Hajj الحج

In review — pending scholar verification

The annual pilgrimage to Mecca; the fifth pillar of Islam, obligatory at least once for every able Muslim.

Overview

Hajj (حَجّ) is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca and its surrounding sacred sites — the fifth of the Five Pillars — incumbent once in a lifetime upon every able Muslim. Its rites trace the legacy of Ibrahim and his family at the Ka'bah, restored to pure monotheism by the Prophet ﷺ in his Farewell Pilgrimage of 10 AH.

Etymology

The Arabic root ح-ج-ج means to intend or set out toward a noble destination. In Sacred Law it denotes the specific intention to perform the prescribed rites at appointed times and places.

Quranic references

The obligation is in: Surah Al-Imran 3:97 — 'And [due] to Allah from the people is a pilgrimage to the House — for whoever is able to find thereto a way.'

Its Abrahamic origin: Surah Al-Hajj 22:27 — 'And proclaim to the people the Hajj; they will come to you on foot and on every lean camel; they will come from every distant pass.'

On the rites at Masjid al-Haram: Surah Al-Baqarah 2:158 — 'Indeed, as-Safa and al-Marwah are among the symbols of Allah.'

And the standing at Arafat: Surah Al-Baqarah 2:198 — 'But when you depart from Arafat, remember Allah at al-Mash'ar al-Haram.'

Hadith and tradition

Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever performs Hajj for the sake of Allah and does not utter obscenity or commit transgression, returns [free of sin] as the day his mother bore him." — Sahih al-Bukhari 1521

The Prophet ﷺ said: "Hajj is Arafah. Whoever arrives by the night of Jam' before fajr has caught the Hajj." — Graded Sahih by al-Albani — Jami al-Tirmidhi 889

The rites include Tawaf around the Ka'bah, Sa'i between Safa and Marwah, standing at Arafat, the night at Muzdalifah, and the stoning at Mina. Many pilgrims complete Umrah as part of Tamattu' or Qiran.

Significance

Hajj is a public enactment of Tawhid, stripping the pilgrim of worldly markers in the ihram. It revives the legacy of Ibrahim, Isma'il, and Hajar; it embodies the unity of the ummah; and a Hajj mabrur (accepted) has no recompense other than Paradise, as the Prophet ﷺ stated in Sahih Muslim 1349.

References

Ibn Kathir, Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim, on Surah Al-Hajj and Surah Al-Imran 3:97.
Al-Tabari, Jami al-Bayan, the rites of pilgrimage and their Abrahamic origin.
Al-Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim, Kitab al-Hajj.
Ibn al-Qayyim, Zad al-Ma'ad, the Farewell Pilgrimage of the Prophet ﷺ.