations are unanimous that Fatima bint e Asad gave birth to Commander of the Faithful ‘Ali
ibn e Abi Talib, may God ennoble his countenance, in the Ka’ba.

Al-Hakim lived around 1000 years ago and would have had access to more books than we do
today. His definitive statement does not leave any room for doubt in this matter.

The birth of Imam Ali in Kaaba, in the Shia viewpoint, is definite and constant and repeated
many times in narrations.

Mullah Ali Qari writes in his book “sharh-ush-shifa:-

it is written in mustadarak imam hakim that mola ali was born in kaaba
[sharh-ush-shifa, vol 1, page 327, printed beirut]
he did not object to the saying of hakim regarding its tawatur, rather quoted him; thus, showing
his acceptance

Masoodi writes in his "The Golden Meadows" (Murooj-udh-Dhahab, Vol. II, p. 76) as such:

One of the greatest distinctions that Ali enjoyed was that he was born in the House of Allah.

His birth inside the Ka'ba is widely accepted by many Shi'a scholars (including al-Sayyid al-
Radi, al-Shaykh al-Mufid, Qutb al-Rawandi, and Ibn Shahrashub) and many Sunni scholars
(including al-Hakim al-Naysaburi, Hafiz Ganji al-Shafi'i, Ibn al-Jawzi al-Hanafi, Ibn Sabbagh al-
Maliki, al-Halabi, and al-Mas'udi.)-(1)

1-Amini, Abd al-husayn. al-Ghadir. vol. 6. p. 21-23

Ali was born inside the Kaaba in Makkah. The great historian, Masoodi, the Herodotus of the
Arabs, writes on page 76 of Volume II of his book, Murooj-udh-Dhahab (The Golden
Meadows), that one of the greatest distinctions that Ali enjoyed was that he was born in the
House of Allah. Many other Sunni authors have confirmed the birth of Imam Ali (a.s) in Kaaba.
Some of them are as following:

1.Muhammad ibn Talha el-Shafei in Matalib-us-saool, page 11.

2.Hakim in Mustadrak, page 483, Vol. III.

3.El-Umari in Sharh Ainia, page 15.

4.Halabi in Sira, page 165, Vol. I.

5.Sibt ibn al-Jauzi in Tadhkera Khawasil Ummah, page 7.

6.Ibn Sabbagh Maleki in Fusoolul Mohimma, page 14.

7.Muhammad bin Yousuf Shafei in Kifayet al-Talib, page 261.

8.Shablanji in Nurul Absar, page 76.

9.Ibn Zahra in Ghiyathul Ikhtisar, page 97.

10. Edvi in Nafhatul Qudsia, page 41 (1)

Ibn Isbagh Maliki writes in his book

Hazrat Ali was born in month of rajab 13, in city of mecca, inside kaaba; apart from him, no one
else was born there and this is your glory
[al fasol ul mohma, ibn sabagh maliki, page 29, printed Beirut]

Among the modern historians, Abbas Mahmood al-Akkad of Egypt writes in his
book Al-'Abqarriyet al-Imam Ali, (Cairo, 1970), that Ali ibn Abi Talib was born inside the
Kaaba.
Another contemporary historian, Mahmood Saeed al-Tantawi, of the Supreme Council of Islamic
Affairs, Arab Republic of Egypt, writes on page 186 of his book, Min Fada-il al-‘Ashrat al-
Mubashireen bil Janna, published in 1976 by Matab’a al-Ahram at-Tijariyya, Cairo, Egypt:
“May God have mercy upon Ali ibn Abi Talib. He was born in the Kaaba. He witnessed the rise
of Islam; he witnessed the Da’wa of Muhammad, and he was a witness of the Wahi (Revelation
of Al-Qur’an al-Majid). He immediately accepted Islam even though he was still a child, and he
fought all his life so that the Word of Allah would be supreme.”
An Arab poet composed the following distich on the birth of Ali:
He (Ali) is the one for whom the House of Allah was turned into a maternity home; And he is the
one who threw the idols out of that House; Ali was the first and the last child ever to be born in
the Kaaba.
Birth in Kaaba was one out of many distinctions that God bestowed upon Ali. Another
distinction that he enjoyed was that he never adored the idols. This again makes him unique
since all Arabs worshipped idols for years and years before they abjured idolatry and accepted
Islam.
It is for this reason that he is called “he whose face was honored by Allah.” His face was indeed
honored by Allah as it was the only face that never bowed before any idol.
Ali was the youngest child in the family. Of the three of his brothers, Talib and Aqeel, were
many years older than him; Jaafer was ten years older.

