THE FIFTH PILLAR OF ISLAM: THE PILGRIMAGE (HAJJ)

Sometimes spelt Hajj, is the annual Pilgrimage to Mecca that muslims are expected to make atleast once in their lifetime. The word Hajj is an Arabic word, meaning ‘to intend a journey’.
Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islam – the others are shahadah (declaration of faith); salat (daily prayer); zakat (giving of alms); sawm (fasting in Ramadan).

What is the Hajj?

The hajj — Arabic for “pilgrimage” — is a five-day religious pilgrimage to Mecca and nearby holy sites in Saudi Arabia that all Muslims who are physically and financially able must perform at least once in their lives. It is one of the five pillars, or duties, of Islam, along with the profession of faith in the one God and Mohammed as his prophet, prayer, charitable giving, and fasting during the holy month of Ramadan.

The hajj takes place only once a year, in the 12th and final month of the Islamic lunar calendar; pilgrimages to Mecca made at other times in the year are encouraged but do not count as the hajj. Because the Islamic lunar calendar is about 11 days shorter than the 365 days of the standard Gregorian calendar, the timing of the hajj moves backward each year.

Over the five days of the hajj, pilgrims perform a series of rituals meant to symbolize their unity with other believers and to pay tribute to God. On the last three days of the hajj, pilgrims — as well as all other Muslims around the world — celebrate Eid al-Adha, or the Festival of Sacrifice. This is one of the two major religious holidays Muslims celebrate every year. (The other is Eid al-Fitr, which comes at the end of Ramadan.)

At the end of the hajj, pilgrims return home and are often given the honorific “hajji,” meaning one who has performed the hajj. (One interesting note here: During the Iraq War, US troops frequently used the term “hajji” as a derogatory term for any Iraqi, Arab, or other person of Middle Eastern or South Asian descent. So although they certainly didn’t mean it this way, and it almost certainly wasn’t taken this way by the person on the receiving end of the slur, US troops were inadvertently applying a term of respect and honor to these individuals.)

What is the religious significance of the Hajj?

People may be surprised to learn that the hajj has very little to do with the Prophet Mohammed. Rather, it mostly commemorates events in the life of the Prophet Ibrahim — that is, Abraham. Yes, that Abraham.

If you’re from a non-Abrahamic faith tradition or if it’s just been a while since Sunday school, Abraham is a venerated patriarchal figure in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baha’i faith. He is perhaps best known for being willing to personally kill his beloved son when God commanded him to do so. At the last minute, so the story goes, God stepped in and told Abraham to sacrifice an animal instead, rewarding Abraham’s unwavering faith.

In the Judeo-Christian narrative, the son Abraham almost sacrifices is Isaac. In Islam, however, it’s Abraham’s other son, Ismail (Ishmael), who is almost sacrificed. Muslims consider both Abraham and Ismail to be prophets of God, and Mohammed’s ancestry is said to be traced back to Ismail.

There is another event involving Ismail and his mother, Hagar, that looms large in the hajj. The story goes like this: God commanded Abraham, as a test of faith, to take Hagar and the infant Ismail out to a barren desert area located between the two hills of Safa and Marwah in Mecca, and leave them there alone with only basic provisions. Eventually the water ran out, and the increasingly frantic Hagar ran back and forth from hill to hill seven times searching for water for her parched child.

Then a miracle occurred: A well, later called the Zamzam well, sprang from the ground, saving both of them. The story of how the well was discovered differs: Some accounts say it was the baby Ismail’s distressed kicking of his feet that scratched away the dirt and revealed the water source. Other accounts hold that the Angel Gabriel (Jibril in Arabic) tipped his wing into the dirt to reveal the well.

Abraham and Ismail later went on to build the Kaaba, the black cuboid structure in Mecca that Muslims face when they pray — together, as a place of worship of the one God. (Abraham eventually came back and retrieved his family from the desert, evidently.)

Soon after they built the Kaaba, tradition holds, God commanded Abraham to proclaim a pilgrimage to the site — in other words, the hajj — to all mankind (well, all monotheists) so that they can come together in one place to show their devotion to God.

Who should go on the Hajj?

