Absolute Obedience
What the Hajj signifies is nothing more and nothing less
than blind faith and total submission. It stands for
unqualified obedience and earnest yielding to a demand.
Sometimes the pilgrim is seen in Makkah and sometimes in Mina,
Arafat and Muzdalifa. Sometimes he makes a halt and sometimes
he travels. At one time he pitches his tent and at another he
knocks it down. He is the slave of every nod and gesture and
does simply what he is called upon to do. He has no choice of
his own. He has hardly halted at Mina that he is required to
move on to Arafat but without breaking the journey at
Muzdallifa. On reaching Arafat he engages himself in prayer
throughout the day and when the sun has set he finds himself
tired and wanting to spend the night there but is commanded to
proceed to Muzdalifa. He has been regular in prayer all his
life but there he is told to forgo the Salaat of Maghrib for
he is the bondman of Allah, not of Salaat or habit. The Salat
he offers at Muzdalifa jointly with that of Isha. His stay at
Muzdalifa is very pleasant and he wishes to prolong it but it
is not allowed to him and he is bidden to leave for Mina.
The same was the practice of Hazrat Ibrahim and of all the
Divine Apostles and men of faith and virtue, now travelling,
now staying, now meeting, now parting, neither servile to
desire nor yielding to caprice.
Time and Place
No other place could be more appropriate for it than Mecca
where the fore-runner of the votaries of faith and the most
dearly loved bondman of God of his time had presented the most
glowing tribute of devotion and sacrifice the world has ever
known. All the Prophets of the Lord, Monotheists and adorers
of Divinity who came after him followed in his footsteps,
emulated his example in every detail, and re-enacted the same
story of fealty and love. They, in the same manner,
circumambulated around the House of Ka’aba, performed the
Sa’ee between Safa and Marwa, encamped at Arafat, spent the
night at Muzdalifa, shrew the pebbles at Jemarat and offered
the sacrifice of animals at Mina.
Thus, in time and space, in the chapters of the episode
that is repeated over and over again, in the rites and
formalities in which the example of Hazrat Ibrahim is
followed, in the life-giving drafts of love from which the
pilgrims draw new vitality, in the warmth of feeling and
enthusiasm which envelope them entirely, in the company of
diverse groups of Muslims which is available to them all the
time, in the religious and spiritual congregation the like of
which is not to be seen anywhere, and in the soulful melodies
of prayer, supplication and repentance that fill the
atmosphere constantly, that vital element, that indescribable
quality is still present which infuses a new life, imparts a
new keenness, instils a new hope and revives the languishing
flame of love and evokes the Mercy of the Lord.
Many enlightened scholars of Islam have referred to the
miraculous quality of this congregation of attracting the
blessings of Allah and arousing the hearts, however
insensitive they may have grown, and, enkindling in them the
feelings of devotion and earnestness. As Imaam Ghazali, for
instance, writes: "When the thoughts, hopes and aspirations
are concentrated on a particular point, when the hearts are
seized with eagerness, the hands are stretching towards Allah
and the eyes are lifting towards the heavens, when everyone is
jointly and with full attention and solicitude begging the
Mercy of the Lord then, at that time, do not imagine that the
Supreme Being will disappoint them, allow their exertions to
go waste and keep them denied of His Favours."
Hadhrat Shah Waliullah, similarly, has said, "The
fundamental principle of the Hajj is that a large body of
pious and virtuous servants got together at a particular time
and recollected the state of those on whom was a special
favour of Allah, such as the Prophets, the Truthful, the
Duteous and the Martyrs, and at a place which abounded with
the signs of the Almighty, the Gracious One, and where the
meritorious and whole-souled representatives of the Ummah
assembled, moved by reverence for the Lardmarks of Allah,
crying and beseeching, invoking, His Aid and seeking His
Forgiveness, because when the hearts beat in unison and people
come together in this spirit there is no thriftiness in the
bestowal of Mercy and Benevolence. The Prophet has said that
the Satan never feels more dejected, crestfallen and
humiliated than on the day of Arafa."
