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Exclusively from adabeo.com

Exclusively from adabeo.com

Shaykh Yaser Birjas urges us to make the best of these 10 Blessed Days in his Friday Khutbah at the Irving Masjid.

At the Maqam e Ibrāhīm:

I held on to the golden bars trying to keep my balance, with my nose pressed against the blurry glass screen smeared with many a finger mark. I bolstered up my wits and finally decided to look: footprints in the sands of time, etched into the sacred earth forever by Divine Decree- blessed, immortalized. Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) had stood up and stood out. His standing was an act of worship and intense adoration, an act of courage, resistance, strength, integrity, dignity and true heroism. He laid the foundations of this modest little structure that stands in the heart of Makkah like an immense magnet drawing to itself millions who strive to stand in its shade. In its humble construction, shorn of all grandeur and ostentation, it inspires an inexplicable awe and reverence; giving direction and focus, unifying, holding together, reminding. Ibrāhīm's was a labor of love. The builders had prayed, “Our Lord! Accept this from us! Indeed You are the Hearing, the Knowing. Our Lord! Make us Muslims [in submission] to You and from our descendants a Muslim nation [in submission] to You.” (2:128)

Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) had questioned, wondered, reflected. He had thirsted for the Truth and sought the Light that rends all shrouding darkness. He had refused ordinariness, refused to follow the crowd- stood up and stood out, facing the winds alone. He had Loved-truly, settling for nothing lesser than the perfection, wholeness, sublimity of Al-Ḥaqq (The Truth). In the darkness of the night he beheld the shining star, and in his very human search for the Object of the deepest Love the human heart is capable of, he said, “'This is my Lord.' But when it set, he said, 'I do not love those who fade away.'”(6:77) He had loved passionately through hardship, suffering and trial, and attained the Pleasure of Allāh, so that the place of his standing- this stone I beheld through the blurry screen- became sacred, hallowed ground; the endeavor of his hands and limbs became a ritual of worship observed by billions here forevermore.

Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) had stood alone to confront and expose falsehood that his innate fiṭrah had rejected, all the while 'seeking the Face of His Lord.' He was sensitive and honest to the Divine Essence breathed into the heart of man, which testifies to Monotheism. Today, as I look around at this immense unending crowd vying to stand where he stood, seeking to be honored by walking the path he walked, I am educated in the meaning of leadership.

While on the theme of leadership, there cannot be a legacy more venerable, more awe-inspiring, powerful and enduring. Some wise old man said something to the effect that when you stand up for the truth against the odds, the whole universe conspires in your favor, because that truth you strive to establish is written in the heart of the earth; it is destiny.

The man whose footprint I beheld is acknowledged as the spiritual progenitor in all monotheistic traditions. Islam claims a direct link with Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) not through race or geography but primarily on account of theology, as its simple Monotheism  of 'La ilaha ilallah' (no god but Allāh) is the 'Way of your father Abraham' (22:78).

Catching a Glimpse of Jabal Nūr in the distance…

Years passed and the heart and mind of man was clouded again by ignorance while Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām)'s legacy existed only as dusty remnants and soulless rituals. From the shadows of jāhiliyyah (Ignorance) emerged again a soul restive in search of the Whole Truth, refusing these untruths and half truths, attentive to the inner voice that had impelled Ibrāhīm's struggle. It was convinced that the Truth lay waiting to be discovered. Not far from the Ka'bah stands Jabal Nūr, the Mountain of Light… Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) ascended its steep, stony incline to isolate himself from a society that had lost its discrimination of right and wrong, in order to contemplate the truth, seek out answers and pray to the One God of Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām). Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), the devoted follower of Ibrāhīm's ('alayhi'l-salām) honest creed was chosen to lead, and Jabal Nūr irradiated the world with God's final revelation.

From Makkah to Madīnah

I am on the way from Makkah- the native city of Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)- to Madīnah where he had sought refuge. While reclining on the cushioned seat of an air-conditioned bus, I gaze outside to see rugged mountains and a forbidding, hostile landscape- barren and treeless, with the desert sun mercilessly streaming down red hot. Roughly 1431 years ago, Muhammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) and his followers had made the same journey in conditions as different from my journey today as possible- on foot, with and sometimes without bare essentials of life; ragged, penniless, shelter-less, fearing for their lives yet led on by one conviction- their hope and trust in the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth, the Owner of Destiny.

We often want 'proof' to vindicate faith: What can possibly account for this madness to leave hearth and home and traverse the hostile land in fear, hunger, pain and hardship seeking the Unseen? What can explain this passion, extraordinary resolve, grand sacrifice, courage, hope and belief that the Truth is destined to triumph? What can explain this limitless capacity to go on enduring trial and hardship not yielding an inch? What can explain giving up all seeking an ideal, an unseen God? Faith answers where reason fails.

In his work 'Khutbaat Haram', Abul 'Ala Maududi records when the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) sat against the wall of the Ka'bah in the early days of Islam when his few followers were being oppressed and tortured in vile ways. Khabab bin Al Aratt (raḍyAllāhu 'anhu), who had suffered severe persecution for his faith, approached the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) in pain and desperation, asking him to beg Allāh for relief. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) replied, “This task will be fulfilled, O Khubaib, till a time comes when the traveler shall go from Sana'a to Hadrmout without fear or worry (meaning, peace will be established in the land through Islam). But it is you who turn impatient.” This hope in the darkest of times sprang from faith and trust in Allāh, and mankind witnessed its fulfilment.

Standing up to pray in the shade of the green dome of the Prophet's (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) mosque in Madīnah, I was reminded of that early surah revealed to the Prophet  at one of the lowest points in his life when he had been rejected and ridiculed:  “By the forenoon (after sun-rise); And by the night when it is still (or darkens); Your Lord (O Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) has neither forsaken you nor hated you. And indeed the Hereafter is better for you than the present (life of this world). And verily, your Lord will give you (all i.e. good) so that you shall be well-pleased. Did He not find you (O Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) an orphan and gave you a refuge? And He found you unaware and guided you? And He found you poor, and made you rich (self sufficient with self contentment, etc.)? Therefore, treat not the orphan with oppression, And repulse not the beggar; And proclaim the Grace of your Lord (i.e. the Prophethood and all other Graces).” (Chapter 93)

“And whose word could be truer than Allāh's?” (4:82)

Circumambulating the Ka'bah

This day I stand, a speck among these millions all moving on as wavelets of a shore-less ocean around the Center, their whispered prayers merging into a chorus: “Glory be to You! All Praise and Thanks are to You! There is no god except Allāh; Allāh is great! There is no power or might except with Allāh.” They all move forward yet are bound to the core, all seeking One Goal, One Direction. The ocean never recedes, never dwindles; from the far corners of the earth they come to witness this extraordinary legacy, to live this miracle, to stand where Ibrāhīm had stood, walk where Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) had walked-and be inheritors and sharers in the great legacy preserved, revived, immortalized by the Lord of the Ka'bah: “Hence, [O Muḥammad,] proclaim thou unto all people the pilgrimage: they will come unto thee on foot and on every [kind of] fast mount, coming from every far-away point [on earth]…” (22:27)

As I merge into the endless moving circle, I am enveloped by a sense of peace that reaches the innermost recesses of my being. For an instant all pain and fear drowns into the power and magic of the moment, and a swoon of blissful oblivion envelops me-all is here and now. I rise, I float, I fly-like those midget-birds that forever circle the azure skies around the Ka'bah, daylong, nightlong- a labor of Love.

There are also moments of intense self-awareness when you are struck by the realization of how unworthy you are of the honor to be here, how undeserving to set foot on this sacred earth. Witnessing the manifestations of His Glory, you become conscious of the darkness in your heart and soul, you feel a crushing shame that suffocates you… but like the winds bearing good news of the torrent, Hope in His Mercy comes to liberate. For, the Mercy of the One who brought you here is greater, so all encompassing. The feeling is reassuring as you rise above regret and shame onto the wings of hope and bask in the comfort of the knowledge that His mercy and forgiveness supersedes His wrath. “If it were not for Allāh's grace and mercy on you and that Allāh is Oft-Returning Full of Wisdom (ye would be ruined indeed).”(24:10)

The Victory:

I look at this gigantic mass of people of all shades and colors, these followers all sweat drenched, tear stained, barefoot, and I know this is the 'Clear Victory.'(48:1) I know this is the 'Fount of Abundance': “To you (O Muḥammad!) have We granted the Fount of Abundance. So pray to your Lord, and sacrifice. Surely, he who bears rancor against you shall be severed (from all future hope).” (Chapter 108)

And again:

“Have We not opened your breast for you (O Muḥammad ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)? And removed from you your burden which weighed down your back? And raised high your fame? So verily, with the hardship, there is relief. Verily, with the hardship, there is relief. So when you have finished (from your occupation), then stand up for Allāh's worship (i.e. stand up for prayer). And to your Lord (Alone) turn (all your intentions and hopes and) your invocations.” (Chapter 94)

On Leadership

Ibrāhīm and Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) followed their inner voice and the Command of the Lord they recognized humbly and resolutely. They lead in their following, and present the highest level of leadership humanly possible- a leadership of a holistic nature rooted in the heart and soul, springing from it and seeking to purify and satiate it; enunciating a veritable Way of Life followed today by billions as a matter of faith shaping individual lives, societies, economies and politics. Michael H. Hart, choosing Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) to top his list of 100 greatest people in human history wrote: “My choice of Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) to lead the best of the world's most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels. Of humble origins, Muḥammad founded and promulgated one of the world's great religions, and became an immensely effective political leader.  Today thirteen centuries after his death, his influence is still powerful and pervasive. The majority of the persons in this book had the advantage of being born and raised in centers of civilization, highly cultured or politically pivotal nations. Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), however, was born in the year 570, in the city of Mecca, in southern Arabia, at that time a backwards area of the world, far from the centers of trade, art and learning.  Orphaned at the age of six, he was reared in modest surroundings.  Islamic tradition tells us that he was illiterate… When Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) died in 632, he was the effective ruler of all of Arabia… The rapid spread of Islam continued after the demise of Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)… By 711, North Africa, to the Atlantic Ocean, then the Visigoth Kingdom of Spain . . . stretching from the boarders of India to the Atlantic Ocean, Islam was the largest empire that the world had yet seen”.

