Life Of A Typical Malay - January 2000
Day 5 Saturday - 1/1/2000
With no other plans for the day, I spent the morning doing some shopping. Everyone here is either shopping,selling or begging. There are far too many beggars in this city, most of them are foreigners - from African countries.
I did not buy lots of stuff, merely some skull caps, scarves,prayer mats, etc.
I only gave one riyal each to people who asked money from me. Except for one girl, I thought it was one riyal note but it turned out to be a tenner, so she was very happy and I just smiled.
I lost my way back to the hotel and had to ask one policeman who was not that helpful. Managed to find my way after more than an hour checking every street and corner. Maybe that was God punishment for spending too long doing something I was not suppossed to do - shopping.
Took a bit of rest until 11-00 am, my other room mates, Haji Husin, Zulkarnain and Haji Ibrahim were all asleep. Pity Zulkarnain, he's been sick since arrival.
I was ready to go to the mosque at 11-30 am when Haji Husin asked me to show him a shop that sells newspaper. It's frustrating - it's damn difficult to get newspapers, I only know one shop the sells English newspapers and that's a few bocks away.
I paid another visit to Prophet Muhammad's (SAW) grave before entering the mosque for the second time. I tried to go as far in as possible only to find I was on the other side of the mosque. Had to make another round
and after a few minutes I managed to inch myself closer to Raudhah. Far too many people. I kept saying, God, I want to say my prayer at Raudhah, just let me in.
The soldiers that were manning Raudhah were busy pushing people and yelling at them not to enter and I took the opportunity to dash to one corner when they were not looking. I felt so happy inside tears started to roll down my cheeks.
I even stayed until Maghrib (and breaking of fast) there, reading Quran and saying my prayers. Wanted to stay until Isyak but had to go out for ablution.
Breaking of fast was a quick affair for me, first because they served
yoghurt ( I don't take yoghurt ), second because the whole setting
was (to me) a bit unhygenic...(I'm not telling what I saw). So I choosed not to eat, I only had a cup of holy water (ZamZam Water).
Read in the newspaper about one nasty accident somewhere between Mecca and Medina - 17 Malaysian
pigrims were killed when their bus plunged into a ravine.
Oh, and we are leaving for Mecca tomorrow...
Day 6 Sunday - 2/1/2000
It was sad to leave Madinah, I was at the mosque the whole day, visiting Prophet Muhammad's (SAW) grave and reading Quran.
Just after Asar I made my last round of visit, I also toured the mosque complex and its surrounding. Breaking of fast was at the mosque behind the hotel because we were in a hurry.
By 6-30 pm I was already in Ihram (Ihram is the intention of the person willing to perform all rites of 'Umrah, Hajj or both when he arrives at the Miqat. Each direction coming into Makkah has its own Miqat. It is recommended that the one who intends to perform Hajj/Umrah makes Ghusl (a shower with the intention to purify one's self), perfumes his body, but not his garments, and puts on a two piece garment with no headgear. The garments should be of seamless cloth. One piece to cover the upper part of the body, and the second to cover the lower part. For a woman the Ihram is the same except that she should not use perfumes at all and her dress should cover the whole body decently, leaving the hands and the face uncovered.
We proceeded to Mecca by bus after Maghrib, stopping at Bir Ali for Miqat (intention ) and at another mosque for Isyak prayer.
It was a sea of dry land, hills and rocks throughout the journey unlike the more eye-friendly, green environment we have back home in Malaysia.
We had a little accident about 2 hours from Mecca, the bus we were travelling in rammed into a car which was driven by an old man. The bumper was badly damaged but we were all ok. Both the drivers argued for a good 2 hours until a policeman arrived. I just shook my head, knowing exactly Arabs are rough, arrogant and stubborn. Ok, how long did the Iran-Iraq war last? Iraq-Kuwait war?
We arrived in Mecca at around 2.00 am local time after wasting more than 4 hours by the roadside somewhere in the middle of the desert.
