According to the Book of Idols, descendants of the son of Abraham (Ishmael) who had settled in Mecca migrated to other lands. They carried holy stones from the .^[9] This, according to al-Kalbi led to the rise of idol worship.^[9] Based on this, it may be probable that Arabs originally venerated stones, later adopting idol-worship under foreign influences.^[9] The relationship between a god and a stone as his representation can be seen from the third-century work called the Syriac Homily of Pseudo-Meliton where he describes the pagan faiths of Syriac-speakers in northern Mesopotamia, who were mostly Arabs.^[9]