The Farewell

I walk away from the Ka'bah turning to look back at the silent, circling sea I have been a droplet of, moving gently, eternally in the shade of this small landmark that wears an unexplainable, immeasurable awe, majesty and power. It still draws to itself to elevate, honor and bless. I am overwhelmed with thanksgiving and with an already rising nostalgia I will have to live with: “The lovers of Your faith shall never dwindle, even while I- fleeting creature of an hour receding into the dust, am no more among those forever treading the Path of Love.”

Lecture by Yasir Qadhi

This lecture is brought to you by the Memphis Islamic Center (MIC). For more information about MIC, please visit www.memphisislamiccenter.org

Last week we talked about ways to increase our khushūʿ in ṣalāh; and I wanted to talk more about this inshā'Allāh today and even in the future as well, because we are praying, alḥamdulillāh, so many rakʿāt every single day and there is a danger of it becoming monotonous or routine, where we do not get the actual khushūʿ of ṣalāh. And among the things that many of us do not actually think too deeply about, even though we should, is the postures of ṣalāh itself: how we are standing, each posture – the significance of each act of ṣalāh. And many of our Scholars – including Imām al-Ghazālī in his Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm'l-Dīn and Ibn al-Qayyim and Ibn Qudāmah and others – have pointed out that each of these postures brings with it a sense of spirituality. Each of these manners of standing and rukūʿ and sujūd, there should come with it an automatic feeling – and this is human nature that when we act in a certain way, or dress in a certain way, or stand in a certain way – [then] automatically it brings about a psychological and a spiritual inner reality.

So, for example, in the army when you are expected to stand straight, with your head erect and everything [at attention] it brings about discipline, of course for us in our Sharīʿah it is not allowed, but for other sharīʿahs and other cultures when the king enters you are supposed to stand up and be with no motion at all, there comes with this an awe or reverence. In this country when the judge enters the [court]room everybody is told 'all-rise' and automatically there is a sense of awe that comes out. So all of this, the inner and the outer, are related together and, therefore, even in the postures of ṣalāh there is so much for us to learn.

Again time is limited, however, we will talk a little bit about each particular posture. First and foremost, even before the ṣalāh the fact that we purify ourselves and we are expected to dress in good clothes, Allāh says in the Qur'ān: “Yā ayyuha alladhīna āmanū khudhū zīnatakum ʿinda kulli masjid (Wear your best garment to every masjid).” This is in contrast to many of us who come [to the mosque] in garments in which we play basketball or in pajamas. This is not appropriate – we are supposed to dress up for the masjid and Allāh says, “Take your best clothes to the masjid; dress up when you go to the masjid.”

Also, we prepare ourselves physically by purifying ourselves. SubḥānAllāh when we have a famous or important interview, and we have to go on for example on television for an interview, what do we do? We take a shower, we scrub ourselves, we iron our clothes and we dress our best and we put on our perfume; doesn't Allāh have more of a right that we get ready for Him? And also, when we get ready that way what happens [is that] psychologically we get pumped up. Imagine in the interview, you are wearing your best suit, you have your best tie on, your best shoes, this automatically brings about a sense of excitement, that you are doing something big, so Allāh is saying that we are supposed to do the same for our ṣalāh: we are supposed to purify ourselves, wash ourselves with wuḍūʾ and put on our best garments.

There are so many stories we could mention. One of the descendants of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), the great grandson of the Prophet – the son of al-Ḥusayn – every time he would stand up and do wuḍūʾ for the ṣalāh he would become white and he would shiver and tremble, so his students said, “What is your problem? Every time you do wuḍūʾ you begin to tremble and your face becomes white!” and he said, “Should I not become anxious and tremble when I am going to stand in the presence of Allāh subḥānahu wa taʿāla?,” so when he does wuḍūʾ he begins to get nervous. Just like when we go to an interview, we wake up, we wear our best garments and we start feeling the adrenaline rush – this is the case of those tābiʿūn and ṣaḥābah when they stood in front of Allāh.

Then, when we stand up in front of Allāh we begin the ṣalāh in the posture of standing because this is the posture which has the utmost adab and that is why even in this country when the judge comes in [and] all rise [is said] we stand up for the judge, of course in our Sharīʿah this is only for Allāh, though it is forgiven when we do it in this land because it is a ḍarūrah / necessity, otherwise [regarding] the actual ruling of standing up Allāh says, “Wa-qūmū li'llāhi qānitīn (and stand up for Allāh in subservience),” and that is why when the ṣaḥābah stood up for the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) when he entered the room, he told them not to do this and  he said to them that it is not a part of our Sharīʿah and we only stand for Allāh alone. Then we stand up in rows, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Don't you want to stand up in ranks as the angels line [themselves] in ranks?” and to this day the militaries and armies lineup [form ranks] in this way, showing that they have discipline, that they are part of larger whole, each soldier is but one, but they are together many people. And all are the same in the eyes of Allāh, all of you are the same when you are standing outwardly, not one of you just because of your dress, your ethnicity or your heritage has any priority, no, inna akramakum ʿinda Allāhi atqākum — only taqwā separates you.

And then we stand up in front of Allāh and we move our hands like this [up towards our shoulders] and many of the scholars have commented [on this] that it is as if we are throwing the world behind you and you are entering a private audience with Allāh, you are throwing the world behind you and everything is forgotten. And then this is followed by another takbīr of Allāhu akbar, which means, there is nothing which is greater in my heart than Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla), there is nothing that deserves more worship, more humility, more worship than Allāh. So when you say the takbīr and your mind goes towards your business then you are showing that your business has more haybah, more rights over you, than Allāh. When you say “Allāhu akbar” and start thinking of your family problems, or tomorrow's work then you are saying the takbīr but you are not meaning it, because if you really meant the takbīr then you wouldn't think about anything other than Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla).

You are now standing in a private audience in front of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and that is why in a ḥadīth this is called munājāt. This is a private conversation and that is why when you say Allāhu akbar, you enter a state which is called (tahrīm) 'sacred state', you are prohibited from doing many things after [during] ṣalāh, such as eating drinking, speaking – you cannot speak in the ṣalāh. Why? Because it is a private audience with Him [Allāh], you have no right to speak to anyone else, and if you do speak with somebody else then your ṣalāh goes null and void, isn't that correct? Yes, right? Why? Because when you say the takbīr, then you begin a private audience with Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and are standing in front of Allāh. That is why the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said that when you stand up for ṣalāh then you are 'munāji rabbahu' (in a private conversation with your Lord), so everything else including eating, drinking and speaking, and doing anything like this becomes ḥarām because now you are standing in front of Allāh.

And then you begin as you should begin every gathering by praising Allāh 'subḥānaka Allāhumma wa bi ḥamdik wa-tabāraka ismuk wa-taʿāla jadduk wa-lā ilāha ghayruk' and then we recite Sūrat'l-Fātiḥah and we have given tafsīr of this already, and then we show our servitude to Allāh by bowing down and this rukūʿ is done once again by saying Allāhu akbar, the whole ṣalāh has Allāhu akbar in it to remind you that the purpose is that Allāh is deserving of the greatest attention and servitude in your heart; nothing should compete with Him as Allāh is the greatest. Throughout the ṣalāh from the beginning to the end, every time we move up and down we say Allāhu akbar so that we purify our hearts and minds to the next rukn and then we go down and we bow down in front of Allāh to show our servitude to Him, and our humility and to show this we physically bow down and this is something that even we have remnants of this custom in many cultures and you know this culture, in the western world, when they would meet a dignitary or even when a man would see a lady what would he do? He would bow his head down to greet, to show honor and respect, in our Sharīʿah this is only allowed with Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla). However, to lower your head is a sign of respect, to lower your head is a sign that the being you are lowering your head to is worthy of your servitude, of your ʿibādah.

So Allāh tells us that we do rukūʿ and that rukūʿ is so important that every unit of prayer is called a 'rakʿah' because of the rakʿah, every unit of prayer is called the rakʿah because the rakʿah [rukūʿ] is one of the most important pillars and it is called after it, and that is why if you catch the rukūʿ then you have caught the rakʿah, as this is really where the essence of servitude lies and in this posture of rukūʿ – of course Allāh has praised the action of rukūʿ in the Qur'ān several times. Allāh commands our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) that “wa irkaʿū maʿa al-rākiʿīn (and bow down [before Allāh] with those who are bowing down),” and Allāh commanded Ibrāhīm ('alayhi'l-salām) to “purify My house.” For whom? For li al-ṭāʾifīn wa al-ʿākifīna wa al-rukkaʿi al-sujūd (I want you to purify My house and the only people in My house should be those doing ṭawāf and those doing worship and those doing rukūʿ and those doing sujūd. It is that important, that the Kaʿbah has to be purified and the only people around the Kaʿbah should be one of those four people: the ṭāʾifīn those doing ṭawāf, ʿākifīn those who are there for worship in dhikr and Qur'ān and those in rukūʿ and sujūd.

And when we go down in sujūd, we say subḥāna rabbī al-ʿaẓīm – we have already mentioned what subḥāna rabbī and subḥānAllāh mean, and when we go down we say Allāh is 'al-ʿaẓīm' (the Great and the Majestic) and in this rukūʿ, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said that when you are in rukūʿ and sujūd then do not recite the Qur'ān, because the Qur'ān is too noble to be recited in rukūʿ and sujūd. The Qur'ān is the kalām of Allāh. It is the speech of Allāh and when we humble ourselves in front of Allāh then we do not do tilāwah; we do adhkār, we do tasbīḥ, we do taḥmīd, we do takbīr, we say praises to Allāh but we do not recite the Qur'ān in rukūʿ and sujūd.

