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The Hajj Pilgrimage: A Spiritual Journey

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By PILAR SAAD, Special to the Tribune

Published: January 12, 2008

I am an American Muslim who converted to Islam 30 years ago. I finally got the opportunity in December to perform the Hajj Pilgrimage to Mecca, in Saudi Arabia, with my husband.

To a Westerner, the Hajj can best be described as a spiritual and biblical journey to a holy land, such as Jerusalem. It is, however, also like a successful international peace convention, spiritual camp, marathon, cultural fair and bazaar.

To me, the Hajj was the discovery of a truly holy place, a place of peace and a piece of heaven on Earth.

The Hajj Pilgrimage is one of the five pillars of Islam. All Muslims with the means and ability must perform it at least once in their lifetime. One needs to have paid up debts and made the intention to perform it as an act of worship and obedience to God.

It takes place in Mecca and its environs every year during the early part of the last Islamic calendar month of Dhul Hijjah. It involves many rituals prescribed by God in the Quran and modeled by the Prophet Mohammad for all Muslims to follow.

Its purpose is to renew and strengthen a Muslim's faith in the One God, to ask for forgiveness for one's sins and to ask for blessings and favors from God. It is a special time and place to bring one closer to God.

This marked the 1,428th year that the Hajj has been performed. It roughly coincided with Dec. 10 to 22. The Eid El-Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice, took place on the 10th of Dhul-Hijjah, or Dec. 19. Nearly 4 million Muslims from all corners of the globe converged on Mecca for this glorious event.

The Hajj commemorates three important biblical stories of the Prophet Abraham. The first tells of the founding of Mecca as the center of monotheism for mankind.

The Prophet Abraham was blessed with his first son at the age of 82 and ordered by God to travel to Mecca with his wife, Hagar, and the baby, Ismael. As they traveled through the desert, Abraham left them for a while and Ismael began crying from thirst.

A Spring That Still Runs

Hagar ran seven times between the hills of Safa and Marwa in search of water. When she returned, she found a spring from the sand where the infant had kicked his heel.

This miraculous spring still flows today and is called Zamzam water. Muslims drink it to be refreshed and re-energized and to ward off disease. They also perform the Sayy ritual, in which they walk back and forth from the hills of Safa and Marwa seven times within the Sacred Mosque's precincts, praying and chanting supplications to God.

The second story describes how the Prophet Abraham and Ismael were ordered by God to build the Kaaba, the first house of worship for monotheism, near the miraculous spring. The angel Gabriel brought down from the heavens a black stone to be the cornerstone of the Kaaba.

Today, this house of worship, or cubicle, is draped in a black cloth with gold-embroidered Quranic verses and a gold-plated door. It is housed in Islam's holiest mosque, the Sacred Al-Haram Mosque, which all Muslims face in prayer throughout the world.

In the Tawaf ritual, Muslims walk around the Kaaba seven times chanting praises to God.

The third story tells of God's command to Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son. God rewarded him for his obedience by replacing Ismael with a ram, instead, to sacrifice.

Muslims also sacrifice an animal and share its meat with the poor as one of the final Hajj rituals on Eid day, 10th of Dhul-Hijjah.

The Hajj rituals express many of the tenets of Islam. The unity of mankind is experienced by the gathering of Muslims of many races, nationalities and languages, all worshipping God in Arabic.

The equality of man is seen by the simple garb worn by all (white for men and white, green or other color for women), whether rich or poor. The brotherhood of man is felt by the extreme patience, tolerance and respect accorded to all, Sunni and Shia, rich and poor and male and female.

Muslims are enjoined not to harm anyone, curse or lose their temper. Prayer and charity are frequently performed since God has promised that these acts of worship are worth 100,000 in the Sacred Mosque.

The worshipping and submission to God bring peace. One's heart is filled with love for God and one's fellow man. Arrogance, racism and enmity are flushed from heart and mind.

Holiest Places Of Worship

The Sacred Mosque is open to the sky as if it were open to heaven. Muslims flow around the Kaaba in worship like blood pulsing from the right to left ventricles of the human heart. The Kaaba represents the heart of Islam. The holiness and closeness to God here are like nowhere else.

That is also felt on Mount Arafat, or the Mount of Mercy, outside Mecca, where the Prophet Mohammad gave his last sermon and where it is believed that Adam and Eve descended to Earth from paradise.

God promised that prayers and supplications given there on the 9th of Dhul-Hijjah would be answered.

The Hajj Pilgrimage is the greatest physical and spiritual experience of a Muslim's lifetime. It is a holy place and time. It teaches patience, tolerance and respect.

One learns that no matter what difficulties or hardships come your way, you must not complain. Just turn to God and give thanks for all your blessings. God will help you and provide for you.

The Hajj Pilgrimage is a place of peace and brotherhood on Earth, where sins are forgiven and faith in God is renewed.

Pilar Saad teaches social studies at the Universal Academy of Florida on Orient Road and has lived in Tampa for 51 years. The child of Colombian and Danish parents, she converted to Islam at age 24 in Paris.

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