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No
annual event on the face of
the globe, religious or
non-religious, compares to
hajj in terms of the sheer
number of participants,
duration of the event and the
breadth of agenda. In spite of
this fact, it has always
remained equally fascinating
and mysterious to not only
non-Muslims, who are barred
from entering the holy city,
but also to millions of
Muslims, who had not performed
hajj.
What
then is hajj? In essence, hajj
is man's evolution toward
Allah; his return to Him. It
is a symbolic demonstration of
the philosophy of creation of
Adam, the first man. To
further illustrate this, it
may be stated that the
performance of hajj is a
simultaneous show or exhibit
of many things. It is a show
of creation. It is a show of
history. It is a show of
unity. It is a show of Islamic
ideology. It is a show of
Ummah, the community of
Muslims. That is why, it is
said in the Quran: "And
proclaim unto mankind the
hajj. ... That they may
witness things that are of
benefit to them." (Quran
22:27-8)
Hajj
is a duty unto Allah for
mankind, for him or her who
can find a way or means to get
there (Quran 3:97). It is not
a tax on your wealth, but a
duty. Thus, to qualify, you
must be sane and wise to
understand what you are
getting into, and able-bodied
to go through this task, and
lastly, have the means or
resources to perform hajj.
The
pillars of hajj are five
(1)
'Ihram, (2) waiting at
'Arafat, (3) Tawaf of the
Ka'ba, (4) sa'iy or running
between the Safa and the Marwa
and (5) cutting or trimming of
hair.
Others
are not pillars, although some
may require kaffara or
penalty, if not done. The
person who puts on the 'Ihram
or cloth for either 'Umrah
(lesser pilgrimage) or hajj
(greater pilgrimage) is called
a Muhrim.
The
months of hajj are the three.
These
are the Arabic months of
Shawwal, Dhul-Qadah and first
ten days of Dhul Hijjah. Thus,
one cannot put on Ihram before
Shawwal. Hajj and 'Umrah are
performed in three ways -
ifrad, tamattu and qiran.
- Ifrad
involves first performing
hajj and then Umrah.
- Tamattu
is when one first performs
Umrah and then hajj, both
in the same year with some
break in between the two.
- Qiran
is when one puts on the
'Ihram with the intention
of combining both hajj and
'Umrah without any break
in between the two.
There
are ten etiquettes of hajj. These
are:
- Requite
all wrongdoings and
satisfy all adversaries.
- Make
provision for hajj from
one's lawful wealth.
- Learn
the pillars of hajj and
its ceremonies.
- Be
kind and forbearing with
others, lest the reward be
nullified.
- Observe
the obligations of prayers
and its statutes.
- Be
open-handed, maintain the
poor and spend as much as
he/she is able to.
- At
the station of 'Arafat,
remember the Day of
Judgment (Yawmil Qiamat).
- Should
not miss visitation of the
Prophet's
grave in Madinah.
- After
return from hajj, one
should turn toward Akhirat
(Hereafter).
- One
should remember his
parents and other close
relatives who have passed
away with pious prayers
and make-up for them if
they could not fulfill
their obligations for
hajj.
The
steps of hajj are the
following:
Miqat
- putting on 'Ihram at
designated places with wudhu.
The
show of hajj begins with Miqat.
At this point, the participant
must change his/her clothes.
Clothes show individuality,
status, preference and
distinction. They create
superficial barriers that
separate man from man. The
concept of "I" (and
not "We") emerges
which gives birth to
discrimination. At Miqat you
assume your original shape as
a "man", just one of
"children of Adam"
who will die one day. The
cloth of 'Ihram is, therefore,
the anti-thesis to that
"individualism", it
is the kafan (or burial
shroud). You wear the kafan,
the two pieces of cloth, just
like everyone else. You join
the mass, the multitude and
become nothing or just a drop
of water in the ocean that has
no special identity of its
own. An atmosphere of genuine
unity prevails everywhere. It
is a human show of Islamic
unity, it is a show of
universal brotherhood. The
bodies were left in Miqat and
the souls are motivated here.