And then we take a pause before we go to the main gist of the rakʿah, which is the sajdah. How do we take the pause? We stand up, and this is the only time we change 'Allāhu akbar' to something else, and in its stead we say 'samiʿ Allāhu li-man ḥamidah'. Why? We are setting the stage for the sajdah, we are getting ready, and psychologically for the big event of every rakʿah that is the sajdah. So we take a pause. Why? Because we want to build up that excitement to do the sajdah, and we do this any time, anytime there is a main event – and astaghfirullāh, I am not comparing but even the most mundane of items such as going to a fancy dinner. They begin with the smaller things until the main dish comes. Why is this? We whet our appetites, making it ready for the big event, and then the big event comes.

Likewise, if there is a main speaker coming then first there will be an introduction, a note of thanks and then the main speaker will come. The main speaker does not come on as soon as the event begins, isn't that the case? We need to become psychologically prepared and we work our way up and the ṣalāh is no different. We are working our way up to the main aspect of the ṣalāh itself, and that is the sajdah, and we do this by taking a pause from the rukūʿ, and we get back up and psychologically prepare ourselves by saying, “Allāh hears those who praise Him.” We are about to praise Him and we need to remind ourselves that Allāh hears those who praise Him and when we say this even before the sajdah, we implement what we are saying and immediately we say “rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamd.” We follow exactly what we just said, saying, “O Allāh to You belongs all praise.”

Once the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), in one of the first prayers he led in Madinah when he said “samiʿ Allāhu li-man ḥamidah” and he went up, one of the ṣaḥābah heard this phrase and from his fiṭrah, without being taught this, said, “rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamdu ḥamdan kathīran, ṭayyiban, mubārakan fīhi (O Allāh you have every 'ḥamd', multiple ḥamd, lots of ḥamd (kathīra), pure ḥamd (ṭayyiba), blessed ḥamd (mubāraka))”. So he came and he just said it and he said it in a beautiful way:  rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamdu, ḥamdan kathīran, ṭayyiban, mubārakan fīh. When the ṣalāh finished, the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Who amongst you said that phrase?” The ṣaḥābī raised his hands and said, “Ya Rasūlullāh, it was me. I only wanted good.” He got scared [and thought] what did I do wrong; I only wanted to do good. The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Wallāhi I saw thirty angels racing to take your phrase and reach Allāh the first – who is going to reach Allāh first with the phrase that you have just said?”

This shows us that samiʿ Allāhu li-man ḥamidah Allāh is hearing those who praise Him. And the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) added: rabbanā wa laka al-ḥamdu, ḥamdan kathīran, ṭayyiban, mubārakan fīh milʾ al-samāwāti wa milʾa al-arḍi wa milʾa mā baynahumā wa milʾa mā shiʾta min shayʾin min baʿd, ahl al-thanāʾ wa al-majd, aḥaqqu mā qālahu al-ʿabdu wa-kullunā laka al-ʿabd – and there are so many other phrases, and this is another point as well, perhaps another talk I'll give, we should memorize the different things the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) would say to have a little bit of variety.

And then when we have praised Allāh and have given Him ḥamd, then we fall down and we do the single greatest act of worship humanly possible and that is we lower the most noble part of our bodies, the most protected part of our bodies, and the most precious part of our bodies, we lower it to where we put our feet, to where we walk. Why? Because we show Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿāla) that:  O Allāh, You are worthy of this servitude, and for You and only for You, I will take my head and I will put it in the sand and in the dust in order to praise You and show glory to You.

And our Prophet Muḥammad (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said 'the closest that servant will ever be to his Lord is when he is in sajdah (aqrabu mā yakūn al-ʿabdu ilā rabbihi wa huwa sājid). There is no posture that you will be closer to Allāh in than sajdah, there is no posture that you will come closer to Allāh by than the posture of sajdah. So that is why the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “When you are in sajdah, increase your duʿā's, increase your pleas from your heart.” Here is where Allāh will respond to you. When we fall down in sajdah and we lower our heads, we say “O Allāh, You are the highest.” We lower our head and we say subḥāna rabbi al-aʿla – we are low, You are al-Aʿla (the Highest the most Exalted). As we lower our head, this is the ultimate sign of humility, khushūʿ and taʿabbud.

And subḥānAllāh many of us, we feel a sense of disdain and we do not want to do sajdah on something that might be dusty or sandy. If we are going to pray then we look for a sheet or something to pray on. Technically there is nothing wrong with that and it is permissible, so we have sajjādahs and things to pray on. Let me tell you one thing though: our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) was too eager to get into sajdah that [he would not] worry over what he would do the sajdah on. And there is ḥadīth in Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī from Anas b. Mālik that on the 23^rd of Ramaḍān, it rained so much that the roof of the masjid collapsed and the rain was pouring in and the whole masjid floor became muddy with the water and mud. They did not have carpet obviously; it was sand and gravel.

Now can you imagine – imagine us when we pray on dry sand or the grass, how do we feel? Imagine if we were to pray outside where the shoes are put, how do we feel? There is nothing wrong with praying on a sajjādah – I am not saying that. Our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) was thinking of other things, he didn't care where the head goes. Anas he was looking at what is going to happen: is he going to do sajdah in this mud? He said, “Wallāhi I saw athar al-ṭīn [traces of mud] on the nose and forehead of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) as he went into that mud and came back out.” He was in a different world, and he wanted to show Allāh servitude and humility, that O Allāh this is where we originate from. “Wa minhā khalaqnākum (I created you from this),” so now I am turning to this, I am lowering myself in the sand to show You O Allāh my humility and servitude.

Our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “Never does a servant of Allāh fall down in sajdah except that Allāh forgives one sin and exalts him one level.” Every sajdah forgives you one khaṭīʾah and one darajah in Jannah is raised and the famous ḥadīth of Rabīʿah (the servant of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam)) when he had been serving the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) for many years, one time the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, “O Rabīʿah, what can I give you? Ask.” He was expecting a request for money, a house, something along this after all these years of service the Prophet asked him what he could give him. Rabīʿah thought for a while, and he thought and thought, and he said, 'O Messenger of Allāh, I have but one request: innī urīdu murāfatuqa fi'l-jannah (I want to be your rafīq (your companion) in Jannah just like I am your companion in this world).” The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said to him, “Help me to help you [get to that level] by increasing in your sajdahs' (fa-ʿaʾinnī ʿalā nafsik bi kathrati al-sujūd).” How can one get to the highest level of Jannah?  Allāh will do this; Allāh will give it to you but you to do something, and what is that? It is more sajdahs.

And my dear brothers and sisters, let me be very frank here, if you do not taste the sweetness of the worship of Allāh in the sajdah then there is no other place where you will taste it. If you are deprived of tasting the ḥalāwah of ʿibādah (the sweetness of worship) in this state of sajdah, then really there is no other state in which you will feel this sweetness and, therefore, when you go down in sajdah, you should lower not just your face but your body and your heart – lower them and humble them in front of Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and realize [in this] that you are doing exactly what you have been created for and that is to worship Allāh.

You cannot do anything that is more precious than lowering yourself to Allāh and as you lower your head increase your adhkār, increase your duʿā's as that is when your duʿā's will be responded to. Open up your heart and start pleading to Allāh, begging with Allāh, and beg Allāh for the khayr of this world and the khayr of the next. So much so, that our scholars said – and this is a fiqh point here – that you are not supposed to recite the Qur'ān in sajdah of course, however were you take a phrase of the Qur'ān which is a duʿā' and were to say it as a duʿā' and not as tilāwah then it is allowed. So if you say in sajdah “rabbanā ātina fi al-duniya ḥasana wa fi al-ākhirati ḥasana [(Our Lord grant us good in this world and grant us in the hereafter good)],” then this is allowed, however, if you were to recite the whole verse then this is not allowed. If you were to say “rabbi zidnī ʿilma [(My Lord increase me in knowledge)],” this is allowed, but you do not recite the whole verse, because you are not doing tilāwah, rather you are making duʿā' and duʿā' is allowed with the phrases of the Qur'ān.

Now, the posture of sajdah is so important that every rakʿah has two of it, and it has two of nothing else – it has two of nothing else. Every rakʿah has two sajdahs. And in order to give you that pause, once again you sit up again, you take a break – we are human beings, we get tired – let the blood flow to the brain, take a few breaths and praise Allāh, say like the Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam), what would he say between the sajdahs? Rabbighfirlī, rabbighfirlī [(My Lord forgive me, My Lord forgive me)], say it and take a pause and ask Allāh for forgiveness and get the inner strength to do the second sajdah and then go down in the second sajdah, and once again when you are down praise Allāh saying 'Allāh is the Highest [and the Most Exalted, and I am the one humbled in front of Him]' and once again open your heart to Him and beg and plead to Him (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) and you go on and on.

And that is why my dear brothers and sisters, as Imam Ḥasan al-Baṣrī (raḥimahullāh), the famous scholars of the past, the greatest scholar of the tābiʿūn said, “There are three places [wherein] you will find ḥalāwat al-īmān (the sweetness of īmān) and if you do not find the sweetness of īmān in these three places, then the door to īmān has been shut [for you], you are not going to find it anywhere else.” What are these three things? He said: (i) al-ṣalāh, (ii) dhikr of Allāh and (iii) qirāʾat al-Qur'ān. Three things he said were the doors to taste the sweetness of īmān [by], if you are not going to find ḥalāwat al-īmān in these three things he said abwāb ghulliqat (the doors have been closed [for you]), i.e. you have no hope besides these three.

Therefore as we stand up for so many rakʿāt and we go on and on do not let these rakʿāt become monotonous routines. No – every rakʿāt, wallāhi, is a door to Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla), it is an opening up, a private conversation [with Him] and the more rakʿāt we have, then the higher we will go in this world and the next.

May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) make us among those whose ṣalāh is accepted. may Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) make us among those who are continuous in their ṣalāh – alladhina hum ʿalā ṣalāhihim dāʾimūn. May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) make us among those who have khushūʾ in their ṣalāh (qad aflaḥa al-muʾminūn, alladhīna hum fī ṣalāhihim khāshiʾūn). May Allāh make us among those whose ṣalāh are accepted totally, one hundred percent; as our Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, some of you only nine tenths of their ṣalāh will be accepted, others eight tenths and others all the way going down to one tenth, because they were not paying attention. May Allāh make us among those [who get reward for the] full ten out of ten, one hundred percent. May Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta'āla) bless us in this world and the next wa jazākum Allāhu khayran.

