Arafah and the First Ten Days of Dhul-Hijjah

In the Holy Qur’an, Allah the Exalted says (interpretation of the meaning)

{By the dawn. By the ten nights} [Al-Fajr 89:1-2]. Many scholars have said
that this refers to the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, and the fact that
Allah swears by them means that they are indeed significant and worth the attention of every Muslim.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) says, “There are no days in which good deeds are more beloved to Allah than these days.” The Prophet was asked, “Not even jihad for the cause of Allah?” He replied: “Not even jihad for the
cause of Allah, except for a man who goes out (for jihad) with his money and
his own self then does not return with any of that.” [Bukhari]

Upon us now are the best ten days of the year

Upon us now are the best ten days of the year. There are no other days more rewarded than these ten. They are the first ten days of the Islamic month Dhul-Hijjah. Unfortunately many of us do not know and let them fly by ...

If there was some great sale advertising ridiculously low prices you will find many of us there waiting on long lines just to get such great deals. Well we should all hurry to catch this great sale that Allah is advertising. “It’s all come all served!”

Now - How To Get That Heart In Shape For Hajj?

Firstly: Attend lectures and workshops dealing with Hajj Hajj is one of the pillars that Islam is built on. When someone intends to perform this rite it a must upon them that they learn it well. Rasul Allah – sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam – said, “Seeking knowledge is obligatory on every Muslim.” Imam Al-Bukhari writes in his Saheeh, ‘Chapter: knowledge comes before statements and actions.’ He then quoted the verse of Allah: [So Know, that there is no deity except Allah and ask forgiveness for your sin.] - Surah Muhammad, 47/19

Secondly: Establish Salah and Perform Qiyaam ul-Layl

Getting The Heart In Shape

Many years ago, as the Hujjaj swept through the valley of Muzdalifah, a man remarked out loud, “My look at the number of Hujjaj!” The wise man replied, “Nay, the passengers are many, but the Hujjaj are few.” I once heard the story of a man who was blessed with the opportunity to join the caravan for Hajj regularly. However, his shortcoming was that he could never control his anger during the days of Hajj, and would snap cursing others. Well, one person had an idea for him. His inspiration: Instead of cursing Muslims during Hajj, write all your bad comments on a piece of paper - fold it - and then when you get mad at someone, just hand him the paper. On the top of the tiny envelope write, ‘Do not open until after Hajj’. The man agreed. As incident after incident assailed him, the man would simply smile, then frown and hand out the tiny envelopes to the provoking party. Everything was going smoothly until the day when he was walking to the Jamarat and someone stomped his toes. He lost all control. Teeth gritting, he snarled and took out his briefcase of envelopes and dumped it on that poor guys head.

Hajj – The Journey Of Hearts - The Provider

There is debate over whether someone who performs Hajj should be called a Hajji. It is not something found in the Sunnah; rather it has an interesting backround in our cultural history. In antique days, when someone decided to perform the journey for Hajj, it was synonymous with bidding farewell to life on earth. This was due to the treacherous obstacles of traveling in the desert - trials such as sickness, starvation, and the struggles of the separate situations. An entire village might gather to bid those people farewell. When someone would go through such a remarkable journey and return alive, they would dedicate their lives to the worship and obedience of Allah. Gone was the cheating, or the lying, or the missed Salah. He was now a Hajji. Today, with the Jumbo jets and ocean liners and Mercedes busses, the facilitation of performing Hajj has taken away the luster of the title Hajji.

The Destination

In the not-so-far-away days of old, whenever a journey was to be undertaken proper provisions had to be prepared. The deserts were long, hot, and harsh. Unmerciful. There were no gas stations to fill up with chips and refreshments, or rest stops to slurp water from a fountain. In fact, there was not a human in sight for miles upon miles of barren sand dunes. Losing the way meant losing your life. Thus, you had to have the provision with you before you made the journey. Enough food, enough water, enough everything to carry you to your destination. From here, in the verses dealing of Hajj, when everyone shall have to make some sort of journey to reach the Ka’bah, Allah tuned the attention of His slaves to another journey, a journey every soul is traveling, whether they know it or care to just remain heedless. Allah turned their attention to the journey to the Hereafter, to Paradise or Hell. [And take sustenance (with you) for the journey; verily the best sustenance is Taqwa (piety and righteousness).] – Al Baqarah 2:197

The Ultimate Reward

Rasul Allah – sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam - said, “And there is no reward for an accepted Hajj … except Jannah!” What is the first verse that you read in Surah Al-Hajj? It does not speak of Arafah, nor does it pronounce the pillars of Nahr day. It simply says ... [O Mankind! Fear your Lord, indeed the eruption of the (final) Hour is a horrific event. On that day that you shall see it, every nursing mother will be engrossed away from that (child) she was nursing, and every pregnant woman will abort her pregnancy, and you will see the people (appearing) intoxicated, while they are not intoxicated; rather it is the punishment of Allah, severe.]

Hajj - The Journey of Hearts

Written by : Muhammad AlShareef

Arafah – 10 Years After Hijrah
The man was standing with Rasul Allah – sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam – when he was thrown from his camel. The camel stomped and the man’s neck was snapped. Dead ..........