This is the beginning of your
journey, your voyage to
nothingness. There is no sex,
no perfume, no shoes, no sewn
clothes and head covers for
men, no face mask, no cutting
of hair or nails, i.e.,
absolutely no signs of
aristocracy or distinction. In
the state of Muhrim, you don't
even look in a mirror to see
your own image. You don't hunt
any animal, you don't uproot
any plant. So you kill the
tendencies of aggression by
being peaceful to nature. You
cease to remain or behave as
somebody. Hajj is a movement
to returning to Allah, just as
Allah says in the Quran: Wa
ilal-lahil maseer (24:42),
meaning, "Unto Allah is
the journeying." All your
selfish egos must be buried at
Miqat. You witness your own
dead body and visit your own
grave. By sacrificing your
individuality, you focus on
reality, the basic purpose for
which you were created - that
being a slave unto Allah. Just
as when you would be buried in
two pieces of cloth, leaving
behind all your wealth and
worldly belongings, here in
Miqat you practice a dress
rehearsal for that inevitable
event.
It
is preferable that you enter
Makkah during the daytime.
Each
step you take toward Ka'ba,
your heart pounds. The weight
of being close to Allah's
house seems to get heavier and
heavier. You are endowed with
a mixed feeling of love and
fear. Love, because you have
waited this long to get here.
Fear, because you don't know
whether you can endure the
strain of rituals of hajj,
fulfill your duty unto Allah
and be born again as an
innocent human being.
Make
du'a (supplication) for Ka'ba
upon seeing it.
Remember
this is the Baital Haram - the
Sacred House - appointed by
Allah (Quran 5:97). This is
the first house of worship on
the face of the globe. It is
to this house that you face
while praying. It is also the
direction in which your face
would be turned when you are
buried as dead. It is the
center of existence, faith,
love, unity and life. It has
its own history. It is called
Baitil Masabatal-lin-nass wa
amana, i.e., the House of
resort for mankind and a
sanctuary (Quran 2:125). It is
also called Baitul Atiq - the
Ancient House - in the Quran
(22:29). Ibrahim prayed
for its security and
blessings.
You
perform Tawaf
(circumambulation) of Ka'ba
seven times, unless it is time
for a regular prayer led by an
Imam, which you need to join
in.
Just
as planets of our solar system
orbit around the sun, you
orbit around the world's sun -
the Ka'ba, and become part of
a universal system. You
demonstrate your love for
Allah by making Tawaf around
His house. Tawaf should be
started from the corner stone
- the Black stone, Hajr al-Aswad
- with Ka'ba on the left. This
is where you make a contract
to join all the tribes of the
earth, and become like a drop
of water entering the ocean.
The moment of truth has come
and you must select your path,
distinct from those who had
rejected their Creator. Three
of the seven Tawafs must be at
a faster pace than normal
walking. You should try to
touch the stone with hand, and
put your forehead on it and
then kiss it. By touching the
stone, you have shown your
allegiance to your Creator,
who had sent this very stone
from the heaven, so that He
could know your love for Him.
By touching the stone, you
have cut off all forms of
allegiance to anything other
than Allah, you have become
free again from servitude of
men and this world. During
Tawaf, you become part of the
cosmos. You forget about
yourself. You are in love with
the symbol of unity and
servitude to Allah. You see
nothing but His symbols, the
Ka'ba and the Black Stone,
Hajr al-Aswad. By denying
yourself you have become a
lover of Him just like Hajera
who migrated to this land,
barren and rugged, without
vegetation, without any forms
of subsistence, but with
complete reliance in Her Lord,
Allah Subhana Wa ta'Ala (SWT).
And Allah did not neglect
either her or her infant son.
He brought out the Jamjam well
and let people settle there,
making it the most important
place in the Arabian
peninsula. Remember that some
rituals of hajj are, in
reality, a memory of Hajera.
Hijrah or migration is what
Hajera did. Any migration like
hers is a move toward
civilization.
During
Tawaf, everyone encircles the
Ka'ba collectively. The
movement is of one unit and
there is no individual
identification of men or
women, black or white, red or
yellow. The movement has
transformed one person into
the totality of a
"people." All of the
"I's" have
transformed into
"We," establishing
the universality of ummah with
the goal of approaching Allah.