There is little evidence that, since the 1990's, Saudi authorities thoroughly considered the impact of these numbers, which have swollen so monstrously that one is compelled to abandon sunan. For example, the sunnah of raml (for men) is practically impossible to perform, and to pray at the maqām-Ibrāhīm after ṭawāf means risking one's head being pummeled. Kissing the black stone is truly perilous as previously mentioned, and the qiyām of 'Arafāh is cut short for tens of thousands who arrive there only shortly before sunset. The same is also true of Madīnah where praying in Raudat-ul-jannah is all but impossible. The distinctiveness of Hajj (its specific location, time, specific rites) means that normal acts of worship during these holy days are lessened: prayers are shortened and combined and there is a specific time designated, from the sunnah, for rest (20). This time is for reflection, contemplation, and dhikr. The way a contemporary Hajj operates though is not always conducive to the intended objectives of these Hajj rites; In my group, many of us did anything but rest on 'the days of rest'.

More disturbing are acts of oppression committed by some pilgrims. On the day of 'Arafāh buses are unable to cope with the numbers to transport from Mina to 'Arafāh, where qiyām is the major pillar of Hajj without which it is invalid. In 2009, some pilgrims, fearing that they would not make it to 'Arafāh before sunset, punched and kicked their bus drivers/Ministry of Hajj workers and effectively hijacked the buses, which were arriving at 'Arafāh with ihrām-clad drivers and 'bloody' officials.

In such harrowingly jammed and overcrowded circumstances, there will always be 'unpleasantries'. Mina bears the burden of the entire pilgrim community for some days but boasts only, to say the least, meager and basic toileting facilities. To make wudu alone could take around 45 minutes and to use the toilets on top of that, even for the briefest of moments, could render a 'toileting' time of over an hour. My heart went out to those poor souls who enthusiastically vowed not to use the toilets, horrified by the sight of a hole in the ground above which hovered a pipe of sorts which would hopefully act as a shower – I say hopefully because I turned it on once only to hear a shriek from the man in the neighboring cubicle who, after having queued for an hour to relieve himself, got soaked by a diagonal water-stream from my shower pipe. I can't remember if I apologized; we were all accustomed by then to such 'mishaps'. The only other pipe was one which provided water for 'istinja', but all too often it was found deep in the hole courtesy of the person who had used it previously. Hygiene was not great. There was no soap. I absent-mindedly left mine there once and returned five minutes later to retrieve it but found that a full bar had transformed into a miserable sliver of soap with someone's pubic hair embedded within it. As fate would have it, those who feared these toilets the most ended up contracting diarrhea from the poor hygiene and therefore needed to use them the most. The lowest point by far, however, was a British Iranian lady who, still in full burka, sprayed liquid stool through her clothing all over the back of a full coach! Nothing is impossible when there are this many numbers in these conditions. I appreciate these details may be somewhat brazen for some people – but all should be prepared for Mina.

In fact, such was the volume of sewage that apparently pipes could not cope; in the picture below a pipe had burst to reveal open sewage, also in Mina, which pilgrims were walking through en route to stone the jamarāt.

Photograph 3 – Pilgrims walk through open sewage

Pilgrim numbers in Mina were so great that some people in groups such as mine had no tent space to sleep in – due, in part, to an unscrupulous Hajj operator – and were forced to wander the alleyways whilst others slept. Lack of sleep confounds an already exhausting schedule.

Photograph 4 – Satellite image of Makkah (Google Earth)

Finally, this satellite image indicates something remarkable with regards to the issue of swelling numbers: on the right side of this picture is Mina, visible as a large white mass of tents. At the top left of the picture is the white marble of the Holy Mosque (in which is the Ka'bah). Imagine then that every pilgrim living in the huge area of Mina (2.5-3.0 million pilgrims) has to go to the Ka'bah to make ṭawāf-al-ifadah and sa'ee within three days after the jamarāt, and then ṭawāf-ul-wida (the farewell ṭawāf) once more on leaving. The discrepancy in size, clearly visible, between Mina and the Holy Mosque (the capacity of which is around 1 million (21) when rammed together) is consistent with the suffocating crowds around the Ka'bah in the final days of Hajj.

I have dwelled on the problem of overcrowding and the huge numbers of people performing Hajj because it detrimentally impacts everything from people's behavior, the performing of sunan and worship, the ruining of holy sites/relics, and horrible amounts of pollution (see below). The numbers of pilgrims visiting this land is around 60 times as many people as compared to the Prophetic Hajj. The land cannot cope, and many pilgrims have died sadly from stampedes and crushes (22) for lack of control in this regard.

Below I go on to mention a few specific repercussions as a result of the general phenomenon of overcrowding. The first is that of pollution, specifically in Makkah.

Disrespect for the Sacred Land: Pollution & Behaviors

Many who write accounts of the desert, such as Muhammad Asad in 'The Road to Makkah', speak of its magic, and Asad specifically goes so far as to link it with tawhīd (23). This is of course a viable link when one considers the introspection the desert compels one to engage in given its vast, desolate, and silent landscape. The bigger questions of life cannot but pervade one's mind in such circumstances. With that isolated quality comes too an unspoiled landscape and purity of air. Makkans in the time of the Prophet would send their young children into the desert to make them strong whilst protecting them from the poorer air quality of their trading city. That notwithstanding, I was disappointed with how pollution in Makkah was so overwhelmingly ubiquitous. It saddened me that the Sacred Land was left in this way, whilst our Jewish and Christians colleagues took great care to beautify and purify their cities such as Jerusalem and the Vatican city. If 'purification is half of faith', then this ḥadīth has been forgotten with regards to Makkah. Although my intention was to speak of pollution as an effect of out of control numbers of people – which it undoubtedly is – it also links with another phenomenon: that of sheer indifference and disrespect in attitudes for the sanctity of the Holy Land. I will speak of both below.

Makkah itself must suffer one of the worst air qualities of any city on earth. It is not air with diesel but mainly diesel with a little air ('airy' diesel) that one finds themselves inhaling. In a country where petrol is far cheaper than water buses are left running for hours at a time even when stationary and not in use; no one seems to care about the incredible amounts of fuel that must be wasted.

Several accounts from the jet age describe the problem of motor vehicles. Jalal Ahmad spoke of trucks constantly having to brake due to phenomenal numbers of people in the streets, and Sonya (Saida) Miller spoke of it taking half the night to cover 5 miles. Traffic jams there must be the worst on earth; in 2009 I spent 45 minutes in a car and moved only 1 meter – the driver said it would take 4 hours to go from the jamarāt to the Haram Mosque, a journey of a few miles.

It struck me that in my home city, London, hydrogen buses with water vapor exhaust fumes were being trialed in order to improve air quality. And yet if the most Sacred land on earth is not worthy of such technology – what city is? If only those stationary buses left running for hours would be turned off, who knows how many thousands of liters of fuel per year would be saved. But it is the attitude, the indifference to 'israf' (wastefulness) in the very birthplace of Islam – a religion which condemns it and demands purity from its adherents as part of faith – that was most perturbing.

Far too many people are obdurate in their lack of respect for the sanctity of the land they are on, something manifesting itself in at least the following ways: their throwing vast amounts of rubbish, food, & packaging outside the Mosque when there are bins within ten feet of them; their deliberate ignoring of the rules – one gentleman from Pakistan's NWFP thrust his mud and blood soaked foot into water clearly marked Zam Zam drinking water and when challenged retorted that these were rules of the Saudi king and not for him to obey. The most repugnant scene was that on the 1st floor of the sacred mosque in the days immediately preceding the 8th Dhu'l-Ḥijjah when there was commotion in the area of ṭawāf; the 'men in green' (official cleaners) swiftly moved in cordoning off that area and getting to work. It seemed someone had defecated in the mosque, and the thick crowd had stepped in it spreading a trail of feces. Presumably the culprit was not ill since the stool was formed (i.e. no diarrhea)!

The most shocking scenes of littering I saw were at Muzdalifah, but I did not have a camera to capture it. I did, however, capture the images of Mina after about two days worth of residence there.

Photographs 5, 6 & 7 Mina.
Pilgrims actions made it resemble a refuse tip from a 3rd world country rather than Sacred Land.

The lack of respect for Sacred Land is not only manifested in the way it is treated physically, but also in the attitudes and behaviors displayed by pilgrims.

In contemporary times the manners and behaviors of hajjis, who admittedly are from all walks of life, social classes and cultures, are too often astonishingly bad, and lacking even in basic requirements of propriety. I can accept that in such dense crowds one's personal space of course crumbles; I can even reluctantly accept that it is common to find oneself in a stranger's armpit, or even to be thumped every now and again, but surely one should not have to suffer various indignities such as: 'pilgrim chains' led by the largest member violently thumping anyone in his way; or having their ihrams (the waist-cloth so precariously hung in the first place!) pulled downwards to push them out of the way. Impatience is omnipresent, and it can be lethal, especially at exits and escalators where people refuse to wait, instead choosing to heave and push – people die in these situations from crushing or have their feet caught in the steel of the escalators causing flesh to be gauged out (shoes are not worn in the mosque). Some nationalities obstruct Sa'ee with groups of 40-50 sitting down in the middle of the conduit to chant, lament, and cry.

These narcissistic tendencies are seen also at the jamarāt, where despite the rule forbidding people from bringing their luggage (since it was the clear cause of the numerous deaths during stampedes in previous years) they bring it, well aware of the potentially lethal risk it causes others. At the jamarāt, people still hurl their pebbles from a distance, striking others in the back of the head or the face as they are turning. In Mina one will witness such feats of selfishness it is easy to forget one is on Hajj – and, all too often, I found it was from the people one would least expect it (given their practicing appearance). All of the various things mentioned above are predominantly, I believe, as a result of the stresses from overcrowding which inevitably brings out the worst in people, although quite clearly we as an Ummah are not all as elegant in our characters as our sacred texts require us to be.