Shah Wali Ullah writes

Those glories which appeared at the time of birth of Imam Ali asws, one of them is that he was
born in ka’aba, hakim said that it is proven with mutawatir narration and there is no doubt that
his mother gave him birth inside kaaba
[Izala tul Khulafa, vol 4, page 299, printed Beirut]
Similarly, he writes in another book
Hiis glories are numerous, he is the first hashmi whose mother was also hashmi; and he was
born in kaaba, and this is a glory which none shared before him
[qura tul a’neen ba tafdel sheikhain; page 138, printed delhi]

Mulla jami said

“Imam Ali asws was born in Makkah, and according to some, he was born in ka’aba”
[Shawahid un Nabuwa, Jami, page 280, printed Pakistan]

According to the sources of Shia it is a fact that Imam Ali (as) was born inside the Kaaba.

Shaikh Mofid (as an authentic and famous source of Shia) mentioned that Imam Ali (as) was
born in Kaaba. You can read it as the following issue:

، ‫يوم الجمعة الثالث عشر من رجب سنة ثالثين من عام الفيل‬ ‫(االمام علی علیه السالم) ولد بمكة في البيت الحرام‬ : ‫شيخ مفيد‬
‫ أبي‬، ‫ الشيخ المفيد‬. ‫ولم يولد قبله وال بعده مولود في بيت هللا تعالى سواه إكراما من هللا تعالى له بذلك وإجالال لمحله في التعظيم‬
5 ‫ ص‬، 1 ‫ ج‬، ‫ اإلرشاد في معرفة حجج هللا علي العباد‬، )‫هـ‬413‫عبد هللا محمد بن محمد بن النعمان العكبري البغدادي (متوفاي‬
: ‫ الطبعة‬، ‫ بيروت‬- ‫ دار المفيد للطباعة والنشر والتوزيع‬: ‫ ناشر‬، ‫ مؤسسة آل البيت عليهم السالم لتحقيق التراث‬: ‫ تحقيق‬،
‫ م‬1993 - ‫هـ‬1414 ، ‫الثانية‬

To know regarding the circumstances of the birth of Imam Ali (a.s), please read the following
details:
One of the close companions of the Prophet (SAW), Yazid ibn Qana’b, narrates the incident of
the amazing birth of Imam Ali (a.s) in the following words, “Abbas ibn Abdul Muttalib and I
were sitting among a group of members from the Bani Abdul Azi tribe, facing the Kaaba. We
could observe Fatima bint Asad, who was still carrying Imam Ali (a.s) in her womb, walking
towards the Kaaba. It was evident that she was undergoing labor pains and we could hear her
conversing in these words with her Lord: “O my Nurturer, I have full faith in You and Your
Prophet (SAW) as well as the books that You have sent. I testify the words of my forefather
Abraham (a.s), the one who had built the Ka’ba. For the sake of the one who built this House and
for the sake of the child that I am bearing, make this delivery easy for me.” At that moment, I
witnessed that the rear wall of the Ka’ba suddenly cracked open and Fatima entered into it and
disappeared. Abbas ibn Muttalib and I approached the crack at once, thinking that we too would
be able to pass through it, but found the wall closed. We immediately understood that this was a
divine act. Fatima bint Asad walked out of the Ka’ba on the forth day with her baby, Imam Ali
(a.s), in her arms.”

Most Sunni scholars accept the fact that Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (AS) was the only man in
history born inside the Holy Kaaba.

In his Mustadrak Hakim said: “No one before Ali was born in the Kaaba.” Also, Saedi has
quoted from Sihah al-Sittah (“The Authentic Six”) of Ahlu Sunna: according to a narration,
Imam Ali (a.s) was born in the Ka’ba on Friday, 13 Rajab, thirty years after the Amul-Fil (the
year of the elephant) and according to other narration, it was after 25 years of the Amul-Fil and
12 years after Bisat (the appointment of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) and No one before Ali was born
in the Ka’ba).[1]

[1]. Bahrani, Sayyid Hashem, Tafsir al-Burhan, Vol. 1, Pg. 661, H 36. Sheikh Sadough, Amali,
translated by Ayatollah Muhammada Baqer Kamaraei, Pg. 133, Islamiyah Publisher, sixth
edition, Tehran, 1997. Hakim Neishapouri, Muhammad, Mustadrak alal Sahihain, Vol. 3, Pg.
483, Darul Marefat Publisher, second edition, Beirut, 1406 A.H. Saedi, Muhammad Baqir,
Fadhael PanjeTan (the Virtues of the five purified holy personalities that together are the
Founding Islamic Family) in Sihah al-Sitta of Ahlul Sunna, Vol. 1, Pg. 304, Firouz A’badi, first
edition, Qom 1995. Muruj adh-dhahab, Vol. 2, Pg. 349, Dar Al-Hijrah, Qom, second edition,
1409 A.H, “‫( ”و كان مولده في الكعبة‬Wa Ka’na Moledohu Fel Kaaba).