Like Madinah, Mecca is nothing but a ritual town with trading and retailing as the backbone of the economy.
After checking in at our apartment, we went straight to Masjidil Haram to do our Umrah. When a Muslim arrives in Mecca , he should make Tawaf.
Umrah has five sequences that need to be performed consecutively. It is worth mentioning that most of the sequences are actually derived from the history of Ka’abah and the family of Prophet Abraham (RA) particularly his wife, Hagar (RA),
and son, Prophet Ismael (RA).
The tawaf, the second sequence after Niaat (commitment), is where Muslims circle seven times around on the Ka’abah.
The Ka’abah underwent several repairs since Prophet Abraham (AS) erected it. It is actually a cube structure measuring 15 meter high covered by a black curtain. The Ka’abah has four corners but the length between the corners are different. The seven rounds ritual was first started by Prophet Abraham (RA) after he completed the Ka’abah.
Although Muslims are required to circle the Ka’abah during Hajj and Umrah, and face towards Ka’abah while praying, it does not, in anyway, mean that Muslims worship the structure. Islam upholds the belief of one God. Therefore, the Ka’abah is neither worshipped by Muslims nor act as an intermediary for them to communicate with God.
Nevertheless, tawaf is not merely an act of circling the Ka’abah but more importantly, it is a ritual that praises and acknowledges that Allah (SWT) is the one and the al-Mighty God. Muslims are encouraged to cite prayers while performing the tawaf.
The next rite is to make Sa'i between Safa and Marwah. This is associated with the history of Hagar and her son, Ismael (AS). In Sa’ie, pilgrims are required to take brisk walks seven times between two hills named Safa and Marwah. The distance between the hills is about 400 meters.
Historically, prior to becoming a religious centre, Mecca was no better than any other places in the Arabian Desert. The valley was unpopulated and used to be a passage for traders plying the northern and southern areas of the Arab Peninsula. Settlement was only started when Prophet Abraham (RA), urged by his first wife Sara, the mother of Prophet Isaac (RA) who, in turn, is the father of the Jews, was forced to bring his second wife Hagar to the south of Syria.
Prophet Abraham (RA), upon instruction by God, left Hagar and the then baby Ismael (RA) in the desert, leaving his fate to God. Left alone in the vast desert with limited supplies was a real challenge for the mother and her baby. When their supplies dried, Hagar was frantically looking for food and water in the middle of the desert, but to no avail.
She then ran several times between the Safa and Marwa, hoping to see traders passing nearby. In the meantime, baby Ismael (RA), suffering from thirst, was crying for water while kicking the soil under him. Miraculously, a sprout of water emerged from the soil under his toe. Noticing that, Hagar then ran to her baby and built a sand block around the water sprinkler which was later named zam-zam.
From then on, traders who passed the area would make a stopover to fill up their water supply. Slowly, the area grew to become Mecca. The well is still producing water even after thousand of years later and the water is still enjoyed by Muslims today.
The final rite after Sa'i is to shave one' s head or to cut some of the hair. Shaving the head is, however, preferable for it was reported that the Prophet prayed three times for those who shaved their heads, when he said: "May Allah's Mercy be upon those who shaved their heads." - Bukhari and Muslim.For women, the length of hair to be cut is that of a finger tip.
The whole rites took more than 2 hours to complete, the mosque was packed with worshippers and pilgrims. I cried buckets .I felt so naked. I felt so small.
With more than 2 million people expected to converge here in the next few days, my dreams of kissing Hajarul Aswad (The Sacred Black Stone fixed about breast high in the eastern corner of the Ka’bah was originally placed there by Prophet Abraham. )
and saying prayers at Hijir Ismael (Located adjacently to the north of Ka’abah is a one meter wall called Hijir Ismail. It forms part of the Ka’abah and named in association to Prophet Abraham’s son, Prophet Ismael (RA)) and Abraham Station/Point (Makam Ibrahim (Abraham Point) is actually a rock containing a footprint of the Prophet. The Makam is located nine meters to the East of Ka’abah. It is believed that Prophet Abraham (RA) to stand on the rock during the construction of the Ka’abah, his footprints was miraculously left on the rock) look so slim.
