“Unforgettable Forty Days “
By Faiq Shahzad, 4th Jul 2012 | Follow this author
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Posted in WikinutTravelAsiaSaudi ArabiaRiyadh & Around
My Spiritual Journey of Muslim Festival Hajj 2008. After starting Zikr & Meditation in 2007 with my Shaikh Hazrat Muhammad Akram Awan MZA , I visited Hajj 2008.
In this page i shared some of my feelings.
Hajj 2008
“O’ Allah SWT! Please accept all my prayers whenever I say them”, “O’ Allah SWT! Please save my soul from damnation & let the departure of my soul from this world smooth & easier”, “O’Allah SWT! all those prayers said on this occasion by our Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad PBUH, his companions and all other Prophets for their nation , relatives , family, co workers & friends , please accept them for me” , I prayed and prayed …………. I was in front of Holy Kaaba for the first time in my life. I was praying with my eyes full of tears and with true heart for every one without blinking my eyes.
At last I was in MAKKAH to attend the Hajj 2008.I was here after overcoming all worldly odds and hardships. When I entered sacred city (MAKKAH) everything seemed to be glowing. All plants, stones and even the sky was looking brighter then the rest of the world. Imagine yourself stepping on the same land where Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) used to step and going through valleys and mountains wherein he used to receive the divine revelation.
Then my eyes fell on the huge crowd that was busy doing TAWAF around the Kaaba. Going near to Holy Kaaba seemed impossible. I thought I would go when my friends would not around and would pray with all my heart. I thought I would pray for my country for my family and for all those who had requested.
With "Bismillah, Allah-o-Akbar” I started performing the Istilam of the sacred stone (Hajre Aswad) counter clock wise. I started reciting prayers and supplications during Tawaf. I tried to pray in low tone that I might not disturb anyone.
Tears were rolling down on my cheeks and I was anxious to touch & kiss Holy Kaaba after having finished the TAWAF. I must not fulfil this wish by pushing someone or bringing harm to myself. It must be done
with full respect I said to my myself in my heart. During TAWAF I tried to keep my eye brows down as we usually o in pray so that they do not encounter any women. I tried not pushing any one especially weak or female during tawaf and ignored those who did. Ocean of pilgrims was doing tawaf around Kaaba and physically it was not possible to kiss Hajre aswad (stones of heaven) and Kaaba walls.
After Sai I performed Halq. All my thirst and hunger is over by drinking ZAMZAM. The Prophet once said: "The best water on the face of the earth is the water of Zamzam; it is a kind of food and a healing from sickness."
I was so desperate to reach Kaaba walls (at least), maqam-e-Ibrahim and kiss stones of aswad. Hajre Aswad and Makame Ibrahim are the two pearls from the pearls of Jannah. They came down from the sky with a divine light, and after being placed on the earth their light were extinguished. If Allah Ta'ala had not extinguished their light the two stones would have lit all that which is in between the sky and the earth. I thought I would not do this by the cost of pushing someone weaker or hurting myself or someone else so I waited for the right time to make my wishes come true.
Hajj days started and we were in Mina where we had to share tent with other people. We had to perform Zuhr, Asar, Maghreb, Eisha and Fajr prayers at Mina.
The next morning, on the ninth of Dhu al-Hijjah, we (pilgrims) left our tents at Mina for Mount Arafat, where we stood in ihram, near a hill from which Muhammad gave his last sermon. Arafat is considered the highlight of the Hajj. Pilgrims must spend the afternoon within a defined area on the plain of Arafat till sunset. No specific rituals or prayers are required during the stay at Arafat, although many pilgrims spend time praying, and thinking about the course of their lives. If a pilgrim does not spend the afternoon on Arafat, then their pilgrimage is considered invalid. That was the day for which I was there. I started praying from noon to evening. Whenever I stopped I started it again and again. I thought I must pray for every one and that’s what I did. I Prayed for every Muslim of the World. As soon as the sun went down, the pilgrims left Arafat for Muzdalifahh, an area between Arafat and Mina, where we gathered pebbles for the next day's ritual of stoning the Devil. We spend the night while sleeping on the ground at Muzdalifah before returning to Mina. It was then the 10th of the month, the day of Eid ul-Adha.