Interestingly, the gargantuan numbers of people coming for Hajj also brought to the fore an interesting fundamental tension between the visiting pilgrims, and the inhabitants of the Holy Sanctuaries, who consist of settled pilgrims (24) as well as indigenous Arabs. This sort of tension has always been there, yet these two groups of people reluctantly need each other in a forced interdependence. The visiting pilgrims are a source of revenue that has driven Makkah's economy since apparently antediluvian times. Today it is no different, and the sustenance of many businesses in Makkah relies on Hajj and year round Umrahs. But whilst the Hajjis bring in necessary revenue, they bring with it some huge disruption, traffic, littering, diseases etc, along with some unflattering behaviors. It is clear, at least in the Hajj season, that visiting pilgrims are an annoyance; the irritation palpably visible on the local's faces. Many locals look down at pilgrims with a sort of contempt that does not go unnoticed, and a viscous cycle ensues: the pilgrims disrupt and lack respect for their hosts, who in turn treat them with degrees of racism and condescension. Ask any pilgrim about how they compare the people of Makkah with those of Madīnah, Madīnah will receive glowing accolades.

The dynamics of this relationship between Muslims who experience the Hajj very differently (service users vs. providers) is interesting. It might be accurate to suggest that the state of affairs in Makkah during Hajj reflects, more broadly, the state of affairs of the Ummah itself. Consider, for example, footnote 43 Ibn Jubāyr's words as cited by Wolfe (coming in the next section), and Sharīf Muhammad b. 'Awn's remarks in 1842 about a past he remembered:

“All remained pure during the pilgrimage period, and prayer and the reading of the traditions of their prophet were their sole occupation…” (25)

Only then to contrast it with his present, about which he said:

“..all engage in commerce, and the spirit of speculation has replaced piety in their hearts. And their conduct, alas, during the pilgrimage period. May God preserve your eyes from the sight of their shameful acts” (26)

Whilst the visiting pilgrims may have much to answer for, the locals too (i.e. lay people and authorities) are not beyond reproach. In fact, I found it worthy of note that the Cordoban, Ibn Jubāyr, remarked 800 years ago in 1183CE:

“The majority of these peoples are sectarians and schismatics divided into various doctrines. They have no real religion. They treat foreign pilgrims worse than they treat Christians and Jews under their tribute, seizing most of the hajjis provisions, robbing them blind, and finding new ways to divest them of their goods”

Few non-Arabs would deny things are much different today. From the moment one enters the country at immigration till the moment one leaves there is a constant reminder that the hajjis are like a pharmakon (27), simultaneously a harm and a benefit. When Hajj is over, perhaps locals  breathe a sigh of relief. But as unpleasant as it may be for them, it justifies neither the exploitation and corruption, nor the lack of recourse to remedy wrongs.

Saudi authorities do not seem to collect, and certainly do not make public, data on corruption or exploitation. There cannot thus be a comprehensive account about it – one can merely highlight that such practices still exist and that there is much to be done in remedying this.

Historically, ever since 1201CE when Sharīf Qitada captured the Haram, his descendents reigned whilst embroiled in blood feuds, war, and fratricide. As a result, rampant corruption was endemic till 1925 (when the family's rule was ended by Wahhabis). A sad account was that of the Begum of Bhopal (28), an astute and intelligent provincial ruler of a million people. Indian rulers would at that time lend great support to an impoverished Arabia with gifts to the Holy Mosques, free ship transport for Indian pilgrims and hostels and schools in the Peninsula. Her account of 1864 is one of systematic 'official' and unofficial looting. She was taxed arbitrarily by all sorts of Arabian governors, lynched by mobs, raiding parties, and last but by no means least by the Sharīf of Makkah, who himself took ¼ of all her gifts. She could not even make ṭawāf in peace, endlessly harassed for money. Corruption was rife and endemic, and looting was seen as acceptable, if not recommended by corrupt authorities and individuals. In 1925, it was the Wahhabi wars which brought an end to this extreme corruption and the moral ills of freely available alcohol, music, dancing girls, and inappropriate free mixing etc (29) (that was mentioned by Hajjis at least as early as Muhammad Farhani in 1885) – albeit with somewhat excessive harshness and loss of civilian Muslim life.

Thankfully the situation is not like that at present, but exploitation of visitors is very much alive. In our group of 2009 a young British pilgrim waned with high fever and exhaustion the day after 'Arafāh. Unable to walk and needing to get back to his camp in Mina at night, taxis refused to help unless paid £250 (for a journey of a few miles from Makkah to Mina). Hotels in Makkah offered an inflated rate of £2000 for the night (for a room normally worth no more than £100/night). Those from poorer backgrounds, far more vulnerable than us, were treated much worse.

There is also much to be said of tour-operators who sell Hajj packages in the UK; a small but significant number are fraudulent, robbing people of money with no intention at all to run a Hajj tour. Others deceive their customers with promises of premium facilities and charging premium rates only to renege on their promises with substandard accommodation and a wealth of unlikely excuses (30). On the other hand, some countries, such as Iran and Malaysia, are known for organizing Hajj trips very well with little exploitation and very happy, grateful hajjis.

For now it seems this behavior will continue as it has done for centuries since authorities are not taking action. There are few avenues to complain in confidence, and the locals themselves, far from morally reprimanding each other, instead reinforce each others' behavior.

Thus far I have spoken of the vast overcrowding which leads to numerous other problems ranging from pollution to illnesses/injuries, impatience and to a diminished spiritual experience. I have also spoken about the disappointing attitudes and behaviors of some hajjis, who have come to make the spiritual journey of a lifetime but forget themselves and the Prophetic Sunnah which they are supposed to be emulating. Finally I spoke briefly of the equally disappointing condescension and exploitation from some of the hosts towards visiting pilgrims despite the former's financial reliance upon the latter. Before concluding, however, I wish to speak of something on an altogether different note that I alluded to in the introduction: first is the aesthetics of worship – in relation to the historical sites and relics in Arabia; and secondly, the future vision that the current custodians of the Sacred Precincts have for Makkah.

20  Specifically the 8th Dhu'l-Ḥijjah in Mina (yawm-ut-Tarweah) and the night in Muzdalifah after standing at Arafat

21 Wolfe p. 532 – Though this figure seems unrealistic. Other sources (eg. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-124264884.html ) have reported capacities of 860,000.

22  See for instance Wolfe pgs. 476, 481

23 See “Muhammad Asad Speaks on Bedouins & the Desert” ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtcbukncXvA&feature=related , 12 seconds into the video)

24  The Begum of Bhopal remarked in1864, “Almost all the bad characters that have been driven out of India may be found in Makkah” [Wolfe p. 233]

25  Peters, p. 266

26 Peters, p. 266

27 A Greek word used in reference to something that is both a poison and a cure.

28  A town in India

29  Wolfe, p. 192

30  In my own group, after making “70 excuses” or more, there was a collective decision to sue the tour operator.

The following is an anecdotal monograph, based upon Hajj 2009, recounting predominantly the problematic aspects of a contemporary pilgrimage to the two Holy Sanctuaries in Makkah and Madīnah.  This reflective account of Hajj 2009 was written to identify and promulgate some problems of a contemporary pilgrimage. Having spoken to a few pilgrims who experienced the Hajj of 2010, I have heard both positive and negative comments about their experiences there.

The most significant innovation this year has been the monorail in Makkah, and since the procedural running of Hajj is continuously evolving, any account of this sort runs the risk of becoming outdated. Nonetheless, I feel the account presented here and the criticisms I am making cannot be sidelined as merely anecdotal and incidental recollections. The most significant criticisms I make – namely those pertaining to numbers, the response of Saudi authorities to Western modernity, and the future vision for a Sacred Land  - are all too relevant to all Muslims in the world, both Arab and non-Arab.

Finally, perhaps the reader will agree that occasionally knee-jerk reactions are characteristic amongst Muslims when any aspect of their Faith or Islamicate culture is criticised. And this is perhaps particularly justifiable given the contemporary onslaught of denigration towards Muslims and their Religion from even those who call themselves Muslims. What this risks, however, is overlooking legitimate criticism of certain occurrences within the world of Islam. If I may then, I ask you to read carefully the provisos and reasons I cite, and let me also reassure you that my intentions here are firmly in the spirit of loyalty to both Islam and its Muslim adherents. Whilst Islam, as I see it, is beyond reproach – Muslims most certainly are not. I do genuinely feel that the problems mentioned herein are indicative of a malaise in the global ummah (ranging from a subjugated mindset towards a hegemonic West to the straying from Prophetic norms in worship, and beyond) that can, and by all means must, be cured first and foremost by acknowledging it.

With this mind, I hope you find this piece informative.

Introduction

It was said to Ibrāhīm:

“And proclaim to mankind the Hajj. They will come to you on foot and on every lean camel, they will come from every deep and distant mountain highway (to perform Hajj)” [Q 22 Hajj: 27]

This verse above is brought to life by a plethora of accounts (1) spanning one and a half millennia. It seems particularly salient given that right up until the first third of the twentieth century, people of all colors, languages and lands were traveling (at least in the last leg of their journeys) on 'camel' and on 'foot' to the holy sanctuary.