Day 7 Monday 3/1/2000
I did a few rounds of Tawaf today, before and after Zohor, Asar and Isyak. I was dead tired.
(I can easily finish it in 15
minutes if it was not in Ramadhan but now it takes up to an hour)
The congregation was so big I only managed to circle the
Kaabah, other rituals like praying at Multazam, behind Abraham's Station
and Hijir Ismael were almost impossible.
And today being the 26th of Ramadhan,
the Night Of Power (Lailatul Qadr),
people from every corner of the Kingdom thronged the mosque to spend the night,
praying and doing other rituals.
It was certainly a day to remember, roads leading to the mosque were
packed with people, I could see people as far as a few miles away
while trying to find a space on the rooftop of the mosque for Isyak and Tarawikh.
I managed to squeeze myself in and ended up praying
on a staircase. It was extremely difficult and cumbersome but at least I got a space, a tiny little space. Hundreds and thousands other people just said their prayer on the streets.
The event was being carried live to a few other Arab countries.
I did not wake up for Tahajjud and Witr but managed to do another round of Tawaf before Subuh.
Day 8 Tuesday 4/1/2000
It was reported in Saudi Gazette that more than 2.5 million people
thronged Masjidil Haram (The Grand Mosque) last night, the biggest
congregation in recent years, surpassing even Hajj season.
This morning were were taken for a tour to various places of
historical around Mecca, Mina and Muzdalifah. First was to
the foot of Jabal Thur, on top of this hill is a cave in which the Holy
Prophet and Hazrat Abu Bakr lay hidden for three days at the
time of their migration to Madinah.
Next we went to Jabal Nur (Hill of Nur). There's also a cave at the top of this hill/mountain
where Prophet Muhammad (SAW) used to meditate
and detached himself from the deviated Mecca’s residents.
It was here that he received the first Quranic verse of Surah al-Iqra.
The amazing thing about the triangular cave is that it faces directly
towards the Ka’abah.
We also visited Jabal al-Rahmah, the hill where Adam (AS) and Eve (AS)
were united after they were expelled to earth. Jabal al-Rahmah
is also a sacred hill in the middle of the Plain of Arafat.
Riding his she camel near it, the Holy Prophet (may peace be upon him) delivered his famous sermon on the occasion of the Farewell Hajj.
Next was a tour of Arafat Plains, Mina and Muzdalifah to see the routes to be taken by pilgrims during hajj season.
Our last stop for the day was at Jaaranah Mosque to do our niiat as Jaaranah is one of the Miqaats. It was hard to explain but I lost my slippers again (for the fourth time so far). That really puzzled me because there were less than 10 people inside the mosque at the time.
We reached Masjidil Haram at 12-45 pm, just in time for Zohor.
I managed to complete my Tawaf before Asar, it was hot and I was
sweating all over. The crowd was not as big as this morning.It is
mind-boggling to see other Muslim brothers in the same clothing,
performing the same rituals and act humbly in front of God.
It is interesting to note that the Ka’abah and the area
surrounding it is clean at all time despite the large crowds and
birds flying overhead. Similarly, I didn’t see any birds resting
on the Ka’abah structure anywhere.
My Sae'i was done after Asar and by the time I finished that 7 rounds it was already time to break my fast.
I went to bed a bit early today, about 10-30 pm, after going to Makkah Hilton to buy newspaper.
Day 9 Wednesday 5/1/2000
I did another round of Tawaf before and after Subuh prayer, the one after the prayer took much longer because the crowd was pretty big.
