Hajj occurs during the highly respected month of Zul-Hijjah'. The land of Makkah (Mecca) is tranquil and peaceful. Instead of fear, hatred, and war, the desert is characterized by security and peace. An atmosphere for worship where people are free to face Almighty God is prevalent.
Do you not hear Ibrahim's command:
Quran XXII: 27
And call upon the people for Hajj. They will come to you on their bare feet or riding any weak camel and they come to you from every far desert.
You, oh Mud, search for and follow the spirit of Allah! Accept his invitation; leave your home in order to "see" Him. He is waiting for You!
Human existence is frivolous unless one's aim is to approach the spirit of Allah. Separate yourself from all those needs and greeds which distract you from Allah. Therefore, join the eternal human migration to Hajj. "See" Almighty Allah!
Before departing to perform Hajj, all of your debts should be paid. Your hates and angers toward relatives or friends must disappear. A will must be drawn. All of these gestures are an exercise in the preparation for death (which will overtake everyone some day). These acts guarantee your personal and financial clearance. The last moments of farewell and the future of man are symbolized.
Now you are free to join eternity. On the day of resurrection, when "you can do nothing" in Allah's court, where "your eyes, ears, and heart are the best witnesses of what you have done,"
Quran XVII: 36
You and every organ of your body are responsible for your deeds. While you are in this "house of correction" get ready for the "house of justice". Exercise death before you die-go to Hajj!
Hajj represents your return to Allah, the absolute, who has no limitations and none is like Him. To return to Him signifies a definite movement toward perfection, goodness, beauty, power knowledge, value, and facts. On your way toward the eternal, you will NEVER approach Allah. He is to guide you in the right direction and not to be your destination!
Islam is different from Sufism. A Sufi lives "in the name of Allah", and dies "for the sake of Allah". But, a Muslim strives to approach Almighty God
To Allah we belong and to Him is our return.
Quran II:156 & XLII:53
All affairs tend toward Allah.
Our goal is not to "perish", but to "bloom". This is done not "for Allah" but rather to bring us "toward Him". Allah is not so far away from you; therefore, try to reach Him! Allah is closer to you than yourself!
Quran L:16
We are nearer to him than his jugular vein.
On the other hand, everyone beside Allah is too far to be reached! Oh man, all the angels prostrated to you; yet, through the passage of time and societal influence you have changed greatly. You have not abided by your promise to worship none but Almighty Allah. Instead, you have become a slave to idols, some of which are man-made.
Quran LIV: 54
In an assembly of truth, in the presence of a sovereign omnipotent.
Your nature is characterized by loyalty to other individuals, selfdevotion, cruelty, ignorance, a lack of direction, fearfulness, and greediness! This life has caused you to acquire animalistic traits. Now you are like a "wolf", "fox", "rat", or "sheep".
Oh man, return to your origin. Go to Hajj and visit your best friend who created you as the best creature. He is waiting to see you! Leave the palaces of power, the treasures of wealth and the misleading temples. Dismember yourself from the flock of those animals whose shepherd is the wolf. Join the flock at Miad who is going to see the house of Allah or the house of the people.
Made of dark rough stones laid in a very simple manner with white chalk filling the fissures, the Kaaba is an empty cube - nothing else. You cannot but shiver and wonder about what you see Here ... There is no one! There is nothing to view! An empty room (cube) is visible. Is that all?!! Is this the center of our faith, prayers, love, life and death?
Questions and doubts arise in your mind. Where am I? What is here? What you see is the antithesis of your visual imaginations of the Kaaba. You might have perceived it as an architectural beauty (like a palace) whose ceilings covered a spiritual silence. Another possible portrayal was that of a high tomb housing the grave of an important human being - a hero, genius, imam or prophet! No - instead it is an open square, an empty room. It reflects no architectural skill, beauty, art, inscription, nor quality; and no graves are found there. There is nothing and nobody there to whom you can direct your attention, feelings and memories.
You will realize that there is nothing and nobody there to disturb your thoughts and feelings about God. The Kaaba, which you want to fly over to come into contact with the "absolute" and "eternal", is the roof for your feelings. This is something you were unable to achieve in your world of fragmentation and relativity. You could only be philosophical, but now you can see the "absolute", the one who has no direction - Allah! He is every where.
How good it is to see the Kaaba empty! It reminds you that your presence is for the sake of performing Hajj. It is not your destination. Moreover, it is a guide to show the direction.
Kaaba is only a cornerstone, a sign to show the road.
