The Philosophy of Hajj Rituals
History of Hajj
Hajj literally means ‘heading to a place’. In Islamic terminology, however, it refers to the annual obligatory pilgrimage that Muslims make to Mecca with the intention of performing certain religious rites in accordance with the method prescribed by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) [1].
In essence, Hajj is man's evolution toward Allah. It is a social worship which creates a relation between God and His creatures and has different effects on the Islamic society. The performance of Hajj simultaneously signifies many things; it is a show of history, the Islamic doctrine and that of the Islamic unity and brotherhood [2]. Hajj reinforces the religion, i.e. it makes millions of Muslims gather in Ihram; this …show more content…
The heart and soul of the pilgrim should move around Kaaba, the symbol of the House of Allah, in a way that no worldly attraction distracts him from this path. Only Tawhid should attract him. Tawaf also represents Muslims’ unity. During Tawaf, everyone encircles Kaaba collectively. There is no individual identification of men or women, black or white, red or yellow. The movement has transformed one ‘person’ into the totality of ‘people’ establishing the universality of Islamic community with the goal of approaching Allah. Likewise, you must reject self-centeredness and step into the way of Allah, which is the way of people. In other words, to approach Allah, you must first genuinely become involved in people’s problems. This is how you are with the people and where you may approach Allah …show more content…
It is the nearest point to Allah. As a matter of fact, there is nowhere on earth where you get more reward than this place for praying. The stone has the footprint of Abraham. He stood over this stone to lay the corner stone (Hajar al-Aswad), to reconstruct Kaaba and to pray [7]. By standing on the same stone, you vow to become like Abraham, the upright friend of Allah, who was uncompromising in his conviction of Tawhid [8].
Sa’y
Sa’y literally means to strive, to make an effort to reach an aim. Running between the mountains – Safa and Marwa – seven times, you act like Hagar, the mother of infant Ishmael. After Abraham left her and their son, near the valley of Mecca, Hagar had no food, no water, no shelter, neither for herself nor for her child, but only uncompromising, relentless faith that the God of Abraham will not leave her and her son without
History of Hajj
Hajj literally means ‘heading to a place’. In Islamic terminology, however, it refers to the annual obligatory pilgrimage that Muslims make to Mecca with the intention of performing certain religious rites in accordance with the method prescribed by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) [1].
In essence, Hajj is man's evolution toward Allah. It is a social worship which creates a relation between God and His creatures and has different effects on the Islamic society. The performance of Hajj simultaneously signifies many things; it is a show of history, the Islamic doctrine and that of the Islamic unity and brotherhood [2]. Hajj reinforces the religion, i.e. it makes millions of Muslims gather in Ihram; this …show more content…
The heart and soul of the pilgrim should move around Kaaba, the symbol of the House of Allah, in a way that no worldly attraction distracts him from this path. Only Tawhid should attract him. Tawaf also represents Muslims’ unity. During Tawaf, everyone encircles Kaaba collectively. There is no individual identification of men or women, black or white, red or yellow. The movement has transformed one ‘person’ into the totality of ‘people’ establishing the universality of Islamic community with the goal of approaching Allah. Likewise, you must reject self-centeredness and step into the way of Allah, which is the way of people. In other words, to approach Allah, you must first genuinely become involved in people’s problems. This is how you are with the people and where you may approach Allah …show more content…
It is the nearest point to Allah. As a matter of fact, there is nowhere on earth where you get more reward than this place for praying. The stone has the footprint of Abraham. He stood over this stone to lay the corner stone (Hajar al-Aswad), to reconstruct Kaaba and to pray [7]. By standing on the same stone, you vow to become like Abraham, the upright friend of Allah, who was uncompromising in his conviction of Tawhid [8].
Sa’y
Sa’y literally means to strive, to make an effort to reach an aim. Running between the mountains – Safa and Marwa – seven times, you act like Hagar, the mother of infant Ishmael. After Abraham left her and their son, near the valley of Mecca, Hagar had no food, no water, no shelter, neither for herself nor for her child, but only uncompromising, relentless faith that the God of Abraham will not leave her and her son without