Given less than a page to pen some of my experiences from last year’s Hajj, this is going to be tough task indeed. Two weeks, every day as packed as the next; do I tell you about the rituals, the people or the places? Maybe I should advise on patience and knowledge; how not to crack and miss the point of it all? Or perhaps I should go deeper and tell you about the opened hearts on the plains of Arafat and the lifted spirits on the mountains of Mina and Muzdalifah?
Let me start with my return. Hair shaved, heels cracked, body exhausted and carrying a slight cough, sounds tough, right? Well, that's the thing exactly. This is no ordinary trip. Think last ten days of Ramadan: Your spirit comes to life and carries you. Eager to cleanse your soul and clear your slate, you are surer and more sincere than ever. The result? You return with firm resolutions, focused targets, far-reaching goals and fearing a slackness that overcame your former self. You return as sinless as a newborn baby… and just as tired with a good few daytime naps to catch up on.
That's what you come back with. As for setting off, it all begins when you trade your clothes for two simple white sheets, and thus you enter the state of Ihram; time to focus, find that inner peace and channel out all negative energies. No more swearing, backbiting or lying; not that you would anyway. Instead, you moisten your tongue with the remembrance of Allah: "O my Lord, Here I am at Your service, Here I am. There is no partner with You. Here I am. Truly, the praise and the provisions are Yours, and so is the dominion and sovereignty. There is no partner unto You."
You arrive in Makkah to perform Umrah ahead of the days of the Hajj rituals. The overwhelming numbers don't quite hit you until you set off from your hotel room for your first prayer in the Sacred Mosque. A 10-minute walk away, you set off 20-minutes early to make it there ahead of time. Excited to catch that first glimpse of the Ka'bah (the square stone building in the Sacred Mosque), the hub of your life, you rush on only to get stuck a great distance from the Masjid in a massive swarm of bodies settled on their prayer mats for the coming prayer. So your first prayer is on the street and not even on the marble surrounding the Masjid! That first glimpse of the Ka'bah will have to wait and you make a note to self: "Set off for the Masjid an hour ahead of prayer time, for any chance of getting in."
A little later, with the crowds dispersed somewhat, you excitedly find your way to the Masjid. Nothing can prepare you for the mesmerisation that awaits so I will not even attempt to describe the feeling. Fixated on the Ka'bah, lost in thought, you stand there supplicating in gratitude for this opportunity. Nothing can break this intimate encounter. Well, actually, nothing except the guard that comes along, pats you on the shoulder and tells you to move along because you're blocking the passageway.
With that first glimpse complete and having returned to your senses, it's now time to perform your Tawaf (circling of the Ka'bah). Despite the crowds, you jump in on the ground floor and find yourself being whisked along; round and round the Ka'bah, the focus of your faith and the centre of the Islamic movement. You, and the thousands of believers circling the Ka'bah with you at that point in time, have gathered from all around the globe for no other reason than the worship of One God. And so it begins, as you walk with all those around you, you glorify Allah like never before and supplicate to Him with a complete submission.
With each cycle, stuck in the crowds, sun beaming down, Ihram being adjusted and flung in your face repeatedly by the man in front, continuously being run over by rigidly formed bodies of Turks, Indonesians and Malaysians (you'll understand when you get there!), the intensity increases, the annoyances begin to add up and you find yourself starting to lose concentration and a bit of cool. But despite it all, you take a deep breath and shake it off; refusing to allow these small annoyances to build up and spoil your Tawaf, you keep smiling, anger not and keep sight of the higher purpose: "O my Lord, Here I am at Your service, Here I am. There is no partner with You. Here I am. Truly, the praise and the provisions are Yours, and so is the dominion and sovereignty. There is no partner unto You."
That's a page complete and I haven't even started telling you about Madinah or the Hajj rites. I did start by saying that this was a tough task. I guess I'll have to continue next time. Between now and then, if you've got the money, health is not a problem and you're convinced that it is an experience of a lifetime, then start your preparations now and get out there… this year!
(Written for Issue 16 of Noor Ul Islam's Noor Magazine)