After stoning the devil (Rami) and giving sacrifice we performed Tawaf Ziarah and came back to Mina on the night of 10th Dhu al - Hijjah .Here again we had to stone the devil in the afternoon. On 12th Dhu al-Hijjah our Hajj completed and we came back to MAKKAH. During the Hajj different Question aroused in my mind e.g. “Can these 40-50 million Pilgrims can make any difference to Islamic world? And the answer straight away came from my heart Yes they can if they follow the teachings of Hazrat Muhammad PBUH and the Holy QURAN.”
Another thing that I noticed during my visit was that the Mountains around Kaaba have been vanished and there place has been taken by big buildings. Only few of them still remain there. Those mountains had witnessed FATAH MAKKAH and now they are gone. Major Islamic Heritage is turning into high rise buildings. I felt so SAD.
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: "Verily the one who recites the Qur'an beautifully, smoothly and precisely, he will be in the company of the noble and obedient angels. And as for the one who recites with difficulty, stammering or stumbling through its verses (because he doesn't know how to read it but is trying to), then he will have TWICE that reward." I was on top of Mount Hira where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used to go to pray, meditate and reflect upon life before his time of prophet hood. There were times when his wife, Umtul Momin Hazrat Khadijah RA used to accompany him. At the age of 40, it was here, in the cave of Hira, when he (PBUH) received the first revelations from God through the angel Hazrat Jibraeel. I prayed on top of mount Hira “O God! Please give knowledge & wisdom of Quran to our current and coming generations”, Amen. I thought this was the place where Arabs discover humanity, knowledge & science. I felt so much peace in my soul and felt PROUD.
Tomorrow 31st December we were going to Madina where we had to offer 40 prayers and were to personally pay Salam to Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his companion Hazarat Abu Bakar Siddique RA, Hazrat Umar RA.
I felt pain in my bosom because my heart wanted to cry a lot because I would be no more offering prayers in front of Kaaba. “May be I will never come again here and this could be my last visit”, I thought. I couldn’t control and started crying. I spent all night in front of Kaaba and prayed “O God! Bring peace to our country and bring me here twice every year along with my family, Amen.”
When we reached Madina it was 2:00 am. I wore new white cloths and went to offer Durood –O-Salam.
My soul was in peace now. I felt relax. Sadness aroused due to leaving Kaaba was forgotten. I was happy and cherishing the moments that I spent at Kaaba.
In Madina I could feel every fragrance in the air that I could think about. There was so much love around. I tried to spend as much as time in the original Old mosque built by Prophet Muhammad PBUH. I offered prayers in different corners of the old mosque.
I recited the Holy Quran sitting at the Roza Athar where I faced the feet of our Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH and his companions. I wanted to inhale as much air into my chest which is passing through Roza into my nostrils.
I pumped my lungs and tried to inhale as much as air I can.
"Assalaamu 'Alaieka Aieyu-han-Nabieyu wa Rahmatul Laahi wa Barakaatuhoo, Assalaamu 'Alaieka Yaa Rasoolal Laahi, Assalaamu 'Alaieka Yaa Shafee'al Muznebeen. Assalaamu 'Alaieka wa 'Alaa Aalika wa As-haabeka wa Ummatika Ajma'een".” Please accept Salam from my family members, relatives and friends and also my co workers”. These were my last words and after that we left for Jeddah Air Port.
The desire with which I visited this Holy Land has increased so much that I intend to visit this place again and again. On my way back Home somehow I felt that all my prayers have been fulfilled by Allah SWT Almighty.
Comments
4th Jul 2012 (#)
Great read!
Thanks for sharing!
A suggestion:
Write your articles in different sections with different headings, they'll be read more easily.
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5th Jul 2012 (#)
Thank you so much for sharing these beautiful moments and feelings with us. They are truly priceless and on more than one occasion I had tear filled eyes because I could feel the intensity of what you were relating. JazakAllah Khair
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