I never leave things half done, especially when it comes to finding facts behind interesting stories.

I know that the doors of the Kaaba are made from finely-carved hardwood from Thailand and plated in gold.

I also know that the doors are the second set made in the Saudi Arabia era but I don’t know who made them.

This is something worthy to dig up and present to Apa Khabar TV readers.

According to history, when Prophet Ibrahim rebuilt the Kaaba with his son Ismail, he made two portals; one on the eastern wall (which is used today) and the other on the western wall.

The eastern portal is used for entry and the western one for exit. When the Quraish rebuilt the Kaaba in 608 CE, they closed the western portal, fenced off the northern part (Hijir Ismail) of the building with a low wall.

This scheme remained until the time of Ibn Zubayr, who reverted the Kaaba to the way it was before the Quraysh fenced off Hijir Ismail put it back inside the Kaaba proper.

After the reconquest of Mecca by the Umayyad, the western gate was closed with a wall, and Hijir Ismail was separated again from the Kaaba.

After looking for some information and getting in touch with relatives in Thailand, I talked with Rashid Yusoff’s about my intention to find the individuals responsible for making the current Kaaba Doors.

We decided to go forward with the quest, but there are some things that need to be overcome first, especially the money to finance the endeavor and the language barrier as there are at least three languages (Malay, Thai and English) that we need to be able to communicate in to dig up the story.

Ahamdulillah, we managed to overcome the challenges.

The person that we are looking for is called The Professor and he lives in a hilly area in northeastern Thailand – which is about 4,428.2 kilometres round trip from Shah Alam, Selangor.

The distance that needs to be covered to meet The Professor is as per the following:

Shah Alam to Perlis = 507.2km
Perlis to Narathiwat, Thailand = 289.6km
Narathiwat to Bangkok -= 1,158.3km
Bangkok to Nakhon Ratchasima = 259km.

To say that the journey was taxing on my 63-year-old physique would be an understatement but it was worth it.

It was great to finally meet the person responsible for bringing in six artisans (three carpenters and three goldsmiths) – all of them Thai Malays – who worked tirelessly and with great artistry making the Kaaba doors, the second one during the Saudi Arabian era. Doors that remain in use to this day.

Most importantly, I would like to thank all those who provided assistance, including financially, to make the Kaaba Door Artisans Series possible.

Follow apakhabartv.com for current affairs, factual, general knowledge and other stories, including further stories of my trip to Korat, in the upcoming postings.

Edited by Satiman Jamin

MALAY VERSION