It is mandatory for Muslim adults to go on Hajj at least once in their lifetime. They must be of sound mind and physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey. Those who complete the pilgrimage can add the title Hajji to their names.

When is Hajj?

The pilgrimage must take place during the month of Dhu al Hijja, the last month of the Islamic calendar. The rites of Hajj are performed from the 8th to the 12th of Dhu al Hijjah.
As the Islamic calendar is based on the lunar year, the date changes in the Gregorian calendar each year, and is 10 to 11 days earlier than the preceding year. In 2017, it is expected to be on or around August 30th or September 1st.

How many people go on Hajj?

Every year about 2 to 3 million people from across the world gather in Mecca for the Hajj. It is the largest single gathering of people on the planet.

How did Hajj start?

The rites performed at Hajj today were established by the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) but, based on the Qur’an, they can be traced back to the Prophet Ibrahim, (alaihis salaam), also referred to in English as Abraham.
Muslims believe that Ibrahim (alaihis salaam) was ordered by Allah to leave his wife Hajar and his son Ismail alone in the desert of ancient Mecca. In search of water, Hajar desperately ran seven times between the two hills of Safa and Marwah but found none. Returning in despair to Ismail, she saw the baby scratching the ground with his leg and a water fountain sprang forth at the site.
This is the Well of Zamzam in the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca. Pilgrims visit the well while performing Hajj or the Umrah pilgrimage to drink its water.

What are the rites of Hajj?

The main rituals of the Hajj pilgrimage are:
Ihram: When they arrive in Mecca, pilgrims enter the state of ihram (purity) for the Hajj pilgrimage. Men must wear the ihram garments consisting of two white, seamless sheets wrapped around the body, and sandals. As well as purity, this clothing symbolises equality and unity as there are no visible reminders of class, wealth, status or culture. Requirements for women are less strict and they usually dress in white with only faces and hands uncovered.
While in the state of ihram, pilgrims must – among other things – not cut their nails or hair, not engage in sexual activity, argue or fight.
Tawaf: Each person walks counter-clockwise seven times around the Ka’aba (the cube-shaped building and the direction of prayer for Muslims everywhere) in Masjid Al-Haram. The Ka’aba was built by Ibrahim (alaihis salaam) and is the most sacred site in Islam.
Al-Safa and Al-Marwah: Pilgrims run seven times between the mountains of Al-Safa and Al-Marwah as Hajar did during her search for water.
Mount Arafat: Pilgrims go to the plains of Mount Arafat, where the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) gave his last sermon, to stand in vigil.                                                                             Stoning the Devil: After Arafat, they move to Muzdalfah and then to Mina to perform a symbolic stoning ritual in which they fling pebbles at three walls known as jamarat. This symbolises how the devil tried to mislead Ibrahim (alaihis salaam) from following Allah but was fought off when the prophet threw stones at him on three occasions.
Eid ul Adha: The tenth day of the month of Dhu al-Hijja marks the start of the three-day festival of Eid ul Adha (the Feast of Sacrifice). The pilgrims perform the ritual of animal sacrifice (Qurbani) and continue with other rites to complete their Hajj.
Qurbani: Qurbani, or Udiyah as it known in Arabic, commemorates the sacrifice Ibrahim (alaihis salaam) was willing to perform of his son Ismail (alaihis salaam) for Allah, who spared his son by sending down a ram to take his place.

What is the difference between Hajj and Umrah?

Pilgrims can go to Mecca to perform the rituals at any other time of the year. This pilgrimage is known as Umrah and, unlike Hajj which takes place on fixed Islamic dates, is not obligatory.

Can non-Muslims do the Hajj?

No. Although Christians and Jews believe in the God of Abraham, they are not allowed to perform the hajj. Indeed, the government of Saudi Arabia forbids all non-Muslims from entering the holy city of Mecca at all.

The Saudi government takes this very seriously, so the odds that a non-Muslim would be able to slip in unnoticed among the throngs of pilgrims undetected or pretend to be Muslim and get in that way are extremely small. It’s not completely impossible — it has happened a handful of times over the centuries — but given the millions who attend every single year, the rate of success is miniscule. The Saudis have been doing this for a long time, and they’re not idiots.