Likewise, all your
self-centeredness must go and
transform into self-denial or
ummah-centered activities.
Allah's way is the way of the
people. In other words, to
approach Allah, you must first
approach people. That is why,
individual activities in Islam
are less meritorious than
collective actions. You step
out of the Tawaf cycle at the
same place you started after
completion of the seven
orbits. This is just like
being resurrected from the
same spot where you would be
buried.
After
Tawaf, perform two rakah of
prayer behind Maqam-e Ibrahim
in which you pray Surah al-Kafirun
in the first rakat and Surah
al-Ikhlas in the second.
Maqam
is a very blessed place for
praying (Quran 2:125). It is
the nearest point to Allah. As
a matter of fact, there is no
place in this entire earth
where you get more reward than
this place for praying. The
stone has the footprint of
Ibrahim, the rebel against the
established despot of his
time, Nimrod. He stood over
this stone to lay the corner
stone - Hajr al-Aswad and to
re-construct the Ka'ba and to
pray (Quran 2:125). Do you now
understand where you are
standing? By standing on the
same stone, you vow to become
like Ibrahim Hanifah wa Khalil-Allah,
the upright friend of Allah,
who was uncompromising in his
conviction of Tawhid. In Maqam,
symbolically, you shake hands
with Ibrahim by pledging
the same dedication to Allah -
i.e., to be like Ibrahim and
Isma'il, his son. |
| Run
between the mountains - Safa
and Marwa - seven times,
starting with the Safa and
ending with the Marwa.
This
is called Sa'iy. Literally it
means search, a movement with
an aim. It is depicted by
running and hurrying. Here you
act like Hajera, the mother of
infant Isma'il. She had no
food, no water, no shelter,
neither for herself nor for
her child, but only
uncompromising, relentless
faith that the God of Ibrahim
will not leave her and her
only son without sustenance.
Remember, when Ibrahim
left her and their only son,
Isma'il near the valley
of Makkah, Hajera asked him:
"O Ibrahim, where are you
leaving us, while there is no
habitation of men nor any
provision for food and drink?
Who is going to look after
us?" Ibrahim
replied, "Ilal-lah (to
Allah's protection
only)." She said, "Raditu
billah (I am fully satisfied
with Allah?" She also
asked, "Have you done
this to fulfill Allah's
command?" When Ibrahim
confirmed that by saying,
"Yes," she simply
said, "Well in that case,
we have no fear, for Allah
will not let us die without
providing any provision [i.e.,
He will definitely provide for
us in the middle of this
desolate, barren
desert]." [Bukhari] Do
you see the strength of her
trust in Allah? Away from the
view of his wife and son,
Ibrahim prayed,
"Our Lord: Lo! I have
settled some of my posterity
in an uncultivable valley near
unto Thy Holy House (Ka'ba),
Our Lord! that they may
establish proper worship. So,
incline some hearts of men
that they may yearn toward
them, and You provide them
with fruits in order that they
may be thankful." (Quran
14: 37). Soon, however,
Hajera's water and food were
all gone, there was no milk or
water or any food either for
herself or for her child. She
started looking out for water,
running to the top of the
mountain, Safa. No, there is
no water anywhere. Then she
comes down and looks at her
infant to check if he is fine.
She then goes to the top of
the other mountain, Marwa, and
takes a deep long look to
fetch water. She was searching
water, why? Because it is
needed for physical salvation,
for life to continue. So,
should man work for
livelihood, trusting in Allah.
She searches again and again.
After running seven times
between these two mountains,
she comes down from Marwa to
see the condition of her
infant son. She hears the
sound of gushing water coming
from near her son and is
surprised to see an angel (Jibril)
dig a well near the heel of
her infant son. The gushing
water from the well was making
all that sound. She quickly
puts a barrier around it so
that water could be stored and
that it did not overflow. And
this well came to be known as
the Jamjam. Muhammad
said, "May Allah bless
the mother of Isma'il. If she
had not put that barrier
around the Jamjam, instead of
a well, the gushing water
would have continued to flow
like a spring [and flooded the
entire valley]." It was a
gift from Allah to the mother
and son, and all those who
came later. It is a mineral
water rich with nutritional
and medicinal power to cure
man of many diseases. The Safa
and the Marwa, thus, became
among the signs, indications
of Allah (Quran 2:158).
