{"id":1634,"date":"2016-03-22T18:37:25","date_gmt":"2016-03-22T18:37:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/?p=1634"},"modified":"2018-03-27T02:08:03","modified_gmt":"2018-03-27T07:08:03","slug":"the-fifth-pillar-of-islam-the-pilgrimage-hajj","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/the-fifth-pillar-of-islam-the-pilgrimage-hajj\/","title":{"rendered":"The Fifth Pillar of Islam: The Pilgrimage (Hajj)"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Imam Kamil Mufti<\/em><\/p>\n

The Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) is the fifth of the fundamental Muslim practices and institutions known as the five pillars of Islam. \u00a0Pilgrimage 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. \u00a0Pilgrimage is made to the Kaaba, found in the sacred city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, the \u2018House of God,\u2019 whose sanctity rests in that the Prophet Abraham built it for the worship of God. \u00a0God 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<\/i>). \u00a0The rites of pilgrimage are performed today exactly as did by Abraham, and after him by Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon them.<\/p>\n

Pilgrimage is viewed as a particularly meritorious activity. \u00a0Pilgrimage serves as a penance – the ultimate forgiveness for sins, devotion, and intense spirituality. \u00a0The pilgrimage to Mecca, the most sacred city in Islam, is required of all physically and financially able Muslims once in their life. \u00a0The 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. \u00a0Mecca 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. \u00a0The racial harmony fostered by Hajj is perhaps best captured by Malcolm X on his historic pilgrimage:<\/p>\n

“Every one of the thousands at the airport, about to leave for Jeddah, was dressed this way. \u00a0You could be a king or a peasant and no one would know. \u00a0Some powerful personages, who were discreetly pointed out to me, had on the same thing I had on. \u00a0Once thus dressed, we all had begun intermittently calling out “Labbayka! (Allahumma) Labbayka!” (At your service, O Lord!) Packed in the plane were white, black, brown, red, and yellow people, blue eyes and blond hair, and my kinky red hair – all together, brothers! \u00a0All honoring the same God, all in turn giving equal honor to each other . . .<\/p>\n

That is when I first began to reappraise the \u2018white man\u2019. It was when I first began to perceive that \u2018white man\u2019, as commonly used, means complexion only secondarily; primarily it described attitudes and actions. \u00a0In America, \u2018white man\u2019 meant specific attitudes and actions toward the black man, and toward all other non-white men. \u00a0But in the Muslim world, I had seen that men with white complexions were more genuinely brotherly than anyone else had ever been. \u00a0That morning was the start of a radical alteration in my whole outlook about \u2018white\u2019 men.<\/p>\n

There were tens of thousands of pilgrims, from all over the world. \u00a0They were of all colors, from blue-eyed blonds to black-skinned Africans. \u00a0But we were all participating in the same ritual displaying a spirit of unity and brotherhood that my experiences in America had led me to believe never could exist between the white and the non-white… \u00a0America needs to understand Islam, because this is the one religion that erases from its society the race problem. \u00a0Throughout my travels in the Muslim world, I have met, talked to, and even eaten with people who in America would have been considered white – but the \u2018white\u2019 attitude was removed from their minds by the religion of Islam. \u00a0I have never before seen sincere and true brotherhood practiced by all colors together, irrespective of their color.”<\/p>\n

Thus the pilgrimage unites the Muslims of the world into one international fraternity. \u00a0More than two million persons perform the Hajj each year, and the rite serves as a unifying force in Islam by bringing followers of diverse backgrounds together in worship. \u00a0In some Muslim societies, once a believer has made the pilgrimage, he is often labeled with the title \u2018hajji\u2019<\/i> ; this, however, is a cultural, rather than religious custom. \u00a0Finally, the Hajj is a manifestation of the belief in the unity of God – all the pilgrims worship and obey the commands of the One God.<\/p>\n