Legal entry into the country is extremely tightly controlled, and the paperwork required to get a hajj visa is incredibly detailed. Pilgrims must book their hajj trip through a Saudi government–approved hajj travel agent. For a Western Muslim convert to be allowed to go on hajj, he or she must present documentation from an imam (Muslim religious leader). The imam must testify in writing that he knows the person in question and that the person is a true convert.

Trying to come in on a regular tourist visa and then stealthily making your way to Mecca is also a nonstarter. Getting a tourist visa as a Westerner is notoriously hard, and the likelihood of you being able to just slip away from your Saudi government minder and travel undetected all the way from the capital Riyadh to Mecca — more than 500 miles away, on the other side of a vast desert — is basically laughable.

The only way for a non-Muslim to get in is essentially to play the long con, pretending to convert to Islam seemingly sincerely enough to convince the local imam that you’re for real. That has happened before: In 2015, WND published a three-part series written pseudonymously by someone who claimed to be a white British non-Muslim man who successfully fake-converted to Islam and went on hajj.

So it’s not impossible. But you have to really, really, really want to go to all that trouble and risk potentially being deported and banned from the country (not to mention causing a major international incident and pissing off just about every Muslim on the planet) just to get into a city to see some sites that aren’t even of religious significance to you.

What about women and children?

Parents may choose to bring even their very young children with them, but the hajj won’t “count” toward fulfilling the child’s personal religious obligation, as that requires the child to be mature enough intellectually and spiritually to understand the significance of the hajj.

Women are also allowed — indeed, required, just like every other physically and financially able Muslim is — to perform the hajj. However, they have to be accompanied by an appropriate male guardian (called a mahram). Here are the rules, per the US State Department:

Women below the age of 45 must be accompanied by a “mahram” (e.g. close adult, male relative such as a husband, son, father, or brother) for Hajj. Women must be met by their sponsor upon arrival. Women who are traveling alone and not met by sponsors have experienced delays before being allowed to enter the country or to continue on other flights.

Women over 45 may travel without a mahram in an organized group, provided they submit a notarized letter of no objection from the husband, son, or brother, authorizing travel for Hajj with the named group. Violators face deportation.

Women who are members of the minority Shia sect of Islam (the majority of the world’s Muslims are Sunni), on the other hand, are not required by Saudi authorities to have a mahram when attending hajj and are allowed to travel alone. This is likely because Shia scholars have, unlike Sunni scholars, ruled that a woman may travel alone on hajj if she feels that she will be safe.

And since it’s basically impossible to talk about women in Islam these days without someone bringing up the issue of how much clothing they’re required (or not required) to wear, here’s a fun fact: Although women must cover their hair with a scarf, the face veil, known as a niqab, and the burqa, the garment that covers from head to toe with only a mesh-like panel through which to see, are not allowed during hajj.

Yes, you read that right: The two pieces of clothing that are the most controversial and are seen by many anti-Islam critics as symbols of the pervasive and pernicious cultural intrusion of Islam and its inherent oppression of women, are not allowed during one of Islam’s most sacred rituals, even though men and women mix freely during it. (Some women still wear them, though, despite the prohibition, and it doesn’t seem to be something that’s actually enforced. Some have also come up with rather creative workarounds, such as wearing large, darkly tinted sunglasses and those paper face masks doctors wear.)

So why the prohibition? The reason is basically that while Mohammed’s various statements regarding women’s dress are hotly debated among Muslim scholars (Mohammed lived a long time, after all, and he said a lot of things over the course of his life), his statement on women not covering their faces (or hands) during hajj is crystal clear: A woman in the state of ritual purity for hajj “should not cover her face or wear gloves.” Not a whole lot of room for debate there (though, of course, people still do debate it, because humans).

Men also wear special clothing during hajj. Male pilgrims wear two pieces of clean, unstitched cloth (usually plain white) — one wrapped around their waist and one wrapped around their torso — and plain sandals. The purpose of making all men dress in this same simple garb is to strip away all indications of wealth and status so that all pilgrims are seen as equal, as they are in the eyes of God.