There are many religious activities Muslims perform because they were ordered by Allah and in order to imitate Prophet Muhammad. Imitating the Prophet's religious rituals is a source of good deeds and forgiven sins. Such simple activities and imitations - such as eating with the right hand, washing three times, putting on socks and shoes first on the right-foot etc. - serve as an easy excuse for having good deeds recorded in one's favour.
Far as I understand, generally speaking, religious rituals
aren't supposed to make sense from a secular perspective.
These rituals are as imitations of Prophet Muhammad's actions and
not because Muslims hold some special reverence to such inanimate objects. Also, see
Kissing the Black Stone and Touching the Yemeni Corner by Shaykh AbdurRazzaq al-Badr.