At certain stations on the caravan routes to Mecca, or when the pilgrim passes the point nearest to those stations, the pilgrim enters the state of purity known as ihram<\/i>. In this state, the certain \u2018normal\u2019 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<\/i>, two white seamless sheets that are wrapped around the body. \u00a0All this increases the reverence and sanctity of the pilgrimage, the city of Mecca, and month of Dhul-Hijjah. There are 5 stations, one on the coastal plains northwest of Mecca towards Egypt and one south towards Yemen, while three lie north or eastwards towards Medina, Iraq and Najd. \u00a0The simple garb signifies the equality of all humanity in God\u2019s sight, and the removal of all worldly affections. \u00a0After entering the state of ihram, the pilgrim proceeds to Mecca and awaits the start of the Hajj. \u00a0On the 7th of Dhul-Hijjah the pilgrim is reminded of his duties, and the rituals commence on the 8th of the month. The pilgrim visits the holy places outside Mecca – Arafah, Muzdalifah, and Minaa – prays, sacrifices an animal in commemoration of Abraham\u2019s sacrifice, throws pebbles at specific pillars at Minaa, and shortens or shaves his head. The rituals also involve walking seven times around the sacred sanctuary, or Kaaba<\/i>, in Mecca, and ambulating, walking and running, seven times between the two small hills of Mt. Safaa and Mt. Marwah. \u00a0Discussing the historical or spiritual significance of each rite is beyond the scope of this introductory article.<\/p>\n

Apart from Hajj, the “minor pilgrimage” or umrah<\/i> is undertaken by Muslims during the rest of the year. \u00a0Performing the umrah<\/i> does not fulfill the obligation of Hajj. \u00a0It is similar to the major and obligatory Islamic pilgrimage (hajj), and pilgrims have the choice of performing the umrah<\/i> separately or in combination with the Hajj. \u00a0As in the Hajj, the pilgrim begins the umrah<\/i> by assuming the state of ihram<\/i>. \u00a0They enter Mecca and circle the sacred shrine of the Kaaba seven times. \u00a0He may then touch the Black Stone, if he can, pray behind the Maqam Ibrahim, drink the holy water of the Zamzam spring. \u00a0The ambulation between the hills of Safa and Marwah seven times and the shortening or shaving of the head complete the umrah<\/i>.<\/p>\n

From: Islamreligion<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Imam Kamil Mufti The Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) is the fifth of the fundamental Muslim practices and institutions known as the five pillars of Islam. \u00a0Pilgrimage 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 … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2790,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-five-pillars-of-islam"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5.jpg","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5.jpg",1280,720,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5-300x169.jpg",300,169,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5-768x432.jpg",768,432,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5-1024x576.jpg",1024,576,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5.jpg",1280,720,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5.jpg",1280,720,false],"gform-image-choice-sm":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5.jpg",300,169,false],"gform-image-choice-md":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5.jpg",400,225,false],"gform-image-choice-lg":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/pillar-5.jpg",600,338,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"ASKM","author_link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/author\/askm\/"},"uagb_comment_info":2,"uagb_excerpt":"By Imam Kamil Mufti The Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) is the fifth of the fundamental Muslim practices and institutions known as the five pillars of Islam. \u00a0Pilgrimage 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…","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcT0IL-qm","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9276,"url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/the-fifth-pillar-of-islam-the-pilgrimage-hajj-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":1634,"position":0},"title":"The Fifth Pillar of Islam: The Pilgrimage (Hajj)","author":"Site Admin","date":"06\/26\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) 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,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Introducing Islam"","block_context":{"text":"Introducing Islam","link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/category\/introducing-islam\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8398,"url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/de\/die-fuenfte-saeule-des-islam-die-pilgerfahrt-hajj\/","url_meta":{"origin":1634,"position":1},"title":"Die f\u00fcnfte S\u00e4ule des Islam: Die Pilgerfahrt (Hajj)","author":"Site Admin","date":"06\/20\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Hajj (Great Pilgrimage to Mecca) is the fifth of the basic Muslim worship activities and facilities known as the Five Pillars of Islam. 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