AFTER HAJ A Changed Personality

such a way of life. This is refl ected in the hadith report that we earlier quoted, in which the Prophet said that he who performs the Haj in a way that Muslims are safe from his tongue and his hands will have all his earlier sins forgiven. So, while performing Haj the pilgrim must be very careful not to hurt anyone with his tongue and his hands — by his words and deeds. In this way, his earlier sins can be forgiven. The Haj where all of a person’s sins are forgiven, is the Haj after which the haji returns with such a tongue and such hands. Avoiding Self-Importance During Haj, luxuries and indulgences are discouraged. Haj begins with the donning of the ihram — which is a very simple white dress. Every pilgrim must wear the ihram. It is, in a sense, a dress that denotes humility and simplicity. It is an announcement, in a way, through which God teaches His servants that all of them are equal. Outwardly or external things, on the basis of which people claim superiority or inferiority vis-à-vis others, are all hollow and false in the eyes of God. The Prophet said that he who performs Haj in such a way that others are safe from his tongue and his hands, will have all the sins that he has committed till then, forgiven. God sees everyone with the same eyes. It is like during Haj, when vast numbers of people, wearing the same sort of dress, appear to be identical to each other. It is as if the ihram worn in Haj is a practical expression of the Islamic principle of human equality. Those who truly want to become dutiful servants of God must remove every other ‘dress’ and, instead, don the same divine ‘dress’. The Prophet was asked who a haji is, and to this he replied, ‘Unkempt hair, dusty clothing.’ These words describe a true pilgrim. Unkempt hair and dusty clothing are symbolic of a man with purpose. When a person devotes himself with total seriousness to a certain cause, he will have no time for lavish grooming and beautifi cation. During Haj, voluntarily abstaining from such activities is an instruction in leading a purposeful life. This means that we should immerse ourselves so deeply in the Divine cause that we lose all concern with the temptations of the