Around 4,000 years ago Ibrāhīm ibn Aazar, thought to be from the ancient Mesopotamian city of Ur (in modern day southern Iraq), embarked on a magnificent journey and struggle as a Messenger of Allāh ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam . Towards the end of his life, his journey took him to Bakkah (2), where the first mosque on earth was built and a series of pilgrimage (Hajj) rites were revealed by Allāh. Today this ancient city is Makkah, lying in a harsh, rocky, and mountainous desert landscape where, in antiquity, no crops seem to have grown and a climate of 'suffocating heat, deadly winds, and clouds of flies'(4) prevailed. For reasons known only to Allāh, this land is the most beloved on earth to Him. It is far removed from the lush comforts and adornments of this world in greener, leafier and more fertile parts; it is a place that none would think to visit but those devoted to worshiping Allāh, compelled by His instruction:

“Pilgrimage to the House (Ka'bah) is a duty mankind owes to Allāh, those who are able to undertake it.” [Q3:97]

Hajj is a unique act of worship such that it is tied not only to a specific time, set, and sequence of rituals but also a specific physical geography – the sacred valley of Ibrāhīm. When the Prophet performed hajj there were approximately 40,000(5) – 90,000 (6) people present, a figure utterly dwarfed by the current numbers that annually inundate the ancient valley on top of its resident population of 1.2 million. To witness a contemporary Hajj is, in many respects, to witness a microcosm of the global Muslim Ummah.  For this reason, a contemporary pilgrim (hajji) will witness and experience not only the very heights of spirituality but also the depths of profanity. I say this because there is no better place to witness the oft-mentioned distinction between the lofty Islamic faith on the one hand, and its very human Muslim practitioners on the other, than the two holy sanctuaries of Makkah and Madīnah during the month of Dhu'l-Ḥijjah. This account is a critical reflection on the contemporary realities of pilgrimage, as gleaned from my experience in 2009, and supplemented by Hajj reports from well known historical accounts. The aim here is to highlight those social and organizational aspects of the 'experience' so they can be improved.  This is not a critique of the institution of hajj and its rites which, as far as I am concerned, are sacred and therefore beyond reproach.

I dwell also on the mismatch in sentiments and priorities between the authorities that run the pilgrimage and the pilgrims themselves, many cognisiant of the fact that it will be their one and only visit to this Sacred Land, and who therefore come to engage specifically in the rites of worship. In the minds of non-Khaliji (non-residents of the Arabian peninsula and the Gulf region at large) Muslims at least, the Arabian Peninsula is an enchanting place, home to the story of the Messenger of Allāh . Here he was born, experienced revelation and persecution, migrated to Madīnah, and established the Islamic faith. These Muslims, therefore, place the Peninsula – because of the Prophet – on a pedestal and harbor certain expectations from the Sacred Mosques, the ancient relics, monuments, and sites of Islamic history therein. Unfortunately these expectations are not always met.

Moreover, while the importance of the internal, or esoteric, component of worship is commonly stressed – there is an external aesthetic component to worship which, though often overlooked, is clearly present in the Islamic texts. To demonstrate briefly, consider the ritual prayer in which clean white clothing, kohl, use of miswak, perfume, and beautiful recitation is recommended. It follows then that the external components of sight, sound, smell, and so on and so forth are also very much a part of the experience of worship.  The Hajj ritual as a whole is of course no less an act of worship than prayer or dhikr. In describing the experience of Hajj, therefore, I pay particular attention to these neglected elements.

I will proceed to describe briefly, since there are many accounts of this nature, the highs of a contemporary Hajj before steering the theme of the account towards what could be improved, and the importance of speaking about it. Finally, I will conclude with recommendations to improve the pilgrim's experience.

The Highs

The first vision of the Ka'bah and the Sacred Mosque is an unforgettable moment. The Ka'bah is a magnificent structure; it stands serene and immovable as thousands circumambulate it on three levels and playful birds chirp as they maneuver with wondrous swiftness above, occasionally mirroring the clockwise motion of the pilgrims below them. Its sight is compelling, gripping the eyes of hundreds who stand on the roof of the mosque staring at its mysterious beauty for hours at a time, impervious to fatigue. As Haddad observed:

“Everybody performs the ṭawāf , moving in one circular motion around one pivotal point, synonymous with the regulation and orderliness of the universe. The celestial zones rotate, as does the electron in an atom. We are a part of this creation, we travel with it and it travels with us; our Lord and object of worship is One.”

This is the center of the world of worship, the most important physical space on earth for Muslims, the oldest place of prayer to the God of Mankind. Prophetic narrations affirm that directly above the Ka'bah is al-Bayt al-Ma'mur, its celestial equivalent – an unfathomably more ancient place of worship – where the Angels have circumambulated beneath the Majestic Throne from time immemorial, praising and glorifying His Majesty in such throngs that, it is narrated, the heavens creak with their sheer numbers. Standing now as a pristine cube, many have conjectured over the significance of the Ka'bah's shape. But it was not always a cube, for once it stood in the shape of an arched doorway, and Allāh alone knows the significance of these shapes and any symbology therein.

It is said that Angels laid the foundations for the Ka'bah which were eventually obscured under a mound of red rubble by the time Hagar of Egypt was left there by her husband, Ibrāhīm, with their son Ismail. As is well known, the Well of Zam Zam gushed forth, the tribe of Jurhum arrived, and a community began to thrive there. Some 3,000 years later 'Abdul-Muṭṭālib would sleep by the Ka'bah with his grandson Muhammad. Here the Messenger of Allāh ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam had animal entrails thrown on his head, the companions were persecuted, Abu Bakr beaten almost to death. In the grounds of the sacred mosque would have been the homes of numerous Prophetic companions, as well as ardent adversaries of Islam and its Muslim adherents. This ancient land is rich with sacred history and it is knowledge of this history which brings to the fore of one's mind the grave significance of the ground on which pilgrims sit reading Qurʾān and making ritual prayer. The Mosque in Makkah is breathtakingly beautiful and conducive to deep introspection and worship, but it is the knowledge of over 4,000 years of history which really renders a pilgrim to tears. It is that history which one must study in depth before embarking on the Hajj journey.

While Makkah is cardinally about the Ka'bah, its pre-Islamic story, and early Islamic history; the Prophet's ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam Madīnah is where the religion took its final shape, where the Islamic state was formed, where Islamic law took a more dominant role, and where numerous battles were planned and fought. Madīnah is replete with history of the nascent Islamic polity; it is an altogether different experience from Makkah – tranquil, and cooler in climate. Surely the Prophet's mosque is the most beautiful and most aesthetically complete in the world: hundreds of magnificent Cordoban arches of subtly different designs and colors provide decorum to the hugely extended mosque; lush carpets rich with color, beautiful scents, and spectacular marble flooring make up the recesses of the mosque, while open courtyards scatter the intramural, providing natural ventilation. This mosque is huge, over a thousand grand marble pillars support it, all arches extend in geometrically, perfect straight lines around a quarter of a mile long. Grand chandeliers provide constant lighting, while intricate calligraphy provides ample distraction to those wishing to decode it. The elaborate details one notices are countless and I can describe the mosque only as architecturally magnificent. Aside from the physical splendor, there is nothing more special in Madīnah than sending & ṣalāh upon the Messenger of Allāh in the knowledge that he rests in his grave just feet away. That perpetually busy one-way passage, leading past his grave and Riyadh-ul-Jannah, is where his chambers were during his life; in that vicinity the Companions prayed in the mosque; revelation descended; battles were planned; and on a more somber note, in that vicinity was where 'Umar and 'Uthmān were both assassinated, the former by a Persian non-Muslim, and the latter by proto-khariji insurgents. Awareness of all that and the impeccable condition of the mosque itself makes it unforgettable.

In both Makkah and Madīnah, the beauty of the adhān and Qurʾānic recitation – in the presence of the Ka'bah or the Prophet's mimbar,Raudat-ul-Jannah and his grave – utterly dominate and diminish the paler experiences one is used to in their homelands.

Tremendous money and thought has gone into the design and construction of these two sacred mosques, and since the sight, sound, smell and touch are looked after, the spiritual and aesthetic experiences are profound. There is no feeling comparable to worship in these two sanctuaries, intensified all the more in the knowledge that one's worship is amplified in reward by a ratio of 1:100,000 and by 1:1,000 in Makkah and Madīnah respectively.

This is the spiritual high of Hajj; many will feel it and write about it. Few, however, will make mention or write about the negative aspects of the Hajj experience, perhaps in the belief that this is poor etiquette, or reflects some degree of ingratitude to Allāh, or will detract from their reward. The negative aspects, however, tend to center around human activities and procedures, and so what follows below is strictly in the spirit of improving the spirituality of Hajj and the pilgrim's overall experience

Where in the past it may have been fabrications of Europeans that derided the Hajj – such as that by the Dominican friar Fabri who wrote in 1484 that Muslims in Makkah worship Venus, pelt stones 'backwards between their legs at the devil', come to see Muhammad's coffin hung in the air without rope or chain, and that the black stone is a statue of Saturn – I fear that today if the problems mentioned below are simply ignored or 'swept under the carpet' there is little hope for improvement. The risk of offering yet more ammunition to Islam's enemies and malefactors(10) is simply not acceptable.

The Lows

The profound experiences of worship described above are certainly not exaggerated. The supplications there are so much more thought out and sincere, the ritual prayers are done with so much more concentration, and the recitation of Qurʾān and dhikr are one's main preoccupation.

It is, however, with tremendous sadness that one encounters some shameful acts around the Ka'bah, and the reality of what lies outside the perimeters of the two holy mosques. It is only by speaking against it, this proverbial elephant in the room, that the less appealing aspect of this reality may be substituted for that which is better.

Masjid Haram

The serenity of ṭawāf from a distance is deceiving and none should be duped since the reality inside ṭawāf is considerably more violent. Large trains of people linking themselves together slice through crowds elbowing unsuspecting pilgrims in the ribs. Tempers flare, the young threaten to punch the old, and the old strike the young. Thieves (11) operate with knives slicing into bags; on one occasion while attempting to cut a bracelet off a lady's wrist, a thief sliced her radial artery – she bled out on the mosque's floor. Other women have had various body parts groped in crowds so thick that catching a breath devoid of someone else's perspiration or exhalation is just not possible. Those unfortunate enough to fall are every so often crushed by stampedes, especially near the black stone which is the most violent area in the mosque. Although to kiss it is merely desirable, the look in some eyes is unmistakably one of madness, as if one's soul will suffer eternal damnation without touching or kissing it. Women who do dare to venture near it risk having their scarves and over- clothes torn from their bodies and hair ripped by random hands appearing from between sweaty necks, yanking at anything within their grasp to hurl it out of the way. The heat and pressure is intense enough to cause some to pass out. I saw many men, fearing their ribs about to be crushed imminently, desperately pulling out and gasping for breath. All the while, astonishingly, Saudi police stand above the stone laughing and scoffing at the scenes of madness beneath them apparently enjoying the spectacle.

