Hajj (Pilgrimage) in Islam [Archives:2001/08/Culture]

Abdullah S. Hussein Al-Hashedi 
Sana’a University 
Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam. It is to be done once in a life time. In the Holy Quran, Allah says: “And proclaim to mankind the Hajj. They will come to you on foot and on every lean camel, they will come from every deep and distant (wide) mountain, highway (to perform Hajj). That they may witness things that are of benefits to them (i.e. reward of Hajj in the hereafter….”Literally, the word Hajj means repairing to a thing for the sake of a visit and technically it refers to the repairing to Bait-Allah (The House of Allah) built by the Prophet Ibraham and his Son Ismael (God’s blessings be upon them.) Allah rewarded them by calling it his own house and by making it the center towards which they must face when saying prayers. In the Holy Quran, Allah says: 
“Verily, the first House (of worship) appointed for mankind was that at Bekkah (Mecca), full of blessing, and a guidance for mankind and Jinns.” 
[3: 96] 
According to the majority of scholars Hajj was legislated in the ninth year after the Hijrah. The months in which Hajj is to be performed are thus spoken of: “The Hajj (pilgrimage) is (in) the well-known (lunar year) months (i.e. the 10th month, the 11th month and the first ten days of the 12th month of the Islamic calendar.”[2:197] 
Hajj is obligatory for every Muslim who is adult, sane and able, only once in his life. Therefore, one who denies its obligation is not a Muslim. The obligation to perform the Hajj is further subject to the condition that one is able to undertake a journey to Mecca. Allah says: “And Hajj to the House (Ka’bah) is a duty that mankind owes to Allah, those who can afford the expenses (for one’s conveyance, provision and residence)……”In fact, there may be a physical or financial disability. The danger of life may also be a reason for freeing a man from the obligation of Hajj. The prophet (Muhammed) and many of his companies could not perform a pilgrimage after the flight to the town of Madina. That was because their lives would not have been safe at Mecca. 
Before going to perform Hajj there are many essential things one should know. A Muslim has got to be ready mentally, spiritually, physically and financially. The following list of things should be kept in mind by all Muslims intending to perform Hajj: 
1) Remember that Hajj can be acceptable to Allah only when the following two conditions are satisfied: 
a) Ikhlas or purifying one’s intention. In other words, Hajj should be done with sincerity to Allah seeking to please Him alone. 
b) The careful following of the prophet’s example. That is making sure one does Hajj according to the teachings of the prophet (peace be upon him), and sticking to that at all times. 
2) Buy your Ihram (Hajj dress) and learn how to put it on comfortably just to avoid any embarrassing situations. 
3) Make sure that your passport is valid and you have obtained a visa from your country if you come from a non-Muslim country. If your passport doesn’t show that you are a Muslim, then you should get a certificate showing that you are a Muslim. 
4) Try to attend a workshop by a local community center to understand the rules and regulations about the day-to-day activities of Hajj. If not possible, you can talk to people who have experienced Hajj or at least get Hajj guide books and take them along with you, 
5) Get yourself a safety belt with safety pockets to keep your money and documents with you all the time. 
6) Don’t worry about medication as there is plenty of medicine. You can find it easily in hospitals or you can buy it from pharmacies even without a doctor’s prescription. 
7) Be as patient as you can. Both towns Mecca and Madina are going to be overcrowded with more than a million Muslim doing the same rites in the same place. And to keep your Hajj in a good standing, try not to be in a position in which you cause harm to others. 
8) In some places like Mina and Arafat you will be living in tents which look very identical. Therefore, try to identify the number and the direction of tents so that you can make it back without trouble. 
9) Muslim females can not travel alone by themselves. They should take a male member of their immediate family: a father, a brother, a son or a husband who has to be a Muslim as well. 
Like all other pillars of Islam, Hajj has its own invaluable values for Muslims. In fact no other institution in the world has the wonderful influence of the Hajj in leveling all distinctions of race, color and rank. People of all races and all countries meet together before the Holy House of Allah as his servants and as members of one Divine family. Not only this but they are also all clad in one dress (two white sheets) and there remains nothing to distinguish the high from the low. 
They all move in one way having but one word to speak. Labbaika Allah-umma Labbaik meaning (here we are O Allah, here we are in your presence). Mecca is the center in which Muslims create and refresh in themselves the faith that all Muslims are equal, irrespective of their geographical or cultural origin. All in all, we can say that Hajj is the only occasion on which Muslims are taught how to live in one way, how to act in one way and how to feel in one way. 
Another inner value of Hajj lies in the higher spiritual experience which is made possible by the unique assembling of men, the experience of standing in the Divine presence. God is surely not in Mecca to the exclusion of other places, yet that vast assemblage at Mecca sees Him and feels His presence as if he is actually there in their very midst. 
Finally, all Muslims know that once Hajj is completed with sincerity, they will lose all their sins so that when they return back home, they go as pure as they were born. 
Abu Hurairah, Allah’s messenger said, “whoever performs Hajj to this House (Kabba) and does not approach his wife for sexual relations nor commits sins (while performing Hajj), he will come out as sinless as a newly-born child (just delivered by his mother).” [Sahih Al Bukhari, Hadith No. 1819] 

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