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[najallawala-blog]

The Sovereign’s Hospitality- Hajj

I sat down to write about my memorable experience of hajj, thinking of a suitable title. My first few thoughts were ‘hajj memories’ or something along the lines of ‘hajj experience”. Just then it struck me instead of going with the cliched, if I were to describe the whole hajj experience in as little as few words.. what would it be? It would in fact be Almighty’s splendid hospitality upon His servants. In entirety; The Supreme-Most, Magnificent Host, greets us with His infinite generosity every step of the way. And what a blessing it is to be amongst those favored ones. It is a call from our Lord. To be in that Holy place for A-purpose is the greatest feeling I have ever had to experience. It is an amazing journey of a lifetime. While we hear this a lot from those who have performed hajj, it only makes sense after we have experienced it ourselves. It has been just over a month and I’m feeling nostalgic, yearning for that one more look at Kaaba and to have that whole experience all over again.

I’ll take you through my journey. It was a 14-day trip. Just about the perfect number of days for us. We live in UAE and have two young boys whom we had to leave behind in Pakistan with family.

a- We had never left our kids with anyone before.

b- They’re not used to living in Pakistan without us.

Yes, they’re very fond of their short visits back home during summer and winter holidays and love the attention from the family too. For them, going for holidays is one thing and being away from their parents is quite another. Imagine our anxiety at that! 

I’d mention here that planning hajj had been on our mind for the last 2 years. We knew this was something we had to plan, but when and how; that we were not quite sure of. We had planned our holidays to Europe for august 2018, pretty much the same dates that hajj was. We bought the tickets much earlier and booked the hotels too. All arrangements for the summer holiday trip were in order. For us, hajj wasn’t remotely on the cards that year either. Somehow, we had a complete change of heart and we decided to cancel the trip and apply for hajj. Albeit the penalties we had to pay on cancellations at that point were hard on pocket. God had planned something bigger and better. And so, it happened for us. It was one thing after another. We were led by God all through out and it worked one by one. Indeed, Allah is the best of planners. And we couldn’t be happier that it happened in such a delightful way. All it took was intention and sincerity and complete faith in Allah to work it out for us. Believe you me, He works it in ways we can’t even imagine. Oh, the infinite gratitude for His guidance! Our biggest farz obligation was taken care of with utmost ease.

Our arrival was at medina first, which seemed like a good choice for us as it didn’t oblige us to be in our ihram. I found it easier Not being under ihram at the start of journey. Two quick days in medina were almost cut to one and half for us due to some flight issues. That was all we had to make the best of. We arrived in medina middle of the night. Dreading crazy immigration upon our arrival but much to our surprise, immigration was a breeze. It was quick and speedy. As a group, we headed for the hotel in the bus. All tired and exhausted from a long late-night flight, thinking how we would function that day with time so little and so much to do. Reached hotel at the break of dawn. Much to our surprise, our check-in was already taken care of at the hotel. When we arrived, we were handed our keys, which was a relief knowing we could finally get some rest.

The agenda for the day was to maximize our ibadat time in madina, as we were already pressed for time. We had quick breakfast, refreshed ourselves and left straight for the mosque. Fortunately, our hotel was close to the mosque gate, about a minute walk. We offered our nawafil at the mosque and paid our respects at Rouda. Entering Raoda Rasool was a long wait and struggle. Amongst packed roomful of women pushing and throwing others off, together with mini episodes of stampede, I slowly managed to make my way on to the green carpet- Which is a part of Riyaz ul Jannah. On a personal level, it was so emotional and rewarding to offer nafil there. However physically, it was challenging being almost squashed due to massive crowd. Despite all the chaos, there was a divine tranquility to it.

I spent a few good hours at the mosque after rauda. By 10 am we were exhausted and needed to get some power nap to gear ourselves for the rest of the day. A few hours of well rested sleep was need of the hour!

A ziarat tour around the city was planned for the afternoon, with our group members. It was an interesting and an informative tour. So much of history about our prophet and his followers is in Medina. We could feel their presence in the city. To experience it firsthand was sentimental, knowing prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and his companions were once there. Visiting Masjid Quba was one of the exciting features. Offering nafil and prayers over there is equivalent to performing one umrah. How rewarding is that!

After city tour, we carried on with rest of the day, spending as much time at Masjid-Nabwi, offering each prayer at the mosque. The mosque is so peaceful. Just being there was powerfully meditating.

