Hajj

The hajj is one of the largest annual religious gatherings in the world today. Known also as the fifth “pillar” (rukn) of Islam, it is a pilgrimage that all Muslims are required to undertake—to travel to the holy city of Mecca (Makkah) in western Saudi Arabia (a region known as the Hijaz) at least once in their lifetime if they are able to do so. The journey can be accomplished only between the 8th and 13th days of Dhu al-Hijja, the 12th month of the Muslim lunar calendar. During this time, all the pilgrims, known as hajjis (or ḥujaj), must purify themselves, abstain from certain ordinary bodily practices, and don special pilgrimage garments (iḥrām). Then they perform a sequence of ritual actions at several stations between the Sacred Mosque (al-Masjid al-Haram) in Mecca and the plain of Arafat, about 13 miles (1 mile = 1.609344 kilometers) east of the Sacred Mosque. These rituals include seven circumam-bulations around the Kaabah (a cubic building in the central court of the Sacred Mosque), seven “runnings” between the hills of Safa and Marwa next to the Sacred Mosque, an encampment at Mina (between Mecca and Arafat), midday assemblage and prayer at Arafat on the 8th day of Dhu al-Hijja, an encampment that night at Muzdalifa (near Arafat), a return to Mina to throw stones at three pillars representing the devil and to perform animal sacrifices, and farewell circumam-bulations at the Kaa'bah. The sacrifice is celebrated worldwide by Muslims as the Great Feast

or the Feast of Sacrifice ('īd alaḍḥā). A lesser pilgrimage known as the ‘umra occurs throughout the year; it includes only the rites of iḥrām, circumambulation of the Kaabah, and the runnings between Safa and Marwa. This does not, however, satisfy the hajj requirement. Both pilgrimages, the hajj and the ‘umra, draw millions of Muslims from around the world but are forbidden to non-Muslims, who are permanently banned from entering Mecca. Pilgrims customarily also include a visit to Muhammad's mosque in Medina, the second most holy city in Islam, on their way to or from Mecca. This is a supererogatory act of devotion and is not required.

The hajj requirement and the spatiotemporal ritual multiplex it entails are based on the Qur'an and Sunna. Muhammad's farewell pilgrimage of 632 serves as the paradigm for all Muslims to emulate, but Islamic tradition also invokes other exemplary figures known from Islamic sacred history: Adam, Ibrahim (Abraham), and Ibrahim's wife and son, Hagar and Ismail (Ishmael), respectively. The narratives about the involvement of such figures clearly suggest that the hajj was understood as a universal duty for humankind at an early stage in Islam's history, not just an obligation restricted to Arabs living in and around [Page 497]Mecca. Specific details and issues pertaining to the performance of the hajj were taken up for discussion by the ulema (Muslim scholars and jurists), starting in the late seventh century, leading to the eventual composition of instructional manuals and handbooks for pilgrims going to Mecca. Today, hajj manuals and instructions are available in multiple languages around the world via the print media, videos, CDs, and the Internet. Pilgrims must nevertheless rely on an array of guides and government agencies to complete the requirement successfully. In addition to fulfilling the hajj as a divinely sanctioned religious duty (fard.), many Muslims believe that it is a penitential act, wherein sins are forgiven, as well as an expression of the values of equality and unity. Also, it is often stated that the gathering of pilgrims at Arafat in their simple white garments is a preview for the final Resurrection and Day of Judgment.

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