by Sadaf Farooqi

Created on: November 17, 2009   Last Updated: November 21, 2009

Witnessing some of my kith and kin prepare for, and embark on Hajj this year, has brought back some very fond memories from the first and only Hajj I performed almost four years ago.

Hajj is indeed an incredible experience. It is as unpredictable as it is tasking, taking its toll on one's physical and emotional faculties, yet teaching valuable lessons. There were times I was really shocked, especially in situations that I could not have imagined becoming a part of, before starting my sacred Hajj journey to please Allah.

No number of Hajj preparatory lectures and literature-reading (albeit a necessary part of preparation for the journey, no one's doubting that) can prepare one for these tense or tasking situations.

Ironically, they end up forming the very core of this journey, leaving you with memories that stay on over the years. That is why, it is extremely important to mind one's personal habits, behavior, character, social etiquette and actions during Hajj, while interacting with fellow Muslims.

1. Happily hand-washing the clothes of a couple of roommates whilst staying in Madinah or Azizia (a residential district in Makkah that is close to Mina, where pilgrims are lodged in houses), if you're going to wash some of your own.

2. Massaging the legs and feet of a roommate in Azizia, who is severaly exhausted after his or her night-long worship and tawaaf in the Grand Mosque (Al-Masjid Al-Haram).

3. Not complaining or making a big deal about consistently losing your shoes, or having a painful cough, throughout the Hajj journey.

4. Being shoved aside quite roughly with a piece of luggage on arriving in your tent at Mina, as a sister pushes you aside to run for the best position in the tent - the one receving the best blast of air from the air conditioner louvres - and continuing to meet and greet her as if nothing happened.

5. Having a sister or brother (especially one who is older in age) ask you to fetch a second cup of tea for them, just as you are about to take your own first sip - even though they have seen you serve the whole tent-load of pilgrims their tea for the last half hour.

6. Doing nothing to change your place in the Mina tent, during the three-day stay, despite having two people, who snore loudly throughout the night, flanking you on either side.

7. Refusing to partake in the gossip that takes place in the shared accommodation in Makkah, Mina and Madinah, at the risk of being labeled rude.

8. Performing ablutions with 5 other people at the same

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>