Today we start to talk about Hajj and the best books that will lead you to ponder over this absolutely cataclysmic event in your life. Please prepare your mind for an immersion in something that you have an idea about but no clear view of, if it is your first Hajj.
Please also be aware that all reading and looking up terms and prayers stands meaningless when you stand at Arafat or make your Tawaf around the Kaaba. No Dua matters, only your heart beats to a rhythm that you can not identify later. Faith, takes over...and for those like I, who question their faith repeatedly it is a watershed event where doubts do not strangle your mind and, thoughts though they do stray, are more often focussed on the Talbiyah than on anything else. Even the delirium of fever can be a blessing in disguise.
So dear prospective Hajji, read but reflect more..
1. HAJJ: Reflection on Its Rituals by Ali Shariati
Dr. Shariati presents a very esoteric but practical explanation of Hajj and its rituals and how they are grounded in the myths of our Deen. Almost a Sufi style of writing.
2. One Thousand Roads to Mecca: Ten Centuries of Travelers Writing About the Muslim Pilgrimage by Michael Wolfe
You will find yourself very much in tune with other Hajjis of ages gone by. Some went in good times and others in times that were bad for the Ummah. All underwent considerable hardships quite akin to your own.
Please also be aware that all reading and looking up terms and prayers stands meaningless when you stand at Arafat or make your Tawaf around the Kaaba. No Dua matters, only your heart beats to a rhythm that you can not identify later. Faith, takes over...and for those like I, who question their faith repeatedly it is a watershed event where doubts do not strangle your mind and, thoughts though they do stray, are more often focussed on the Talbiyah than on anything else. Even the delirium of fever can be a blessing in disguise.
So dear prospective Hajji, read but reflect more..
1. HAJJ: Reflection on Its Rituals by Ali Shariati
Dr. Shariati presents a very esoteric but practical explanation of Hajj and its rituals and how they are grounded in the myths of our Deen. Almost a Sufi style of writing.
2. One Thousand Roads to Mecca: Ten Centuries of Travelers Writing About the Muslim Pilgrimage by Michael Wolfe
You will find yourself very much in tune with other Hajjis of ages gone by. Some went in good times and others in times that were bad for the Ummah. All underwent considerable hardships quite akin to your own.
