(To be continued …
Allah The Almighty, out of His great favor and bounty on us, has made our creed and Sharee'ah (Islamic law) the main sources for disciplining the soul, reforming it and elevating it to the grades of perfection and sublimity. Belief in Allah The Almighty is enough to make the soul stand in awe of the greatness and majesty of Allah The Almighty. Belief in the angels teaches us how to observe watchfulness over our selves. Contemplating the meanings of the beautiful Names of Allah and His sublime Attributes urges the soul to feel the closeness of The All-Hearer, The All-Knowledgeable and The All-Seeing. Thereafter, it can never incline to misdeeds or sins. Similarly, the meanings of His Names, The All-Wise, The All-Knowledgeable and The All-Acquainted keep despair away from us. This is in addition to other aspects of magnificence and glory derived from the Names and Attributes of Allah, The Grand, The Exalted, which are worthy of being studied and pondered over by Muslim scholars.
In Islam, the noble Sharee'ah has the same sublime effect of the creed. While prayer forbids immorality and evil and trains one to be organized and punctual, Zakah teaches giving, offering and purification of the soul, and fasting teaches all aspects of patience and uniquely unites the feelings of the Muslim community. Although this principle is general with all acts of worship, it is more apparent and clearer with the great worship of Hajj. Hajj is an act of worship that was consecutively practiced by prophets and righteous people, and the Muslims' longing to perform it will last until the command of Allah comes to end this world. Hajj is an opportunity to purify oneself of sins and misdeeds, just as he was on the day of his birth, as the Prophet, , said in an authentic Hadeeth.
The following are some of the disciplinary effects of Hajj on both the individual and communal levels:
1 – Grounding and confirming Tawheed in the souls:
This contributes to achieving sincerity, which is the first prerequisite for valid and accepted worship. A person must dedicate his Hajj solely for the sake of Allah, Who Says (what means):
{And completeHajj and ‘Umrah for Allah.} [Quran 2: 196]
{So avoid the uncleanliness of idols and avoid false statement, Inclining [only] to Allah, not associating [anything] with Him.}[Quran 22: 30-31]
Talbiyah which is the slogan of Hajj, explicitly states that worship has to be solely dedicated to Allah Alone: "Labbayka Allahumma labbayk. Labbayka la shareeka laka labbayk (O Allah, I answer Your Call, there is no partner with You)."
2 – Grounding and confirming compliance:
Compliance with the sayings, deeds and tacit approvals of the Prophet, , is the second prerequisite for valid and accepted worship. During Hajj, one dedicates himself to following only the example of the Prophet, , and saves himself the evil of polytheism in obedience, innovation in religion, adopting deviant practices and following evil inclinations. The rituals of Hajj are not valid unless they are done in the same way the Prophet, , did them.
3 – Disassociating oneself from the polytheists and contradicting them:
This is required under Sharee'ah. The Prophet, , contradicted the polytheists in several rituals of Hajj, such as assuming Ihraam for ‘Umrah during the season of Hajj, Talbiyah, standing at ‘Arafaat, departing Muzdalifah, and so on. Many Muslims today are heedless of the invading enemy and they are fond of imitating its most wicked men and women even in mundane matters, let alone vicious deeds and evil morals. It is time we take a lesson from this aspect of the Hajj.
4 – Honoring the Symbols of Allah:
One of the most prominent purposes and rationales behind Hajj is getting the slave of Allah used to honor, exalt and love His symbols. One has to fear violating or going against the prohibitions of Allah The Almighty. The extent of exaltation and surrender get greater when a person leaves his head uncovered in compliance with the command of Allah The Almighty. In the course of the Quranic verses relevant to Hajj, Allah Says (what means): {That [is so]. And whoever honors the symbols of Allah - indeed, it is from the piety of hearts.}[Quran 22: 32]