Having decided to move toward eternity, you begin the Hajj. It is an eternal movement toward Allah not toward the Kaaba. The Kaaba is the beginning and not the end - when no more can be done. It is the place where Allah, Ibrahim, Mohammed and people will meet. You will be present there only if your mind is not preoccupied with self-centered thoughts. You must be one of the people! Everyone is dressed in special garments. Being Allah's chastity and family you are honored by him . He has more enthusiasm toward this family than any one else. However, the Kaaba, His property and His house is called the "house of people".
Quran III:96
Lo! The first sanctuary appointed for mankind was that at Bekka (Mecca), a blessed place, a guidance to the people.
You are not allowed to enter this sacred house if you are still self attached, that is, thinking of yourself.
Mecca is called "Baite-Atiq". Atiq represents being free! Mecca belongs to nobody. It is free from the reign of rulers and oppressors; therefore, no one controls it. Allah is the owner of Mecca while the people are its residents.
Under the provisions of, the Muslim is allowed to shorten his prayers if traveling at least forty miles away from his home. But at Mecca, regardless of where you are from or how far you have traveled, your prayer is complete. It is your land, your community and you are safe. You are not a visitor, but you are at home.
Before coming to Mecca, you were a stranger, exiled in your own land. But now, you are invited to join Allah's family. Mankind, the dearest family of the world, is invited to this house. If you as an individual are "self centered", you will feel like a homeless stranger lost with no shelter and no relatives. Therefore, shed the self distinctive tendencies. You are now prepared to enter the house and join this family. You will be welcomed as a friend and close relative of Allah's family.
The Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) who was the oldest and most rebellious man of history, may be visualized. Denying all the idols on earth, he greatly loved and obeyed Allah alone. With his own hands, he built the Kaaba. This structure symbolizes Allah in the world.
The building is very simple. Black rocks of "Ajoon" are laid on top of each other. There is no design or decoration involved. Its name, Kaabah, means a "cube" in terms of architectural design - but why a "cube"?
Why is it so simple lacking color and ornamentation? It is because Almighty Allah has no "shape", no color and none is similar to Him. No pattern or visualization of Allah that man imagines can represent Him. Being omnipotent and omnipresent, Allah is "absolute".
Although Kaaba has no direction (because of its cubic shape), by facing Kaaba when performing the prayers, you choose Allah's direction and face Him. Kaaba's absence of direction may seem difficult to comprehend. However, universality and absoluteness prevails. Having six sides, the appropriate structure is a cube! It encompasses all directions and simultaneously their sum symbolizes no direction! The original symbol of this is the Kaaba!
Quran II:115
Unto Allah belongs the east and west, and whitherso-ever you will be facing Allah.
When praying outside of Kaaba you must face it. Any structure except Kaaba directs north, south, east, west, up or down. Kaaba, an exception, is facing all directions while it is facing none. Truly a symbol of Allah, it has many directions yet it has no particular direction.
Toward the west of Kaaba there is a semi-circular short wall which faces Kaaba. It is called Ismail's Hajar. Hajar signifies lap or skirt. The semi lunar wall resembles a skirt.
Sarah, the wife of Ibrahim had a black maid (Ethiopian) called Hajar. She was extremely poor and humbled to the degree that Sarah did not object to her becoming a bed-mate of her husband, Ibrahim, in order to bear him a child. Here was a woman who was not honored enough to become a second wife to Ibrahim yet Allah connected the symbol of Hajar's skirt to His symbol, Kaaba.
The skirt of Hajar was the area in which Ismail was raised. The house of Hajar is there. Her grave is near the third column of Kaaba.
What a surprise since no one, not even prophets, is supposed to be buried in mosques but in this case, the house of a black maid is located next to Allah's house! Hajar, the mother of Ismail is buried there. Kaaba extends toward her grave. As a result, Allah's house is directed toward her skirt!
There is a narrow passage between the wall (Hajar's skirt) and Kaaba. When circumambulating around Kaaba, Allah commanded that you must go around the wall (not through the passage) otherwise your Hajj will not be accepted.
Those who believe in monotheism and those who have accepted Allah's invitation to go to Hajj must touch this skirt when circumambulating the Kaaba. The grave of a black African maid and a good mother is now a part of Kaaba; it will be circumambulated by man forever!
Allah, the Almighty, in His great and glorious Divinity is all alone by Himself. He needs nobody and nothing. Nevertheless, among all His countless and eternal creatures, He has chosen one, mankind, the noblest of them.
From among all humanity: a woman, From among all women: a slave, And from among all slaves: a black maid!
The weakest and most humiliated one of His creatures was given a place at His side and a room in His house. He has come to her house and become her neighbor and roommate. So now, there are two, Allah and Hajar, under the ceiling of this "house"!
