Wednesday 10 August 2016

Hajj Recap - Power Guide - Part 2

Following up on my previous post Hajj Recap - Power Guide - Part 1, in this post I will jot down my remaining Hajj experience.

Arafat - 9th Zilhajj - THE DAY OF ARAFAH

We woke up for Fajr, took a bath, since we were still in Ihram, I had to make sure no hair breakage, hence my hair were tied in a bun while taking a quick shower to feel fresh and clean before the BIG day.
Since our tent was close to Jamarat and the train station, our group left on foot towards the train station. We carried small backpacks with us which had a small pocket Quran, book with all the duas, a small diary which had everyone's duas written in it, Some energy boosting snacks, a counter, a tasbeeh, our documents. The train station was over crowded - lots n lots of people. Keep some energy boosting things for you and lots of water so you can stand in those lines without fainting.
Once in the train, pls keep in mind, it will be very congested, best is to be with your friends/spouse. Keep reciting Talbiyah on top of your voices. It is the BEST feeling in the whole world I think.

When we were kids and used to watch Hajj on tv, we would keep reciting the talbiyah with them and felt a part of the group. Similarly, when in REAL life, I was reciting Talbiyah with the entire Hujj group, I had tears of joy, tears of satisfaction, running down my eyes.

We reached Arafat and were taken to our tent there. We prayed Zuhr and Asar there, and after Khutbah e Hajj, everyone went outside the tents to sit under the sun, in the open ground ! This is Day of Arafah, this is Hajj. You sit there on the ground, with your hands extended in front of Allah and you pray. I had a book with me which had a wonderful comprehensive dua for day of Arafah, I read it and cried. While I was going through that book, I came across a saying from hadees,

There is not a single day that the sun has come up on more beloved to Allah (Subhanahu wa ta'ala) than the Day of Arafat. The Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) said, "There is no day on which Allah frees more of His slaves from Fire than the Day of Arafat, and He verily draws near, then boasts of them before the angles, saying: 'What do they seek?'" (Sahih Muslim). And in another hadith: "Verily Allah boasts of the people of Arafat before the people of Heaven (angels) saying: 'Look to my servants who have come to Me disheveled and dusty.'"
Abdullah ibn Al-Mubaarak narrates: I went to Sufyaan ibn al-Uyaynah as the day of Arafat was setting. He sat on his knees, his hands raised to the Heavens, and tears moistened his cheeks and beard. He turned and looked at me, so I asked him, "Amongst the people who have gathered here for Hajj, who is in the worst state?" Sufyaan ibn al-Uyaynah said, "He who thinks that Allah will not forgive him." 

Hence this is the day to ask for forgiveness, ask for whatever you want. Remember your friends, family, countrymen, enemies, distant relatives, acquaintance on this day. Remember Me in your prayers.

From Arafah we were supposed to leave for Muzdalfa around Maghrib time, but since the train station were super crowded and the train system had some issues, our departure from Muzdalfa was delayed. We left for Muzdalfa via train around 1:30am due to train issue.

Muzdalfa - 9th/10th Zilhajj
We were taken to our tent in Muzdalfa by our hajj group volunteers. On our way, we saw all the Hajis, sleeping peacefully under open sky on the roads of Muzdalfa. Trust me, you will have a very peaceful nap here, under an open sky full of stars.

At Muzdalifah, pilgrims collect pebbles (49, because seven are thrown at each of the three pillars each day) which will be thrown in the Stoning of the Devil ritual in Mina during the next 3 days. Pilgrims then spend the night at Muzdalfa, often sleeping in the open air, before leaving for Mina the next morning after Fajr.

Since during our time, the train system was a mess, a group of people from our tent decided to walk to Mina. So we walked 7-8kms to reach our tents in Mina. It took us around 1hr30mins. By the time we crossed Muzdalfa and entered Mina, it was right after Fajr prayer. Our group of friends decided to directly go to Jamarat and do the Rami (Stoning of devil) before the rush starts.

This was the best decision because there weren't many people in Jamarat at that time.

