EVERY year, hundreds of thousands of Muslims from around the world gather in Makkah, a central place of inhabited portion of the Earth. In Makkah, the House of God (Kaaba, Bait Allah) was founded by Prophet Adam (peace be upon him), the father of human race on earth. Hence there is no better way to unite humanity other than to call them to gather in the house of their One and the Only Creator. Every single member of human race on the globe has a natural affiliation with his greatest grandfather, Adam (peace be upon him). Hence every human being would like to visit the house constructed by the ultimate father. The very sacred house was reconstructed by Prophet Ibrahim (pbuh), the founding father of great religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Every Muslim, Christian and Jew today has deep respect for this great prophet.
Hence Makkah is not only the geographical center of the world but it is also the pivot point of humanity, believers of Abrahamic faith and the Muslims. For every Muslim, who can afford, it is obligatory for him to travel to Makkah to perform Haj once in his/her life time. It is the fifth pillar of Islam. A Muslim is forgiven of all sins as a result of an accepted Haj, as declared by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). One of the major functions of Haj is the circumambulation of Kaaba, which is the most natural form of unity as observed at microscopic level in electrons circulating around nucleus of an atom. At telescopic level, we observe the same phenomena in in solar systems whereas the planets are orbiting around the sun. Can there be a better form of physical unity other than this?
The major rite of the Haj is the gathering in Arafat, a reminder of the place where the whole humanity will gather on the Day of Judgment in front of Allah, the Lord of the universe. During this gathering, imam, the leader of the gathering delivers his speech in the light of Holy Qur’an, the word of Allah. The children of Adam (pbuh), physically gather at one place and listen to the instructions of their Creator.
Prophet Muhammed (pbuh), the last prophet, delivered detailed instructions during his speech of Haj. He declared that life and property of every Muslim in “as sacred as this month, this day and this city (Makkah)”. He instructed not to hurt any one so that no one will hurt you. He further advised that all mankind is from Prophet Adam (pbuh) and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over non–Arab nor a non–Arab has no superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over black, nor a black has any superiority over a white except by piety and good action. He instructed to learn that every Muslim is brother to every Muslim and that Muslims constitute one brotherhood.
It is the point where the faithful is guided to the path of success in this world and the Hereafter. This success is achievable only if humanity is united to follow the instructions of their Lord. Every soul on this planet needs it. Today humanity is feeling deep thirst of this unity and peace.
But why it is not achievable?
This is because there is an enemy of humanity who has been created to misguide humanity. It is this enemy, Satan (the devil) who divides human beings on the basis of their races, colors, languages, regions and ethnic backgrounds. Because of such divisions, Satan injects hatred among those living in different areas or speaking different languages. Upon the intoxicating effect of the Satan, one feels himself superior than other and hence starts hating him. Sometime this hatred escalates to the level of murder of innocent people.
Hatred, jealousy, arrogance, greed, anger are all poisons injected by Satan into human blood to ultimately destroy the humanity altogether. To recognize our real enemy and to get united against him, every person performing Haj has to hit the Satan by stones. As an important step of Haj, the fight against Satan is planned during the night after Arafat. Stones (tiny pebbles) are collected to hit the Devil (a stone wall symbolizing Satan) during the next three days. Upon thinking deeply we realize that if a person is seriously planning for three days continuously to fight his enemy, he will be well prepared to defeat him through real tests in life. But note! Here man is not alone. All the faithful are united against their only enemy, Satan. Again this is done as a following of Abraham (pbuh). He was misguided by Satan at three stages where he hit him with stones. What a lesson to all humanity to get united against their common enemy, Satan.
Another lesson of Haj is sacrifice! Sacrifice for the well-being of others. Hence as a token, an animal is slaughtered so that its meat is distributed among the needy people of world. Now-a-days this meat is shipped to famine-hit and poor countries.
There is an obvious social spirit in all practices of Islam. It is not only worship of Allah that the Muslims gather five times in a mosque. If purpose is only the worship of Allah, then it is better to be performed in isolation. There is definitely a social aim in gathering the faithful in one place. This is a show of unity and solidarity. It is for sharing and caring. The problems and disputes are to be resolved by mutual dialogue and consultations.
For the faithful, these meetings are scheduled five times a day on local community level, once in a week on town level, twice an year on city level and once in a lifetime on global level.
Hence during Haj, the organizers may arrange meetings of various communities to resolve the issue faced by nations of the world.
The government of Saudi Arabia has been playing a leading role in this noble cause. After Haj, separate conferences may be arranged on human right issues of Burmese Muslims, peoples’ rights in Syria, rights of Palestinians, self-determination of Kashmir, conflict in Chechnya and so on. Conferences on the interfaith dialogue initiated by the leadership of the Kingdom may also be organized in Jeddah and scholars of different faith may be invited to propose solutions to ongoing problems faced by the world.
Let us hope and work to unite all humanity in submission to our Creator, to strengthen love among children of our father, Adam (pbuh) and fight against our common enemy, Satan.
