THE MESSAGE AND MEANING OF HAJJ

beings have suddenly vanished, and that, setting aside all their conflicts, they have surrendered themselves to the one God. It is as if they have all become one, just as their God is one. Despite their differences of language, colour, status, and gender, they have become identical and one. Different nationalities, it appears, have all turned into one single nation or community. Hajj is a glorious and unparalleled expression of human unity and collectiveness. One cannot find anything similar elsewhere in the world. Another part of the rituals of Hajj is the collection of pebbles for stoning of the Jamarat. It symbolizes preparation for warding off the evil whispers of the devil. By stoning the Jamarat, the pilgrim refreshes his determination to repel evil and cause the devil to flee from him. He announces his enmity against, and opposition to, the devil. If one converts this symbolic act into actual practice, one can truly expel all evil and negativity from oneself. Following this, the pilgrim sacrifices an animal in God’s path. In the Quran, it is included in the divine symbols. Sacrificing an animal denotes sacrificing one’s own self. By sacrificing an animal, the pilgrim symbolizes his willingness to sacrifice everything in God’s path, including even his own life if need be. He expresses, thereby, his commitment to offer his everything for God’s sake. Although the rituals of Hajj are completed in Makkah, many pilgrims go to Madinah after finishing their Hajj. The ancient name for Madinah is Yathrib. Towards the end of his life, the Prophet of Islam made it his centre, and that is why it came to be known as Madinat-un-Nabi or ‘The City of the Prophet’. Madinah is a short form of this term. In Madinah is a mosque built by the Prophet Muhammad, where his grave is also located. Here also one finds the footprints of his prophetic life. When pilgrims arrive in Madinah, they are reminded once again of the collective unity of humankind despite its diversity. The mosque of the Prophet reminds them that their one true guide is the same Prophet. They return from here with the feeling that despite their geographical or national differences, they must follow the same path, the one shown by the Prophet. This is another powerful symbol of their unity. They return from Madinah inspired by the understanding that no matter what their differences—of nation, ethnicity and so on—they must all walk on the path of their same Prophet, that they must take as their guide the same blessed figure, and that their God is the One God. o