Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all who can afford a way to it. And whoever refuses (the obligation of Pilgrimage) or is ungrateful to God (by not fulfilling this command), God is absolutely independent of all creatures. (Al Imran 3:97)

The fifth and the last of the five pillars of Islam, the Hajj, is observed by a journey to Mecca to join the largest human assembly on earth. The Hajj is a sacred journey from the mundane to the spiritual and it is a reminder that we are on a journey in this world. The Hajj is a believer's full submission and universal prayer, where believers shed their normal dress and put on plain clothing, until all those present resemble each other in piety and humility. It is best described in the words pilgrims chant while circumambulating the Ka'ba (the large rectangular structure):

Here I am, O God, here I am, at your service.

You have no partner. Yours is all praise and gratitude, and yours all dominion.

You have no partner. (talbiyyah)

. . . "Our Lord, grant us in the world what is good, and in the Hereafter what is good, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire." (Baqara 2:201)

When the Ka'ba was a built a second time after Adam, by the Prophet Abraham and his son Ishmael, peace be upon them, God ordered Abraham to call humanity to glorify Him by visiting His House (Baytullah). This call is incumbent upon all Muslims who can afford it once in a lifetime.

Remember when We assigned to Abraham the site of the House (Ka'ba) as a place of worship, (directing him): "Do not associate any partners with Me in any way, and keep My House pure (from any material and spiritual filth) for those who will go round it in devotion, and those who will stand in prayer before it, and those who will bow down and prostrate themselves in worship. Publicly proclaim the (duty of) Pilgrimage for all humankind, that they come to you on foot and on lean camels, coming from every far-away point, . . ." (Hajj 22:26-27)

The Hajj is a turning point in the spiritual development of believers. By visiting the Ka'ba, the first place of worship built under the order of God, a pilgrim meets Adam, the father of mankind; feels the joy a wayfarer feels as he returns home; witnesses that the worldly qualities like race, nobility, wealth, status, beauty, youth are nothing but vanishing and temporary titles. He will observe humanity rehearsing momentarily an episode from the Day of Resurrection, when we will have to answer to our Lord for all we have done in life. This is why the Ka'ba becomes "a fixture and maintenance" for humanity, most of whom adopt an even more virtuous life after the Hajj.

God has made the Ka'ba, the Sacred House, a fixture and maintenance for the people. (Maidah 5:97)

Bediüzzaman Said Nursi describes the Hajj as follows:

The Hajj is an act of worship at a most comprehensive level. It is the key that opens up many degrees of the Divine universal Lordship's manifestation to pilgrims. It reveals horizons of Divine Grandeur that they otherwise would not see. The ensuing awe and amazement, feelings of majesty in front of Divine Lordship (caused by the spheres of worship and servanthood), and levels of ever-unfolding displays to their hearts and imaginations (brought on by viewing the Hajj's rites) can be quieted only by repeating: "God is the Greatest." Only this phrase can announce such degrees of manifestations to humanity. (The Sixteenth Word, 4th Ray)

A short description of the rites

Briefly defined, the Hajj is a set of rituals performed in Mecca and certain sacred precincts around it, in the first two weeks of Dhul Hijjah (the twelfth month of the Muslim calendar). The pilgrim enters the holy land in a state of ihram, i.e. with the intention to perform the visit while observing certain rules. The rites performed during the Hajj, in fact, predate the seventh century when the religion was given its final form. During the Hajj, pilgrims commemorate the reunion of the Prophet Adam and Eve and their forgiveness at the plain of Arafat and on the Mount of Mercy, while walking the same path between the hills of Safa and Marwa as Hagar, the Prophet Abraham's wife, while she desperately searched for water for her son Ishmael.

In greater detail, the Hajj includes the following rites:

·        Ihram: Getting into the state of ihram and doing nothing that is forbidden during the time of the Hajj (sexual intercourse, disputing, wearing any clothes that have been stitched together, killing any animal, cutting any green grass or trees). Men wear a ritual garment made of two pieces of white seamless fabric.

·        Waqfa: Staying in Arafat until sunset on Dhu'l-Hijja 9, the eve of Eid al-Adha (the Festivity of Sacrifice). Staying in Muzdalifa between dawn and sunrise on the Eid al-Adha for at least one hour. Muzdalifa is located about 20 kilometers from Mecca and 10 kilometers from Arafat.

·        Tawaf: The seven circuits of the Ka'ba.

·        Sa'y: a rapid walk between the hills of Safa and Marwa near the Ka'ba.

·        Jamarat: Throwing seven pebbles at each of three stone columns (jamarat) in Mina where the Prophet Abraham rejected Satan.

·        Sacrificing a sheep any time within three days after throwing pebbles on the first day of Eid al-Adha, and shaving or cutting some of their hair within Mecca's sacred precincts. Women only clip a little of their hair.