THE MESSAGE AND MEANING OF HAJJ

The tawaf is symbolic of making all of one’s efforts constrained to a single focus. This is akin to our solar system, where all the planets revolve around a single sun, the axis around which they whirl. In the same way, Hajj teaches us to lead God-centric lives, to make God the focus of every aspect of our lives and to spend our lives according to His will. This is the same with all the other rituals of Hajj. Thus, in different ways, all rituals of Hajj have the same symbolic significance of a God-conscious life. Believers all over the world turn towards the Kabah every day, offering their five daily prayers. Ordinarily, this is just a notion in the minds of people, but when they gather during Hajj, it becomes an astounding reality. When believers from all over the world pray together facing the Kabah, they experience an amazing sense of unity when they realize that they are facing the same Kabah of the believers of the whole world. Tawaf, i.e., the orderly circumambulation of the Kabah provides the pilgrims another invaluable lesson—of working together, of doing things together and in harmony. Here, differences between rulers and subjects are wiped off completely, as are ethnic differences. It is as if every single person has just one status: as a servant of the one God. At this time, they have no other status but this. After the tawaf, the pilgrim runs seven times between the hillocks of Safa and Marwah. This too, is a symbolic declaration—an expression of the pilgrim’s determination to devote all of himself to God’s path. This running between the two hillocks is not simply a mere physical act. In the form of repetition of a historical act, it stands for the pilgrim’s willingness to spend his whole life running in God’s path. It is symbolic of making all activities throughout one’s life to be contained within certain boundaries. If our activities are not bound or regulated in this manner, it would lead to chaos. Such regulation is necessary for a wellordered life. One of the most important acts of worship during Hajj is the heading to and staying in the plains of Arafat. This presents a truly astonishing sight. Vast numbers of people, from across the world, assemble here, wearing the same simple clothes and uttering the same words, ‘Here I am at Thy service O Lord, here I am.’ It is a worldly rehearsal of the Day of Judgement, when all people will be brought before God. It is a reminder of the great truth that one day we will all have to stand before God, accountable for all our actions. If one realizes this significance of the assembly at Arafat, one’s life can be totally transformed. It is as if all the differences among human