A night before the day of Arafah, we had a lady in our camp who gave us a small lecture on what exactly "Stoning of Shaitaan"is all about. One thing which hit my heart was her words
"During those two or three days after the Eid that one is in Mina, one must stone the three jamarāt, meaning that one must trample upon his internal despot (an-nafs al-'amāra), the external despot of the Shaitan from the Jinn (Iblīs and those like him), and the Shaitan from among the Humans (the enemies of religion and of humanity).
"The stoning of the three jamarāt is, in essence, the trampling upon the despots and waging war against all of them. When one focuses on them and the hatred for them, then one automatically focuses with complete attention upon one's self – and rightfully so – while stoning the jamarāt, one must focus entirely upon one's self.
"You are not stoning the pillars, you are throwing all your worldly desires outside, all your fears, all incorrect thoughts, all of backbiting, all of shirk thoughts, everything that you know is not right, You are throwing that out - "In your face, Shaitaan ! I'm stronger than what you think, I'm here to tell you, you cant win us".

Trust me, when I thought of this while stoning the Shaitaan, I was throwing the stones with all my might, with all the hatred towards those pillars reciting "Allah o Akbar, Allah o Akbar"! I was about to be pure like a new born baby, my sins will be washed away today. Think about this and then stone the Shaitaan. On this day you just stone the Biggest Jamarah with seven pebbles.
My husband and I, left towards Haram right after stoning the Shaitaan. We were tired but this was yet again one of the good decisions my husband had taken. Since most of the people were on the way to Jamarat, there was no rush in Haram. We easily found a taxi outside Bin Dawood that took us to Haram. The locals were offering Eid Namaz, while my husband and I along with a handful of people quickly did our Tawaf - e- Ifadah, on the ground floor, right in front of Kaaba.

The moment we got done from Tawaf e Ifadah we left for Mina, we found a taxi, which dropped us till the bus stop and we took the SAPTCO bus, that was luckily empty at that time. The bus dropped us under the Mina tunnel and we walked back to our tent, which was closeby.

Alhumdulillah, we completed our Hajj at this point. We had paid for the qurbani already and had the token which stated the qurbani will happen after Eid Salah. My husband got his head shaved, I trimmed my hair, took a bath and got ready for Eid day !

Our Hajj was done! The rest of the people from our group left for Tawaf I Ifadah after Zuhr and they had a tough time looking for taxis, the ones they found charged them 400-500sr, on the way back also, SAPTCO buses were full and taxis weren't allowed in the Mina area. But still they managed to perform Tawaf I Ifadah and got done with their Hajj too - Alhumdulillah.

Carry some makeup with you and new Eid Clothes, in your Mina camp, with your female friends, do celebrate Eid

Jamarat  - Stoning of Devil - 11th-12th Zilhajj

The next 2 days, we went back to Jamarat to stone the Shaitaan. We used to leave around 11am and back to our tents in half an hour.

Most of the Hujjajs from Mina left for Tawaf I Widah on 12th night. Our group stayed an additional day in Mina and we left for tawaf I widah night of 13th Zilhujj, all of us did our tawaf in a group and returned back to our buses to leave for the airport.

This completed our Hajj journey with Alfaris and returned back with new resolutions, forgiven by Allah SWT to our homes.



This is all from my end, if you feel I have missed out anything and should have covered that, please let me know and I will be glad to add it to this article.

Remember all Muslims in your duas, Pakistan and my family and myself in your duas

May Allah make this Hajj Mabroor for you ! Ameen




Tuesday 9 August 2016

Hajj Recap - Power Guide - part 1

Dear Friends,

Hujj is very close to my heart, this is one pillar of Islam, which requires lots n lots of patience, willpower. For some, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, for years they plan for this journey and hence everyone wants to make the most out of this opportunity !

We did Hujj in 2012 from Riyadh and it indeed was a memorable journey, every year I try my best to help out the groups leaving for Hujj by sharing our wonderful Hujj experience, so they can get an idea about Hujj, what to expect and what not to do.

Since now hujj is 30 days away, I thought I will quickly recap the 7 days of Hujj journey.

Before Departure:

We had registered with Alfaris group from Riyadh, after getting the Hujj vaccination and our Tasreeh (Hujj permit) on 3rd zilhujj (4days before departure), the group gave us a small handbag labelled with the group name, it carried a small counter, a tasbeeh and our name tags with Hujj tent and accommodation details. We had decided to travel light becase it was just 7 days and in Mina the tents are small, so we had to take that into consideration. So instead of taking hand-carries, we took the 2 small handbags that Alfaris gave us and one backpack for Arafat and Muzdalfa.

