Hajj is one of the Five Pillars of Islam and is the greater Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, which takes place in the last month of the year, as all Muslims are expected to make the trip at least once during their lifetime if they can afford to do so.
Mecca, Saudia Arabia, is where the holy site of the small shrine is located near the centre of the Great Mosque and is considered by Muslims everywhere to be the most sacred spot on Earth.
Muslims orient themselves toward this shrine during the five daily prayers, as they bury their head facing its meridian, and cherish the ambition of visiting it on pilgrimage, or hajj, in accord with the command set out in the Quran.
Circling the Kaaba seven times counter-clockwise, Muslims make ‘tawaaf’, which is a Fard, obligatory rite for the completion of the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages.
Constructed of grey stone and marble, the cube-shaped structure is approximately 627 square feet and stands at 39 feet tall, it is oriented so that its corners roughly correspond to the points of the compass.
This year, one million people will be permitted to participate in the Hajj pilgrimage and it’s the first Hajj season, from 7 July through 12.
The first 10 days of the Dhul Hijjah is the twelfth and final month in the Islamic calendar. It is a very sacred month in the Islamic calendar, one in which the Ḥajj takes place as well as the Festival of the Sacrifice.
The end of the month is commemorated after spotting the crescent moon, which determines the days of Haj and Eid Al Adha, which is celebrated on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah.
The announcement was made on 29 June that the crescent moon had been sighted and the 1st day of Dhul-Hijjah 1443ah would commence on 30 June, making Eid-al-Adha fall on Saturday 9 July and the Day of Arafah one day earlier on Friday 8 July.
The day of Arafah is when Muslims usually observe fasting as the prophet Muhammed p.b.u.h said:
“Fasting on the of ‘Arafah atones for the sins of two years, the one past and the one coming”.
Welsh businessman Kamal Ali, who started his own business, creating anti-theft belts for Hajj, performed Hajj for the first time with his wife in 2010 but recalls every moment of the experience like it was yesterday.
In an interview with Asian Sunday, he said:
“I remember walking through the Mataf with my wife and seeing the Kabah for the first time, and it’s in front of you, but you’re in disbelief because you’ve prayed towards the Kabah your whole life and you see it for the first time and it doesn’t feel real.
My wife was crying, she had tears coming out of her eyes and I was emotional, but I get really quiet when I get struck by something”.
He describes the process of arriving at the airport as being “a bit strange, because for a man you put your ihram on at the airport, so you’re walking around the airport, with all of these non-Muslim people, people who have never heard of Hajj, or know anything about hajj, see you in two pieces of white cloth.
“You’re walking around and it’s like a visual image of Gandhi, going back to the simplicity of life and growing up in the west, you’re a bit apprehensive, I don’t want to make these people feel awkward, but at the same time this is what it is and if they don’t know they should get to find out” he recalls.
Wearing two pieces of white cloth, carries a lot of symbolism, as it denotes humility and a sense of oneness amongst pilgrims, as Ali points out “you’re wearing a shroud that you would wear if you were to die and if you die in Hajj, you get buried in your ihram”.
He also adds, “From the moment you get to the airport in Jeddah, you’re so conscious of everything related to religion, so you’re conscious of praying on time, you’re conscious of doing good things, you’re conscious of not saying anything bad or doing anything bad to anybody.
The process leading up to the pilgrimage, he describes as “When you know you’re going for Hajj, or you’ve been given your tickets or you’ve been told you’ve got your space, things change within you, you ask for forgiveness, you’re asking people what dua they want you to make for them and you clear your debts and all that.
You say the dua when you see the Kabah and start your tawaf, you’re always reciting “Labaik, Allahumma labbaik” all the way through, and it’s such an amazing calling when you listen to the meaning of it.
He describes this part of the journey as the grounding part of Hajj, as it resonates throughout.
“When you’re in the desert, making tawaf, from the time you arrive, which is probably around midday, till sunset and you’ve got millions of people making dua and supplication, asking for forgiveness and asking for health.
We met a couple who were married for 17 years and didn’t have children, and it’s quite a magical moment because you think Allah is going to answer, and it’s true how Allah answers, either Allah answers and says yes you can, or says no it’s not good for you or I have something better for you”.
He shares experiencing an epic moment on the last day of Hajj, whilst returning from the stoning of the jamarat, a compulsory ritual of Hajj when suddenly heavy rain fell upon them whilst praying:
“You could literally see the rainwater washing away the dirt off all the tiles and everything, it’s washing us, we’re soaked in this rain… by the time we finished praying, we were deep in water, for every sujood.
“I felt like that was the best sign you can have, like Allah saying you have been cleansed and you have been forgiven, go forward, doing as much good as you can.
“The millions that do Hajj and walk away, they all walk away, with the understanding that I should not hurt an ant and I should not cut a tree down or even pick a leaf of a tree, that’s the mindset of people walking away from Hajj.
He summarises that Hajj, as a spiritual awakening, is going from life to death, to life, which refers to the Quranic reference of Allah saying it’s as if you are a newborn baby.
