Some people perform Hajj as a ritual, some others to take annual break from work and experience some spirituality, some because it is an obligation in Islam and yet some others as they want it to be one of the last good deeds before they die so that all their sins are forgiven. But the real objective of Hajj should be to get closer to Allah, cleanse our heart from all the wrong things, remembering Allah, praising Him and displaying universal brotherhood.
Islam has five major symbols of getting closer to Allah. They are the Qur’an, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him), Salah (5 times daily prayer), Fasting and visiting Ka’aba. We can experience the first four at our own place, but we can only experience Ka’aba when we go for Hajj or Umrah.
Allah has favoured us with various bounties such as time, money, food and health. To thank Allah for giving us time, we perform Salah. To thank Allah for giving us money, we give Zakat. To thank Allah for giving us good, we fast in the month of Ramadan. To thank Allah for giving us time, money and health, we perform Hajj.
It all starts with putting on Ehram, a 2-piece unstitched cloth. Dress is the identity of man, but we are asked to remove our normal dress and put on a two-piece unstitched cloth. To meet Allah, there is no identity required; we finish our identity, maintain uniformity, eliminate all types of racism and keep all types of luxuries aside. It also reminds us about our death as our Kafan would also comprise of two pieces of cloth. It indicates that we bury our old personality and move from self-centeredness to God centeredness.
This is followed by reciting the Talbia, “Labbayka Allaahumma labbayk, labbayka laa shareeka laka labbayk. Inna al-hamd wa’l-ni’mata laka wa’l-mulk, laa shareeka lak” (Here I am, O Allah, here I am. Here I am, You have no partner, here I am. Verily all praise and blessings are Yours, and all sovereignty, You have no partner). The Talbia is nothing but answering the call of Azan (Call for Prayer) given by Prophet Ibrahim after the construction of Ka’aba. And we move to Mina.
After a day’s stay in Mina, we head to Arafah. Arafah means to identify; and to identify we need to gain knowledge. It is a place where Prophet Adam met Eve. It is a time to recall Prophet Adam, who happened to commit a mistake but soon asked Allah to forgive him. It is a place which has the Mountain Jabal-e-Rahmah, where Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) delivered the Final Sermon, which is nothing but the best Human Rights Charter, covering various aspects of life. Finally, it is a time to reflect upon our self and see who we are, what is the purpose of our life, what is our mission on earth and the sins we have committed in the past and seek repentance from Allah.
Then we move to Muzdalifa where we spend the night. This is the place we would collect 70 stones to pelt the three Satans. These stones are symbolically the weapons which we are collecting to fight the three powers who are striving against Islam. Mina is also called Wadi-e-Mufassal. It is a place where Abraha took a rest when he had come to destroy the Ka’aba. Then Allah sent birds (to be exact, Ababeel) with stones that destroyed Abraha and his army. We also pick stones of the same size which were used by the birds.
Then we go on to Jamarat, the three Satans. They are the three powers which are always against fighting Islam. The first power is Muscle Power which is Political Parties. The second power is Mind Power which is Think Tanks and Media houses. The third power is Money Power which is World Bank and IMF. These three powers have always been challenges to Muslims all the time.
Then we go ahead and sacrifice an animal. It symbolises that the way we are sacrificing the animal, we will also sacrifice our time, talent, money and life in the way of Allah when the situation so demands. Then we go on to remove our hair. Hair is something dirty. Removing hair is removing our dirt from our life and coming out a clear personality. We make a statement that we will not follow our desire but would give our life in Allah’s control to guide us to the straight path.
Before we start Tawaf of Kaaba, we are supposed to kiss Ḥajr al-Aswad. When a person is unable to kiss it, he should just need to kiss it in the air by pointing the hands to Ḥajr al-Aswad and make dua. When he does that, he should remember that he is giving a covenant in the hands of Allah, as Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) said, “Ḥaj al-Aswad is Right Hand of Allah on Earth”, which is like a Bayyat (Promise and Commitment) we give to Allah that we would fulfil all the commandments given by Him. Caliphs would come to the Masjid and people would come and take Bayyat from people who would accept Islam.
Then we circumambulate the Ka’aba anticlockwise, showing that we are in synch with the universe as all the creatures of Allah in the universe move anticlockwise. For example, the sun revolves anticlockwise, the stars move anticlockwise, the neutron and proton also revolve anticlockwise, etc. When we circumambulate around the Kaaba, we give a commitment that once we go back, our lives will only revolve around the commandments of Allah. As a butterfly goes around the flower because it loves it, we go around the house of Allah because we love Allah. This also reminds us about the life of Prophet Ibrahim. The reason of circumambulating the Kaaba seven times is because in Arabic the number 7 refers to totality (Includes Everything). When we also see the world around us, there are 7 Continents, 7 Oceans, 7 Skies, 7 Earths and 7 Days in a Week. This means that our complete life will be based on the commands of Allah.
After the Tawaf we are supposed to pray 2 Rakat Salah at Muqaam-e-Ibrahim. It does not refer to any specific place. But it actually means that we need to imitate the life of Prophet Ibrahim which is replete with sacrifice and obedience to Allah. In the first rakat we are asked to recite Surah Kafiroon because first we need to deny Shirk (Associating Partner(s) with God), which is the theme of the chapter and in the second rakat we are asked to recite Surah Ikhlas because after denying Shirk we need to proclaim Monotheism, which is the theme of the chapter. Then we need to drink Zam Zam, which is sign of hope in dejection. From this we learn that we should have faith in Allah to show us some path and never lose hope.
Then we move towards Sa’ee (Moving from Safa to Marwa 7 times) which is an act performed by the beloved wife of Prophet Ibrahim, Bibi Hajira. Sa’ee means to strive, to endeavour. From Sa’ee we learn that man needs to strive and struggle for material things in the world as Bibi Hajira ran from Safa to Marwa to strive. Sa’ee is a symbol to work hard to acquire worldly needs. Thus, Hajj does not only remind us about our spiritual need but our material need as well. Then we head back to Mina to spend the next two days and pelt the Satan. Finally, man becomes pure and heads back to Makkah, where our headquarters is.
It is a very unique journey where our supplications would be accepted and our sins are forgiven. There are 9 places where our supplications are accepted. They are, inside the Ka’aba, inside the Hateem, Multazim (Space between Hajr-e-Aswad and Door of Ka’aba), near the Zam Zam well, Safa, Marwa, Arafat, Musdalifa and Jamarat.
Hajj is a unique journey because of various reasons. It is a major journey which has 7 minor journeys. From Makkah to Mina, Mina to Arafah, Arafah to Muzdalifa, Muzdalifa to Mina, Mina to Makkah, Makkah to Mina, and Mina to Makkah. It has more than 2 million (20 lakh) people from different parts of the world who come together and perform all the rituals together for 5 days, without display of any kind of racism, which also makes it the largest annual gathering of the world. Hajj is a journey which is filled with wisdom and guidance. Let this journey transform our life and help us lead a sinless life – a life which is filled with a noble purpose and a great mission.