Quite frankly, there are too many people making ṭawāf. As a result, it is less an act of worship than it is an act of survival; an act just to be completed incident free. In 1964, Jalal Ahmad amusingly observed:

“Every time the good people return from circumambulation and sa'y (sic), it is as if they have just returned from the battle of Khaybar – some part of them is injured”(12)

Muslims are capable of bloodier feats still: in the time of the salaf in 683CE when the Prophetic Companion, 'Abdullāh b. al-Zubayr's plans to challenge the corrupt regime of Yazid b. Mu'āwiyah became known, an army from Damascus arrived. It lay siege to the Holy Mosque killing inhabitants and burning the Ka'bah (13), crumbling its walls, leaving it not fit for purpose, and smashing the black stone in to three pieces (14).

The number of people making ṭawāf nowadays is so vast, their patience so thin, and their manners so terrible that ṭawāf , especially in the inner circles, is a violent affair of pushes, prods, shoves, falls, and occasionally, trampling. Ironically it is the elderly that need to do the shorter circumambulations but it is they who are more susceptible to suffering in the inner circles. The closer one heads towards the Ka'bah the less safe it is especially for women and the elderly.

Swelling, uncontrollable Numbers

The number of pilgrims was a key preoccupation in my thoughts during Hajj since it was the most striking problem of the entire hajj experience, and the root cause of many of the problems mentioned in this account.

Makkah and its valley is a three dimensional space capable of holding only a finite number of pilgrims comfortably. Of course, one can make concessions and bear the burden of some hardships to enable more Muslims to perform pilgrimages, but there must exist a limit where no more pilgrims are allowed in for reasons of safety, basic standards of hygiene, health, and comfort, not to mention the strain on the Sacred Land (rubbish/waste, sewage, fuel emissions, air quality and other sorts of pollution etc). A survey of the numbers is shocking.

The Messenger of Allāh performed Hajj with around 40,000 Muslims according to two major ḥadīth scholars, Ibn Kathīr and Ibn al-ṣalāh (15). Muhammad Asad, who performed and documented one of his five pilgrimages in 1927, described innumerable pilgrims rammed together in ships and a sea of white in Makkah; but he was seeing no more than around 150,000 pilgrims. The famous British convert and confidant to Ibn Sa'ud, Harry St. John Philby, who incidentally was also responsible for mapping most of the Arabian Peninsula, kept detailed records for ten years and described that in 1931 only 40,000 people performed Hajj, a drop (due to war) from the high of 130,000(16). Data shows that throughout the 1970's the number of pilgrims fluctuated between 700,000 – 900,000, reaching the landmark of 1 million in 1983 (17). From 1996 – 2006 there are officially published Ministry of Hajj figures available(18):

In 2007 the official figures were quoted as follows:

“the Saudi Central Department of Statistics had announced Wednesday that the total number of pilgrims from this year's Hajj reached 2,454,325, (1,707,814 from outside of Saudi Arabia and 746,511 from within the kingdom)”19

But as with every year's official figures, there were additional pilgrims attending illegally: 'over- stayers' along with clandestine pilgrims who did not register. In 2009 these figures are said to be nearer 2.5-3.0 million pilgrims.

This rise in numbers is clearly exponential and writers such as Wolfe and others have put it down to the age of the jet engine. A family can be away from home for a matter of weeks and then return.  There are less concerns with having to worry about the family's subsistence and safety in one's absence and the ill too are able to endure a flight as opposed to weeks/months worth of journeying in times gone by.

1 See Bibliography

2 Q 3 : 96 Sūrah Āle-'Imrān

3 According to Mubarakpuri, it was first built by the Angels, and its foundations or building structure subsequently renovated by Adam, then by the Quraysh just before Muhammad became the Messenger of Allāh, & finally by Ibn Az-Zubayr [see Mubarakpuri, History of Makkah, p.30].

4 Maqdisi's description (ca.966CE) as cited by Wolfe p. XV; Michael Wolfe is a Muslim convert who collected a literary anthology on the Hajj inspired by his own pilgrimage.

5 Two major hadīth scholars, Ibn Kathīr & Ibn al-ṣalāh, concur that 40,000 people were present at the Farewell Hajj with the Prophet; see Ibn Kathir, 'The Life of the Prophet Muhammad'; Garnet 2000, volume 4, pages 193 & 20. & Ibn al-ṣalāh al-Shahrazuri, 'An Introduction to the Science of Hadith', Garnet (2006), Category 39, page. 214

6 Wolfe p.xvii

7 Wolfe p.xviii; bear in mind this figure is from around 1997

8 By this I mean those not resident in the Arabian peninsula or those Muslims who are not Gulf Arabs

9 Article: Hajj the fifth pillar of Islam, Haitham Haddad, 6/12/08, www.islam21c.com.

10 Some apostates have recently written savagely of Muslims in Hajj and recounted their negative experiences many of which can hardly be denied. Apostasy notwithstanding, it is necessary regardless to improve on areas where improvement is possible

11 Theft has been a problem for many years. Hamza Bogary wrote of the 1947 hajj that the tents were susceptible to thieves and when the hajj rites emptied the main town in Makkah 'khullaif' thieves would take advantage of the situation [Wolfe p.449]

12 Wolfe p.475

13 Peters p.60-61

14 Peters p.63

15 See footnote 5

16 Wolfe p.386; numbers dropped as a result of war.

17 Wolfe p.435-436 18 http://www.hajinformation.com/main/l.htm

19 Crossroads Arabia; http://xrdarabia.org/2007/12/23/how-many-attended-the-hajj/, accessed 1/2/10

Translated by Ammar AlShukry

An abridged translation of the work of Shaykh Umar Badahdah:  Part III

I. The Beginning Steps

II. Memorizing

III. Revising

IV. Tying It All Together

V. Differences

IV. Tying It All Together and Being Aware of Resembling Verses

Allāh says:

ٱللَّهُ نَزَّلَ أَحۡسَنَ ٱلۡحَدِيثِ كِتَـٰبً۬ا مُّتَشَـٰبِهً۬ا

Allāh has sent down the best statement, a Book (this Qurʾān), its parts resembling each other

[Sūrat'l-Zumar: 23]

There are many verses in the Qurʾān that resemble one another yet have slight differences, and the one who is memorizing must find a way to be able to differentiate when a similar verse appears in another place. There is no real method on how to remember which verse goes where, but it is up to every person to come up with any means that will enable them to get it right.

Though there is no single method on how to differentiate between resembling verses, there are a number of things one might pay attention to that are of benefit.

Of them are:

1) Knowing the exceptional cases – This is where a verse that is repeated one time in the Qurʾān in one way and numerous times in another. If you pay attention to the singular case and memorize it then you will know that every other case is going to be contrary to that.

Ex: Allāh says:

وَمَا أُهِلَّ بِهِ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ

This is the case in Sūrat'l-Baqarah, but in Sūrat'l-Mā'idah, Sūrat'l-An'ām and Sūrat'l-Naḥl the verse appears as:

وَمَا أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ

Therefore, keeping this exception in mind will help you in deciphering which āyah to read and when.

2) Knowing how to distinguish between resembling verses - Scholars have written books just on this matter where they brought forth different āyat that seemed similar and illustrated how they were different. It helps also to understand the meaning intended behind the verses as that will also allow you to comprehend why this word was used in this verse and why another was used in a verse that is otherwise the same. An example of this is in Sūrah Āle-'Imrān where Allāh, when discussing the story of Zakariyya 'alayhi'l-salām and his wife having a child in their old age, says:

قَالَ كَذَلِكَ اللَّهُ يَفْعَلُ مَا يَشَاءُ

Allāh doeth what He will.

When Allāh subḥānahu wa ta'āla gives Maryam 'alayhi'l-salām the same news of a child in the same sūrah, Allāh subḥānahu wa ta'āla says:

كَذَلِكِ اللَّهُ يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ

Allāh createth what He will

Why is one “Allāh does what He wills” and the other “Allāh creates what He wills”? Because in Zakariyya's case, the two components needed for the child were present, a man and woman. With regard to Maryam's case it was that of a woman without a husband, so here Allāh subḥānahu wa ta'āla said “He createth what He will”. Understanding the verses also helps with differentiation.

3) Understanding the meanings and contemplating over them

a) If one knows the themes that are discussed in the Sūrah and the sequence of those themes, then this is something that will aid them a lot in their ḥifẓ. For example, in Sūrat'l-Ra'd Allāh discusses first the signs that are in the heavens then the signs that are on the earth, and then He discussed the stance that the disbelievers took with regards to those signs, and then mentions His Knowledge. So if you are able to know the different parts of the sūrah and their sequence, then that can only aid you.

b) Some of the sūrahs have long stories in them like Sūrah Yūsuf, and if you know the story then you should be able to get the sequence correct. Also, in some sūrahs a lot of prophets are mentioned – for example in Sūrat'l-'Arāf , try to write down the order of the prophets in the surah so that when you are done with a prophet's story you are able to remember which one is coming up next.

c) Also knowing the juz and its quarters, knowing where one juz ends and the next begins, where the hizb begins and where it ends,  is very important. You can paint for each part of the juz a picture like, for example, in the first juz of Sūrat'l-Baqarah the first quarter has the story of Ādam 'alayhi'l-salām and the angels, the second quarter has the story of the Children of Israel and the Pharaoh, the third has the story of the cow, so for every quarter you have a picture that come forth in your mind. This technique is something that is a little tedious but it becomes easier with practice.

4) A general method of connecting verses – tying verses together by the method of memorization mentioned earlier.

V. DIFFERENCES

There is no doubt that people surpass each other with regards to the ability to memorize and availability of time. The principles that have already been mentioned are universal, they can be implemented by the young and old, student and working alike. However, some of the differences need to be elaborated on, and from them are:

1) Age – memorize while you are young if you can, and if you are older, then try to make up for it in your children so that you might benefit from them, inshā'Allāh. Memorizing with regards to children is free from problems such as resembling verses and things of that nature as they memorize without needing to understand. They don't have to contemplate the meanings of verses or understand them, and their memorization is strong.