DOUBTS CASTED BY MOLVI ISHAQ AND ITS REPLY

NO. 1:-
he said that only hakim was born in kaaba, and it is not shared by anyone else

REPLY
we have already proven it with PROOFS that there is none other who was born
in kaaba apart from imam ali asws; as for hakim bin hazim, it is a story created
by nawasib so that the glory of imam ali asws can be nullified; though great sunni
scholars have negated it.

Recently a scholar molvi ishaq rejected this in his friday sermon; so we will negate him; but first
we see what he said
he said:-
it is famous in regards to birth of mola ali asws; and even shah wali ullah said this that it is with
MUTAWATIR NARRATIONS that he was born in kaaba; so people presumed from this that no
one else was born except from HIM; but this is baseless; the one whose birth is proven, he is
hakim bin hazam and it is proven with authentic/sahih narration that he was born in kaaba; and
this is not something which is of any glory; since if it was so, that holy prophet asws should have
also been born there; ……..
and then he quoted the glories of hakim and that is not something we are going to talk about

-------------------

This is a known fact that the glory of kaaba is more than that of bait-ul-maqdis, and the
narrations in the glory of kaaba are present in huge number in islamic books; the entire army of
abraha got destroyed due to his attempt of its disgrace; and so it is proven that it is the most
glorious; so this takes us to the point about the glory of the one who would be born in this
place; researchers of islam said that this was the glory of imam ali asws which was given by
allah;
Recently a scholar molvi ishaq rejected this in his friday sermon; so we will negate him; but first
we see what he said
he said:-
it is famous in regards to birth of mola ali asws; and even shah wali ullah said this that it is with
MUTAWATIR NARRATIONS that he was born in kaaba; so people presumed from this that no
one else was born except from HIM; but this is baseless; the one whose birth is proven, he is
hakim bin hazam and it is proven with authentic/sahih narration that he was born in kaaba; and
this is not something which is of any glory; since if it was so, that holy prophet asws should have
also been born there; ……..
and then he quoted the glories of hakim and that is not something we are going to talk about
let us bring our proofs
FIRST PROOF
Hakim writes in his mustadarak
“mus’ab made a presumption in the last saying because it is proven with mutawatir narrations
that fatima bint asad gave birth to imam ali in kaaba”
[mustadarak, imam hakim, vol 4, page197, printed pakistan]
IMPORTANT POINT:-
hakim negated mus’ab that he made an error here that there was no one else born in kaaba
apart from hakim bin hazm; though it is proven with mutawatir narration that Imam Ali asws
was also born here; but since he had to negate saying of mus’ab;
that is why he talked of it here; and did not talk of it in the chapter of fadail of Imam Ali asws;
and this was the best place for rejecting him as well; keep in mind that hakim is accepted as a
great scholar by both sunnis as well as salafis
ACCEPTANCE OF DHABI:-
Dhabi mentioned this saying in his book, and so it is correct as per him as well that it is
mutawatir fact
[talkess mustadarak, dhabi, vol 4, page 197, foot note 5, printed pakistan]
SECOND PROOF
Mullah ali qari writes in his book “sharh-ush-shifa:-
it is written in mustadarak imam hakim that mola ali was born in kaaba
[sharh-ush-shifa, vol 1, page 327, printed beirut]
he did not object to the saying of hakim regarding its tawatur, rather quoted him; thus, showing
his acceptance
THIRD PROOF:-
ibn isbagh maliki writes in his book
hazrat ali was born in month of rajab 13, in city of mecca, inside kaaba; apart from him, no one
else was born there and this is your glory
[al fasol ul mohma, ibn sabagh maliki, page 29, printed beirut]
4th PROOF:-
allam hasan bin momin shablanji writes:-
ali is cousin of holy prophet asws, and he is unleashed sword; he was born in the year 30 of
aam-ul-feel, on day of friday; 13 rajab; inside kaaba, and none was born there before you
[noor ul absar, shablanji, page 183, beirut]
5th PROOF:-
shah wali ullah writes
those glories which appeared at the time of birth of Imam Ali asws, one of them is that he was
born in kaaba, hakim said that it is proven with mutawatir narration and there is no doubt that
his mother gave him birth inside kaaba
[izala tul khulafa, vol 4, page 299, printed beirut]
similarly he writes in another book
Hiis glories are numerous, he is the first hashmi whose mother was also hashmi; and he was
born in kaaba, and this is a glory which none shared before him
[qura tul a’neen ba tafdel sheikhain; page 138, printed delhi]
6th PROOF:-
nawab siddiq hasan khan bhopali says:-