IN THE ISLAMIC COMMUNITY, THE "UNKNOWN SOLDIER" IS SO ELECTED!
The rituals of Hajj are a memory of Hajar. The word Higrah(migration) has its root in her name as does the word Mahajir (immigrant). "The ideal immigrant is the one who behaved like Hajar." Mohammad (PBUH)
Higrah is what Hajar did. It is also a transition from savagery to becoming civilized and from Kofr to Islam.
In Hajars mother language her name means "the city". Even the name of this black Ethiopian slave is symbolic of civilization. Furthermore, any migration like hers is a move toward civilization!
Hajar's grave is in the midst of man's circumambulation of Kaaba. You, the mohajir (immigrant), who has divorced himself from everything and accepted Allah's invitation to go to Hajj, you will circumambulate Hajar's grave and the Kaaba of Allah simultaneously.
What is being said in these paragraphs? It is difficult to realize. But for those who think they live in freedom and defend humanism, the significance of these incidents transgresses the scope of their understanding!
The time for staying in Mina is over and the ceremonies end near the border of Mecca. There is one more Tawaf and Sa'y that you can do anytime toward the end of Zul-Hijjah and if necessary you can do it before leaving for Arafat. Hajj ceremonies are over and this is all you are supposed to do.
Oh Hajj who is leaving Mina, the last stage of Hajj - you accepted Ibrahim's invitation. You escaped the vicious cycle of your individual life. You came on time to Miqat; you listened to the revelation; you took off your clothing and put on the white Kafan. You left your home and homeland and came as a guest to the house of God and the land of Jihad. You made a promise to God by shaking his right hand. You entered the Tawaf circle and were lost amongst the people of Taef. You denied self- centeredness. You purified yourself. You tried your best to search for "water" on top of the mountains. Then you descended to Arafat from Mecca and from stage after stage (going to Mashar and Mina), you returned to Allah (returned to Mecca). You gained "consciousness" in the sunshine of Arafat. You collected your arms in the darkness of Mashar. Simultaneously, with others you passed the border of Mina. Satan was defeated by your first attack. You became free and saved the land of faith and love. You held the position of Ibrahim and ascended to the peak of honor - the stage beyond Shahadat.
Finally, you sacrificed a sheep at the end of this effort!
Where do you arrive at the end of this greatest holy trip and highest degree of human ascension after going through the most dangerous and fearful passages of creation - Tawheed (unity), Ithar, Jihad (struggle), Shahadat (martyrdom), fighting with Eblis (Satan) and conquering the land of love? What do you do? Sacrifice: kill a "lamb"! Why? What is its philosophy? What is the mystery? What does killing a lamb at the end of Hajj mean? I can not say! Let Allah himself answer this question:
As a person who is "knowledgeable about religion" and whose field of study is "the history of religions", I reached the following conclusions as a result of my study and research of the historical evolution of each faith whereby I compared what the faiths were in the past and what they are now as well as a comparison in the differences between the "truth" and the "reality" of the faiths. My conclusion is not based on personal religious feelings nor prejudices:
If we study and evaluate the effectiveness of each religion in terms of the happiness and evolution of mankind, we will discover that there is no prophecy which is as advanced, powerful, and conscious as the prophecy of Mohammad (PBUH) (i.e. Islam and its role in man's social progress, self-consciousness, movement, responsibility, human ambition and struggle for justice; Islam's realism and naturalness, creativity, adaptability with scientific and financial progress and orientation toward civilization and the community).
Contemporaneously, we will discover that there is no prophecy which has deteriorated and been transformed into a completely different representation as much as the prophecy of Mohammad (PBUH)!
It seems that some power composed of all physical facilities as well as knowledgeable advisors, openly or secretly has hired a group of the most educated and intelligent philosophers of history, social scientists, sociologists, social psychologists, politicians, human scientists, theologists. orientalists, experts in Islamic studies, Quranic interpreters and people who are familiar with Islamic literature, the social relations of Muslims, the traditions of Muslims, the personalities of Muslims, the weaknesses and strengths of Muslims, the interests of Muslims, the socio economic behavior of Muslims, the roles of special people ... to completely change the Islamic doctrine through the pursuit of cautious and scientific research of Islam and Muslims!
