Introduction to Hajj

What is Hajj?

•  Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. Hajj is the pilgrimage to Mecca that every Muslim must make at least once in their lifetime if they are financially and physically able to
•  It is the most spiritual event that a Muslim experiences. The practices involved with Hajj have remained unchanged since its beginning, and it continues to be a powerful religious undertaking which draws Muslims together from all over the world, irrespective of nationality or sect
•  Even before Islam, Mecca was an important site of pilgrimage for the Arab tribes of north and central Arabia
• The revelation of Islam to the Prophet Muhammad (d. 632) restored the ancient religion of the One God to the Arab people and transformed Mecca into the holiest city in the Islamic world

Ihram

-  When doing Hajj, you have to be in a state of Ihram, meaning you have to be clean, and have to wear plain, white clothing

-  White clothing is symbolic of equality

-  It means we are all equal in front of Allah, no matter the race, color, or gender

- Because everyone is dressed similarly, money and status don’t matter

Tawaf

Tawaf is walking around Kaaba 7 times, counter clockwise - in an explicit manner- with a particular prayer. It is the most vital obligation of Hajj. It shows the unity, and firm trust towards Allah. It is many times misinterpreted that Muslims are there to worship the Kaaba. On the contrary, Muslims are there to worship their one God in unity and harmony and this is the real purpose of Tawaf.

Safa & Marwa

• Walking (sa’i) and running 7 laps between the two hills of Safa and Marwa is is an important practice in the memory of Prophet Ibrahim’s wife Hajar and her struggle in the desert in search of water for her son Prophet Ismail (AS). Sa’i symbolises the ongoing struggle that we encounter throughout our lives, as Hajar (AS) experienced herself
• Once sa’i is complete, men will have their hair clipped or shaved whilst a woman clips her hair to the length of her fingertip. This marks the completion of your umrah, allowing you to leave ihram, until the 8th of Dhul Hijjah

Clip/Shave Hair

• Once sa’i is complete, men will have their hair shaved (preferred) or trimmed whilst women clip their hair to the length of their fingertip. This marks the completion of umrah
• By doing this, one demonstrates one's sincerity, humility and Oneness to Allah without caring for one's physical appearance

Mina

• After completing Umrah , all pilgrims travel to Mina (a town in Mecca), where they stay an entire day to pray – Zuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha, Fajr and Qasr – as stated in the Quran 
• Muslim pilgrims stay in tents and spend their entire day praying
• Mina is the Meccan city where Muslims commemorate the occasion when Prophet Ibrahim (AS) stoned the devil

Day of Arafah

• Day of Arafah falls on the second day of pilgrimage. Nearly 2 million muslim pilgrims will make their way from the town of Mina to a nearby hillside and plain called Mount Arafat. Mount Arafat is the that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ gave his last farewell sermon in his final year of life 
• Pilgrims spend the afternoon upon the mountain, remaining until sunset. However, individuals who cannot physically complete this portion of the Hajj, they are allowed observe it by fasting
• Arafah is an extremely important day, on this day Allah perfected His religion and completed His favors upon Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and approved Islam as a way of life!

Muzdalifah

• After leaving Arafat, Muslim pilgrims arrive at Muzdalifah which stretches from the Valley of Muhassar to the mountains of Ma’zamayn. It is four kilometers long
• Prophet Muhammad ﷺ performed his farewell hajj which was the last pilgrimage he performed before his death
• Prophet Muhammad ﷺ performed Maghrib and Isha prayer together at Muzdalifah. One must spend time here just after sunset and pray Isha and Maghrib together
• Pebbles for the next practice called “Rami” or stoning of the devil are collected here. Pebbles can be collected from anywhere but they are best from Muzdalifah 

Rami

• When pilgrims arrive at Mina, this is where we practice “stoning the devil”
• Rami is the symbolic enactment of the Prophet Ibrahim (AS) when he was faced with a test to sacrifice his son Prophet Ismail (AS). He was commanded by Allah to do this act and he responded with complete trust 
• When we stone the three pillars where the devil appeared every time to stop Prophet Ibrahim (AS), we are reenacting that specific moment but also making a promise to Allah that we will cast out the devil out of our lives. We will not fall to his temptations which bring us astray from Allah

Qurbani

• During the farewell hajj, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ performed Qurbani, so it obligatory in for Muslim pilgrims to perform Qurbani as well
• Qurbani holds a significant importance especially from Prophet Ibrahim (AS)’s life. When Prophet Ibrahim (AS) was commanded to sacrifice his son Prophet Ismail (AS), we sacrifice an animal in the name of Allah to adopt that same level of obedience that Prophet Ibrahim (AS) had. We are commanded to sacrifice an animal but imagine something you sacrificing something which you love dearly! 
• In Qurbani, we take care of an animal a month before Eid, so that we may create an attachment with that animal. On Eid, we are tested by Allah as Muslims to see if we can sacrifice the animal we love dearly just for Him 

Attributes we practice and learn during Hajj

1. Obedience
2. Discipline
3. Compassion
4. Patience
5. Tolerance
6. Unity
7. Spiritual Fulfillment 

Fun Fact!: Kaaba in Heavens

There is another Kaaba in the heavens (right above the original), where 70,000 angels do tawaf everyday! It is called “Bait ul Ma’mur”

• “And by the Bait-ul-Ma'mur (the house over the heavens parable to the Kaaba at Makkah, continuously visited by the angels)” (Holy Quran Surah 52:4)
• "Then I was shown Al-Bait-al-Ma’mur (i.e. Allah’s House). I asked Gabriel about it and he said, This is Al Bait-ul-Ma’mur where 70,000 angels perform prayers daily and when they leave they never return to it (but always a fresh batch comes into it daily)" (Sahih Bukhari 3207; Sahih Muslim 164)