Hajj is the pilgrimage Muslims take to Mecca.

GCSE Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)

Laura Young
10Q RS

GCSE Coursework: Hajj

Hajj is the pilgrimage Muslims take to Mecca, which is in Saudi Arabia. Hajj is one of the five pillars and is done once in a lifetime, provided you are fit, healthy and can afford it, unlike the other pillars which are done daily weekly or annually by everyone.

Hajj Takes place on the 8th day of Dhul-hijah, which is the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar. Muslims can go at other times of the year, but this is not counted as Hajj it is called Umrah, which means lesser pilgrimage.

The definition of the word Hajj is to set out with definite purpose. This definite purpose is to fulfil their duty to Allah. It is written in the Qu’ran that all Muslims must go on the Hajj, and it is a test of commitment to Allah.

There are four main stages of the hajj: at Mina, Marwa & Safa, the Mount of Mercy, and at the Ka’ba, each has its own belief and origin about it.

Before Muslims begin their pilgrimage around Mecca, they must enter a state of purity known as Ihram, this shows purity and equality between all Muslims. Ihram literally means Consecration or dedication to holy things. This means that all Muslims are equal in Allah’s eyes therefore they should be willing to do anything for him.

The first stage of The Hajj is at the Ka’ba; it stands in the courtyard of the great mosque. Muslims walk around this at a very fast pace seven times, anticlockwise, this symbolises love for God and is called Tawaf. The belief is that Adam was sent down from heaven and he walked until he got to Arabia, where god let down the Ka’ba for him to pray, The Ka’ba is now known as the house of God. There is also a black stone in the Southeast corner of the courtyard, which pilgrims try to touch or kiss this also shows love for God.

The pilgrims then move on, for a short visit to Mina, before returning there two days later to stone the devil, which is explained later on.

The second main stage of The Hajj is Marwa and Safa, two hills concealed within glass domes and joined by a very long corridor, Muslims run along the corridor between the hills seven times to empathise with how Hajar felt when she searched for water to feed her son Ishma’il. Hajar, eventually, after running between these hills seven times, saw an angel pointing at a sudden gush of water. Hajar named this gush of water the spring ZamZam, which means ‘Stop Stop’ because this is where he stopped when he found the water. This is known as Sa’i. This shows that God will never let you down and he will always be there when you need him.

On the ninth day of Dhul-hijah, all pilgrims go to the Plain of Arafat. This is the third, and most important stage of the hajj, it is where pilgrims assess themselves and pray for forgiveness, to be able to make a new start in life. The belief of this is that they are standing before Allah on the Mount of Mercy, just as they would on the final Judgement Day. This is also said to be where God reunited Adam and Eve and where they begged for forgiveness and to be cleansed of their sins. This is ...

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The pilgrims then begin to move to Muzdalifah, a place in between Arafat and Mina. This is where pilgrims say their prayers together and collect their pebbles, which they will need, to stone the devil.

The fourth, and final stage of The Hajj is where the pilgrims throw stones at three pillars. This action comes from when Allah told Ibrahim to sacrifice his son, Ibrahim was just about to do it when Satan (the devil), tempted Ibrahim to disobey Allah. Ibrahim resisted the temptation and again was just about to sacrifice is son, when Allah provided a ram and told him to sacrifice this instead. The three pillars represent the Devil and throwing stones shows that they can resist their temptation to disobey Allah. Some Muslims throw the stones to show that they can resist the temptation of the Devil, whereas others throw the stones at the devil for tempting Ibrahim in the first place. The sacrificing of the ram is also remembered and all Muslims will sacrifice an animal in Id-ul-Adha, which means festival of sacrifice.

After Muslims have completed the Hajj, they will usually go to visit Medina, to pay their respects to the prophet’s tomb, although they do not have to do this and it is not counted as part of the Hajj, there is also a belief that there is a space there for Jesus in his second coming.

When Muslims have completed the Hajj, women become known as Hajja, and men Hajji. They can go home, with a feeling of cleanliness, they are now sin free. Muslims will say that they are ‘leaving with a prayer on their lips’. The pilgrims have now fulfilled their duty to God.

What Islam teaches about wealth and poverty changes how a Muslim behaves, because they are influenced by many things around them.

