My first Haj — a spiritual journey

After having performed the Haj I can say it was a well-planned strategy as I had set working on my travel plans in the earlier part of the year by paying the full amount to the travel agent in Mumbai who has promised me 45 days of blissful stay in Saudi Arabia but then cut it down to 30 days citing the reason of the much-hyped quota issue allotted to private tour operators in the country.
After a couple of trips to the city to complete the visa process and the last moment shopping for Ihram (two-piece unstitched cloth) and other accessories like the waist belt, odorless soap etc from the Crawford market in the first week of October, I boarded the Saudi Arabian airline’s early morning flight to Jeddah along with a group of 200.
Having changed into the Ihram at the airport for Haj Al Tamatu (performing the Umrah prior to Haj) it was easy to pass the Miqat (starting point for Umrah) which was announced by the captain as many rushed to do so on board. Soon on landing at the Haj Terminal we were administered polio drops and even a tablet to swallow despite having been vaccinated before. Taking this in good stride we boarded the bus to Makkah.
Soon after depositing the baggage in the hotel room, which was at a stone’s throw from Masjid Al-Haram we headed straight toward the Kaaba whose first site was emotion-filled with tears in the eyes as you make the dua (supplication) for yourself as well as for those who asked you to do so prior to your departure.
Having arrived a month before the Haj days I had the opportunity of performing four Umrahs and a number of tawafs or circumambulations of the Holy Kaaba on different days and timings to avoid the rush which went on building up as the days to Haj came closer.
One was forced to do the tawaf from the first and second floor, which included Tawaf-e-Ziarah and Tawaf Alwida. Surprisingly, many opted to complete 50 tawafs during their stay which they said they had read in some books but on inquiry I found there was no such condition stipulated.
During our long stay, the tour took us to Madinah for a nine-day trip, which was very fulfilling due to the serenity of the place. Again, the hotel here too was close to the Prophet’s Mosque where we went to pray.
Our site trip took us to various ancient mosques having high religious significance as they were visited, and even some established by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), as well as the rugged mountains and the desert landscape, which the pilgrims traversed in the earlier centuries. We also saw the vacant Mina tents which awaited visitors for the annual ritual.
The best part of taking the first flight to Makkah was that you could see and feel the build-up to the actual five days of Haj.
With the advent of Haj days, cabbies raised their fares exorbitantly going up from SR2 to SR50 and even SR100 per person while a pillion ride on motor bikes cost SR150, and as advised by second-time visitors, there was no point in bargaining if you had to complete your rites.
The actual five days of the Haj ritual which coincides with the Eid holidays, were challenging and tested our nerves but then seeing the old pilgrims in wheelchairs and a few half-bent and walking with sticks sent your adrenaline rushing. On the first day of Haj, you leave your hotel room with a back-pack of necessities and head toward Mina to camp out during the finale to the Haj where men and women are segregated.
The Mina camp site with the Jamarat or pillars symbolizing the Satan in the background is a site to behold as the otherwise quite camp comes alive with millions of pilgrims, even some squatting on bridges and hills. The major fear here was not to default in any of the rites as you have to sacrifice a goat in expiation. What astonished me in Mina was the tea pipeline that supplied piping hot tea to thousands of pilgrims through a line of taps.
The first day in Mina is hurriedly followed by a mid-night rush to the Plains of Arafat where again we camp out in simple tents and pray the whole day long, sometimes out in the sun, and head off before sunset to Muzdalifah for an overnight stay in the open. It was here that we had to walk over 2.5 kilometers to reach the place as the buses refused to move and the driver deserted us in the middle of the night.
Thankfully, we managed to board another bus whose driver took us round for six hours before dropping us at our camp in Mina. Once again we had to show patience which is an important prerequisite of the Haj ritual and had to bear the brunt without complaining or fighting with anyone as it is said that you accumulate multiples of sins if you err just like you get your rewards manifold for your prayers and good deeds. Also, you have to first forgive others who have wronged you in life and then ask for forgiveness for yourself.
The Haj ritual concluded with the stoning of the Satan on the 3rd day of Haj after which you sacrifice a goat or a sheep and then head off to shave your head (it was the fifth one for me) and you come out of your Ihram which required you to abstain from using perfume, soap, toothpaste (the table salt came to my rescue as I found it difficult to use miswak stick).
Now you were left with two more days of stoning the Satan where you could see the actual crowds but the praise here goes to the Saudi authorities for building the multi-storied premises with various broad access and exit roads and full-blast ACs to cool down temperatures of the excited pilgrims who in the past indulged in throwing their footwear too along with the pebbles and caused chaos leading to stampede. No wonder the Haj this year was accident-free and a very successful one.
As I boarded my flight to Mumbai I recalled my Haj days, which was very rewarding spiritually.