What we Packed:
Hajj List - What to carry for 2 people (7 day trip)

Departure from Riyadh to Jeddah - 7th Zilhujj:

Our group, AlFaris, departed from Riyadh on 7th Zilhujj for our first leg of the hujj journey. The entire group was taken by Saudi Airlines to Jeddah. Since we just hand handbags so we all took the luggage in the plane. IT WAS THE BEST DECISION, because the baggage waiting at Jddah airport is KILLER. When we landed, we all had our bags with us so it was easier for us to gather at the meeting point and into our buses, ready for departure. However, a couple of people in our group, had bigger bags and they had checked it in, hence we had to wait for another 1.5hours for them to come out with their luggage. Later, they also regretted checking in their baggage because the carousel was a mess with so many local flights coming in at the same time.

So I will advise you all to travel LIGHT. Carry handbags that can be taken in the plane and not supposed to be checked-in.

The bus took us to Haram for Umrah (Must before Hujj). We all performed Umrah and came back to our bus stop and left for Mina. Here, I will like to mention, as you know there are 3 kinds of Hujj. We did Hujj Qiran, stayed in Ihram from 7th till 10th zilhujj.

Hajj-e-Qiran:  Literally Qiran means to combine two things. A pilgrim who performs this kind of Hajj combines Hajj and Umrah. After performing Umrah a Qarin (person who is performing Hajj-e-Qiran) will perform Hajj with that same Ihraam. (Ref: http://www.dalil-alhaj.com/en/qa.htm)

The Logical Plan for the Pilgrim performing Qiran Hajj
Before the 8th of Dhul Hijjah
Ihram from Miqat intending ‘Umrah and Hajj together and saying Talbiyah
Before the 8th of Dhul Hijjah
Tawaf of ‘Umrah
Two rak‘as of Tawaf
Al Multazam – Zamzam
Sa‘y of ‘Umrah (Do neeyah for sa,y Hujj also, because of same Ihram)
Before the 8th of Dhul Hijjah
To stay in the state of Ihram in Makkah until the eighth of Dhul Hijja
8th of Dhul Hijjah
The pilgrim goes to Mina after Fajr prayer where he prays (Zuhr - Asr - Maghrib - Isha and Fajr of the 9th day)
9th of Dhul Hijjah
The pilgrim goes to Arafat after performing Fajr prayer
Arrival in Arafat
Combining in advance Zuhr and ‘Asr prayers at the time of Zuhr
To say as many supplications and invocations till sunset
He goes from Arafat to Muzdalifah after sunset (Ifadah)
Combining Maghrib and Isha prayers in Muzdalifah by postponement at the time of Isha
10th of Dhul Hijjah
Heading to Mina after Fajr prayer and before sunrise
Throwing of Jamrat Al-Aqaba
Slaying of al-Hady (Sacrificial animal)
Shaving hair or shortening
Tawaf Al-Ifadah
Sa‘y (if he didn’t perform it after Tawaf Al-Qudum)
Retuning to Mina and spending the night there
From the 11th till the 13th of Dhul Hijjah
Throwing pebbles at the three Jamarat (Al-Soughra, Al-Wusta, Al-Kubra)
Returning to Makkah for The Farewell Tawaf (Tawaf Al-Wida) - End of pilgrimage


Hajj-e-Tamattu: Tamattu literally means to enjoy or take advantage of a facility. A pilgrim who performs Hajj-e-Tamattu combines both Umrah and Hajj. The difference between Hajj-e-Qiran and Hajj-e-Tamattu is that after performing Umrah the Mutamatti (person who performs Hajj-e-Tamattu) relinquishes his/her Ihraam and on the 8th of Dhul Hijjah he/she resumes that Ihraam.


Hajj-e- Ifrad: The person who performs Hajj-e-Ifrad is called a Mufrid. Before passing through Miqaat (the place for assuming Ihraam) one will enter in the state of Ihraam and with the Niyyah of performing Hajj alone. A Mufrid does not combine Umrah with their Hajj. Hajj-e-Ifrad is the only kind of Hajj allowed for the residents of Makkah and the Hills (those who reside between Miqaat and the precincts of Haraam) for example Jeddah.

