MOUNT ARAFAT, Saudi Arabia: Mufti-e-Azam Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin Abdullah delivered hajj sermon in Masjid-e-Nimra at Mount Arafat on Monday, urging Muslims to be united and practice Islam.
Addressing millions of Hajj pilgrims, the grand mufti said “the Holy Quran is an ultimate guidance for the entire humanity which should be implemented and acted on.”
“Oh Muslims be God-fearing, adopt the taqwa (fear of Allah), shun from earning money through unislamic means, hold fast the rope of Allah and don’t be divided into diverse schools of thoughts, get united against injustice,” the chief mufti urged hundreds of thousands of Hajis.
Some three million pilgrims poured out of the Muslim holy city of Mecca on Sunday to begin the annual hajj.
After spending a night in Mina tent city, around 3 million Muslims gathered at Mount Arafat to perform Wuquf-e-Arafat, the main rituals of the Haj, near the holy city of Makkah in Saudi Arabia.
Wearing the simple white folds of cloth prescribed for haj, pilgrims in Mina spend their night in camps before heading to the plain of Arafat in early hours of Monday.
WUQUF-E-ARAFAT
Arafat is the most important part of the Hajj. It is a reminder of the Day of Judgement, where Muslims believe mankind will stand on a similar plain, in scorching heat, waiting for judgement.
It is also a reminder of another scene on the Day of Judgement. All humans will be grouped together with those of similar belief, just as those in Hajj often group together according to country, city and language.
Muslims spend the entire day in Arafat, praying to God and thinking over the purpose of their lives. It is an extremely emotional time.
Haj must be performed at least once in their lifetime by all Muslims capable of making the expensive, difficult journey, a duty that applies equally to Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims.
RAMI OF JAMARAT (STONING THE DEVIL)
After sunset, the pilgrims will head to Muzdalifah, between Mina and Arafat, where they will collect stones to throw at the devil, one of the last rituals which will take place on Tuesday commencing the Eid-ul-Azha.
The symbolic “stoning of the devil” at the Jamarat (pillars) in Mina is followed by the ritual of sacrificing an animal.
During the remaining three days of the Hajj, the pilgrims continue the stoning ritual before performing the circumambulation of the Kaaba shrine in Mecca.
The Saudi government has deployed thousands of troops to ensure the safety of the pilgrims, with massive medical and civil defence arrangements for smooth movement of the pilgrims.
