In the Quran, Muhammad proposes the origin of the Muslim practices surrounding the Kaaba, which all Muslims pray towards in Mecca, Saudi Arabia:
Surah 3:96
96 Surely the first House ˹of worship˺ established for humanity is the one at Mecca - a blessed sanctuary and a guide for ˹all˺ people.
Surah 2:125-127
125 And ˹remember˺ when We made the Sacred House a centre and a sanctuary for the people ˹saying˺, “˹You may˺ take the standing-place of Abraham as a site of prayer.” And We entrusted Abraham and Ishmael to purify My House for those who circle it, who meditate in it, and who bow and prostrate themselves ˹in prayer˺.
126 And ˹remember˺ when Abraham said, “My Lord, make this city ˹of Mecca˺ secure and provide fruits to its people—those among them who believe in Allah and the Last Day.” He answered, “As for those who disbelieve, I will let them enjoy themselves for a little while, then I will condemn them to the torment of the Fire. What an evil destination!”
127 And ˹remember˺ when Abraham raised the foundation of the House with Ishmael, ˹both praying,˺ “Our Lord! Accept ˹this˺ from us. You are indeed the All-Hearing, All-Knowing.
Surah 22:25-29
25 Indeed, those who persist in disbelief and hinder ˹others˺ from the Way of Allah and from the Sacred Mosque - which We have appointed for all people, residents and visitors alike - along with whoever intends to deviate by doing wrong in it, We will cause them to taste a painful punishment.
26 And ˹remember˺ when We assigned to Abraham the site of the House, ˹saying,˺ “Do not associate anything with Me ˹in worship˺ and purify My House for those who circle ˹the Ka’bah˺, stand ˹in prayer˺, and bow and prostrate themselves.
27 Call ˹all˺ people to the pilgrimage. They will come to you on foot and on every lean camel from every distant path,
28 so they may obtain the benefits ˹in store˺ for them, and pronounce the Name of Allah on appointed days over the sacrificial animals He has provided for them. So eat from their meat and feed the desperately poor.
29 Then let them groom themselves, fulfil their vows, and circle the Ancient House.
As we can see from the above, it was "the first House of worship established for humanity", and during the time of Abraham, God designated it as the place of worship for "all people". They will come "on every lean camel, from every distant path".
This designation of the Kaaba as the universal center of worship for all of mankind has to mean something. It has to be significant, and we would expect that significance to be prominent, obvious, and explicit. And, that's the Kaaba problem.
There is not a single mention of the Kaaba anywhere in history prior to Islam, and not a single mention of the Kaaba anywhere in the Bible. All we know, from Islam's own sources, is that Arabian Pagans used to circle it naked during the time of Muhammad - covered in an article here. Why is that the case, Muslims? I thought this was designated as the place of worship for all of mankind?
Of course, Muslims will lie, and twist a single passage in Psalm 84, as being in reference to Mecca. I have debunked this dishonest, joke of a claim in the article Is Muhammad Prophesied in the Bible?, so I won't rehash all of that here. It truly is nowhere in the Bible, but even for Muslims who believe that this passage refers to Mecca, notice that the Kaaba, and details about what to do there, aren't mentioned. Why not? Muslims, have you considered what you are asking us to believe?
You are asking us to believe that the first house of worship ever built, and the most important place of worship for Abraham, and all of his descendants, and all of mankind, was the Kaaba, and yet it, and the practices surrounding worship of God at it, are not explicitly, unambiguously mentioned even once in any of God's prior revelation to mankind which Islam affirms. Not even in the Torah, which covers all that we know about the life of Abraham, and which Muhammad affirmed was given by God (Surah 5:43-45), and written "with His own hand" (Sahih al-Bukhari 6614, Sahih Muslim 2652a), can we find even a passing reference to the first and most important center of worship for all of mankind.
In addition, we have dozens of volumes of the writings of pre-Nicaean and post-Nicaean Christians, who lived prior to Muhammad - millions of words - and not a single mention of the Kaaba, or any awareness of any of the rituals Muhammad ascribes to Abraham. Intertestamental Jewish literature? Nothing. Midrash? Nothing. Volume after volume of Jewish and Christian writings, utterly devoid of these prescribed practices.
Yet, in contrast, we have in Scripture thousands of references to the Promised Land, Israel, Jerusalem, the Tabernacle, and the Temple. These references are everywhere, they are unambiguous, and they are historically verified. That matches what we would expect to see, if those things were important to God. Yet, not even one explicit, unambiguous mention of the Kaaba, anywhere - even if we include extra-Biblical Jewish tradition. Why?
For the non-Muslim, the answer is easy. Muhammad was a false prophet, who tried to insert an insignificant Pagan cube in his hometown into a Biblical history that he knew nothing about, and knew nothing about him or his little cube. Easy. The solution to the Kaaba problem is that Muhammad was an obvious liar and revisionist historian, whose claims deserve to be mocked and ridiculed, because they are ridiculous and impossible.
For the Muslim, however, the answer defies reason. They must assert that even though this was designated as the most important place to worship God for all of mankind, and the descendants of Abraham, specifically, no Jew ever knew or cared about the Kaaba, or the practices meant to be performed at it, and God was utterly silent about it in the only revelation that Muhammad ever claimed to affirm as being from God. Instead, God spent reams of paper describing Israel and Jerusalem, and the Temple and Tabernacle, but couldn't be bothered to give us a single explanation of a far more important location that all of mankind was supposed to perform specific practices at, in Mecca.
One solution to the Kaaba problem is clear, and simple. The other has obvious, glaring problems for any Muslim who wants to retain any semblance of connection to the Biblical prophets, or even the historical record. When will Muslims open their eyes to see clearly the simple, childish lies of a Pagan false prophet?