According to Islamic tradition, Ishmael set up the Kaaba as a pilgrimage center with his father Abraham.
The Quran describes Abraham and Ishmael raising the foundations of the House, identified in Islamic tradition as the Kaaba in Mecca. Their work is associated with restoring the sanctuary to the worship of one God and establishing it as a destination for pilgrimage. Abraham is then understood to have proclaimed the pilgrimage, while Ishmael helped with the construction.
This story is closely connected with Hajar and Ishmael’s earlier life in the Meccan valley, including the origin of the Zamzam well. It also helps explain why Hajj includes sites and rites associated with Abraham’s family. Isaac, Jacob, and Moses are important biblical and Quranic figures, but they are not the son named in the tradition of building the Kaaba with Abraham.
The Kaaba is now Islam’s holiest sanctuary and the direction, or qibla, faced during prayer. Its historical structure has been rebuilt and repaired many times, but the Abraham-and-Ishmael account remains central to its religious meaning.