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Brothers
and sisters in Islam! What are the blessings of Hajj? One may
describe them in great detail. But, in the Qur'an, where Allah
instructs Ibrahim to invite people to come to Hajj, it is said: [So
that they may witness things that are of benefit to them]
(Al-Hajj 22: 28).
Hence,
the real blessings of Hajj can only be experienced by those who
actually perform it. Imam Abu Hanifah, it is narrated, was unsure
which act of worship was more excellent among the various ones
laid down by Islam. But once he had performed Hajj, he had no
hesitation in declaring that Hajj was the most excellent of all.
Still,
I shall now try to give you, briefly, some idea of its blessings.
The
Journey
We
usually think of journeys as of two kinds: those made for business
and those made for pleasure. In both cases, it is to fulfill your
worldly desires and benefit yourselves that you leave your homes,
separate from families, spend money-all is done for your own sake.
No question arises of sacrifice for any higher, sublime purpose.
But
the journey that is the Hajj is quite different in nature. This is
not meant for any personal end. It is undertaken solely for Allah
and the fulfillment of the duty prescribed by Allah. Nobody can be
prepared to undertake this journey until and unless he has love of
Allah in his heart, as well as fear of Him, and is convinced that
Allah wants him to do what he is doing. That you are willing to
bear the privations arising from separation from your family, to
incur great expenses on a journey that will bring no material
rewards, and to suffer any loss of business or job, all are signs
of certain inner qualities: that you love and fear Allah more than
anything, that you have a strong sense of duty to Him, that you
are willing to respond to His summons and ready to sacrifice your
material comforts in His cause.
Virtue
and Piety
You
will find that your love of Allah heightens as you start preparing
for your pilgrimage journey with the sole intention of pleasing
Allah. With your heart longing to reach your goal, you become
purer in thought and deed. You repent for past sins, seek
forgiveness from people whom you might have wronged, and try to
render your due to others where necessary so as not to go to
Allah's court burdened with injustices that you may have done to
your fellow beings. In general, the inclination to do good
intensifies and abhorrence of doing evil increases.
After
leaving home, the closer you get to the House of Allah, the more
intense becomes your desire to do good. You become careful so that
you harm nobody while you try to render whatever service or help
you can to others. You avoid abuse, indecency, dishonesty,
squabbles, and bickering because you are proceeding on the path of
Allah. Thus your entire journey constitutes an act of worship.
How, then, can you do wrong? This journey, in contrast to every
other, is a continuing course through which a Muslim attains a
progressive purification of the self. On this journey, then, you
are pilgrims to Allah.
The
Impact of Hajj
It
is now easy to see that for two or three months[1],
from the time of deciding and preparing for Hajj to the time of
returning home, a tremendous impact is made on the hearts and
minds of pilgrims. This process entails sacrifice of time,
sacrifice of money, sacrifice of comfort, and sacrifice of many
physical desires and pleasures- and all this simply for the sake
of Allah, with no worldly or selfish motive.
Together
with a life of sustained piety and virtuousness, the constant
remembrance of Allah and the longing and love for Him in the
pilgrim leave a mark on his heart which lasts for years. The
pilgrim witnesses at every step the imprints left by those who
sacrificed everything of theirs in submission and obedience to
Allah. They fought against the whole world, suffered hardships and
tortures, were condemned to banishment, but ultimately did make
the word of Allah supreme and did subdue the false powers that
wanted man to submit to entities other than Allah.
The
lesson in courage and determination, the impetus to strive in the
way of Allah, which a devotee of Allah can draw from these clear
signs and inspiring examples, can hardly be available from any
other source. The attachment developed with the focal point of his
religion by walking round the Ka`bah (Tawaf), and the
training received to live a mujahid's life through the
rites of Hajj (such as running from place to place and repeated
departures and halts) are great blessings indeed.
Combined
with the Prayer, fasting and almsgiving (zakah), and looked at as
a whole, you will see that Hajj constitutes a preparation for the
great task, which Islam wants Muslims to do. This is why it has
been made compulsory for all who have the money and the physical
fitness for the journey to the Ka`bah. This ensures that, in every
age, there are Muslims who have passed through this training.
Hajj:
A Collective Worship
The
great blessings of spiritual and moral regeneration, which Hajj
imparts to each person, are before you. But you cannot fully
appreciate the blessings of Hajj unless you keep in view the fact
that Muslims do not perform it individually: hundreds of thousands
perform it communally during the time fixed for it. At one stroke
Islam achieves not one or two but a thousand purposes.
The
advantages of performing the Prayer singly are by no means small,
but by making it conditional with congregation and by laying down
the rule of Imamah (leadership in the Prayer) and by gathering
huge congregations for the Friday and `Eid Prayers, its benefits
have been increased many times. The observance of the fasting
individually is no doubt a major source of moral and spiritual
training, but by prescribing that all Muslims must fast in the
month of Ramadan those benefits have been greatly increased. The
almsgiving, too, has many advantages even if dispensed
individually, but with the establishment of a centralized bayt
al-mal (Treasury of the Islamic state) for its collection and
disbursement, its usefulness is increased beyond measure.
The
same is true of Hajj. If everyone were to perform it singly, the
effect on individual lives would still be great. But making it a
collective act enhances its effectiveness to a point, which gives
it a new dimension altogether.
Excerpted
with minor corrections from
Let
Us Be Muslims, by Sayyid Abul
A'la Mawdudi
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