Haj festival celebrated worldwide

By Mohammed NAALIR

At the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to Makkah, the Muslims all over the world will celebrate Eid al-Alha (Festival of Sacrifice) according to the sighting of the moon.

Millions of Muslim devotees have thronged in Holy Makkah from various parts of the world. Thousands of Sri Lankan pilgrims are among them.

Islam teaches the unity of mankind and secondly of the unity of the followers of Islam. The Hajj pilgrimage depicts this concept strongly.

Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam, one of the basic principles and obligations. This is indicated in Al-Qur'an, the Sunnah and scholarly consensus. It is an individual obligation upon every accountable person who is able to do it, once in a lifetime.

When a Muslim decides to travel for Hajj or Umrah, he or she has to fulfill several obligations such as giving up the sin, regretting what has happened in the past, resolving not to return to it, and restoring the rights of any one whom he has wronged.

One should travel for Hajj and Umrah in the company of good people. He should have the knowledge of rituals and should not harm or annoy anyone.

He must avoid any kind of obscenity, sin, disobedience to Allah and arguments except those that are needed to support the truth. Women must not travel unless accompanied by a person forbidden to marry.

There are several obligation related to Hajj pilgrimage. The Miqats of Ihram are of two kinds such as Miqat of time and the Miqat of place.

The Miqat of time starts at the beginning of Sawwal and ends on the tenth night of Dhul Hijjah, and it is permissible to enter Ihram one day before.

There are five Miqat places namely Dhul-Hulaifah for the people of Al-Madinah, Ai-Juhfah for the people of Syria, Qaran Al-Manazil for the people of Najd, Yalamlam for the people of Yeman and Dhat 'Irq for the people of Iraq.

A Hajj pilgrim must enter Ihram from Miqat. Ihram far men should not be stitched. Whoever neglects one of these obligations must offer a sacrifice.

Applying perfume, wearing the two Ihram garments Izar (waist wrapper or lower garment) and Rida (upper garment), cutting the nails, reciting the Thalbiyah repeatedly and entering Ihram after offering prayer are the Sunnah of Ihram.

Hajj is not obligatory for a child who has not yet reached puberty, but if he performs Hajj, he will be rewarded when he grows up. If a minor is of the age of discretion, he should make an intention for himself, as instructed by his guardian, who should tell him to do so much of the action of Hajj as he is able. As for the things he is unable to do, such as stoning the Jamarat, his guardian should do that on his behalf. If the minor is below the age of discretion, his guardian should form the intention on his behalf and take him to the different places of Hajj, and make him to do what he can, and the guardian should do whatever the child, whether male or female, is unable to do. If the child is unable to do Thawaf and Sa'ys he should be taken for Thawaf and Sa'ys carried by others. It is preferable not to do both Thawafs and sa'ys together. The rulings on Ihram for a minor are the same as the rulings on Ihram for adults.

Removing hair, cutting nails, using perfume after entering Ihram, intercourse and whatever leads to it, such as getting married, looking with desire, kissing are prohibited during Ihram. Wearing sewn garments and covering the head are prohibited.

If a person does any of these prohibited actions with no valid excuse, then he must offer a expiation or ransom.

If he does it because of some need, then he must offer a sacrifice.

Hajj is an ethical Obligation that must be carried out at least once in the lifetime of a Muslim. Every Muslim who has the capacity to maintain his family and manage the cost of the pilgrimage and to give away enough charity. The Hajj is the demonstration of the solidarity of Muslims and their submission to Allah.

The pilgrimage takes place from 7th to 13th day of Dhul Hijjah, which is the 12th month of Islamic calendar. The Islamic Calendar is a lunar calendar and 11 days shorter than Gregorian calendar which is presently used in the Western world. The Gregorian date of Hajj changes from year to year.

The devotees will walk anti clockwise around the Kaaba seven times, the cube-shaped building which is the focal point point and direction, Muslims throughout the globe perform prayers five times a day and special prayers are offered to get close to Almighty.

There are several compulsory duties to be carried out by a pilgrim during the Hajj. Kissing the black stone in the corner of Kaaba to wash away his or her previous sins, running back and forward between the hills of Al-Safa and Marwah to remind and recall Mother Hajarah, drinking water from Zam Zam well, going to the plains of Mount Arafa to stand in vigil and throw stones in the ritual of stones in the ritual of stoning the devil are some of these.

Then pilgrims shave their heads and perform ceremonial animal sacrifice. The flesh of the sacrificed animals distributed among the poverty stricken people. It is also important part of the pilgrimage. Finally the pilgrims will celebrate the three-day global festival.

On completion or before the completion of the Hajj pilgrimage, the pilgrims will travel to Madinah where several important places connected with Islamic history and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). The devotees will visit the shrines first two Khalifs such as Aboobakr and Umar along with other companions. On some occasions the pilgrim will leave for Madinah after fulfilling the Hajj first.

Even-though it is not a part of the Hajj pilgrimage every Hajj devotee tours Madinah and Prophet Muhammad's mosque. Masjid Al Nabavi which contains Prophet Muhammad's tomb and Raiz ul Jannah. The pilgrims also visit the grave of the Prophet's companions. Ummuhat-ul Momineen-Beloved wives of Prophet and Ahle Bait located in Jannathul Baqi. On the first morning of Eid al-Adha, Muslims around the world attend morning prayers at their local mosques.

Prayers are followed by visits with family and friends, and the exchange of greetings and gifts. At some point, members of the family will visit a local farm or otherwise will make arrangements for the slaughter of an animal. The meat is distributed during the days of the holiday or shortly thereafter.