The following day, we left madina feeling content and now looked forward to reaching mecca. Around noon, we were ready to leave for mecca. We had our ihrams on, all set to start our journey, calling out our labbaik all the way through. It generally takes a couple of hours to reach mecca from medina. But this was a very long day for us. It took 10 hours to reach on a bus trip. Although, it was a private group bus, but that was about the time it typically took during hajj days. Tiring to say the least, it seemed like a never-ending road trip with our anxieties building higher. The stop overs on the way for prayers and snacks were a breather. What I don’t forget from this bus trip is the cup of tea we had at one of the small tuc shops on the way. The best thing about mecca and medina is, anything you think of, comes right there for you. No kidding! We were all craving a cup of tea, hoping we would find our kind of desi chai somewhere around the deserted highway. And There it was! A small shop that prepared fresh tea for all of us! I suppose we were in the moment, but hands down it was the best chai we ever had! I can’t ever forget that moment and that chai! Wallah, that cup of tea was god send. 😊

Long long day as it was, we reached mecca close to midnight. Our lodging was at azizia, where we headed straight after. First thought was to rest it out and stall the obligatory umrah for the next morning when we felt a little more relaxed. But that place has magical energy to it. A bit of fresh air was enough to gather ourselves for the next best thing. Without further ado, we left for haram to perform our first umrah of the trip. The feeling of walking into masjid- Haram and that first look at Kaaba is a moment that can only be felt. No matter how well I narrate the experience in words, I can never do complete justice. It is an indescribable feeling. Still as fresh in my mind as it was that day. Trembling steps, heartbeat faster, teary eyed, completely mesmerized! Despite thousands of people around, the instant was standstill. It was surreal; living a dream standing in front of Kaaba, tears trickling down only to sink in that feeling forever. Being grateful to our creator for bringing us there in good health, standing humbled in front of His home. That esteemed place of worship, only to submit to Allah.  

Alhumdullilah, a smooth first umrah it was!

Getting closer to 8th zilhajj. We set out for Mina camps in our ihram, with our small backpack keeping it as light as possible. Mina was not very far from our accommodation in Azizia. The walk up to Mina through the tunnel, from our hotel-apartment was about 45 minutes. It was slightly uphill, that demanded physical agility. On a lighter note, engaging conversations with a fellow mate�� certainly made the walks less mundane.

I had imagined a completely different picture of mina camps, something shabby like Bedouin camps :D Thankfully, that was only my imagination. These camps were fairly decent with individual mattresses given to each pilgrim.                    Shared Camp-stay in Mina had its own thrill.  It feels like an enormous, lively village community coming together. The likelihood of running into friends and relatives from other places is also high, that adds on to a fun stay. Although we were free to move around during the day, nights we had to stay in at the mina. Night-ins were a good bonding with girls from the group. The range of talks were from heart to heart to practicalities of life in general, Sharing personal experiences or simply going crazy laughing over meaningless things. That was the norm each night before we went to sleep. 5 mina days were a pleasant stay and a lovely experience altogether. We developed a good understanding with each other. It was important to enjoy the company of those traveling with us and feel comfortable, as we spent most of the time moving together. Not only we made new friends who were likeminded but also enjoyed a memorable journey with them.

Every day was a new day for us, with new energy and more love for the holy place. 9th zilhajj early morning after fajar, we headed to our designated bus. The vibes and the feel were downright spiritual. Chanting our talbiyah (labaik) together, we huddled for Arafat. I imagined Arafat to be an isolated mountain place, perhaps because of stories heard from elderly who performed hajj many years ago. :D Pleasantly, it was a colossal camped area. These camps were shared by other group hajis as well.

We were told to rest out until before noontime to get ourselves in form. Around noon, time for Arafat dua started ticking. This was the time we had to maximize. It was a time to be seized and ask Allah for forgiveness, His mercy and whatever duas we needed to make. As this is the day when every dua comes true. We prayed and prayed and submitted ourselves to Allah like no tomorrow. I had a list of duas prepared for myself and also had the one that my friends/relatives asked for themselves. Having dua’s at hand made it easier for ready recall. Regardless, so many heartfelt dua’s kept coming to my mind,  and I revered in that moment and place in Arafat. The time was very precious, not a minute was to be wasted. From dhur until maghrib is the time for duas. Prayed with all my heart and prayed that Allah accepts our hajj in the highest degree.

I do want to add here; the obligation of hajj itself is reaching Arafat. Upon entering Arafat, we are supposed to stay there until sunset. The dua and ibadat time is a bonus that Allah gifts us with it. The gratuity of the whole hajj experience is rich eeman and a cleansed soul. We are clean slate and as pure as a newborn child. Subhanallah!