On
the seventh day of Dhul-Hijjah,
after the Zuhr prayer, Imam
explains the meaning of hajj
and exhorts people to go to
the valley of Mina (nearly six
miles north of Makkah) next
morning after Fajr prayer.
Visit
and stay at Mina on the eighth
day (after arriving there in
the morning) till the next
Fajr (dawn prayer).
Go
to 'Arafat after sun has risen
on the ninth, stopping on the
way at Namirah and listening
to khutbah before Zuhr
(mid-day prayer).
Proceed
to 'Arafat (five miles further
north) and seek Allah's
forgiveness there till Maghrib
(prayer after sunset).
'Arafat
literally means knowledge and
science. 'Arafat represents
the beginning of man's
creation, that of our
forefather Adam. It was
shaytan who misled our
forefather by whispering to
him saying: "O Adam!
Shall I show you the tree of
immortality and power that
wastes not away?" (Quran
20:120) He caused the downfall
of Adam and Haw'a (Eve). For
years, they were separated
from each other having
descended at different places.
It was in 'Arafat that they
met again. It was in a small
rocky hill of Jabal al-Rahma
in the center of 'Arafat that
their sins were forgiven by
Allah. So, here in 'Arafat,
you act like Adam or
Haw'a and seek forgiveness for
you and your loved ones.
After
sunset proceed slowly to
Muzdalifah (halfway between
'Arafat and Mina) without
praying (Quran 2:198).
However, the Imams Abu Hanifah
and Sufyan al-Thawri (R) said
it is permissible to pray
Maghrib before reaching
Muzdalifah.
Spend
the night before Eid in
Muzdalifah. Pray Fajr early.
Collect pebbles there (70 per
person).
Muzdalifah
is part of Mash'ar-ul-Haram.
Our Prophet Muhammad
prayed for long duration here.
You must be in Mash'ar by the
nightfall (while you were at
'Arafat during the day).
Darkness engulfs you in
Mash'ar. 'Arafat is knowledge,
it requires daylight for clear
vision. Mash'ar literally
means consciousness and
understanding. Such blossom at
night through deep reflection
or meditation. So, Mash'ar is
the stage of insight while
'Arafat was the stage of
experience. Intuition needs no
light. It can see in the
darkness. It is the stage
between knowledge and love, or
'Arafat and Mina. Here you
reflect upon yourself and
strengthen your spirit. Are
you not in the right way? Are
you ready to fight against
Satan or his insinuations? In
Makkah, during tawaf you
joined the crowd and became
part of them. Here you are
alone, despite being within a
crowd. Here you are for
yourself only. Therefore,
confess your sins to Allah.
And this night is a good cover
for your tears. Take
preparation for tomorrow by
getting ready tonight. There
is a great battle in which you
have to participate tomorrow.
So, collect your weaponry -
the pebbles - before the day
breaks. The pebbles will be
used against your enemy. You
have to act like Ibrahim 
here just as he fought against
the insinuations of Satan on
his way to sacrifice his
beloved son, Isma'il .
Go
back to Mina and throw seven
stones at Jamrat-ul Aqabah,
reciting Takbir each time. The
remainder 63 stones should be
thrown over the next three
days of Ayyam al-Tashriq
(11th, 12th and 13th of Dhul
Hijjah) at a rate of 21 stones
per day. Every day, throw the
first 7 stones at Jamarah near
Mina, and the last seven at
Jamarat al-Aqabah, located
closer to Makkah.
The
tenth day has arrived. This is
the day for sacrifice of
animal. You are armed with
weapons to fight Satan, the
enemy of your forefather, the
devil who tried to confuse
Ibrahim . Mina literally means
love. Ibrahim felt too
much love for his only son,
Isma'il. And Allah wanted to
test how great or how real his
love was for Him. Ibrahim
saw a vision of sacrificing
his most beloved son. That was
the command from Allah to test
Ibrahim of his love and
devotion. Can Ibrahim
pass this test? He ponders on
this unusual, rather cruel,
test. He has grown old and he
has no other offspring. In his
very old age, Allah has
listened to his prayer and has
blessed him with this son
through his second wife,
Hajera. As a thanksgiving for
answering to his prayer, he
has named his son, Isma'il
(meaning: God listened [to my
prayer]).
