The Haj
The Haj (pilgrimage to Makkah) is the fifth of the fundamental Muslim practices and institutions known as the five pillars of Islam. Pilgrimage is not undertaken in Islam to the shrines of saints, to monasteries for help from holy men, or to sights where miracles are supposed to have occurred, even though we may see many Muslims do this. Pilgrimage is made to the Kaaba, found in the sacred city of Makkah in Saudi Arabia, the ‘House of God,’ whose sanctity rests in that the Prophet Abraham built it for the worship of God. God rewarded him by attributing the House to himself, in essence honoring it, and by making it the devotional epicenter which all Muslims face when offering the prayers (salah). The rites of pilgrimage are performed today exactly as did by Abraham, and after him by Prophet Muhammad, may God praise them.
Pilgrimage serves as a penance - the ultimate forgiveness for sins, devotion, and intense spirituality. The pilgrimage to Makkah, the most sacred city in Islam, is required of all physically and financially able Muslims once in their life. The pilgrimage rite begins a few months after Ramadan, on the 8th day of the last month of the Islamic year of Dhul-Hijjah, and ends on the 13th day. Makkah is the center towards which the Muslims converge once a year, meet and refresh in themselves the faith that all Muslims are equal and deserve the love and sympathy of others, irrespective of their race or ethnic origin. Thus the pilgrimage unites the Muslims of the world into one international fraternity. More than two million persons perform the Haj each year, and the rite serves as a unifying force in Islam by bringing followers of diverse backgrounds together in worship.
In some Muslim societies, once a believer has made the pilgrimage, he is often labelled with the title haji ; this, however, is a cultural, rather than religious custom. Finally, the Haj is a manifestation of the belief in the unity of God — all the pilgrims worship and obey the commands of the One God.
At certain stations on the caravan routes to Makkah, or when the pilgrim passes the point nearest to those stations, the pilgrim enters the state of purity known as ihram. In this state, the certain ‘normal’ actions of the day and night become impermissible for the pilgrims, such as covering the head, clipping the fingernails, and wearing normal clothing in regards to men. Males remove their clothing and don the garments specific to this state of ihram, two white seamless sheets that are wrapped around the body.
All this increases the reverence and sanctity of the pilgrimage, the city of Makkah, and month of Dhul Hijjah. The simple garb signifies the equality of all humanity in God’s sight, and the removal of all worldly affections. After entering the state of ihram, the pilgrim proceeds to Makkah and awaits the start of the Haj.
On the 7th of DhulHijjah the pilgrim is reminded of his duties, and at the commence of the ritual, which takes place between the 8th and the 12th days of the month, the pilgrim visits the holy places outside Makkah —Arafah, Muzdalifah, and Minaa — and sacrifices an animal in commemoration of Abraham’s sacrifice. The pilgrim then shortens or shaves their head, and, after throwing seven stones at specific pillars at Minaa on three or four successive days, and heads for the central mosque where he walks seven times around the sacred sanctuary, or Kaaba, in the Great Mosque, and ambulates, walking and running, seven times between the two small hills of Mount Safaa and Mount Marwah.
Apart from Haj, the “minor pilgrimage” or umrah is undertaken by Muslims during the rest of the year. Performing the umrah does not fulfill the obligation of Haj. It is similar to the major and obligatory pilgrimage (Haj), and pilgrims have the choice of performing the umrah separately or in combination with the Haj. As in the Haj, the pilgrim begins the umrah by assuming the state of ihram. They enter Makkah and circle the sacred shrine of the Kaaba seven times. He may then touch the Black Stone, if he can, pray behind the Maqam Ibrahim, drink the holy water of the Zamzam spring. The ambulation between the hills of Safa and Marwah seven times and the shortening or shaving of the head complete the Umrah.