Their main source if authority is the Qur’an – the Muslim holy book, and the Hadith – a report of Muhammad’s life. These books influence most Muslim beliefs.

The main belief about money is that all money belongs to Allah; Muslims are stewards to his money. This means that because they do not actually own the money they use, they must only use it wisely.

In the Qu’ran it says that Muslims must complete all of the 5 pillars. The third pillar is Zakah; this is where Muslims must give 2.5% of their wealth to the poor each year. Zakah actually means ‘purification’. Giving Zakah cleanses you from greed. The Hadith says: ‘an ignorant person who is generous, is nearer to Allah, than a person full of prayer who is miserly.’ This tells us that Allah likes generous people. Generosity is everything to him. This makes Muslims want to be more generous, so they also do good deeds more regularly. These good deeds are done for the sake of Allah, and are called Sadaqah. These good deeds can be anything from giving money, to passing a smile.

Zakah and Sadaqah are all examples of giving and sharing. This is because in the Hadith it says: ‘He is not a believer who eats his fill, while his neighbour remains hungry by his side’ this means that you should share everything. Everyone is equal under Allah’s eyes, so why should they not be physically equal? It is also a test of commitment to Allah so that he can see if you are using his money wisely.

Sawm is the 4th pillar of Islam. It is the pillar of fasting during daylight hours of Ramadan. Muslims say that this is the thing that helps them to identify most with the poor. This month long fast is followed by Id ul Fitr - the festival of fast breaking, Muslims are expected to give generously to the poor. This donation is called Zakah ul Fitr but is not compulsory.

Another Muslim belief about wealth is that all money must be earned by fair means. Therefore meaning that gambling is forbidden because if you were to win, the money would be unclean. If you were to lose the money you had gambled, it would mean that you had not used Allah’s money wisely.

Muslims also believe that you came in the world with nothing therefore you should leave it with nothing. There is no point hanging on to your possessions. The Hadith quotes: ‘if you possessed all the gold in the earth, you could not buy your place in the hereafter with it’. This is saying that you can’t buy happiness with any possessions and you will not get a better place in the after-life, if you were wealthy.

Muslims are expected to give generously and be kind, regularly. The Qu’ran teaches that every Muslim has a duty to care for those in need, and all humans are special creations of Allah. They have been sent down to earth to carry out Allah’s work and provide for all people.

Muslims may differ in whom they give to and how they give, but they are all commanded to give regularly and generously.

Living as part of the Ummah in Britain can be tricky for many Muslims, and there are many hurdles that need to be overcome.

Some people say that it is impossible for Muslims to follow their religion faithfully in Britain, because a big temptation could be fast breaking too early. Saum would be hard because others around you would be eating normally, at various times of the day. During Saum Muslims cannot eat during daylight hours, therefore they would naturally be hungry throughout the day.

Not eating during Ramadan can aswell as hunger, cause other problems such as children may become restless or sleepy when they are at school. In Muslim majority countries, school hours would be swapped to more convenient times.

On the other hand, the whole point of Saum (fasting) is resisting the temptation. It is a test of commitment to Allah. The harder you resist against temptation, the stronger your commitment to Allah.

Another thing that could make it hard for Muslims to follow their religion faithfully is Salah (prayer). Praying five times a day at set times could be inconvenient, at work or at school. Salah is one of the pillars, which means that it has to be done; so missing it out through inconvenience is not an option.

Even though Salah cannot be missed out through choice, if someone really cannot pray, as long as they are there in their mind, Allah will make an exception. This is called ‘Niyah’, which means ‘intention’. As long as you mean to pray at the time, you can make up for it later.

Muslims say that the hardest thing for them living in Britain is materialism. Everyone living in Britain is very materialistic; therefore it is hard to resist the temptation to copy. The Hadith says: ‘if you possessed all the gold on the earth, you could not buy your place in the hereafter with it’. This is Allah saying that you do not need material possessions; it destroys the moral basis of the society we live in.

In conclusion to this, I think that it will be harder, but not impossible for a Muslim to follow their religion faithfully while living in Britain. Compulsory tasks may be difficult but they are not impossible as these tasks are a test of commitment to Allah. A ‘Muslim’ is someone whose life is submitted to Allah. If they do not want to do these things, then they should not be Muslims.