Dhul Hijja is Upon Us

The month of Dhul Hijjah has embraced us and the precious ten days are upon us. But in order for us to give the month its due right, we must understand the teachings behind it.

What Is Hajj?

Hajj, in fact, is an Abrahamic worship which the Prophet (sws) introduced and promulgated among his progeny and directed it to keep it in practice.

"Behold! We gave the site, to Abraham, of the (Sacred) House, (saying): Associate not anything (in worship) with Me; and sanctify My House for those who compass it round, or stand up, or bow, or prostrate themselves (therein in prayer). And proclaim the Pilgrimage among men: they will come to thee on foot and (mounted) on every kind of camel, lean on account of journeys through deep and distant mountain highways; That they may witness the benefits (provided) for them, and celebrate the name of Allah, through the Days appointed, over the cattle which He has provided for them (for sacrifice): then eat ye thereof and feed the distressed ones in want." (22:26-28)
We find the pagan Arabs who, in spite of having forgotten most of the teachings of the Abrahamic religion, practicing Hajj throughout their history, regarding it a great duty. They indeed regarded it a great religious service. With the passage of time however, they lost the true form of this worship and excluded many of its rituals and introduced some new practices that they deemed appropriate. The Qur'an re-established this Abrahamic worship in its original form and said:

And whosoever can afford should visit the House on pilgrimage as duty to God. Whosoever denies should remember that God is above heed of the world. (3:97)

How important is Hajj in Islam?

Hajj occupies a very important position in the various forms of Islamic worship. The Holy Prophet (sws) once, answering a question placed it among the basics of Islam. He defined Islam in the following words:

Islam means that you openly state that there is no god except Allah, and Muhammad (sws) is the Messenger of Allah; establish the prayer, pay Zakah; fast during the month of Ramadan and offer the Hajj of the House of Allah if you are able to afford journey to it. (Muslim, No: 8)

The prophet was once asked: ‘Which deed is the most superior?' He replied: ‘Belief in God and His Messengers'. ‘After that?' he was asked. ‘Jihad in His way', was the answer. It was then asked: ‘After that'. He replied: ‘the Hajj offered with all its requirements'. (Bukhari, No: 25)

One who offers Hajj in His way and doesn't speak obscene language, and doesn't commit sins, will come back [purified] as he was at the time of his birth. (Bukhari, No: 1421)

And finally,

An ‘Umrah after the other stands for the atonement of the sins committed in between. Hajj offered with all its requirements is rewarded with Paradise. (Muslim, No: 1349)

What if someone can't go to Hajj, are they totally missing out on the rewards?

No you don't miss out on the rewards! Spending the first tem days of Dhul Hijjah in Worship can attain the greatest blessings and rewards. What makes these days special is that they combine all the great attributes, of other holy times of the year, such as fasting, sacrifice, feeding the hungry, praying and also Hajj, in addition to the many forms of supplications and forms of remembrance of Allah.

The great rewards of these ten days include the huge reward for fasting on the day of Arafa: The ninth day of Dhul Hijja (Arafa) is known to be the day of forgiveness and blessings. Fasting on this day forgives one's sins for the year before it and the year after it. Hence fasting on this day every year would purify Muslims from all sins. Notice that the verse above does not make the reward explicit to those who are performing hajj, rather it is open to all Muslims.

So what is the significance of the sacrifice?

The animal sacifice made on Eid Al-Adha reminds us of Ibrahim (AS), the father of the Prophets, whom Allah blessed with a son at a very old age.

"Ibrahim said: "I am going to take refuge with my Lord, He will surely guide me. O Lord! Grant me a righteous son. So We gave him the good news of a forbearing (and patient) son. When he reached the age to work with him, Ibrahim said to him: "O my son! I have seen a vision that I should offer you as a sacrifice, now tell me what your view is." He replied: "O my father! Do as you are commanded: you will find me, if Allah so wills, of the patient. And when they both submitted to Allah and Ibrahim laid down his son prostrate upon his forehead for sacrifice; We called out to him: "O Ibrahim stop! You have fulfilled your vision." Thus do We reward the righteous. That was indeed a manifest test. We ransomed his son for a great sacrifice and We left his good name among the later generations. Salutations to Ibrahim. Thus We reward the righteous." (37:99-110)

It was indeed a very hard test, which required true faith, complete obedience, patience in the face of tests and an expectation of a reward from Allah. And so the relief came and Allah provided a sacrifice in its place.

"Thus does Allah rewards the people who do good (Muhsineen)" (37:110)

Note: Allah does not want the blood or meat of anything as He is the Rich (Al-Ghaniy) and is free of need. Rather, He wants Muslims to believe in Him alone, to be patient in times of difficulty and to act according to the Shariah as Allah says in Surah Al-Hajj: 37

"It is neither their meat nor their blood that reaches Allah: it is your piety that reaches Him"

Therefore, we must, as of today, commit to utilizing the first ten days of Dhul-Hijja (especially the ninth day - Arafa) by praying, reading Quran, supplicating and giving money to the poor in order to achieve that level of piety which will reach Allah subhanahu wa ta'aala. Many Scholars say that a Muslim must, during every hajj which they do not attend, put the intention to go to Hajj the following year if they were able to. If you were unable to go to Hajj the following year, you will be rewarded, for the intention, as though you actually performed Hajj.

Abdulrahman Alhadithi- FOSIS Head of Campaigns

In another article, Click here to read how your Isoc can educate your community about Hajj.