As-Salamu-‘Alaykum, Dear Parents, I hope and pray this email reaches you in the best state of Iman and Health. I want to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for all of your prayers and wishes for a safe Hajj. By the mercy of Allah, my family and I had a very pleasant journey back and forth and a great experience to remember for the rest of our life. Ever since my return from Hajj, I have been trying to sit down and write a few words to share with you as many of you wanted to know about my experience in Hajj. When I started writing, I realized that much of our feelings in Hajj are difficult to express and perhaps could only be duly expressed by an accomplished orator or writer. Here I will attempt to share a few selected thoughts regarding my Hajj experience: وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ إِذ ظَّلَمُواْ أَنفُسَهُمْ جَآؤُوكَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُواْ اللّهَ وَاسْتَغْفَرَ لَهُمُ الرَّسُولُ لَوَجَدُواْ اللّهَ تَوَّابًا رَّحِيمًا (4:64) If, then, after having sinned against themselves, they would but come round to thee (Muhammad) and ask God to forgive them - with the Apostle, too, praying that they be forgiven - they would assuredly find that God is an acceptor of repentance, a dispenser of grace. This verse is very dear to me and talks about Allah SWT’s assurance of forgiveness for those that would visit the Prophet SAW and repent to Allah. Though we cannot directly talk to the Prophet SAW and ask him to pray for our forgiveness, it has been the tradition of our pious predecessors to quote this verse and ask Allah’s forgiveness when they visited the Prophet’s Masjid and his tomb in Madinah and conveyed their Salam to him. It was an amazing feeling to go the Prophet’s Masjid, reflect on the sacrifices of the Prophet SAW, his family and companions to establish and spread the religion of peace, and then to feel the remorse that how we have come short in following the examples of the Prophet in our daily lives. In our Hajj journey, we first visited Madinah. The feeling of visiting the Prophet’s Masjid and tomb in Madinah is almost ecstatic. You try to relate to the feelings of those that were fortunate to visit the Prophet SAW when he was alive and you feel the anticipation of entering the Masjid and greeting the Prophet SAW at his tomb when the green dome comes to sight. Remembering the Hadith that when you convey your Salam to the Prophet at his grave, he responds to you can be very heart wrenching. You look around to see the expressions on the faces of people around you, and the tears of love and attachment to the Prophet is ever visible. What an amazing sensation to pray at the Masjid of the Prophet with the presence of all the memories of the Prophet SAW. The days in Madinah, the visiting of the tomb of the Prophet SAW, Abu Bakr and Umar (Rad), the visiting of Jannat-ul-Baqi where more than 10,000 companions are resting, praying in Riyadh ul Jannah or the portion of the Prophet’s mosque he designated as part of Jannah, visiting the grate through which angel Jibrail AS used to come in to visit the Prophet, the pillars where Prophet SAW used to pray, give sermons from, and meet the delegations, walking in the streets of Madinah and even merely shopping in the markets in Madinah is not devoid of the memories of the time of the Prophet SAW and the feelings of peace in the blessed city of Madinah. Parting Madinah reminds one of those stories that relate to us how the companions used to feel leaving the company of the Prophet SAW. The particular story of Muadh ibn Jabal (Rad) deputed to Yemen came to mind when he kept looking back to see the face of the beloved Prophet SAW and kept crying thinking that he may not ever see the Prophet SAW ever again! But he knew that his journey forward was for the sake of Allah’s pleasure, like the Haajis, who were departing Madinah to go towards Makkah as the Hajj days were drawing near. إِنَّ أَوَّلَ بَيْتٍ وُضِعَ لِلنَّاسِ لَلَّذِي بِبَكَّةَ مُبَارَكًا وَهُدًى لِّلْعَالَمِينَ (3:96) Behold, the first House of Worship ever set up for mankind was indeed the one at Bakkah (Makkah), rich in blessing, and a [source of] guidance unto all the worlds. The sacredness and might of the city of Makkah is felt as you get close to the Masjid ul Haram and visit the Kaaba. Your are reminded of the greatness of Allah SWT as the pilgrims are walking into the Masjid fearing their lord, remembering their shortcomings, realizing that it is not due to their personal merit but due to the mercy of Allah SWT that they