Hajj

Hajj is performed during the last month (Zil Hajja) of the Islamic calendar. The schedule is as under or this is how Hajj is performed in different stages: All these rituals teach unconditional obedience to Allah Almighty. They teach equality, simplicity, sacrifice, tolerance and charity etc. It was renewed by the last Prophet of Islam Hazrat Muhammad (SAW). Only the Muslim Ummah performs Hajj which is obligatory on each Muslim

Day - 1. 8th of Zilhajja: (Day of Tarwiya) Taking bath, putting on Ahraam (two sheets of untailored cloth), going to Haram i Pak, making intention of performing Hajj, offering two Nawafil and reaching the field of Mina (preferably) before Zuhar Prayer and staying there.

Day - 2. 9th. (Day of Arfaa) Offering Fajr Prayer and reaching the field of Arafaat (the main ritual of Hajj). Offering Zuhar and Asar prayers (Qasar) behind the Imam in Masjid - Namra - if possible. Staying there till sunset, offering Prayers and parying to Almighty Allah Karim. Leaving the field of Arafaat just at sunset without offering Evening Prayer. Coming to Muzdalfa at night offering Maghrib and Isha Prayers together. Staying there at night. Collecting 49 small pebbles for stoning the Jamraats.

Day - 3. 10th (Eid day) Offering Fajar Prayer and leaving Muzdalfa at sunrise. Stoning the Big Jamrah (Shaitan), offering animal sacrifice, coming to Haram i - Pak, going around the Ka'abah, performing Sayee (Walking/running betwen Safa and Marwa hills), shaving off head (for men- women cut two or three inches of their hair as a token) and putting off Ihram. Going back to Mina and staying there.

Day - 4. 11th. Stoning the three Jamraat and staying at Mina.

Day- 5. 12th Zila Hajja. Stoning the three Jaraat (Shaitans-Devils) and coming back to Makka Mukarma before sunset. That is the end of Hajj.

Day= 6: 13th Zihajja. If some one intentionally or by chance does not leave Mina before sunset of Day-5, he will stay there for the night and on the 6th day he will stone the three Jamraats and return to Makka Mukammah. This ends Hajj the Fifth Pillar of Islam.

Hajj is a tradition established by Hazrat Abraham (Ibraheem in Arabic) as per command of Almighty Allah Karim. Hajj is performed during the last month of the Islamic calendar. The schedule is as under, this is how Hajj is performed in different stages: All these rituals teach unconditional obedience to Allah Almighty. They teach equality, simplicity, sacrifice, tolerance and charity etc.

Day - 1. 8th of Zilhajja: Taking bath, putting on Ahraam (two sheets of untailored cloth), going to Haram i Pak, making intention of performing Hajj, offering two Nawafil and reaching the field of Mina (preferably) before Zuhar Prayer and staying there.

Day - 2. 9th. Offering Fajr Prayer and reaching the field of Arafaat (the main ritual of Hajj). Offering Zuhar and Asar prayers (Qasar) behind the Imam in Masjid - Namra - if possible. Staying there till sunset, offering Prayers and parying to Almighty Allah Karim. Leaving the field of Arafaat just at sunset without offering Evening Prayer. Coming to Muzdalfa at night offering Maghrib and Isha Prayers together. Staying there at night. Collecting 49 small pebbles for stoning the Jamraats.

Day - 3. 10th (Eid day) Offering Fajar Prayer and leaving Muzdalfa at sunrise. Stoning the Big Jamrah (Shaitan), offering animal sacrifice, coming to Haram i - Pak, going around the Ka'abah, performing Sayee (Walking/running betwen Safa and Marwa hills), shaving off head (for men- women cut two or three inches of their hair as a token) and putting off Ihram. Going back to Mina and staying there.

Day - 4. 11th. Stoning the three Jamraat and staying at Mina.

Day- 5. 12th Zila Hajja. Stoning the three Jaraat (Shaitans-Devils) and coming back to Makka Mukarma before sunset. That is the end of Hajj.

Day= 6: 13th Zihajja. If some one itentionally or by chance does not leave Mina before sunset of Day-5, he will stay there for the night and on the 6th day he will stone the three Jamraats and return to Makka Mukammah. This ends Hajj

They wear their normal licit clothing, that they wear in their normal daily lives, that:

• covers all body; except face and hands;
• is not tight and figuring physical body
• is not transparent and showing what is underneath.

Maqam Ibrahim

Station of Ibrahim (Maqam Ibrahim)

In order to complete the upper part of the walls of the Kaaba, Ibrahim stood upon a large stone block which he moved along when each section was completed. When the Kaaba was finished, the large stone block was left outside the Kaaba, close to the eastern wall of the sanctuary. It became known as the Maqam Ibrahim (the station of Ibrahim). Today, the Maqam Ibrahim, with the stone within, is located in front of the door of the Kaaba. The boulder is about 2 x 3 feet. Where it stands today is the place where Ibrahim offered up his prayers.

Ref: http://www.hajinformation.com/main/j1094.htm

This is the standing place of Prophet lbrahim (peace be on him) when he used to stand here while building the Ka'ba with his son Prophet Isma'il (peace be on him).

Ref: http://www.freewebs.com/arabiyyah/

The Station of Abraham is a glass and metal enclosure within the pilgrimage circuits of the Kaaba. According to Muslim tradition:

"God made the stone under Abraham's feet into something like clay so that his foot sunk into it. That was a miracle. It was transmitted on the authority of Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (may peace be upon him) that he said: Three stones were sent down from the Garden: the Station of Abraham, the rock of the children of Israel, and the Black Stone, which God entrusted Abraham with as a white stone. It was whiter than paper, but became black from the sins of the children of Adam."

Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Station_of_Abraham

Mount Arafat or Mount Arafah (Arabic: جبل عرفات‎; transliterated Jabal 'Arafāt) is a granite hill east of Mecca. It is also known as the Mount of Mercy (Jabal ar-Rahmah). The hill is the place where the Islamic prophet Muhammad stood and delivered the Farewell Sermon to the Muslims who had accompanied him for the Hajj towards the end of his life. It reaches about 70 m in height.

According to Islamic tradition, it was on Mount Arafah that Adam and Eve, separated for 200 years following their expulsion from the Garden of Eden, met and recognized each other and were reunited[citation needed]. Here too they were forgiven by Allah for their transgression after offering their repentance. A main reason of the ritual of pilgrimage is the renewal of that Prayer of Repentance every year standing on the hill of mercy, the climax of Hajj. The pilgrims will spend the whole day on Arafah supplicating to Allah to forgive their sins and praying for personal strength in the future.

Arafah rituals end at sunset and pilgrims then move to Muzdalifah for shortened Maghrib Prayer and `Isha' prayers and for a short rest.

The level area surrounding the hill is called the Plain of Arafat. The term Mount Arafat is sometimes applied to this entire area. It is an important place in Islam because during the Hajj, pilgrims spend the afternoon there on the ninth day of Dhul Hijjah (ذو الحجة). Failure to be present in the plain of Arafat on the required day invalidates the pilgrimage. Many pilgrims stay here all night in vigil.[1]

The hill is referenced in James Joyce's novel Finnegans Wake.[2]

Since late 2010, this place is served by Mecca Metro. On A Normal Hajj the Mount would be around thirteen miles to walk and would be the 3rd day of events after the Pilgrims have drank from the well of Zam Zam