بسم ﷲ الرحمٰن الرحیم
Hajj a Journey of Love
Amna Zubair
Bina Farooqi
Sadia Nauman
TIL Women English – Year 4
Visiting our Beloved Prophet Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam
My journey of love began with the ziyarah of the master of love, the beloved of Allah, the beloved of our hearts Muhammde Mustafa Ahmade Mujtaba Sallallahu Alaihi wasallam. I felt unworthy of presenting myself before Nabi but I carried with me the Amanah of so many love filled salaams of my respected teachers. So perhaps this would be enough to give me the courage to stand before my Pyare Nabi ﷺ. As I stood at the Rawdhah begging for the intercession of Nabi ﷺ I was gripped by the reality of how I would feel standing before Nabi ﷺ on Yawmul Hashr? How would I ask him to intercede for me knowing the reality of my sinful life. When those who love Rasoolallah ﷺ are granted a drink from his Hawdh, what if I’m among the wretched ones that are dragged away by the angels. The only ray of hope in that moment was the Hadith of Rasoolallah ﷺ that he will continue to ask Allah ﷺ for the forgiveness of his Ummah until the very last person is removed from the HellFire and entered into Jannah. Ya Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala please guide me to a life such that my Nabi ﷺ will be pleased with me on the Day of Resurrection.
Being a student of Hadith made me realize that loving Rasoolallah ﷺ is following his Sunnah and leaving everything that goes against the Sunnah. The more ahadith we learn the more I realize how far we’ve come from the amazing life of our Nabi ﷺ
Tawaf
Seeing the Kaabah for the first time is unlike seeing anything else. It’s like meeting a long lost love that you’ve spent your whole life longing for. How can there be so much beauty and awe in an inanimate object? It’s not something that can ever be explained or understood rationally. But even if a person has no faith and no connection with Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala seeing the millions of people who are drawn to the Kaabah from the farthest parts of the world is enough for anyone to be convinced that there is more to this world than what our 5 senses perceive.
Witnessing tawaf is a miracle in itself. People from every social class, every age, every personality all gathered for no reason other than the love of Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Crying, praying, hoping to be closer to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Leaving behind everything that we have built in worldly life. Parents forget about their children, businessmen forget about their jobs, the sick forget about their illness. The Kabah pulls you towards Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala and everything else becomes insignificant. How can anyone deny our connection with Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala after being part of this miraculous gathering?
Wuqoof of Hajj
The requirements of Hajj are being in specific places at specific times. There is wuqoof at Arafaat, Muzdalifah and Minaa. It’s a physical ibaadah in that we are moving from one place to another and a spiritual ibaadah because we are doing it for no other reason than to obey Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. While saying “labbayk” we are literally presenting ourselves before our Rabb. That “here I am” and I am here to make my Rabb happy with me. Once again you feel completely detached from the world, in places where nobody ever goes except during the days of Hajj. The most overpowering feeling is the hope for Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala forgiveness and acceptance of our Duas. This is the time to experience the power of dua. Every minute is precious and once you start asking, you just keep on asking. This is when I realized how much I need from Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala And how rarely I truly ask Him. We go on with our daily lives thinking Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala knows what we need. But how often do we stop and call out to Him and truly ask. Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala has promised us that He will answer our Duas. But what if we never ask? I realized the more time I spent in Duas the more I learned about what I really need. When I read the Duas that my friends and family had sent. It made me realize that people have so many real challenges and struggles in life and the one thing we all have in common is that we have no Helper besides Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala.
Pelting the Shaitan
The biggest obstacle that stands between our love for Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala and obedience to Him is the cursed Shaitan. The Jamaraat are a physical manifestation of the barrier that Shaitan has created between us and our Rabb. I immediately thought of
Ibraheem Alayhi as-Salam being stopped by
shaitan on his way to sacrifice his own beloved son in obedience to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. He resisted his not once, not twice, but three times and went onto commit the ultimate act of submission. Then I thought of my life and how much of it is controlled by Shaitan. I fall prey to even the smallest of waswasa. I cannot even reject Shaitan if he says “eat chocolate” my immediate action is to obey. If he says, “keep sleeping” that is enough for me to miss my Salaah. For me those huge walls represented how much control I have given to Shaitan in my life. And pelting was with the conviction that this cannot go on. With each pebble I reminded myself “Shaitan is nothing! He has no power over me other than what I hand over to him.
Overview of Hajj in the light of Holy Quran:
Hajj is [during] well-known months, so whoever has made Hajj obligatory upon himself therein [by entering the state of iúram], there is [to be for him] no sexual relations and no disobedience and no disputing during Hajj. And whatever good you do – Allah knows it. And take provisions, but indeed, the best provision is fear of Allah. And fear Me, O you of understanding.
No obscenity
Abstaining Allah’s disobedience at every cost
Don’t quarrel with those you have to accommodate with (importance of communal life)
Sacrifice: Strengthening Iman & Radha bil Qadha
Sacrifice of the beloved one is the epitome of love. And to sacrifice the most beloved thing is the real test when knowing that there is no chance to get that thing back. It is a matter of great courage, patience, self –denial, strongest Iman, Tawakuul and genuine proof of Rada bil Qada.
Sacrifice on Eid ul Adha apart from its innumerable benefits is a best form of the commemoration of the unprecedented love of Syedna Ibrahim (اﻟﺴﺎﻟﻢ ﻋﻠﯿﮫ) for Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala It was the last level of his test of love as a Khalil Ullah which He Alayhi as-Salam passed with unsurpassable distinction. It’s a message for the world that those who lower themselves in front of Allah, Allah never neglects or perishes them. The enlightenment of the bounties of sacrifice only dawns after the sacrifice is done.
Overall, the life of Syedna Hazrat Ibrahim Alayhi as-Salam and journey of Hajj teach us that if we aim for Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala, we have to sacrifice for Him
جَزَاكَ ٱللَّٰهُ
