The Sprit and Meaning of Hajj
وَالْفَجْرِ(1)وَلَيَالٍ عَشْرٍ(2)وَالشَّفْعِ وَالْوَتْرِ(3)وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَسْرِ(4)هَلْ فِي ذَلِكَ قَسَمٌ لِذِي حِجْرٍ(5)
By the Break of Day; By the Ten Nights; By the Even and Odd (contrasted); and by the Night when it passes away; is there (not) in these an adjuration (or evidence) for those who understand? (Surah al-Fajr 89:1-5)
وَأَذِّنْ فِي النَّاسِ بِالْحَجِّ يَأْتُوكَ رِجَالًا وَعَلَى كُلِّ ضَامِرٍ يَأْتِينَ مِنْ كُلِّ فَجٍّ عَمِيقٍ(27)لِيَشْهَدُوا مَنَافِعَ لَهُمْ وَيَذْكُرُوا اسْمَ اللَّهِ فِي أَيَّامٍ مَعْلُومَاتٍ عَلَى مَا رَزَقَهُمْ مِنْ بَهِيمَةِ الْأَنْعَامِ فَكُلُوا مِنْهَا وَأَطْعِمُوا الْبَائِسَ الْفَقِيرَ(28) ثُمَّ لْيَقْضُوا تَفَثَهُمْ وَلْيُوفُوا نُذُورَهُمْ وَلْيَطَّوَّفُوا بِالْبَيْتِ الْعَتِيق ِ(الحج 29)
And proclaim the Pilgrimage among people; they will come to you on foot and (mounted) on every kind of camel, lean on account of journeys through deep and distant mountain highways. That they may witness the benefits (provided) for them, and celebrate the name of Allah, through the Days Appointed, over the cattle which He has provided for them (for sacrifice). So eat you thereof and feed the distressed ones in want. Then let them complete the rites prescribed for them, perform their vows, and (again) circumambulate the Ancient House. (Surah al-Hajj 22:27-29)
إِنَّ أَوَّلَ بَيْتٍ وُضِعَ لِلنَّاسِ لَلَّذِي بِبَكَّةَ مُبَارَكًا وَهُدًى لِلْعَالَمِينَ(96)فِيهِ آيَاتٌ بَيِّنَاتٌ مَقَامُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَمَنْ دَخَلَهُ كَانَ آمِنًا وَلِلَّهِ عَلَى النَّاسِ حِجُّ الْبَيْتِ مَنِ اسْتَطَاعَ إِلَيْهِ سَبِيلًا وَمَنْ كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَنِيٌّ عَنِ الْعَالَمِينَ(آل عمران 97)
The first House (of worship) appointed for people, was that at Bakkah; full of blessing and of guidance for all beings. In it are Signs manifest; the Station of Abraham; whoever enters it attains security; pilgrimage thereto is a duty men owe to Allah, those who can afford the journey; but if any deny faith, Allah stands not in need of any of His creatures . (Surah Al 'Imran 3:96-97)
We are in the month of Dhul Hijjah. These are important days, especially the first Ten Days of Dhul Hijjah. They are mentioned as special days in Surah al-Fajr. These are the days of blessings. Fasting in these days is prescribed as Nafl from First to the Ninth of Dhul Hijjah.
Normally around this time, millions of Muslims gather in and around the Blessed city of Makkah getting ready to perform Hajj. Unfortunately, due to Covid-19 this year too a small number of local people will be performing Hajj. Millions of people from outside have to wait until next year insha' Allah. We pray to Allah to bless all Muslims and accept their Hajj and devotions. Hajj is an important rukn of Islam. It has many benefits. It is a command of Allah. As Allah says: وأتموا الحج والعمرة لله (Fulfill the Hajj and Umra for the sake of Allah... Al-Baqarah 2:196)The Prophet - peace be upon him - said, "Islam is built on five pillars or principles..."
Hajj has a form and a spirit. The form is in its rules and rites. Ihram, Miqat, Tawaf, Sa'y, Mina, 'Arafah, Muzdalifah, Jamarat, Zabh, Halq, etc. are all very important. Every person who goes to Hajj has to learn these Manasik. But Hajj also has a spirit (ruh) and there are many lessons and benefits in Hajj. Here I would like to mention the spirit of Hajj and some of its important objectives and benefits. Inshallah this will help us also as we are thinking about Hajj and Hujjaj at this time.
- Hajj is an expression of Allah's love. Allah loves us and we love Allah. This is the essence of our faith. Allah out of His love has given us this House where we go around, touch its walls and kiss the Hajar Aswad to express our deep devotion to our Creator. We worship Allah only. We do not worship the Ka'bah or the Hajar Aswad.
- Hajj is an 'Ibadah and it is the culmination and summation of all the 'Ibdadat. In Hajj we do everything as commanded by Allah. We follow the Sunnah of His prophet. Hajj creates in us deep obedience and commitment to Allah.
- Hajj gives us a sense of History. Our faith is deeply rooted in History. Islam is the religion of Allah. It is given to us through Allah's prophets: Adam, Nuh, Ibrahim, Isma'il, many others and finally Prophet Muhammad - peace be upon them all. We believe in all prophets and messengers of Allah.
- Hajj clearly demonstrates that our religion is universal. People of all races, colors and nationality go to Hajj. It teaches us that we must love and care for all believers. In Hajj and thru Hajj, we learn universal Islamic brotherhood and sisterhood.
- Hajj gives us a focus, a center and an orientation. Muslims should be the people of a focus. We should not be a people who are confused and without any aim and direction. Our focus should be Allah. The House of Allah is our Qiblah. Every people have their direction, but our direction is Allah and His religion. ولكل وجهة هو موليها فاستبقوا الخيرات (Everyone has a direction towards which he turns, so go ahead in doing good things. Al-Baqarah 2:148) We must be the people of unity, right direction and orientation.
- Hajj teaches us peace and harmony. Peace comes from our sense of honor and respect for the commands of Allah. We must learn to live in peace and harmony with each other and must work to bring peace and harmony in the world.
- Hajj teaches us movement, action and sacrifice. We must be active and dynamic people. We must work for the right cause and we must be willing to sacrifice for the sake of Allah and for our higher values and principles.
- Hajj is a mission and a message. In Hajj we repeat Talbiyah and Takbirat. We say,
لبيك اللهم لبيك ... الله أكبر الله أكبر ألله أكبر لا اله إلا الله والله أكبر الله أكبر ولله الحمد
These are not mere words or slogans. They represent the true meaning and spirit of Islam. We must be always at the service of Allah and we must never consider anything greater or more important than Allah.
I hope and pray that those who have gone to Hajj will learn these lessons from this journey. Let us also remind us these lessons and put them to practice in our lives.
