How can perform hajj

Facilities have also been set up here to feed the pilgrims and meet any requirement they may have. After the sun has set this river of humanity retraces its steps back toward Makkah, but stops at Muzdalifah until the brightness of day appears on the eastern horizon.

Here the pilgrims collect seven pebbles and carry them to Mina. As they arrive in the valley, they trek along a two-level pedestrian walkway some yards wide toward the three stone pillars called the Jamarat, which are meant to represent Satan.

The pilgrims are required to cast the pebbles they have collected at the Stone Pillar of Aqabah while praising God, in a symbolic rejection of Satan. As the pilgrims approach along the walkway, they join those already at the pillar and, after hurling their pebbles circle toward the exit ramp in the direction of Makkah. Signs in various major languages direct the crowds along the route. The pilgrims then walk some four miles along pedestrian walkways to reach Makkah, where they perform the tawaf, circling the Ka'abah in the Holy Mosque seven times counter clockwise.

They then perform sa'ay, the running between Safa and Marwa in an enclosed, air-conditioned structure. Male pilgrims are then required to shave their heads, although cutting a lock of hair is acceptable for both men and women. At this point the pilgrims sacrifice an animal, donating its meat to the needy.

Each year, over , animals are sacrificed, in modern abattoirs that complete the processing of the meat over the three days of the Eid.

Distribution of this sacrificial meat goes to those in need in some 30 countries. The rites of the pilgrimage are now completed. Pilgrims come out of Ihram and wear their normal clothes, but remain at Mina for the Eid Al-Adha, the festival that signals the culmination of the Hajj. Over the next two days, they stone the three pillars in the Jamarat, before performing the Tawaf Al-Wida', the Farewell Circumambulation of the Ka'abah before their departure from the city.

While not required as part of the Hajj, most pilgrims visit the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah during their visit to the Kingdom. Throughout the Hajj, the largest annual gathering of people on Earth, the pilgrimage is marked by a total absence of any disagreements or altercations among the pilgrims. Courtesy and helping others are the norm. Peace, serenity and piety pervade the entire pilgrimage and the pilgrims. At the conclusion of the Hajj, the pilgrim has a profound feeling of having gone through a life-transforming spiritual experience.

He comes away with pride in having successfully performed a ritual dedicated to God and in belonging to a huge family of people that shares the same religious beliefs. And he has acquired a sense of humility, inner calm, brotherhood and strength that lasts a lifetime. Labayk Allahuma Labayk Labayk. La shareeka laka Labayk. Innal hamda wannimata laka wal mulk. Preparing to Welcome the Guests of God "It is truly amazing," said Rajeeb Razul, a journalist from the Philippines, as he stood on the roof of the Ministry of Information building near the Nimera Mosque in Arafat watching a column of pilgrims that stretched to Mina almost eight miles in the distance make their way past the mosque toward the Mount of Mercy.

A Vast Brotherhood Performing the Hajj is the spiritual apex of a Muslim's life, one that provides a clear understanding of his relationship with God and his place on Earth. Arriving in Makkah Before heading toward Makkah, the pilgrims are already dressed in Ihram or may change at Miqat, where special facilities are set up for this purpose. The Rites of Pilgrimage After sunrise on the ninth of the Islamic month of Dhu Al-Hajjah, this vast crowd of nearly two million begins to walk some eight miles to the Plain of Arafat, passing Muzdalifah on the way.

Further, FAQs and their cogent replies are also available on the above-said website. Intending pilgrims shall upload the following documents as enclosure :. The closing date for submission of online HAF shall be 31st January, Haj Repeater is, however, eligible as a Mehram of a Female Pilgrim, if no other Mehram who has not performed Haj is available. In case, the Lady Pilgrim cancels pilgrimage, then the Haj seat of such Repeater shall also stands automatically cancelled. It is believed that at this spot in Mina, the devil appeared and tried to dissuade Abraham from heeding the command.

Abraham responded by throwing stones to scare him off. Millions of pilgrims converge at the Jamarat Bridge, which houses the three columns representing the devil, in order to re-enact the story. The bridge has been the sight of deadly stampedes in the past, with around people being crushed to death in After casting their stones, pilgrims must perform the sacrifice.

Completing the story, when Abraham went to sacrifice his son, he found God had placed a ram there to be slaughtered instead. Pilgrims thus must slaughter a sheep, goat, cow or camel — or more likely, pay for it to be done in their names.

At this point, pilgrims trim or shave men only their hair and remove their ihram clothes. On each day, they will again symbolically stone the devil — this time throwing seven pebbles at each of the three pillars. With the hardest part behind them, pilgrims will now spend the next two or three days in Mina.

Before heading home, many also go to Medina, the second holiest city in Islam, where the Prophet Muhammad is buried along with his closest companions. Visiting Medina, however, is not part of the pilgrimage. Trips have been cancelled amid restrictions on flights and a reluctance of Saudi companies to work with Qatari firms.

Al Jazeera examines the religious excursion for nearly two million Muslims and where many pilgrims are coming from.