Yet,
Ibrahim was asked to
settle Isma'il and his mother
in the valley of Makkah when
the child was still an infant.
And now that the lad has
become old enough to walk and
reason, Allah wants him to
sacrifice that son to prove
that his true love is only for
Allah. Just ponder on this for
a moment (Quran 37:102). Don't
you get a chill in your back?
Satan tries to create doubt in
his mind: 'O Ibrahim, are you
sure you want to sacrifice
your son, your true love, your
joy, the meaning of your
existence, the fruit of your
life; who would there be after
you to worship your Lord;
don't you have heart, any soft
feelings toward your son?'
Ibrahim is momentarily
confused. Should he or
shouldn't he carry out Allah's
command, "you must
sacrifice your son?" Is
he dreaming or is it the
reality? No, there is no
confusion what he saw in his
vision is crystal clear; God
truly wants him to sacrifice
his beloved Isma'il. He wins
over Satan, the sneaking
whisperer. But then Satan
returns and tries to digress
him from his task. Ibrahim
wins over again. But Satan
does not give up that easily,
he tries to create confusion
for the third time. Ibrahim
wins over Satan's temptations
yet for the third time. He is
mentally all prepared to carry
out the task. His choice is
obvious - absolute obedience
and devotion to Allah; Isma'il
must be sacrificed. He wanted
to share the message with his
lad. Thus, he talks to his
young lad, Isma'il , of his
dream and asks his opinion.
And what does this
"gentle" son (whom
the Quran calls Ghulamin Halim)
reply? He calmly says: "O
my father! Do that which you
are commanded. Allah willing,
you shall find me of the
steadfast." (Quran
37:102) He answers like the
rock of Gibraltar!
What
did you expect? Did you expect
the son of Ibrahim , the
upright, to be any less
faithful than his father? So,
here in Mina, you act like
Ibrahim, the soldier of Tawhid
(monotheism), ready to defeat,
subdue or shoot down your real
enemy, the Satan within you
representing your personal
egos, desires, cravings, and
preferences. These
"other" things, the
"idols", were
distracting you from the true
worship of God. But here in
Mina, you are now ready to
fight against these taghoots (demi-gods)
to show your true devotion and
obedience to Allah. You fight
Satan just as Ibrahim
had fought against him. To
mimic that event, you throw
stones at Satan at the three
Jamarats.
Qurbani
or sacrifice an animal, saying
only Bismillah.
When
both the father and the son -
Ibrahim and Isma'il -
had surrendered to Allah and
Ibrahim had flung
Isma'il down upon his
face and was about to put the
knife on his son's neck, Allah
called Ibrahim : "O
Ibrahim! You have already
fulfilled the vision." (Quran
37:104-5) Ibrahim
doesn't have to sacrifice his
son. Instead, he should
sacrifice this ram, which has
been sent to him, as ransom
for Isma'il . Unlike the
false-gods of polytheism,
Allah, the One True God, is
not bloodthirsty. He just
wanted to check where Ibrahim
stood in his devotion and
love, whether he was capable
of overcoming his personal
feeling of love for his son to
please Allah. A lesson was
taught by Allah - from now on
there would be no human
sacrifice in the altar of God.
Sacrifice of a halal animal
whose meat you can eat and
distribute among the poor is a
sufficient substitute.
Ponder
again. What was Ibrahim
asked to sacrifice? It was
nothing short of the most
beloved thing/entity among his
possession. But when he was
ready, his Isma'il was
returned unto him, unscathed
and unharmed. And he was made
a model for humanity:
"And We left for him [Ibrahim]
among the later folk (the
salutation): Peace be unto
Ibrahim. Thus do we reward the
good." (Quran 37:108-9)
If you love something more
than you love Allah, then that
thing has become your idol and
you must be ready to sacrifice
that. Are you ready to
slaughter your worldly
desires, worldly love, your
Isma'il in Mina in order that
you be free from all
attachments save those of
Allah? If you are, then
slaughter a goat, sheep, ram,
cow or camel as a ransom
towards your Isma'il. As Dr.