As far as I know, from the practical and conceptual point of view, the most important pillars of the Islamic doctrine which motivate the Muslim nation and makes it's citizens conscious, free, honorable and socially responsible are: TAWHEED, JIHAD, and HAJJ
Unfortunately, the teaching of the concept of TAWHEED is limited only to elementary schools. Beyond that, it may be spoken of at the philosophical and theological discussions held by religious leaders; but such discussions are totally foreign and inapplicable to the lives of the people. In other words, only the existence and oneness of God are considered - not TAWHEED in it's real sense! As for the concept of JIHAD, it is absolutely forbidden and buried in the graveyard of history. The fundamental principle of JIHAD, "encouraging people to do good deeds and to avoid wrong deeds" is only applied when blaming the friends instead of when correcting the wrongdoers. And lastly, HAJJ is viewed as the ugliest and most illogical action that Muslims perform yearly.
The enemies of Islam were successful in bringing about changes by implementing a unique policy. The "prayer book" was brought from the grave yard into the city while the Holy Quran was taken away from the citizens in the city and given to those at the graveyard who read for the souls of the dead. A similar approach was used in the theological schools (madresah). The Holy Quran was seized from the hands of students who studied Islam and put away on the shelf; it was replaced by the book of principles and philosophical discussions. So, it is obvious what the enemies can do to us when the Quran is absent from the lives of Muslims and not included in the curriculum of Muslim students!
Does the intellectual individual who feels a responsibility towards his people and a Muslim whose faith endows him with a responsibility or an intellectual Muslim who has this dual responsibility feel at ease by sitting passively? Does he think resorting to a western ideology will save his people and solve their problems?!? NO!! ! Oh my intellectual friend and my Muslim brother - either you feel a responsibility toward the people or toward Allah. It does not matter; we are in the same boat and are endowed with the same responsibility. In order to liberate ourselves and regain our honor, it is best to employ the same tactics that our enemy used. We must return to the path from which we were abducted! Therefore, we have to bring the Holy Quran from the graveyard back to the city and read it to those who are alive (not deceased)! We have to remove the Quran from the shelf, open it before the eyes of the students and let them study it. Since our enemies could not destroy the Quran, they closed it and left it in a corner to be respected as the HOLY BOOK! It is our duty to re-use it as a "book" - a "book to study" - as is designated by the name QURAN!
May we hope that one day the Quran will be accepted as the classic book of our Islamic school and used for our Islamic teachings! May we hope to see the day when Quranic study will be required in order to qualify for a degree in Ijtihad. [Exegesis of divine law on theological and legal matters]. If we return to the Quran and make it part of our lives, we will realize the essence of Tawheed. If we consider the Quran as the structure of our system, we will realize the creativity and efficacy of such duties as: Hajj, Jihad [holy war], Imamat [Leadership of the Islamic Community], Shahadat [Martrydom] ... and the meaning of our lives!!!!
Now let us look at one of these duties - Hajj - and search for its significance from a monotheistic point of view. This book is a summary of my personal experience and understanding after performing the Hajj three times and touring Mecca once. It is only the comments and interpretations of the rites by a humble servant of God. No Muslim has the right to view the rites on the basis of this writing since it is not a book on "religious jurisprudence" but rather a paper to make you think! I have attempted to interpret the ceremonies as a Muslim Hajj who is entitled to talk about the Hajj when he returns home. I can discuss my views with others; this has been a "tradition" too. Every year the minority who were able to participate in the Hajj will share their views with the majority who did not have this opportunity. If there was a responsible leadership who demonstrated as much interest in teaching more than a million Muslims from various parts of the world (ie. from the least developed villages and least trained natives) as they do in their meals, health, souvenirs and luxurious but ugly shows of aristocracy (which contradicts Hajj) and if they were only a bit concerned about realizing the meaning of the rites rather than being meticulously obsessed and prejudiced about performing the rites themselves then the Hajj could have been a yearly course of practical and theoretical teachings of the Islamic doctrine given to more than a million Muslim representatives from all over the world! They could learn the purpose of the Hajj, the meaning of the prophecy, the importance of unity and the fate of the Muslim nation. With a reserve of knowledge and information they could return to their countries and their individual lives to teach their community. As a result, all his life a Hajj could remain a guide in the darkness of his society - like a glittering beam in the darkness!
for more on hajj read the book linking below
http://www.al-islam.org/hajj/shariati/
Dr. Ali Shariati
آپ نے صرف ہماری زندگی کو ہی نہیں سنوارا بلکہ ہماری اگلی نسل کو بھی۔ ہم فخر سے اپنے بچوں کو بتا سکیں گے کہ ہمارے بڑوں نے ہر سختی اور مشکل کا مقابلہ کیا لیکن دباؤ کے سامنے نہیں جھکے۔ ہم بھی ہمیشہ سر اٹھا کر چلیں گے اور وقار سے جیئیں گے۔