I got back to the apartment and donned my Ihram with the intention of going to Tan'aim to do my niaat for another Umrah. Zulkarnain and Haji Hussin had already left so I had to go alone. Went to the bus station only to waste nearly an hour waiting for the bus that never arrived. These Arabs, they just never care, it was frustrating to ask them without getting answers. They just ignore you, Makkah is not for the light hearted people. I never get offended with their attitude, I'm here to perform my religious obligations, to pray to God I have no time for those petty things.
I then went to the other side of the terminal trying to charter a taxi but gave up after asking a few drivers. These people are immigrants
from Cut-Throat Island obviously. I went back to the apartment only to learn Zulkarnain and Haji Husin could not make it to Tana'aim either. We then spent a few minutes chatting about our previous experiences, this is Zulkarnain's third visit too and Haji Husin's second.
Tonight saw another large crowd converging Masjidil Haram, so big
I could not even find a space to pray. What happened was,
right after having my meals after Maghrib, I decided to make a
Tawaf and after inching my way towards Ka'abah, I managed to make my
7 rounds without
having to read the arabic verses (and the malay translations) - it
was so packed with people the circumbuation took almost an hour to
finish.
During azan (call for Isyak prayer), I tried to get closer to the Ka'abah
only to find myself being pushed further away. Suddenly waves
of people started to
push from every direction, trapping us in the middle.
The ladies started to scream and I saw a few trampled to the ground, making it more difficult
to move around. We were still trapped when Isyak prayer started, and the police (with loud speaker)
asked us to be calm. I just followed the wave and it took us nearly an hour to get out from the mosque. By that time, Tarawikh prayer has already started.
Outside the mosque, I saw sea of people, utterly unbelieveble sight. Managed to say my Isyak and then joined them for Tarawikh, I only did the remaining 8 rakaats. Being (probably) the last night of Tarawikh, the imam said a special doa towards the end. It lasted nearly an hour. People cried hysterically, too bad I don't understand Arabic.
Day 10 Thursday 6/1/2000
I tried to do Umrah again this morning but ended up in bed instead.
Went to the bus station near Hilton Hotel, the same story again,
no buses and taxis available - locals started to leave the city in
droves.
Frustrated, I went inside the mosque and did Tawaf instead. Had a
very nice sleep until 12-00 pm right after that. I took to the street
of Mecca after Zohor, didn't do much shopping, just watching
and observing people.
To Hilton Hotel and saw quite a
number of wealthy Malaysians window shopping. Some of them seemed
very familiar to me. Must be Datuks and Datins. Or something.
Right after doing another tawaf (after Asar), I went to buy some
food to be distributed to the people on the streets. Bought a few
kilos of
breads and dozens of cups of yoghurt. I managed to distribute and
finish one box of food when suddenly a woman (in veil)
grabbed the other box and tried to take it away.
I was taken aback but did not do anything, I just shook my head.
By then I saw cups of yoghurts being thrown everywhere. These
people (the Arabs), all they know is ..... quarrel/fight. What a
shame.
I felt a bit guilty for that.
Just before Isyak, cannons being fired to mark the end of Ramadhan, and to
signal the start of Eid. We said takbir and I did another round of Tawaf
to celebrate Eid.
Tonight we (me and Zukarnain) went to one Indonesian Restaurant and bought nasi
briyani for dinner.
Day 11 Friday 7/1/2000
I woke up a bit early and donned my newly bought white robe. Did another round of Tawaf before Subuh. Eid prayer started about an hour later.
Went to Hilton Hotel and bought some cakes and cookies at American Donut House.
It was a fairly quiet Eid, no celebrations, no nothing. Didn't "try" to go for Umrah today, was a bit tired, after one whole month of fasting I guess.
Did a few rounds of Tawaf though, before and after Zohor,Asar, Maghrib and Isyak. Went out for a bit of shopping, bought a pair of sport shoes and a waist pouch. We spent the night chatting away, retired to bed at 10-00 pm, tommorrow I'm going mountain climbing.
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