Shariati rightly puts it,
"To offer a sheep instead
of Isma'il is a
"sacrifice", but to
sacrifice a sheep just for the
sake of sacrifice is
"butchery"!"
(Ref: Hajj by Dr. Ali Shariati)
For surely Allah says,
"Their flesh and their
blood do not reach Allah, but
the devotion from you reaches
Him." (Quran 22:37)
Men
should shave their head or
trim their hair, at least,
one-quarter of head. Women
should not shave their head,
but only trim slightly at the
end of the lock of a hair.
After
the Qurbani (sacrifice) of the
animal, you have almost
completed the basic
requirements of hajj, so you
can make an end of your
unkemptness (Quran 22:29). You
have defeated Satan but you
may not have succeeded in
completely killing it. You may
have defeated him outside but
he comes back inside of you.
So, you should stay the next
three days in Mina and
continue with your battling of
the Satan at Jamarat.
After
shaving or trimming the hair,
you should go to Makkah and
make the Tawaf of visitation
and run seven times between
the Safa and the Marwa. Then
your hajj is complete and you
can come out of 'Ihram.
This
is the latter tawaf of the
Ka'ba (Quran 22:29), performed
after you return from Mina. In
Mina, you have defeated Satan
and renewed your ties with
Allah by following the
footsteps of Ibrahim . When
you first approached Ka'ba you
had not, by then, purified
yourself. You were still
impure and unconscious. In
'Arafat you gained
consciousness. In Mina you
purified yourself. So, this is
appropriate that you do the
tawaf and sa'iy in the
purified state before you
return home. During the
rituals of hajj you played the
roles of Ibrahim and
Hajera. Do not replace your
role-playing to something else
when you return. Like Hajera,
always trust in Allah. Like
Ibrahim fight the fire
of Nimrod, i.e., oppression.
Like Ibrahim be prepared
to sacrifice your Isma'il,
i.e., love or desires, for the
sake of your faith. That is
the essence of hajj. You
return to Allah the way He
wanted you to be: a slave
totally dedicated to his/her
Master.
In
closing, let me quote from Ali
bin Uthman al-Jullabi al
Hujwiri's (R) Kashf al-Mahjub.
A certain man came to Junayd
[al-Baghdadi] (R). Junayd
asked him whence he came. He
replied: "I have been to
hajj." Junayd (R) said:
"From the time when you
first journeyed from your home
have you also journeyed away
from all sins?" He said,
"No."
"Then," said Junayd
(R), "you have made no
journey. At every stage where
you halted for the night did
you traverse a station on the
way to Allah?" He said:
"No."
"Then," said Junayd
(R), "you have not
trodden the road stage by
stage. When you put on the
Ihram (pilgrim's garb) at the
proper place did you discard
the attributes of humanity as
you cast off your ordinary
clothes?" "No."
"Then you have not put on
the Ihram. When you stood on
'Arafat did you stand one
instant in contemplation of
Allah?" "No."
"Then you have not stood
on 'Arafat. When you went to
Muzdalifa and achieved your
desire did you renounce all
sensual desires?"
"No." "Then you
have not gone to Muzdalifa.
When you circumambulated the
Ka'ba did you behold the
immaterial beauty of Allah in
the abode of
purification?"
"No." "Then you
have not circumambulated the
Ka'ba. When you ran between
Safa and Marwa did you attain
to the rank of safa (purity)
and muruwwat (virtue)?"
"No." "Then you
have not run. When you came to
Mina did all your wishes
cease?" "No."
"Then you have not yet
visited Mina. When you reached
the slaughter place and
offered sacrifice did you
sacrifice the objects of
sensual desire?"
"No." "Then you
have not sacrificed. When you
threw the stones did you throw
away whatever sensual thoughts
were accompanying you?"
"No." "Then you
have not yet thrown the
stones, and you have not yet
performed the pilgrimage.
Return and perform the
pilgrimage in the manner which
I have described in order that
you may arrive at the station
of Ibrahim."
May
Allah grant us the vigor to
follow the dictates of hajj so
that this duty is acceptable
unto Him.
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