2) Time and Distractions – choose the time that is most free from two things:

a) Free from distractions – meaning that you don't turn away from the ḥifẓ to anything else

b) That the time itself is purely for the memorization of the Qurʾān – turn off your phone or don't answer it, don't use that time for eating, do not use it for anything other than your goal of ḥifẓ. The best time for each person will be dependent on their schedule, and Allāh knows best about the circumstances of the people, but the best times seem to be two: after fajr and before going to sleep. These are the two most peaceful times of a person's day.

3) Schedule – Make memorizing the Qurʾān part of your daily routine. Just like it is impossible for you to go a day without praying your five prayers, without eating, and without sleeping, make memorizing the Qurʾān, even if it is only a small portion, part of your daily schedule.

Success Stories: From the Past and Present

From the Past:

Al-Dhahabi mentioned in Ma'rifatul Qura' Al-Kibar, that one of the qura had memorized the Qurʾān when he was five years old and completed all of the recitations of the Qurʾān when he was ten.

From the Present:

Sheikh Al-Dosary said about himself, “I memorized the Qurʾān in two months. I secluded myself from the people and locked myself in my office and did not go out except for the ṣalāh.”

A story from Shaykh Badahdah:

“I remember a story that I will conclude this lesson with. I will tell it to you now, about a man that I know, and he is still amongst us. He is a youth who is originally from Sudan. His father was studying in the U.S. and this brother was born there, so he was deserving of American citizenship. He studied university in the U.S. and received his Masters in Engineering and also entered a PhD program. Once, he was in the masjid or Islamic center that one of our brothers, who lives with us in this area, participates in. This brother had memorized most of the Qurʾān and had good tajwīd and a beautiful recitation. He used to lead them in prayer and he caught the Sudanese brother's attention. The brother said that he never heard the likeness of this good and sweet (recitation of the imām). 'So when I asked,' said the Sudanese brother, 'they told me that he had memorized twenty or twenty five, so I thought, “I am a Muslim and I did not memorize the Qurʾān, nor did I learn its recitation,” so I committed to memorizing it.' So what did this man do? He stopped his education and took a vacation, and came to the Kingdom (of Saudi Arabia), free to spend his time memorizing. He came saying that he wanted to memorize and to learn some of the matters with regards to Ḥadīth and some of the Islamic Sciences. He was sent to me by that brother who is our neighbor and I found him to have a serious concern and a high commitment.

He then went to Makkah to the Masjid'l-Ḥarām and got organized with some teachers who helped him so that he completed the memorization of the Qurʾān in 100 days, in Makkah. Most of his time was spent on ḥifẓ. After this, the Sudanese brother came back here and requested a teacher so that he may revise and recite the complete Qurʾān 10 or 20 times. I sent him to a halaqah of one of the outstanding teachers and I sent him to another teacher for tajwīd . Now he is committed to those classes, not missing a single day. He did not come except for this matter, and he does not use his time except for this matter, and he did not pause his education except for this matter. So it is all about the intention and the commitment inshā'Allāh, and Allāh is the one who blesses, helps and gives success.”

Translated by Ammar AlShukry

An abridged translation of the work of Shaykh Umar Badahdah:  Part III

I. The Beginning Steps
II. Memorizing
III. Revising
IV. Tying It All Together
V. Differences
IV. Tying It All Together and Being Aware of Resembling Verses

 
Allāh says:

ٱللَّهُ نَزَّلَ أَحۡسَنَ ٱلۡحَدِيثِ كِتَـٰبً۬ا مُّتَشَـٰبِهً۬ا

Allâh has sent down the best statement, a Book (this Qur'ân), its parts resembling each other

[Az-Zumar: 23]

There are many verses in the Quran that resemble one another yet have slight differences, and the one who is memorizing must find a way to be able to differentiate when a similar verse appears in a another place. There is no real method on how to remember which verse goes where, but it is up to every person to come up with any means that will enable them to get it right.

Though there is no single method on how to differentiate between resembling verses, there are a number of things one might pay attention to that are of benefit.

Of them are:

1) Knowing the exceptional cases – where a verse that is repeated one time in the Quran in one way, and numerous times in another. If you pay attention to the singular case and memorize it then you will know that every other case is going to be contrary to that.

Ex: Allāh says:

وَمَاأُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ

This is the case in Surah Albaqarah, but in Surah AlMaidah and Surah AlAn'aam and Surah AlNahl the verse appears as:

وَمَا أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ اللَّهِ

Therefore, keeping this exception in mind will help you in deciphering which ayah to read, and when.

2) Knowing how to distinguish between resembling verses - scholars have written books just on this matter where they brought forth different ayahs that seemed similar and illustrated how they were different. It helps also to understand the meaning intended behind the verses as that will also allow you to comprehend why this word was used in this verse and why another was used in a verse that is otherwise the same. An example of this is in Surah Al-Imran where Allāh, when discussing the story of Zakariyyah and his wife having a child in their old age, says:

قَالَ كَذَلِكَ اللَّهُ يَفْعَلُ مَا يَشَاءُ

Allāh doeth what He will.

When Allāh gives Maryam the same news of a child in the same surah Allāh says:

كَذَلِكِ اللَّهُ يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ

Allāh createth what He will

Why is one Allāh does what He wills and the other Allāh creates what He wills? Because in Zakariyyah's case the two components needed for the child were present, a man and women. With regard to Maryam's case it was that of a woman without a husband so here Allāh said “He createth what He will”. So understanding the verses also helps with differentiation.

3) Understanding the meanings and Contemplating over them

a) If one knows the themes that are discussed in the Surah and the sequence of those themes then this is something that will aid them a lot in their hifz. For example in Surah AlRa'ad Allāh discusses first the Signs that are in the heavens then the signs that are on the earth, and then He discussed the stance that the disbelievers took with regards to those Signs, then mentions His Knowledge. So if you are able to know the different parts of the surah and their sequence then that can only aid you.

b) Some of the Surahs have long stories in them, like Surah Yusuf if you know the story then you should be able to get the sequence correct. Also in some Surahs a lot of prophets are mentioned – for example in like in Surah Al-A'raf, try to write down the order of the prophets in that Surah so that when you are done with a prophet's story you are able to remember which one is coming up next.

c) Also knowing the juz and its quarters, knowing where one juz ends and the next begins, where the hizb begins and where it ends, this is very important. You can paint for each part of the juz a picture like for example in the first juz of Surah AlBaqarah, the first quarter has the story of Adam and the angels, the second quarter has the story of the Children of Israel and the Pharaoh, the third has the story of the cow, so for every quarter you have a picture that come forth in your mind. This technique is something that is a little tedious but it becomes easier with practice.

4) A general method of connecting verses – tying verses together by the method of memorization mentioned earlier.

V. DIFFERENCES

There is no doubt that people surpass each other with regards to the ability to memorize and availability of time. The principles that have already been mentioned are universal, they can be implemented by the young and old, student and working alike. However some of the differences need to be elaborated on and from them are:

1) Age – memorize while you are young if you can, and if you are older than try to make up for it in your children that you might benefit from them, insha Allāh. Memorizing with regards to children is free from problems such as resembling verses and things of that nature as they memorize without needing to understand. They don't have to contemplate the meanings of verses or understand them, and their memorization is strong.

2) Time and Distractions – choose the time that is most free from two things

a) Free from distractions – meaning that you don't turn away from the Hifdh to anything else

b) That the time itself is purely for the Memorization of the Quran – turn off your phone or don't answer it, don't use that time for eating, do not use it for anything other than your goal of Hifdh. The best time for each person will be dependent on their schedule, and Allāh knows best about the circumstances of the people, but the best times seems to be two: after fajr and before going to sleep. They are the two most peaceful times of a person's day.

3) Schedule – Make memorizing the Quran part of your daily routine. Just like it is impossible for you to go a day without praying your five prayers, without eating, without sleeping, make memorizing the Quran, even if it is only a small portion, part of your daily schedule.

Success Stories: From the Past and Present

From the Past:

Al-Dhahabi mentioned in Ma'rifatul Qura' AlKibar, that one of the Qura had memorized the Quran when he was five years old, and completed all of the recitations of the Quran when he was ten.

From the Present:

Sheikh AlDosary said about himself, “I memorized the Quran in two months. I secluded myself from the people and locked myself in my office and did not go out except for the ṣalāh.

A story from Sheikh Badahdah:

“I remember a story that I will conclude this lesson with. I will tell it to you now, about a man that I know, and he is still amongst us. He is a youth who is originally from Sudan. His father was studying in the U.S. and this brother was born there, so he was deserving of American citizenship. He studied university in the U.S. and received his Masters in Engineering and also entered a PhD program. Once, he was in the masjid, or Islamic center, that one of our brothers, who lives with us in this area, participates in. This brother had memorized most of the Quran and had good tajweed and a beautiful recitation. He used to lead them in prayer and he caught the Sudanese brother's attention. The brother said that he never heard the likeness of this good and sweet (recitation of the Imam). “So when I asked,” said the Sudanese brother, “they told me that he had memorized twenty or twenty five, so I thought, 'I am a Muslim and I did not memorize the Quran, nor did I learn its recitation', so I committed to memorizing it.” So what did this man do? He stopped his education and took a vacation, and came to the Kingdom (of Saudi Arabia), free to spend his time memorizing. He came saying that he wanted to memorize and to learn some of the matters with regards to Hadith and some of the Islamic Sciences. He was sent to me by that brother who is our neighbor and I found him to have a serious concern and a high commitment.

He then went to Makkah to the Haram and got organized with some teachers who helped him so that he completed the memorization of the Quran in 100 days, in Makkah. Most of his time was spent on Hifdh. After this, the Sudanese brother came back here and requested a teacher so that he may revise and recite the complete Quran 10 or 20 times. I sent him to a Halaqa of one of the outstanding teachers and I sent him to another teacher for tajweed. Now, he is committed to those classes, not missing a single day. He did not come except for this matter, and he does not use his time except for this matter, and he did not pause his education except for this matter. So it is all about the intention and the commitment inshā'Allāh, and Allāh is the one who blesses, helps and gives success.”