Hag, Haaaj, or Hajj
November 20, 2009
I laugh every time I hear people say hag. Of course, usually Egyptians say it this way. But, you’ll find other variations like haaaaj (with with the softest ’j' sound you’ve ever heard. I like to use the Quranic way – hajj (you say the ’jj’ sound as if you a truck is stopping abrubtly.) Some people think I’m mispronouncing it.
The point is not how you say it but what it means. It’s the second home for Muslims. Even if you’ve never been there (like me), it’s always in your heart like it’s your connection to God. Most people who go say it’s the best journey they made in their lives. This might be scary but many say it feels like the Day of Judgement. Two million or more people jammed packed in a small area all walking and driving to another area for days.
A place and time where you feel that nothing wordly matters – at all. All you are worrying about is making the most of your time and seeking rewards from Allah. A place where Prophet Adam (a.s.) built the kaaba and later Prophet Abraham (a.s.) rebuilt it with his son Prophet Ishmael (a.s.).
There are so many aspects that I can revel about but the one that I think about often is how organized Allah made our religion. I mean, if you left it up to the Muslims, there’s now way in —- that they could organize anything even remotely close to this. (If you’re Muslim, you know what I”m talking about.) But Islam has all of these things built into it.
Who else can get over two million people from every country in the world to gather in one place, doing the same rituals and feeling so inspired in a place where not a single iota of violence is tolerated?
Astonishing.
There are a small minority of non-Muslims lurking on the internet, huffing and puffing because Makkah is a private area only for Muslims. But you know, the funny thing is, I bet those same people wouldn’t step into Saudia Arabia if I paid them. My answer to these people is that just like I’m not allowed to walk into anyone’s private property, non-authorized people are not allowed to enter this area of Saudia Arabia because it’s private property of the Muslims. If you really want to go, there always is a way. 
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photo credit: Al Jazeera English
Hajj days start this Tuesday
November 15, 2009
Most likely, Eid Al-Adha is going to fall on November 27, 2009. That means the best 10 days of the year are from November 17-26. If you are reading this now, most likely you are not going for Hajj this year but you still can get blessings by:
- Fasting
- Saying subhan Allah wal Alhamdulillah, wa La illah illah Allah wa Allahu akbar
- Doing extra voluntary deeds of prayer, charity, sacrifice an animal etc.
- Repentance
- Dhikr
In the coming days, I plan to write some more about Hajj, but for now, this is a nice video to get in the mood for 10 best days:
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Footnotes:
Hajj – pilgrimage to the first house of God built by Prophet Abraham and his son
Subhan Allah – glory be to God
Alhamdu liillah – all praise (and thanks) be to God
La illah illah Allah – there is no object worthy of worship except God
Allahu akbar – God is the greatest
Dhikr – remembrance of God
Greece featured in Euro Eid coverage
December 4, 2008
The widely respectable news portal, IslamOnline.net, has been gracious enough to work with us to regularly include Greece in their Euro section so I was happy to see our community member, Anna Stamou, featured in their article today, “EU Muslims: Does `Eid Make You a Well-Integrated Muslim?” Congratulations Anna.
Excerpt:
In Europe, Muslims also celebrate `Eid, but celebration should fulfill the necessity of integration and strengthen the spirit of solidarity among the Muslim community.
As a European Muslim, how does `Eid make you a well-integrated Muslim, and how can you celebrate `Eid as a Muslim in a non-Muslim country? How can `Eid add to both your European and Muslim identity?
Anna Stamou, Greece
Celebrating ‘Eid in Athens is not like being in a Muslim country of course, yet, we feel the joy of ‘Eid with hundreds of thousands of Muslims in our home city. A few days before ‘Eid, we get into the festive mood by decorating the Olympic stadium in Athens, where Muslims of many colours and nationalities attend the prayer lead by a famous guest from abroad, a different one each year.
After the prayer, we give presents to the children that make their presence so vivid with their yells and laughter. It’s a rare chance to meet people we hardly see throughout the year, shake hands, and give wishes. People then split into groups and have festive lunches in their houses, exchanging visits and giving presents to their children. Many prefer not to sacrifice the lambs in Greece but they give the money to an organization that sends the money to the orphans of Palestine where meat is hard to come by.
I personally have no experience of celebrating ‘Eid in a Muslim country but the feeling in Athens is often isolated because the festive atmosphere is restricted to the stadium and houses. On the other hand, non-Muslim neighbours are always happy when there is a happy occasion because this is part of Greek culture and often participate by tasting different recipes and observing how Muslims celebrate. It is very usual to have both Muslims and non-Muslims at our festive tables.
10 days more blessed than Ramadan – starts TODAY
November 28, 2008
With Eid Al-Adha coming up, here are some actions you can do during this time for those who are not perfoming hajj:
- Fasting
- Saying subhan Allah wal Alhamdulillah, wa La illah illah Allah wa Allahu akbar
- Extra voluntary deeds of prayer, charity, sacrifice an animal etc.
- Repentance
- Dhikr
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