After Tawaf e Qudoom (First Umrah) we left for Mina around 5pm KSA time.

Mina - 8th ZilHujj:
The Hajji, has to stay in Mina for a day and pray Fajr (if arrived before Ishraaq), Zuhr, Asar, Maghrib, Isha and Fajr of next day before departure to Arafat. Our tent was in Maktab 1, very close to Jamarat. We entered in our tents, very pumped up but tired. Our rooms had bunk beds, which made the room less congested and more comfortable for us.
Our tent in Mina

Since we travelled LIGHT, it was easier for us to put our bags on ours beds because the rooms aren't big to accommodate huge bags.


In Mina, pray as much as you can. Read all the duas, best is to carry a pocket Quran Pak, which you can easily recite whenever you want.

9th Zilhujj - The day of Arafah and rest of Hujj steps, Ill recap in the next post. Next Post Uploaded






Hajj List - What to carry for 2 people

Dear Readers/Friends,
Since the Hajj season is close and the bookings from KSA will start in a week's time. Its an exciting journey and once in a lifetime opportunity for many. We did Hujj in 2012 with Alfaris Group (from Riyadh), and Alhumdulillah it was one of the most beautiful journey of our lifetime. We had the best time when in Mina, Arafat, Muzalfah and Haram. My daughter was 18 months old at that time and I had dropped her in Karachi, one week before our Hujj flight. ...She had a great time with her loving family back home. While I was away for Hujj, I did not contact her, skyped or facetime or anything. we were there for Ibadat and she was in safe hands - so no worries !!

Over years, I have tried my level best to help out other people who plan to go on this spiritual journey. I will try to jot down my experience over time here but I really wanted to share this list, which was compiled by my friend Nida Nauman and she shared with us before we departed for Hujj. Since we were going from Riyadh and for 7 days, this list was super helpful and we carried less luggage which was easier to keep in the room (Mina tent) and carry around (if needed)

Hajj List (2 persons)
1 - Ihram - 2 sets with belt
2 - Pocket size Quran -1 each
3 - Prayer Rugs - 1 each
4 - Tasbeeh - 1 each
5 - Tashrih, Hajj Permit, Iqama, PP copy, Medical Insurance each
6 - Ladies Shalwar Suits 4 sets (or whatever you are comfortable in)
7 - Mens clothing after ihram 2 sets
8 - Sweater or jacket - 1 each (We went end of Oct'2012, it was slightly chilly in Muzalfa so shawls helped)
9 - Bed Sheet 2 (We didn't carry this, because our group provided everything but you can keep a small one just in case)
10 - Slippers - 2 each
11 - Shoes + Socks for ladies
12 - Miswak/ Toothpaste/Toothbrush 1 each
13 - Handwash/Moisturiser/Wipes/Vaseline - Fragrance Free - 1 each (We got these easily from Boots/major pharmacies)
14 - Shampoo (after you are done with Ihram restrictions)
15 - Cell phone/charger with credit 1 each (We carried a Nokia old style phone and trust me when I say, everyday women in our tents were running here n there to get hold of a charging socket, we the Nokia holders spent 4 days without charging the phone)
16 - Medicines :Throat Infection,fever, flu, Stomach upset, Vomiting, Pain, Band Aids etc
17 - Towel 1 each
18 - Back Pack 1
19 - Cross bag 1
20 - Hand carry 2 each - separate for both
21 - Travel Umbrella 1
22 - Scissors
23 - Nail Cutter
24 - Cookies, Nuts and candies Separate for both
25 - Important Tel Nos.
26 - Polythene bags small & big each
27 - Duppattas/ Shawl to cover at Mina
28 - 2 Abayas
29- Comb + bands
30 - Tissues
31 - Hajj Books / Dua Books 1 each
32 - Scarf + caps 2 each
33 - Undergarments
34 - Sun glasses 1 each
35 - Disposable toilet seat covers - we got these from the pharmacy
36 - Masks (to cover face to protect from infections)
Hope this helps whoever is planning Hujj this year.
This list is for a 7 day trip for 2 people !