are now the honored guests of the Kaaba, hoping for Allah’s forgiveness and blessings while walking slowly with their heads down until they can have a full sight of the Kaaba. Tears are trickling down the faces of the pilgrims, some fall in Sujud and others cry profusely at the first sight of Kaaba - some not even remembering what they were suppose to pray for when at their first sight of the Kaaba. “Rabbana Atina Feeduniya Hasana, Wa Fel Akhirati Hasana, Waqina Adhaban Naar – O Allah! Grant us all the good of this word, and those of the hereafter and save us from the fire” - chant the pilgrims while walking around the Kaaba to complete the 7 circles of their tawaf; this is it – this is the courtyard of the divine master and the creator of the universe, where the pilgrims must get all their wishes granted. The desperation is felt as people cling to the walls of the Kaaba and shed their tears asking Allah’s favors. While I did my tawafs, I realized how symbolic this particular act of worship is: our whole life and everything that we do should revolve around Allah and what is pleasing to him, how symbolic the running between the Safa and Marwa is: that you run to Allah and ask Allah for all your needs as we remember how the divine intervention of opening the well of Zamzam happened after the mother Hajar’s (AS) desperately ran back and forth between these hills. The constant movements of the Haajis from one place to another, the tawafs around the Kaaba, the Sa’ee between the Safa and Marwa, the walk to go pelt the Jamarats – all teaches us as to how a Muslim needs to be physically fit and active to fulfill the obligations to his Deen. One has to find spirituality and moments of reflection while continuously being on the move in Hajj and this was an important lesson for me and I am sure for many Haajis to stay active in good deeds, in going to the Masjid, in serving others, and to engage in activities that keep one physically fit. فَإِذَا أَفَضْتُم مِّنْ عَرَفَاتٍ فَاذْكُرُواْ اللّهَ عِندَ الْمَشْعَرِ الْحَرَامِ وَاذْكُرُوهُ كَمَا هَدَاكُمْ وَإِن كُنتُم مِّن قَبْلِهِ لَمِنَ الضَّآلِّينَ (2:198) And when you surge downward in multitudes from `Arafat, remember God at the holy place, and remember Him as the One who guided you after you had indeed been lost on your way; The journey from Makkah to Mina, then Mina to Arafat, Arafat to Muzdalifa, Muzdalifa to Mina, and Mina to Makkah reminded me of how Allah wants us to search for Him and His bounties like a desperate traveler who has forgotten all about adorning himself in the state of Ihram refusing even to comb his hair, apply perfume and avoid all vain talks to only be engaged in searching for and building a relationship with God. فَلاَ رَفَثَ وَلاَ فُسُوقَ وَلاَ جِدَالَ فِي الْحَجِّ وَمَا تَفْعَلُواْ مِنْ خَيْرٍ يَعْلَمْهُ اللّهُ وَتَزَوَّدُواْ فَإِنَّ خَيْرَ الزَّادِ التَّقْوَى وَاتَّقُونِ يَا أُوْلِي الأَلْبَاب While on pilgrimage, abstain from lewd speech, from all wicked conduct, and from quarrelling; and whatever good you may do, God is aware of it. And make provision for yourselves - but, verily, the best of all provisions is God-consciousness: remain, then, conscious of Me, O you who are endowed with insight! Finally, one of the major lessons of Hajj I personally connected to was how Allah SWT wants us to get out of our comfort zone in seeking His pleasure. Though it is very pleasurable to be making your Salat in the Holy mosques listening to beautiful recitations, that is not enough to perform your Hajj as you have to toil in the streets, and tents of Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa to fulfill the obligations of Hajj. In our daily life, there are acts of worship that we can do in our comforted surrounding, but we have to leave that at times whether it is in search of more meaningful worship, seeking knowledge, preaching your religion or in the service of the mankind. And, when you do step out of your comfort zone like one does in Hajj traveling in Ihram like any other person and out on the streets with thousands of other pilgrims all around you, you have to completely rely on Allah for his help, guidance and protection and that is what AllahSWT refers to in the above verse that though a Haaji is encouraged and rewarded for taking provisions for his journey – “Wa Tazawwadu Fa Inna Khairaz Zaadit Taqwa – Verily, the best of provisions is God-consciousness.” I hope and pray that Allah SWT accept the Hajj from all those who performed it and enable all intending to perform it to easily fulfill this sacred obligation. |
