David Darby

Hajj – A first-person account of the journey

On November 5^th, 2011 the Los Angeles Times newspaper posted an article of a first-person account of a pilgrimage to Mecca, the Hajj. The experience described by the female according to her was breathtaking and the most heartfelt experience she has ever had. She also elaborates on the significant difference between the prayers at the Kaaba and during the Hajj. Muslims pray five times a day while facing the Kaaba, which is the holiest site in Islam. The prayer rituals consist of circuits of prayer which are called the umrah.

The Hajj prayer is a completely different prayer and what she expressed was that “I simply prayed from the heart. It was a liberating experience for me, to not be mandated to say such and such words at such and such time” (like for the five daily prayers). She comments on the feelings she experienced: “Hajj offered an opportunity for freestyle praying, something I had never done before at such length, or with such joy. I literally counted all the blessings in my life and found myself tearing with happiness, and gratefulness, over and over again”. The article goes into more specifics of what exactly goes on during the pilgrimage, what prayers are carried out, the most meaningful parts to her, and the locations of where the entire group stops to commence these prayer rituals.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-hajj-pilgrim-muslim-mecca-20111106,0,6854893.htmlstory

 

The day spent in prayer in the desert plain is considered the crux of the hajj pilgrimage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSPWGwFyd1s (Raw video – Pilgrimage to Mecca)

My personal assessment of this article is that hearing a first-person account of the actual pilgrimage really gives you a personal understanding into what he/she experiences as they go through every stage of the journey; this gives insight into the emotions felt during the journey and even the spiritual enlightenment acquired by those individuals.

But, as sacred and enlightening as the journey must be, how can one really remain in such a purified state (ihram) from the beginning of the Hajj to the very end? Aren’t there limits to the extent one would go to make such a pilgrimage? Having said that, because of the modern times we now live in, it appears that the success rate of those who actually carry out the entire Hajj these days is higher than it used to be.    


Also see: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/11/04/huge-hajj-gathering-comes-against-backdrop-of-arab-spring/?hpt=wo_c2