Ibn ‘Umar (ra) was known for his profound love and eagerness to follow the example of the Prophet ﷺ. In this hadeeth, Naa’fi, the freed slave of Ibn ‘Umar, reports that whenever ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar (ra) entered the Ka’bah, he would walk straight ahead and would leave the door behind his back and would proceed until the distance between him and the wall in front of him is of about three cubits, which would give him enough space to pray with ease. He would look for the exact place where the Prophet ﷺprayed, which he came to know about from Bilaal (ra). Then he explained that there is nothing wrong for anyone to perform prayers anywhere inside the Ka’bah if the door is closed. It appears that this statement is made by Naafi’, the freed slave of Ibn ‘Umar, whilst maintaining the possibility that it could be someone else’s statement. It is reported in Saheeh al-Bukhaaree and Saheeh Muslim that the Prophet ﷺ “made one pillar to be on his left and the other pillar to be on his right and three behind him. The House in that time used to stand on six pillars, then he ﷺperformed his prayers.” The distance between him and the Qiblah was three cubits, as reported in Sunan Aboo Daawood. The scholars reconciliated between this hadeeth and the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas (ra) in Saheeh al-Bukhaaree wherein the following is mentioned, “He entered the House and he pronounced takbeer in all its corners and he did not pray in it.” The confirmation of Bilaal takes precedence over the negation of others, because Ibn ‘Abbaas was not with the Prophet ﷺon that day. He attributed his negation to sometimes (narrating from) Usaamah and to sometimes to his brother al-Fadl. It is said that it is possible that the entrance [of the Prophet ﷺ] to the House happened twice, on one occasion he ﷺperformed prayers, while, on the other, he ﷺdid not pray. From the benefits to be concluded from this hadeeth is knowing that it is permissible to enter the Ka’bah and pray therein. The hadeeth shows that whoever arrives first is more entitled to pray at the virtuous spot. It also shows that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) learn and benefit from each other..