discussion of syed ali, cousin of prophet asws, sword of allah, the one who showed strange
things; powerful, he was born inside mecca in bait-ullah; none was born before him inside
baitullah
[takreem ul momineen bataween manaqib khulafa rashideen; nawab siddiq, page 99, printed
lahore]
in the same way, he mentioned this in the book, TAQSAR JANOOD UL AHRAR, page 9, printed
bhopal.
7th PROOF
Mulla jami said
“imam ali asws was born in mecca, and according to some, he was born in kaaba”
[shawahid un nabuwa, jami, page 280, printed pakistan]
8th PROOF:-
masoodi writes in his book
Imam Ali born inside kaaba
[marooj ud dhahab; masoodi, vol 2, page 311, printed beirut]
9th PROOF
abdur rehman safoori shafai says
Imam Ali was born in mecca and this glory was kept specifically for him by Alllah
[nuzha tul majalis, vol 2, page 404, printed pakistan]
10th PROOF:-
shah abdul haq mohadith dehlvi says:-
mohadatheen and historians have said that Mola Ali asws was born inside kaaba
[madarij un nabuwat, abdul haq dehlvi, vol 2, page 531, printed pakistan]
11th PROOF
Allama ganji shafai has accepted this in his book as well
[kifaya tul talib; ganji shafai; page 407; printed iran]
12th PROOF:-
Sibt ibn joozi writes in his book:-
it is narrated that fatima bint asad was dong tawaf of kaaba when Ali asws was in her womb;
she got labor pains; so the wall opened up, and she entered; and Ali asws was born there
[tazkira tul khawas; sibt ibn joozi; page 30; printed najaf, iraq]
we are just limiting ourselves to 12 references; otherwise there are plenty of other references
which have not only mentioned this, rather counted this as a glory of mola Ali asws; if someone
is interested in reading more, he should refer to the book “qibla-tul-arwah fi qiba-tul-ashbah
tazkira wiladat syedna ali ul murtada” here is the title page of this book
DOUBTS CASTED BY MOLVI ISHAQ AND ITS REPLY
NO. 1:-
he said that only hakim was born in kaaba, and it is not shared by anyone else
REPLY
we have already proven it with PROOFS that there is none other who was born in kaaba apart
from imam ali asws; as for hakim bin hazim, it is a story created by nawasib so that the glory of
imam ali asws can be nullified; though great sunni scholars have negated it.
hakim in his mustadarak and dhabi in his talkhes have negated birth of hakem inside kaaba; and
said that birth of imam ali is with tawatur; so, as per hakim, his birth is a incorrect.
mother of hakem gave him birth in kaaba; hafiz abu naeed has narrated a lengthy narration in
this regard, but there is rooh bin salah in that; and hafiz addi has weakened him
[tazkira tul khawas; sibt ibn joozi; page 30, printed najaf iraq]
the first one to propagate this story was zubair bin bukar, and his family was known for his
grudge for Imam Ali and his progeny; and even he was appointed to teach mutawakil abbasi
and his children dut to his hatred for ahlubait; and on this ground of his enemity, mutawakil
appointed him governor of mecca
so, this takes us to the point that this is all a fabrication that hakem was born in kaaba
NO. 2
he said that if this was an honor, then holy prophet asws would also have his birth in kaaba
REPLY
this is his presumption ; and this does not affect the glory of Holy Prophet asws; martyrs are not
given ast bath; but prophets are given; and the scholars have said that partial glory does not
affect total glory; birth in kaaba is one of the characteristics of Mola Ali asws
NO. 3
molvi said that ibn hajar has said that only birth of hakim has been proven; and rest are daif
REPLY
first of all, we have already said that story of birth of hakem is a fabrication; and we have
proven it from sunni scholars; where as sunni scholars have termed it MUTAWATIR that imam
ali asws was born in kaaba; and this is said by hakim, dhabi, shah wali ullah; and even molvi
ishaq started his speech with that shah wali ullah proved it mutawatir.
and the rule of hadeeth is that if some thing is termed mutawatir, that weakness of chain does
not harm it; and it is also rule of hadeeth that those who negate mutawatir, they are idiots
even if it is considered to be daif; those who have knowledge know that being daif does not
mean fabrication; and also, in relation to fadail, even daif narrations are accepted; where as
birth of mola ali has been termed mutawatir
AN IMPORTANT ISSUE:-
we have already given so many references for the birth of Imam Ali asws; and even showed
from sunni books that it is claimed to be mutawatir; can molvi ishaq show us any sunni book
where any sunni scholar has claimed that it is mutawatir that mother of hakem gave him birth
in kaaba? we are sure that he cannot do so……
but still if a person shuts his eyes; and claims “i cannot see”; we can not treat him.
https://islam.stackexchange.com/questions/2393/was-hazrat-ali-ra-born-inside-the-kabba-with-the-
walls-cracked