Hazrat Shah Waliullah goes on to say: "It is also a part of
purification of the self that a man should break his journey
and stay at the places where the spiritually evolved and
praiseworthy 'Friends of Allah' have been staying with
reverence of the heart and uttermost devotion, filling, the
air with His Name. It will prove to be a source of nearness to
the Angels and the Celestial World for men of virtue because
when they will stay there they will also get dyed in the same
hue."'
Renewal of Contact
One of the chief purposes of the Hajj is the renewal of
bond or contact with Hadhrat Ibrahim, the founder
Millat-i-Hanifi. It affords a splendid opportunity to
safeguard his legacy, to compare one's own way of living with
the way he had shown and to take stock of the condition of
Muslims with a view to improving it. The Hajj is a kind of
annual concourse through which the Muslims can look into
themselves, discover their faults and chalk out plans for
their regeneration and for ridding themselves of the
influences they may have accepted from peoples and communities
among which they live.
In the words of Hazrat Shah Waliullah, "One of the objects
of the Hajj is the preservation of the legacy of Hazrat
Ibrahim and Hadhrat Ismail both of whom can be said to be the
leaders of the Millat-i-Hanifi and its founders in Arabia. The
sacred prophet, also, was raised up so that through him
Millat-i-Hanifi gained ascendancy in the world and was
victorious.
“It has been declared by God that: The faith of your father
Ibrahim is yours.’ (xxii:78). It is, therefore, essential for
us to protect the things we have received from the leader of
this community as an inheritance, viz., personal characterists
and rituals of the Hajj. As the Prophet once said, ‘Stay at
places set apart for the Hajj for you are the inheritors of
your father’s legacy.”
Revivification of the Episode of Ibrahim
The most fascinating feature of the Hajj is the spirit of
enchantment, devotion and self-effacement which pervades the
entire pilgrimage, from the beginning to the end. In it the
governance of the mind is entrusted to the heart and the
glorious example of the earnest men of God and His genuine
adorers. Amd their forerunner, Hadhrat Ibrahim (Alayhis
salaam), the friend of Allah, is followed in every act and
observance. Sometimes, the pilgrim walks zealously round the
house of Ka’bah, sometimes, he kisses the black stone and
sometimes he portrays the intensity of mother’s love at Safa
and Marwa by running where Hadhrat Hajira, the mother of
Hadhrat Ismail, had run and walking with poise and dignity
where she had walked in that way. Thereafter, he is bidden to
leave for Mina on the eight day of Zil-Hijjah, and, then, to
stay in the valley of Arafat and devote himself earnestly to
prayer and supplication. The night is spent at Muzdalifa and,
in the morning he returns to Mina. All this is done solely and
for no other reason than to emulate the example of Hazat
Ibranim and the sacred Prophet.
The most striking part,
however, of this unique display of love, imitation and
emulation is the rite of Rami Jemar which is simply the
simulation of an act performed by Hazrat Ibrahim. There is a
force in following the example of the devout servants of the
Lord which is catching. The inner radiance of these glorious
specimens of faith, their matchless spirit of love and
dedication is transmitted to those who strive to follow in
their footsteps like an electric current. It is the best and
most effective way to attract the Mercy of the Lord. No
spectacle is more enthralling for those who have experienced
this feeling than the getting together of ardent adorers and
faithful bondmen on that blessed land for re-enacting the
magnificent episode and recreating the sublime events that had
taken place thousands of years ago but have been eternalised
by God and endowed with His gracious acceptance. It has been
decreed by Him that His loyal and truthful servants, from all
over the world, will re-enact the whole series of events in
the same way and in the spirit of defeating and disgracing the
Devil, fortifying and strengthening the faith and emulating
the soul-stirring example of Hazrat Ibrahim.