Having maximized our arafat time to the fullest until maghrib. We then set out for a stay over at muzdalfa. There’s great significance of duas made in muzdalfa too. It is another bonus time from Allah. Such is the generosity of our lord. Indeed He’s the most Raheem of all.

Followed on to a night in muzdalfa, which is a massive sandy open area. We collected small stone pellets for rami from here for all 3 days. There’s a limitation to the size so these must be picked carefully. We practically spent the night by the road side with noise, pollution and broad beaming flood lights over us. The idea was to sleep a few hours, and all those circumstances certainly made it difficult to sleep. One way or another most people do manage to catch a few winks. I remember sleeping like a baby (very grateful to Allah for that :)). Despite the hot humid sticky air and dusty whiffs of engine smoke around us, we slept on a flimsy sheet on a bare sandy ground. It is a true reminder that we are all equal in the eyes of Allah. There is no rich or poor on that day. Everyone is at the same level as a meager supplicant in front of Allah. All in the same appearance, all equally vulnerable seeking Allah’s mercy and forgiveness. In reality - we were created from clay, sent on earth, and ultimately be resting deep into the very same earth!!

After offering fajar at muzdalfa; the next set of obligatory rituals for 10th zilhaj were Rami, qurbani, and Tawaf ziarat. Rami was supposed to be done for 3 consecutive days at jamarat. There’s much significance of doing 4th day additional rami. It’s not a requisite but favored. Hence, we decided to stay back in Mina for one more night. Afterall earning more and more hasanat is what we are there for. Considerable number of people leave Mina after the 3rd day of rami. The place looks widely empty and the jamarat is accessed easily too.

Last few days of our journey were fast approaching. By that time, our fatigue was escalating by the minute. Friday is always overly packed at haram. For us, it was a very long, hot and draining last jumma at haram. After that, my husband and I both came down with fever and bad flu that we were resisting for these many days. It is very normal for pilgrims to fall sick at some point during their journey. They say, it’s a takeaway of hajj. Nonetheless, that fever got to us badly. It was accumulated fatigue and tiredness and multitude of viruses that our body was resisting up until. It took us two days to recover and pick up on our energy for the last 1.5 day that we were left with. Thankfully, we gathered enough strength to make a trip to haram and do our final tawaf wida. It was a very emotional time. We spent several hours as this would be the last day before we bade farewell. The longing was very strong to stay there and not leave at all. Regrettably, we had to! But praying continually to visit again and again! Filled with whirlwind of emotions, happy tears, blessed feelings and contentment of heart; we made duas in front of Kaaba for one last time.

In my personal view, hajj is about establishing a firm bond with Allah. The supplications made between Allah and oneself, bring us in closest contact with Him. Tolerance and humility are tokens that we take forward, to evolve into better individuals.

Hajj is a time where so much is happening with scores of people at the same time. Each tries the best to their abilities. But there are occasions that put limitations; such as time constraint or logistic confines, even having fallen sick  or something unavoidable. The thought occasionally did lurk on me; perhaps I went easy on my efforts or that I could have possibly spent extra time at haram. Let that not dishearten us!  It is a struggle to even make way into the mosque. Pilgrims stepping over each other and doing tawaf packed in between so many. Unknowingly, we even make mistakes along the way.  In hindsight, what really matters is submission to Allah, no matter where we are. God is present everywhere and he knows the good intent that we hold. We are there for one purpose, that he is aware of and clearly He sees the sincerity of our efforts. The fact that we are in Allah’s house should give us solace that He is happy to host us there . I had to remind myself too, what I did was best in my capacity. Much to my heart’s content, Allah is our best judge. That said, I repeatedly pray to Allah with all my heart that He accepts our hajj in the highest possible grade. The perks of hajj are absolute forgiveness and being given a chance by Allah, of a fresh new start. To express our gratefulness in response, we must also adopt a forgiving stance and a kinder approach towards people. As individuals, our greatest responsibility after huqooq Allah, is huqooq ul ebad (duties towards mankind). The holy experience by far changed my outlook to life at so many levels, in a much-improved way.  

Ending on a happy note, the whole experience was fulfilling and rewarding from the word go. Back home, the kids were well taken care of, by the family in our absence. Happy kids, happy parents. ( I feel blessed). It was heartwarming to come home to our loving family, cheerful faces of my children, tons of mubarakbads (read “gifts/ envelopes” 😉) and family & friends eagerly hosting us, to honor our new haji status. 😊

-Najia Al